English idiomatic expressions are an integral part of the language, reflecting cultural, cognitive, and historical dimensions. This study investigates the semantic features and meaning development of idioms, focusing on transparency, compositionality, figurativeness, and cultural relevance. A corpus of 500 idiomatic expressions was analyzed using qualitative and quantitative methods, including semantic, historical, and contextual analysis. The findings reveal that idioms vary widely in transparency and compositionality, with a predominance of non-compositional and metaphorical expressions. Meaning development occurs through processes such as metaphorical extension, generalization, and semantic bleaching, illustrating the dynamic nature of idiomatic language. The study highlights the importance of understanding idiomatic expressions for language learning, translation, and computational applications, emphasizing the interplay between language, culture, and cognition.

English idioms, Semantic features, Meaning development, Transparency, Compositionality, Figurative language, Cognitive linguistics, Cultural context

Cacciari, C., & Tabossi, P. (1988). The comprehension of idioms. Journal of Memory and Language, 27(6), 668–683.

Fernando, C. (1996). Idioms and Idiomaticity. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Gibbs, R. W. (1994). The Poetics of Mind: Figurative Thought, Language, and Understanding. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Glucksberg, S. (2001). Understanding Figurative Language: From Metaphor to Idioms. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Lakoff, G., & Johnson, M. (1980). Metaphors We Live By. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Nunberg, G., Sag, I. A., & Wasow, T. (1994). Idioms. Language, 70(3), 491–538.

Oxford Dictionary of English Idioms. (2003). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Cambridge Idioms Dictionary. (2005). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms. (2015). Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Palmer, F. R. (1976). Semantics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.