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Google tells me an idiom is "a group of words established by usage as having a meaning not deducible from those of the individual words".

When I look at the definition of "all/other things being equal," most results (but not all 1) say the phrase is an idiom2, 3, 4.

I have two questions:

  1. Is this phrase an idiom?
  2. If so, why? From my native, English-speaking perspective, the meaning can be deduced from the words.

1. https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/other-things-being-equal

2. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/all%2Fother%20things%20being%20equal

3. https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/all-things-being-equal

4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ceteris_paribus

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    There is hardly any doubt this is an idiom; however, since you seem to have an argument that would show the contrary, it is important to edit your question and to expose it to the readers; from this addition to your text they'll be able to determine where is your error (or, to understand that there is an error in the dictionaries, which is not likely). Commented Sep 21 at 0:06
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    I'd not class this as an idiom, as it is transparent. It is a fixed expression (and idioms are that subclass that [1] are not transparent in meaning (usually metaphorical) (eg 'ship of the desert') and/or [2] are extragrammatical (push the limits of standard grammar ... but are acceptable because they are in common use ... eg 'by and large'). //// But different usages are confusingly in play. See jimm101's answer. Commented Sep 21 at 13:56
  • Why does it matter whether this phrase is classified as an idiom? Obviously, it is like typical idioms in some ways, but not in others. Why do you need anything more definite than that? Commented Sep 21 at 17:28
  • It's only obvious in meaning because you've already been told what it means. Other things being equal to what? Compare "all people are equal" which probably doesn't mean that all people are exactly the same in all situations. And Merriam-Webster gives other meanings of equal such as "capable of meeting the requirements of a situation or a task", "tranquil in mind or mood", "free from extremes". Without knowledge you could guess it's equivalent to "all things being equal to the task". Commented Sep 22 at 8:33

4 Answers 4

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Christine Ammer, The American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms, second edition (2013) has this interesting entry for the phrase:

other things being equal Also, all else being equal. Given the same circumstances, as in Other things being equal, I prefer the green sofa. This term is a translation of the Latin phrase ceteris paribus, which was widely used until the 18th century, when i[t] began to be replaced by the English equivalent.

Ammer's definition ("given the same circumstances") strikes me as a bit odd; I would have expected something closer to "assuming that no other relevant factors or considerations exist that might change my assessment." But I do think that a widely used set phrase whose meaning differs from the literal combined sense of the words in the phrase can reasonably be called an idiom—and the phrase "all/other things being equal" is not meant to assert that all/other things are equal.

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  • Most of the usual dictionaries add the 'meaning not readily apparent from the combined senses of the words in the string' requirement, and better articles have the alternative requirement '[and/or] containing non-standard grammar', ie 'idiom' ⊊ 'fixed expression', though OED also allows the sense 'idiom' = 'fixed expression', and thus overall 'idiom' ⊆ 'fixed expression'. Commented Sep 22 at 10:46
  • Yes, I think the idea is actually: All other things being equal, a better translation of ceteris paribus, which makes the question go away. Commented Sep 22 at 13:02
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The phrase ceteris paribus has a Roman historical context mainly related to the law and to legal and political debate. It entered English usage via mediaeval people, often monks and/or scholars, who were themselves fluent and literate in Latin. Its use suggests that the judgement, belief or plan under discussion is proposed or made on the basis of the evidence provided and assuming that there is no other factor either unknown or with-held that might cast doubt upon it. In this context, it is a standard expression. As time has gone on it has often come to be used as a sort of verbal tic in the attempt to appear professional and judicious.

The English language does not have the grammatical inflection of Latin and so the literal phrase other things equal ('on a par') doesn't sound right. The participial being is the best solution. The use of the -ing) participle here has, as the Latin can, have a causal sense or a conditional (if) meaning. Other things being equal works the same way.

Does this make it just grammatical usage, or is it an idiom? One test is to see what other languages do with these relationships. There is a wide variation.

Greek: Αλλα πραγματα αν ειναι ισα [If other things are equal - but literally 'other things if they are equal']

Italian: aparita di altre condizioni (on equality of other conditions)

French: toutes choses etant Egales par ailleurs - Everything <lit: all things being equal otherwise>.

German: unter sonst gleichen Bedingungen - Under otherwise equal conditions

The German phrase is, not surprisingly more distant than the other three from the phrase in question, but retains the idea of equality/sameness or equivalence.

More fluent speakers of German or French or Italian than I may differ. However, I think it is fair to say that there are at least some differences of idiom in the sense that literal transliterations of them into English come out clumsily or with a difference of emphasis, which could be described as idiomatic differences. Perhaps you could think of the expression as a sort of speech habit, seeking to convey the exercise of due and honest caution.

