Bard's own work, but he wasn't averse to stealing a good line occasionally and a few of these were 'popularised by' rather than 'coined by' Shakespeare. A countenance more in sorrow than in anger

A Daniel come to judgement A dish fit for the gods A fool's paradiseMeaningA state of happiness based on false hope.OriginAn early phrase, first recorded in the Paston Letters, 1462:"I wold not be in a folis paradyce."Shakespeare later used it in Romeo and Juliet, 1592.Nurse:Now, afore God, I am so vexed, that every part aboutme quivers. Scurvy knave! Pray you, sir, a word:and as I told you, my young lady bade me inquire youout; what she bade me say, I will keep to myself:but first let me tell ye, if ye should lead her intoa fool's paradise, as they say, it were a very grosskind of behavior, as they say: for the gentlewomanis young; and, therefore, if you should deal doublewith her, truly it were an ill thing to be offeredto any gentlewoman, and very weak dealing.

A foregone conclusionA horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horseA ministering angel shall my sister beA plague on both your housesA rose by any other name would smell as sweetA sea changeA sorry sightMeaningA regrettable and unwelcome aspect or feature. Now also used to mean something or someone of untidy appearance. OriginFrom Shakespeare's Macbeth, 1605:MACBETH:Hark! Who lies i' the second chamber?

LADY MACBETH:Donalbain.

MACBETH:This is a sorry sight.[Looking on his hands]

LADY MACBETH:A foolish thought, to say a sorry sight.

Age cannot wither her, nor custom stale her infinite varietyAlas, poor Yorick! I knew him, HoratioAll corners of the worldAll one to meAll that glitters is not gold / All that glisters is not gold MeaningA showy article may not necessarily be valuable.OriginThe original form of this phrase was 'all that glisters is not gold'. The 'glitters' version of the phrase long ago superseded the original and is now almost universally used. Shakespeare is the best-known writer to have expressed this idea. The original Shakespeare editions of The Merchant of Venice, 1596, have the line as 'all that glisters is not gold'. 'Glister' is usually replaced by 'glitter' in renditions of the play: MOROCCO:O hell! what have we here?A carrion Death, within whose empty eyeThere is a written scroll! I'll read the writing.All that glitters is not gold;Often have you heard that told:Many a man his life hath soldBut my outside to behold:Gilded tombs do worms enfold.Had you been as wise as bold,Young in limbs, in judgment old,Your answer had not been inscroll'd:Fare you well; your suit is cold. The Bard was by no means the first to suggest that 'all that glitters/glisters is not gold'. The 12th century French theologian Alain de Lille wrote "Do not hold everything gold that shines like gold". In 1553, we have Thomas Becon, in The relikes of Rome:"All is not golde that glistereth."George Turberville, in Tragical tales, (and other poems), 1587, wrote that "All is not gold that glistringly appeere."The 'glitters' version of this phrase is so long established as to be perfectly acceptable - especially as 'glisters' and 'glitters' mean the same thing and are essentially synonymous. Only the most pedantic insist that 'all that glisters is not gold' is correct and that 'all that glitters is not gold', being a misquotation, however cobweb-laden, , should be shunned. John Dryden was quite happy to use 'glitters' as long ago as 1687, in his poem, The Hind and the Panther:For you may palm upon us new for old:All, as they say, that glitters, is not gold.

All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely playersAll's well that ends wellMeaningA risky enterprise is justified so long as it turns out well in the end.OriginThis is, of course, best known from the Shakespeare play, but it was a proverb before it was a play title. John Heywood included it in A dialogue conteinyng the nomber in effect of all the prouerbes in the Englishe tongue, 1546:Lovers live by love, ye as larkes live by leekesSaied this Ales, muche more then halfe in mockage.Tushe (quoth mine aunte) these lovers in dotageThinke the ground beare them not, but wed of corageThey must in all haste, though a leafe of borageMight by all the substance that they can fell.Well aunt (quoth Ales) all is well that endes well.Shakespeare was well acquainted with Heywood's work and wrote All's Well That Ends Well in 1601. It is not only as the title of the play, but line appears in the text too.HELENA:Yet, I pray you:But with the word the time will bring on summer,When briers shall have leaves as well as thorns,And be as sweet as sharp. We must away;Our wagon is prepared, and time revives us:All's well that ends well; still the fine's the crown;Whate'er the course, the end is the renown.

An ill-favoured thing sir, but mine ownAnd shining morning face, creeping like a snail unwillingly to schoolAnd thereby hangs a taleAs cold as any stoneMeaningVery cold.OriginFrom Shakespeare's Henry V, 1598:Hostess:Nay, sure, he's not in hell: he's in Arthur'sbosom, if ever man went to Arthur's bosom. A' madea finer end and went away an it had been anychristom child; a' parted even just between twelveand one, even at the turning o' the tide: for afterI saw him fumble with the sheets and play withflowers and smile upon his fingers' ends, I knewthere was but one way; for his nose was as sharp asa pen, and a' babbled of green fields. 'How now,sir John!' quoth I 'what, man! be o' goodcheer.' So a' cried out 'God, God, God!' three orfour times. Now I, to comfort him, bid him a'should not think of God; I hoped there was no needto trouble himself with any such thoughts yet. Soa' bade me lay more clothes on his feet: I put myhand into the bed and felt them, and they were ascold as any stone; then I felt to his knees, andthey were as cold as any stone, and so upward andupward, and all was as cold as any stone.Shakespeare used various 'as cold as' similes, including 'as cold as a snowball' and 'as cold as if I had swallowed snowballs'.

As dead as a doornailMeaningDead - devoid of life (when applied to people, plants or animals). Finished with - unusable (when applied to inanimate objects). OriginThis is old - at least 14th century. There's a reference to it in print in 1350:"For but ich haue bote of mi bale I am ded as dorenail."Shakespeare used it in King Henry VI, Part 2, 1592:CADE: Brave thee! ay, by the best blood that ever wasbroached, and beard thee too. Look on me well: Ihave eat no meat these five days; yet, come thou andthy five men, and if I do not leave you all as deadas a doornail, I pray God I may never eat grass more.As 'X' as 'Y' similes refer to some property and then give an example of something well-known as exhibiting that property, e.g. 'as white as snow'. Why door-nails are cited as a particular example of deadness isn't clear. Door-nails are the large-headed studs that were used in earlier times for strength and more recently as decoration. The practice was to hammer the nail through and then bend over the protruding end to secure it. This process, similar to riveting, was called clenching. This may be the source of the 'deadness', as such a nail would be unusable afterwards.

As good luck would have itAs merry as the day is longAs pure as the driven snowMeaningEntirely pure.Origin'Driven snow' is snow that has blown into drifts and is untrodded and clean. Examples of the precise text 'as pure as [the] driven snow' aren't found in print until around the start of the 19th century; nevetheless, we have to thank Shakespeare for this popular simile. The complete phrase 'as pure as the driven snow' doesn't appear in Shakespeare's writing, but it almost does, and he used snow as a symbol for purity and whiteness in several plays. In The Winter's Tale, 1611:Autolycus: Lawn as white as driven snow. In Macbeth, 1605:Malcolm: Black Macbeth will seem as pure as snow.Of course, the tradition of brides wearing white in many cultures stems from the association between the colour and purity. This was referred to as early as the 1400s, as in John Lydgate's poetry for example, circa 1435:Alle cladde in white, in tokne off clennesse, Lyche pure virgynes. An alternative derivation of this simile has been proposed, which originates from an altogether different source. Mediaeval tanners used animal faeces in the leather tanning process - specifically dogs' droppings, to which they gave the incongruous name 'pure'. Some have speculated that pure referred to the white form of the said stools that used to be more commonly seen and that 'as pure as the driven snow' comes from that association. It doesn't; the 'pure' name came from the purification of the raw leather caused by the enzymes present in the excrement and has nothing to do the 'as pure as driven snow'.

At one fell swoopBag and baggageMeaningAll of one's possessions.OriginThe phrase is of military origin. Bag and baggage referred to the entire property of an army and that of the soldiers in it. To 'retire bag and baggage' meant to beat an honourable retreat, surrendering nothing. These days, to 'leave bag and baggage' means just to clear out of a property, leaving nothing behind.The phrase is ancient enough that the earliest citation isn't in contemporary English. Rymer's Foedera, 1422, has:"Cum armaturis bonis bogeis, baggagiis.The earliest reference in English that most would understand is in John Berners', 'The firste volum of John Froissart', 1525:"We haue with vs all our bagges and baggages that we haue wonne by armes."Shakespeare later used it in As You Like It, 1600:"Let vs make an honorable retreit, though not with bagge and baggage, yet with scrip and scrippage."

Beast with two backsMeaningPartners engaged in sexual intercourse.OriginThis modern-sounding phrase is in fact at least as early as Shakespeare. He used it in Othello, 1604:Iago:"I am one, sir, that comes to tell you your daughter and the Moor are now making the beast with two backs."Shakespeare may have been the first to use it in English, although a version of it appears in Rabelais' Gargantua and Pantagruel, circa 1532. This was translated into English by Thomas Urquhart and published posthumously around 1693:"In the vigour of his age he married Gargamelle, daughter to the King of the Parpaillons, a jolly pug, and well-mouthed wench. These two did oftentimes do the two-backed beast together, joyfully rubbing and frotting their bacon 'gainst one another."

