image by jackmac34
On their face, idioms don’t seem to make sense. How does ‘spilling the beans’ become code for revealing a secret? Why do we say ‘kick the bucket’ when referencing the end of life? In this article, I explore 13 everyday idioms examples that, at first glance, are baffling but have an interesting historical or cultural story behind them.
So, gather around all you language lovers, writers, students, and other curious souls, as we explore this list of idioms and how they came to be.
1. Spill the Bean
Meaning: To reveal a secret.
Origin: Some historians trace this expression to the ancient Greeks, where beans were used to vote. This was meant to be a secret ballot. But, if someone tipped over the container, it could spill the beans, revealing the secret. Over time, this would morph into a metaphor for revealing secrets—fun fact: other cultures around the world independently developed similar voting systems.
2. Kick the Bucket
Meaning: A euphemism for dying.
Origin: It is not well-known where this came from but one theory suggests that it came from animal slaughter, where a bucket would be placed under the animal while it was suspended. The thrashing might have led to a kicking of the bucket if you will. Another theory references a method of execution where a person’s feet might kick as they meet their end. Origins remain debated, but we use it to refer to death today.
3. Bite the Bullet
Meaning: To endure a painful or unpleasant situation that you can’t avoid.
Origin: Before modern medicine made anaesthesia and numbing agents ubiquitous, soldiers would literally bite on a bullet to help them go through extreme pain during surgery. Could they have a bite on something else? Possibly. But they are soldiers, so bullets seem thematically consistent. The phrase resonates today when we must bravely face discomfort and accept that as part of the process.
4. Let the Cat Out of the Bag
Meaning: To unintentionally reveal a secret
Origin: In medieval markets, as in today’s markets, scams abounded. Livestock sales were often done using bags into which the advertised piglets, ducks, and chickens were stuffed. To prevent the animal from escaping, the buyer would not open the bag until they got home and were surprised to see a cat bounding out. That is why it now means revealing something meant to be hidden. Yeah, it’s hilarious.
5. Costs an Arm and a Leg
Meaning: An expensive thing.
Origin: The origins are not precise, but it is thought to have emerged in the mid-20th century in America. It signifies that something is expensive as if you were paying using a body part. It could also be a reference to the high medical and mental cost of injuries that involve losing limbs. It could also have been linked to full-body portraits, where including arms and legs could significantly add to the price.
6. Don’t Look a Gift Horse in the Mouth
image by amar42
Meaning: Avoid criticising things offered to you as gifts.
Origin: In many parts of the world, horses were valuable and a measure of wealth. Since the age and health of a horse could be estimated by examining its teeth, inspecting a gifted horse’s mouth was seen as rude, implying distrust of the gift’s value. Over time, this piece of advice changed and now applies to just about any gift where appreciating them without nitpicking is encouraged.
7. Under the Weather
Meaning: Feeling unwell.
Origin: The phrase possibly came from the world of sailors who, when they felt sick, would be sent below deck, or ‘under the weather,’ to avoid the harsh on-deck conditions. It could also reference the age-old notion that bad weather brings discomfort. Either way, this idiom sailed into modern speech to pithily describe feeling ill or off-colour.
8. Barking Up the Wrong Tree
Meaning: To pursue a misguided or mistaken course of action.
Origin: This is another American idiom that came about in the 1800s when Americans hunted with packs of dogs. In the commotion of chasing their quarry, they might mistakenly bark at the base of the wrong tree, allowing their prey time to escape. It now humorously suggests someone is chasing the wrong lead or a misdirection.
9. Turn a Blind Eye
Meaning: To deliberately ignore something.
Origin: At the battle of Copenhagen in 1801, a cheeky Admiral named Horatio Nelson was given a signal using a system of flags to withdraw from an attack. Having lost one of his eyes in a previous battle, he picked up his telescope and put it to his blind eye, remarking later that he did not see the signal. He did this so he could continue his attack, believing it would yield victory, and it did.
10. Sweating Like a Pig
image by WFranz
Meaning: To sweat profusely.
Origin: First of all, pigs don’t sweat profusely. This idiom is a reference to pig iron in the iron smelting process. Forgers would pour hot molten iron, known as pig iron, into the sand to cool, causing visible moisture droplets to form on the surface, resembling sweat. That imagery and the name came together through association to cheekily reference sweating profusely.
11. Hit the Sack
Meaning: To go to bed or sleep.
Origin: Before the joys of modern convenience, beds were little more than a large sack filled with straw or hay. Hitting the sack referred to hitting the sack 😁. A modern equivalent would be fluffing your pillows. You had to give it a good pat to get it even and comfy for the night. In our world of bed covers that can regulate temperature, including on individual sides of the bed, hitting the sack has lost its meaning somewhat, but hay…I mean, hey, we’re not complaining.
12. Pull Yourself Up by Your Bootstraps
image by Arina Krasnikova
Meaning: To improve your situation through your efforts, even with bad odds.
Origin: This example of idiomatic expression was a product of sarcasm that highlighted the absurdity of trying to lift yourself up by your bootstraps; you can’t actually do it. Over time, it was rebranded as an empty inspirational slogan about self-reliance and determination. Nowadays, it is something that soul-crushing corporations, the 1%, and bought politicians convince down-on-their-luck people to believe and parrot in response to popular calls for a change in material conditions. Have you forgotten that you can’t actually pull yourself up by your bootstraps? The situation will just get tighter. How apt, eh!
13. Cut to the Chase
Meaning: To get to the point without wasting time.
Origin: The idiom comes from the early days of silent films, where lengthy dialogue could simply be trimmed out of the film roll with a small guillotine-type device, or more commonly, scissors, to reach the action-packed sections. You gotta give the people what they want. Over time, it became a shorthand for skipping fluff or needless detail and focusing on what matters. Knowing the cinematic roots makes it cooler in my eyes.
To Wrap Up
The more you study them, the more idioms seem like a time capsule, using language and its flexibility to cross centuries. Literal descriptions have now become colourful turns of phrases that add to the flavour of daily speech.
Knowing where they come from enriches our vocabulary and deepens our appreciation for the journey a language takes. Now, you have funny anecdotes to share with friends.
So, there you have it, an unlucky number of idioms for your enjoyment.
