More fodder for those wordy thoughts
The July 26 idioms article generated quite a buzz and served as a reminder that the English language is as interesting as it is expansive.
Before anyone gets long in the tooth, let's dive into more figurative phrases and further satiate those linguistic appetites.
• "The check's in the mail." A payment has been sent and is on its way. According to usdictionary.com, this phrase is also used as an excuse for delayed payment, often carrying a connotation of doubt or skepticism: "It suggests that the speaker might be stalling or avoiding payment. Sometimes, it's used humorously to acknowledge a payment is overdue or playfully dodge a financial obligation."
Although its exact origin is unclear, it became popular in the late 20th century, especially in the United States and is often accompanied by cynicism. For '80s movie buffs, it is also a favorite phrase of Jack Burton, Kurt Russell's character in "Big Trouble in Little China." Another favorite saying of old Jack Burton of the Porkchop Express: "It's all in the reflexes."
• "The apple of my eye." Someone or something cherished and adored above all others. This is an oldie but a goodie that originally referred to the central aperture or pupil of the eye. It was coined by Pope Gregory the Great in his works, "Pastoral Care," written in 590 A.D. and later translated by King Alfred the Great of Wessex in 890 A.D., according to grammar-monster.com. The term also appears in its archaic form in William Shakespeare's plays, "A Midsummer Night's Dream" and "Love's Labor's Lost."
• "Offer an olive branch." To extend a gesture of reconciliation or truce to end a disagreement or dispute. This one goes back even further in time to ancient Greek and Roman mythology. As the olive branch represents peace, this symbol evolved into an idiom that has been used for more than 400 years.
• "The elephant in the room." Used to describe an awkward situation in which something that is obvious to everyone is not being discussed by anyone. Its first recorded use was most likely in an 1814 fable by Russian writer Ivan Krylov, "The Inquisitive Man."
"In the fable, a man goes to a museum and sees an elephant, but he doesn’t notice it because he is too busy looking at all the other small objects on display," according to nosweatshakespeare.com. "This story is thought to be the origin of the idiom, as it illustrates the idea of ignoring an obvious problem."
On the more obscure end of the spectrum:
• "To know chalk from cheese." To discern differences between things that appear similar to the untrained eye. The earliest example of this phrase, which is similar to the more modern "comparing apples to oranges," came from John Gower’s 1390 Middle English text "Confessio Amantis," writingexplained.org explains.
• "To buy a pig in a poke." To hastily purchase something without thorough inspection. According to idioms.thefreedictionary.com, this phrase refers to a "confidence trick in which people would buy what they thought was a pig in a bag, or ("poke") and later found that the bag actually contained a cat."
• “You can’t make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear.” Something that is fundamentally bad cannot be made into something good.
• "Carrying coals to Newcastle." Whatever is being done is unnecessary. This made sense in the 1600s because England's Newcastle upon Tyne was known as a coal-rich city.
• "Cut the Gordian knot." To solve a problem in a forceful way rather than using a gentler method.
Humans are funny creatures who have funny ways of describing things. Feel free to send rare, interesting and strange idioms to dweeks@cdapress.com.
This may require a few more articles ahead, but — let's not put the cart before the horse.
