Oxford Dictionary of English Idioms

by John Ayto (editor)

The Oxford Dictionary of English Idioms offers a fresh look at the idiomatic phrases and sayings that make English the rich language that it is. The third edition contains entries for over 6,000 idioms, including 700 entirely new entries, based on Oxford's language monitoring programs and the
third edition of the Oxford English Dictionary . These include a range of idioms such as "the elephant in the corner," "go figure," "step up to the plate," "a walk in the park," and "win ugly." Many entries include more detailed background on the idiom in question. For example, did you know that
'taken aback' was adopted from nautical terminology that described a ship unable to move forward because of a strong headwind pressing its sails back against the mast?

The book lists national variants, so we learn that while in America they say "all over the map," in Britain they say "all over the shop." This edition also features a greatly increased number of cross-references, making it ideal for quick reference. Anyone interested in the colorful side of the
English language will have hours of fun browsing this fascinating and informative volume.

Genres: Reference, Writing, Dictionaries

408 pages, Paperback

First published July 8, 2010

Reviews

[Dewey Decimal Depressive · Rating 2 out of 5]

To Oxford University Press,
~Please take notes~

I've read a few of the OUP's specialized dictionaries cover-to-cover, and I plan on reading more. This one was the worst so far. Here are the main issues:

1. The scope is far too limited and the material far too elementary to be classified as anything more than a children's pocket edition. Off the top of my head, I can think of thirty idioms that you failed to include despite its supposed expansion. If this satisfies an expanded edition, I question whether the lack of breadth was due to laziness or incompetence. Either way, I expect more from this publisher.
2. Around 30% of the length is taken up by redundant alphabetical refferals, e.g. "as rare as hen's teeth" can be found under letters R, H, and T, but the definition is only placed under "Hen." This is fine, but if you had a clear index with page numbers, it would spare you some production costs (as well as blushes). Which brings me to issue 3:
3. Whoever wrote the index must have little-to-no experience in lexicography. The divisions are ambiguous, arbitrary, and indistinct. As if this isn't bad enough, the subentries lack corresponding page numbers.
4. Though the dictionary claims to give origins and examples, fewer than half of the uncommon idioms are given an origin, and many that should have an example don't.

I enjoy your books; they constitute much of my self-education. But the fact that someone this young and inexperienced has to lay this out for you is a bit discouraging. Do better. Hell, hire me on if you need some help. Education is my passion.

Best,
Adam Simmons

[Harsh Tomer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good

[Ashwyn Mittal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review
Not So Good!

Pros
1. A wide range of idioms have been included in the book.

Cons
1. Page Quality is not so good
2. Font size is very small
3. The example sentences given are from newspapers etc. Which are complex and difficult to follow.
4. Examples are not given for all idioms.
5. Many idioms are referred to as see later. Which means their meaning is given later in the book. But they should have been explained on the first occurance rather than last occurance.
6. Buy Cambridge Dictionary of Idioms than Oxford.

[Tony · Rating 4 out of 5]

What can I say? Does anyone "read" a dictionary? I thought you consulted them.