Get to the point, bosom friend, leave in English, and it’s a no brainer - we use many expressions, forgetting the original meaning and their origin.

We often “beat the bullshit”, “fool our glasses”, “be led by the nose” and look for a “scapegoat”. Such stable expressions are usually called “winged”. Catchphrases most often enter the vocabulary from historical (legends and events of the past) or literary sources. Thanks to their imagery and expressiveness, they become widespread and sustainable. These can be quotes or figurative expressions that appear based on them. Many catchphrases have long lost their direct connection with the source, having adapted to modern times. Therefore, having learned the origin and original meaning of this or that popular expression, you can be very surprised.

1. Get to the handle

In Ancient Rus', rolls were baked in the shape of a castle with a round bow. Townspeople often bought rolls and ate them right on the street, holding them by this bow or handle. For reasons of hygiene, the pen itself was not eaten, but was given to the poor or thrown to be eaten by dogs. According to one version, about those who did not disdain to eat it, they said: they got to the point. And today the expression “reach the pen” means to completely descend, to lose human appearance.

2. Bosom friend

The ancient expression “to pour on the Adam’s apple” meant “to get drunk”, “to drink alcohol.” From here the phraseological unit “bosom friend” was formed, which today is used to denote a very close friend.

3. Add the first number

In the old days, schoolchildren were often flogged, often without any fault of the person being punished. If the mentor showed special zeal, and the student suffered especially hard, he could be freed from further vices in the current month, until the first day of the next month. This is how the expression “pour in the first number” arose.

4. Get into trouble

Prosak used to be called a special machine for weaving ropes and ropes. It had a complex design and twisted the strands so tightly that getting clothes, hair, or beard into it could cost a person his life. It was from such cases that the expression “get into trouble” came about, which today means to be in an awkward position.

5. Latest Chinese warning

In the 1950s and 1960s, American aircraft often violated Chinese airspace for reconnaissance purposes. The Chinese authorities recorded every violation and each time sent a “warning” to the United States through diplomatic channels, although no real action followed them, and such warnings were counted in the hundreds. This policy has given rise to the expression “China's final warning,” meaning threats without consequences.

6. Hanging dogs

When a person is reproached or accused of something, you can hear the expression: “They hang dogs on him.” At first glance, this phrase is completely illogical. However, it is not associated with an animal at all, but with another meaning of the word “dog” - burdock, thorn - now almost unused.

7. Quietly

The word sape means "hoe" in French. In the 16th-19th centuries, the term “sapa” was used to denote a method of digging a trench, ditch or tunnel to approach fortifications. Gunpowder bombs were sometimes placed in tunnels to castle walls, and specialists trained to do this were called sappers. And from secretive digging of mines came the expression “slyly,” which today is used to denote careful and unnoticed actions.

8. Big Shot

The most experienced and strong barge hauler, walking first in the strap, was called a cone. This evolved into the expression "big shot" to refer to an important person.

9. The case burned out

Previously, if a court case disappeared, the person could not be legally charged. Cases often burned down: either from fire in wooden court buildings, or from deliberate arson for a bribe. In such cases, the accused said: “The case has burned out.” Today this expression is used when we talk about the successful completion of a major undertaking.

10. Leave in English

When someone leaves without saying goodbye, we use the expression “left in English.” Although in the original this idiom was invented by the British themselves, and it sounded like “to take French leave” (“to leave in French”). It appeared during the Seven Years' War in the 18th century as a mockery of French soldiers who left their unit without permission. At the same time, the French copied this expression, but in relation to the British, and in this form it became entrenched in the Russian language.

11. Blue Blood

The Spanish royal family and nobility were proud that, unlike the common people, they traced their ancestry to the West Goths and never mixed with the Moors who entered Spain from Africa. Unlike the dark-skinned commoners, the upper class had blue veins on their pale skin, and so they called themselves sangre azul, which means “blue blood.” From here this expression for denoting aristocracy penetrated into many European languages, including Russian.

12. No brainer

The source of the expression “It’s a no brainer” is a poem by Mayakovsky (“It’s even a no brainer - / This Petya was a bourgeois”). It became widespread first in the Strugatskys’ story “The Country of Crimson Clouds”, and then in Soviet boarding schools for gifted children. They recruited teenagers who had two years left to study (classes A, B, C, D, D) or one year (classes E, F, I). Students of the one-year stream were called “hedgehogs”. When they arrived at the boarding school, the two-year students were already ahead of them in the non-standard program, so at the beginning of the school year the expression “no brainer” was very relevant.

13. Wash the bones

The Orthodox Greeks, as well as some Slavic peoples, had a custom of secondary burial - the bones of the deceased were removed, washed with water and wine, and put back. If the corpse was found undecayed and swollen, this meant that during life this person was a sinner and he was under a curse - to emerge from the grave at night in the form of a ghoul, vampire, ghoul and destroy people. Thus, the ritual of washing the bones was necessary to ensure that there was no such spell.

14. The highlight of the program

The opening of the nail-like Eiffel Tower was timed to coincide with the 1889 World Exhibition in Paris, which created a sensation. Since then, the expression “highlight of the program” has entered the language.

15. If we don’t wash, we just roll

In the old days, village women used a special rolling pin to “roll” their laundry after washing. Well-rolled laundry turned out to be wrung out, ironed and clean, even if the wash was not of very high quality.

We use ancient sayings and various catchphrases in everyday life, sometimes without even knowing the history of the origin of such catchphrases. We all know the meanings of many of these phrases from childhood and use these expressions appropriately; they came to us unnoticed and became entrenched in our culture for centuries. Where did these phrases and expressions come from?

But every folk wisdom has its own story, nothing appears out of nowhere. Well, it will be very interesting for you to find out where these catchphrases and expressions, proverbs and sayings came from!

Where did the expressions come from?

bosom friend

“Pour over your Adam’s apple” is a rather ancient expression; in ancient times it literally meant “to get drunk”, “to drink a lot of alcohol.” The phraseological unit “bosom friend”, formed since then, is used to this day and means the closest friend.

Money doesn't smell

The roots of this expression should be sought in Ancient Rome. The son of the Roman Emperor Vespasian once reproached his father for introducing a tax on public toilets. Vespasian showed his son the money received into the treasury from this tax and asked him if the money smelled. The son sniffed and gave a negative answer.

Washing the bones

The expression dates back to ancient times. Some peoples believed that an unrepentant damned sinner, after his death, emerges from the grave and turns into a ghoul or vampire and destroys everyone who gets in his way. And in order to remove the spell, it is necessary to dig up the remains of the dead person from the grave and wash the bones of the deceased with clean water. Now the expression “washing the bones” means nothing more than dirty gossip about a person, a pseudo-analysis of his character and behavior.

Breathing on its last legs

Christian custom required that the dying were confessed by priests before death, and also that they received communion and burned incense. The expression stuck. Now they say about sick people or poorly functioning devices and equipment: “they are dying.”

Play on your nerves

In ancient times, after doctors discovered the existence of nervous tissue (nerves) in the body, based on their resemblance to the strings of musical instruments, they called nervous tissue in Latin with the word strings: nervus. From that moment on, an expression came about that means annoying actions - “playing on your nerves.”

vulgarity

The word “vulgarity” is originally Russian, the root of which is derived from the verb “went”. Until the 17th century, this word was used in a good, decent meaning. It meant traditional, familiar in the everyday life of people, that is, something that is done according to custom and happened, that is, WENT from time immemorial. However, the coming reforms of the Russian Tsar Peter I with their innovations distorted this word, it lost its former respect and began to mean: “uncultured, backward, simple-minded,” etc.

