Meanings
plural idioms · plural idiomata · sometimes used uncountably
- A manner of speaking, a mode of expression peculiar to a language, language family, or group of people.
In English, idiom requires the indefinite article in a phrase such as "she's an engineer", whereas in Spanish, idiom forbids it.
2 more examples
Some of the usage prescriptions improved clarity and were kept; others that yielded discordant violations of idiom were eventually revised.
The Hebrew phrase (שִׁבְעָה שִׁבְעָה) vii. 2 is commonly understood to mean seven pairs; but in accordance with Hebrew idiom it can only mean seven individuals of each sort.
1918, James George Frazer, Folk-Lore In The Old Testament, volume 1, page 137Synonyms: idiomaticness, idiomaticity
- computingA programming construct or phraseology that is characteristic of the language.
I have to use the same assignment and call to raw_input in two places. How can I avoid that? I can use the while True/break idiom: […]
2005, Magnus Lie Hetland, Beginning Python: From Novice to Professional, →ISBN, page 100Synonyms: idiomaticness, idiomaticity
- A language or language variety; specifically, a restricted dialect used in a given historical period, context, etc.
In the idiom of the day, they were sutlers, although today they'd probably be called vendors.
1 more example
Many parents and teachers have become irritated to the point of distraction at the way the weed-style growth of "like" has spread through the idiom of the young.
2010 January 13, Christopher Hitchens, “The Other L-Word”, in Vanity FairSynonyms: dialect, language, languoid, lect, vernacular
- human sciencesA phrasal expression that is unreliably understood literally, requiring pre-established cultural or domain-specific context to infer its intended meaning.
She often spoke in idioms, pining for salad days and complaining about pots calling the kettle black.
1 more example
You’re history, we say […]. Surely it is an American idiom. Impossible to imagine a postwar European saying, “You’re history. . . . That’s history,” meaning fuhgeddaboudit, pal.
2008, Patricia Hampl, “You’re History”, in Patricia Hampl, Elaine Tyler May, editors, Tell Me True: Memoir, History, and Writing a Life, Minnesota Historical Society, →ISBN, page 134
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA manner of speaking, a mode of expression peculiar to a language, language family, or group of people.
nounA programming construct or phraseology that is characteristic of the language.
nounA language or language variety; specifically, a restricted dialect used in a given historical period, context, etc.
More synonyms by meaning
nouna manner of speaking that is natural to native speakers of a language
nounthe usage or vocabulary that is characteristic of a specific group of people
nounthe style of a particular artist or school or movement
nounan expression whose meanings cannot be inferred from the meanings of the words that make it up
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Ancient Greekἰδίωμα“a peculiarity, property, a peculiar phraseology, idiom”
- Middle Frenchidiome
- Englishidiom
From Middle French idiome, and its source, Late Latin idioma, from Ancient Greek ἰδίωμα (idíōma, “a peculiarity, property, a peculiar phraseology, idiom”), from ἰδιοῦσθαι (idioûsthai, “to make one's own, appropriate to oneself”), from ἴδιος (ídios, “one's own, pertaining to oneself, private, personal, peculiar, separate”). By surface analysis, idi- + -om.
More words from Middle French, Ancient Greek
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Arabic اِصْطِلَاح, مُصْطَلَح
- اِصْطِلَاح (iṣṭilāḥ)idiomatic expression
- مُصْطَلَح (muṣṭalaḥ)idiomatic expression
Bengali বাগধারা
- বাগধারা (bagdhara)idiomatic expression
Bulgarian и́зразни сре́дства, идио́м
- и́зразни сре́дства (ízrazni srédstva)distinct style of art, etc
- идио́м (idióm)idiomatic expression
Catalan idioma, llengua
- idiomalanguage variety
- llengualanguage variety
- parlamanner of speaking
- parlarmanner of speaking
- dialectemanner of speaking
- idiotismeidiomatic expression
- frase fetaidiomatic expression
Chinese Cantonese 成語 /成语
- 成語 /成语idiomatic expression
Chinese Mandarin 方言, 文風 /文风
- 方言 (fāngyán)language variety
- 文風 /文风 (wénfēng)manner of speaking
- 成語 /成语 (chéngyǔ)idiomatic expression
- 習慣用語 /习惯用语 (xíguàn yòngyǔ)idiomatic expression
- 俗語 /俗语 (súyǔ)idiomatic expression
- 習語 /习语 (xíyǔ)idiomatic expression
Czech idiom
- idiomidiomatic expression
Danish talemåde, idiom
- talemådemanner of speaking
- idiomidiomatic expression
Dutch idioom, taaleigen
- idioomidiomatic expression
- taaleigenidiomatic expression
Esperanto idiotismo
- idiotismoidiomatic expression
Estonian idioom
- idioomidiomatic expression
Finnish kielimuunnos, käsiala
- kielimuunnoslanguage variety
- käsialadistinct style of art, etc
- kädenjälkiinstance of such style