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From the Latin ceteris paribus, literally "holding other things constant",

if all other relevant things, factors, or elements remain unaltered

MW

can be considered an idiom, not because MW definition 1:

a group of words established by usage as having a meaning not deducible from those of the individual words

but because of definition 2a:

the language peculiar to a people or to a district, community, or class. MW

The phrase is almost jargon in economics and philosophy, and a semi-transparent idiom because the meaning is fairly easy to derive. See, for instance, Fernando, C. (1996). Idioms and Idiomaticity. Oxford University Press. Chitra Fernando discusses levels of opaqueness, where kick the bucket has no obvious relationship to death, where raining cats and dogs is at least partially obvious though oddly tied to animals, and all things remaining equal fairly obvious.

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    I don't see why it's any more of an idiom than, say, vice versa. The Latin is a shorter way of expressing something whose meaning is just the sum of its (Latin) constituent words. Take M-W's example: "All things being equal, a person with a PhD should be getting a higher salary than someone with only a master's degree." What's opaque about "If we hold all other things equal, ..."? Commented Sep 21 at 1:27
  • '[T]he language peculiar to a people or to a district, community, or class' does not point to a specific usage. Another definition needs to be found. // Elsewhere on ELU, the disconnect between the default meanings of 'idiom' ('a fixed expression displaying unusual word usage, or unusual grammar, or both') and 'idiomatic' ('in common use and clearly understood among practised native speakers') has been discussed. As a linguistic term, I'd want to keep 'idiom' distinct (as a hyponym) from 'fixed expression' (notice the term 'fixed phrase' adds a further headache) ... but opinions vary here. Commented Sep 21 at 14:05
  • OED sense I.3 has 'A form of expression, a grammatical construction, a phrase, etc., used in a distinctive way in a particular language, dialect, or language variety....' which licenses the usage mentioned here. But the fact that most dictionaries do not mention this usage surely needs prioritising. Commented Sep 21 at 14:09
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    the language peculiar to a people or to a district, community, or class ... [t]he phrase is almost jargon in economics and philosophy Maybe I'm in some sort of language bubble, but I know next to nothing about economics and philosophy, and I've used this phrase for as long as I can remember. Perhaps I unknowingly picked it up from somebody with a philosophy degree? I suppose my point is, I've been under the assumption this phrase is generally well-known. Commented Sep 22 at 0:59
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    Despite what the article says, I don't think "ceteris paribus" translates literally as "holding other things constant": "ceterus" means "other thing"; "par" means "equal" rather than "constant", and there's no word for "holding" - so the phrase "other things being equal" is actually a more literal translation (the "being" coming from the ablative absolute construction). Commented Sep 23 at 14:54
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Author here. After reading some of the replies, I had an idea that might explain my confusion. As the title and sources state, there are 2+ versions of this phrase, and things start to make sense when I consider each one separately.

  1. To me, "Other things being equal" is self-explanatory. I can't fathom an alternative interpretation.

  2. On the other hand, depending on one's interpretation, "All things being equal" could be nonsensical. I'll elaborate, but first, an example: "All things being equal, a concise answer is better than a long-winded one."

    Now I'll role-play as someone hearing this phrase for the first time:

    I thought you said all things are equal. How could the answers have different lengths if all things are equal? Your statement doesn't make sense. Either all things are equal, or they're not. Which is it?

    With this reasoning, it's now obvious to me why this is an idiom.

Is this suitable as an answer? I don't have any sources, I simply thought about the question in a new light.

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  • I'd say it's better to regard the 'all things equal' as typical loose language, hyperbole, as with "He's millions of excuses" or "This glass is fuller than that one." Idioms (in the 'string' sense) have metaphorical rather than imprecise (but still pragmatically acceptable) language (or they have, in some cases, stretched grammar ... the 'extragrammatical' ... [not 'ungrammatiucal ...] 'idioms'). // Googling all things being equal (no quotes) tends to redirect to 'other things being equal' (and one 'all other things being equal'). It's the variant I'd opt for; logic is not to be sneezed at. Commented Sep 22 at 10:56
  • @EA doesn't the phrase (as you know, an ablative absolute) have an originally legal and perhaps philosophical usage? It concedes that no discussion in that time, before computing, let alone AI, can take account of all the possible evidence that might be unknown or inaccessible. There is nothing dodgy about this note of caution, though, no doubt it can be over- or misused. The insertion of the crude '-ing' word 'being' to me blunts the much terser 'ceteris paribus'. Commented Sep 24 at 15:44

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