🗓️ Idiom: A Foreign Concept (n)
💬 Meaning
- Something that is completely new, strange, or not understood by someone.
- An idea that feels unfamiliar because of different background or experience.
🧠 Example Sentences
- Flexible working hours were a foreign concept to the factory managers.
- For some international clients, direct feedback is a foreign concept.
- The idea of taking long holidays is a foreign concept in some company cultures.
🏛️ Origin
Originally, the word “foreign” meant something from another country. Over time, English speakers started using “a foreign concept” to describe any idea that feels strange or unfamiliar—even if it isn’t from a different country.
📝 Practice Exercises
1. Fill in the blank:
For many traditional businesses, remote work was __________ before the pandemic.
Answer
a foreign concept
2. Choose the correct meaning of “a foreign concept”:
A) An idea that is widely accepted
B) A confusing or unfamiliar idea
C) A rule from another country
Answer
B) A confusing or unfamiliar idea
3. Rewrite the sentence using the idiom:
“The idea of casual dress at work was very strange to them.” → Change the sentence using: a foreign concept
Answer
Casual dress at work was a foreign concept to them.
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