BLOG

When using the idiom, “My hands are tied”, you see yet another example of the many meanings of words in the English language. If you had no knowledge of what this phrase meant in English, it would simply sound as though someone was telling you their hands were literally tied together, restricting their ability to move or do any actions. The meaning of the idiom is connected to that same idea, as the meaning of the idiom itself is to essentially say there is nothing you can do

Sports expressions invade English speech constantly. This is why many ESL teachers recommend watching sports events. These idioms go on to be used frequently in business. “Knock it out of the park” is a perfect example. This idiom comes from the sport of baseball and the idea of a grand slam home run, one in which the ball is hit so hard that it goes over the wall in the stadium. Its modern meaning is to do something extremely well. So the next time your colleague gives a re

The idiom, “Break a Leg”, is yet another example of the multiple meanings of words in the English language. In any other language, if you told someone to break a leg, they would be offended and confused as to why you would wish pain on them. Where this meaning originated raises many questions, but the essence of it is ironic. It is based on the theatrical superstition that by wishing someone good luck, they will actually do badly. Instead, by wishing them bad luck, they supp

It was an idiomatic kind of day. You may be wondering how I knew.  Well, on this particular day, I knew almost immediately when my boss walked in and said, “That’s it! I am no longer beating around the bush. We need to lay our cards on the table, kill two birds with one stone and get on the ball! It is time to get back to the drawing board!” Boy was she fired up! I told her, “Listen. Hold your horses! You’re barking up the wrong tree! I haven’ t been missing the boat! I have

While they can be dismissed as unimportant parts of speech, idioms add spice and life to a language.  They are born from their culture of origin and they differ radically from one language to another. There are different strategies for translating idioms and the care with which your translator uses these strategies can make or break your translation.  Inexperienced translators who only consider plugging one expression in for another may fail to transfer the true meaning of th