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Posts tagged 'clichés'

They think it’s all over…and other football clichés we love

29th
Jun
by Sarah Turner

Well that’s that then. The fat lady is singing and we’re all as sick as a parrot. Following England’s early bath we’ve started the post mortem and the clichés have been spewing out quicker than Lionel Messi on speed. ‘We’re failing at grass roots level’. ‘We need to have a roots and branch investigation.’ ‘England needs an English manager.’

What is it about football and clichés? Don’t know. But a World Cup wouldn’t be a World Cup without a few ‘played his socks off’ would it? Here are some other favourites we’ve heard in the last few weeks.

John Motson - Football commentatorArgentina is a team that likes to play football
As opposed to all the other teams which would prefer to play rounders or ping pong given half a chance.

He’s not that kind of player
Said of a player whose crunching tackle on the opposition’s No. 9 has led to him being carried off on a stretcher. Thus proving he is that kind of player.

He should have scored
Yes, that is the idea.

Couldn’t have hit it any better (as the ball whistles by the far post)
Did it go in? Nope? Then he probably could have hit it better.

The defender’s done just enough to put him off
Said of a centre half who has just clattered into the back of a player, sending him into the first row.

It’s important……we get off to a good start/score first/keep our heads up/defend well/ concentrate
Win. We just need to win. That’s the most important thing.

A game of two halves
Yep. Since the rules of Association Football were written in about 18 hundred and frozen to death it has always been a game of two halves. Unless your mum called you in for your tea early.

They’ve parked the bus in front of goal
Actually, no. The other team is defending well. And I think you’ll find the bus is in the car park where the driver left it.

If it wasn’t for the keeper they would have scored
Nooooo! Really? Damn that goalkeeper.

Six inches lower and that was in
Aaah that’s the point see? The crossbar is there for a reason.

Take one game at a time
In fact, there’s no other way you can play apart from one game at a time. Even if you’re ‘efficient Germans’ you can still only play one game at a time.

The Manager has lost the dressing room
Look it’s there. Next to the broom cupboard and the toilet. That Pavlos Joseph bloke seemed to find it ok.

Gerrard and Lampard can’t play together
What are they? Seven? ‘That’s my ball.’ ‘No, it’s mine.’ ‘Mine!’ ‘Waaaah!’ They’re two adults who play football professionally. Of course they can play together. Oh wait…

A good day at the office
Not really. Prancing round a bit of grass for an hour and a half is not like working in an office is it? Do I see a PC, a printer, a fax machine, stale milk and random coffee cups left in the sink? I do not. It’s not an office.

We always knew we were in for a tough game
We were crap and were played off the park.

They’ve got a lot of quality players
See above.

They worked very hard and made it difficult for us
See above.

 

Any more? Leave ‘em in the comments!


Tags: clichés, football, world cup
Posted in Grammar tips, Word stuff | comments icon 3 Comments »

Your dirty laundry is coming home to roost. And other metaphors, similes, idioms and clichés we love

19th
Feb
by Sarah Turner

I was thinking about metaphors on the journey into work this morning. And that’s because practically every single segment on the radio used a metaphor at some point.

Metaphors make a comparison between two things that are basically different but have something in common. So

Arsene Wenger was boiling mad over Porto’s dodgy goal
Bankers’ bonuses are difficult to swallow
The ball rocketed into the net
His recollection of events was foggy
London is a melting pot
He’s a rock

Of course the ball didn’t literally go like a rocket. But it did go very fast, like a rocket would. And London isn’t literally a melting pot. But it is full of all types of people, things, smells and colours. And some bloke isn’t literally a rock. But he is strong and sturdy. You get the drift.

And then I started thinking about similes, idioms and clichés. (Yeah, thank goodness it’s only a 15 minute drive.)

So what are similes? Similes are when two things are compared to each other and are said to be like or as something.

She felt as free as a bird
It fitted like a glove
That joke is as old as the hills
She was as thin as a rake
They were as scarce as hen’s teeth
He was as tough as old boots
Life is like a box of chocolates

How about idioms? An idiom is a common expression which is part of every day speech and often breaks all rules on grammar and meaning. In fact, the word idiom comes from the Greek idios meaning ‘one’s own, peculiar, or strange’.

The histories of some idioms such as skate on thin ice are obvious. Some are not. Here are a few of my favourite idioms.

Cat’s pyjamas
Gone for a burton
Sleep on a clothes line
Give the cold shoulder
Not my cup of tea
Fly off the handle
Go the whole hog
Keeping up with the Joneses
Don’t mince your words
In a pickle
Get the sack
Don’t shilly-shally
Back to square one
Storm in a teacup

Many idioms are metaphors such as bed of roses and on the back burner. Some idioms such as like a bear with a sore head and bald as a coot are similes. Some idioms are dyads – pairs of words joined by and – such as airs and graces, beer and skittles, and above and beyond.

Which brings us on to clichés.

Clichés are like their close relative idioms. But unfortunately, clichés have gone round the block once too often and have become overused and tired. Avoid them like the plague.

Move the goalposts
Another day another dollar
The ball is in your court
Laugh all the way to the bank
Blood, sweat and tears
Chomping at the bit
On time and on budget
Blast from the past
Can’t see the wood for the trees

Got any favourite idioms that you love to death? Or any clichés that you avoid at all costs? Let us know in the comments.


Tags: clichés, idioms, metaphors, similes
Posted in Grammar tips, Word stuff | comments icon 1 Comment »

 

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