Augean stables

There is a legend according to which King Augeis was an avid horse breeder; there were 3,000 horses in the king’s stables. For some reason, no one cleaned the stables for 30 years. Hercules was entrusted with cleaning these stables. He directed the bed of the Althea River into the stables, and the flow of water washed away all the dirt from the stables. Since then, this expression has been applied to polluting something to the extreme.

Scum

The remaining liquid that remained at the bottom along with sediment was previously called scum. All sorts of rabble often hung around taverns and taverns, drinking the cloudy remains of alcohol in glasses behind other visitors, very soon the term scum passed on to them.

Blue blood

The royal family, as well as the nobility of Spain, were proud that they were leading their
ancestry from the West Goths, as opposed to the common people, and they never mixed with the Moors, who entered Spain from Africa. Blue veins stood out clearly on the pale skin of the indigenous Spaniards, which is why they proudly called themselves “blue blood.” Over time, this expression began to denote a sign of aristocracy and passed on to many nations, including ours.

Reach the handle

In Rus', rolls of bread were always baked with a handle, so that it was convenient to carry the rolls. The handle was then broken off and thrown away for hygiene purposes. The broken handles were picked up and eaten by beggars and dogs. The expression means to become extremely poor, to go down, to become impoverished.

Scapegoat

The ancient Jewish rite consisted of the fact that on the day of remission of sins, the high priest laid his hands on the head of a goat, as if laying all the sins of the people on it. Hence the expression “scapegoat.”

It is not worth it

In the old days, before the invention of electricity, gamblers gathered to play in the evenings by candlelight. Sometimes the bets made and the winner's winnings were negligible, so much so that even the candles that burned during the game did not pay for it. This is how this expression appeared.

Add the first number

In the old days, students were often flogged at school, sometimes even without any misconduct on their part, simply as a preventive measure. The mentor could show diligence in educational work and sometimes the students suffered greatly. Such students could be released from whipping until the first day of the next month.

Beat your head

In the old days, logs cut off from logs were called baklushas. These were the blanks for wooden utensils. Making wooden utensils did not require any special skills or effort. This matter was considered very easy. From that time on, it became a custom to “knuckle down” (do nothing).

If we don't wash, we'll just ride

In the old days, women in villages literally “rolled” their laundry after washing using a special rolling pin. Thus, well-rolled linen turned out to be wrung out, ironed and, moreover, clean (even in cases of poor quality washing). Nowadays we say “by washing, by skiing,” which means achieving a cherished goal by any means.

In the bag

In the old days, messengers who delivered mail to recipients sewed very valuable important papers, or “deeds,” into the lining of their caps or hats, in order to thus hide important documents from prying eyes and not attract the attention of robbers. This is where the expression “it’s in the bag,” which is still popular to this day, comes from.

Let's go back to our sheep

In a French comedy from the Middle Ages, a rich clothier sued a shepherd who stole his sheep. During the court hearing, the clothier forgot about the shepherd and switched to his lawyer, who, as it turned out, did not pay him for six cubits of cloth. The judge, seeing that the clothier had drifted into the wrong direction, interrupted him with the words: “Let's go back to our sheep.” Since then, the expression has become popular.

To contribute

In Ancient Greece there was a mite (small coin) in circulation. In the Gospel parable, a poor widow donated her last two mites for the construction of the temple. Hence the expression “do your bit.”

Versta Kolomenskaya

In the 17th century, by order of the then reigning Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, the distance between Moscow and the royal summer residence in the village of Kolomenskoye was measured, as a result of which very high milestones were installed. Since then, it has become a custom to call very tall and thin people “Verst Kolomenskaya”.

Chasing a long ruble

In the 13th century in Rus', the monetary and weight unit was the hryvnia, which was divided into 4 parts (“ruble”). Heavier than the others, the remainder of the ingot was called the “long ruble.” The expression “chasing a long ruble” means easy and good income.

Newspaper ducks

The Belgian humorist Cornelissen published a note in the newspaper about how one scientist bought 20 ducks, chopped one of them and fed it to the other 19 ducks. A little later, he did the same with the second, third, fourth, etc. As a result, he was left with one and only duck, which ate all 19 of its friends. The note was posted with the aim of mocking the gullibility of readers. Since then, it has become a custom to call false news nothing more than “newspaper ducks.”

Laundering of money

The origins of the expression go to America, at the beginning of the 20th century. Al Capone found it difficult to spend his ill-gotten gains because he was constantly under the watchful eye of the intelligence services. In order to be able to safely spend this money and not get caught by the police, Capone created a huge network of laundries that had very low prices. Therefore, it was difficult for the police to track the actual number of clients; it became possible to write down absolutely any income of laundries. This is where the now popular expression “money laundering” comes from. The number of laundries since that time has remained huge, the prices for their services are still low, so in the USA it is customary to wash clothes not at home, but in laundries.

Orphan Kazan

As soon as Ivan the Terrible took Kazan, he decided to bind the local aristocracy to himself. To do this, he rewarded high-ranking officials of Kazan who voluntarily came to him. Many of the Tatars, wanting to receive good, rich gifts, pretended to be seriously affected by the war.

Inside out

Where did this popular expression come from, which is used when a person has dressed or done something incorrectly? During the reign of Tsar Ivan the Terrible in Rus', an embroidered collar was a sign of the dignity of one or another nobleman, and this collar was called “shivorot”. If such a worthy boyar or nobleman in any way angered the tsar or was subjected to royal disgrace, he was, according to custom, seated backwards on a skinny nag, having first turned his clothes inside out. Since then, the expression “topsy-turvy” has been established, which means “on the contrary, wrong.”

From under the stick

The expression “under the stick” takes its roots from circus acts in which trainers force animals to jump over a stick. This phraseological turn has been used since the 19th century. It means that a person is forced to work, forced to do some action or behavior that he really does not want to do. This phraseological image is associated with the opposition “will - captivity.” This metaphor likens a person to an animal or a slave who is forced to do something or work under pain of physical punishment.

One teaspoon per hour

This catchphrase appeared in quite distant times thanks to pharmacists. In those difficult times, pharmacists themselves prepared mixtures, medicinal ointments and infusions for many diseases. According to the rules that have existed since then, each bottle of the medicinal mixture must contain instructions (recipe) for the use of this medicine. Back then they measured things not in drops, as they mostly do now, but in teaspoons. For example, 1 teaspoon per glass of water. In those days, such medications had to be taken strictly by the hour, and treatment usually lasted quite a long time. Hence the meaning of this catchphrase. Now the expression “a teaspoon per hour” means a long and slow process of some action with time intervals, on a very small scale.

Goof

To get into trouble means to be in an awkward position. Prosak is an ancient medieval special rope machine for weaving ropes and twisting ropes. It had a very complex design and twisted the strands so strongly that clothing, hair or beard getting caught in its mechanism could even cost a person his life. This expression originally even had a specific meaning, literally - “accidentally falling into twisted ropes.”

Typically, this expression implies being embarrassed, going nuts, getting into an unpleasant situation, disgracing yourself in some way, getting into a puddle, screwing up, as they say these days, losing face in the dirt.

Freebies and for free

Where did the word "freebie" come from?

Our ancestors called a freebie the top of a boot. Typically, the bottom of the boot (the head) wore out much faster than the top of the muffler. Therefore, to save money, enterprising “cold shoemakers” sewed a new head to the boot. Such updated boots, one might say - sewn on “for free” - were much cheaper than their new counterparts.

Nick down

The expression “hack on the nose” came to us from ancient times. Previously, among our ancestors, the term “nose” meant writing boards that were used as ancient notepads - all kinds of notes were made on them, or it would be more correct to say even notches for memory. It was from those times that the expression “hack on the nose” appeared. If they borrowed money, they wrote the debt on such tablets and gave it to the creditor as promissory notes. And if the debt was not repaid, the creditor was “left with his nose,” that is, with a simple tablet instead of the borrowed money.

