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A proverbial phrase or expression is a type of conventional saying similar to a proverb and transmitted by oral tradition. The difference is that a proverb is a fixed expression, while a proverbial phrase permits alterations to fit the grammar of the context. [1] [2] In 1768, John Ray defined a proverbial phrase as:
The reference to horses was first in James Carmichael's Proverbs in Scots printed in 1628, which included the lines: "And wishes were horses, pure [poor] men wald ride". [4] The first mention of beggars is in John Ray's Collection of English Proverbs in 1670, in the form "If wishes would bide, beggars would ride". [4]
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The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations is the Oxford University Press's large quotation dictionary. It lists short quotations that are common in English language and culture. The 8th edition, with 20,000 quotations over 1126 pages, was published in print and online versions in 2014. [1] The first edition was published in 1941.
German – Wenn Schweine fliegen können! is identical with the English saying "when pigs fly", although the older proverb Wenn Schweine Flügel hätten, wäre alles möglich ("if pigs had wings, everything would be possible") is in more common use, often modified on the second part to something impossible, like "if pigs had wings, even your ...
An idiom is a common word or phrase with a figurative, non-literal meaning that is understood culturally and differs from what its composite words' denotations would suggest; i.e. the words together have a meaning that is different from the dictionary definitions of the individual words (although some idioms do retain their literal meanings – see the example "kick the bucket" below).
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"All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy" is an old proverb that means without time off from work, a person becomes both bored and boring. It is often shortened to "all work and no play". [ 1 ] It was newly popularized after the phrase was featured in the 1980 horror film, The Shining .