What is meant by the euphemism bought the farm?
Filters. (idiomatic, US informal euphemistic) Simple past tense and past participle of buy the farm: died; often refers to death in battle or by a plane crash.
Where does the phrase ring the bell come from?
Wikimedia Commons This phrase supposedly dates back to a time when people were at risk of being buried alive. To keep from waking up inside a coffin (and then really dying), loved ones were buried with bell ropes so they could ring the bell if they woke up.
Where do English idioms come from?
According to Merriam-Webster, an idiom is defined as “an expression in the usage of a language that is peculiar to itself either grammatically or in having a meaning that cannot be derived from the conjoined meanings of its elements.” Each language and dialect has its own distinct, complex system of idioms, often …
What does down on the farm mean?
Believe it or not, “How Ya Gonna Keep ‘Em Down on the Farm” is a war song. It’s about World War I. Then again, it’s kind of about farms; specifically, it’s about their place in American society. But this song is also about cities, like Paris and New York, and movies and nightclubs and jazz.
What does sold the farm mean?
sell the farm To risk all of one’s assents on a venture that one thinks will be hugely successful or rewarding. I wouldn’t sell the farm on that wacky invention. He’s broke now because he sold the farm on a foolish business venture.
Why is it called a dead ringer?
It means “an exact duplicate” or “100% duplicate”, and derives from 19th-century horse-racing slang for a horse presented “under a false name and pedigree”; “ringer” was a late nineteenth-century term for a duplicate, usually with implications of dishonesty, and “dead” in this case means “precise”, as in “dead centre”.
What is the origin of Can’t hold a candle to?
The phrase can’t hold a candle to has its roots in the 1600s, when the lowly apprentice to a master of a craft might only be fit to hold a candle in order to provide light for the master while he tends to a problem. An apprentice who was not even skillful enough to hold a candle for his master was worthless, indeed.
Can’t get happy on the farm Meaning?
“You get happy on the farm because you win a few games, whatever the case may be,” Williams said. “We just can’t get bored with being efficient. We can’t get bored with getting stops.
What is meaning of No Dice?
No, certainly not; also, impossible. For example, Anthony wanted to borrow my new coat, but Mom said no dice, or We tried to rent the church for the wedding, but it’s no go for the date you picked, or Jim asked Dad to help pay for the repairs, but Dad said no soap.
Why does kick the bucket mean death?
A person standing on a pail or bucket with their head in a slip noose would kick the bucket so as to commit suicide. An archaic use of bucket was a beam from which a pig is hung by its feet prior to being slaughtered, and to kick the bucket originally signified the pig’s death throes.
What does the phrase “bought the farm” mean?
What is meant by the phrase “bought the farm”? Question: What is meant by the phrase “bought the farm”? Answer: It comes from a 1950s-era Air Force term meaning “to crash” or “to be killed in action,” and refers to the desire of many wartime pilots to stop flying, return home, buy a farm, and live peaceably ever after.
What is the origin of the word ‘under the weather’?
Linguist Richard Lederer tells us that “under the weather,” meaning, feeling ill, comes from the language of sailors. On the high seas when the wind would start to blow hard and the water became rough, crewmen and travelers would go below deck and down to their cabins in order to ride out…
Why did the pilot “buy the farm”?
Since very few pilots would survive such a crash, the pilot was said to have “bought the farm” with his life. These are charming tales filled with imagery and romance, but nothing other than our desire to believe supports any of them. Moreover, “to buy it” (meaning “to die”) existed in the language long before “to buy the farm” did.
Do people say ‘Well he bought the farm early’?
If someone were killed his colleagues might say, ‘well, he bought the farm early’, or similar. Well, yes they might, and there are numerous sentimental US films where dialogue like that wouldn’t be out of place.