http://www.englishforums.com/search/pro.htm?q=tag%3aIdiomsSearch results for 'tag:Idioms' matching tag 'Idioms'en-USXMOD (Build: 3614.32638)http://www.englishforums.com/English/MyAwayReadingBook/lpnvl/post.htm#996366Sun, 22 Nov 2009 23:01:21 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:996366grammar geekYes, it's an idiom, and where I live it's pretty common. It's a noun and it means "major thing I learned." It's more common in the business world. I went to his lecture. My two major take-aways were... After three solid days of meetings, there was only one take-away for me: Don't come to this meeting next year.http://www.englishforums.com/English/HeresSomeoneAboutSth/lpnzn/post.htmSun, 22 Nov 2009 21:01:19 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:996281akdomAnd here's what Updike had to say about Rabbit, Run back in 1990: It was subtitled, in my .. I thought " have to " means " must ." But in this case, I don't think it does. And I've seen sentences like this very often: This is someone had to say about somthing. Could you explain to me what it means? Is this an idiom? How would I be using this phrase?http://www.englishforums.com/English/MyAwayReadingBook/lpnvl/post.htmSun, 22 Nov 2009 20:27:17 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:996262akdomAnyway, my take away from reading about verb tense in novels and from talking with Seth Harwood is that some people think writing in the present tense is modern and other people think it is trendy and annoying. Is take away an idiom? I couldn't find this term in my dictionaries online. The only thing I found is that British ppl use it as 'takeout foods.' Would you explain to me that if the above usage is correct? normal? popular?http://www.englishforums.com/English/IHateIdeoms/lpmcl/post.htm#995993Sun, 22 Nov 2009 14:28:36 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:995993eslbeginnerDon't worry. Once you have learned all those idioms you would love them, more than anyone else. It might help to watch more TVs...http://www.englishforums.com/English/DoSomethingOnCue/lpkqm/post.htmSun, 22 Nov 2009 04:57:12 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:995600akdomI have often found phrases like these online: How to cry on cue? How to laugh naturally on cue? But when I went look for this idiom, what I had found didn't make sense to me. http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/on+cue (right) on cue as if planned to happen exactly at that moment We were traveling up a narrow river in East Africa when, right on cue , a hippopotamus thrust its head out of the water . So, the sentence 'How to cry on cue?' mean How to cry as if planned to happen ? I would guess that it means "How to cry whenever you would want to ." 1. On cue What does it mean? Are there 2 definitions of this phrase? 2. On cue vs. At cue ? She...http://www.englishforums.com/English/UsageOfEnterIntoIt/lpwbb/post.htm#995076Sat, 21 Nov 2009 16:24:32 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:995076avangiWhat do you mean by 'idiomatic'? Are you saying that "Wow! She's too beautiful!" means 'not really beautiful'? I know for a fact that too means also 'very' in a formal register, for example: "Thank you, you are too kind." Hi, MichalS. I think we're on the same page. "Idiomatic" is good, not bad! If a person's speech is in the style and manner of a "correct speaking" native speaker, we'd say, "He's idiomatic." "His speech is idiomatic." "The expressions he uses are idiomatic." Idioms are also idiomatic, but they're special rather than normal. They use normal words in special ways. Edit. I guess...http://www.englishforums.com/English/Close/lpwvk/post.htm#994883Sat, 21 Nov 2009 12:34:26 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:994883gleb_chebrikoffDear friend, close is most frequently used as an adjective or a verb, but in can also be an adverb meaning 'closely, tightly; near, in proximity + close to the wind (an idiom)'. Context is crucial in classifying close as an adjective or an adverb, you are right. Respectfully, Gleb Chebrikoffhttp://www.englishforums.com/English/FindOutForSure/lxqhx/post.htmThu, 19 Nov 2009 01:40:47 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:992270aska_leeHello, What does "find out for sure" mean? Does it mean "let's find out and make sure it is ture"? When we use it? Thank you for spending time reading this question.http://www.englishforums.com/English/Taking/lxxdw/post.htm#991693Wed, 18 Nov 2009 13:53:15 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:991693mister micawberThe message seems straightforward to me; it contains no idiom. Which words confuse you?http://www.englishforums.com/English/GoAsFarToSay/lxmlv/post.htmWed, 18 Nov 