Beware the ides of MarchBlow, winds, and crack your cheeksBrevity is the soul of wit MeaningThere's no briefer way of expressing this thought than Shakespeare's; making further explanation redundant.OriginFrom Shakespeare's Hamlet, 1602:LORD POLONIUS This business is well ended.My liege, and madam, to expostulateWhat majesty should be, what duty is,Why day is day, night night, and time is time,Were nothing but to waste night, day and time.Therefore, since brevity is the soul of wit,And tediousness the limbs and outward flourishes,I will be brief: your noble son is mad:Mad call I it; for, to define true madness,What is't but to be nothing else but mad?But let that go.

But screw your courage to the sticking-placeBut, for my own part, it was Greek to meCome the three corners of the world in armsCome what come mayComparisons are odorousCry havoc and let slip the dogs of warDash to piecesDiscretion is the better part of valourDouble, double toil and trouble, fire burn, and cauldron bubbleEaten out of house and homeEt tu, BruteEven at the turning of the tideExceedingly well readEye of newt and toe of frog, wool of bat and tongue of dogFair playMeaningProperly conducted conditions for a game, giving all participants an equal chance. Also used more widely to mean fairness and justice in contexts other than games. OriginShakespeare coined this phrase and used it in several of his plays; for example, The Tempest, 1610:MIRANDA: Yes, for a score of kingdoms you should wrangle,And I would call it, fair play. The term migrated into 'fair dinkum', which is well-known as an Australian phrase but may have travelled there from England. An unambigously Australian term meaning the same thing as 'fair play' is the more recent 'fair go'. This is first recorded in the Australian author Lewis Stone's book Jonah, 1911:"Get set!--get set!" cried the boxer, lolling in his seat with a nonchalant air; and in a twinkling a bright heap of silver lay in front of each player, the wagers made with the gaffers opposite. The spinner handed his stake of five shillings to the boxer, who cried "Fair go!"

Fancy freeMeaningWithout any ties or commitments. OriginFrom Shakespeare's A Midsummer Nights Dream, 1598: OBERON: That very time I saw, but thou couldst not, Flying between the cold moon and the earth,Cupid all arm'd: a certain aim he took At a fair vestal throned by the west, And loosed his love-shaft smartly from his bow, As it should pierce a hundred thousand hearts; But I might see young Cupid's fiery shaft Quench'd in the chaste beams of the watery moon, And the imperial votaress passed on, In maiden meditation, fancy-free.The extended term 'footloose and fancy-free' is 20th century in origin.

Fie, foh, and fum, I smell the blood of a British manFight fire with fire For ever and a dayFrailty, thy name is womanMeaningAlluding to the alleged inherent weakness of character of women. OriginFrom Shakespeare's Hamlet, 1602:Must I remember? why, she would hang on him,As if increase of appetite had grownBy what it fed on: and yet, within a month -Let me not think on't - Frailty, thy name is woman! -A little month, or ere those shoes were oldWith which she follow'd my poor father's body...Hamlet is angry that his mother, Gertrude, has married his uncle Claudius within a month of his father's death. The speech generalizes the attribution of weakness of character from one particular woman to womankind.

Foul playMeaningDishonest or treacherous behaviour; also violent conduct.Origin'Foul play' is a 16th century idiom. Nowadays we often use this phrase in regard to 'fouls' that are committed in sports, i.e. actions which are outside the particular sports' rules. This is itself quite an old usage; for example, from boxing - The Sporting Magazine, 1797:"His antagonist having struck him two foul blows."... and from billiards - The Field, January 1882:"Thus, at billiards, if a player makes a foul stroke and scores, his adversary has the option of not enforcing the penalty." These were preceded by Shakespeare's use, and probably his coinage, of the phrase in a non-sporting context, simply to mean 'unfair behaviour'; for example, Love's Labours Lost, 1588:BIRON:Honest plain words best pierce the ear of grief;And by these badges understand the king.For your fair sakes have we neglected time,Play'd foul play with our oaths. Shakespeare used this phrase in several plays, including Henry IV, The Tempest and Pericles, Prince of Tyre.

Friends, Romans, Countrymen, lend me your earsGood men and trueGood riddanceGreen eyed monsterHark, hark! the lark at heaven's gate singsHe will give the Devil his dueMeaningLiterally, pay the devil what you owe him. Used figuratively to mean 'give back what you owe', either money or favours. OriginFrom Shakespeare's Henry IV Part 1, 1597:Constable: I will cap that proverb with 'There is flattery in friendship.' Orleans: And I will take up that with 'Give the devil his due.'

Heart's content

High timeMeaningThe time that something is due (bordering on overdue) to be done. For example, "It's beginning to get dark. It's high time we got started on putting up the tent".This is distinct from the similar 'a high time', meaning 'a happy and jolly time'. For example, "the party went really well. A high time was had by all". This phrase has also been used to mean 'a heated argument', but that meaning is unused and archaic now. Origin (High time) 'High time' derives from the allusion to the warmest time of day - when the sun is highest in the sky. High noon is another way of saying it. Shakespeare used it in his Comedy of Errors, 1590:ANTIPHOLUS OF SYRACUSE:There's none but witches do inhabit here;And therefore 'tis high time that I were hence.She that doth call me husband, even my soulDoth for a wife abhor. But her fair sister,Possess'd with such a gentle sovereign grace,Of such enchanting presence and discourse,Hath almost made me traitor to myself:But, lest myself be guilty to self-wrong,I'll stop mine ears against the mermaid's song.Origin (A high time)'High times' comes from the same root as 'high days and holidays', i.e. days of religious note and festivals. High in that sense has been used in English since the middle ages, although there are few references to it in print until the 19th century, as in this from the Canadian newspaper, The British Colonist, 1858: "The Johns had a high time, drinking brandy and eating fried hog."

His beard was as white as snowMeaningPure white. What better to symbolise whiteness than snow? Not only the intesity of colour on a bright winter's day, but also the purity of untrodden snow is summoned up by the simile. Shakespeare used this association to good effect in as pure as the driven snow. OriginWe have to bring out the big guns for the origin of this one. Chaucer, Shakespeare and the Bible all contain versions of white as snow. From Shakespeare's Hamlet, 1602:... What if this cursed handWere thicker than itself with brother's blood,Is there not rain enough in the sweet heavensTo wash it white as snow? ...The King James Version of the Bible, 1611, has this in Daniel 7:9:I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire.They are slightly superseded by the little-known English author Michael Drayton, in his Idea, the shepheards garland, 1593:"Her skin as soft as Lemster wooll, As white as snow on peakish hill, Or Swanne that swims in Trent."The 'peakish hills' that he refers to there are the hills of the Derbyshire Peak District. I can see these from the window as I type and they certainly get very white when the winter snow arrives. We might imagine that 'as white as snow' was the precursor to 'snow-white'. The fairy tale was collected by the Brothers Grimm in the 19th century, but the term snow-white is much earlier and pre-dates as white as snow by several hundred years. It is recorded in Old English from circa 1000 and was used in the 14th century by Geoffrey Chaucer in The Canterbury Tales - The Second Nun's Tale:Valerian said, "Two crownes here have we,Snow-white and rose-red, that shine clear, Both snow-white and as white as snow were in common use by Shakespeare's day. So much so that a single word was coined to convey the same meaning. This was recorded by Henry Cockeram in his The English dictionarie, or an interpreter of hard English word, 1623, where he defines the word 'nixious' as meaning 'as white as snow'.

Hoist by your own petard

Hot-bloodedMeaningHaving a passionate nature, or being inclined to quick temper.OriginScore another for the Bard of Avon. Shakespeare was fond of combining simple words into expressions of poetic imagery (sorry sight, fancy free, primrose path, to list just a few) - he was a consummate poet of course. 'Hot-blooded', or a Shakespeare wrote it 'hot-bloodied', first appears in The Merry Wives of Windsor, 1600:Falstaff: The Windsor bell hath struck twelve; the minute draws on. Now, the hot-bloodied-Gods assist me!The Dutch word 'heetbloedig', meaning 'passionate; hot-tempered' is recorded from 1619 (as heetbloedigh). It may be that Shakespeare got the word from the Netherlands but, given the dates and his track record, it is more likely that the expression travelled in the other direction.

Household words How sharper than a serpent's tooth it is to have a thankless child MeaningLiteral meaning - it is especially painfull to raise an ungrateful child.OriginFrom Shakespeare's King Lear, 1605 LEAR:It may be so, my lord. Hear, nature, hear; dear goddess, hear! Suspend thy purpose, if thou didst intend To make this creature fruitful! Into her womb convey sterility! Dry up in her the organs of increase; And from her derogate body never spring A babe to honour her! If she must teem, Create her child of spleen; that it may live, And be a thwart disnatured torment to her! Let it stamp wrinkles in her brow of youth; With cadent tears fret channels in her cheeks; Turn all her mother's pains and benefits To laughter and contempt; that she may feel How sharper than a serpent's tooth it is To have a thankless child! Away, away!

