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English
Idioms and Expressions
When I am working with clients to help them improve their English communication and take it to the next level, one of the areas which often challenges them is idioms, even at advanced lev- els. Idioms are a way of expressing yourself in language, which help you sound more natural but can be tricky because there may be an exact translation from your own language, or the expression might have a word or two different or not even exist. So getting a word wrong in the expression can sound odd or comical. Here in the UK, we especially love our idioms. According to
Professor Jennifer Jenkins, chair of Global Englishes at the University of Southampton, people who speak English as a first language may not be that good at adapting their speech to suit non-native speakers, meaning they can struggle to express them- selves clearly and be understood. So, what are the good idioms to know and where do some of these strange expressions come from? In this article I share some of my favourites, what they mean, how to use them and their origin.
Cats and dogs
Te British are known for loving their animals, so it is no surprise that cats and dogs feature in many English idioms. One of the most famous of course is “it’s raining cats and dogs”, which means it’s raining very heavily! Tis funny expression has been used since the 17th century and although it’s unclear where ex- actly it came from, it is believed that it refers to a Norse myth or even a medieval superstition, perhaps a twist on a Biblical story. However, rest assured to date it has never rained cats or dogs in the UK, and in fact many people find the UK much less rainy than its reputation! Now what about if we say: “they let the cat out of the bag”, to mean they shared a secret by mistake. Tis expression can be used in everyday or work situations, particularly when details are re- vealed we didn’t want or mean to share. It’s possible that this ex- pression refers to exposing deceitful traders in medieval markets, who would claim they were selling you a piglet in the bag, but ac- tually had substituted it instead for a kitten, a much cheaper ani-
14 FOCUS The Magazine March/April 2019
www.focus-info.org
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