Prince on a white horse

The expression of modern princesses about the expectations of a “prince on a white horse” originated in medieval Europe. At that time, royalty rode beautiful white horses in honor of special holidays, and the most highly respected knights rode horses of the same color in tournaments. From that time on, the expression about princes on white horses came about, because a stately white horse was considered a symbol of greatness, as well as beauty and glory.

Far away

Where is this located? In ancient Slavic fairy tales, this expression of distance “far away lands” occurs very often. It means that the object is very far away. The roots of the expression go back to the times of Kievan Rus. At that time there were decimal and nine numeral systems. So, according to the nine-fold system, which was based on the number 9, the maximum scale for the standards of a fairy tale, which increases everything threefold, the number distant was taken, that is, three times nine. This is where this expression comes from...

I'm coming at you

What does the expression “I’m coming to you” mean? This expression has been known since the times of Kievan Rus. The Grand Duke and Bright Warrior Svyatoslav, before a military campaign, always sent the warning message “I’m coming at you!” to enemy lands, which meant an attack, an attack - I’m coming at you. During the times of Kievan Rus, our ancestors called “you” specifically to their enemies, and not to honor strangers and older people.

It was a matter of honor to warn the enemy about an attack. The code of military honor and the ancient traditions of the Slavic-Aryans also included a prohibition to shoot or attack with weapons an unarmed or unequally powerful enemy. The Code of Military Honor was strictly adhered to by those who respected themselves and their ancestors, including Grand Duke Svyatoslav.

There is nothing behind the soul

In the old days, our ancestors believed that the human soul was located in the dimple in the neck between the collarbones.
According to custom, money was kept in the same place on the chest. Therefore, they said and still say about the poor man that he “has nothing behind his soul.”

Sewn with white threads

This phraseological unit comes from tailoring roots. In order to see how to sew the parts when sewing, they are first hastily sewn together with white threads, so to speak, a rough or test version, so that later all the parts can be carefully sewn together. Hence the meaning of the expression: a hastily assembled case or work, that is, “on the rough side,” may imply negligence and deception in the case. Often used in legal vernacular when an investigator is working on a case.

Seven spans in the forehead

By the way, this expression does not speak of a person’s very high intelligence, as we usually believe. This is an expression about age. Yes Yes. A span is an ancient Russian measure of length, which is equal to 17.78 cm in terms of centimeters (the international unit of measurement of length). 7 spans in the forehead is a person’s height, it is equal to 124 cm, usually children grew to this mark by the age of 7. At this time, the children were given names and began to be taught (boys - a male craft, girls - a female one). Until this age, children were usually not distinguished by gender and they wore the same clothes. By the way, until the age of 7 they usually didn’t have names, they were simply called “child”.

In search of Eldorado

El Dorado (translated from Spanish as El Dorado means “golden”) is a mythical country in South America that is rich in gold and precious stones. The conquistadors of the 16th century were looking for her. In a figurative sense, “Eldorado” is often called a place where you can quickly get rich.

Karachun has arrived

There are popular expressions that not everyone can understand: “Karachun came,” “Karachun grabbed.” Meaning: someone, someone suddenly died, died or was killed... Karachun (or Chernobog) in ancient Slavic mythology of pagan times is the underground god of death and frost, moreover, he is not at all a good spirit, but on the contrary - evil. By the way, his celebration falls on the winter solstice (December 21-22).

About the dead it's either good or nothing

The implication is that the dead are spoken of either well or not at all. This expression has come down to the present day in a rather seriously modified form from the depths of centuries. In ancient times this expression sounded like this: “Either good things are said about the dead, or nothing but the truth.”. This is a fairly well-known saying of the ancient Greek politician and poet Chilon from Sparta (VI century BC), and the historian Diogenes Laertius (III century AD) tells about it in his essay “The Life, Teaching and Opinions of Illustrious Philosophers” . Thus, the truncated expression has lost its original meaning over time and is now perceived in a completely different way.

Exasperate

You can often hear in colloquial speech how someone drives someone to the point of insanity. The meaning of the expression is to stir up strong emotions, to bring someone into a state of extreme irritation or even complete loss of self-control. Where and how did this turn of phrase come from? It's simple. When a metal is gradually heated, it becomes red, but when it is further heated to a very high temperature, the metal becomes white. Heat it up, that is, warm it up. Heating is essentially very intense heating, hence the expression.

All roads lead to Rome

During the Roman Empire (27 BC - 476 AD), Rome tried to expand its territories through military conquest. Cities, bridges, and roads were actively built for better communication between the provinces of the empire and the capital (for the collection of taxes, the arrival of couriers and ambassadors, the rapid arrival of legions to suppress riots). The Romans were the first to build roads and, naturally, construction was carried out from Rome, from the capital of the Empire. Modern scientists say that the main routes were built precisely on ancient ancient Roman roads that are thousands of years old.

Woman of Balzac's age

How old are women of Balzac's age? Honore de Balzac, a famous French writer of the 19th century, wrote the novel “A Woman of Thirty,” which became quite popular. Therefore, “Balzac age”, “Balzac woman” or “Balzac heroine” is a woman of 30-40 years old who has already learned life wisdom and worldly experience. By the way, the novel is very interesting, like other novels by Honore de Balzac.

Achilles' heel

The mythology of Ancient Greece tells us about the legendary and greatest hero Achilles, the son of the sea goddess Thetis and the mere mortal Peleus. In order for Achilles to become invulnerable and strong like the gods, his mother bathed him in the waters of the sacred river Styx, but since she held her son by the heel so as not to drop him, it was this part of Achilles’ body that remained vulnerable. The Trojan Paris hit Achilles in the heel with an arrow, causing the hero to die...

Modern anatomy calls the tendon above the calcaneus in humans “Achilles.” Since ancient times, the very expression “Achilles’ heel” has meant a person’s weak and vulnerable spot.

Dot all the I's

Where did this rather popular expression come from? Probably from the Middle Ages, from the copyists of books in those days.

Around the 11th century, a dot appears over the letter i in the texts of Western European manuscripts (before that, the letter was written without a dot). When writing letters in words together in italics (without separating the letters from each other), the line could get lost among other letters and the text would become difficult to read. In order to more clearly designate this letter and make texts easier to read, a dot was introduced over the letter i. And the dots were placed after the text on the page had already been written. Now the expression means: to clarify, to bring the matter to an end.

By the way, this saying has a continuation and completely sounds like this: “Dot the i’s and cross the t’s.” But the second part didn’t catch on with us.

Tantalum flour

What does the expression mean "to experience tantalum torment"? Tantalus - according to ancient Greek mythology, the king of Sipila in Phrygia, who, for an insult to the gods, was overthrown to Hades in the underworld. There Tantalus experienced unbearable pangs of hunger and thirst. The most interesting thing is that at the same time he stood in the water up to his throat, and near him beautiful fruits grew on the trees and the branches with fruits were very close - you just had to reach out. However, as soon as Tantalus tried to pick the fruit or drink water, the branch deviated from him to the side, and the water flowed away. Tantalum torment means the inability to get what you want, which is very close.

Stalemate situation

Stalemate is a special position in chess in which the side with the right to make a move cannot use it, while the king is not in check. The result is a draw. The expression “stalemate” may well mean the impossibility of any action on both sides, perhaps even in some way meaning the situation is hopeless.

A catchphrase is a stable phrase. The winged expression is usually aphoristic and expressive.

Aphorism is the originality of a complete thought expressed in a laconic form. In fact, the concepts of “aphorism” and “catchphrase” are synonymous.

Origin of the term "catchphrase"

The ancient Greek poet Homer said in his poem “Odyssey”:

Having entered the door, he began to force Odysseus to leave
your home; and, irritated, threw him the winged word:
“Get away from the door, old man, or you’ll be dragged out by the legs!”

