- If you don't already, that is, these are some comical things to say to people.
Have you read American Sayings And Where They Come From? Because this is basically part two about all the American phrases.
The Tail Wagging The Dog
A smaller version of this is “wag the dog” meaning to divert attention to less important issues to get away with bigger issues. A “tail wagging the dog” situation is where a less important group seems to control a larger, more important person or organization.
Running Around Like A Chicken With Its Head Cut Off
Also running around like a headless chicken is associated with when you cut a head off a chicken and it begins to run around in a panic before quickly dying. So if you use it to describe someone else it means you think they’re running around doing a lot of things in a disorganized and ineffective way.
Eager Beaver
When you say someone is an eager beaver, it means you think they’re overly enthusiastic, overzealous and excited about an upcoming job. This is one of the funniest of the American phrases. Do you use this saying?
Neck And Neck
Neck and neck means that there’s a tie, it’s even, in a comparison or competition.
Sacred Cow
A sacred cow refers to a person, thing or belief that is unreasonably above criticism or immune from questioning.
By The Skin Of Your Teeth
This saying actually comes from the Book of Job in the Bible, ‘My bone cleaveth to my skin and to my flesh, and I am escaped with the skin of my teeth’ (19:20). This saying means narrowly, barely or by a small margin.
More Holes Than Swiss Cheese
People have the idea that Swiss cheese is full of holes and well most of it is, not all Swiss cheese is full of holes. When an argument of story has more holes than Swiss cheese, you’re saying that there’s a lot of issues with it. Something that has a lot of problems and faults is said to have more holes than Swiss cheese.
Pull The Wool Over Someone’s Eyes
To pull the wool over someone’s eyes means to have the intention to deceive someone or to hoodwink someone. This is a common saying of all these American phrases and means to try to get someone to think one thing when in fact, the situation is something else all together.
Get Someone’s Goat
This phrase comes from horse-racing where goats were thought to have calming effects on the thoroughbred horses. A goat would be placed in the stall the night before a race, however, some opponents would cheat by removing the goat from the stall and agitating the horse. Then in turn, the horse would lose the race.
Fat/Slim Chance
If you say something is a “fat” or “slim” chance, it means that it has very little chance of happening.
Couch Potato
A couch potato loosely describes a person that is sitting on the couch with a big bowl of potato chips in their lap. It’s someone who doesn’t lead an active life but would rather stay in, on the couch watching tv. Have you ever been a statistic as a couch potato on these American phrases
Get Up On The Wrong Side Of The Bed
To describe someone that “got up on the wrong side of the bed,” means we think they woke up in a bad mood or with a bad temper. No one wants to wake up on the wrong side of the bed or start the day in a bad headspace but it happens.
What did you think of these American phrases? Let me know in the comments!