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Proverbial vs Idiom - What's the difference?

proverbial | idiom |

As nouns the difference between proverbial and idiom

is that proverbial is used to replace a word that might be considered unacceptable in a particular situation, when using a well-known phrase while idiom is a manner of speaking, a way of expressing oneself.

As an adjective proverbial

is of, resembling, or expressed as a proverb, cliché, fable, or fairy tale.

proverbial

English

Adjective

(en adjective)
  • Of, resembling, or expressed as a proverb, , fable, or fairy tale.
  • * 1947 , ( transcript):
  • Doris: You're making me feel like the proverbial stepmother.
  • Widely known; famous; stereotypical.
  • I grew up in a prefab house on Main Street in 1950s suburbia, the second and last child of a proverbial nuclear family.

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • (euphemistic) Used to replace a word that might be considered unacceptable in a particular situation, when using a well-known phrase.
  • I think we should be prepared in case the proverbial hits the fan.
  • (euphemistic) The groin or the testicles.
  • 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

    See also

    *

    Anagrams

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