Questions tagged [popular-refrains]
A saying is something that is said, notable in one respect or another, to be "a pithy expression of wisdom or truth." (Bernice Randall)
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What is the saying blank 101? [closed]
What is the general saying of "_____ 101"?
It can be used for university studies, for example "physics 101" but there is a standard general saying (which can sound a little ...
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Are there sentimental connotations to the phrase "all grown up"?
I tried some internet searches and couldn't get a clear take on this.
If someone makes a comment along the lines of "Look at Chris, all grown up", do most people interpret that at face value?...
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What does "in a quiet pool" mean?
While I was watching a a True Crime documentary, the narrator said:
The young pastor, his wife, and their three daughters looked happy and
had everything they needed to live a comfortable life ...
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What is the origin of “give it the beans!”?
There’s a phrase, possibly specific to British English, to “Give it [some/the] beans!” when referring to a task that somebody should put more effort into. It’s similar to “Give it some welly!”.
What I ...
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Is there such a thing as a new adage?
I was brought up to understand that a proverb that is described as an adage is, by virtue of its longevity, old. Take, for exapmle, the Old Testament book of Proverbs, some of which date back ...
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Which work of Shakespeare "oftentimes better than a master of one" appears in if it it accredited to him? [duplicate]
A jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one is apparently accredited to William Shakespeare.
Just to clarify - I mean the FULL quote, not just 'Jack of all ...
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Word/term/saying that encapsulates the notion of something being ethically convenient
Lately I've encountered a few situations in discussions where I feel like there may be a word that is either more succinct and/or perhaps more wry than just 'ethically convenient'.
An example sentence ...
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"The boil must be lanced if it is to heal"? [closed]
In Final Fantasy 16 (FFXVI), which has a medieval-ish setting, C says that "The boil must be lanced if it is to heal". I'm...not sure I understand the phrase.
For context, C is in a ...
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Is "that's what you get" likely to be used sarcastically/to rub something in?
Take this phrase:
"That's what you get."
The wording implies that it could be used both positively and negatively, à la 'what goes around comes around.' That is, if I do something good, I '...
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A word or a phrase for aphorism-like rules?
I'm writing something about sets "life rules" like The Rules - The Way of The Cycling Disciple. I want to relate a proposed "set of rules" to existing "rules/sets of rules&...
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An idiom or a saying like "give a dog a bone" or "throw someone a crumb"
This expression is often used to describe situations where someone is given a small reward or token gesture to keep them content, while the larger, more significant prize or benefit is kept hidden or ...
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Idiom for modeling after the wrong thing?
Person A: "If X can do this, so can I."
Person B: "Well, [insert idiom]."
In this situation X is someone who should not be emulated or treated as a role model. For example, X may ...
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Is “out of sorts” in The Proverbs of John Heywood?
The origin of the popular saying out of sorts is still unclear, but the more common theory states that the expression comes from the world of printing where “sorts” was used to refer to boxes of ...
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What's a saying for "talking bad in someone's ear"
There's a saying I'm thinking of. Let's say I worked on your car and you were happy with it. Then your friend told you that the work was dissatisfactory and making up things to change your opinion, as ...
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A phrase/expression/saying for coming in an already-stablished situation and so accept it for granted [duplicate]
You become a member of a particular society/community, and there are certain norms/conventions/lifestyles in that community which you take for granted and don’t question. Sometimes they are ...
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