I bear a charmed lifeI have not slept one winkI see you stand like greyhounds in the slipsI will wear my heart upon my sleeveIf music be the food of love, play onMeaningOrsino is asking for more music because he is frustrated in his courtship of Countess Olivia. He muses that an excess of music might cure his obsession with love, in the way that eating too much remove's one's appetite for food.Music plays an important part in Shakespeare's plays and is often used to carry the plot. It's reasonable to surmise that he did believe it the be 'the food of love'. OriginFrom Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, 1602:DUKE ORSINO:If music be the food of love, play on;Give me excess of it, that, surfeiting,The appetite may sicken, and so die.That strain again! it had a dying fall:O, it came o'er my ear like the sweet sound,That breathes upon a bank of violets,Stealing and giving odour! Enough; no more:'Tis not so sweet now as it was before.O spirit of love! how quick and fresh art thou,That, notwithstanding thy capacityReceiveth as the sea, nought enters there,Of what validity and pitch soe'er,But falls into abatement and low price,Even in a minute: so full of shapes is fancyThat it alone is high fantastical.

In a pickleMeaningIn a quandary or some other difficult position.OriginThe earliest pickles were spicy sauces made to accompany meat dishes. Later, in the 16th century, the name pickle was also given to a mixture of spiced, salted vinegar that was used as a preservative. The word comes from the Dutch or Low German pekel, with the meaning of 'something piquant'. Later still, in the 17th century, the vegetables that were preserved, for example cucumbers and gherkins, also came to be called pickles. The 'in trouble' meaning of 'in a pickle' was an allusion to being as disoriented and mixed up as the stewed vegetables that made up pickles. This was partway to being a literal allusion, as fanciful stories of the day related to hapless people who found themselves on the menu. The earliest known use of pickle in English contains such an citation. The Morte Arthure, circa 1440, relates the gory imagined ingredients of King Arthur's diet:He soupes all this sesoun with seuen knaue childre, Choppid in a chargour of chalke-whytt syluer, With pekill & powdyre of precious spycez. [He dines all season on seven rascal children, chopped, in a bowl of white silver, with pickle and precious spices] The figurative version of the phrase, meaning simply 'in a fix' or, in the almost identical 19th century phrase 'in a stew', arrives during the next century. Thomas Tusser's Five Hundreth Pointes of Good Husbandrie, 1573, contains this useful advice:Reape barlie with sickle, that lies in ill pickle. Presumably, barley that wasn't in ill pickle, i.e. the corn that was standing up straight, would be cut with the larger and more efficient scythe. There are a few references to ill pickles and this pickle etc. in print in the late 16th century, and Shakespeare was one of the first to use in a pickle, in The Tempest, 1610:ALONSO:And Trinculo is reeling ripe: where should theyFind this grand liquor that hath gilded 'em?How camest thou in this pickle?TRINCULO:I have been in such a pickle since Isaw you last that, I fear me, will never out ofmy bones: I shall not fear fly-blowing.A return to the more literal interpretation of the phrase came about in the late 1700s. The Duke of Rutland had toured Britain and wrote up his experiences in a travelogue - Journal of a Tour to the Northern Parts of Great Britain, 1796. He was present at the disinterment of the 350 year-old body of Thomas Beaufort, which he claimed to have been pickled and 'as perfect as when living': The corpse was done up in a pickle, and the face wrapped up in a sear cloth. Just nine years later the most celebrated personage ever to have been literally in a pickle - Admiral Horatio Nelson, met his end, although some pedants might argue that, being preserved in brandy, he found himself in more of a liquor than a pickle.

In my mind's eye, HoratioMeaningOne's visual memory or imagination.OriginThe concept of us having an 'eye in our mind' is ancient and dates back to at least the 14th century, when Chaucer used it in The Man of Law's Tale, circa 1390:"It were with thilke eyen of his mynde, With whiche men seen, after that they been blynde."The first actual mention of mind's eye comes in 1577 when Hubert Languet used it in a letter. This was subsequently printed in The Correspondence of Sir Philip Sidney and Hubert Languet, 1845:"What will not these golden mountains effect ... which I dare say stand before your mind's eye day and night?"The term probably became known through the work of Shakespeare. He uses it in the best-known of all plays - Hamlet, 1602, in a scene where Hamlet is recalling his father:HAMLET:Thrift, thrift, Horatio! the funeral baked meatsDid coldly furnish forth the marriage tables.Would I had met my dearest foe in heavenOr ever I had seen that day, Horatio!My father! - methinks I see my father.HORATIO: Where, my lord?HAMLET: In my mind's eye, Horatio.

In stitchesIn the twinkling of an eyeMeaningIn an instant.OriginThis is recorded by Robert Manning of Brunne, in Handlyng synne, 1303: "Yn twynkelyng of an ye"It is also used in the Bible, 1 Corinthians 15:52 (King James Version):In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.It was later used by Shakespeare in The Merchant Of Venice, 1596: "I'll take my leave of the Jew in the twinkling of an eye."

Is this a dagger which I see before me?It beggar'd all descriptionIt is meat and drink to meLay it on with a trowelLie lowMeaningKeep out of sight; bide one's time. OriginThere are many citations of variants of this little phrase dating back to the 13th century. Shakespeare used it in its present form in Much Ado About Nothing, 1599: ANTONIO: If he could right himself with quarreling,Some of us would lie low.More recently the phrase has been adapted as the name of inflatable mattresses - marketed in the UK as Li-Los.

Like the DickensLove is blindOriginThis was coined by Shakespeare and was quite a favourite line of his. It appears in several of his plays, including Two Gentlemen of Verona, Henry V and The Merchant Of Venice; for example, this piece from The Merchant Of Venice, 1596:JESSICA: Here, catch this casket; it is worth the pains. I am glad 'tis night, you do not look on me, For I am much ashamed of my exchange: But love is blind and lovers cannot see The pretty follies that themselves commit; For if they could, Cupid himself would blush To see me thus transformed to a boy. Modern-day research supports the view that the blindness of love is not just a figurative matter. A research study in 2004 by University College London found that feelings of love suppressed the activity of the areas of the brain that control critical thought.

Make your hair stand on endMen's evil manners live in brass; their virtues we write in waterOriginFrom Shakespeare's Henry VIII, 1612: GRIFFITH: Noble madam,Men's evil manners live in brass; their virtues We write in water. May it please your highness To hear me speak his good now? The line was alluded to on Keats' tombstone - Here lies one whose name was writ in water.

Milk of human kindnessMisery acquaints a man with strange bedfellowsMore fool youMore honoured in the breach than in the observanceMuch Ado about NothingMeaningA great deal of fuss over nothing of importance.OriginThis phrase is sometimes shortened just to 'much ado'. It is of course from Shakespeare's play - Much Ado About Nothing, 1599. He had used the word ado, which means business or activity, in an earlier play - Romeo and Juliet, 1592: "Weele keepe no great adoe, a Friend or two."

My salad daysNeither a borrower nor a lender beMeaningLiteral meaning.OriginFrom Shakespeare's Hamlet, 1602:LORD POLONIUS: Neither a borrower nor a lender be; For loan oft loses both itself and friend, And borrowing dulls the edge of husbandry.

Night owl MeaningA person who is active late at night. Origin'Nightowl' was originally just a synonym for 'owl' and has been used as such since at least 1581, when Bell and Foxe included it it their translated work Against Jerome Osorius. That seems rather tautological as owls are predominantly nocturnal and, in an apparent general acceptance of that view, the literal use of the word is now rather rare.The figurative use of the term, i.e. as a reference to people rather than owls, also began in the 16th century. Shakespeare used it in 1594 in the narrative poem The Rape of Lucrece:This said, his guilty hand pluck'd up the latch,And with his knee the door he opens wide.The dove sleeps fast that this night-owl will catch:Thus treason works ere traitors be espied.The Bard didn't give up on the literal usage though. It appears, in contexts which make the literal reference to a bird clear, in both Richard II, 1593:"For nightowles shreeke, where mounting larkes should sing." and in Twelfth Night, 1602:

No more cakes and ale?Now is the winter of our discontentO Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou RomeoOff with his headMeaningLiteral meaning. That is, 'chop off his head'. It is now usually used humorously as a means of mildly reproaching someone. OriginShakespeare used the phrase many times in his plays and I can find no record of any earlier usage; for example, in Henry VI Part III, 1592:QUEEN MARGARET:Off with his head, and set it on York gates;So York may overlook the town of York.Lewis Carroll became the best-known user of the phrase when he included it in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, (published 1865), The Queen of Hearts shrieks the phrase several times in the story - in fact she doesn't say a great deal else:The players all played at once without waiting for turns, quarrelling all the while, and fighting for the hedgehogs; and in a very short time the Queen was in a furious passion, and went stamping about, and shouting' Off with his head!' or 'Off with her head!' about once in a minute.

