I've got to get some work done, so I will leave you with a post I wrote a few days ago, which is a follow-up to yesterday's entry. A little humour is definitely needed here to brighten up the day.

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So, you may recall that I posted yesterday that Michael was trying to "cover me with butter", a mangling of the idiom "butter me up". This goes back to a story that Michael's mother told us a few years ago, which has evolved into an inside joke in our household.

(Marian, forgive me if I've fudged some of the details; I don't remember them exactly, but I figure they don't matter too much.)

Marian works for a dentist, and we all know dentists make pretty decent money, especially when they're competent and have established a reputation for doing good work. The boss had hired a pleasant East Indian woman to do some cooking and cleaning, and it seems he and his wife were very happy with her. He gave her some lavish compliments on a meal she had cooked one evening; she was pleased but rather flustered, and replied (and if you can do an East Indian accent, you must use it here): "Oh, sir! You are just trying to cover me with butter!"

I love this story! It reminds me of when I was trying to learn German in Germany. I remember one of the girls in my class reading a note I'd written, in which I'd made some kind of spelling mistake, and she thought it was so cute she said, "Oh, wie suess!" ("Oh, how sweet!") Sometimes the challenge of speaking another language creates new expressions that are somehow are better than their originals.

Isn't "covering me in butter" just so much more fun?!

On the other hand, we will always have these topics as requirements of all international exams which put them under certain pattern to follow.

Teachers continue teaching idioms and slangs, books are full of them, films, foruns on internet, and so on.

What do you think? Is it worthy learnig idioms and slangs or is it a waste of time?

While you give it a thought, try these exercises:

English slangs idioms

And this dicitonary:

Idioms

Some quizzes;

Idioms and phrasal verbs - quizz

One day a private student, upper intermediate level, was practicing countable and uncountable nouns. She was reviewing picture cards of some everyday nouns, when she ran into a little difficulty sorting out the difference between a slice of cake and a hunk of cheese. She asked about pie and pizza, and then chuckled nervously at the piece and slice. But she took notes and—what a trooper—hung in there.

Then “Evil Sue” took over. I introduced her to “piece of cake!” Not to be confused with a slice of cake (or a piece of cake, for that matter!) I explained the idiom to her, and her eyes widened and, frankly, she looked stunned. “How am I going to remember these?” I could almost see the words pass across her forehead while she looked at me rather blankly. Like a deer in the headlights.

I just smiled. Suddenly, she laughed and I saw a light bulb go on over her head. She loved it! She repeated it to herself several more times to get the intonation and inflection down.

At the end of the lesson, I asked her how today went for her, and she said, “It wasn’t a piece of cake.” Perfect answer! Evil Sue is a genius! 

A bit much
If something is excessive or annoying, it is a bit much.

A chain is no stronger than its weakest link
This means that processes, organisations, etc, are vulnerable because the weakest person or part can always damage or break them.

A day late and a dollar short
(USA) If something is a day late and a dollar short, it is too little, too late.

A fool and his money are soon parted
This idiom means that people who aren't careful with their money spend it quickly. 'A fool and his money are easily parted' is an alternative form of the idiom.

A fool at 40 is a fool forever
If someone hasn't matured by the time they reach forty, they never will.

A hitch in your giddy-up
If you have a hitch in your giddy-up, you're not feeling well. ('A hitch in your gittie-up' is also used.)

A lick and a promise
If you give something a lick and a promise, you do it hurriedly, most often incompletely, intending to return to it later.

A little bird told me
If someone doesn't want to say where they got some information from, they can say that a little bird told them.

A little learning is a dangerous thing
A small amount of knowledge can cause people to think they are more expert than they really are.eg. he said he'd done a course on home electrics, but when he tried to mend my table lamp, he fused all the lights! I think a little learning is a dangerous thing

A long row to hoe
Something that is a long row to hoe is a difficult task that takes a long time.

A lost ball in the high weeds
A lost ball in the high weeds is someone who does not know what they are doing, where they are or how to do something.

A penny for your thoughts
This idiom is used as a way of asking someone what they are thinking about.

Accident waiting to happen
If something is an accident waiting to happen, there's definitely going to be an accident or it's bound to go wrong. ('Disaster waiting to happen' is also used.)
Ace in the hole
An ace in the hole is something other people are not aware of that can be used to your advantage when the time is right.
Ace up your sleeve
If you have an ace up your sleeve, you have something that will give you an advantage that other people don't know about.

