Don't you just love English, it's intricate characteristics, it's various elements that many a student state are designed purely for the purpose of causing confusion and deception. One of these elements considered by a large percentage of students to be one of the most confusing are idioms.
Idioms are words, phrases, or expressions that are either grammatically unusual, such as, “Turning a blind eye” or "Feeling under the weather", or their meaning cannot be taken literally, as in, “Nerves of steel!” This expression does not mean that you literally have rods of steel running through your body, but it is a metaphorical expression that means that you are displaying extreme bravery in a moment that includes varying degrees of danger or stress.
Unlike most sentences that have a literal meaning, idioms have figurative meaning. A literal meaning is when each word in a sentence stays true to its actual meaning. Figurative meaning is when a combination of words mean something different than the individual words do.
If you take the sentence, The boy ate his lunch, you can figure out what the sentence means as long as you know what each part means. It's literal. But idioms don't work that way; they are figurative. Take the common idiom ''you let the cat out of the bag.'' If you take the literal parts and add them up, you would assume that it meant that a person was opening up a bag and letting a cat out of it. But that is not even close to what it means. The idiom doesn't even have anything to do with a cat or even a bag. Letting the cat out of the bag means to reveal a secret.
So, when you consider the importance of idioms, their relevance in everyday English, and the ever-increasing international opportunities that present themselves to non-English speaking people, how do we teach them to our students so that they are able to achieve a level of proficiency that is suitable for them to be able to possibly survive in an English speaking world?
Well, if you wish to follow the traditional path universally traveled by the majority of EFL institutions and teachers, firstly there are literally hundreds of websites partially, or fully dedicated to the study of idioms, and secondly, virtually every publishing house has at least one book series that is dedicated to idioms, and Englishes other pariahs; phrasal verbs and collocations.
On the other hand, if you wish to teach idioms more from the perspective of how a native speaker would learn them, keeping in mind that they don't use subject dedicated books when learning common expressions, then the way to do it is through reading, specifically fictional books. Fictional, rather than academic books, are a rich source of common expressions, be it idiomatic, phrasal verbs or collocations. Another excellent choice is auto-biographies or biographies because they too are more often than not full of these all-important common expressions.
In conclusion, it is impossible to understate the importance of idioms in the English language or the problems that a lack of knowledge in them could cause our students if, or when they are ever in a position of living, working or studying in an English speaking country. I believe that we teachers should, where possible, pay extra attention to their inclusion in our classes because when taught correctly, they can be a fun addition that the students can enjoy learning.
Below is a list of 30 idioms that relate to feelings and emotions that includes explanation and example.
Good luck and good teaching.
All the Rage
- Meaning: Very much in fashion
- Example: Yoga pants are all the rage in North America right now, but in two years probably nobody will be wearing them.
Meeting of the Minds
- Meaning: Strong instinctive agreement on something
- Example: At first the negotiations weren’t going well, but when the president of the company and I sat down over drinks, we had a real meeting of the minds.
Scare the Living Daylights out of Someone
- Meaning: Frighten someone severely
- Example: I know my boyfriend was just trying to be nice, but when I opened the door to my apartment and everyone yelled “Surprise!” it scared the living daylights out of me.
Out of Sight, Out of Mind
- Meaning: When you don’t see something or someone, you tend to forget about that thing or person.
- Example: When I broke up with Jake, I was heartbroken. But since he moved away, I hardly ever think about him. Out of sight, out of mind!
Tear-Jerker
- Meaning: A film or book that makes you cry
- Example: The film “Love Story,” with its story of young love cut short by death, was one of the most successful tear-jerkers of all time.
Pet Peeve
- Meaning: A small thing that you find particularly annoying
- Example: My pet peeve is people who bring large numbers of items to the express checkout at the supermarket.
Pull Yourself Together
- Meaning: Control your emotions; recover from a strong emptional upset
- Example: I know it was hard seeing your ex-boyfriend at the bar, but you need to pull yourself together so we can go home.
Get Carried Away
- Meaning: Become overly enthusiastic
- Example: Sure, you can invest a little money, but don’t get carried away – people lose lots of money on the stock market.
Think Big
- Meaning: Consider ambitious plans; avoid becoming overly concerned with details
- Example: Sales this year have been good. Caitlin said we should think big and consider whole new product lines.
