? 1
Why should we make up?
Why bury an axe?
Bury the hatchet literally means "burying the tomahawk" and extends to "reconciliation and reconciliation", which can be traced back to the local customs of the United States in the17th century. Burying the tomahawk in the ground by the warring parties indicates a truce and reconciliation between the two sides.
2
Win praise before others try to impress.
"Steal someone's thunder and steal someone's ideas"
/kloc-in the 8th century, an actor and troupe manager named John Dennis invented a machine that could imitate thunder on the stage, but when he learned that a late worker had used his machine, he shouted angrily, "They didn't let me play, but they stole my thunder! They won't let my play go on, but they want to steal my invention )"
? three
try to please the public with claptrap
"cater to low tastes"
Since the middle of the17th century, the cheapest seats in the theater have been called the gallery, so playing in the gallery means "catering to low tastes".
five
in all conscience
"escape from danger"
"Answer blows with blows" means "escape from danger and death", which is taken from a story in the Book of Job in the Bible. In this story, Job suffered from Satan's terrible temper, but was finally saved by God.
six
loyal
"people loyal to the government"
During the reign of Elizabeth I in England, a new idiom called "Don't eat fish" appeared in English.
The background of its birth is like this. After Elizabeth I ascended the throne (1558- 1603), her first task was to deal with the religious problems left over.
She led England to Protestantism cleanly: 1559, she quickly promulgated a new supreme decree, re-established the Anglican Church, broke with the Holy See, and reiterated that the king of England was the supreme leader of the Church of England.
157 1 year, she urged Congress to adopt the "39 creeds" as the official teachings of the Anglican Church, and finally established the Anglican Church.
As one of the articles in the 39-article creed, the Anglican Church has given up the Catholic fast of not eating meat on Fridays (in Catholicism, you can't eat meat on Fridays, only fish). Thirty-nine creeds are of great significance in British history and have been in use ever since.
In order to show their attitude: stand on the side of Elizabeth I and draw a clear line with Catholicism, one of their iconic practices and slogans is "No fish on Friday".
"No fish on Friday" is abbreviated as "No fish". In the orthodox society of Elizabeth I, "not eating fish" has become a symbol of consistency with the government, so in English, "not eating fish" has become an act of supporting the government, and "people who don't eat fish" has become synonymous with "people who are loyal to the government" and even "people who are honest and trustworthy".
Elizabeth I was called the "virgin queen" when she was alive. She remained single all her life and never married.
But when she was young, because she was unmarried, she never refused or agreed to others' pursuit, so she didn't express her position, which dragged down the relationship between all parties in the world. She used her unmarried status to make promises to Spain, the Holy Roman Empire, France, Sweden and other royal families, and used her marriage as a bargaining chip to balance the strength between the two great powers in continental Europe, especially France and Spain, and seek the greatest interests for Britain.
seven
chat
chat
In the northern dialect, "chat" is called "chat", and chewing fat is a common saying, which is similar to the meaning of "chat". But some people don't agree with this: chewthe fat is obviously "chewing fat" and seems to be out of touch with "chatting"! Hehe, you have to check the etymology carefully to find the answer.
Fat means "bacon" in the phrase, so talking about "chewing fat" often reminds people of such a picture: a few friends, a few bottles of beer, and several home-cooked dishes (beef jerky, dried bean curd, bacon). As a result, everyone was full of alcohol, so he was in a hurry to talk, drink, eat and chat ... from the etymology,
So, if you invite friends to chat at home, you can say, "Hey, John, why don't you come and chat?"
In addition, chew is often used in English to describe some behaviors such as "meditation, complaining and chatting", such as the phrase chewthe cud chatting (chatting, arguing and complaining).
eight
Rooster and Bull stor
A lot of lies
According to the records, Chicken and Dog Ascend to Heaven can be traced back to 1620. At that time, it was an English pub on the roadside. The name of this pub is "Rooster and Bull".
When tired travelers spend the night here, they often get together to talk about mountains and tell anecdotes about their experiences. Of course, these experiences don't have to be true, so they come as strangely. Over time, "chicken and cow story" has become synonymous with "nonsense".
nine
Another day; Extension; Admission ticket
"Some other time!"
