Albert Murray

Jazz music, as is also the case with the old down-home spirituals, gospel and jubilee songs, jumps, shouts and moans, is essentially an American vernacular or idiomatic modification of musical conventions imported from Europe, beginning back during the time of the early settlers of the original colonies.

American Critic

Edmund White

The Sound of Things Falling' may be a page turner, but it's also a deep meditation on fate and death. Even in translation, the superb quality of Vasquez's prose is evident, captured in Anne McLean's idiomatic English version. All the novel's characters are well imagined, original and rounded.

American Novelist

Jon Landau

The greatness of Mac Rebennack, alias, Dr. John, also known as John Crieux, rests on his command of the musical use of idiomatic expression. Not a technically well-endowed singer, nor a great songwriter, he leaves his mark through the discipline and control he exerts over all that he touches.

American Producer

Hari Kunzru

I'm interested in complexity, in the mathematical sense, as well as the idiomatic sense. The idea of emergence - that it's possible for complex patterns to arise out of many simple interactions - is fascinating.

British Novelist

John Grant

Icelanders love to speak English. Their English is a joy to hear because of how colloquial and idiomatic it is, but they appreciate your efforts with Icelandic.

American Musician

Jacques Derrida

I do not believe in pure idioms. I think there is naturally a desire, for whoever speaks or writes, to sign in an idiomatic, irreplaceable manner.

French Philosopher

The term 'idiomatic' highlights phrases used naturally by native speakers, often without thinking.

Native Speaker Usage

Idiomatic expressions often contain cultural references, making them tricky for outsiders to grasp.

Cultural Nuances

Idiomatic phrases may not make sense when translated word for word, as their meanings are figurative.

Not Literal

'Idiomatic' in arts means using elements that are characteristic of a specific genre or style.

Genre Specific

Idiomatic in art implies a true and accurate representation of the subject's style or era.

Authentic Representation

In music, idiomatic plays highlight the musician’s deep understanding of the instrument’s capabilities.

Technical Mastery

 they have accents, they're not idiomatic. Suddenly these characters that you've fallen in love with become husks of themselves, they're shadows of themselves. To go into a culture and to only ever process people through that kind of skrim curtain is to never truly get the culture.

Idiomatic

Saying or doing things in a way that is common or natural to native speakers of a language.