What is the meaning behind English idioms, and where do they come from?

Join Professor Potts to discover the secret history of more than 160 beautifully illustrated English idioms, from "Achilles’ heel" to "Wrong side of bed".

★ What is an idiom? ★

An idiom is an expression or term that is unique to a language, whose meaning can not be understood by reading the words. The origins of these unusual phrases are astonishing, poetic, bizarre and sometime mysterious.

★ Who is this app for? ★

English Idioms Illustrated will be enjoyed by English students, teachers and enthusiasts alike. The origin and meaning of each idiom is masterfully illustrated by Professor Potts. Download now to see for yourself!

★ What idioms are available? ★

The first 23 idioms are free and the rest are available through in-app purchases. In total there are 163 idioms including:

Achilles’ heel
Bite the bullet
Cross the Rubicon
Dark horse
First rate
Guinea pig
Hanky-panky
In a nutshell
Jump on the bandwagon
Knuckle down
Lion’s share
Mad as a hatter
No holds barred
Once in a blue moon
Point blank
Real McCoy
Salt of the earth
Turn over a new leaf
Up to scratch
Wild goose chase

★ About the author ★

Professor Potts is a dashing investigator who loves nothing more than jet-setting around the world exploring scientific mysteries. His butler has a PhD in nuclear science and his dog will only eat bones from the Jurassic period.

Aidan Potts -his alter ego- has a slightly more tedious biography. Aidan was born in London 1963 and 6 months later he moved to Nigeria, followed by Bogota, Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania, Tripoli, Libya and the Turks and Caicos. He studied History of Art at University College London, then began working as an illustrator for the British press. Among his books are “Uneversaurus” and “The Smash Smash Truck”.