Oh, that way madness liesOnce more unto the breach, dear friends, once moreOut of the jaws of death

Pound of fleshMeaningSomething which is owed that is ruthlessly required to be paid back.OriginThis of course derives from Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice, 1596. The insistence by Shylock of the payment of Antonio's flesh is the central plot device of the play: SHYLOCK: The pound of flesh which I demand of him Is deerely bought, 'tis mine, and I will haue it. The figurative use of the phrase to refer to any lawful but nevertheless unreasonable recompense dates to the late 18th century.

Primrose pathMeaningThe pleasant route through life, of pleasure and dissipation.OriginThis phrase was coined by Shakespeare, in Hamlet, 1602. It is evidently a simple allusion to a path strewn with flowers.Ophelia: I shall the effect of this good lesson keep,As watchman to my heart. But, good my brother,Do not, as some ungracious pastors do,Show me the steep and thorny way to heaven;Whiles, like a puff'd and reckless libertine,Himself the primrose path of dalliance treads,And recks not his own rede.Ophelia is warning her brother take his own advice and not reject the difficult and arduous path of righteousness that leads to Heaven in favour of the easy path of sin. Shakespeare later used 'the primrose way', which has the same meaning, in Macbeth. This variant is hardly ever used now.

Rhyme nor reasonSalad daysSans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everythingScrew your courage to the sticking placeMeaningBe firm and resolute.OriginThis line is from Shakespeare's Macbeth, 1605: Lady Macbeth: 'We fail! But screw your courage to the sticking-place, and we'll not fail.'

Send him packingSet your teeth on edgeShall I compare thee to a summer's day?Short shriftShuffle off this mortal coilSmooth runs the water where the brook is deepSome are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon 'emSomething is rotten in the state of DenmarkStar crossed loversStiffen the sinewsStony heartedMeaningCruel and unfeeling. OriginThe phrase is first recorded in 1569, in Thomas Underdown's translation of the thiopian History of Heliodorus:" There is no man so stoany harted, but he shal be made to yeelde with our flatteringe allurmentes."Shakespeare picked it up and used it in Henry IV Part I , 1597 FALSTAFFI am accursed to rob in that thief's company: the rascal hath removed my horse, and tied him I know not where. If I travel but four foot by the squier further afoot, I shall break my wind. Well, I doubt not but to die a fair death for all this, if I 'scape hanging for killing that rogue. I have forsworn his company hourly any time this two and twenty years, and yet I am bewitched with the rogue's company. If the rascal hath not given me medicines to make me love him, I'll be hanged; it could not be else: I have drunk medicines. Poins! Hal! a plague upon you both! Bardolph! Peto! I'll starve ere I'll rob a foot further. An 'twere not as good a deed as drink, to turn true man and to leave these rogues, I am the veriest varlet that ever chewed with a tooth. Eight yards of uneven ground is threescore and ten miles afoot with me; and the stony-hearted villains know it well enough: a plague upon it when thieves cannot be true one to another!

Such stuff as dreams are made onThe course of true love never did run smoothThe crack of doomThe Devil incarnateThe game is afootThe game is upMeaningThe original meaning was 'the game is over - all is lost'. More recently it has come to be used to mean ' we have seen through your tricks - your deceit is exposed'.OriginFrom Shakespeare's Cymbeline, 1611:Euriphile, Thou wast their nurse; they took thee for their mother,And every day do honour to her grave:Myself, Belarius, that am Morgan call'd,They take for natural father. The game is up.

The quality of mercy is not strainedThe Queen's EnglishMeaningThe language of the United Kingdom.OriginShakespeare used the phrase in The Merry Wives of Windsor, 1600, but it was in common use before that. 'The King's English' is used when the United Kingdom has a king.

The slings and arrows of outrageous fortuneThe smallest worm will turn, being trodden onThere's method in my madnessThereby hangs a taleThis is the short and the long of itMeaningThe substance; the plain truth. OriginFrom Shakespeare's The Merry Wives of Windsor, 1600: MISTRESS QUICKLY: Marry, this is the short and the long of it; you have brought her into such a canaries as 'tis wonderful. The best courtier of them all, when the court lay at Windsor, could never have brought her to such a canary.

This is very midsummer madnessOriginFrom Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, 1602.

This precious stone set in the silver sea, this sceptered isleThough this be madness, yet there is method in itThus far into the bowels of the landTo be or not to be, that is the questionMeaningIs it better to live or to die?OriginTo be or not to be is probably the best-known line from all drama or literature. Certainly, if anyone is asked to quote a line of Shakespeare this is the one that first comes to mind for most people. It is, of course, from Shakespeare's play Hamlet, 1602 (Shakespeare's actual title is - The tragedie of Hamlet, prince of Denmarke):HAMLET:To be, or not to be: that is the question:Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to sufferThe slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,And by opposing end them? To die: to sleep;No more; and by a sleep to say we endThe heart-ache and the thousand natural shocksThat flesh is heir to, 'tis a consummationDevoutly to be wish'd. To die, to sleep;To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there's the rub;For in that sleep of death what dreams may comeWhen we have shuffled off this mortal coil,Must give us pause: there's the respectThat makes calamity of so long life;For who would bear the whips and scorns of time,The oppressor's wrong, the proud man's contumely,The pangs of despised love, the law's delay,The insolence of office and the spurnsThat patient merit of the unworthy takes,When he himself might his quietus makeWith a bare bodkin? who would fardels bear,To grunt and sweat under a weary life,But that the dread of something after death,The undiscover'd country from whose bournNo traveller returns, puzzles the willAnd makes us rather bear those ills we haveThan fly to others that we know not of?Thus conscience does make cowards of us all;And thus the native hue of resolutionIs sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought,And enterprises of great pith and momentWith this regard their currents turn awry,And lose the name of action.--Soft you now!The fair Ophelia! Nymph, in thy orisonsBe all my sins remember'd.What Hamlet is musing on is the comparison between the pain of life, which he sees as inevitable (the sea of troubles - the slings and arrows - the heart-ache - the thousand natural shocks) and the fear of the uncertainty of death and of possible damnation of suicide.Hamlet's dilemma is that although he is dissatisfied with life and lists its many torments, he is unsure what death may bring (the dread of something after death). He can't be sure what death has in store; it may be sleep but in perchance to dream he is speculating that it is perhaps an experience worse than life. Death is called the undiscover'd country from which no traveller returns. In saying that Hamlet is acknowledging that, not only does each living person discover death for themselves, as no one can return from it to describe it, but also that suicide os a one-way ticket. If you get the judgment call wrong, there's no way back.The whole speech is tinged with the Christian prohibition of suicide, although it isn't mentioned explicitly. The dread of something after death would have been well understood by a Tudor audience to mean the fires of Hell.The speech is a subtle and profound examining of what is more crudely expressed in the phrase out of the frying pan into the fire. - in essence 'life is bad, but death might be worse'.

To gild refined gold, to paint the lilyTo sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there's the rubToo much of a good thingTruth will outUnder the greenwood treeUneasy lies the head that wears a crownMeaningA person with great responsibilities, such as a king, is constantly worried.OriginFrom Shakespeare's Henry IV. Part II, 1597.KING HENRY IV:How many thousand of my poorest subjectsAre at this hour asleep! O sleep, O gentle sleep,Nature's soft nurse, how have I frighted thee,That thou no more wilt weigh my eyelids downAnd steep my senses in forgetfulness?Why rather, sleep, liest thou in smoky cribs,Upon uneasy pallets stretching theeAnd hush'd with buzzing night-flies to thy slumber,Than in the perfumed chambers of the great,Under the canopies of costly state,And lull'd with sound of sweetest melody?O thou dull god, why liest thou with the vileIn loathsome beds, and leavest the kingly couchA watch-case or a common 'larum-bell?Wilt thou upon the high and giddy mastSeal up the ship-boy's eyes, and rock his brainsIn cradle of the rude imperious surgeAnd in the visitation of the winds,Who take the ruffian billows by the top,Curling their monstrous heads and hanging themWith deafening clamour in the slippery clouds,That, with the hurly, death itself awakes?Canst thou, O partial sleep, give thy reposeTo the wet sea-boy in an hour so rude,And in the calmest and most stillest night,With all appliances and means to boot,Deny it to a king? Then happy low, lie down!Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown.Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown.

