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idea(noun)/aɪˈdɪə/ /aɪˈdiːə/- a plan, thought or suggestion, especially about what to do in a particular situation
- It would be a good idea to call before we leave.
- That's a great idea!
- I’ve had a brilliant idea!
- I knew this was a bad idea.
- The latest big idea is to make women more interested in sport.
- The surprise party was Jane's idea.
- He already had an idea for his next novel.
- We’re having a meeting to try to come up with ideas for fund-raising.
- The idea of a new museum was first discussed two years ago.
- I like the idea of living on a boat.
- We've been toying with the idea of (= thinking about) getting a dog.
- Her family expected her to go to college, but she had other ideas.
- I don't know what to do, but I'm open to ideas.
- It might be an idea (= it would be sensible) to try again later.
- It seemed like a good idea at the time, and then it all went horribly wrong.
- Ben is the ideas man and the others do the day-to-day work.
- Ben is the idea man.
Extra Examples- Brainstorming is a good way of generating ideas.
- We're always looking for new ideas.
- Do you have any ideas for a present for Lara?
- Family therapy is used as an alternative idea to medication.
- Give careful thought to how to structure your ideas in the essay.
- Group counselling is used as an alternative idea to punishment.
- He joined the company as an office assistant with big ideas.
- He kept turning the idea of resigning over in his mind.
- He's obsessed with the idea of getting a motorbike.
- Her ideas are drawn mainly from Chinese art.
- His ideas flowed faster than he could express them.
- How could we translate the idea into business reality?
- I have an idea about how to tackle the problem.
- I hope he's not still harbouring ideas about asking me out.
- I met up with a designer to bounce a few ideas around.
- I think the whole idea is ridiculous.
- I wanted to put the idea out there.
- I wanted to take the week off, but my boss had other ideas.
- I'm toying with the idea of leaving my job.
- It might be an idea to leave a note on the door for Marcos.
- It was a struggle to get our ideas across.
- It's useful to have someone to bounce ideas off.
- Most employees welcome the idea of a ban on smoking.
- She accused the company of stealing her idea.
- She had the idea of advertising on the internet.
- Some people started recycling, and the idea caught on.
- Some students started wearing denim, and the idea caught on.
- That idea didn't work out so well.
- The book introduces the key ideas of sociology.
- The book puts across complex ideas in a way anyone can understand.
- The germ of his idea came from watching a bird make a nest.
- The idea behind the ceremony is to keep the gods happy to ensure a good crop.
- The idea eventually led to the invention of the telephone.
- The idea for the Olympics originated with Pierre de Coubertin.
- The idea for the invention came to him in the bath.
- The idea had long been mooted but nothing had been done to put it into practice.
- The idea has now blossomed into a successful mail-order business.
- The movie is based on a simple idea, but a powerful one.
- They managed to push the idea of expanding through the committee.
- We were asked to suggest ideas for improving efficiency.
- What gave you the idea to go freelance?
- a system of decision-making that stifles original ideas
- He's definitely an ideas person.
- I'd like to explore this idea in a bit more detail.
- I've got a good idea.
- It seemed like a good idea at the time.
- My original idea was to use amateur actors.
- She's always full of bright ideas.
- That's a brilliant idea!
- The basic idea is that we all meet up in London.
- We need to have a meeting in order to bounce a few ideas around.
- Who on earth came up with that idea?
- It's a great forum for sharing ideas.
- You need to support your ideas with concrete examples.
- Let's develop this idea a little further.
- The conference is an opportunity for an exchange of ideas.
- a picture or an impression in your mind of what somebody/something is like
- The brochure should give you a good idea of the hotel.
- I had some idea of what the job would be like.
- This film changed the very idea of what an outer space movie could be.
- She doesn't seem to have any idea of what I'm talking about.
- An evening at home watching TV is not my idea of a good time.
- If this is your idea of a joke, then I don’t find it very funny.
- I don't want anyone getting the wrong idea (= getting the wrong impression about something).
Extra Examples- I had an idea of where it might be.
- He gave me a rough idea of what was wanted.
- Swimming in an icy river is not my idea of fun.
- The idea of going to his rescue amused her.
- They seem to have got the idea that we will be giving them a lift.
- I don't relish the idea of sharing an office with Tony.
- People have a romantic idea of the police force.
- an opinion or a belief about something
- the experiences that shaped her ideas
- He has some very strange ideas about education.
- Her ideas on the family are pretty old-fashioned.
- These photographs challenge conventional ideas of beauty.
- She rejects the idea that product quality has suffered.
Extra Examples- They had to reconsider their ideas in the light of new evidence.
- She has some funny ideas about how to motivate staff.
- She has very definite ideas about what kind of a job she wants.
- He holds very different ideas to mine about discipline.
- She always tries to impose her own ideas on the rest of the team.
- a feeling that something is possible or is true
- Where on earth did you get that idea?
- What gave you the idea that he'd be here?
- I have a pretty good idea where I left it—I hope I'm right.
Extra Examples- I have a pretty good idea who might have said that.
- The idea never crossed my mind.
- The idea that I was only interested in making money is ludicrous.
- The idea that she was involved in any way is absolutely ridiculous.
- Whatever gave you that idea?
- the aim or purpose of something
- You'll soon get the idea (= understand).
- What's the idea of the game?
- The whole idea of going was so that we could meet her new boyfriend.
- They buy other people's tickets with the idea of reselling them.
- to start behaving in a more acceptable way, so that work gets done better, etc.
- to give somebody hopes about something that may not be possible or likely; to make somebody act or think in an unreasonable way
- Who's been putting ideas into his head?
- used to emphasize that you do not know something
- ‘What's she talking about?’ ‘I've no idea.’
- He hasn't the faintest idea how to manage people.
- I had no idea she’d had such a difficult life.
- I don’t have any idea where he is.
- I haven't got the faintest idea what she meant.
- He hadn't had the slightest idea about what had been going on.
- to have found a very good or successful way of living, doing something, etc.
- He's certainly got the right idea—retiring at 55.
- The party had the right idea, but failed to win over the voters.
- used to reply in a positive way to a suggestion that somebody has made
- Hey, that's an idea! And we could get a band, as well.
- used to encourage people and to tell them that they are doing something right
- That's the idea! You're doing fine.
- used to show that something is hard for somebody else to imagine
- You've no idea how much traffic there was tonight.
Word Origin- late Middle English (as a term in Platonic philosophy): via Latin from Greek idea ‘form, pattern’, from the base of idein ‘to see’.
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