idiomatic

American  

[id-ee-uh-mat-ik] / ˌɪd i əˈmæt ɪk /

Also idiomatical

adjective

1. peculiar to or characteristic of a particular language or dialect.

   idiomatic French.

2. containing or using many idioms.

3. having a distinct style or character, especially in the arts.

   idiomatic writing; an idiomatic composer.

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Other Word Forms

• idiomaticalness
  noun
• idiomaticity
  noun
• nonidiomaticalness
  noun
• nonidiomatic
  adjective
• nonidiomatical
  adjective
• unidiomatic
  adjective
• idiomatically
  adverb
• nonidiomatically
  adverb
• unidiomatically
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of idiomatic

1705–15; < Late Greek idiōmatikós, equivalent to idiōmat- (stem of idíōma ) idiom + -ikos -ic

Explanation

Anything idiomatic relates to expressions that cannot be understood according to their literal meaning, like "it's raining cats and dogs" or "bite the bullet." An idiom is a turn of phrase, like saying a restaurant has gone to the dogs, which has nothing to do with dogs but means the restaurant has seen better days. You could say an idiom is an idiomatic expression. You could also say an idea — like how politics is like a horserace — is idiomatic. When you're learning a foreign language, idiomatic speech — which is natural to native speakers — is one of the hardest things to master.