And although in this case the expression “winged word” meant loud speech, this expression itself became winged (recursion).

Sources of catchphrases

There are many such sources. These can be speeches of famous people, literature, myths, folklore, songs, films, etc.
Many popular expressions, having appeared and then acquired an independent life, lose touch with the source and already exist on their own, being used in relation to current, contemporary events. This applies, for example, to many biblical expressions. For example, the expression " voice in the wilderness" Now we use this expression when we want to talk about a vain call, vain words that remain unattended and unanswered. In the Old Testament, in the Book of the Prophet Isaiah it is said: “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: prepare the ways of the Lord, make straight the paths of our God” (Bible Is. 40:3); in the Gospels, John the Baptist, his calls are also called “the voice of one crying in the wilderness” (Bible John 1:23). However, the calls of the prophets remained in vain; most people did not listen to them.
Many popular expressions are of Latin origin:

"leaving go!"(Abiens, abi!)
« other me", "close friend and like-minded person" (Alter ego)
« Plato is my friend but the truth is dearer"(Amicus Plato, sed magis amica est veritas)
« love conquers all"(Amor vincit omnia)
« art is long lasting, but life is short"(Ars longa, vita brevis)
« one foot in the coffin" (Articulo mortis)
« let the other side be heard"(Audiatur et altera pars)
« Hello Caesar, those going to death salute you"(Ave, Caesar, morituri te salutant)
« through thorns to the stars" (Per aspera ad astra)
« money doesn't smell"(Pecunia non olet).

The history of some popular expressions

Alea iacta est (the die is cast)

This expression means: “the choice has been made,” “to risk everything for a great goal.” Used to emphasize the irreversibility of what is happening. This catchphrase has synonyms in Russian: “the bridges are burned”, “there is no going back”, “either the chest is in crosses, or the head is in the bushes”, etc.

Gaius Julius Caesar (ancient Roman statesman and politician, commander, writer), crossing the Rubicon, uttered this phrase and, at the head of his army, entered the territory of northern Italy. Thus began Caesar's long civil war against the Roman Senate led by Pompey the Great. Caesar took a certain risk, because... had only a small number of legions sympathizing with him near Rome. But this risk was fully justified, since the strategic occupation of Rome and the retreat of Pompey played a key role in the conflict.

Accuracy - the politeness of kings

The meaning of this popular expression: to be precise, not to be late, means to act like a king.
Translated from French in full, this statement sounds like this: “Accuracy is the courtesy of kings and the duty of all good people.” This statement by the French king Louis XIV actually caused the rapid development of etiquette in Europe. Since then, punctuality, accuracy and skillful handling of one's own and other people's time have been highly valued in society.

Alpha and Omega

Literally, this expression means “the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet,” i.e. "the beginning and end of something."
The expression goes back to a quote from the Bible: “I am the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end...” (Apocalypse, 1:8). In this case, Jesus Christ is meant, after whose second coming the existence of civilization in the form as it exists now will end.

Catchphrases from literature

To grandfather's village

This expression means: without a specific address, a letter or package “to nowhere.”
An expression from A. P. Chekhov’s story “Vanka” (1886). The main character of the story, a 9-year-old boy Vanka Zhukov, brought from the village to Moscow and apprenticed to a shoemaker, writes a letter to his grandfather asking him to take him from the city to the village. “Vanka folded the scribbled sheet of paper into four and put it in an envelope he had bought the day before for a penny... After thinking a little, he wet his pen and wrote the address: “ To grandfather's village" Then he scratched himself, thought and added: “To Konstantin Makarych.”

Who are the judges?

The meaning of this catchphrase is contempt for the opinions of authorities who are no better than those whom these judges are trying to blame, criticize, etc.
Quote from A. S. Griboedov’s comedy “Woe from Wit” (act 2).
Chatsky:

Who are the judges?? for ancient times
Their enmity towards a free life is irreconcilable,
Judgments are drawn from forgotten newspapers
The times of Ochakovsky and the conquest of Crimea...

A mixture of French and Nizhny Novgorod

This is what they say about someone’s ignorance and bad taste, which allows the combination of completely incompatible things.
The hero of A. S. Griboedov’s comedy “Woe from Wit” (1824), Chatsky, condemning and ridiculing noble gallomania (addiction to everything French), is interested in:

What's the tone here these days?
At conventions, at big ones, on parish holidays?
A confusion of languages ​​still prevails:
French with Nizhny Novgorod?

One but fiery passion

This can be said about a person who devotes all his energy and time to some kind of hobby: he was possessed by one, but fiery passion.
This is a catchphrase from the 3rd stanza of the poem “Mtsyri” by M. Yu. Lermontov. This is what the young man Mtsyri says about his desire to escape from the monastery, into which he ended up against his will:

I knew only the power of the thought.
One but fiery passion:
She lived inside me like a worm,
She tore her soul and burned it.

And Vaska listens and eats

This expression characterizes the situation when one speaks and convinces, and the other does not listen to him, regardless of the speaker, and continues to do his job.
An expression from I. A. Krylov’s fable “The Cat and the Cook” has become popular:

Vaska the cat is a cheat!
Vaska the cat is a thief!
And Vaska didn’t just go to the cookhouse,
There is no need to let him into the yard,
Like a greedy wolf into a sheepfold:
He is corruption, he is a plague, he is a plague of these places!
(And Vaska listens and eats).

Winged expressions from the works of A. de Saint-Exupéry

Here is my secret, it is very simple: only the heart is vigilant. You can't see the most important thing with your eyes.

If you can judge yourself correctly, then you are truly wise.

Antoine de Saint-Exupery

When we understand our role on Earth, even the most modest and inconspicuous, then only we will be happy. Then only we will be able to live and die in peace, for what gives meaning to life gives meaning to death.

It's easy to find friends who are willing to help us. It's hard to earn friends who need our help.

Loving does not mean looking at each other, loving means looking together in the same direction.

Don't skimp on your soul. Do not prepare supplies where the heart must work. Giving means throwing a bridge over the abyss of your loneliness.

You are forever responsible for those you have tamed.

The main thing is to go. The road does not end, and the goal is always a deception of the wanderer’s vision: he has climbed to the top, but he already sees another one...

Catchphrases from myths

Hannibal's Oath

Meaning: a firm determination to be irreconcilable towards someone or something to the end.
The Carthaginian commander Hannibal (Hannibal, 247-183 BC), according to legend, as a boy vowed to be an implacable enemy of Rome all his life. He kept his oath: during the Second Punic War (218-210 BC), the troops under his command inflicted a number of heavy defeats on the troops of Rome.

Catchphrases from songs

Otherwise, beautiful marquise, everything is fine

The meaning of this catchphrase: there are troubles that you need to come to terms with.
Taken from a song performed by L. Utesov. This is a French song translated by A. Bezymensky (1936) “Tout va très bien madame la marquise”.

And instead of a heart - a fiery engine

This is what they say about an active, tireless person or, in a figurative sense, about a soulless person.
The expression is taken from the song “Air March” (music by Yu. A. Khait, lyrics by P. D. German, 1922):

We were born to make a fairy tale come true,
Overcome space and space,
The mind gave us steel wings,
And instead of a heart there is a fiery motor.

Catchphrases from films

And you, Stirlitz, I’ll ask you to stay

A humorous phrase in a conversational style is used as a request to stay for a conversation when addressing one of those leaving the room.
The catchphrase is based on Muller’s remark (performed by L. Bronevoy) from the television film “Seventeen Moments of Spring”: “ Stirlitz, I’ll ask you to stay».

And along the roads the dead stand with scythes

A humorous remark about something terrible or threatening (with disbelief in its existence).
From the film “The Elusive Avengers” (1967), spoken by actor Savely Kramarov.

