To have chills go down one’s spine is to feel extremely worrisome or excitable. It can be when one hears something particularly beautiful or particularly fearsome. One may literally feel a shiver or goosebumps down one’s back, but not necessarily. The idiom has many different forms. It can be chill, chills, shiver, or shivers that either …
Are we talking about some obscure gardening technique when we mention beat around the bush? Or maybe it’s a secret method for bushwhacking in the wilderness? Not quite. It’s a pretty common expression we use in English, but it’s essential to understand its true meaning when using it. Let’s pull …
A bastion is a protruding section of a fortified area that allows for defensive fire in several directions. It can also be simply a stronghold or fortified place. Over time the word has come to include metaphorical bastions or places that protect certain ideas or activities. This last definition is used often with the modifier last. …
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An idiom is a phrase that is more than the sum of its parts, or in other words, has more of a meaning than the individual words used in the phrase. Examples include pay the piper, for the birds, and pulling one’s leg. Idiom is also a synonym for dialect, a way of …
A proverb is a short, common saying or phrase. It particularly gives advice or shares a universal truth. Synonyms for proverb include byword, which can also be someone or something that is the best example of a group. Adage is also listed as a common synonym for proverb. Adages tend to be old, known for decades or centuries, …
To deteriorate is to worsen over time, to get progressively badder. It can be used with or without an object. The adjective form is deteriorative. To decline can mean to get worse over time, a synonym of deteriorate. However, decline has other definitions that include becoming progressively smaller or fewer, which may be a good thing if one …
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Share and share alike is a phrase meaning each person should have equal parts of the whole, whether the whole be positive or negative. It is used when every member of a group shares in a monetary prize or in an arduous task. The phrase does not require hyphens, unless it is …
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When it comes to old terms from around the world, we have to be mindful of how we’re using them today. Sometimes a word’s meaning can get lost over time, and it’s important to remind ourselves to handle it with care. Terms like futz and putz, for example. These old …
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To tease can mean to make fun of someone or to taunt someone with something without the intention of giving the item. Mainly in the United States it can also meant to brush one’s hair in order to give it more volume. To tease out something is an idiom, usually used with an object, …
Proverbial is an adjective that can either mean that it has to do with a proverb, or that something is common knowledge or known about by many people. It is mostly used to modify a word or phrase within a well-known proverb or idiom. The adverb form is proverbially. A proverb is a common …