MovieChat Forums > General Discussion > Name an English saying that makes no sen...

Name an English saying that makes no sense


Example:

He's leaving for good.

Good means forever here, or no intention of returning.

Or:

How come you do that?

To a foreigner, that might sound like "how arrive you do that?"

reply

and Bob's your uncle (meaning, everything's jake)

Except at one time I did have three Uncle Bob's.

etymology - unknown! but here's some theories :
https://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/bobs-your-uncle.html

reply

Putana da sealtbeltz

reply

Figurative language always takes some imagination. Here are some idioms that make me go “huh?”

“Break a leg” for good luck. I guess it is superstition to say the worst-case scenario out loud to ward off it actually happening.

“Bone to pick” for contesting a detail about something.

“Right as rain” - why is rain so right?

reply

"Break a leg", as I recall, comes from a wish that your performance merits a bow at the end, which entails said breakage, at the knee joint.

reply

Thanks! That makes sense-ish, but good to know real origin.

reply

As for "Break a leg", that was how theater actors used to express their pre-show nervousness. Actors used to believe that wishing each other luck or telling each other that they'll be great was tempting fate, so they wished each other bad luck in the hope that Fate would be fooled and send good luck.

There are superstitions all over the world along these lines, dating back to the ancient Greek belief that the Gods would always punish hubris, and probably earlier.

reply

That was my original interpretation (see above) but jriley’s explanation seems right. I suspect it came out from the vauderville traveling show era where some nights were hits, others total bombs.

reply

What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger

reply

Yeah, that is not true in many cases.

reply

That which does not kill you can leave you crippled.

It's a bullshit saying.

reply

The road of excess leads to the palace of wisdom. (If it doesn’t kill you)

reply

No pain no gain, bay-bee.

reply

[deleted]

Actually, "how come" is not a weird expression to us Swedes since we have a similar if slightly longer expression.
It is "hur kommer det sig", where the first two words are a literal translation of "how come".

reply

I could care less.


-- means pretty much the opposite of what the people saying it are intending.

reply