All hat, no cattle
(USA) When someone talks big, but cannot back it up, they are all hat, no cattle.('Big hat, no cattle' is also used.)
All heart
Someone who is all heart is very kind and generous.
All hell broke loose
When all hell breaks loose, there is chaos, confusion and trouble.
All in a day's work
If something is all in a day's work, it is nothing special.

All-singing, all-dancing
If something's all-singing, all-dancing, it is the latest version with the most up-to-date features.

Alter ego
An alter ego is a very close and intimate friend. It is a Latin phrase that literally means 'other self'.

Always a bridesmaid, never a bride
If someone is always a bridesmaid, never a bride, they never manage to fulfill their ambition- they get close, but never manage the recognition, etc, they crave.

Ambulance chaser
A lawyer who encourages people who have been in accidents or become ill to sue for compensation is an ambulance chaser.

Ants in your pants
If someone has ants in their pants, they are agitated or excited about something and can't keep still.
Any port in a storm
This means that in an emergency any solution will do, even one that would normally be unacceptable.
Any Tom, Dick or Harry
If something could be done by any Tom, Dick or Harry, it could be done by absolutely anyone.
Apple of your eye
Something or, more often, someone that is very special to you is the 'apple of your' eye.
Apple pie order
Everything is in perfect order and tidy if it is in apple pie order.
Apples and oranges
Tis used when people compare or describe two totally different things. ('Apples to oranges' is also used.)
Apples for apples
An apples for apples comparison is a comparison between related or simialr things. ('Apples to apples' is also used.)
Apron strings
A man who is tied to a woman's apron strings is excessively dependent on her, especially when it is his mother's apron strings.
Argue the toss
(UK) If you argue the toss, you refuse to accept a decision and argue about it.
Arm and a leg
If something costs an arm and a leg, it is very expensive.
Armchair critic
An armchair critic is someone who offers advice but never shows that they could actually do any better.
Armed to the teeth
If people are armed to the teeth, they have lots of weapons.
Around the clock
If something is open around the clock, it is open 24 hours a day. For example, an airport is open around the clock.
Arrow in the quiver
An arrow in the quiver is a strategy or option that could be used to achieve your objective.
As a rule
If you do something as a rule, then you usually do it.
As cold as ice
This idiom can be used to describe a person who does not show any emotion.
As cold as stone
If something is as cold as stone, it is very cold. If a person is as cold as stone, they are unemotional.
As cool as a cucumber
If someone is as cool as a cucumber, they don't get worried by anything.
As good as new
If something has been used but is still in extremely good condition, it is as good as new.
As mad as a hatter
This simile means that someone is crazy or behaves very strangely. In the past many people who made hats went insane because they had a lot of contact with mercury.
As mad as a wrongly shot hog
(USA) If someone is as mad as a wrongly shot hog, they are very angry. (Same as, Angry as a bear or Angry as a bull).
As much use as a chocolate fire-guard
A fire-guard is used in front of a fireplace for safety. A chocolate fire-guard is of no use. An alternative to 'As much use as a chocolate teapot'.
As much use as a chocolate teapot
Something that is as much use as a chocolate teapot is not useful at all.
As much use as a handbrake on a canoe
This idiom is used to describe someone or something as worthless or pointless.
As neat as a new pin
This idiom means tidy and clean.
As one man
If people do something as one man, then they do it at exactly the same time or in complete agreement.
As the actress said to the bishop
(UK) This idiom is used to highlight a sexual reference, deliberate or accidental.
As the crow flies
This idiom is used to describe the shortest possible distance between two places.
As you sow, so shall you reap
This means that if you do bad things to people, bad things will happen to you, or good things if you do good things.
Asleep at the switch
If someone is asleep at the switch, they are not doing their job or taking their responsibilities very carefully. 'Asleep at the wheel' is an alternative.
Asleep at the wheel
If someone is asleep at the wheel, they are not doing their job or taking their responsibilities very carefully. 'Asleep at the switch' is an alternative.
At a drop of a dime
(USA) If someone will do something at the drop of a dime, they will do it instantly, without hesitation.
At a loose end
(UK) If you are at a loose end, you have spare time but don't know what to do with it.
At a loss
If you are at a loss, you are unable to understand or comply.
At a snail's pace
If something moves at a snail's pace, it moves very slowly.
At arm's length
If something is at arm's length, it is a safe distance waway from you.
At arm's length
Keep somebody at arm's length means not allowing somebody to be become to friendly with you or close to you.
At cross purposes
When people are at cross purposes, they misunderstand each other or have different or opposing objectives.
At daggers drawn
If people are at daggers drawn, they are very angry and close to violence.
At death's door
If someone looks as if they are at death's door, they look seriously unwell and might actually be dying.
At each other's throats
If people are at each other's throats, they are fighting, arguing or competing ruthlessly.
At full tilt
If something is at full tilt, it is going or happening as fast or as hard as possible.
At large
If a criminal is at large, they have not been found or caught.
At loggerheads
If people are at loggerheads, they are arguing and can't agree on anything.
At loose ends
(USA) If you are at a loose end, you have spare time but don't know what to do with it.
At odds
If you are at odds with someone, you cannot agree with them and argue.
At sea
If things are at sea, or all at sea, they are disorganized and chaotic.
At the bottom of the totem pole
(USA) If someone is at the bottom of the totem pole, they are unimportant. Opposite is at the top of the totem pole.
At the coalface
If you work at the coalface, you deal with the real problems and issues, rather than sitting in a office discussing things in a detached way.
At the drop of a hat
If you would do something at the drop of a hat, you'd do it immediately.
At the end of the day
This is used to mean 'in conclusion' or 'when all is said and done'.
At the end of your rope
(USA) If you are at the end of your rope, you are at the limit of your patience or endurance.
At the end of your tether
(UK) If you are at the end of your tether, you are at the limit of your patience or endurance.
At the fore
In a leading position
At the top of my lungs
If you shout at the top of your lungs, you shout as loudly as you possibly can.
At the top of the list
If something is at the top of the list, it is of highest priority, most important, most urgent, or the next in one's line of attention.
At the top of your lungs
If you shout at the top of your lungs, you shout as loudly as you possibly can.
At the top of your voice
If you talk, shout or sing at the top of your voice, you do it as loudly as you can.
At your wit's end
If you're at your wit's end, you really don't know what you should do about something, no matter how hard you think about it.
At your wits' end
If you are at your wits' end, you have no idea what to do next and are very frustrated.
Average Joe
An average Joe is an ordinary person without anything exceptional about them.
Avowed intent
If someone makes a solemn or serious promise publicly to attempt to reach a certain goal, this is their avowed intent.
Away with the fairies
If someone is away with the fairies, they don't face reality and have unrealistic expectations of life.
Awe inspiring
Something or someone that is awe inspiring amazes people in a slightly frightening but positive way.
AWOL
AWOL stands for "Absent Without Leave", or "Absent Without Official Leave". Orignially a military term, it is used when someone has gone missing without telling anyone or asking for permission.
Axe to grind
If you have an axe to grind with someone or about something, you have a grievance, a resentment and you want to get revenge or sort it out. In American English, it is 'ax'.