Up in arms MeaningRoused; incensed.OriginThe original usage of 'up in arms' was entirely literal. To be 'in arms' or 'at arms' was to be equipped with weapons and armour. It isn't clear why 'arms' was chosen as the name for weaponry. It may be as simple as a sword or club being seen as an extention of the arm. 'Armour' is just a form of defensive weaponry that a soldier was clad in. Like 'vesture', meaning 'that which a person is dressed in', i.e. clothes, the 'ure' part may be translated as something like 'collection of'. The spelling would be more properly 'armure', which is how it was spelled in early texts; for example: Robert of Gloucester's Metrical Chronicle, 1297:He & hys armure...The style and decoration of armour was how knights were distinguished from one another in battle. This was important, as knights were more often captured and later ransomed rather than killed. Heraldic arms were the formalised development of that identity. A family's 'Coat of Arms' was originally a actual decorated coat, worn by a knight when in battle. In the romantic poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, circa 1340, Gawain is described as being dressed "With ryche cote armure".There are many phrases in English that refer to 'arms' - 'man at arms', 'firearms', 'to arms!', bear arms', and 'up in arms' adds to that list. It is merely the more active form of 'in arms', in that it indicates that a soldier wasn't just equipped for a fight, he was on his feet and ready for it. The term 'up in arms' began to appear in print in the 1590s. Who coined it isn't entirely clear, although it does sound Shakespearian and the Bard did use it in more than one play of the early 1590s - Henry VI Part II:The princely Warwick, and the Nevils all,Whose dreadful swords were never drawn in vain,As hating thee, are rising up in arms:And now the house of York, thrust from the crownBy shameful murder of a guiltless kingAnd lofty proud encroaching tyranny,Burns with revenging fire; whose hopeful coloursAdvance our half-faced sun, striving to shine,Under the which is writ 'Invitis nubibus.'The commons here in Kent are up in arms:and Richard III:March on, march on, since we are up in arms;Another contender is Sir Thomas More, who used the term in a work dated circa 1590:A number poore artificers are up In arms.The date of writing of More's piece and of both of Shakespeare's plays in debatable, so the author can't be definitively decided.

Vanish into thin airMeaningDisappear without trace.OriginShakespeare came close to this phrase in Othello, 1604:Clown: Then put up your pipes in your bag, for I'll away. Go; vanish into air; away!and closer still in The Tempest, 1610:Prospero:These our actors, as I foretold you, were all spirits and are melted into air, into thin airIt seems clear that Shakespeare coined the terms thin air (which has been widely used since the 17th century by a diverse collection of authors, including John Milton (1671), William Blake (1800) and Ed McBain (1977) and vanish into air, used by lesser-known author; James Hogg, in his work Mountain Bard, 1807. Shakespeare didn't put the two together to make vanish into thin air though. The first use I can find of that phrase, which is clearly an adaptation of Shakespeare's terms, is in The Edinburgh Advertiser, April 1822, in a piece about the imminent conflict between Russia and Turkey: The latest communications make these visions "vanish into thin air."

We few, we happy few, we band of brothersWe have seen better daysWear your heart on your sleeve What a piece of work is manWhat's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweetWhen sorrows come, they come not single spies, but in battalionsOriginFrom Shakespeare's Hamlet, 1602:Claudius:O, this is the poison of deep grief; it springsAll from her father's death. O Gertrude, Gertrude,When sorrows come, they come not single spiesBut in battalions. First, her father slain:Next, your son gone; and he most violent authorOf his own just remove: the people muddied,Thick and unwholesome in their thoughts and whispers,For good Polonius' death; and we have done but greenly,In hugger-mugger to inter him: poor OpheliaDivided from herself and her fair judgment,Without the which we are pictures, or mere beasts:Last, and as much containing as all these,Her brother is in secret come from France;Feeds on his wonder, keeps himself in clouds,And wants not buzzers to infect his earWith pestilent speeches of his father's death;Wherein necessity, of matter beggar'd,Will nothing stick our person to arraignIn ear and ear. O my dear Gertrude, this,Like to a murdering-piece, in many placesGives me superfluous death.

Where the bee sucks, there suck IWhile you live, tell truth and shame the Devil!Who wooed in haste, and means to wed at leisureWild goose chaseMeaningA hopeless quest.OriginThis phrase is old and appears to be one of the many phrases introduced to the language by Shakespeare. The first recorded citation is from Romeo and Juliet, 1592:Romeo: Switch and spurs, switch and spurs; or I'll cry a match.Mercutio: Nay, if thy wits run the wild-goose chase, I have done, for thou hast more of the wild-goose in one of thy wits than, I am sure, I have in my whole five.Our current use of the phrase alludes to an undertaking which will probably prove to be fruitless - and it's hard to imagine anything more doomed to failure than an attempt to catch a wild goose by chasing after it. Our understanding of the term differs from that in use in Shakespeare's day. The earlier meaning related not to hunting but to horse racing. A 'wild goose chase' was a chase in which horses followed a lead horse at a set distance, mimicking wild geese flying in formation. The equine connection was referred to in another early citation, just ten years after Shakespeare - Nicholas Breton's The Mother's Blessing, 1602:"Esteeme a horse, according to his pace, But loose no wagers on a wilde goose chase."That meaning had been lost by the 19th century. In Grose's Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue, 1811, he defines the term much the way we do today: "A tedious uncertain pursuit, like the following a flock of wild geese, who are remarkably shy."The 1978 film 'The Wild Geese' alluded to the phrase in its title. This refers back to Irish mercenaries who 'flew' from Ireland to serve in various European armies in the 16th to 18th centuries. The plot of the film involved a group of mercenaries embarking on a near-impossible mission. Of course, the near-impossible is no problem for action heroes and they caught their prey.

Woe is meMeaningI am distressed; sad; grieved. OriginThis occurs in the Bible, Job 10:15 in the form 'woe unto me'.Job is one of the oldest books in the Old Testament, early versions of which date from about 1200BC, making the phrase 3,200 years old in its original language. The first occurrence of it in English would have been Wycliffe's Bible translation in 1382.Job 10:15: If I be wicked, woe unto me; and if I be righteous, yet will I not lift up my head. I am full of confusion; therefore see thou mine affliction;Shakespeare also used it in Hamlet, 1602. The Bible has several instances of the 'woe is me' version of the phrase:Psalms 120:5: Woe is me, that I sojourn in Mesech, that I dwell in the tents of Kedar!Isaiah 6:5: Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.Jeremiah 4:31: For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travail, and the anguish as of her that bringeth forth her first child, the voice of the daughter of Zion, that bewaileth herself, that spreadeth her hands, saying, Woe is me now! for my soul is wearied because of murderers. Phrases and sayings that have a nautical originMany phrases that have been adopted into everyday use originate from seafaring - in particular from the days of sail. Virtually all of these are metaphorical and the original nautical meanings are now forgotten. That association of travel and metaphor is significant in that the word metaphor derives from ancient Greek for 'to carry' or 'to travel'. The influence of other languages and other cultures is evident in many of the long list of English phrases that have nautical origins. It is an undoubted fact that seafaring is also the source of more false etymology than any other sphere. This can be attributed to the attractiveness of the romantic image of horny-handed sailors singing shanties and living a hearty and rough life at sea. After all, it sounds plausible that 'cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey' comes from brass ship's fittings and that POSH means 'Port out, starboard home', but neither of these is correct. CANOE, the Committee to Ascribe a Naval Origin to Everything, doesn't really exist, but the number of these folk myths makes it seem as though they do.. It is lucky for us, in our endeavours to distinguish truth from falsehood, that activities at sea have been scrupulously recorded over the centuries, in insurance records, newspaper accounts and, not least, in ships' log books. The term log-book has an interesting derivation in itself. An early form of measuring a ship's progress was by casting overboard a wooden board (the log) with a string attached. The rate at which the string was payed out as the ship moved away from the stationary log was measured by counting how long it took between knots in the string. These measurements were later transcribed into a book. Hence we get the term 'log-book' and also the name 'knot' as the unit of speed at sea. A list of phrases that derive from seafaringMany phrases are falsely claimed to be of a nautical origin. The list below are those with documentary evidence to support the claim of an association with the sea:A shot across the bowsAll at seaMeaningIn a state of confusion and disorder. OriginThis is an extension of the nautical phrase 'at sea'. It dates from the days of sail when accurate navigational aids weren't available. Any ship that was out of sight of land was in an uncertain position and in danger of becoming lost. 'At sea' has been in use since the 18th century, as here, in Sir William Blackstone's Commentaries on the laws of England, 1768:"If a court of equity were still at sea, and floated upon the occasional opinion which the judge who happened to preside might entertain of conscience in every particular case."The earliest reference to 'all at sea' in print that I can find is from Travel and adventure in south-east Africa, 1893, by Frederick C. Selous:"I was rather surprised to find that he seemed all at sea, and had no one ready to go with me."