To die is not to rise

In a conversational style, the phrase is used when you need to express strong surprise or shock.
This phrase is uttered by the secretary Verochka (Liya Akhedzhakova) in the film “Office Romance” (1977). This film is an adaptation of the play “Colleagues” by E. Braginsky and E. Ryazanov, where this expression was first used. In the story, director Kalugina (A. Freindlich) comes to work in a transformed state and, in a conversation with the surprised Verochka, asks: “What do you think of my hairstyle?” She exclaims: “ Die - don't get up!».

Catchphrases from politicians' speeches

The dead have no shame

This catchphrase can have several meanings depending on the situation in which it is pronounced: death in battle is always honorable; the dead cannot be condemned; A dead person can be blamed for anything because he cannot be asked.
According to the chronicler, Prince Svyatoslav addressed his soldiers with these words before the battle with the Greeks in 970.

They don’t change horses midway

Meaning: at a decisive moment for a business, neither plans nor people can be changed.
The phrase was heard in a speech given in 1864 by the 16th US President Abraham Lincoln on the occasion of his candidacy for a second presidential term.

Winged expressions from the Bible

Even those of you who have never read the Bible have quoted it at least once. In our speech there are many popular expressions that are of biblical origin. Here are some of them.

Burying talent in the ground(prevent the development of the abilities inherent in a person). From the Gospel parable about the servant who buried a talent (a measure of the weight of silver) in the ground instead of using it in business and making a profit. The word “talent” subsequently became synonymous with outstanding ability.
doubting Thomas- a doubting person. The Apostle Thomas did not immediately believe in the resurrection of Christ: “Unless I see in His hands the marks of the nails, and put my finger into the marks of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.” Subsequently, the Apostle Thomas atoned for his momentary doubt with apostolic service.

Lost Sheep- this is what they say about a person who has lost his way. The expression is taken from the Gospel parable about the joy of the owner who found and returned one lost sheep to the flock.

Or literary sources and widely used due to its expressiveness. Studied by phraseology.

The sources of catchphrases can be myths, folklore, literature, words from a song or other musical work (opera, operetta), journalism, memoirs, speeches of famous people. These can be quotes or figurative expressions that appear based on them. This is, for example, the biblical “forbidden fruit”. Such expressions could have long ago lost touch with the source and in every era be used in relation to current events.

The expression "catchphrase" is itself a catchphrase.

Origin

The expression “winged word” (Greek. ἔπεα πτερόεντα ) is found in Homer, but usually denotes not an aphorism, but loud speech. For example, the eighteenth canto of the poem “Odyssey” contains, in particular, the following text:

Having entered the door, he began to force Odysseus to leave
your home; and, irritated, threw him the winged word:
“Get away from the door, old man, or you’ll be dragged out by the legs!”

The expression “winged words” became widespread in its modern meaning thanks to the collection of popular quotes compiled by Georg Büchmann, published for the first time in the city under that title.

Examples

see also

Literature

• Ashukin N. S., Ashukina M. G. Winged words: Literary quotations; Figurative expressions. - 4th ed., add. - M.: Fiction, 1987. - 528 p.

Links

Notes

Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

See what a “Catchphrase” is in other dictionaries:

phrase- ornate (Ertel); fenced (Markevich); rounded (Oliger); loud (Nadson); pompous (Yushkevich); spicy (Pisemsky); lush (Lermontov); bloated (Fet); codfish (Boborykin, Grigorovich, Nekrasov, Pisemsky); biting (Ertel);… … Dictionary of epithets

Y; and. [from Greek phrasis expression, figure of speech] 1. A segment of speech that is relatively independent in semantic and intonation terms (usually accompanied by a pause). Clear, confusing phrases. Incomplete f. (expressing an unspoken thought). Competently... ... encyclopedic Dictionary

phrase- s; and. (from the Greek phrasis expression, figure of speech) see also. phrasal 1) A segment of speech that is relatively independent in semantics and intonation (usually accompanied by a pause) Clear, confusing phrases. Incomplete phrase/for. (expressing... ... Dictionary of many expressions

- “You forgot Poland” is a catchphrase that appeared during televised debates on the eve of the 2004 US presidential election. Contents 1 Appearance 2 Fate ... Wikipedia

The phrase first appears in Juvenal's Satires Quis custodiet ipsos custodes? Latin catchphrase, translated means “Who will guard the watchmen themselves?” Used to describe a situation where people put ... Wikipedia

ALSO GUY IS MAKING NOISE- A catchphrase from one of the many titular components of the Odessa nation of Ukrainians, who made a huge contribution to the creation and development of the Odessa language. A.G.Sh. usually used during discussions of various events or actions, often... ...

POTS, IS MOMMY HOME?- Catchphrase. Currently, it is also synonymous with the above term Pots Ivanovich. Originally corresponded only to expressions such as “close the gate” in Russian, which means “your trousers are not buttoned on the most interesting... ... Large semi-interpretive dictionary of the Odessa language

THINGS LIKE IN POLAND- A long-standing catchphrase of one of the many titular members of the Odessa nation of Poles, who made a great contribution to the creation and development of the Odessa language. The phrase D.K.V. P. was born in Odessa at a time when Warsaw was also a Russian city. Phrase … Large semi-interpretive dictionary of the Odessa language

Wikipedia has articles about other people with this surname, see Vinokur. Vladimir Vinokur ... Wikipedia

the consignment- , ii, w. 1. Political organization of people united by common interests, ideals, goals and fighting for their implementation. ◘ There cannot be several parties, because the party is part of the class (Stalin). Kupina, 17. Be a member of the Communist Party.… … Explanatory dictionary of the language of the Council of Deputies

Description of some catchphrases

We often use so-called catchphrases without even knowing their origin. Of course, everyone knows: “And Vaska listens and eats” - this is from Krylov’s fable, “gifts of the Danaans” and “Trojan horse” - from Greek legends about the Trojan War... But many words have become so close and familiar that we don’t even think whoever said them first may come.

Scapegoat
The history of this expression is as follows: the ancient Jews had a rite of absolution. The priest laid both hands on the head of the living goat, thereby, as it were, transferring the sins of the entire people onto it. After this, the goat was driven out into the desert. Many, many years have passed, and the ritual no longer exists, but the expression still lives on...

Tryn-grass
The mysterious “tryn-grass” is not at all some kind of herbal medicine that people drink so as not to worry. At first it was called “tyn-grass”, and tyn is a fence. The result was “fence grass,” that is, a weed that no one needed, everyone was indifferent to.

Master of sour cabbage soup
Sour cabbage soup is a simple peasant food: water and sauerkraut. Preparing them was not particularly difficult. And if someone was called a master of sour cabbage soup, it meant that he was not fit for anything worthwhile. Balzac’s age

The expression arose after the publication of the novel by the French writer Honore de Balzac (1799-1850) “A Woman of Thirty” (1831); used as a characteristic of women aged 30-40 years.

White crow
This expression, as a designation of a rare person, sharply different from the rest, is given in the 7th satire of the Roman poet Juvenal (mid-1st century - after 127 AD):
Fate gives kingdoms to slaves and brings triumphs to captives.
However, such a lucky person is rarer than a black sheep.

Plant the pig
In all likelihood, this expression is due to the fact that some peoples do not eat pork for religious reasons. And if such a person was quietly put pork in his food, then his faith was desecrated.

Throwing a stone
The expression “throwing a stone” at someone in the sense of “accusing” arose from the Gospel (John 8:7); Jesus said to the scribes and Pharisees, who, tempting him, brought to him a woman caught in adultery: “He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her” (in ancient Judea there was a penalty - stoning).