According to Wikipedia: 'As of 2005, the OED contained about 301,100 main entries. Supplementing each entry headword, there are 157,000 bold-type combinations and derivatives; 169,000 italicized-bold phrases and combinations; 616,500 word-forms in total, including 137,000 pronunciations; 249,300 etymologies; 577,000 cross-references; and 2,412,400 usage quotations. The dictionary's latest complete print edition (Second Edition, 1989), was printed in 20 volumes, comprising 291,500 entries in 21,730 pages.'

According to the 1933 Preface, the aim of the OED was 'to present alphabetically the words that have formed the English vocabulary from the time of the earliest records (ca. AD 740) to the present day, with all the relevant facts concerning their form, sense-history, pronunciation, and etymology.'

They do exclude all words that had become obsolete by 1150.

The dictionary was originally a Philological Society project conceived in London by three gentlemen who were dissatisfied with the current English dictionaries. In 1857 they formed an 'Unregistered Words Committee' to search for unlisted and undefined words lacking in current dictionaries. Wikipedia goes into considerable detail about the evolution of that project into the OED of today.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxford_English_Dictionary

Today the dictionary is available in 20 volumes for close to $1000 (a 'fine' edition is available for $6,295); can be viewed online for approximately $300 a year; and is also available on CD for a little over $200. I read several reports complaining that the CD version is difficult to use and requires very frequent validations. A planned Third Edition has an estimated completion date of 2037. There is speculation that it may only be offered on CD.