Anchors aweigh Batten down the hatchesBetween the Devil and the deep blue seaMeaningIn difficulty, faced with two dangerous alternatives.OriginThe phrase was originally 'Between the Devil and the deep sea'. The sea turned blue much later and the phrase became well-known via the title of a popular song. Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea was written by Ted Koehler and Harold Arlen, and recorded by Cab Calloway in 1931, although that version of the phrase may have been circulating earlier. What's the source of the original phrase? Well, we would really like to know. CANOE, the Committee to Ascribe a Nautical Origin to Everything, would have us believe that it has a nautical origin (well, they would wouldn't they?). In her book, 'When a loose cannon flogs a dead horse there's the devil to pay', Olivia Isil unambiguously attributes a nautical origin to the phrase. Set against that there's the explanation that this is from the usual meaning of Devil, i.e. the supreme spirit of evil. If it's that Devil we are talking about then the origin is straightforward - the Devil is bad and falling in the deep sea is bad, so when caught between the two we would be in difficulty.People who like that explanation can point back to Greek mythology for an earlier version of the idea of being caught between evil and the sea. Homer's Odyssey refers to Odysseus being caught between Scylla (a six-headed monster) and Charybdis (a whirlpool).To explain the nautical theory we'll need to define some sailing terminology. That's always dangerous ground for landlubbers and usually results in some horny-handed sailing type writing in to say that we don't know our scuppers from our square-knots, but here goes anyway... "Devil - the seam which margins the waterways on a ship's hull".This definition is from Henry Smyth's Sailor's Word-Book: An Alphabetical Digest of Nautical Terms, 1867. That definition wasn't entirely clear to me, but a correspondent who describes himself as 'an engineer and vessel constructor', clarified it this way:"Devil - the seam between the deck planking and the topmost plank of the ship's side". This seam would need to be watertight and would need filling (caulking) from time to time. On a ship at sea this would presumably require a sailor to be suspended over the side, or at least stand at the very edge of the deck. Either way it is easy to see how that might be described as 'between the devil and the deep sea'. Incidentally, another term for filling a seam is paying. Those that like nautical origins also give this as the source for the Devil to pay, although the evidence is against them on that one. The first recorded citation of 'the Devil and the deep sea' in print is in Robert Monro's His expedition with the worthy Scots regiment called Mac-keyes, 1637:"I, with my partie, did lie on our poste, as betwixt the devill and the deep sea."The seafaring theory is plausible at least, but does it really hold water? Two factors count against it. Firstly, it doesn't really explain the meaning. The devil on a ship isn't inherently dangerous. Secondly, does the phrase pre-date the nautical term 'devil'? We've no evidence to show the word in that context until over two hundred years after the first sighting of the phrase. If the phrase really does pre-date the word then the nautical derivation, by that route at least, is clearly incorrect. The onus falls on the nautical believers to provide the evidence. CANOE don't quite convince with this one. On balance it seems wise to stay on dry land and stick with the Devil we know.

Broad in the beamBy and large MeaningOn the whole; generally speaking; all things considered.OriginMany phrases are wrongly ascribed a nautical origin just because they sound like mariner's lingo. This one really is and, like many such nautical phrases, it originated in the days of sail. To get a sense of the original meaning of the phrase we need to understand the nautical terms 'by' and 'large'. 'Large' is easier, so we'll start there. When the wind is blowing from some compass point behind a ship's direction of travel then it is said to be 'large'. Sailors have used this term for centuries; for example, this piece from Richard Hakluyt's The Principall Navigations, Voiages, and Discoveries of the English Nation, 1591:"When the wind came larger we waied anchor and set saile."When the wind is in that favourable large direction the largest square sails may be set and the ship is able to travel in whatever downwind direction the captain sees fit.'By' is a rather more difficult concept for landlubbers like me. In simplified terms it means 'in the general direction of'. Sailors would say to be 'by the wind' is to face into the wind or within six compass points of it. The earliest known reference to 'by and large' in print is from Samuel Sturmy, in The Mariners Magazine, 1669:"Thus you see the ship handled in fair weather and foul, by and learge."To sail 'by and large' required the ability to sail not only as earlier square-rigged ships could do, i.e. downwind, but also against the wind. At first sight, and for many non-sailors I'm sure second and third sight too, it seems impossible that a sailing ship could progress against the wind. They can though. The physics behind this is better left to others. Suffice it to say that it involves the use of triangular sails which act like aeroplane wings and provide a force which drags the ship sideways against the wind. By the use of this and by careful angling of the rudder the ship can make progress towards the wind. The 19th century windjammers like Cutty Sark were able to maintain progress 'by and large' even in bad wind conditions by the use of many such aerodynamic triangular sails and large crews of able seamen.

Chock-a-blockChock-a-blockMeaningCrammed so tightly together as to prevent movement. OriginThis term is old and has a nautical origin. Chock:The derivation of chock isn't entirely clear but the word is thought to have come from chock-full (or choke-full), meaning 'full to choking'. This dates back to the 15th century and is cited in Morte Arthur, circa 1400:"Charottez chokkefulle charegyde with golde."This meaning was later used to give a name to the wedges of wood which are used to secure moving objects - chocks. These chocks were used on ships and are referred to in William Falconer's, An universal dictionary of the marine, 1769:"Chock, a sort of wedge used to confine a cask or other weighty body..when the ship is in motion."Block:This is where seafaring enters into the story. A block and tackle is a pulley system used on sailing ships to hoist the sails. It might be expected that 'chock-a-block' is the result of wedging a block fixed with a chock. That doesn't appear to be the case. The phrase describes what occurs the system is raised to its fullest extent - when there is no more rope free and the blocks jam tightly together. Frederick Chamier's novel The Life of a Sailor, 1832 includes this figurative use of the term: "Here my lads is another messmate..." - What, another!" roared a ruddy-faced midshipman of about eighteen. "He must stow himself away, for we are chock-a-block here." We might expect to find a reference to it in relation to ship's equipment before any figurative use, but the earliest I've found is in Richard H. Dana Jr's Two years before the mast, 1840: "Hauling the reef-tackles chock-a-block."Chock-a-block also spawned an abbreviated version in the 20th century - chocka (or chocker). This is WWII UK military slang meaning 'fed-up or disgruntled' - as defined in Hunt and Pringles' Service Slang, 1943:"Chocker, this is the sailor's way of saying he is fed up or browned off."

Close quartersCopper-bottomedCut and runEdging forward Fathom out Full to the gunwalesGet underway Give a wide berthGo by the boardHand over fistHard and fastMeaningRigidly adhered to - without doubt or debate.OriginThis is a nautical term. A ship that was hard and fast was simply one that was firmly beached on land. The term must have been well-known by the early 19th century as it was use in a figurative sense then; for example, The [London] Times, January 1820:"She was laid before the fire, at about a yard distance, and was hard and fast asleep."The Sailor's Word-Book, William Henry Smyth's 1867 nautical dictionary, defines the term:"Hard and fast. Said of a ship on shore."

High and dryIn the offingKnow the ropesLoose cannon On your beam endsPanic stations Plain sailingPush the boat out Shipshape and Bristol fashionShake a legShiver my timbers Slush fundTaken abackMeaningSurprised or startled by a sudden turn of events.Origin'Aback' means in a backward direction - toward the rear. It is a word that has fallen almost into disuse, apart from in the phrase 'taken aback'. Originally 'aback' was two words: 'a' and 'back', but these became merged into a single word in the 15th century. The word 'around' and the now archaic 'adown' were formed in the same way. 'Taken aback' is an allusion to something that is startling enough to make us jump back in surprise. The first to be 'taken aback' were not people though but ships. The sails of a ship are said to be 'aback' when the wind blows them flat against the masts and spars that support them. A use of this was recorded in the London Gazette in 1697:"I braced my main topsails aback." If the wind were to turn suddenly so that a sailing ship was facing unexpectedly into the wind, the ship was said to be 'taken aback'. An early example of that in print comes from an author called Eeles in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, 1754:"If they luff up, they will be taken aback, and run the hazard of being dismasted."Note: 'to luff' is to bring the head of a ship nearer to the wind.The figurative use of the phrase, meaning surprised rather than physically pushed back, came in the 19th century. It appeared in The Times in March 1831:"Whigs, Tories, and Radicals, were all taken aback with astonishment, that the Ministers had not come forward with some moderate plan of reform."Charles Dickens also used it in his American Notes in 1842:"I don't think I was ever so taken aback in all my life."

Tell it to the marinesMeaningA scornful response to a tall and unbelieved story.OriginThe US Marine Corps are probably the best-known marines these days and this American-sounding phrase is often thought to refer to them. This isn't an American phrase though and, although it has been known there since the 1830s, it originated in the UK and the marines in question were the Royal Marines. The first marines in an English-speaking country were The Duke of York and Albany's Maritime Regiment of Foot, formed in 1664, in the reign of Charles II. Charles I of Spain had established a similar marine corps - the Infantera de Armada (Navy Infantry) in 1537 but, being from a non English-speaking country, that corps are hardly likely to be the source of the phrase. The Duke of York's men were soldiers who had been enlisted and trained to serve on-board ships. The recruits were considered green and not on a par with hardened sailors, hence the implication that marines were naive enough to believe ridiculous tales, but that sailors weren't. Such a tall tale is often quoted as the source of this phrase. It is said King Charles II made a remark to Samuel Pepys in which he mocked the marines' credulity in their belief in flying fishes. That's a nice story, but it has been shown to be a hoax that was perpetrated in the 1900s by the novelist W. P. Drury - a retired Lieutenant Colonel of the Royal Marines.Most of the early citations give a fuller version of the phrase - "You may tell that to the marines, but the sailors will not believe it". This earliest reference I can find to it that uses the short version that is used today comes from the transcription of a journal that was written by John Marshall Deane, a private in the Foot Guards. His journal was written in 1708 and was transcribed and printed in 1846, under the title of A Journal of the Campaign in Flanders. The preface, which was the work of the transcriber rather than Deane and so must be dated as 1846 rather than 1708, includes this:[The commanding officer] if a soldier complained to him of hardships which he could not comprehend, would be very likely to recommend him to "tell it to the marines"! The longer version of the phrase is found earlier, in John Davis's The Post-Captain, or, The wooden walls well manned comprehending a view of naval society and manners, 1804:"He may tell that to the marines, but the sailors will not believe him."

