Catch Phrases, Cliches and Idioms: A Dictionary of Familiar Expressions

Catch phrases such as ""shop till you drop,"" cliches like ""life begins at forty"" and idioms such as ""talk the hind leg off a donkey"" have long enriched the English language in both spoken and written form. Here is a collection of over 20,000 familiar expressions. To the casual reader or the general browser, this book will inform and entertain. To writers it is a treasure trove of idea-starters that will make for more imaginative creative writing. Each phrase is cross-referenced by key word. Thus ""raining cats and dogs,"" for example, appears under ""cat,"" ""dog"" and ""rain."" In most cases, various forms of the word are listed under the root word. So under ""run"" you will find not only sayings that include the word ""run,"" but those that include ""running,"" ""runneth,"" ""runner"" and ""run-around.