Idiots with Idioms

17/11/2021

Our new episode is out‼️

Lawyer and friend of the show Andrew Arsht drops by to discuss three idioms from the legal world. In a wide-raning conversation, he explains to us how pleading the fifth is a bit more complicated than it looks in Law and Order, how in Britain the police used to literally read the riot act, and how an ambulance chaser has nothing to do with automobiles.

We cap it off with yet another thrilling edition of The Idiot's Gambit. 👇👇👇

"Lawyer and friend of the show Andrew Arsht drops by to discuss three idioms from the legal world. I

07/11/2021

In 1801, Admiral Horatio Nelson was second in command of the British fleet in the naval battle of Copenhagen led by Admiral Sir Hyde Parker.

When Hyde Parker sent a signal for Nelson to disengage, Nelson pretended not to see the flagship's signals and persisted. Allegedly he said he did not see the signal as it came on the side of the eye that had been blinded in an earlier battle.

These kinds of tales, especially those related to national heroes like Nelson, tend to be exaggerated or entirely fictitious.
In fact, Nelson did not create this idiom as its usage was put into print first by the British novelist Francis Lathom in Men and Manners, 1800.

Nevertheless, even if Nelson did not coin this term, his actions in battle and the stories that were created about them, brought this idiom into everyday language.

25/10/2021

This expression alludes to King Pyrrhus of Epirus.

In a.d. 279 he was able to defeat the Romans at Asculum, but he lost his best officers and many of his troops.

"Another such victory and we are lost" were Pyrrhus' famous words. This idiom is closely linked to another idiom: Pyrrhic victory. Although Pyrrhus’ story has been around for a while, this expression entered the English lexicon only in the 19th Century (the term was first recorded in 1879).

If you want to discover more idioms from ancient Rome, listen to our 3rd episode: “Carpathian Hare”.

👉https://www.spreaker.com/user/12433300/iwi-episode-3-final-2

15/10/2021

Do you want to speak about your language & your country's culture❓🗣
Do you like our show❓🎙
Would you like to be our next guest❓👏

Then get in touch with us at 👇[email protected]

We are looking forward to chat with you 🤗

10/10/2021

02/10/2021

This expression is related to the Celtic druids who lived in what’s now Great Britain. In their culture, trees were associated with spirits, particularly good ones. It was considered good luck to tap trees to let the good spirits know that you were there.

This kind of superstition remains popular around the globe and has even given rise to several local variations.

🇹🇷Turkish people often pull on one earlobe and knock on wood twice to ward off a jinx.

🇮🇹Italians, meanwhile, say the phrase “touch iron” when trying to please the goddess of fortune.

29/09/2021

1921 - Daily Colonist in British Columbia: "Perhaps the most pitiful figures who have appeared before Dr. Carleton Simon ... are those who voluntarily surrender themselves. When they go before him, that are given what is called the 'cold turkey' treatment."

That is the first time that the expression “cold turkey” was ever recorded. The expression is now used to express the action of quitting something quite addictive abruptly.

There are several theories on the origin of this idiom. According to The Lingo of Law Enforcement and Crime it is related to the fact that during withdrawal, the skin gets a cold and sweaty feel making it comparable to a scarcely refrigerated turkey.

22/08/2021

The origin of the idiom 'don’t judge a book by its cover' is fairly recent.

According to the Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs, it was used in print for the first time in 1929 in the journal American Speech: “You can’t judge a book by its binding.”

The idiom became popular after it appeared in the 1946 best seller murder mystery novel “Murder in the Glass Room” by Lester Fuller and Edwin Rolfe: “You can never tell a book by its cover.”

20/08/2021

This idiom is an adynaton: a way of saying that something will never happen.

The most frequently used version of this expression is ‘when pigs fly’ although you may easily encounter 'Pigs might fly'.

The same expression is present also in other languages:

🇩🇪 "Wenn Schweine fliegen können!"
🇷🇴"Când o zbura porcul"

And with little adjustments also in:

🇫🇮 "kun lehmät lentävät" (when cows fly)
🇫🇷 "quand les poules auront des dents" (when hens will have teeth)
🇮🇹 "Quando gli asini volano" (when donkeys fly)

An infamous use of this idiom in literature can be found in Lewis Carroll’s “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland:

"Thinking again?" the Duchess asked, with another dig of her sharp little chin.
"I've a right to think," said Alice sharply, for she was beginning to feel a little worried.
"Just about as much right," said the Duchess, "as pigs have to fly ..."

18/08/2021

This is very much an American expression that is little used elsewhere in the English-speaking world.

It was most likely generated during the 1920s when fairs and carnivals would hand out ci**rs as a prize.

The first recorded use of 'close but no cigar' in print is in Sayre and Twist's publishing of the script of the 1935 film version of Annie Oakley: "Close, Colonel, but no cigar!"

Nowadays the expression is used to indicate that someone has fallen just short of a successful outcome thus not receiving a reward.

