Meanings
plural set phrases
- grammarAn established expression whose wording is subject to little or no variation, and which may or may not be idiomatic.
Bally remarks in passing, as Hall does not, that the inversion in toujours est-il que is part of a set phrase and hence invariable.
1951, Gordon M. Messing, “Structuralism and Literary Tradition”, in Language, volume 27, number 1, page 31 more example
American courts sometimes use cherry in place of apple, but the latter fruit vastly predominates. The American version is that rare set phrase that is not so well set, variations on the phrase being more common than the main phrase itself.
2009, Bryan A. Garner, Garner on Language and Writing, page 525Synonyms: phraseme, fixed expression, fixed term
- grammarAn idiomatic expression in general.
If it proves clearly unfeasible to make the audience laugh at a thin and far-fetched joke, it is always better to change the way the joke works . . . for instance, a pun based on the speaker's taking literally some set phrase or metaphor with a pun based on phonetic similarity.
1992, Stanislaw Baranczak, "How to Translate Shakespeare's Humor?: (Reflections of a Polish Translator)", in the Performing Arts Journal, volume 14, number 3, page 83
Synonyms & antonyms
nounAn established expression whose wording is subject to little or no variation, and which may or may not be idiomatic.
More synonyms by meaning
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
Translations
Catalan frase feta, frase feta
- frase fetaexpression subject to little variation
- frase fetaidiomatic expression
- ditaidiomatic expression
Chinese Mandarin 固定搭配, 習慣用語 /习惯用语
- 固定搭配 (gùdìng dāpèi)expression subject to little variation
- 習慣用語 /习惯用语 (xíguànyòngyǔ)idiomatic expression
- 成語 /成语 (chéngyǔ)idiomatic expression
Dutch vaste verbinding, vaste verbinding
- vaste verbindingexpression subject to little variation
- vaste verbindingidiomatic expression
- staande uitdrukkingidiomatic expression
Finnish kiteymä, vakiintunut ilmaus
- kiteymäexpression subject to little variation
- vakiintunut ilmausexpression subject to little variation
- sanaliittoexpression subject to little variation
- idiomiidiomatic expression
French expression consacrée, phraséologisme
- expression consacréeexpression subject to little variation
- phraséologismeexpression subject to little variation
- locution figéeidiomatic expression
- phraséologismeidiomatic expression
German feststehende Wendung, formelhafte Wendung
- feststehende Wendungexpression subject to little variation
- formelhafte Wendungexpression subject to little variation
- Wortverbindungexpression subject to little variation
- Wortgruppeexpression subject to little variation
- Redewendungexpression subject to little variation
- Phrasemexpression subject to little variation
- feststehende Redensartidiomatic expression
- Floskelidiomatic expression
Hungarian állandósult szókapcsolat
- állandósult szókapcsolatidiomatic expression
Italian frase fatta, locuzione cristallizzata
- frase fattaidiomatic expression
- locuzione cristallizzataidiomatic expression
Japanese 慣用句, 成句
- 慣用句 (kan'yōku)expression subject to little variation
- 成句 (seiku)idiomatic expression
Korean 관용구, 성어
- 관용구 (gwanyonggu)expression subject to little variation
- 성어 (seong'eo)idiomatic expression
- 관용구 (gwanyonggu)idiomatic expression
- 성구 (seonggu)idiomatic expression
Polish frazeologizm, idiom
- frazeologizmexpression subject to little variation
- idiomexpression subject to little variation
- idiomatexpression subject to little variation
- idiomatyzmexpression subject to little variation
- związek frazeologicznyexpression subject to little variation
- frazeologizmidiomatic expression
- idiomidiomatic expression
- idiomatidiomatic expression
- idiomatyzmidiomatic expression
- związek frazeologicznyidiomatic expression
Portuguese expressão idiomática
- expressão idiomáticaidiomatic expression
Russian усто́йчивое словосочета́ние, усто́йчивое выраже́ние
- усто́йчивое словосочета́ние (ustójčivoje slovosočetánije)expression subject to little variation
- усто́йчивое выраже́ние (ustójčivoje vyražénije)expression subject to little variation
- усто́йчивое словосочета́ние (ustójčivoje slovosočetánije)idiomatic expression
- фразеологи́ческая едини́ца (frazeologíčeskaja jediníca)idiomatic expression
Spanish frase hecha
- frase hechaidiomatic expression
Swedish fast uttryck, idiom
- fast uttryckexpression subject to little variation
- idiomidiomatic expression
Ukrainian уста́лене словосполу́чення, ста́ле словосполу́чення
- уста́лене словосполу́чення (ustálene slovospolúčennja)expression subject to little variation
- ста́ле словосполу́чення (stále slovospolúčennja)expression subject to little variation
- уста́лений ви́слів (ustálenyj výsliv)expression subject to little variation
- ста́лий ви́раз (stályj výraz)expression subject to little variation
Cite this entry
set phrase. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/set%20phrase
“set phrase.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/set%20phrase. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “set phrase,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/set%20phrase.
Source: set phrase on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.