Discover some of the most inspiring phrases in English. Get to understand the meaning of the phrases and how to use them. There are plentyful English phrases out there. This blog post presents some of the most metaphorically picturesque expressions. Each phrase in this collection has a wonderfully colorful meaning, now, let’s have a look at the list:
1. On the Horizon
Do you see that horizontal line out in the far distance in the landscape or on the ocean? That line that brings the joy of yet another day approaching? The sun makes its way from the horizon up in to the sky encouraging a great day. Seeing the sun rise is a treasure, meaning that it brings happiness.
Saying that something is on the horizon, means that something is about to happen. An example could be, that your boss says tells you that there is great business growth on the horizon. It can also be used if you are anticipating a less pleasant occurence.
2. Turning over a new leaf
To turn over a new leaf is such a refreshing phrase. This means to pursue self-improvement. Someone might think there is something they can do differently. For instance one might want to break a habit and create a better routine. When you acutally do something to follow through with the process, then you can say you are turning over a new leaf.
3. A heart of gold
This beautiful expression has everything to do with intent, but nothing to do with fortune. If someone tells you that you have a heart of gold, those are words to cherish. To have a heart of gold means to be sympathic, understanding, comforting, compassionate, kind, generous, nice, and considerate. It is a phrase that is scarce. Use it, when somone has a heartwarming and caring attitude.
4. Having your head in the clouds
It is healthy to daydream and we should all do it more often. Sitting there contemplating, what we could be or what we could achieve, is great for the soul. Sure, sometimes we might get somewhat carried away into unrealistic dreams, but that’s okay. I believe, that ambition and motivation come from daydreaming. Although, if you sit there in a World of your own, one of your colleagues might say that “you have your head in the clouds”.
5. Don’t count your chickens before they hatch
Many times, I have seen people celebrate things too early. They assume success before they finish what they are doing or before they know the outcome. An example could evolve around making an investment. Let’s say you have read the news and decide you want to invest in a stock. So, you buy many of the shares. You wait all excited for the stock to go up, but the stock happens to crash. Assuming a big payout is to expect success.
This is where this phrase comes in. Imagine that you have chickens in your yard and one of the chickens lays eggs. You won’t know until the eggs hatch, whether there are living, healthy chicks inside. So, you don’t know the total number of chickens until they have come out of the eggshell. This phrase implies that we shouldn’t celebrate too early, because we can’t know for sure what the result is going to be. Like when buying stocks, we shouldn’t automatically assume success and we should not celebrate victory before we know if we are winning.
6. For good measure
When you do something for good measure, you are taking precaution. Imagine that you are setting up a meeting room for 12 people. You might think that having 12 pens on the table is sufficient, but you might place more pens on the table for good measure. In other words, you would want to add more pens in case that 1) there are extra meeting participants or 2) some of the pens stop working.
So, to do something for good measure is to increase the quantity of that thing, to make sure there is a sufficient amount. It means to add extra.
7. Going with the flow
To go with the flow is to just let things happen. You accept the way that things are going to occur rather than interfering. It also means not to organize and structure things in advance. Instead, you take things as they come. For instance, on the first day of a new job, you might want to just discover your tasks and your work environment before adding new protocols. Then you can say that “on your first day, you are just going to go with the flow”.
8. A Cultural melting pot
Have you ever heard of a cultural melting pot? Well, a melting pot is used to dissolve, melt and mix chemicals. Although metaphorically, a city can also be a melting pot. If that city is considered a meeting point for diversity, cultural exchange, and idea development, then you can say that city is a cultural melting pot.
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