Reading for Opinion & Idiomatic Phrases
Section: Reading | Syllabus: Cambridge Primary English as a Second Language (0057)
Exploring Idiomatic Phrases
- An idiomatic phrase (idiom) is a group of words whose overall meaning is different from the literal meaning of the individual words.
- Examples: "it's raining cats and dogs" (raining heavily), "break the ice" (start a conversation to ease tension), "a piece of cake" (very easy), "under the weather" (feeling unwell), "on the ball" (alert and quick to understand).
- Idioms cannot usually be worked out word by word — picturing the literal image (real cats and dogs falling from the sky) does not help.
- To work out an idiom's meaning:
- Notice when a phrase would make no literal sense in the sentence
- Use the surrounding context — what is happening in the rest of the sentence or paragraph?
- Check whether the idiom's likely meaning fits the overall tone of the text
- Idioms are common in everyday speech and informal writing because they make language sound more natural and expressive.
An idiom's real meaning is nothing like its literal picture
Worked Example: Working Out an Idiom from ContextQuestion: What does "raining cats and dogs" mean in the sentence below?
"We forgot our umbrellas and it was raining cats and dogs, so we got completely soaked on the way home." Step 1 — Check the literal meaning: animals falling from the sky makes no sense in this sentence, so it must be idiomatic. Step 2 — Look at the context around it: "forgot our umbrellas" and "got completely soaked" both suggest heavy, unavoidable rain. Step 3 — Match the idiom to this context: it must describe rain that was heavy enough to soak people without umbrellas. Answer"Raining cats and dogs" means raining very heavily.
Recognising the Writer's Opinion
- A fact is a statement that can be checked and proven true or false, e.g. "The museum opens at nine o'clock."
- An opinion is a personal view or feeling that cannot be proven true or false, e.g. "The museum's new exhibit is the best one yet."
- Phrases that often signal an opinion:
- I think, I believe, in my opinion, personally, it seems to me
- Words expressing necessity or judgement: should, must, ought to
- Opinions are not always introduced by a phrase like "I think" — they can also be shown through evaluative adjectives that express a judgement, such as "wonderful," "boring," "disappointing" or "unfair."
- To check whether a statement is fact or opinion, ask: "Could this be proven true or false with evidence?" If not, it is an opinion.
Common Mistakes
MistakeTaking an idiom literally and picturing its impossible literal meaning instead of looking for its real meaning.
FixIf a phrase makes no literal sense, treat it as idiomatic and use the surrounding context to work out what it really means.
MistakeAssuming any confidently written statement must be a fact.
FixAsk whether the statement could be proven true or false — confident wording does not make a personal view into a fact.
MistakeOnly looking for phrases like "I think" and missing opinions shown through descriptive, judgemental words.
FixAlso watch for evaluative adjectives such as "amazing," "terrible" or "unfair" — these usually signal an opinion even without "I think."
Worked Example: Identifying the Writer's OpinionQuestion: Read the text below and identify the writer's opinion.
"The new playground has bright new equipment. In my opinion, it is much more exciting than the old one, and I think every child in the school will love it." Step 1 — Find opinion-signalling phrases: "In my opinion" and "I think" both appear in the text. Step 2 — Read what follows each phrase: "it is much more exciting than the old one" and "every child in the school will love it." Step 3 — Separate this from the fact stated earlier ("has bright new equipment" is checkable and is not an opinion). AnswerThe writer's opinion is that the new playground is more exciting than the old one and that every child will love it.
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