An idiom is a phrase where you cannot deduce while looking at the meaning of the literal word. Many verbs, when followed by prepositions or adverbs, acquire an idiomatic sense.

 

For example: We must immediately close with the offer now. 

Here the idiomatic expression is ‘close with’ which means accepted.

 

The meaning comes not from individual words but the sentence as a whole. Idioms also are known as idiomatic expressions. They convey a meaning which is not similar to those of words or phrases. Using idioms can make your conversation look enjoyable and unforgettable.

 

Let us look at some of the idioms most commonly used in the workplace.

Idiom	Meaning	Example
See something through	To continue until something is finished.	I want to see the report through before sending it.
Back to square one	To begin something again after trying multiple times.	Let's get back to square one to understand it better.
Ballpark number/figure	To give a rough estimate figure about something.	Kindly give a ballpark figure before printing the brochures.
Big picture	To look at the long-term picture about a situation	Shruti gave us a big picture of her plan.
By the book	To do things according to the rules and regulations.	We need to do everything by the book.
Get down to business	Stop making small talk and start talking about serious business topics	Now that everyone’s here, let's get down to business.
To raise the bar	To set the expectations higher	Anuradha you need to raise the bar for business development.
See eye to eye	To agree with somebody	George’s and I see eye to eye with this proposal.
Hands are tied	Not get to be free in a way you might like	We would love to do business but our hands are tied.

 

Pros and Cons to using Idioms

Idioms are a part of informal language. It is usually used in specific expressions of language and culture. We will find idioms in fiction writing where we need to add depth and detail to our writing. They can be further used in newsletters, leadership communication, addresses, training programs etc.  Idioms are words whose literal meanings are different. It holds more cultural expression and might confuse the reader if they don’t have any reference to it.

One should usually use Idioms while communicating with friends or anyone they can have informal conversations with. It can be used in fictional writing to add a flair to the writing. There are some idioms which include slang language too. break a leg - do well at a performance or presentation.

Break a leg on your presentation Ragini.

Thus, considering that we should be careful. Idioms don't make logical sense in formal writing.

Not everyone you know will be familiar with such a tone of language, just to avoid confusion better not use it. Idioms as mentioned differ from their literal meaning and can be misunderstood. Also, if you are using idioms make sure you don't use too many of them, it loses credibility and the essence of your thought.