Paper endures everything (Paper does not turn red)
The expression goes back to the Roman writer and orator Cicero (106 - 43 BC); in his letters “To Friends” there is an expression: “Epistola non erubescit” - “A letter does not blush,” that is, in writing one can express thoughts that one is embarrassed to express orally.

To be or not to be - that is the question
The beginning of Hamlet's monologue in Shakespeare's tragedy of the same name, translated by N.A. Polevoy (1837).

Wolf in sheep's clothing
The expression originated from the Gospel: “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.”

In borrowed plumes
It arose from a fable by I.A. Krylov “The Crow” (1825).

Add the first number
You won’t believe it, but... from the old school, where students were flogged every week, no matter who was right or wrong. And if the mentor overdoes it, then such a spanking would last for a long time, until the first day of the next month.

Register Izhitsa
Izhitsa is the name of the last letter of the Church Slavonic alphabet. Traces of flogging on well-known places of careless students strongly resembled this letter. So registering an Izhitsa means teaching a lesson, punishing it, and it’s easier to flog it. And you still criticize modern school!

I carry everything I have with me
The expression originated from an ancient Greek legend. When the Persian king Cyrus occupied the city of Priene in Ionia, the inhabitants abandoned it, taking with them the most valuable of their possessions. Only Biant, one of the “seven wise men”, a native of Priene, left empty-handed. In response to the perplexed questions of his fellow citizens, he answered, referring to spiritual values: “I carry everything I own with me.” This expression is often used in the Latin formulation due to Cicero: Omnia mea mecum porto.
Everything flows, everything changes
This expression, which defines the constant variability of all things, sets out the essence of the teachings of the Greek philosopher Heraclitus of Ephesus (c. 530-470 BC)

Goal like a falcon
Terribly poor, beggar. People usually think that we are talking about a bird. But the falcon has nothing to do with it. In fact, the “falcon” is an ancient military battering gun. It was a completely smooth (“bare”) cast iron block attached to chains. Nothing extra!

Orphan Kazan
This is what they say about a person who pretends to be unhappy, offended, helpless in order to pity someone. But why is the orphan “Kazan”? It turns out that this phraseological unit arose after the conquest of Kazan by Ivan the Terrible. The Mirzas (Tatar princes), finding themselves subjects of the Russian Tsar, tried to beg all sorts of concessions from him, complaining about their orphanhood and bitter fate.

Unlucky man
In the old days in Rus', “path” was the name given not only to the road, but also to various positions at the prince’s court. The falconer's path is in charge of princely hunting, the hunter's path is in charge of hound hunting, the stableman's path is in charge of carriages and horses. The boyars tried by hook or by crook to get a position from the prince. And those who did not succeed were spoken of with disdain: a good-for-nothing person.

Was there a boy?
One of the episodes of M. Gorky’s novel “The Life of Klim Samgin” tells about the boy Klim skating with other children. Boris Varavka and Varya Somova fall into the wormwood. Klim hands Boris the end of his gymnasium belt, but, feeling that he too is being pulled into the water, he lets go of the belt. Children are drowning. When the search for the drowned begins, Klim is struck by “someone’s serious, incredulous question: “Was there a boy, maybe there wasn’t a boy.” The last phrase became popular as a figurative expression of extreme doubt about something.

Twenty two misfortunes
This is how in A.P. Chekhov’s play “The Cherry Orchard” (1903) they call the clerk Epikhodov, with whom some comic trouble happens every day. The expression is applied to people with whom some misfortune constantly happens.

Money doesn't smell
The expression arose from the words of the Roman emperor (69 - 79 AD) Vespasian, said by him, as Suetonius reports in his biography, on the following occasion. When Vespasian's son Titus reproached his father for introducing a tax on public latrines, Vespasian brought the first money received from this tax to his nose and asked if it smelled. To Titus's negative answer, Vespasian said: "And yet they are made of urine."

Draconian measures
This is the name given to the excessively harsh laws named after Dragon, the first legislator of the Athenian Republic (7th century BC). Among the punishments determined by its laws, the death penalty allegedly occupied a prominent place, which punished, for example, such an offense as theft of vegetables. There was a legend that these laws were written in blood (Plutarch, Solon). In literary speech, the expression “draconian laws”, “draconian measures, punishments” have become stronger in the meaning of harsh, cruel laws.

Inside out
Now this seems to be a completely harmless expression. And once it was associated with shameful punishment. During the time of Ivan the Terrible, a guilty boyar was placed backwards on a horse with his clothes turned inside out and, in this disgraced form, was driven around the city to the whistling and jeers of the street crowd.

Retired goat drummer
In the old days, trained bears were brought to fairs. They were accompanied by a dancing boy dressed as a goat, and a drummer accompanying his dance. This was the goat drummer. He was perceived as a worthless, frivolous person.

Yellow press
In 1895, American graphic artist Richard Outcault published a series of frivolous drawings with humorous text in a number of issues of the New York newspaper “The World”; Among the drawings was a picture of a child in a yellow shirt, to whom various funny sayings were attributed. Soon another newspaper, the New York Journal, began publishing a series of similar drawings. A dispute arose between these two newspapers over the right of primacy to the “yellow boy”. In 1896, Erwin Wardman, editor of the New York Press, published an article in his magazine in which he contemptuously called both competing newspapers "yellow press." Since then, the expression has become popular.

Finest hour
An expression by Stefan Zweig (1881-1942) from the preface to his collection of historical short stories, Humanity's Finest Hours (1927). Zweig explains that he called historical moments starry hours “because, like eternal stars, they invariably shine in the night of oblivion and decay.”

Golden mean
An expression from the 2nd book of odes of the Roman poet Horace: “aurea mediocritas.”

Choose the lesser of two evils
An expression found in the works of the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle “Nicomachean Ethics” in the form: “The lesser of evils must be chosen.” Cicero (in his essay “On Duties”) says: “One should not only choose the least of evils, but also extract from them themselves what can be good in them.”

To make mountains out of molehills
The expression is one of the ancient ones. It is quoted by the Greek writer Lucian (3rd century AD), who ends his satirical “Praise of the Fly” like this: “But I interrupt my speech, although I could say a lot more, lest anyone think that I “, as the proverb goes, I make a mountain out of a molehill.”

Highlight
The expression is used in the meaning: something that gives a special taste, attractiveness to something (a dish, a story, a person, etc.). It arose from a popular proverb: “Kvass is not expensive, the zest in kvass is expensive”; became popular after the appearance of L. N. Tolstoy’s drama “The Living Corpse” (1912). The hero of the drama, Protasov, talking about his family life, says: “My wife was an ideal woman... But what can I tell you? There was no zest - you know, there is zest in kvass? - there was no game in our lives. And I needed to forget. And without the game you won’t forget...”

Lead by the nose
Apparently, trained bears were very popular, because this expression was also associated with fairground entertainment. Gypsies led bears by a ring threaded through their noses. And they forced them, the poor fellows, to do various tricks, deceiving them with the promise of a handout.

Sharpen the laces
Lyasy (balusters) are turned figured posts of railings at the porch. Only a true master could make such beauty. Probably, at first, “sharpening balusters” meant conducting an elegant, fancy, ornate (like balusters) conversation. But in our time, the number of people skilled in conducting such a conversation became fewer and fewer. So this expression came to mean empty chatter.

a swan song
The expression is used to mean: the last manifestation of talent. Based on the belief that swans sing before death, it arose in ancient times. Evidence of this is found in one of Aesop’s fables (6th century BC): “They say that swans sing before they die.”

Flying Dutchman
A Dutch legend has preserved the story of a sailor who vowed, in a strong storm, to round the cape that blocked his path, even if it took him forever. Because of his pride, he was doomed to forever rush on a ship on a raging sea, never landing on the shore. This legend obviously arose in the age of great discoveries. It is possible that its historical basis was the expedition of Vasco da Gama (1469-1524), who rounded the Cape of Good Hope in 1497. In the 17th century this legend was associated with several Dutch captains, which is reflected in its name.