In the United States, there are many kinds of baseball terms, and baseball culture has been integrated into American social and cultural life. Continuing with the slang "marketer" just mentioned, let's look at a colloquial word "Rain check" derived from baseball (literally: "rain ticket"); Extension: "Let's go to the appointment another day!" )
Think of a context: a friend invites you to go to the movies or eat, but you can't keep the appointment because of something. At this time, you can tell him in a declined tone: "Can I take a rain check?" Or, simply say, "Some other time?" "Rain check" appeared in the 1980s of 19, and originally referred to the "future tickets" that the audience got when the baseball game was postponed due to rain.
With the passage of time, the semantic scope of "rain check" has gradually expanded, which can be used to describe the commitment to the future in different situations, such as "extending the admission ticket when the game is rescheduled", "ensuring that the price will not increase when the goods are sold out in the future" or "suggesting another day when the contract is cancelled".
10
Very capable
"If you are good at this, you can get it easily."
According to the New Baseball Dictionary compiled by Paul Dixon, the slang "have on the ball" comes from baseball, which means "someone is good at something".
"Capable" first appeared in the early 20th century. Used to describe baseball players who are skilled in hitting, pitching, defending, running and stealing bases. He can completely control the situation on the court and let his opponents "dare not watch the ball."
Of course, from "have on the ball", we can also derive a series of phrases: have something on the ball has nothing; Very capable.
1 1
Jaywalking
"jaywalking"
Jaywalk (jaywalking) is often used to describe "pedestrians don't obey traffic rules and run red lights", and its origin is quite discriminatory, which can be said to be "the ridicule of city people on rural people"
As early as16th century, when British cities were just developing, rural people who entered the city were often nicknamed Jay ("a dull, chirping bird", which can be understood as "hillbilly" here) by urban residents.
Country people speak loudly and don't understand the traffic rules. They are amazed at the "huge" buildings in the city-this weird and uncivilized behavior is laughed at by the city people, and Jay (country bumpkin) has almost become synonymous with "idiot".
Because "don't know the traffic rules" is an important symbol of Jay (a hillbilly), in the early 20th century, pedestrians who "don't obey the traffic rules and run a red light" were dubbed jaywalkers. Correspondingly, "running a red light" can be expressed as jaywalkers.
12
run around busily
Busy running around.
In some vocabulary books, "from one pillar to another" is often translated as "running around". Strictly speaking, this explanation is not accurate. "Running around" means "running around for something, which is usually unrequited and considered as futile"
From the etymology of the following two statements, you may get some enlightenment: "Running into a wall everywhere" or "desperate" can better explain the connotation of "self-indulgence".
One view is that "from pillar to pillar" originated from "real tennis" in the United States [indoor tennis, also known as "pure tennis", is now almost replaced by "lawn tennis"].
In the indoor tennis hall, four Zhou Lin stood on the pillars on the wall. Once the tennis ball touches these pillars, it will bounce around, and the tennis player will naturally run around the pillars to pick up the ball. Therefore, it is often used to describe "a person running around looking for something, but he can't get it".
Another view is that the pillar in the phrase is corrupt, which essentially refers to the "pillar" (neck and hand flail); Post means "flogging column" (the column that binds the flogged prisoner). As early as the15th century, criminals were tied to posts and paraded around in flail. Therefore, "dilemma" is often used to describe "the situation in which prisoners are cornered".
13
A cliche.
"rhetoric"
"Sweet talk" is certainly not a compliment. To some extent, "rhetoric" means absolute truth, absolute repetition and absolutely nothing new ... Rhetoric is an excellent language art in leaders' speeches, spokespersons' answering reporters' questions or work reports. Although it has no practical significance, it is very practical. In English, "definite words" can be described as "cutting words".
It is said that "cut and dry" (literally: cut dry) originated from logging. If the trees growing in the forest are to become commercial timber, they must be sawn and air-dried. At the same time, sawn timber must meet the standard width and length.
Therefore, this kind of "cut and driven standardized wood" is often used to describe that some words and deeds are never unconventional, some results have been expected, and some films have become routine patterns.
14
Bus driver's holiday
A holiday in name only
As early as the19th century, British people often took a "carriage" when they went out. It is said that most carriage owners love horses and often dress up as passengers on rest days and secretly sit in their own carriages to ensure that the drivers are kind to horses. Over time, "a driver's holiday" has emerged to describe "a holiday without rest".
