"Idiometry" the term is a word I constructed to describe the use and analysis of popular sayings; sayings that Webster defines as "an expression in the usage of a language that is peculiar to itself either grammatically or in having a meaning that cannot be derived from the conjoined meanings of its elements." "Idiometry" the site started with e-mails I began sending to some Indian co-workers of mine describing different day-to-day terms that most Americans take for granted but which often confound those who did not grow up in our culture. It was then when I began to realize how figurative our language is. So many of the words and phrases we use are not to be taken literally; how many of us have ever used the term "loose cannon" to actually describe a heavy gun that has become free of its attachments, or called someone a "third wheel" to describe that person as an unnecessary part of a bicycle? Even less obtuse, day-to-day phrases can be seen as figurative; the phrases "shut up" and "shut down" both mention direction, yet essentially the directions mean nothing. It's only the combination of the literal and figurative that gives each phrase its meaning. It's no wonder then that English is viewed around the world as a difficult language to learn. This site simply attempts to examine some of those phrases for which there is not an obvious or readily apparent meaning, hopefully providing a context by which we can finally attach the literal to the figurative; in essence, making sense from nonsense.