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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:
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).
The words constituting idioms are stored as catenae in the lexicon, and as such, they are concrete units of syntax. The dependency grammar trees of a few sentences containing non-constituent idioms illustrate the point: The fixed words of the idiom (in orange) in each case are linked together by dependencies; they form a catena.
To express indefinite postponement, you might say that an event is deferred "to the [Greek] Calends" (see Latin). A less common expression used to point out someone's wishful thinking is Αν η γιαγιά μου είχε καρούλια, θα ήταν πατίνι ("If my grandmother had wheels she would be a skateboard").
Expressions of self-satisfaction or pride or delight at the end of a sentence describing an action, a situation, an instruction, or direction, especially when it seems easier or quicker than expected: A long version is Bob's your uncle and Fanny's your aunt. Versions sometimes spell "your" as "yer."
Toi toi toi" (English: / ˈ t ɔɪ ˈ t ɔɪ ˈ t ɔɪ /) [1] is an expression used in the performing arts to wish an artist success in an imminent performance. It is similar to " break a leg " and reflects a superstition that wishing someone "good luck" is in fact bad luck.
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The phrase was used in 1910 by Zane Grey in "The Young Forester" and in the Saturday Evening Post of 22 February 1913. It may have been a development of the phrase like eating pie, first recorded in Sporting Life in 1886.