Storm in a teacup etymology1/10/2023 ![]() Phraseology helps to make our speech “spicier” however, as any spice, it should be used cautiously and in moderation because it may confound our interlocutors or create an impression that the speaker wants to show off. while I breathe, I hope) etc., we may assume that the speaker is knowledgeable in Latin and/or highly educated. to err is human), “ dum spiro spero” (Lat. the same for the same), “ errare humanum est” (Lat. For instance, when we hear “ idem per idem” (Lat. ![]() Phraseological units can also tell us something about the speaker. Similarly, instead of saying that it is raining heavily, the wind is strong, the sky is dark, etc., we can simply say “it is raining cats and dogs” which includes all the above in the latter case, the set expression not only moakes speech more expressive, but also helps to achieve brevity. Instead of saying that the cake is good/tasty/delicious, we use the phraseological unit to underline that it is very good. For example, in the video, we hear “this cake is out of this world”. The reason why we use idioms and other phraseological units is because they help to make our speech more expressive and more concise. In spite of the humorous nature of the question I would like to try to answer it. The video above provides several interesting phraseological units in English and also jokingly raises the following question: “Why must we use idioms at all?”. In order to avoid confusion, in my post, I am going to use the word “idiom” in its narrow (Ukrainian) meaning and the word combination “a phraseological unit” to refer to any kind of set expressions, including: proverbs, sayings, quotes by celebrities, and an idiom in its narrow meaning. In Canadian linguistics, in turn, an idiom is often understood widely as any set phrase (= set expression = phraseological unit = idiomatic expression = colloquialism = colloquial expression) including: proverbs, sayings, and famous quotes by celebrities (e.g. it is not clear why “to pull someone’s leg” means to trick somebody by telling stories). In Ukrainian linguistics*, for example, an idiom is understood narrowly as a type of phraseologisms the meaning of which is not obvious from the analysis of meaning of individual words forming this unit (e.g. ![]() In fact, there is no consensus among scholars concerning the term. This definition requires also explanation of what an idiom is. Phraseology (=idiomatics) is “the compilation, description, and classification of the total corpus of idioms in a language” (Bussmann, 1998, p. ![]() One of my course papers at the University was devoted to this doubtlessly unique subject. Today I would like to discuss one of my favourite topics, phraseology. This post finishes the series of posts comparing vocabularies of BrE and AmE. ![]() Video credit: GrammarSongs by Melissa, “ Idioms Song (Idioms by Melissa)” August 12, 2013, via YouTube. British English – American English: Idioms (vocabulary) Other versions of this phrase include a tempest/storm in a glass of water and a storm in a wash-hand basin. Before then the equivalent was a storm in a creambowl, which dates from the 1670s. The expression a tempest in a teapot, meaning ‘a small event that has been exaggerated out of proportion’, dates from 1818, and is apparently the American English equivalent of the British English storm in a teacup. The French word temps (time, weather), comes from the same root, as does the Spanish word tiempo (time, weather), Italian word tempo (time, weather) and related words in other languages. The French word tempête (storm, tempest), and the English word tempest both come from the Old French tempeste (storm, tempest), from the Latin tempesta (storm, tempest), from tempestās (storm, tempest, weather, season) from tempus (time, weather), from the Proto-Indo-European *tempos (stretch). In French equivalents of the eye of the storm include l’oeil du cyclone (the eye of the cyclone), l’œil de la tempête (the eye of the storm) and le cœur de la tempête (the heart of the storm). If you are in the eye of the storm you are in the center or most intense part of a tumultuous situation, or literally in the calm region at the centre of a storm, hurricane, cyclone or typhoon. ![]()
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