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by Liz Walter

Today’s post is the first of a pair looking at some of the very many phrases that contain the word ‘end’. The noun end has two main meanings. The first is the part of something that is furthest away from the centre. Today’s post looks at phrases where ‘end’ relates to this meaning.

If you are at the end of your tether (UK)/ rope (US), you are no longer able to deal with a difficult situation because you have no patience or energy left. On the other hand, if there is light at the end of the tunnel, you see signs that a difficult and long-lasting situation may soon end or improve:

His customers had been complaining all day and he was at the end of his tether.

Business has been tough, but there’s light at the end of the tunnel now.

If someone goes off the deep end, they become very angry, often in a way that lacks self-control. However, if you jump in at the deep end, or someone throws you in at the deep end, you start doing something difficult without any help or preparation:

When she saw the broken glass, she went off the deep end.

When my dad died, I had to jump in at the deep end and take over the business.

Especially in British English, if you describe something as the thin end of the wedge, you mean that it is likely to lead to something more harmful or extreme. Also in British English, if you get the wrong end of the stick, you misunderstand a situation:

These traffic restrictions are the thin end of the wedge: they’ll be banning us from driving at all soon!

You’ve got the wrong end of the stick – she’s my boss, not my sister!

Loose ends are things that still need to be done or explained. We sometimes talk about tying up loose ends, meaning dealing with or explaining those things. If you are at a loose end (UK)/at loose ends (US), you have nothing to do:

I still have a few loose ends to tie up at work.

I was at a loose end, so I went out for a walk.

If something makes your hair stand on end, it frightens you very much, and if someone burns the candle at both ends, they get up early and go to bed late because they are trying to do a lot of things and may become very tired:

His stories about army life made my hair stand on end.

She needs a break – she’s been burning the candle at both ends for months.

These are just some of the phrases that use this meaning of ‘end’, and I hope you find them useful. Do look out for my next post, which will look at phrases where ‘end’ relates to the second main meaning: the final part of something such as an activity or period of time.