Idioms and Proverbs Trivia

1. Not by a long ___ ?

From Quiz You Are Such An Idiom

Answer: Chalk

This expression describes any statement or event that is a long way from the truth, or from succeeding. Originating in Canada in the 19th century, it eventually made it way over to England, a country that has long term ties with Canada. In the United States, the idiom is usually known as "Not by a long shot". The reference to chalk in this saying was that originally used in pubs and at horse racing meetings when marking up scores or odds on a board for participants or spectators to keep up to date with the progress of each event. "Do you think Charlie is going to win the darts tournament tonight, Bob?" "Nah, not by a long chalk, Tom."

From Quiz The Rat Race: At Work With Idioms

Answer: pounding the pavement

Hitting the road, walking the beat and pounding the pavement all are straightforward terms most probably grown into colloquial usage from the simple reality of the force of a foot hitting the hard road surface. Pounding the pavement has taken on the meaning of looking for work, walking a beat is seemingly mostly applied to the activity of a policeman on his rounds, and hitting the road is a more general term for getting going on your travels. "All I've ever done is work. I arrived in LA in my twenties and I've been pounding the pavement ever since." - Jeremy Piven, actor

From Quiz Forgotten 1800s' Idioms

Answer: beyond someone's mental reach

Idiom found in the Oakland, California, "Tribune" on Jan. 12, 1885. By the mid-1800s, "nut" was being used to mean a person's head, and around the same time it was decided that someone not quite right in the old noggin was "off his nut" or simply "nuts." Example in modern usage: He set his nut too high for the open position which requires a degree in business management.

From Quiz Common Idioms

Answer: burn the midnight oil

The expression alludes to using oil lamps while working at night. It is similar in meaning to "burn the candle at both ends", which means to work all day and night without getting rest.

From Quiz Do You Know What Phrase This Is

Answer: Greek

The line "it's all Greek to me" dates back to 1599 with William Shakespeare and his play, "The Tragedy of Julius Caesar". It was from a conversation between Cassius and Casca.

From Quiz The Lemon Squeezy Pie That Fell Off a Log!

Answer: It really means "as easy as eating a pie" because they taste good.

There are some claims that the phrase originated in the 1920s in Australia, but it was used in the Saturday Evening Post in 1913. However, a much earlier example appeared in a Rhode Island newspaper in 1887, where an amusing story is told of two down and outs in New York, where one remarks "You see, verever I goes, I takes avay mit me a silverspoon (sic) or a knife or somethings an' I gets two or three dollars for them. It's as easy as pie. Vye don't you try it?

From Quiz Are You a Member of the Caterpillar Club?

Answer: That you have been unfaithful to your lover

In 1806, the British publisher Oliver & Company printed a list of funny and slightly bawdy ditties called "Comic Songs." One of them told the tale of...well, here's part of the song: "Billy Taylor was a brisk young fellow Full of mirth and full of glee. And his mind he did discover To a maid fair and free." The rest of the song tells how Billy is captured by a group of thugs and pressed into service on a British ship. His lady love, however, does not give up on him and, disguised as a man named Richard Carr, goes in search of darling Billy. Poor Billy: his lady finds him in the arms of another woman and she dispatches him with one shot.

From Quiz Weather Sayings from Olde England

Answer: only a splash

This is the way I was taught the rhyme, but my Cornish friends believe the opposite and I am told that the Germans do also. I have also heard other sayings, but they were usually describing a downpour on a specific day.

From Quiz There's a Saying About That

Answer: Spoil the broth

There is an old story that a group of men (!), tiring of quickly cooked food on washing day, decided to make a pot of soup to share. They were each to bring one ingredient and add it to the pot secretly. The pot was cooked but when it was opened, it was inedible because they had each brought a pinch of salt! This saying is used when someone offers unwanted help.

From Quiz Why Numbers?

Answer: Zero

"Zero tolerance" can be used to deter many types of criminal activity, from terrorism and drug use to petty shoplifting and anti-social behaviour. The meaning is very clear and concise in that crimes will not be overlooked.

From Quiz I Lost my Marbles..Have You Found Them?

Answer: "...I wonder what she's saying to him."

"Chewing out" means to reprimand or verbally scold somebody. The term originated during World War II, because when officers or other soldiers with high ranks scold someone, the tend to talk loud with a lot of jaw motion to make them feel worse. The soldiers really did feel like they were being "chewed out".

From Quiz Cold Hands, Warm Heart

Answer: look

"Look before you leap" is a proverb that advises caution when making decisions or taking action - thinking beforehand about any possible outcome. The phrase can be traced back to 1350 (Douse MS), and was included in John Heywood's 1546 collection of proverbs. A quote from 1605's play "Eastward Ho" contains a version of the proverb. "Thou should have looked before thou hadst leapt."