The bitter endMeaningTo the limit of one's efforts - to the last extremity.OriginBitter has been an adjective meaning acrid or sour tasting since the year 725 AD at least. The word was in common use in the Middle Ages and Shakespeare uses it numerous times in his plays and poems, as do many other dramatists. The phrase 'the bitter end' would seem, fairly obviously, to come directly from that meaning. But not so fast. Enter, stage left, Captain Smith. Here's what he has to say, in his publication Seaman's Grammar, 1627, which is the earliest citation of the phrase in print: "A Bitter is but the turne of a Cable about the Bits, and veare it out by little and little. And the Bitters end is that part of the Cable doth stay within boord."As you might have deduced, a bitt is a post fastened in the deck of a ship, for fastening cables and ropes. When a rope is played out to the bitter end, it means there is no more rope to be used.But again, not so fast. Folk etymologists are those who say something is true with no more justification than that they would like it to be true. They are thickest on the ground in the area of military and especially naval attributions. People seem to love a sailor's yarn, and anything with a whiff of the sea is seized on with enthusiasm. So much so that more thoughtful etymologists have dreamed up the inventive acronym CANOE - the Committee to Ascribe a Naval Origin to Everything.So, is this one from CANOE or not? We like to be definitive and, although the naval origin does seem to have a good case, it isn't conclusive. This time we'll sit on the fence and let you decide.

The cut of your jibThree sheets to the windTide over Walk the plank

A list of 122 everyday phrases that have a biblical originA bird in the hand is worth two in the bushMeaningIt's better to have a small real advantage than the possibility of a greater one.OriginThis proverb refers back to mediaeval falconry where a bird in the hand (the falcon) was a valuable asset and certainly worth more than two in the bush (the prey).The first citation of the expression in print in its currently used form is found in John Ray's A Hand-book of Proverbs, 1670, which he lists it as:A [also 'one'] bird in the hand is worth two in the bushBy how much the phrase predates Ray's publishing isn't clear, as variants of it were known for centuries before 1670. The earliest English version of the proverb is from the Bible and was translated into English in Wycliffe's version in 1382, although Latin texts have it from the 13th century:Ecclesiastes IX - A living dog is better than a dead lion.Alternatives that explicitly mention birds in hand come later. The earliest of those is in Hugh Rhodes' The Boke of Nurture or Schoole of Good Maners, circa 1530:"A byrd in hand - is worth ten flye at large."John Heywood, the 16th century collector of proverbs, recorded another version in his ambitiously titled A dialogue conteinyng the nomber in effect of all the prouerbes in the Englishe tongue, 1546:"Better one byrde in hande than ten in the wood."The Bird in Hand was adopted as a pub name in England in the Middle Ages and many of these still survive.The term bird in hand must have been known in the USA by 1734, as that is the date when a small town in Pennsylvania was founded with that name.

A broken heartKJV, Psalms 34:18 - The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.A cross to bearKJV, Luke 14:27 - And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.A drop in the bucketA fly in the ointmentA graven imageKJV, Deuteronomy 5:8 - Thou shalt not make thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters beneath the earth.A house divided against itself cannot stand A labour of love MeaningWork undertaken for the pleasure of it or for the benefit of a loved one.OriginThis phrase has a biblical origin and appears in Thessalonians and Hebrews (King James Version).Thessalonians 1:2, 1:3:We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers;Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father;Hebrews 6:10: For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.Shakespeare didn't use the expression 'labour of love' in any of his works but it is possible that the writers of the KJV were familiar with his play Love's Labours Lost, 1588, and that they adapted the expression from that title.

A law unto themselvesKJV, Romans 2:14- For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves.A leopard cannot change its spots A man after his own heartA multitude of sinsA nest of vipersA peace offeringKJV, Leviticus 3:6 - And if his offering for a sacrifice of peace offering unto the LORD be of the flock; male or female, he shall offer it without blemish.A sign of the timesKJV, Matthew 16:3- And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowering. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?A soft answer turns away wrathKJV, Proverbs 15:1- A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger.A thorn in the fleshMeaningA persistent difficulty or annoyance.OriginFrom the Bible, 2 Corinthians 12:7 (King James Version):And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.

A two-edged swordKJV, Proverbs 5:4 - But her end is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword. A voice crying in the wildernessKJV John 1:23 - He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias.A wolf in sheep's clothing MeaningSomeone who hides malicious intent under the guise of kindliness. OriginThe cautionary advice that one cannot necessarily trust someone who appears kind and friendly has been with us for many centuries. Both Aesop's Fables and the Bible contain explicit references to wolves in sheep's clothing. On the face of it, Aesop must have originated the phrase, as his tales are much older than any biblical text. The question is, when did the phrase first become part of the English language? In the version of Aesop's Fables that is best known to us today is George Fyler Townsend's 1867 translation. Townsend gives the Wolf in Sheep's Clothing fable this way:Once upon a time a Wolf resolved to disguise his appearance in order to secure food more easily. Encased in the skin of a sheep, he pastured with the flock deceiving the shepherd by his costume. In the evening he was shut up by the shepherd in the fold; the gate was closed, and the entrance made thoroughly secure. But the shepherd, returning to the fold during the night to obtain meat for the next day, mistakenly caught up the Wolf instead of a sheep, and killed him instantly.The King James Version of the Bible, 1611 gives this warning, in Matthew 7:15:Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.The earliest English version of that biblical text is in John Wyclif's translation in 1382: Be ye war of fals prophetis, that comen to you in clothing is of scheep, but withynneforth thei ben as wolues of raueyn.Aesop's Fable version may be an earlier example in English. Aesop (620560 BC) is credited with creating the fables that bear his name and, whether he was the author or not, they are certainly pre-Christian. They were much translated before the first English version, which was Caxton's translation into Middle English, 1484. Caxton doesn't use the phrase, nor even reproduces the fable in the form we now know. His version has a dog, rather than a wolf, masquerading as a sheep. It appears that the oldest explicit reference to the tale of a wolf dressed in a sheep skin, in print in English, is in Wycliffe's Bible. Where the writers of the Bible got the story from is anyone's guess. The cautionary tale wouldn't have been new to them. Some form of the tales that we now know as Aesop's Fables would have been in circulation in the Middle East at the time the Bible was recorded.

All things must passAll things to all menAm I my brother's keeper?An eye for an eye, a tooth for a toothMeaningThe notion that for every wrong done there should be a compensating measure of justice.OriginFrom the Code of Hammurabi. Hammurabi was King of Babylon, 1792-1750BC. The code survives today in the Akkadian language. Used in the Bible, Matthew 5:38 (King James Version):Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.

As old as MethuselahAs old as the hillsAs white as snowAs you sow so shall you reapMeaningYour deeds, good or bad, will repay you in kind.OriginFrom the Bible, Galatians VI (King James Version):Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.

Ashes to ashes dust to dustAt his wits endAt one's wits' endMeaningPerplexed; unable to think what to do.OriginFrom the Bible, Psalms 107:27 (King James Version):They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits' end.

Baptism of fireKJV, Matthew 3:11 - I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire. Be fruitful and multiplyKJV, Genesis 1:22 - And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth. Beat swords into ploughsharesBeat swords into ploughsharesMeaningTurn to peaceful pursuits and away from war.OriginFrom the Bible, Isaiah II (King James Version):They shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.

Bite the dustBlessed are the peacemakersBorn againKJV, John 3:3 - Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.Breath of lifeKJV, Genesis 2:7 - And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. By the skin of your teethBy the sweat of your browKJV, Genesis 3:19 - In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.Can a leopard change its spots?Cast bread upon the watersKJV, Ecclesiastes 11:1 - Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days. Cast the first stoneCoat of many coloursDon't cast your pearls before swineMeaningItems of quality offered to those who aren't cultured enough to appreciate them.OriginThis expression is usually expressed in the negative proverbial form - 'don't cast your pearls before swine', and is found in the Bible, Matthew 7:6, first appearing in English bibles in Tyndale's Bible, 1526:Nether caste ye youre pearles before swyne.It had existed in the language for some time before that, in various forms. It may have migrated from France, as it is found in a Middle French text from 1402 as 'jeter des perles aux pourceaux'. It is also found in Middle English, in Langland's Piers Plowman, which is of uncertain date, but appeared around the same time:Nolite mittere, Man, margerie perlis Among hogges...The biblical text is generally interpreted to be a warning by Jesus to his followers that they should not offer biblical doctrine to those who were unable to value and appreciate it.

