Incredible Origins Of Common Idioms

You may 'miss the trees for woods' while looking at the 'tip of an iceberg.'

-  Renuka Krishnaraja

I try to go home early. I don't want to 'show my true colours' all at once to my new family," says a newly-wed girl to her friend.

Such expressions capture our imagination, and we unknowingly use them in our everyday scene. Idioms are little phrases that impart an element of excitement to a language making it light-hearted and have progressively evolved as they were handed down through generations. Although they might convey symbolic messages in the current age, interestingly, these wordings when originated were relevant to the prior circumstances and had literal implications.

As and when we delve into the conception of various idioms, an entire world of enthusiasm unfolds. Dating back to several centuries, the idioms offer ample insight into the former way of living. The influence of local cultures, traditions and legends on the language can be appreciated as well.

Common Idioms And Their Origins

In this context, let's take a look at some of the commonly used idioms stemming from eventful backgrounds.

For instance, 'beating around the bush' as of today means to mislead or divert from the main matter. But the root of this idiom lies in medieval hunting. During bird hunts, some members of the group would rouse the birds by actually beating the bushes to drive them out into open. That's quite literal and sounds amusing, doesn't it?

Did you know that even the phrase 'to turn a blind eye' could have been for real? In 1801, in the Battle of Copenhagen, British Admiral Horatio Nelson led an attack along with Admiral Sir Hyde Parker. Nelson was blind in one eye.

Sensing the imminent danger, Parker warned him to retreat and disengage. But holding the monocular to his blind eye, Nelson pretended not to see the warning signal. Hence, the expression as of today means to refuse to acknowledge the obvious truth.