idiom

noun

id·i·om ˈi-dē-əm

plural idioms

: an expression in the usage of a language that is peculiar to itself either in having a meaning that cannot be derived from the conjoined meanings of its elements (such as up in the air for "undecided") or in its grammatically atypical use of words (such as give way)

: the language peculiar to a people or to a district, community, or class : dialect

: the syntactical, grammatical, or structural form peculiar to a language

: a style or form of artistic expression that is characteristic of an individual, a period or movement, or a medium or instrument

the modern jazz idiom

broadly : manner, style

a new culinary idiom

Did you know?

The Makeup of Idioms

If you had never heard someone say "We're on the same page," would you have understood that they weren't talking about a book? And the first time someone said he'd "ride shotgun", did you wonder where the gun was? A modern English-speaker knows thousands of idioms, and uses many every day. Idioms can be completely ordinary ("first off", "the other day", "make a point of", "What's up?") or more colorful ("asleep at the wheel", "bite the bullet", "knuckle sandwich"). A particular type of idiom, called a phrasal verb, consists of a verb followed by an adverb or preposition (or sometimes both); in make over, make out, and make up, for instance, notice how the meanings have nothing to do with the usual meanings of over, out, and up.

View more idiom examples, definitions, and origins

Example Sentences

She is a populist in politics, as she repeatedly makes clear for no very clear reason. Yet the idiom of the populace is not popular with her.

P. J. O'Rourke, New York Times Book Review, 9 Oct. 2005 And the prospect of recovering a nearly lost language, the idiom and scrappy slang of the postwar period …

Don DeLillo, New York Times Magazine, 7 Sept. 1997 We need to explicate the ways in which specific themes, fears, forms of consciousness, and class relationships are embedded in the use of Africanist idiom …

Toni Morrison, Playing in the Dark, 1992 The expression “give way,” meaning “retreat,” is an idiom. rock and roll and other musical idioms a feature of modern jazz idiom See More

Recent Examples on the Web The dominant idiom on so many platforms is one of soi-distant irony and disaffection.

WIRED, 16 Nov. 2022 Almanac says Cat Nights begin tomorrow, the date on which, according to Irish folklore, a witch will turn into a cat for the ninth time, but fail to return to human form (hence the nine lives idiom).

Teresa M. Hanafin, BostonGlobe.com, 16 Aug. 2022 It’s not the voice of the people, but a low-down idiom intended to sell certain class values.

Armond White, National Review, 3 Aug. 2022 The early 18th century English idiom refers to investing more resources in a cause that has already proved fruitless.

Kate Vitasek, Forbes, 19 July 2022 Lang was conversant in every conceivable musical idiom and genre, a versatility that kept him in demand for pop and jazz albums as well.

Jon Burlingame, Variety, 5 Aug. 2022 But there was something compellingly true about his simple idiom that has stuck with me over the years.

Michael Mcmullen, Forbes, 3 Aug. 2022 This idiom dates back 200 years to when people hunted with packs of dogs.

Marylou Tousignant, Washington Post, 30 May 2022 The new album from a singer known for constant reinvention is a subtle departure from her earlier work, dipping back into her intense, intimate idiom.

Mark Richardson, WSJ, 28 May 2022 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'idiom.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Word History

Etymology

Middle French & Late Latin; Middle French idiome, from Late Latin idioma individual peculiarity of language, from Greek idiōmat-, idiōma, from idiousthai to appropriate, from idios

First Known Use

1575, in the meaning defined at sense 2a

Time Traveler

The first known use of idiom was in 1575

See more words from the same year