Which term describes an expression whose meaning is not predictable from the words themselves?

Which term describes an expression whose meaning is not predictable from the words themselves?

• A. Metaphor
• B. Allusion
• C. Idiom
• D. Simile

Answer: (C)

An idiom is an expression whose meaning cannot be predicted from the literal meanings of its individual words. Think of phrases like “kick the bucket” or “spill the beans”—their figurative meanings (die, reveal a secret) are not obvious from the words themselves and must be learned as a whole. That non-literal, non-predictable sense is what defines an idiom. Metaphor also yields non-literal meaning, but it’s a direct comparison that you interpret by thinking about how one thing is described as another. An allusion relies on recognizing a reference to something outside the text, and a simile makes a comparison using like or as, where the meaning comes from that explicit comparison. The key trait here is that idioms resist decoding from the words alone, which is why this term fits best.

An idiom is an expression whose meaning cannot be predicted from the literal meanings of its individual words. Think of phrases like “kick the bucket” or “spill the beans”—their figurative meanings (die, reveal a secret) are not obvious from the words themselves and must be learned as a whole. That non-literal, non-predictable sense is what defines an idiom.

Metaphor also yields non-literal meaning, but it’s a direct comparison that you interpret by thinking about how one thing is described as another. An allusion relies on recognizing a reference to something outside the text, and a simile makes a comparison using like or as, where the meaning comes from that explicit comparison. The key trait here is that idioms resist decoding from the words alone, which is why this term fits best.