15
Give him an inch and he will take a yard.
Push your luck!
The expression "There are eggs in your beer" first appeared in the early 20th century and was widely used by American soldiers during World War II. Regarding its origin, one view is that beer with raw eggs will arouse people's sexual desire. For soldiers living in military camps, drinking "aphrodisiac" is of course an idiotic dream.
However, it is more convincing to speculate that eggs and beer are in short supply in wartime, and it is also a good enjoyment to get one of them. If you want to have both, it is "pushing your luck".
16
The cat bit your tongue.
"Why don't you talk?"
In English, the corresponding oral expression of "Why don't you speak" is: "Did the cat take your tongue away/did the cat take your tongue away?" At this time, interviewees are often at a disadvantage in conversation, such as criticized children, frustrated debaters, and even prisoners on trial. ...
It is said that sticking out your tongue through a tennis racket was an insult as early as the Elizabethan era of16th century. At that time, the strings of tennis rackets were all processed and extracted from the intestines of cats, so human beings who are good at playing tennis invented a rather strange expression "Cat got you tongue" (literally: did the cat catch your tongue). However, etymologists do not agree with this view, although unfortunately, they themselves can't tell the origin of this spoken language.
17
manipulation of account
"false accounts; Tampering with financial statements "
Making false accounts has nothing to do with "recipes", it refers to "false accounts; Tampering with financial statements ".
"Cook" in the modern sense can be traced back to14th century. This word comes from the Latin word coquus (from which congume is derived, meaning "fabrication; Processing ").
/kloc-In the 7th century, Cook referred to "tampering and forgery" in slang. Linguists believe that this meaning is inseparable from "careful preparation" in the sense of cooking. In addition, cookthe books can also be written as "accounting". The accountant was fired for falsifying accounts. The accountant was fired for making false accounts. )
Perhaps, cooking is the most important thing in a person's life, so on the basis of cooking, cook has many slang meanings: the band really got cooking after midnight; What to play in town?
18
In a recession
Pass the peak period
In the United States, the average life expectancy of people is 80 years old, so there is a saying that after 40 years old, it is "over the mountain" (over the peak period), and life has been going downhill since then.
Of course, this view comes down in one continuous line with its consumer culture and is questioned by critics. In daily life, there is no specific age limit for the "peak period". After reaching a certain age, if you feel that you are incapable of doing things, you can use "crossing the mountain" to describe it.
Etymologically, "crossing the mountain" comes from the slang of "being a deserter" in the military camp. During Roosevelt's New Deal, this sentence was used to describe "civil servants absent without leave". However, this layer of "abandonment" has long since withdrawn from the historical stage. In the modern sense, "crossing the mountain" is only used to mean that "time has passed and the scenery is gone".
19
Flying by night, of course, Flying by Night can't look at literature like this. However, flying by night (unreliable) is indeed related to night action-deadbeat tenants flee the landlord's house at night to avoid rent.
In the early19th century, fly by night was used to describe "deadbeat tenants"-they had to sneak away in the middle of the night because they had no money to pay the rent. Obviously, fly means "escape, escape" here.
With the passage of time, the meaning of night flying has expanded, which can refer to any shady behavior, especially criminals who run away after doing evil.
It is worth mentioning that in the19th century, fly can also refer to "a light (rental) carriage with only two wheels". This kind of carriage was originally driven by a coachman, and later it was changed to a horse-drawn carriage.
Today, we often describe a businessman as "unreliable and untrustworthy", so when doing business or investing, don't look for those unreliable companies as your business partners.
20
extort
extort
Blackmail originated in the Scottish Highlands in the16th century. Mail was "mail" or "male" in Scottish at that time, meaning rent. At that time, rent was settled in the form of silver coins, so it was also called white money.
Because some highland tribal leaders charge farmers protection fees, the money threatened to pay is called black money. Therefore, extortion means threatening others with violence to get money. /kloc-blackmail was expressed by threatening other people's secrets in the 0/9th century.
2 1
Cheap
Very cheap
Edmund spenser, a great English Renaissance poet, once wrote The Fairy Queen for Queen Elizabeth I. However, the then British Chancellor of the Exchequer did not buy it. When he heard that the Queen was going to pay Spencer 100, he shouted in surprise: "What! All this is for a song? "
The story was spread by the common people, and the statement of the Chancellor of the Exchequer became slang. However, it later meant not too expensive, but cheap, because people usually only give street performers some change.
