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ICANEWS
Noviembre / Diciembre 2008, Año 5 # 18 |
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In a Word |
by Charlie López
Author of “En una Palabra”
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WHITE ELEPHANT
The expression “White Elephant” applied to unwanted, useless and expensive items, which cannot be easily disposed of, finds its origin in the ancient kingdom of Siam, now Thailand. The king of Siam, regarded as The Lord of White Elephants, claimed all the rare albino elephants that were born and kept them for himself. Whenever he wished to punish a courtier who had lost his favour, he would give one of the sacred beasts to him. As the animal had to be fed and cared for and only the king could make him work, the courtier would finally go bankrupt.
MAD AS A HATTER
We say that a person is “mad as a hatter” when we think he is very strange, foolish or crazy. Even when this expression is generally associated with one of the characters in Alice in Wonderland, Lewis Caroll does not seem to be responsible for it, poisoned hatters who would, after several years, be afflicted with uncontrollable twitching of the muscles. Those who suffered these symptoms were usually assumed to be mad, hence the expression.
A CHIP ON THE SHOULDER
We say that someone has "a chip on their shoulder" when they are likely to become angry or offended very easily. This expression finds its origin in the United States, in the 19th Century, when young american fellows who wanted to provoke a fight placed a twig or a piece of bark (chip of wood) on one of their shoulders and dared other youths to knock it off. That would definitely start a fight. |
| Glossary |
disposed of: eliminados, desechados
courtier: cortesano
compounds: compuestos, mezclas, preparaciones
felt hats: sombreros de fieltro
twitching: espasmos, movimientos involuntarios
twig: rama
bark: corteza
knock it off: derribarla, hacerla saltar, sacarla de una palmada |
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