Languages all have hard parts and easy parts when it comes to learning them.  Sometimes the sounds of the language are easy, and the grammar is hard, sometimes it's reversed.  Sometimes both are hard or easy.  But mostly you have to memorize hundreds upon thousands of words and idioms.  The latter of the two is probably harder than the the former.  Idioms can be a language learner's worse nightmare.  However, they are a clue into the heart and soul of the language and culture of the people who speak that language.

What are idioms?  Idioms are expressions that cannot be translated but make sense to a native speaker.  English is rich with idioms, I'm afraid, which is why many foreigners have a hard time learning it.  Take an expression such as, "I took the bus to the library."  The idiom here is "take the bus."  Now, assuming you aren't a giant, I expect that you cannot lift a bus and bring it around with you.  Most common everyday expressions are idioms too.  A simple question as "How are you?" if you take it as what the words mean, you would be obligated to answer, "well, my parents got together and...."  However, we generally accept  these phrases and know what they mean because that's we know the idiom.  In fact in German the common way of saying "there is" is to say "es gibt" which means "it gives" literally.  In Spanish, to say how old you are, is to say literally how many years you have, "tener años."

Now, there are two types of idioms, there are proverbs and constructive idioms.  Proverbs are expressions like, "It takes one to know one," or "When in Rome, (do as the Romans do)."  These are more like cliches, and complete phrases that might be able to combine with sentences, but usually are not changed themselves (unless for comedic reasons).  Some are more idiomatic than others.  Expressions like, "He/she isn't the brightest bulb on the tree," is a very idiomatic since in English bright has two meanings, both bright in the sense of smart, and bright as in high amounts of light.

The second kind are those like "to take the bus," "to take a walk," or "to go shopping."  These are expressions that can be merged and mixed with other sentences and idioms, and can be the primary part of the statement.  There are many, many expressions like this in English, as well as many other languages, which is probably the hardest part of learning all languages.

But I have seen idioms helping to show the culture of the people.  Expressions like these help show traditions, ideals, and even show some of the behaviors of the people who speak and understand that language.  This is why comedians make jokes using idioms because we know them and they are a part of our culture.  So next time you learn an idiom, remember that it could be another clue about the people you are learning about.

Timothy