“Carry coal to Newcastle”
This phrase was popular in the 1700s in England and its colonies. At this time Newcastle was the largest and busiest coal producer in the world, meaning they did not need any more coal than they already had. This idiom is to point out a fruitless task. If you were to carry coal to the world’s most prolific coal producing mine, that would be a task that would not cause any gain, in fact you would expend more than you had to give.
“To pull old cows out of the ditch”
This saying comes from the Dutch and their agricultural practices. Cows are “lumbering” animals and would often get stuck in ditches that separated fields and would rather die or be a major struggle to rescue them. Dragging long-gone animals out from a hard place is much like rehashing drug-out topics of conversation, which is the meaning behind this phrase. If you continue o bring up old drama or forgotten issues, then you are pulling old cows out of the ditch.
“Elvis has left the building”
When Elvis Presley was the zeitgeist of America’s consciousness in the 1950s, people would go to his concert and demand an encore. This is when the managers of concerts would come out on stage and announce “Elvis has left the building” causing fans to flood out of the concert hall. This saying became very popular to say that the event has ended, and the party was over but has only started to dwindle over time.
“Make hay when the sun shines”
This idiom comes from 16th century England and agricultural practices. It was crucial for hay to dry out in good weather so it could be used for food or animals without having to worry about it being ruined, A.K.A. molding and becoming unusable. To make hay when the sun shines means to seize the opportunity while you have it. If you put off harvesting hay until it starts raining, your spoil your product and more importantly your opportunity.
“Chew the scenery”
Unless you are an actor or were a theatergoer in the late 1800s, you most likely have never heard of this turn of phrase. This phrase comes from live actors hamming-it-up so their performance could be seen from the back of the house. With big gestures and intense movements, it’s alleged that actors would quite literally take bites out of props or chew the scenery. This idiom means that you are moving with such exuberance and passion.
“Bite the wax tadpole”
In the 20th century China came out with a marketing campaign for the famous soft drink, Coca Cola. However, it was a transliteration of the brand’s name leading the campaign to say “kēdǒu kěn là” which loosely translates to “bite the wax tadpole”. When this campaign went out for customers to see, the company became a laughingstock. With how embarrassed the company was after this incident, to “bite the wax tadpole” became an idiom to describe doing something embarrassing or awkward.
“Bob’s your uncle”
This idiom comes from a Prime Minister in 1887 named Robert (Bob) Cecil. Cecil had a nephew by the name of Arthur Balfour. This nephew gained the reputation of being inexperienced, yet Cecil appointed him to a position of high power anyway. Because of the ease of how Balfour was given his position despite not having any experience, the saying “Bob’s your uncle” came about. This saying means something along the lines of “and there you have it” or “as simple as that” because if Bob’s your uncle, then you are bound to succeed.
“The cat’s pajamas”
This idiom comes from hybridizing terms from the 1920s stemming from flapper lingo. A “cat” was slang for a fashionable person. The pajamas part comes from the trend in the 1920s of America where women’s pajamas became a new trend. Slowly the phrase leaked out of flapper circles and was popularized by Tad Dorgan. This phrase means “top-notch” or “excellence” because if you are a cat (or a fashionable person) wearing pajamas (the hot-new fashion trend) then you are superb, you are the cat’s pajamas.
“A stitch in time saves nine”
The first time this idiom could be seen was in an 18th century sewing reference. The saying specifically referred to how sewing one good stitch before the tear grows bigger can save you from having to sew nine stitches. Because of the rhyming scheme it most likely got stuck in the minds of many. This popularity caused this saying to be used when performing a simple task that would prevent having to do more work in the future. However, this phrase fizzled out of relevancy when mending your own clothes stopped being the norm.
“Cut the Gordian knot”
The Gordian knot comes from an ancient greek myth. The legend is about an impossibly tied knot on a cart in Gordium, the prophecy of which declared that only the future leader of Asia could untie it. In the myth, Alexander the Great drew his sword and sliced the knot off. Because of solution, to cut the Gordian knot soon came to be known as a saying to mean solving an issue quickly and cleverly.