There is also available -- and this may be of interest to those of you who, like me, have neither shelf space for 20 volumes nor a spare $1000 -- a two volume 'Compact Edition' that was created by photographically reducing each page to one-half its linear dimensions. Each compact edition page holds four OED pages. The set comes in a case with a drawer for a magnifying glass, which is included. It was originally published in 1971. In 1991, the compact edition format was re-sized to one-third of the original linear dimensions. Even with a magnifying glass, that has to be almost impossible to read.

Having gathered all that information, I promptly went to eBay -- where else? -- and found several of the compact edition offered and promptly bought one for $100. Some were going for less.

According to the OED:

'Hell-cat' is an early term for a hackney coach.

'To turn the cat in the pan' is to reverse the order of things so dexterously as to make them appear the opposite of what they really are. Origin unknown, the phrase goes back to the 1500's.

'Cat's purr' is a thrill felt over the region of the heart in certain heart diseases.

I'm in bliss.

I am getting a TON of traffic lately being directed to the post "Miss Mousey Gets a Haircut". All manner of words involved. Hair, cut, haircut, mousey hair, little girl haircuts, haircut story and on and on.

So much traffic, that this post has moved way up in the list of all time most hits.

Still getting a lot for idioms and Honey and his wandering eye story is still a European cult classic.

I had one the other day though that has me completely baffled.  A single word. I am quite certain that I have not had this word on the blog. The word was "butt". I am puzzled.

And who would Google that  anyway?

A Butterfly Collection

1. butterfly collecting: a hobby that involves collecting specimens of butterflies, and typically pinning them to a board and displaying them under glass in rows. It was a particularly popular hobby during Victorian and Edwardian times.
2. The Collector (1965) A movie about a butterfly collector who kidnaps a woman to add to his collection of creatures.



3. butterfly net: a type of handheld net used for catching butterflies (often for a collection). The image of using oversized butterfly nets to catch people is sometimes used in cartoons (or the imagery is evoked in humor writing). Particularly when depicting the "men in white coats" in pursuit of an escapee from a mental institution. (cf: this, this, or this cartoon.)
4. "The Butterfly", a fairy tale by Hans Christian Anderson. A tale of a butterfly seeking a flower to be his bride. Unsuccessfully. In the end, he gets caught by people and pinned down, a state he likens to marriage.
5. The Very Hungry Caterpillar, by Eric Carle. A picture book about a caterpillar who is hungry and eats a lot before becoming "a beautiful butterfly." (Sorry, did I give away the ending?)
6. Heimlich : a caterpillar (who is generally very hungry) from Pixar's animated feature, A Bug's Life. At the end of the movie, he emerges from his cocoon as a butterfly with wings disproportionatley small for his body, saying: "Finally, I'm a beautiful butterfly"?) (You can watch the scene on YouTube.)
7. butterfly kiss: a nickname for the act of brushing one's eyelashes against another person's skin as an act of affection.
8. In the Time of the Butterflies. A novel by Julia Alvarez about 4 sisters who participated in a resistance against a brutal dictator in the Dominican Republic. Their codename was "las Mariposas," or "the Butterflies." Also a 2001 TV movie based on the novel.
9. butterflies in the stomach: an expression referring to temporary minor gastrointestinal distress triggered by stress, such as that due to an anticipated meeting or public performance. (Doesn't that sound poetic?)



10. The Monarch. A bumbling arch-villain from "The Venture Bros.", a cartoon shown on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim. Wears a butterfly costume, as do his henchman.
11. Madame Butterfly: an opera written by Giacomo Puccini about a Geisha in Nagasaki called "Butterfly."
12. "Butterfly", a song by Weezer about catching a butterfly in a mason jar. It also makes reference to the opera Madame Butterfly, and is on the album Pinkerton, which is the name of the male protagonist from the opera.
13. the butterfly effect:
    An idea from Chaos theory whereby minor events can trigger a chain reaction of other events, which can sometimes lead to big events. Such as the fluttering of a butterfly's wings leading to a tornado changing its path. (Also a 2004 movie.)
14. butterfly ballot: a voting ballot notorious from the 2000 US presidential election, as its confusing layout may have led some would-be Gore voters in Florida to mistakenly vote for Pat Buchanan.
15. The Sinister Butterfly: "Nefariously fluttering from leaf to leaf." John's blog. Which he doesn't update very often these days. But he has posted some great photos there before, as well as some other stuff that's worth reading.

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Butterfly collection image source: Worcester City Museums, UK. The Monarch image was found herehttp://cakerockstheparty.wordpress.com/2007/09/24/ncaa-heisman-trophy-avatars/.