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Idiom Series #44: Hit the Nail on the Head
What does a carpenter have in common with a Roman comedy writer? Both knew that the best result comes from hitting exactly the right spot. One used a hammer. The other…
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Idiom Series #43: Hang in There
You may have seen it on an office wall, a dentist’s ceiling or a social media meme: a small kitten holding on to a bamboo pole with its front paws, its…
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Idiom Series #42: Good Things Come to Those Who Wait
Here’s a surprise. One of the writers most often credited with this famous saying about patience used it in a poem that doesn’t really believe it.
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Idiom Series #41: Go the Extra Mile
“She always goes an extra mile for her customers.” “Our team went the extra miles this year.”
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Idiom Series #40: Go Dutch
Who pays? It’s one of the most awkward questions at the end of a meal with friends, coworkers or a date. In English, there’s a short, friendly way to answer it:…
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Idiom Series #39: Go Back to the Drawing Board
Some idioms are centuries old, and nobody remembers who said them first. This one is different. We can point to the exact magazine page where it appeared: The New Yorker, 1…
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Idiom Series #38: Give Someone the Cold Shoulder
Search for the origin of the cold shoulder and you’ll probably find this story: in the old days, a welcome guest got a hot meal, but an unwelcome guest was served…
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Idiom Series #37: Give Someone the Benefit of the Doubt
Your coworker Sam promised to send you a file this morning. It’s now 2 p.m. and nothing has arrived. You could decide Sam is lazy. Or you could think, “Maybe something…
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Idiom Series #36: Get Your Ducks in a Row
On November 15, 1889, a Detroit newspaper called The Plaindealer, one of the African-American newspapers of the time, reported that local Democrats were “getting their ducks in a row” before an…
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Idiom Series #35: Get Your Act Together
Before we talk about what this idiom means, here’s a warning: be careful who you say it to.