2009 02:00:01 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:991172aska_leeHello, What does this phrase mean: go as far to say in the following sentence: "I think you could even go as far to say that less than 1% of developed sites are profitable." Thanks,http://www.englishforums.com/English/WhyDoesSentenceConditional/lxlzp/post.htm#990846Tue, 17 Nov 2009 18:41:15 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:990846califjim"He walked as fast as the undergrowth and snowdrifts would allow " What is the justification for the conditional in the second half of the sentence? Tough question. In some ways, it is not really a conditional, but an expression of willingness. That is, it calls back the original meaning of would as an expression of volition -- an expression of will -- rather than its more abstract use as a modal verb used to create a conditional idea. Oddly, in this pattern, it somewhat personifies inanimates. This use of would brings questions like these to mind: How willing (or cooperative) was the undergrowth? How willing (or cooperative) were the snowdrifts? Were they willing to allow him to walk as fast as he wanted to walk? Were...http://www.englishforums.com/English/HaveAGoodOne/wjvlx/post.htm#985115Tue, 17 Nov 2009 02:18:52 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:985115califjimAs the originator of the phrase in the mid-to-late 70's, I can say that optilang's answer is correct. This is amazing! Never before in the history of English Forums have we ever heard from the very originator of an idiom himself! CJhttp://www.englishforums.com/English/GoTactical/lmhlx/post.htmMon, 16 Nov 2009 17:49:34 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:979911akdomAs everyone knows by now, many companies have gone tactical in BI (business intelligence) and related investments. In a time of CapEx freezes, people are innovating in interesting ways, which is a good bit of the theme at the latest TDWI conference here in Las Vegas and gets me to the point of this post. You can keep trying to meet and date women in the "conventional" way, and waste endless amounts of time, energy and money...pursuing girls instead of making them pursue you...Or, you can GO TACTICAL and make a modest, one-time-only investment to ensure major, long-term success with all the fun, sexy, high-quality women you can handle. what does " go tactical " mean? idiom? popular term? Does it...http://www.englishforums.com/English/AreAllPhrasalVerbsIdioms/lkxcq/post.htm#972257Sun, 15 Nov 2009 14:56:38 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:972257gleb_chebrikoffDear friend, an interesting question you've asked, and may I present my view on the subject. You accurately define the term idiom, and it logically stems from the definition that all phrasal verbs are idioms, since their meaning, as a rule, cannot be deduced from the meaning of their constituents. However, you need to be aware about the existence of two approaches in grammar considering verb + particle combinations ( eg, take up and take off ). 1. That the literal use of a form like go up is not a phrasal verb as such, but a verb operating with a particle: The balloon went up into the air . The term phrasal verb should properly be reserved for figurative and idiomatic uses: The balloon went up (= The crisis finally happened). Here,...http://www.englishforums.com/English/AreAllPhrasalVerbsIdioms/lkxcq/post.htmSun, 15 Nov 2009 06:41:43 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:971957user_garyI know "idiom" means "a group of words having unique meaning compared to the meaning of individual word in the group". Similarly, "phrasal verb" which is a combination of "verb + adverb or preposition or verb" too have different meaning compared the meaning of the verb, so I wonder can I say all "phrasal verbs" are "idioms" because phrasal verbs too have unique meaning compared to the real meaning of the verb?http://www.englishforums.com/English/Idiom/lkjlv/post.htm#970831Sat, 14 Nov 2009 01:48:54 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:970831avangihi, i have a problem with idioms, i dont know to find them in the newspaper and i have to because i have to write a work about them...please give me some useful advice about them http://www.eslcafe.com/idioms/id-mngs.html http://www.examplesof.com/idioms/index.htmlhttp://www.englishforums.com/English/GoNeverTense/lkjxj/post.htm#970728Fri, 13 Nov 2009 23:29:14 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:970728califjimthe past participle of the verb "go", is it "been"? No. It's gone . "go" in this case has irregular form in the past participle which is "been" That seems logical, but normally we analyze the situation differently. We say