- puhetapamanner of speaking
- puheenparsimanner of speaking
- idiomimanner of speaking
- idiomiidiomatic expression
- sanontaidiomatic expression
French idiome, idiome
- idiomelanguage variety
- idiomemanner of speaking
- idiotismeidiomatic expression
- idiomeidiomatic expression
German Idiom, Sprache
- Idiomlanguage variety
- Sprachelanguage variety
- Ausdrucksweiselanguage variety
- Stildistinct style of art, etc
- Ausdrucksweisedistinct style of art, etc
- Vertreterinstance of such style
- Ausdruckinstance of such style
- Idiommanner of speaking
- Dialektmanner of speaking
- Mundartmanner of speaking
- Redeweisemanner of speaking
- Sprechweisemanner of speaking
Greek ιδίωμα
- ιδίωμα (idíoma)idiomatic expression
Hebrew נִיב, מַטְבֵּעַ לָשׁוֹן
- נִיב (niv)language variety
- מַטְבֵּעַ לָשׁוֹן (matbéa' lashón)idiomatic expression
- נִיב (niv)idiomatic expression
Hindi मुहावरा
- मुहावरा (muhāvrā)idiomatic expression
Hungarian nyelvváltozat, idióma
- nyelvváltozatlanguage variety
- idiómalanguage variety
- kifejezésmódmanner of speaking
- szólásmódmanner of speaking
- idiómamanner of speaking
- idiómaidiomatic expression
- beszédfordulatidiomatic expression
- fordulatidiomatic expression
- kifejezésidiomatic expression
- állandósult szókapcsolatidiomatic expression
Icelandic orðatiltæki
- orðatiltækiidiomatic expression
Indonesian idiom, idiom
- idiomlanguage variety
- idiomidiomatic expression
Irish cor cainte
- cor caintemanner of speaking
Italian dialetto, vernacolo
- dialettolanguage variety
- vernacololanguage variety
- idiomamanner of speaking
- parlatamanner of speaking
- espressione idiomaticaidiomatic expression
- idiotismoidiomatic expression
- idiomatismoidiomatic expression
- locuzioneidiomatic expression
Japanese 方言, 訛り
- 方言 (hōgen)language variety
- 訛り (namari)language variety
- 様式 (yōshiki)distinct style of art, etc
- 熟語 (jukugo)idiomatic expression
- 成句 (seiku)idiomatic expression
- 慣用語 (kan'yōgo)idiomatic expression
- 慣用句 (kan'yōku)idiomatic expression
Korean 언어, 어법
- 언어 (eoneo)language variety
- 어법 (eobeop)language variety
- 양식 (yangsik)distinct style of art, etc
- 관용구 (gwanyonggu)idiomatic expression
- 숙어 (sugeo)idiomatic expression
- 관용어 (gwanyong'eo)idiomatic expression
Latvian idioma
- idiomaidiomatic expression
Lithuanian idioma
- idiomaidiomatic expression
Malay loghat, simpulan bahasa
- loghatlanguage variety
- simpulan bahasaidiomatic expression
Māori kīwaha, kīrehu
- kīwahamanner of speaking
- kīrehuidiomatic expression
Norwegian Bokmål idiom
- idiomidiomatic expression
Polish mowa, narzecze
- mowalanguage variety
- narzeczelanguage variety
- idiomidiomatic expression
Portuguese idioma, expressão idiomática
- idiomaidiomatic expression
- expressão idiomáticaidiomatic expression
Romanian idiom
- idiomidiomatic expression
Russian идио́м, диале́кт
- идио́м (idióm)language variety
- диале́кт (dialékt)language variety
- наре́чие (naréčije)language variety
- го́вор (góvor)language variety
- сре́дство выраже́ния (srédstvo vyražénija)distinct style of art, etc
- идио́ма (idióma)manner of speaking
- оборо́т ре́чи (oborót réči)manner of speaking
- идио́ма (idióma)idiomatic expression
- идиомати́ческий оборо́т (idiomatíčeskij oborót)idiomatic expression
- идиомати́ческое выраже́ние (idiomatíčeskoje vyražénije)idiomatic expression
- фразеологи́зм (frazeologízm)idiomatic expression
- усто́йчивое выраже́ние (ustójčivoje vyražénije)idiomatic expression
Scottish Gaelic gnàthas-cainnt, gnàthas-cainnt
- gnàthas-cainntmanner of speaking
- gnàthas-cainntidiomatic expression
Slovak idióm, idióm
- idiómlanguage variety
- idiómidiomatic expression
Spanish idioma, dicción
- idiomalanguage variety
- dicciónmanner of speaking
- lenguajemanner of speaking
- idiotismoidiomatic expression
- idiomatismoidiomatic expression
- modismoidiomatic expression
Swedish idiom, idiomatiskt uttryck
- idiomidiomatic expression
- idiomatiskt uttryckidiomatic expression
Tagalog kawikaan
- kawikaanidiomatic expression
Tamil மரபுத்தொடர்
- மரபுத்தொடர் (maraputtoṭar)idiomatic expression
Thai สำนวน
- สำนวน (sǎm-nuuan)idiomatic expression
Turkish deyim
- deyimidiomatic expression
Ukrainian ідіо́ма, стійки́й зворо́т
- ідіо́ма (idióma)idiomatic expression
- стійки́й зворо́т (stijkýj zvorót)idiomatic expression
Urdu مُحاوَرَہ, اِصْطِلاح
- مُحاوَرَہ (muhāvara)idiomatic expression
- اِصْطِلاح (istilāh)idiomatic expression
Vietnamese thổ ngữ, thành ngữ
- thổ ngữlanguage variety
- thành ngữidiomatic expression
Welsh idiom
- idiomidiomatic expression
Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
idiom. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/idiom
“idiom.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/idiom. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “idiom,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/idiom.
Source: idiom on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.