Cat Got Your Tongue? Tricky Idiomatic Expressions That Get Us Bent Out of Shape

Let’s Cut Ourselves Some Slack 

Adding a little flair to your writing with idioms can be confusing, but hang in there! The purpose of using idioms is to give some artistic expression to your writing. For example, if you’re writing a mystery novel where the heroine is searching for clues and pursues the wrong lead, you could say something like this:

“Maggie had been following Mr. X all day long, sure that her suspicions about his behavior were correct. But when it turned out that she was following him to a soup kitchen, she realized that she had been mistaken the entire time and was looking for solutions in all the wrong places.”

You’ve conveyed to your reader that Maggie made a mistake, but you could really hit the nail on the head if you used a few idioms to spice up your writing:

“Maggie had been following Mr. X all day long, sure that her suspicions about his behavior were correct. But when it turned out that she was following him to a soup kitchen, she realized that she had been barking up the wrong tree.”

So far so good? It’s not rocket science to think of all sorts of other expressions now that I’ve gotten you started. The thing about idioms, though, is that there are some common ones that people misuse regularly.

Ignorance Is Bliss

Some of these corrected idiomatic expressions may throw you for a loop; the misused phrase is so common, you may not know that it’s wrong! If you can wrap your head around these corrections, you’ll be well on your way to making your writing really pop.

1. I could care less vs. I couldn’t care less

This is number one for a reason. Read this example carefully.

Dorothy smiled wickedly at Sandra. “And you thought that I would actually invite you to the party after that?” Sandra shrugged, hoping to appear casual. “I could care less if I’m invited or not. It was completely worth it.”

If Sandra CAN care less, then she currently cares at least a little bit. When we use this expression, we generally mean that we don’t care at all now and nothing will change the situation to make us care less than we already do. Therefore, the correct expression is “I couldn’t care less.”

2. For all intensive purposes vs. for all intents and purposes

Here’s another tricky one. 

Michael, for all intensive purposes, was now the sole decision maker for the company.

Intensive means “to strengthen or increase.” While your purposes may be strong, the correct expression, “for all intents and purposes,” means “essentially.” So in the previous example, we’re saying that Michael is essentially the sole decision maker.

3. Nip it in the butt vs. nip it in the bud

“This situation needs to be nipped in the butt before it goes any further,” whispered Mrs. Carlton to Mrs. Sheldon as they walked into the ladies’ luncheon where they would vote on the highly contentious issue of where to hold the annual fundraiser.

Since situations don’t have butts, it’s difficult to nip them there. What you mean when you use this expression is that you want to stop something from progressing that is currently headed in the wrong direction. The expression is “to nip it in the BUD.” Think of an invasive flower or plant that is growing in your garden. By nipping the bud, you prevent it from growing to maturity and spreading more seeds around your yard.

4. It’s a mute point vs. it’s a moot point

“…and that’s why we need to seriously reconsider the way that this institution finances our programs,” Stacey concluded, barely containing her anger in the conference room. She could tell that she had made enemies from the glowering looks she was getting around the table. Naturally, Allegra, her arch-enemy, jumped in. “Honestly, Stacey, it’s a mute point since the donors have already indicated how they want their contributions to be spent…”

At least Stacey can find conciliation in the fact that Allegra doesn’t know how to use the expression “a moot point.” If something is “moot,” it has been “deprived of practical significance” and no longer has merit in the conversation at hand.

5. Irregardless vs. regardless

I’m throwing you a curveball for this last one, because if you look up “irregardless” in Merriam-Webster, it is a word. The definition of “irregardless” is “regardless.” Many consider “irregardless” to be redundant, since the prefix ir- negates something, as does the suffix -less. In most cases, “regardless” is considered to be the standard term that is likely to be approved by your editor, while “irregardless” is a more colloquial term that you’ll hear in everyday conversation.

To Make a Long Story Short…

Idioms are a dime a dozen but using them can really get out of hand if you don’t know how to deploy them correctly. I don’t want to beat a dead horse, so jump on the bandwagon and tell us what your favorite idiomatic expressions are!

Dayna Betz is a full-time freelancer providing proofreading and editing services to help writers put their best foot forward. She also enjoys reading and writing book reviews. Head over to her site to learn more: https://betzliterary.com.