Commenting on developments in the English language
Author: Kate Woodford
I'm a freelance lexicographer and writer, living in Cambridge, UK. I worked for many years on Cambridge University Press’s range of ELT dictionaries and now work with Liz Walter on dictionary and non-dictionary titles. My other interests include fashion, cooking, child-rearing, BBC Radio 4 and the quirks and peculiarities of the English language. You can follow me on Twitter @Katewoodford2
The dog is sometimes referred to in English as man’s best friend, reflecting our close relationship with this remarkable animal. In the past, we used dogs to protect ourselves against predators. Nowadays, they perform all manner of roles for us, including herding farm animals, assisting in police work, and helping people with disabilities. And of course, many of us keep dogs as companions. It’s no surprise, then, that the word ‘dog’ features in a great many English idioms, (though it seems rather unfair that so many of these phrases have negative meanings!) This post and my next look at some of the most frequent and useful dog idioms. Continue reading “There’s life in the old dog yet! (Dog idioms, part 1)”→
My posts have had an animal theme of late, and this one is no exception. A piece that I recently posted on bird-related vocabulary covered words for different parts of a bird. This one features vocabulary for parts of other animals, focusing on words that we don’t usually use for parts of human bodies. Continue reading “Paws and claws (Words for parts of animals)”→
Do you know the new-ish idiom in the title of this post? For anyone who hasn’t heard this phrase (which is suddenly everywhere), if you spill the tea, you talk about someone else’s private life, sometimes in a way that is unkind. It’s basically another way of saying ‘gossip’. This post, as you might have guessed, looks at the language of gossip and as usual, includes both single words and phrases. Continue reading “Come on, spill the tea! (Words for ‘gossip’)”→
I recently heard a journalist reflecting on the associations that we have with these opposing words. ‘Up,’ he said, ‘is good’ and ‘down is bad’. While this isn’t always the case, it’s certainly true that the words ‘high’ and ‘up’ often convey positive things, both on their own and in phrases, while ‘low’ and ‘down’ usually suggest the opposite. This post looks at this interesting area of the language.
Let’s start with ‘up’. We find ‘up’ in two nice phrases related to improvement. If a situation is now improving after a difficult or unsuccessful period, we might use the phrasal verb look up, especially by saying ‘things are looking up’. In UK English, we also convey this by saying that something is on the up (or more emphatically, on the up and up):
After a tricky couple of years, I’m pleased to say things are looking up.
Her political career by this time was on the up.
Business is on the up and up.
The adjective down, meanwhile, (or the more emphatic, informal idiom down in the dumps) can be used to mean ‘sad and without hope’ and something that gets you down makes you feel sad and without hope:
You seem a bit down. Is everything all right?
Sometimes, when I’m feeling a bit down in the dumps, I just need to go for a walk.
Having so little money was really starting to get me down.
The adjective ‘up’ meaning ‘happy’ is rather less common than the use of ‘down’ for unhappy, but is used in the phrase up and down, meaning ‘having moods that often change, sometimes happy and sometimes sad’:
I’m a bit up and down since he left, to be honest.
We also say that someone or something experiences ups and downs, meaning both good times and bad times. This phrase can be used of many situations but is especially common when talking about long relationships or careers:
Like every married couple, we’ve had our ups and downs.
‘High’ certainly has positive associations. It means ‘very good’ in phrases such as ‘high quality’ and ‘high standards/principles’. ‘High’ also means ‘being important and having power’ in combinations such as ‘high rank’ and ‘high office’. As you might expect, the opposite in all of these word combinations is ‘low’:
We are lucky in having access to high quality healthcare.
They have a very low standard of living.
He rose to the highest rank in the military.
Like the adjective ‘down’, low can be used to mean ‘sad and without hope’:
She seemed a little low, so I invited her round for a cup of coffee.
Finally, we talk about highs and lows in much the same way that we say ups and downs, meaning both good times and bad times:
Anyone familiar with the emotional highs and lows of new parenthood will love this book.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this post and that the week ahead contains more highs than lows and more ups than downs!
In today’s post, I’m looking at a selection of the phrases that we use for talking about the past. As you’ll see, some of these phrases express nostalgia, that mixture of pleasure and sadness that we all feel about some things in our past.
As I was writing last month’s post on ‘horse’ idioms, it occurred to me that there are a number of interesting English idioms that relate to horses while not containing the word ‘horse’ itself. I thought I’d share the most frequent of these with you in another horse-themed post. Continue reading “Champing at the bit (Horse-related idioms)”→
Idioms featuring the word ‘horse’ or ‘horses’ are common in English, and this is no great surprise. Humans have always had a close relationship with this beautiful animal. For centuries, horses were our main means of transport. We also used them in farming, war, and industry. More recently, of course, we’ve ridden horses, both for leisure and in the sport of horse racing. Today, I’m looking at some of the most frequent and useful horse idioms. Continue reading “Wild horses and gift horses (Idioms with the word ‘horse’)”→
If, like me, you spent your spare time last month watching the Winter Olympics, you’ll know how exciting it was. I enjoyed everything about it. When I wasn’t watching the events or admiring the fabulous scenery, I was looking at the spectators as they cheered for (=encouraged by shouting at) their country’s sportsmen and women. This post looks at the language we use to describe the behaviour of people who have come together to watch a sports event or an occasion such as a play or concert. Continue reading “Applauding or heckling? (What audiences do)”→
