“The book” is an English idiom meaning to do something correctly, possibly originating from the Christian Bible. Idioms are difficult to learn as their literal translations don’t convey their true meaning. Similar to “by numbers,” it reflects following rules closely, but “according to the book” is more general.
The phrase “the book” is an English idiom, or saying, meaning to do something in the correct or proper way. Refers to completing a task according to the rules or without sparing time. This saying is thought to have originally referred to the Christian Bible, although its current meaning simply refers to any set of written or implied rules governing the activity a person is performing.
Idioms like this are sayings that if taken literally have no meaning or make no sense. They are one of the hardest parts of learning a new language because their literal translations don’t show the true meaning of the sentence. Instead, an idiom is a phrase that has over time gained a popular meaning outside of its literal meaning. It is understood by a group of people to contain that specific meaning, and those unfamiliar with the phrase may have trouble understanding it even when the phrase is used in context.
While similar phrases may date to pre-Bible times, it is commonly believed that current usage of the phrase referred to the Christian Bible. The Bible is considered the definitive rulebook by those of the Christian faith. People were often made to swear on the Bible in court that they were telling the truth, and the original version of the phrase “according to the book” is thought to have referred more to telling the truth in court than following the rules.
Over time, the phrase “according to the book” began to appear in literature and other publications. William Shakespeare wrote “You kiss the book” in his famous play Romeo and Juliet. The phrase also appears in Edgar Allen Poe’s Murders in the Rue Morgue. These usages are similar to the phrase’s common usage and may have played a role in the development of its popularity over time.
Similar in meaning to this phrase is the idiom “by numbers”. This phrase means to perform an action in a precise and exact order. The two sentences both reflect an action that conforms to the rules and follows orders as closely as possible. “According to the book,” however, is a more general phrase that reflects a law-abiding person while “by the numbers” refers to performing a specific action as closely as possible to the instructions.
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