03/08/2021

This idiom comes directly from Old England, but from an age that you would not suspect right away. In fact, this expression came into usage when the age of the gallant knights was well over.

The earliest reference we could find is a poem by Henry Pye (1790) called ‘Amusement: A Poetical Essay’:

"No more the knight, in shining armour dress'd
Opposes to the pointed lance his breast"

Knights coming to the rescue of damsels in distress was much of a Victorian fantasy, as in that period King Arthur and the Court of Camelot was on everyone’s night-table.🏰

28/07/2021

How many times have you thought about this idiom during the pandemic?

The first reference according to the Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs is by John Heywood in his Dialogue of Proverbs (1546):

The mo the merier, we all daie here (hear) and se.

👑Heywood, a relative of Sir Thomas More, performed plays with him at the Tudor’s court. From the restrict audience of a king’s court, this idiom reached a great success and it is nowadays commonly used.

26/07/2021

How many swings of the hammer do you need to drive a nail?

If you are a good carpenter, you know that it all depends on accuracy. Hitting on the head you will be much more efficient.
In this idiom, the carpenter’s ability to hit the exact point is used to say that something is correct or on point.

This idiom has existed in English since at least the early 1700’s, and probably since the 1600’s.
We could not find a particular source, but we are quite sure that this idiom is as old as carpenters and nails as we can find it in many other languages.


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24/07/2021

Iiris Andre joins the idiots for an in-depth look at a selection of Finnish idioms. 🇫🇮

We discuss why some lands are strawberries and some lands are blueberries, what happens when you get your skis crossed, and the best place for sunbathing in all of Finland.😎

⚡️We introduce a brand new “lightning round” segment where we rapidly analyze 9 Finnish idioms, and finish off the episode with the latest edition of the Idiot’s Gambit.

Remember to rate, review, and subscribe!

Iiris Andre joins the idiots for an in-depth look at a selection of Finnish idioms. We discuss why s

20/07/2021

An idiom with roots in the American college campuses of the 1960s. 🇺🇸🍌

It is believed that this idiom evolved from the expression going ape. Probably this is due to the close association between bananas and apes.🐒🐒🐒

Going bananas means going crazy and wild with anger, or to erupt with enthusiasm with accompanying cheering.

20/07/2021

Another idiom with an American origin.🇺🇸

The inventor of the V-2 rocket Wernher von Braun along with other German scientists was transported to the USA in 1945 following their capture in WWII. The link between being smart and rockets is due to them. Rockets were at the forefront of technological innovation and these men were considered geniuses.🚀

But this idiom comes from a completely different field and time: the American Football field in the 1980s. One example may be found in The Daily Intelligencer (1985): "Coaching football is not rocket science and it's not brain surgery. It's a game, nothing more.".🏈

Before the 1980s there were other ways to express the same meaning as ‘It’s not brain surgery’ (1960s) or 'as easy as falling off a log' (before 1960s).

10/07/2021

The original form of the proverb, now in disuse, was "Care killed the cat where "care" meant "worry" or "sorrow for others."

The first mention of this idiom is found in a quite important play: Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare (1559).🎭

This expression was later popularized by other outstanding authors as Johnatan Swift ‘Then, who says care will kill a cat?’ (Poems II, 1726) and Agatha Christie ‘Care killed the cat, they say…You don’t want kindness rubbed into your skin’ (Mirror Crack’d 1962).

The idiom implies that curiosity, investigation, or experimentation can lead to danger or misfortune.

🐈

04/07/2021

When you fall in love you don’t see the faults of your beloved.💕
The first-ever to use this expression in English was Geoffrey Chaucer in The Merchant’s Tale (1400): “For loue is blynd alday and may nat see”.

William Shakespeare’s plays contributed to the success of this idiom. From Two Gentlemen of Verona (1591) ‘If you love her you cannot see here. – Why?- Because love is blind”.🎭

This expression has Greek roots, in fact, Cupid, the boy god of love, is often depicted as blindfolded and we may find this very expression in the writings of Plato: “For the lover is blind in his view of the object loved…”.

20/06/2021

Our third mini-episode is out and it is all about a common passion: ♟

Ethan and Marcello challenge each in a war over the board while getting into many idiots related to the world of chess.

Join us to learn more about this fascinating game.

Our third mini-episode is all about a common passion: the game of chess. Ethan and Marcello challeng

11/06/2021

This expression, the abbreviation of ‘a bolt out of the blue’, denotes an unexpected event or a complete surprise. ⛈

This idiom has been around for more than 100 years. Its first known use was by the Scottish writer Thomas Carlyle in 1837: “Arrestment, sudden really as a bolt out of the Blue, has hit strange victims.”

This idiom is used frequently in written and oral language. According to Google Ngram Viewer, its usage skyrocketed in the early 2000s and has increased ever since.

06/06/2021

'Clear the decks' is an idiom that comes from naval warfare and dates back to the 17th Century. It was important for the sailors to keep the deck clear in case of any major event as storms or battles.