that the forms with been to are idioms , and retain the idea that gone is the (only) past participle of go , and been is the (only) past participle of be . (An idiom is, as you already know, an expression in which meaning depends on a particular grouping of words, regardless of how they are usually used separately.) ___________ ex: they never _________ aboard "travel" is it : they have never traveled abroad. they never travel abroad. It is my assumption...http://www.englishforums.com/English/Idioms/lkdcb/post.htm#968896Wed, 11 Nov 2009 22:25:34 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:968896grammarwannabeDo you mean "what is an idiom?" It's a word or phrase that has a meaning different from the "normal" meaning or dictionary meaning for example if someone says, "He's a little blue." it doesn't mean that the person is actually the color blue, but that he is sadhttp://www.englishforums.com/English/AsTheMatchTurnedOnDime/ljnpz/post.htm#968731Wed, 11 Nov 2009 19:12:37 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:968731califjimDoes it mean that the game had taken on a new twist since Federer was behind in the first two sets? Yes. But add the idea of "suddenly". Federer was behind. The match turned on a dime. (=The direction in which the match was headed suddenly changed.) Now Federer was no longer behind. He was ahead. If I am traveling north, and I suddenly change directions and go south, I might say that I turned on a dime. This idiom is sometimes used in advertising cars. It is used to boast about how well the car responds to your steering it. "The car handles so well that you can turn on a dime." (I assume you already know that a dime is a small American coin worth ten cents.) CJhttp://www.englishforums.com/English/Idioms/ljpkp/post.htm#967517Tue, 10 Nov 2009 18:05:44 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:967517philipI believe that it takes two to tango can be used in either a negative or a positive situation. Clive would be a better judge of that than I am.http://www.englishforums.com/English/UsageOfBroadStrokes/ljxcv/post.htm#967339Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:08:35 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:967339delmobileI think I might use this expression to mean that somebody doesn't focus on details. Whether that would be a compliment or not depends on the issue at hand. You know how Michael is. He likes to do everything in broad strokes. It's up to the rest of us to worry about the petty details, like where the money's going to come from. He has a gift for outlining something with a few broad strokes that give you a complete sense of the project and its goals. Re: queer the pitch - this may be one of the few cases in which you can still employ the once perfectly useful word "queer" without the PC police dragging you off. I'm sure I've heard "queer the deal," which I think is the American version of...http://www.englishforums.com/English/GetOffMyBack/ljgwx/post.htm#965439Sun, 08 Nov 2009 20:22:27 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:965439douglewisYou are quite right of course. There is a world of difference between knowing the words and comprehending the common use of phrases, idioms, collocation and local expressions.http://www.englishforums.com/English/AJokeEverybodyLovesRaymond/ljdhb/post.htmSat, 07 Nov 2009 03:36:49 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:963935akdomIf you've seen the show, would you kindly explain my question? Here is a joke in the episode "The Christmas Picture". It's in a scene when Ray and Robert were thinking about gifts to their mother. And in here, Ray doesn't think mom would like Robert's gift﹕ RAY : Hammock? ROBERT: That's right, it's the perfect gift. RAY : Yeah? You really see Mom fighting her way out of a hammock? ROBERT: Shut up, she'll love it. It's like an outdoor couch.. The idiom fight one's way out/through means " struggle to get out of " So I don't see the logic in this joke. Please explain it to me. I want to laugh too .http://www.englishforums.com/English/Have/lwprj/post.htm#963900Sat, 07 Nov 2009 02:41:45 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:963900avangiI use it and my parents and relatives used it. I agree that it sounds a bit formal, and we all probably sounded silly to southerners and westerners. Local L.A. talk show hosts love to make fun of the speech of our recently retired (and somewhat celebrated) police chief, who has managed to retain his Boston and New York accents and idioms. The many students who use Friends as a speech model will discover that show biz people and script writers work very hard to unlearn any regional or sophisticated habits. The Cheers series had one or two