BUSINESS ENGLISH PAPER ASSIGNMENT

LIBRARY RESEARCH ABOUT IDIOMS

COMPILED BY:
NITAMI SARI 1701071046

D3 MARKETING MANAGEMENT
ECONOMIC AND BUSINES FACULTY
LAMPUNG UNIVERSITY
2018
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Definition of Idiom

The term idiom refers to a set expression or a phrase comprising two or more

words. An interesting fact regarding the device is that the expression is not

interpreted literally. The phrase is understood to mean something quite different

from what individual words of the phrase would imply. Alternatively, it can be

said that the phrase is interpreted in a figurative sense. Further, idioms vary in

different cultures and countries.

Examples :

1. “Every cloud has its silver lining but it is sometimes a little difficult to get

it to the mint.” (By Don Marquis)

The statement quoted above uses “silver lining” as an idiom which means

some auspicious moment is lurking behind the cloud or the difficult time.

2. “I worked the graveyard shift with old people, which was really

demoralizing, because the old people didn't have a chance in hell of ever

getting out.” (By Kate Millett)

In the extract quoted above, “graveyard shift” is employed as an idiom.

Function of Idiom

Writers and public speakers use idioms generously. The purpose behind this vast

use of idioms is to elaborate their language, to make it richer and spicier, and to

help them in conveying subtle meanings to their intended audience .

Not only do idioms help in making the language beautiful, they also make things

better or worse through making the expression good or bad. For example, there
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are several idioms that convey the death of a person in highly subtle meanings,

and some do the same in very offensive terms. They are also said to be exact and

more correct than the literal words, and sometimes a few words are enough to

replace a full sentence. They help the writer make his sense clearer than it is, so

that he could convey maximum meanings through minimum words and also keep

the multiplicity of the meanings in the text intact.

It has also been seen that idioms not only convey subtle meanings, but also ideas

not conveyed through normal and everyday language, and they keep the balance

in the communication. Furthermore, they provide textual coherence , so that the

reader could be able to piece together a text that he has gone through and extract

meanings the writer has conveyed.

Since idioms are part of the language, and not any individual author’s creation, we

can’t exactly “write” them. However, there are many ways to employ idioms in

our creative writing. For example, using slang is a great way to make a character

seem cool – but only if we know the slang pretty well and use it correctly,

Otherwise it will have the opposite of its intended effect. It’s best to avoid idioms

in formal writing, because they (a) aren’t literally true; and (b) can be easily

misunderstood. In formal writing, we want to be as clear, direct, and accurate as

possible. The more we bring in idioms, the more likely it is that our reader will get

confused and not follow our line of thought. Idioms are great in fiction, as we saw

in the previous section. However, even here we have to use some caution.

Remember that idioms come from the general culture – they are not our original
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expressions. That means they can easily become clichés, and our writing can start

to sound boring as a result. In addition, if there are too many idioms in our

writing, we will start to sound unoriginal even if the idioms aren’t clichés.

Idiom examples about economics

1. Bringing Home the Bacon

Definition: Working and earning money for their family; typically the sole

or primary earner.

2. Feel the Pinch

Definition: To be under financial hardship

3. Fool’s Gold

Definition: something mistakenly believed to be full of potential or

potential reward.

4. Going Dutch

Definition: to split evenly, most commonly used when settling a bill.

5. A Grand

Definition: A slang/colloquial term for one thousand pounds or dollars.

6. Grease Someone’s Palm

Definition: to offer a bribe, or an incentive (often underhanded, or sneaky).

7. My Two Cents

Definition: Opinion, or piece of advice, that might be unwelcome or

unasked for

8. Nest Egg
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Definition: an (large) amount of money saved for the future; often life

savings.

9. Paid Peanuts

Definition: to be paid very little; practically nothing.

10. A Pretty Penny

Definition: a large or considerable amount of money.

11. A penny saved is a penny earned

Money you save today you can spend later

12. Costs an arm and a leg

Very expensive

13. Saving for a rainy day

Saving money for later

14. a tough break

When something unfortunate happens, it can be called a "tough break."

15. ahead of the curve

To be "ahead of the curve" means to be more advanced than the

competition.

16. backroom deal

A "backroom deal" is an agreement or decision that is made without the

public knowing about it.

17. blue collar

A "blue collar worker" is someone who works with his hands

(manufacturing, construction, maintenance, etc.).

18. white collar

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someone who works in an office

19. corner a market

means to dominate a particular market

20. cut one's losses

means to stop doing something that is unproductive and won't ever

generate results.

21. diamond in the rough

something or someone that has a lot of potential but first requires a lot of

work.

22. get down to business

stop making small talk and start talking about serious topics related to

business.

23. go broke

bankrupt or to lose all the money a person or business had.

24. in the black

If a company is "in the black," it means that it is making a profit.

25. in the red

If a company is "in the red," it means that is not profitable and is operating

at a loss.