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Apothegm vs Idiom - What's the difference?

apothegm | idiom |

As nouns the difference between apothegm and idiom

is that apothegm is a short, witty, instructive saying; an aphorism or maxim while idiom is idiom.

apothegm

English

Alternative forms

* apophthegm

Noun

(en noun)
  • A short, witty, instructive saying; an aphorism or maxim.
  • * 1665 , , The English Rogue: De?cribed, in the Life of Merington Latroon, A Witty Extravagant, Being a Compleat Hi?tory of the Mo?t Eminent Cheats of Both Sexes , Henry Marsh, page 355,
    • Every gla?s of wine, or bit almo?t, that I committed to my mouth, ?he u?hered thither with ?ome Apothegm or other: the whole ?eries, indeed, of her di?cour?e, was compo?ed of nothing but rea?on or wit, which made me admire her; which ?he ea?ily under?tood, I perceived by her ?miles, when ?he ob?erved me gaping, as it were, when ?he ?poke, as if I would have eaten up her Words.
  • * 1920 ,
    • "You are too wonderful!" he would say. "How do you find time for everything?"
    She rejoined with the apophthegm that made the rounds of Riseholme next day.
    "My dear, it is just busy people that have time for everything."
  • * 2008 , , ISBN 978-0-441-01575-7, page 114,
    • Which means roughly that business keeps one safe from love—ominous talk when one’s lover is a courtesan. I hoped that it was just another literary conceit I ought to know. (It is, I later learned, an apothegm by .)

    Synonyms

    * See .

    idiom

    English

    (wikipedia idiom)

    Noun

    (en-noun)
  • A manner of speaking, a way of expressing oneself.
  • A language or dialect.
  • Specifically, a particular variety of language; a restricted dialect used in a given historical period, context etc.
  • * 2010 , (Christopher Hitchens), "The Other'' L-Word", ''Vanity Fair , 13 Jan 2010:
    • Many parents and teachers have become irritated to the point of distraction at the way the weed-style growth of "like" has spread through the idiom of the young.
  • An artistic style (for example, in art, architecture, or music); an instance of such a style.
  • An expression peculiar to or characteristic of a particular language, especially when the meaning is illogical or separate from the meanings of its component words.
  • * 2008 , Patricia Hampl, “You’re History”, in Patricia Hampl and Elaine Tyler May (editors), Tell Me True: Memoir, History, and Writing a Life , Minnesota Historical Society, ISBN 9780873516303, page 134:
    • You’re history , we say . Surely it is an American idiom . Impossible to imagine a postwar European saying, “You’re history. . . . That’s history,” meaning fuhgeddaboudit, pal.
  • (programming) A programming construct or phraseology generally held to be the most efficient, elegant or effective means to achieve a particular result or behavior.
  • * {{quote-book, 2005, Magnus Lie Hetland, Beginning Python: From Novice to Professional, page=100, isbn=159059519X
    • , passage=I have to use the same assignment and call to raw_input in two places. How can I avoid that? I can use the while True/break idiom :

    Synonyms

    * (phrase) expression (loosely), form of words (loosely), phrase (loosely)

    Derived terms

    * idiolect * idiomatic * idiomatical * idiomatically

    Related terms

    * idiosyncratic * idiot

    See also

    *

    External links

    * American idioms - a comprehensive list of idioms, browsable through alphabetical links. Includes parts of speech, definitions and example sentences. * English and American Idioms - RSS subscription channel * Glossary of Linguistics * Today's English Idioms at GoEnglish.com * *

    Anagrams

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