Idioms are figurative expressions that have no relation to the given phrase. These are creative expressions that enhance the language. In the first part of the series, we uncovered a few lesser-known idioms in the English language. In this part, we will ferret out idioms that refer to animals.
Dog eats dog:
This idiom is used to refer to a situation of fierce competition in which people are willing to harm each other in order to succeed. The expression dog-eats-dog comes from the Latin proverb, `a dog does not eat the flesh of a dog’. However, as in the case of most of the idioms, this has no canine connection. It first appeared in English print in 1543 but only got famous in 1732 in Thomas Fuller’s book entitled `Gnomologia`.
Picture a battle between two media conglomerates, where they are willing to employ ruthless tactics to outdo each other to win a bid. One would call it a dog-eat-dog world.
You can’t teach an old dog new tricks:
The idiom means ‘you cannot make people change their ways.’ This is said to be one of the oldest proverbial sayings in the English language. There are many early citations of it and many of those refer to it as an 'old saying'. The earliest example of it in print is in John Fitzherbert's The Boke of Husbandry, 1534. Imagine a septuagenarian, blessed with a good sense of humour, always carrying cash instead of handy cards. He would excuse himself by saying that ‘you can’t teach an old dog new tricks’!
Talk the hind legs off a donkey:
The expression is used to describe someone who talks a lot, usually too much. A version of this phrase, talking a horse’s hind leg off, was already considered an old expression by 1808. It’s not known exactly when or why the phrase changed from ‘horse’ to ‘donkey’. The earliest use of this version of this saying is said to have been found in The Leeds Times on 24 June 1854. For instance, we always have a friend who can talk from sunset to sunrise. You would jokingly say ‘He can talk the hind legs off a donkey!’.
A cuckoo in the nest:
‘Cuckoo in the nest’ is a figure of speech for an unwelcome intruder in a place or situation. The metaphor came into existence because some female cuckoo birds are notorious for brood parasitism—leaving their eggs in the nests of other species to be incubated, hatched, and nourished. Imagine an unwanted acquaintance gatecrashes your birthday party; you would call that person ‘Cuckoo in the nest’.
The cat’s whiskers:
It is a very old-fashioned British expression. This refers to someone or something that is highly enjoyable, desirable, or impressive, especially in a fancy manner. Picture yourself in your favourite attire, you would call yourself ‘cat’s whiskers’.
Berry thought she was the cat's whiskers in her new coat.
In conclusion, idioms are linguistic gems that enliven our conversations and spark curiosity about the language. Give yourself a pat on the back if you are already acquainted with these expressions. If you are not familiar with them, take the opportunity to acquaint yourself and amuse your friends!
We will present more peculiar English idioms in the third part of the series.
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