10 expressions with wacky origins
Wonder why ‘mad as a hatter’ means crazy or ‘painting the town red’ denotes a wild night out? We’re spilling the beans on how these quirky sayings came about. Don’t turn a blind eye.
I’m re-watching all 10 seasons of the TV show “Friends.”
The most recent episode I watched is “The One with Monica’s Thunder.” In the episode, the friends plan to celebrate Monica and Chandler’s engagement. However, when Ross and Rachel kiss, they take everyone’s attention away from Monica and Chandler, thus stealing their thunder.
This episode got me thinking that not only is “to steal someone’s thunder” a great expression, but that English is full of some pretty strange sayings.
We typically offer them without thinking twice, but when you consider certain phrases, it’s hard to imagine why we use them.
If you’ve ever wondered where our wacky idioms come from, here are 10 interesting origins:
1. Steal someone’s thunder
Meaning: To use someone else’s idea or take attention away from him
Become a Ragan Insider member to read this article and all other archived content.
Sign up today
Already a member? Log in here.
Learn more about Ragan Insider.