Dust to dustKJV, Genesis 3:19 - In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.Eat drink and be merryOriginFrom the Bible, Ecclesiastes VIII 15 (King James Version):To eat, and to drink, and to be merry

Eye to eyeKJV, Isaiah 52:8 - Thy watchmen shall lift up the voice; with the voice together shall they sing: for they shall see eye to eye, when the LORD shall bring again Zion. Faith will move mountainsFall from graceFat of the landKJV, Genesis 45:18 - And take your father and your households, and come unto me: and I will give you the good of the land of Egypt, and ye shall eat the fat of the land. Feet of clayKJV, Daniel 2: 31-33 - His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay.Fight the good fightFire and brimstoneKJV, Genesis 19: 24-26 - Then the Lord rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven.Flesh and bloodMeaningOne's flesh and blood may refer to one's family, or may denote all mankind. It is also used to denote the living material of which people are composed. OriginThe earliest usage of this phrase relates to the general 'mankind' usage. This comes from an Old English translation of the Bible - the Anglo-Saxon Gospels, Matthew XVI 17, circa 1000: Hit ye ne onwreah flaesc ne blod.The later King James Version lists this passage as:And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.

For everything there is a seasonForbidden fruitMeaningA prohibited article. OriginForbidden fruit originates from the Garden of Eden bible story. The biblical 'forbidden fruit' was of course the apple. In the story the type of fruit isn't actually mentioned - God forbade Adam and Eve to touch the fruit of the tree of knowledge. It is widely interpreted as being an apple though and the 'Adam's apple' is named after the fruit which is supposed to have stuck in Adam's throat. Genesis 2:9 (King James Version) And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.2:16 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:2:17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.3:3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. The term began to be used figuratively in the 17th century. In 1663, Heath used it in his Flagellum; or, the Life and Death of Oliver Cromwell:"The stealing and tasting of the forbidden fruit of Soveraignty."

Forgive them for they know not what they do From strength to strengthGet thee behind me SatanGird your loinsKJV, 1 Kings 18:46 And the hand of the Lord was on Elijah; and he girded up his loins, and ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel. Give up the ghostGo the extra mileKJV, Matthew 5:41 - And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.Good SamaritanHarden your heartKJV, Exodus 4:21 - And the Lord said unto Moses, When thou goest to return into Egypt, see that thou do all those wonders before Pharaoh, which I have put in thine hand: but I will harden his heart, that he shall not let the people go.He who lives by the sword, dies by the swordKJV, Matthew 26:52 - Then said Jesus unto him, Put up again thy sword into his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword.Heart's desireKJV, Psalms 21:2 - Thou hast given him his heart's desire, and hast not withholden the request of his lips. Selah.Holier than thouKJV, Isaiah 65:5 - Which say, Stand by thyself, come not near to me; for I am holier than thou. These are a smoke in my nose, a fire that burneth all the day.How are the mighty fallenIn the beginning was the wordIn the twinkling of an eye It's better to give than to receiveLabour of loveLamb to the slaughterLand of NodLaw unto themselvesKJV, Romans 2:14- For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves.Let he who is without sin cast the first stoneLet not the sun go down on your wrathLet there be lightLetter of the lawKJV, 2 Corinthians 3:6 - Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.Living off the fat of the landLove of money is the root of all evilMeaningLiteral meaning.OriginOften misquoted as 'money is the root of all evil'. Originates in the Bible, Timothy 6:10 (King James Version):For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

Love thy neighbour as thyselfMan does not live by bread aloneKJV, Deuteronomy 8:3 - And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live.Manna from HeavenKJV, Exodus 16:15 - And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, It is manna: for they wist not what it was. And Moses said unto them, This is the bread which the Lord hath given you to eat.Many are called but few are chosenMy cup runneth overMy heart's desireKJV, Psalms 21:2 - Thou hast given him his heart's desire, and hast not withholden the request of his lips. Selah.No rest for the wickedNothing new under the sunKJV, Ecclesiastes 1:9 - The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun. O ye, of little faithOut of the mouths of babes and sucklingsPatience of JobKJV, James 5:11 - Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.Peace offeringKJV, Leviticus 3:6 - And if his offering for a sacrifice of peace offering unto the LORD be of the flock; male or female, he shall offer it without blemish.Pearls before swinePhysician heal thyselfPride goes before a fallKJV, Proverbs 16:18 - Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.Put words in one's mouthKJV, II Samuel 14:3 - And come to the king, and speak on this manner unto him. So Joab put the words in her mouth.Put your house in orderKJV, II Kings 20:1 - In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And the prophet Isaiah the son of Amoz came to him, and said unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Set thine house in order; for thou shalt die, and not live. Red sky at night; shepherds' delight Reap the whirlwindKJV, Hosea 8:7 - For they have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind: it hath no stalk; the bud shall yield no meal: if so be it yield, the strangers shall swallow it up.See eye to eyeKJV, Isaiah 52:8 - Thy watchmen shall lift up the voice; with the voice together shall they sing: for they shall see eye to eye, when the LORD shall bring again Zion. Set your teeth on edgeKJV, Jeremiah 31:30 - But every one shall die for his own iniquity: every man that eateth the sour grape, his teeth shall be set on edge. Sign of the timesKJV, Matthew 16:3- And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowering. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?Skin of your teethSoft answer turns away wrath KJV, Proverbs 15:1 - A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger.Sour grapesKJV, Jeremiah 31:30 - But every one shall die for his own iniquity: every man that eateth the sour grape, his teeth shall be set on edge.Spare the rod and spoil the childStrait and narrow Sufficient unto the dayKJV, Matthew 6:34 - Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.Sweat of your browKJV, Genesis 3:19 - In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.Swords into ploughsharesTender merciesKJV, Psalms 25:6 - Remember, O Lord, thy tender mercies and thy lovingkindnesses; for they have been ever of old. The apple of his eyeMeaningOriginally meaning the central aperture of the eye. Figuratively it is something, or more usually someone, cherished above others. Origin'The apple of my eye' is exceedingly old and first appears in Old English in a work attributed to King Aelfred (the Great) of Wessex, AD 885, entitled Gregory's Pastoral Care. Shakespeare used the phrase in A Midsummer Nights Dream, 1600: Flower of this purple dye,Hit with Cupids archery,Sink in apple of his eyeIt also appears several times in the Bible, for example, Deuteronomy 32:10 (King James Version, 1611) He found him in a desert land, and in the waste howling wilderness; he led him about, he instructed him, he kept him as the apple of his eye.and Zechariah 2:8:For thus saith the LORD of hosts; After the glory hath he sent me unto the nations which spoiled you: for he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye.The phrase was known from those early sources but became more widely used in the general population when Sir Walter Scott included it in the popular novel Old Mortality, 1816:"Poor Richard was to me as an eldest son, the apple of my eye."

The blind leading the blindThe bread of lifeThe breath of lifeKJV, Genesis 2:7 - And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. The ends of the earth The fat of the landKJV, Genesis 45:18 - And take your father and your households, and come unto me: and I will give you the good of the land of Egypt, and ye shall eat the fat of the land. The fly in the ointmentThe fruits of your loinsThe land of NodThe letter of the lawKJV, 2 Corinthians 3:6 - Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.The love of money is the root of all evilThe patience of JobKJV, James 5:11 - Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.The powers that beThe root of the matterThe salt of the earthThe skin of your teeth The spirit is willing but the flesh is weakMeaningA statement of the difficulty in living up to the high moral standards that one has set oneself. OriginFrom the Bible, Matthew 26:41 (King James Version):Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.

The strait and narrowThe sweat of your browKJV, Genesis 3:19 - In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.The wages of sin is deathMeaningSinners will be cast into everlasting torment.OriginFrom the Bible, Romans 6:23 (King James Version):For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The way of all fleshKJV, Genesis 6:12 - And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.The wisdom of SolomonKJV, Luke 11:31 - The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation, and condemn them: for she came from the utmost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here.The writing is on the wallThere's nothing new under the sunKJV, Ecclesiastes 1:9 - The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.Thorn in the flesh Thou shalt not killThree score and tenMeaningThe span of a life. In the days that this was coined that was considered to be seventy years.OriginThreescore used to be used for sixty, in the way that we still use a dozen for twelve, and (occasionally) score for twenty. It has long since died out in that usage but is still remembered in this phrase. Threescore goes back to at least 1388, as in this from John Wyclif's Bible, Leviticus 12, at that date:"Thre scoor and sixe daies."There are numerous uses of 'threescore' in the Bible. Most of them refer to its simple meaning as the number sixty, for example:"...threescore and ten bullocks, an hundred rams, and two hundred lambs: all these were for a burnt offering to the Lord."There is a use of it that refers to the span of our lives, in Psalms 90:The days of our years are threescore years and ten;and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years,yet is their strength labor and sorrow;for it is soon cut off, and we fly away.As with many other Biblical phrases, this was picked up by Shakespeare. In Macbeth, 1605, we have:Threescore and ten I can remember well: Within the volume of which time I have seen Hours dreadful and things strange; but this sore night Hath trifled former knowings. It's an odd fact that, although Shakespeare took numerous phrases and examples of imagery from the Bible, the word Bible doesn't appear in any of his plays.

To everything there is a season Wash your hands of the matterKJV, Matthew 27:24 - When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was made, he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye to it. Way of all fleshKJV, Genesi