In common language, it reflects the act of preparing for something removing all hurdles to get started on it.

You may find more idioms related to the military world in our 4th episode “A Boot move” 👇

https://bitly.com

05/06/2021

“Any impiety may be committed in love, which is lawless.”

Anything goes when you’re looking for love. This is the verse of the poet John Lyly that in 1579 generated this idiom.

Cervantes brought this concept into his Don Quixote:
“El amor y la guerra son la misma cosa, y estratagemas y la política son los permitidos en el uno como en el otro.”

Love and war are the same thing where politics and stratagems are permitted.

These are just a few examples of an idiom that had a great success both in literature and in common language.

For more idioms & stories, listen to our podcast 👇
https://spoti.fi/3z7eaVE

02/06/2021

Andy Hoffmann, a first lieutenant with the United States Marine Corp, joins the Idiots (Marcello and Ethan) for a behind-the-scenes look at military idioms and language.

From 'act like a boot' to 'blue falcon', we explore the idioms used on a military base and how it reflects the marines and larger military culture. Then we take a look at military idioms used in everyday American English, such as 'the whole 9 yards' and 'got your 6' (20:15).

To finish it off, we play IWI's very own game show, the Idiots Gambit (30:15).

Here's the link to the episode 👇
https://www.spreaker.com/user/12433300/iwi-4-a-boot-move-v2

23/05/2021

To "put my two cents in" is the 🇺🇸 version of the 🇬🇧 idiom "to put in my two-penny worth".🪙🪙

🥊It is thought that expression comes from the great years of English boxing in the 1900s.

Jack Jetlamey was a well-known gambler from Nottingham, always ready to bet despite his lack of money.

📢During the matches Jetlamey would cry out bets on his favourite boxer: "two, two, two my two cents in for Johnson" making the whole audience laugh at every match.

This idiom is now used to deprecate an opinion or to preface uncontentious opinions.

20/05/2021

A ballpark figure is a synonym for an estimate or approximation of the value of something unknown.

This is one of the many idioms that were generated by the sport of baseball.⚾️🧢
Back in the days, there was no way to provide the exact number of spectators present at the game. The commentator would have to guess the attendance by having a look at the ballpark (the stadium).🏟

You may find this and many other baseball related idioms in our 2nd mini-episode: “The Mendoza line”.

👇
https://linktr.ee/IdiotswithIdioms

18/05/2021

This idiom is an analogy for a display of fake emotions. It derives from an old legend stating that crocodiles cry while eating their prey. 🐊

Crocodiles do have tear ducts, in fact they weep to lubricate their eyes when they have been out of water for a long time. However, weeping could be triggered by feeding. While eating crocodiles blow out a large quantity of air which can bring tears up to their eyes.😭

There are several documented examples of this myth:

XVI Century - Sir John Mandeville: “These serpents slay men, and they eat them weeping”

1603 - Shakespeare’s Othello (1603):
“If that the earth could teem with woman’s tears,
Each drop she falls would prove a crocodile.”

1710 - John Strype - The first allusion to insincerity:
” … and his tears, crocodile tears.”
🥲

(Source: theidioms.com)

You can learn more about this idiom, and other idioms with Ancient Greek roots, in E3: The Carpathian Hare!

16/05/2021

The promotor fidei (promoter of faith) also known as advocatus diaboli (the Devil’s advocate) was a figure employed by the Roman Catholic Church in the process of canonization. 😇

Its job was to argue against the candidate uncovering eventual dark sides and putting in doubt miracles attributed to him (or her). The process had a God's advocate (advocatus Dei) as a defender and a Promoter of Justice (promotor iustitiae) in charge of the inquiry on the holiness of the candidate.👿

Pope Sixtus V established the office in 1587 and was reduced only by Pope John Paul II in 1983. Nowadays, the Vatican may still solicit the testimony of critics in cases of controversy.

🗣This idiom is commonly used to indicate someone expresses a contentious opinion for the sake of debate.

13/05/2021

This popular expression suggests that "cold-blooded" violence is more satisfactory while performing revenge. It comes from France. 🇫🇷

In fact, its creation is attributed either to the French diplomat Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord or to the writer Pierre Choderlos de Laclos's (XVIII Century): "La vengeance est un plat qui se mange froid".

The expression entered the English language in 1846 with the translation of Eugène Sue's novel "Memoirs of Matilda".📗

Since then, it has become one of the most popular idioms in the English-speaking world.

(Source: The Phrase Finder)

12/05/2021

Another idiom from ancient times. It alludes to the practice of burning bridges over rivers in order to prevent the enemy from crossing. 🔥

In doing so, an army would also lose the possibility of a retreat. This meant that they had only 2 options: victory or death.⚔️💀

Nowadays, the proverb “don’t burn your bridges behind you” suggest avoiding doing something which makes it impossible to return to an earlier state.

Find out more idioms from ancient times 👉 https://bit.ly/3uFAhA0