Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with colloquialism

Shaving the ladies

tellurian — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 04:38:14 -0800

Paul Keating recently said that the people running the banks in Australia were 'counterhoppers'. What did he mean? Counter hoppers - according to Partridge are: dedicated followers of fashion
or did Keating mean counter jumpers as draper’s assistant, who jumps over the counter to go from one part of the shop to another.
Further, was it really a compound word created by Poe

Done and done

Mach5 — Mon, 12 May 2008 21:26:16 -0800

I do this menial task at work at least once, and usually several times a day, which involves running my scripts and then sending out a mass email. The body of my email currently consists of the word 'Done'. I'd like as many ways as possible to say 'the task is completed' and be generally silly. Go all out, synonyms, colloquialisms, slang, foreign languages, everything. This task will be all done within a month or two, and I just want to amuse myself and weird out coworkers.

Begging the question, for all intensive purposes: misused colloquialisms in modern English

cosmic osmo — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 18:41:08 -0800

Commonly misused phrases or expressions? It drives me nuts in a totally pedantic way when people misuse the phrase "take it with a grain of salt" to make the amount of salt larger (i.e. a "giant" grain) when the whole point of the expression is to emphasize how small the amount of salt should be--are there any other examples of phrases or expressions that are frequently used in the exact opposite way intended, either by mangling the phrase itself or just using it incorrectly (e.g. 'hoi polloi' to mean 'the wealthy elite' when it actually means 'the common masses')? I've seen things like lists of common errors in English, but I'm looking for this particular kind of error.

I'd rather not make this a debate on how language and meaning evolve over time and more about specific examples. Also, I have no idea how to use the phrase "to beg the question" but props to anyone who can finally explain that one to me, because I just know that'll be the first example given.

What's the deal, Banana Peel?

dogmom — Mon, 12 Nov 2007 13:00:32 -0800

Rhyming Idioms: I know a couple of 4-year-olds that were rather tickled when I asked them "What's new, tennis shoe" They begged me for more... So I gave them "What's the deal, Banana Peel", "What's up, Buttercup" and of course, "See you later, Alligator" with it's "After while, Crocodile". If it's ok with Mom & Dad, I'm going to teach them the chorus to "50 Ways To Leave Your Lover", but can you think of any more rhyming idioms that are 4-year-old appropriate?

Colloquialism

jasondigitized — Tue, 31 Oct 2006 07:42:54 -0800

What is your favorite and most colorful expression or phrase? Speaking about two idiots that we work with, my coworker said that they looked like 'Two monkey's f*cking a football', which led me to say 'They couldn't organize a piss-up in a brewery', and as a final touch, which made me laugh, my coworker states 'They're about as handy as a bear cub with a toothpick'. I would love to write a book or create a website with colorful phrases from around the world. What are some of your favorite idioms that you use or have overhead in the boardroom, bar, or barnyard?