IDIOMS

PAPER
GROUP 4b English Department V.B

SEKOLAH TINGGI KEGURUAN DAN ILMU PENDIDIKAN (STKIP) MUHAMMADIYAH PRINGSEWU LAMPUNG 2011

GROUP NAME

No
1. 2. 3. 4.

Name
Indri Novianti TiaraNoviarini Sena Ayu Putri Ristu Saraswani

NPM
09050083 09050087 09050090 09050082 3. 1.

Signature

2.

4.

IDIOMS
A. Definitions The English language is full of idioms (over 15,000). Native speakers of English use idioms all the time, often without realising that they are doing so. This means that communication with native speakers of English can be quite a confusing experience. What is an idiom? An idiom is a group of words which, when used together, has a different meaning from the one which the individual words have. For example: - How do you know about John's illness? - Oh, I heard it on the grapevine. Of course, the second speaker does not mean he heard the news about John by putting his ear to a grapevine! He is conveying the idea of information spreading around a widespread network, visually similar to a grapevine. We use idioms to express something that other words do not express as clearly or as cleverly. We often use an image or symbol to describe something as clearly as possible and thus make our point as effectively as possible. For example, "in a nutshell" suggests the idea of having all the information contained within very few words. Idioms tend to be informal and are best used in spoken rather than written English. B. Example Literal Meaning 1. To give= member In= di dalam 2. To run= berlari Out= keluar Of= dari 3. To catch= menangkap A= sebuah Cold= dingin To catch a cold= masuk angin To run out of= kehabisan Idiomatic Meaning To give in= menyerah

4.

On= diatas The other= yang lain Hand= tangan

On the other hand= sebaliknya

5.

To go= pergi Without= tanpa Saying= berkata

Go without saying= sudah jelas

However, idioms can often be very difficult to understand. You may be able to guess the meaning from context but if not, it is not easy to know the meaning. Many idioms, for instance, come from favourite traditional British activities such as fighting, sailing, hunting and playing games. As well as being quite specialist in meaning, some of the words in idioms were used two or three hundred years ago, or longer, and can be a little obscure.
Study the following sentences and guess the meaning of the underlined words: 1. 2. 3. I have been working on this problems all day long. All day long = the entire days ( seluruh hari) All of sudden, amir appeared at the door. All of sudden = suddenly (tiba-tiba) Every students should spend at least two hours on their homework every night. At least = in minimum (minimal)

This an idiom which consists of two or more words will have a specific meaning. Which usually does not relate to the literal meanings of its components. For this matter an idiom should be learned in context. The context will help you in some ways to guess the meaning of an idiom intelligently. 1. When an idiom does not have any special implication in terms of meaning we call it natural. 2. When it is used to show respect, politeness, and formality we call it formal. 3. When an idiom belongs to or is suitable for, ordinary conversation (not formal or literary) it is called colloquial. 4. When an idiom is commonly used in talk but not suitable for good writing or formal occasions, especially the kind used by and typical of a class of person, then it is called slang.

How can I learn idioms? It is best to learn idioms as you do vocabulary. In other words, select and actively learn idioms which will be useful to you. Write the idiom in a relevant and practical sentence so that you will be able to remember its meaning easily. If you can, record the idioms in your file and on a card along with other words and idioms which have similar meanings.