Definition of "idiom" []

• A speech form or an expression of a given language that is peculiar to itself grammatically or cannot be understood from the individual meanings of its elements, as in keep tabs on. (noun)
• The specific grammatical, syntactic, and structural character of a given language. (noun)
• Regional speech or dialect. (noun)
• A specialized vocabulary used by a group of people; jargon: legal idiom. (noun)
• A style or manner of expression peculiar to a given people: "Also important is the uneasiness I've always felt at cutting myself off from my idiom, the American habits of speech and jest and reaction, all of them entirely different from the local variety” ( S.J. Perelman). (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Keeping only the title idiom from Jolson's hit, the Chatmon composition stands a New York story on its head."
• "In fact, the word idiom comes from the Greek root idio, meaning a unique signature."
• "The Greek idiom translates as "into the ages of the ages.""