Seize the day
The expression apparently goes back to Horace (“carpe diem” - “seize the day”, “take advantage of the day”).

The lion's share
The expression goes back to the fable of the ancient Greek fabulist Aesop “The Lion, the Fox and the Donkey”, the plot of which - the division of prey among the animals - was later used by Phaedrus, La Fontaine and other fabulists.

The Moor has done his job, the Moor can leave
Quote from the drama by F. Schiller (1759 - 1805) “The Fiesco Conspiracy in Genoa” (1783). This phrase (d.3, iv.4) is uttered by the Moor, who turned out to be unnecessary after he helped Count Fisco organize a rebellion of the Republicans against the tyrant of Genoa, Doge Doria. This phrase has become a saying characterizing a cynical attitude towards a person whose services are no longer needed.

Manna from heaven
According to the Bible, manna is the food that God sent to the Jews every morning from heaven when they walked through the desert to the promised land (Exodus 16, 14-16 and 31).

Disservice
The expression arose from I. A. Krylov’s fable “The Hermit and the Bear” (1808).

Honeymoon
The idea that the happiness of the first stage of marriage quickly gives way to the bitterness of disappointment, figuratively expressed in eastern folklore, was used by Voltaire for his philosophical novel “Zadig, or Fate” (1747), in the 3rd chapter of which he writes: “Zadig experienced that The first month of marriage, as described in the book of Zend, is the honeymoon, and the second is the wormwood month.”

Young people love us everywhere
Quote from “Song of the Motherland” in the film “Circus” (1936), text by V. I. Lebedev-Kumach, music by I. O. Dunaevsky.

Silent means consent
Expression of Pope Boniface VIII (1294-1303) in one of his messages, included in canon law (a set of decrees of church authority). This expression goes back to Sophocles (496-406 BC), in whose tragedy “The Trachinian Women” it is said: “Don’t you understand that by silence you agree with the accuser?”

Torments of Tantalus
In Greek mythology, Tantalus, the king of Phrygia (also called the king of Lydia), was the favorite of the gods, who often invited him to their feasts. But, proud of his position, he offended the gods, for which he was severely punished. According to Homer (“Odyssey”), his punishment was that, cast down into Tartarus (hell), he forever experiences unbearable pangs of thirst and hunger; he stands up to his neck in water, but the water recedes from him as soon as he bows his head to drink; branches with luxurious fruits hang over him, but as soon as he stretches out his hands to them, the branches deviate. This is where the expression “torment of Tantalus” arose, meaning: unbearable torment due to the inability to achieve the desired goal, despite its proximity.

On the seventh sky
The expression, meaning the highest degree of joy, happiness, goes back to the Greek philosopher Aristotle (384-322 BC), who in his essay “On Heaven” explains the structure of the vault of heaven. He believed that the sky consists of seven motionless crystal spheres on which the stars and planets are established. The seven heavens are mentioned in various places in the Quran: for example, it is said that the Quran itself was brought by an angel from the seventh heaven.

I don't want to study, I want to get married
Words by Mitrofanushka from D. I. Fonvizin’s comedy “The Minor” (1783), no. 3, yavl. 7.

New is well forgotten old
In 1824, the memoirs of milliner Marie Antoinette Mademoiselle Bertin were published in France, in which she said these words about the queen’s old dress that she had updated (in reality, her memoirs are fake - their author is Jacques Pesce). This idea was perceived as new only because it had been well forgotten. Already Geoffrey Chaucer (1340-1400) said that “there is no new custom that is not old.” This quote from Chaucer was popularized by Walter Scott's book The Folk Songs of Southern Scotland.

Nick down
In this expression, the word “nose” has nothing to do with the organ of smell. A “nose” was the name given to a memorial plaque, or a note tag. In the distant past, illiterate people always carried such tablets and sticks with them, with the help of which all kinds of notes or notches were made as memories.

Break a leg
This expression arose among hunters and was based on the superstitious idea that with a direct wish (both down and feather), the results of a hunt can be jinxed. In the language of hunters, feather means bird, and down means animals. In ancient times, a hunter going on a hunt received this parting word, the “translation” of which looks something like this: “Let your arrows fly past the target, let the snares and traps you set remain empty, just like the trapping pit!” To which the earner, in order not to jinx it either, replied: “To hell!” And both were confident that the evil spirits, invisibly present during this dialogue, would be satisfied and leave behind, and would not plot intrigues during the hunt.

Beat your head
What are “baklushi”, who “beats” them and when? For a long time, artisans have been making spoons, cups and other utensils from wood. To carve a spoon, it was necessary to chop off a block of wood from a log. Apprentices were entrusted with preparing the bucks: it was an easy, trivial task that did not require any special skill. Preparing such chocks was called “beating the lumps.” From here, from the mockery of the masters at the auxiliary workers - “baklushechnik”, our saying came from.

About the dead it's either good or nothing
The expression often quoted in Latin: “De mortuis nil nisi bene” or “De mortuis aut bene aut nihil” seems to go back to the work of Diogenes Laertius (3rd century AD): “Life, teaching and opinions famous philosophers”, which contains the saying of one of the “seven wise men” - Chilon (VI century BC): “Do not slander the dead.”

Oh holy simplicity!
This expression is attributed to the leader of the Czech national movement, Jan Hus (1369-1415). Sentenced by a church council as a heretic to be burned, he allegedly uttered these words at the stake when he saw that some old woman (according to another version, a peasant woman) in simple-minded religious zeal threw the brushwood she had brought into the fire. However, Hus's biographers, based on reports of eyewitnesses to his death, deny the fact that he uttered this phrase. The church writer Turanius Rufinus (c. 345-410), in his continuation of Eusebius's History of the Church, reports that the expression “holy simplicity” was uttered at the first Council of Nicaea (325) by one of the theologians. This expression is often used in Latin: “O sancta simplicitas!”

An eye for an eye a tooth for a tooth
An expression from the Bible, the formula for the law of retribution: “A fracture for a fracture, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth: as he has injured a person’s body, so must he do it” (Leviticus 24:20; about the same - Exodus 21: 24; Deuteronomy 19, 21).

From great to funny one step
This phrase was often repeated by Napoleon during his flight from Russia in December 1812 to his ambassador in Warsaw, de Pradt, who spoke about it in the book “History of the Embassy to the Grand Duchy of Warsaw” (1816). Its primary source is the expression of the French writer Jean-François Marmontel (1723-1799) in the fifth volume of his works (1787): “In general, the funny comes into contact with the great.”

The language will take you to Kyiv
In 999, a certain Kiev resident Nikita Shchekomyaka got lost in the endless, then Russian, steppe and ended up among the Polovtsians. When the Polovtsians asked him: Where are you from, Nikita? He answered that he was from the rich and beautiful city of Kyiv, and described the wealth and beauty of his native city to the nomads in such a way that the Polovtsian Khan Nunchak attached Nikita by the tongue to the tail of his horse, and the Polovtsians went to fight and plunder Kyiv. This is how Nikita Shchekomyaka got home with the help of his tongue.

Sharomyzhniki
1812 When the French burned Moscow and were left in Russia without food, they came to Russian villages and asked for food She rami, like give it to me. So the Russians began to call them that. (one of the hypotheses).

Bastard
This is an idiomatic phrase. There is a river called Voloch, when the fishermen came with their catch, they said ours and Voloch came. There are several other tomological meanings of this word. To drag - to collect, to drag. This word came from them. But it became abusive not long ago. This is the merit of 70 years in the CPSU.

Know all the ins and outs
The expression is associated with an ancient torture in which needles or nails were driven under the fingernails of the accused to extract a confession.