From Quiz The Incomplete Proverb Quiz

Answer: the mice will play

The meaning of this phrase is generally understood to be that when the person in charge is absent, the people subordinate to him/her will enjoy their freedom in many ways. For example, when John's parents were on holiday he had a wild party.

From Quiz Speaking Proverbially

Answer: alike

You are probably thinking that all the answers are good but only one of them fits with the accepted, and often-used, proverb.

From Quiz More Things My Grandma Said

Answer: Five

Grandma always said that if you picked the food up within five seconds then it was still fine to eat. There is of course no truth in this. As soon as food hits the floor it picks up dirt and bacteria, and this applies no matter how clean you think your floor is.

From Quiz Which Idiom Did I Use at the Party?

Answer: Never judge a book by its cover

In this scenario, the phrase "Never judge a book by its cover" means we shouldn't assume this woman is poor based on how she is dressed. She may be a millionaire!

From Quiz Proverbially Speaking

Answer: Parsnips

The meaning of this proverb is that it's all very well to talk big, or to use flattery, or to boast about all the fine things you are going to do - but does talk put food on the table?

From Quiz People and Places in Phrases

Answer: Hobson's Choice

Thomas Hobson was the man's name, and the 'choice' in the phrase is, of course, no choice at all--you're obliged to either take what is offered you, or take nothing. A good example of Hobson's Choice (and the most famous one) is what Henry Ford offered when it came to the color of the car you were going to buy--"Any color you like, so long as it's black".

From Quiz In a Manner of Speaking

Answer: The shortest distance between two points

This phrase is thought to have been in use since 1800 and that it originated in Pennsylvania.

From Quiz It's All Greek to Me!

Answer: Pardon my French

Ah, the French! The English are very fond of using their name euphemistically for the most unpleasant of concepts. "The French disease" is used in English to describe syphilis, for example. "Pardon my French" is used to excuse a momentary lapse of decency in one's choice of words, particularly when swear words have been uttered. It is often used in advance of the offending words when someone is aware that they are about to swear.

From Quiz Weird Words & Phrases

Answer: It started with the use of the telephone, in the 1880s.

"Hello" has been used only since the invention of the telephone. Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone, actually preferred the word "Ahoy" as a telephone greeting. "Hello" won, however.

From Quiz Mean What You Say

Answer: adding insult to injury

This expression refers to adding further harm, for example, making a condescending apology to someone one has wronged. It can also mean someone who does not apologize after insulting a person.

From Quiz Words In Custody

Answer: Scream

The term "screaming meemies" apparently was used first to describe the mental state of WWI soldiers with battle fatigue who were unmanned, in part, by the "mee-mee" sound that passing artillery shells made. It later became associated with the "heebie-jeebies", a term used to describe alcohol withdrawal. The phrase "Screaming meemies" is presently used more generically to designate a person who is in a state of high agitation from any cause.

From Quiz Idioms in the Funeral Trade

Answer: dead & died

Also used to mean dead are just plain 'passed', 'expired', 'gone to meet his or her maker', 'in a happier place', and countless other ones.

From Quiz Idiomatic Language

Answer: the candle

Must date back to the times that gambling was done "with candlelight". As candles were relatively expensive, a gambler might have expressed his disappointment with his poor gains with the remark: the game was not worth the candle.

From Quiz Never Saying What We Mean

Answer: be it

Instead of saying "this is your responsibility" the more dramatic and theatrical way of presenting the matter is to make it a type of Sword of Damacles hanging over the person's head. The politicians would call this language a "soundbite" which the media love to quote as it conveys a multitude of meaning in just five words.

From Quiz What Does That Saying Really Mean?

Answer: step

Stated by noted American philosopher, William James.

From Quiz Common and Not-So-Common Sayings

Answer: Bone

The Bible has made references to dry bones. "The valley...was full of bones...and, lo, they were very dry." Dry bones of long-dead creatures in the hot sun in a desert give an image that has become cliche. You can't get much drier, hmmm, are you feeling thirsty?

From Quiz Nationality Words In Idioms

Answer: French

The English language seems to take a rather unfavourable view of both the Dutch and the French. It should be noted however that the French language pays in kind and calls syphilis (in England "the French disease") "la maladie anglaise". In same way a "French letter" is "une capote anglaise". It's just for the "French kiss" that they have not been inspired by England. There does not seem to be such a thing as "un baiser anglais".

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Last Updated Dec 14 2024 5:45 AM

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