characters with mock Boston accents; and there was the blond girlfriend (Shelly Long, or something like that) who played the buffoon sophisticate. But I was happy to note yesterday that I am...http://www.englishforums.com/English/Idioms/ljrcg/post.htm#963024Fri, 06 Nov 2009 03:56:52 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:963024termeaning: We'll show them who is in charge.http://www.englishforums.com/English/MeaningOfPadInContext/lwlnc/post.htmWed, 04 Nov 2009 13:04:46 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:961437iamwithname2Hi all, In a letter by Katherine Mansfield I come across the following passage: 'When you came to tea this afternoon you took a brioche broke it in half & padded the inside doughy bit with two fingers'. Could you tell me what the 'you' in this sentence is doing? Does he (it is a 'he') merely put his fingers inside the brioche or does he turn the dough into a little ball? Or something else? Greetings, Johnhttp://www.englishforums.com/English/Help/lwjbz/post.htm#960711Tue, 03 Nov 2009 13:37:39 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:960711avangiTo buy something means to go to the store and purchase it. But there's also an idiom, "to buy something," which means to accept, or believe something which a person tells you. (This is the meaning of your example: "Hey! Did you actually think that what I said was true?" "Did you actually buy what I said?") Your version would be okay with a capital and a comma: "Hey, you . . . " I thought you were going to be careful with punctuation and capitalization. F rench quickly , please .http://www.englishforums.com/English/TheHistoryPackagingSelectiveCloze/lwdlr/post.htmSun, 01 Nov 2009 17:54:57 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:959089tanitFrom Paper 1 (Reading) of the CPE (Certificate of Proficiency in English) of the University of Cambridge , Part 1 . In this part candidates are asked to read three extracts and to answer a total of 18 questions, six per extract. Here are some directions and suggestions given in the CPE handbook for this task: Students should be aware of the different aspects of vocabulary tested in this part of the paper. They should read through each text carefully, not forgetting the title, to get a general idea of the text type and meaning before looking at the options. They could also be encouraged to think about the possible forms and meanings of the gapped words at this stage. They should be aware that the missing word(s) may form part...http://www.englishforums.com/English/BoseSpeakersSelectiveCloze-Cpe/lwdkd/post.htmSun, 01 Nov 2009 17:42:36 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:959075tanitFrom Paper 1 (Reading) of the CPE (Certificate of Proficiency in English) of the University of Cambridge , Part 1 . In this part candidates are asked to read three extracts and to answer a total of 18 questions, six per extract. Here are some directions and suggestions given in the CPE handbook for this task: Students should be aware of the different aspects of vocabulary tested in this part of the paper. They should read through each text carefully, not forgetting the title, to get a general idea of the text type and meaning before looking at the options. They could also be encouraged to think about the possible forms and meanings of the gapped words at this stage. They should be aware that the missing word(s) may form part...http://www.englishforums.com/English/Youd/lhqqr/post.htm#958029Sat, 31 Oct 2009 12:54:10 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:958029cool breezeThe idiom is you had better not try but in other contexts you'd may mean you would. CBhttp://www.englishforums.com/English/ComeThroughTheRye/lhqnv/post.htmSat, 31 Oct 2009 11:05:35 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:957971thomaskochiWhat is the meaning of " come through the rye" ?http://www.englishforums.com/English/SentenceCorrectionPlease/lhmxr/post.htm#956954Fri, 30 Oct 2009 06:42:52 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:956954pleasehelpNo sorry. I wasn't going for a metaphor or idiom of any sort just a sentence I wanted corrected.http://www.englishforums.com/English/WallowAbout/lhldp/post.htmThu, 29 Oct 2009 17:16:42 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:956367akdomwhen they were discribing cars, they said: Cornering : does it hug the road or does it wallow about ? 1. Is wallow about an idiom? I can only find some reference in british style. 2. In this context, when discribing cars, what does it mean? Wallow means "roll around"? "with difficulty"? About means "in opposit direction"? "all around"? or is it like she likes to walk about , (walk to here and there randomly)? 