22
betray the pot to the roses
(of fillers) come out-expose yourself.
How did the leaker get involved with cats? This statement comes from the medieval market. The cunning businessman took advantage of the chaos to replace the pig in the bag with a cat. The unwilling buyer took it back and opened the bag, but a cat ran out …
23
can't compare with
can't compare with
This disgusting sentence comes from this: before the advent of light bulbs, skilled workers would hire children to use candles for lighting when they were working at night. And "not suitable for holding candles" means that this person is inferior to others.
This new film is inferior to the original.
This new film is not as good as the original.
24
Complete Monty
all
It is said that this idiom is related to a tailor named montague Burton. Montague opened his first shop in a small English town in the early18th century.
Here, men can buy dresses, shirts, ties, shoes and socks and other complete sets of equipment needed for special occasions. This whole set was called "All Monti", and later it was extended to mean "all" and "everything needed".
25
Fly with your pants
It means to do things by feeling, without a clear plan.
Douglas corrigan flew from Brooklyn to Dublin on 1938 for 29 hours, and then this sentence became popular. Corrigan submitted an application to fly across the Atlantic, but it was rejected because his plane was not considered suitable for such a task. As soon as he arrived in Dublin, he said that his compass was broken.
A mechanic said corrigan's "fly with the seat of your pants", which is an old flying term used to refer to flying without any instruments or radios. In 1938, the headline of Edwardsville news used this sentence to describe corrigan's unplanned flight.
26
die
It means to die, die and kick.
This is an idiom with a playful tone and cannot be used in written language. It is said that this idiom originated in16th century. When executing a prisoner, you should stand on the barrel, put the noose around your neck, and then kick off the barrel. The noose will tighten and hang the prisoner, and then be used for any cause of death.
Regarding the formation of this idiom, Brevost explained in his Dictionary of English Idioms that "bucket" means "frame" or "yoke". In the past, every time people killed a pig, they tied their hind legs with ropes and hung them on a wooden frame with pulleys, which was called a bucket.
In case they are transported upside down. Pigs will struggle to kick buckets before they die. According to the principle of pulley lever, naturally they will hang upside down and slide forward in turn.
27
Bite a bullet (endure pain)
Unpleasant thing
This idiom comes from the past, when soldiers perform operations without anesthesia, they can only grit their teeth and endure pain.
Whether this source is true or not is still controversial. This phrase has been used since 1796. It always means being strong when you do something you don't want to do.
Researchers say this may come from a belief that people can get courage from biting bullets.
28
family scandal
An unknown family scandal
The skeleton on the blackboard is an idiom that originated in England. There is another story about this idiom.
Legend has it that there was a beautiful young woman who felt lonely because her husband was away for many years, so she took advantage of her husband's absence to meet her lover at home every night.
One night, just as she was having a tryst with her lover, her husband suddenly came back, and her wife was frightened and hurriedly hid her lover in a big wooden cabinet at home. When the husband entered the room, he didn't say that he would build a wooden cabinet in the wall with bricks. Over time, the lover became a skeleton.
Therefore, the skeleton in the cupboard means "dirty clothes, hidden feelings"
29
projectivity
Hit the bull's eye
A closed or central bull's-eye is "point blank", which comes from French point blank and refers to the center of the target used for shooting or archery practice.
White dot literally translates into white dot, which refers to the exact center of the target.
The original meaning of this sentence is "right on the target" and it has evolved into a closed circle. Such a circle can hit the bull's-eye more easily.
30
be surprised/alarmed at sth very ordinary
Make a fuss about trifles.
The storm in the teacup literally means "the storm in the teacup", and the real meaning is "making a mountain out of a molehill"; American English is "storm in teapot/bucket", also known as teapot storm.
The Storm in the Teacup was described by the famous French writer Honoré de Balzac (1799- 1850). This sentence comes from Montesquieu, a French philosopher and thinker in the18th century.
On one occasion, when he heard that there was a political turmoil in San Marino, he used "the storm in the teacup" to comment. Because San Marino is the smallest Republic in Europe, with a population of only 10,000, Montesquieu thinks that the unrest there is insignificant to the whole situation in Europe.