Essential English Phrases: Everyday phrases explained

Essential English Phrases: Everyday phrases explained

The English language has hundreds of unusual phrases and odd idiomatic expressions. We use clichés and groups of words that do not mean what they appear to mean.

Saying that someone ‘turned to jelly’, or ‘is a complete Jekyll and Hyde’, or that ‘we will cross a bridge when we come to it’, or that something is ‘par for the course’ are all phrases in common usage. To speak and understand English well, we need to know what the many phrases mean. Some standard tests in English now test knowledge and understanding of phrases, and using out-of-date phrases can cause embarrassment.

Essential English Phrases is up-to-date and is a valuable reference book with examples that further clarify each phrase and show it in use. With over 6,000 idiomatic, important and key phrases, with an A-Z format, and concise, clear entries, this inexpensive guide will help you master the meanings and origins of hundreds of phrases in everyday use in English.

Trimmed Page Size: 198 x 128mm; Paperback; 384pp; spine: 20mm; Weight: 220gs

Author: Betty Kirkpatrick

About the author:

Betty Kirkpatrick is a graduate of Edinburgh University. She has a long career in reference publishing.

She has edited Chambers Twentieth Century Dictionary, Roget’s Thesaurus the concise edition of Brewer’s Phrase and Fable, and was language consultant to the Encarta World English Dictionary. She has compiled various other reference books, including the Oxford Paperback Thesaurus and the Bloomsbury Dictionary of Cliches. She acts as a consultant to the Bloomsbury Good Word Guide.

Betty is author of an extensive list of publications on various aspects of the English language for learners of English.

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ISBN: 9781842057612