3. Could you teach me how would you use wallow about in your common conversations?http://www.englishforums.com/English/Idioms/lhjhk/post.htm#955867Thu, 29 Oct 2009 01:48:06 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:955867califjimwhat What does the idiom hit it off mean ? You must learn to capitalize the first word of the sentence and end your sentence with some punctuation. Otherwise people won't believe that you know anything about English! hit it off means "get along with each other on first meeting". Suppose you just meet Charles. Charles talks too much, in your opinion. But Charles likes people who talk a lot, and you are quiet. Your personalities don't mesh. You don't exactly like Charles. Charles doesn't exactly like you. In this situation, you can sum it up by saying, "We didn't hit it off". CJhttp://www.englishforums.com/English/Bounce/lhvlp/post.htm#954781Tue, 27 Oct 2009 23:31:39 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:954781mister micawberNo idea. It is not an idiom I am familiar with.http://www.englishforums.com/English/TheThingCantUnderstandAboutSpick-Span/lgnwb/post.htm#952142Sun, 25 Oct 2009 04:16:52 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:952142mister micawberThe phrase 'spick-and-span' has no alternative sexual connotations in and of itself. I have no idea why one men's magazine in the 1950s chose the phrase for its name, but I can see no other 'questionable' uses of the phrase in the first few pages of my google of the idiom. Keep in mind that almost any English phrase (and this no doubt applies to all languages) can be used by those whose minds are set in that way.http://www.englishforums.com/English/HoldATorchToSomeone/lgjhw/post.htm#950970Fri, 23 Oct 2009 22:02:49 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:950970grammar geekNote the importance of the preposition here. -If you carry/hold a torch FOR someone, you have romantic feelings for that person. It's a fixed idiom - If you hold a torch TO someone, it sounds like you are trying to set that person on fire - a rather grisly form of murder! I think I do hear "doesn't hold a candle to" (meaning, as Clive said, that it's far inferior) often enough that it doesn't sound odd. The "carry a torch for" sounds like something from my grandmother's generation.http://www.englishforums.com/English/AboutRemainRemaining/lgwgn/post.htm#950949Fri, 23 Oct 2009 21:36:23 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:950949califjimWhich would could come at the end of this sentence? 1 What do you want to talk to me __? ABOUT or FOR? Either. What do you want to talk to me about? = What is the topic you want to discuss with me? What do you want to talk to me for? = Why do you want to talk to me? Note the idiom What ... for? = Why? = For what reason? CJhttp://www.englishforums.com/English/AboutRemainRemaining/lgwgn/post.htm#950923Fri, 23 Oct 2009 21:01:39 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:950923dimsumexpressALC, I am going to take a chance on getting flagged for saying this but this is the honest truth. I see you are trying very hard to reach the level of English proficiecy which will normally take people many years to achieve. I take it that you have learned,and perhaps heard many phrases and idioms which you may or may not be completely confortable with but you've tried to finesse them into your sentences. Consequently, your sentences and questions become that much more complicated to answer because of the multi-faceted mistakes. Some of your sentences were grammatically correct but sounded quite odd because of the way they were structured. quote user="alc24"] For instance: [1 I closed my eyes and tried...http://www.englishforums.com/English/HowCome/lgzwd/post.htm#950106Thu, 22 Oct 2009 20:34:04 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:950106avangiSince "to have it in you" is clearly an idiom, you should expect its uses to be somewhat established. In the present tense, I've heard: I'm not sure you have it in you. I don't know if you have it in you. I don't know that you have it in you.http://www.englishforums.com/English/Moonlighting14/lvlgq/post.htm#949218Wed, 21 Oct 2009 19:43:42 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:949218kooyeenI see that native speakers "just guess" very often. Thank God! Because in some cases I am pretty sure you can't hear some sounds, or they are different than expected for some reason... But native speakers know what might make sense in a certain context, and they "fill in the blanks". For us non-native speakers, to be able to do the same means to be very familiar with lots of vocabulary, idioms, contexts. It takes years! Any, I think I hear the "d" in "don't" in your recording. It doesn't sound