Recently my family was on pins and needles as my grandmother was taken to the hospital. It looked like she had a stroke and our family was very concerned. However, the doctors determined that it was only a TIA (transient ischemic attack). We are thankful that she is fine now. The term on pins and … Read More
This phrase means to understand something without being told explicitly. It is a way to suggest something, as in, “I’m really thirsty, if you catch my drift.” It is implied that the speaker wants to be given something to drink. The phrase calls attention to something that is not explicitly said. It tells the listener … Read More
Friday is my second favorite f-word. Food is my first.
When a group of people are all thinking the same way, they have a hive mind. “Hive mind” can also be called groupthink, group mind, shared intelligence, swarm intelligence or universal mind. The term hive mind comes from the behavior of some animals (bee and ants are good examples). As a matter of fact … Read More
Crocodile tears are fake tears. They are usually when someone is pretending to be sad. If someone is pretending to cry, we call that crocodile tears. I suppose the idea is that crocodiles are emotionless creatures and so would never cry. This phrase has been around since the 14th century and is present in a … Read More
This phrase means that it is certain to happen. It is most often used to give encouragement to someone. In Korean, 화이팅 (Fighting) is a phrase used to encourage others. It is a difficult thing to translate as there isn’t an exact equivalent in English. While “Let’s go!” might be the closest English … Read More
“I am.” is reportedly the shortest sentence in the English language. Could it be that “I do.” is the longest sentence? – George Carlin Here is a joke by comedian George Carlin. A lot of humor comes out of a deeper understanding of a language. Sometimes jokes subvert our expectations (do the opposite of what … Read More
A fair-weather friend is a friend that is only around when things are easy. When a situation becomes difficult, or you need them to help you with something, they are hard to find. I think we all know this type of person. Someone who is a lot of fun to be around, but is never … Read More
“The cat’s out of the bag” means that a secret has been revealed. This idiom can also be used when something is accidently revealed. Example: Well, we weren’t going to everyone that we are going to have a baby, but it looks like the cat’s out of the bag. “Letting the cat of out the … Read More
What would happen if someone in a glass house threw a rock? Well, it would probably break the house. The idea with this phrase is that you shouldn’t criticize others for flaws that you have as well. It is a saying about hypocrisy. It is a strange phrase to understand. But think about it like … Read More
