italki - Are these expressions still in use? - P1 !!!!No need to explain me the meaning! Just if it's still i

Katrine

Are these expressions still in use? - P1 !!!!No need to explain me the meaning! Just if it's still in use or not! Many thanks =)!!!! Aboveboard Acid Test An Albatross ( around someone´s neck) Also-ran Apple-polisher Back to square one To go bananas To bark up the wrong tree Bedlam To bet one's bottom dollar Bigwig The bottom line Catch 22 Chessed off When the chips are down A cinch On cloud nine Condom A dark house A different kettle of fish Donkey's years Duff To earmark An ear to the ground To eavesdrop To egg on At the end of one's rope/tether To give one's eyeteeth for To face the music To fizzle out A flash in the pan To fly off the handle To fork out/over/up To get someone's goat GibberishTHANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL THE COMMENTS!!!!

Mar 11, 2014 7:41 PM

Answers · 18

Some of them are very old and you will not hear them much: donkey's years. Some of them I've never heard: chessed off? Some I've never heard used: apple polisher. Some are not expressions: condom

March 11, 2014

I have heard of and used all of the expressions except: Never heard of: chessed off, donkey's years. Heard of, but never used myself: a different kettle of fish; to give one's eyeteeth for (I say "to give my right arm for"); duff (I say "useless"); to fly off the handle (I say "lose control/ to get steaming mad"); apple-polisher (I say "brown-noser", although apple-polisher is soooo much more polite!) Not sure if this has a meaning other than its literal meaning: "A dark house" Not idiomatic expressions: condom, gibberish

March 11, 2014

I think "a dark house" should probably be "a dark horse" and I agreed "chessed off" should be "cheesed off". "Apple-polisher", "donkey years", "cheesed off", and "bet your bottom dollar" sound old-fashioned to me. I've never heard "duff"in the context you mentioned to Daniel.

March 11, 2014

I wonder if you will ignore some of them if they're not so "popular" anymore (tip: this is a bad idea). Basically, yes. We still use these. However, you need to use "above board" and "cheesed off" (cheese, not chess). I agree that apple-polisher is a bit odd. Maybe it's more familiar to another user? Would you be able to use all of them in sentences?

March 11, 2014

"Face the music- - heard it in the tv series "Breaking Bad" :) "Gibberish", yes, Irish origin of that word :) "Eavesdrop" - Of course "I haven't seen you for donkey's years" - Yes, it's used in British English. "Catch 22" - Yes, it's a song by singer Pink. "A different kettle of fish" - Used by an Irish friend, so yeah.

July 22, 2016

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