reduced to me. I heard it reduced with no d-sound, like: wine cha lissen a me? = Why don't you listen to me?http://www.englishforums.com/English/SoccerIdioms/kcvw/post.htm#948589Wed, 21 Oct 2009 00:25:39 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:948589anonymousHi man I am doing my thesis about idiom and I have many information about it. perhaps We can exchange information. If you are interested in it. you can write to my e-mail (Email removed)http://www.englishforums.com/English/WhatDoesThisMean/lzxzh/post.htm#948511Tue, 20 Oct 2009 21:58:37 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:948511gleb_chebrikoffGood evening, I am sure L y not suggesting that bizarre kind of thing; besides, as I have already pointed out, this comedy of manners by Shaw is very neat and precise stylistically. Given that I respect your views on the subject, I advise you to consider the interpretation of this Shaw-coined proverb in any quality dictionary of idioms and to take into account that many of those who hear it find the phrase rude and unjust. You say the witti C i S m can be applied to the majority of teachers, but this opinion amounts to saying that the quotation is a generalisation . It is common knowledge, Alex, that personal experience forms opinions, albeit biased ones, but those educators you are not pleased with probably cannot teach properly. We...http://www.englishforums.com/English/IHaveAQuestion/lgrcp/post.htm#948419Tue, 20 Oct 2009 19:44:54 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:948419califjimthe matter means wrong in the idiom "for something to be the matter", so the matter acts like an adjective. Idioms often don't make sense when each word is examined separately; they have to be taken as a specific group of words with a meaning that is unexpected for those words. There's something the matter with this pen. = There is something wrong with this pen. (It doesn't work properly.) Compare: What's the matter? = What's wrong? Nothing's the matter. = Nothing is wrong. _____ By the way, the meaning of wrong required here is "unsatisfatory", "not working". It doesn't necessarily mean "incorrect" or "false" in this context. CJhttp://www.englishforums.com/English/Sell/lznbb/post.htm#947086Mon, 19 Oct 2009 13:39:31 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:947086mister micawberIn #2, 'buy' destroys the effect of 'sell' as an idiom, I think– but that is a question of style. Your sentences are natural.http://www.englishforums.com/English/MeaningIdiomExpression/lzkvk/post.htm#946288Sun, 18 Oct 2009 18:50:31 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:946288khoffWell, post some idioms here and we will help you.http://www.englishforums.com/English/MeaningIdiomExpression/lzkvk/post.htmSun, 18 Oct 2009 18:10:10 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:946264anonymousHi dear sir/madam I am an Iranian. I work as a translator and at the moment I am working on children story book. There are some idioms in the book which are really difficult to translate because I dont have any reference to find them. I would be glad if you help me in this case. Yours faithfully Mehdi Email: (Email removed)http://www.englishforums.com/English/DifferenceBetweenSick/lzjgh/post.htm#946049Sun, 18 Oct 2009 13:32:00 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:946049cool breezeOnly sick can be used attributively, in other words, before a noun: a sick person. In British English, sick is often used to refer to nausea or other rather mild problems with one's health while ill denotes something serious which may require treatment in hospital. In AmE sick is widely used about seriously sick patients. When ill means "bad", "poor" or "poorly", it can be used attributively: His ill manners caused a lot of problems. His ill health made him lose all interest in life. There are lots of idioms in which only one of the words is used: He called in sick . I don't want to speak ill of him. CBhttp://www.englishforums.com/English/PastCareful/lzjdd/post.htm#945961Sun, 18 Oct 2009 11:37:13 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:945961nona the brit'past careful' doesn't make any sense as an idiom - but it might make sense in a certain context perhaps. Where did you see it?http://www.englishforums.com/English/SomeQuestionsAboutModals/lzvrn/post.htm#944878Sat, 17 Oct 2009 06:52:32 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:944878ihsuanMany thanks for your reply and recommendation. It helps a lot. Your list of auxiliaries seems all right, but I would not include used to . I thought it’s just an idiom, but my grammar book and Longman dictionary tell me it’ is a modal. So I list it in...I will check it further. Best wisher, Ihsuan