'Soup to Nuts'

Have you ever heard someone utter a quirky phrase, almost as if it was some sort of code language? The most recent one I've encountered is, 'soup to nuts'. What the hell does that mean and why would anyone use it in normal conversation?

It's called an 'idiom' and apparently most languages are chock-full of them. They may have originated hundreds of years ago or perhaps recently from some form of media or pop culture. An idiom is a phrase or saying that means something, but it's not always obvious from the words, exactly what. So what is the point of idioms when there are already so many ways of saying the same thing?

Take 'soup to nuts' for example. Good luck understanding what this means without looking it up on the internet. Apparently somewhere in the world, a meal was served in several courses, starting with soup and ending with nuts as the desert. So, by saying 'soup to nuts', you're essentially saying, 'start to finish'. You may also hear the phrase when describing a person - in which case it would would mean the person follows through with whatever they do.

Then there are the 'easier' ones to figure out, but still not super obvious - like, 'as the crow flies'. This one means, 'in a straight line'. You'll most often here this one when someone is giving you a distance to a location. Funny enough, crows don't fly in a straight line. Then there are the easier ones like, 'a penny saved is a penny earned'.

So why use idioms? Probably to make life more interesting or humorous. How often have you heard the phrase, "break a leg!"? This always lightens the mood when you are wishing someone well before a presentation or performance.

I had never heard the, 'soup to nuts' phrase until several weeks ago. It was uttered during a big yearly presentation. I had no idea. It almost sounds like a kinky sex position. I couldn't stop the person mid sentence and ask them to define, 'soup to nuts', so I had to look it up afterward. For this reason I'm not sure if idioms should be used in situations like this - but then I start thinking about all of the other phrases that I hadn't previously considered idioms. The one that comes to mind is, 'comparing apples and oranges'. I would definitely use this in a presentation - although I'm not sure why I would expect everyone would know what I was talking about.

I don't think idioms are part of any required curriculum in grammar school, but I'm sure they do pop up here and there in the required reading materials. Depending on where you grow up, you'll be exposed to a different set of idioms - especially if it's a different country. When you use an idiom, you treat it like you would a word in a dictionary and you expect your audience to follow you. But, much like using big, fancy words - you need to know your audience. Typically the simpler, the better - but at the same time, this can get boring.

So, when should we use an idiom? 'Your guess is as good as mine'.

Relevant links / articles:
https://www.ef.edu/english-resources/english-idioms/
https://www.phrases.org.uk/idioms/index.html
https://www.grammarly.com/blog/knowledge-is-power-using-idioms-to-give-power-to-your-writing/
https://www.idioms.online/