Oxford Dictionary of Idioms

Did you know that 'flavour of the month' originated in a marketing campaign in American ice-cream parlours in the 1940s, when a particular flavour would be specially promoted for a month at a time? And did you know that 'off the cuff' refers to the rather messy practice of writing impromptu notes on one's shirt cuff before speaking in public?
These and many more idioms are explained and put into context in the Oxford Dictionary of English Idioms.
The dictionary takes a fresh look at the idiomatic phrases and sayings that make English the rich and intriguing language that it is and contains entries for over 6,000 idioms. These include a range of recently established idioms such as 'the elephant in the corner', 'go figure', 'like a rat up a drainpipe', 'sex on legs', 'step up to the plate', 'too posh to push', 'a walk in the park', 'win ugly'.
Many entries include additional features which give more detailed background on the idiom in question. For example, did you know that 'taken aback' was adopted from nautical terminology that described a ship unable to move forward because of a strong headwind pressing its sails back against the mast?
Anyone interested in the colourful side of the English language will get hours of fun browsing from this fascinating and informative app.

A search tool

Featuring various search options to help you find the words you need more easily, including:
* A quick search of words while you type
* A 'fuzzy filter' for when you are not sure of the correct spelling of a word
* A 'keyword' search for finding key words within phrasal verbs
* A wild card search facility which can replace a letter or a group of letters

A learning tool

The dictionary app includes a number of features which help you to expand your vocabulary further:
* A 'Favourites' feature allows you to create your own categories and lists of words
* Your last visited words are all saved in your 'History', so that you can quickly look back at recently checked words
* Discover a new word every day with the 'Daily' feature
* Ability to have dictionary Word of the Day as a widget on the device home screen
* See words in context with example sentences
* Online and offline modes supported; the offline mode allows you to download the whole dictionary and work independently from data connections

Small apps extension for Sony products