Tag: learn the hard way
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Until you are blue in the face
Idiom: Until you are blue in the face You can talk to some people about the ongoing climate change disaster until you are blue in the face, and they will never accept what you are saying as truth. Climate change is not a problem we can afford to ignore anymore. It’s not just a future…
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Put your foot in it
Idiom: Put your foot in it One of the first posts I ever wrote on my blog was we are all English students. Today’s phrase is an excellent example of the truth of that. For me, growing up as a white Canadian of Irish ancestry in Newfoundland, Canada, putting your foot in it means accidentally…
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People who live in glass houses
Proverb: People who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones Admit it! You enjoy criticizing others when they make a mistake as much as I do. We both need to remember that people who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones. I know that sounds strange because living in a glass house would make it…
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You can lead a horse to water
Saying: You can lead a horse to water, but you cannot make him drink Humans have the gift of free will. We can and will do what we want, no matter how much someone else wants us to do something else. That’s where today’s common saying comes in. Horses have been beasts of burden for…
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Sink in
Word of the Day: Sink in For some people, it takes longer than usual for things to sink in. Some guys have to receive multiple speeding tickets, take remedial driver’s education courses and pay a much higher cost for insurance than they should before they learn to slow down. Then again, some guys never learn. The…
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Tread lightly
WotD: Tread lightly While some people have acquired the delicate art and ability to tread lightly, others value audacity and boldness. They believe in saying what’s on their mind no matter the consequences or who will be hurt by their thoughts and opinions. To tread lightly means to act carefully and behave so as not to upset or…
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Fall on deaf ears
Idiom: Fall on deaf ears Have you ever suggested someone only to have it fall on deaf ears? You can get a lot of satisfaction from a situation like this when you say I told you so in the end. Of course, if you’re reading my blog, you are not a smug or evil person. Therefore, you would…
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Baptism by fire
Idiom: Baptism by fire It’s nice to ease into something new, but sometimes, we must undergo baptism by fire. Baptism is often used in a religious sense to mean being initiated into a certain belief and becoming a follower of that religion. It’s not, however, the only meaning. Most English words differ depending on the context of…
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Watering hole
WotD: Watering hole In natural environments worldwide, you’ll find animals down at the local watering hole for a drink. The watering hole can be quite a dangerous place. The carnivores like to hang out there. They know that the herbivores have to come down for a drink sometime, and they’ll be vulnerable. On Friday and Saturday nights all around…
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School of hard knocks
Idiom: School of hard knocks Most of us do not want to go to school when we’re young. Many of us do not want to return to school once we have graduated. None of us ever want to go to the school of hard knocks. No matter how challenging formal education is, it is never…