Not Playing with a Full Deck
- Meaning: Stupid, mentally deficient or impaired
- Example: John’s suggestions in the meeting were ridiculous. Sometimes I think he’s not playing with a full deck.
Note: “A few bricks short of a load” is one of many variants.
Under the Impression
- Meaning: Believing something, perhaps mistakenly
- Example: I was under the impression that you were going to pick me up at the airport.
Out of Sorts
- Meaning: Slightly ill; not feeling well
- Example: Sorry I was so quiet during the meeting. I’ve been out of sorts all day.
Short Fuse
- Meaning: A quick temper; a tendency to anger quickly
- Example: Brandon has a short fuse, but he calms down as quickly as he gets angry.
Off One’s Rocker
- Meaning: Crazy, nuts, insane
- Example: Have you heard Dmitri is going to try to climb Mt. Rinjani in the rainy season? He must be off his rocker.
Bang One’s Head Against the Wall (Against a Brick Wall)
- Meaning: Try repeatedly to do something without making progress
- Example: Susana has been working on the data for three hours, but she says she’s just banging her head against the wall.
Young at Heart
- Meaning: Having a youthful outlook, regardless of age
- Example: Jack is young at heart. He’s 84 years old, but he’s always willing to go out dancing.
Take It Easy
- Meaning: Don’t hurry; relax; don’t get angry
- Example: I’ve been working too hard. I just want to head for the islands and take it easy for a few days.
Passing Fancy
- Meaning: A temporary interest or attraction
- Example: Many people thought Uggs were just a passing fancy, but they’ve been popular for several years now.
… Useful Idioms to Express Feelings and Emotions …
On the Ball
- Meaning: Prepared, alert, competent
- Example: Ralph is on the ball. I think we can leave the office under his supervision for a few days.
On the Fence
- Meaning: Undecided between two choices
- Example: I’m on the fence about the election – both candidates have their good and bad points.
Living in Cloud Cuckooland
- Meaning: Having unrealistic or foolish beliefs or plans.
- Example: Norma thinks she’s going to be making $100,000 euros by next year. She’s living in cloud cuckooland.
Mad as a Hatter
- Meaning: Mentally ill, psychotic
- Example: Gerald used to be one of the most logical people I know. Now he’s mad as a hatter.
Note: This is rare in the USA.
Freudian Slip
- Meaning: Accidental use of an incorrect word; a revealing slip of the tongue
- Example: That was a real Freudian slip when Jane referred to her boyfriend as her father.
Fly off the Handle
- Meaning: To become suddenly enraged
- Example: How was I to know Tom would fly off the handle when I asked him about his father?
Draw a Blank
- Meaning: Be unable to remember something
- Example: I drew a blank when she asked me to name all of her sisters.
Drive Someone Up the Wall
- Meaning: Deeply irritate someone
- Example: When Marie hums at her desk, it drives up up the wall.
Note: Some people also say “drives me up a wall.”
Down in the Dumps
- Meaning: Depressed, sad
- Example: You’ve been down in the dumps all week. Let’s go to the football game – that’ll cheer you up.
Chuck a Wobbly
- Meaning: To act in an emotional way
- Example: I know you’re upset. But don’t chuck a wobbly in your meeting with the boss; he won’t like it.
Note: You can also say “throw a wobbly.”
Cock-A-Hoop
- Meaning: Elated, excited
- Example: Fans are cock-a-hoop about the team’s acquisition of the new striker.
Blow One’s Stack
- Meaning: To lose one’s temper and explode in anger
- Example: I swear, if Cindy asks me about the tickets one more time, I’m going to blow my stack.
At the End of One’s Rope (Tether)
- Meaning: Running out of endurance or patience
- Example: Amber keeps whistling in the office. She doesn’t even realize she’s doing it, but I’m at the end of my rope.
At Wit’s End
- Meaning: Frustrated because all measures to deal with something have failed
- Example: I’m at my wit’s end trying to deal with the insect infestation – nothing I’ve tried has worked.
Air Rage
- Meaning: Angry behavior inside an airplane
- Example: Most people are calm on long plane flights, but once in a while you have to deal with air rage, usually fueled by alcohol.
Act One’s Age
- Meaning: To be mature, not childish
- Example: I don’t care if Amber did steal your doll. That’s enough crying. Act your age!
Comments
Post a Comment