Oh, you are heavy, Monomakh’s hat!
Quote from A. S. Pushkin’s tragedy “Boris Godunov”, scene “The Royal Chambers” (1831), monologue of Boris (Monomakh in Greek is a martial artist; a nickname that was associated with the names of some Byzantine emperors. In ancient Rus', this nickname was assigned to the Grand Duke Vladimir (beginning of the 12th century), from whom the Moscow kings traced their origin. Monomakh's cap is the crown with which the Moscow kings were crowned kings, a symbol of royal power). The above quote characterizes a difficult situation.

Plato is my friend but the truth is dearer
The Greek philosopher Plato (427-347 BC) in his essay “Phaedo” attributes to Socrates the words “Following me, think less about Socrates, and more about the truth.” Aristotle, in his work “Nicomachean Ethics,” polemicizing with Plato and referring to him, writes: “Even though friends and truth are dear to me, duty commands me to give preference to truth.” Luther (1483-1546) says: “Plato is my friend, Socrates is my friend, but truth should be preferred” (“On the Enslaved Will,” 1525). The expression “Amicus Plato, sed magis amica veritas” - “Plato is my friend, but the truth is dearer”, was formulated by Cervantes in the 2nd part, ch. 51 novels "Don Quixote" (1615).

Dancing to someone else's tune
The expression is used to mean: to act not according to one’s own will, but according to the will of another. Goes back to the Greek historian Herodotus (5th century BC), who in the 1st book of his “History” says: when the Persian king Cyrus conquered the Medes, the Greeks of Asia Minor, whom he had previously tried in vain to win over to his side, expressed their readiness obey him, but under certain conditions. Then Cyrus told them the following fable: “One flute player, seeing fish in the sea, began to play the flute, expecting them to come out to him on land. Having lost his hope, he took a net, threw it in and pulled out many fish. Seeing the fish struggling in the nets, he said to them: “Stop dancing; when I played the flute, you didn’t want to come out and dance.” This fable is attributed to Aesop (VI century BC).

After the rain on Thursday
The Rusichi - the most ancient ancestors of the Russians - honored among their gods the main god - the god of thunder and lightning Perun. One of the days of the week was dedicated to him - Thursday (it is interesting that among the ancient Romans Thursday was also dedicated to the Latin Perun - Jupiter). Prayers were offered to Perun for rain during the drought. It was believed that he should be especially willing to fulfill requests on “his day” - Thursday. And since these prayers often remained in vain, the saying “After the rain on Thursday” began to be applied to everything that is unknown when it will come true.

Get into trouble
In dialects, a binder is a fish trap woven from branches. And, as in any trap, being in it is not a pleasant thing. Beluga roar

Beluga roar
He's as dumb as a fish - you've known that for a long time. And suddenly a beluga roars? It turns out that we are not talking about the beluga, but the beluga whale, which is the name of the polar dolphin. He really roars very loudly.

Success is never blamed
These words are attributed to Catherine II, who allegedly expressed herself this way when A.V. Suvorov was put on trial by military court for the assault on Turtukai in 1773, undertaken by him contrary to the orders of Field Marshal Rumyantsev. However, the story about Suvorov’s arbitrary actions and about putting him on trial is refuted by serious researchers.

Know yourself
According to the legend reported by Plato in the dialogue “Protagoras”, the seven sages of ancient Greece (Thales, Pittacus, Bias, Solon, Cleobulus, Myson and Chilo), meeting together in the temple of Apollo at Delphi, wrote: “Know yourself.” The idea of ​​knowing oneself was explained and disseminated by Socrates. This expression is often used in its Latin form: nosce te ipsum.

Rare bird
This expression (Latin rara avis) meaning “rare creature” is first found in the satires of Roman poets, for example, in Juvenal (mid-1st century - after 127 AD): “A rare bird on earth, sort of like black Swan".

Born to crawl cannot fly
Quote from “Song of the Falcon” by M. Gorky.

Smoke rocker
In old Rus', huts were often heated in a black way: the smoke did not escape through a chimney (there was none at all), but through a special window or door. And they predicted the weather by the shape of the smoke. The smoke comes in a column - it will be clear, dragging - towards fog, rain, a rocker - towards the wind, bad weather, or even a storm.

Not appropriate
This is a very old sign: only the animal that the brownie likes will live both in the house and in the yard. If he doesn’t like it, he’ll get sick, get sick, or run away. What to do - not good!

Hair on end
But what kind of rack is this? It turns out that standing on end means standing at attention, on your fingertips. That is, when a person gets scared, his hair seems to stand on tiptoes on his head.

Get into trouble
Rozhon is a sharp pole. And in some Russian provinces this is what they called four-pronged pitchforks. Indeed, you can’t really trample on them!

From the ship to the ball
Expression from “Eugene Onegin” by A. S. Pushkin, chapter 8, stanza 13 (1832):

And travel for him,
Like everyone else in the world, I'm tired of it,
He returned and hit
Like Chatsky, from the ship to the ball.

This expression characterizes an unexpected, sharp change in situation or circumstances.

Combine business with pleasure
An expression from “The Art of Poetry” by Horace, who says about the poet: “He is worthy of all approval who combines the pleasant with the useful.”

Wash your hands
Used to mean: to avoid responsibility for something. It arose from the Gospel: Pilate washed his hands before the crowd, giving Jesus to them for execution, and said: “I am not guilty of the blood of this righteous man” (Matt. 27:24). The ritual washing of hands, which serves as evidence of the non-involvement of the person washing in anything, is described in the Bible (Deuteronomy 21:6-7).

Weak spot
It arose from the myth about the only vulnerable spot on the hero’s body: Achilles’ heel, a spot on Siegfried’s back, etc. Used in the meaning: the weak side of a person, deeds.

Fortune. Wheel of Fortune
Fortuna is the goddess of blind chance, happiness and misfortune in Roman mythology. She was depicted blindfolded, standing on a ball or wheel (emphasizing her constant changeability), and holding a steering wheel in one hand and a cornucopia in the other. The rudder indicated that fortune controls a person's destiny.

Upside down
Loitering - in many Russian provinces this word meant walking. So, upside down is just walking upside down, upside down.

Grated kalach
By the way, in fact there was such a type of bread - grated kalach. The dough for it was crushed, kneaded, and grated for a very long time, which is why the kalach turned out to be unusually fluffy. And there was also a proverb - don’t grate, don’t crush, there won’t be a kalach. That is, trials and tribulations teach a person. The expression comes from a proverb, and not from the name of the bread.

Bring to light
Once upon a time they said to bring fish to clean water. And if it’s a fish, then everything is clear: in thickets of reeds or where snags are drowning in silt, a fish caught on a hook can easily break the fishing line and leave. And in clear water, above a clean bottom - let him try. So it is with an exposed swindler: if all the circumstances are clear, he will not escape retribution.

And there is a hole in the old woman
And what kind of gap (mistake, oversight by Ozhegov and Efremova) is this, a gap (i.e. flaw, defect) or what? The meaning, therefore, is this: And a person wise by experience can make mistakes. Interpretation from the lips of an expert in ancient Russian literature: And on an old woman there is a blow of Porukha (Ukrainian zh. coll.-dec. 1 - Harm, destruction, damage; 2 - Trouble). In a specific sense, porukha (other Russian) is rape. Those. everything is possible.

He who laughs last laughs best
The expression belongs to the French writer Jean-Pierre Florian (1755-1794), who used it in the fable “Two Peasants and a Cloud.”

End justifies the means
The idea of ​​this expression, which is the basis of Jesuit morality, was borrowed by them from the English philosopher Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679).

Man is a wolf to man
An expression from the “Donkey Comedy” by the ancient Roman writer Plautus (c. 254-184 BC).