Every article on the history of English, newest first.
‘Burn the candle at both ends’ is such an old phrase. I mean, who burns candles unless there’s a power outage. And can you even picture a candle being burned at both ends? If the p…
When someone is returning to something, following a hiatus, you may hear the phrase ‘back in the saddle’. The idiom is rarely literal or connected to horse riding. If that’s got yo…
The phrase ‘foam at the mouth’ isn’t always meant literally, which can often cause confusion. But don’t worry, if that’s where the phrase has left you, you’ve certainly come to the…
It’s quite common to hear someone say that they’ve been working like a dog, or that someone else has. But it’s quite an odd phrase, because dogs rarely have jobs. They are more fre…
When a product or service is not exactly up to standards, you’re likely to hear the phrase ‘you get what you pay for’. If you’re not sure what that means exactly, you’ve come to th…
Have you ever heard the phrase ‘that ship has sailed’ and not known what it means? I wouldn’t be surprised if you have. It rarely refers to ships, and it doesn’t really mean much w…
Have you ever heard the phrase ‘slept like a log’? It’s a frequently used idiom in the English language, and is familiar with both adults and children. It’s an odd saying because,…
If you’ve ever been around someone who has just done something very impressive, you may have heard them say something like ‘I don’t like to toot my own horn, but…’. In case you do…
Have you ever heard someone ask ‘Final nail in the coffin?’ when they offer you a cigarette or vape? If so, you are not alone. You may be wondering what the phrase means and how it…
The phrase ;sink or swim’ is an idiomatic expression that conveys the imagery of being ‘thrown in the deep end’ where you have only two options. You either sink, or you swim. In th…
There’s a good chance that you’ve heard the phrase ‘bare fruit’ before, but the actual meaning usually rarely has anything to do with actual fruit… If you’re not one hundred percen…
Sometimes you may hear the phrase ‘A day late and a dollar short’, but this phrase is not to be taken literally because it’s an idiom. If you’re not a hundred percent sure what it…