Page 29 | To have completely misunderstood the meaning of some sayings?

KermitTheToad · 2025-11-18T20:53:28+00:00

I only found out today that the term Social Butterfly refers to someone who is outgoing and loves social events. I thought it meant you didn't like social events, as in you would fly away and avoid them. I also until recently thought that a Spendthrift is somebody who is frugal in their spending. I assumed that as thrifty meant not being wasteful, that Spendthrift meant being careful in what you spent. YANBU..I see where you are coming from. YABU.. You are a wally, go back to school!

mynameisthebestone · 18/11/2025 22:30

For years I thought inflammable was the opposite of flammable. I would buy eg children's dressing-up clothes marked inflammable because I thought that was a good thing!

emmetgirl · 18/11/2025 22:30

But spendthrift comes from the word thrifty which means careful with money so its meaning should be quite clear 🤷‍♀️

soupyspoon · 18/11/2025 22:30

KilliMonjaro · 18/11/2025 22:29

You will only know if you proved your bread for the right amount of time when you taste it.

You will only know if you made the right choice / took the right course of action after the event.

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Thats what I said!!!

Suzy2shoes · 18/11/2025 22:30

Hyper bowl (hyperbole) and Percy Phone (Persephone) are classics in secondary school. 😁

AutumnClouds · 18/11/2025 22:29

Pusillanimous sounds like it should mean scrappy and ready to fight to me

soupyspoon · 18/11/2025 22:29

IsItTheBlackOneOrTheRedOne · 18/11/2025 22:28

Damp squid comes from the IT Crowd. Roy mistakenly thinks the phrase is ‘damp squid’ not ‘squib’

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Its much older than that, people have been getting phrases wrong like that for eons.

WarrenTofficier · 18/11/2025 22:29

verybighouseinthecountry · 18/11/2025 22:24

Since being in primary school I thought pontious meant arrogant/obnoxious and the Biblical Pontious Pilate was an arrogant man called Pilate. I was so shocked to discover in my early 20s, after using pontious as an adjective for years that it was his name. I think I was getting it confused with pretentious 😳

Were you thinking of pretentious and pompous and sort of mashing them up?

KilliMonjaro · 18/11/2025 22:29

soupyspoon · 18/11/2025 22:26

It means you'll only know if something has worked or what the experience is, once its done/experienced/finished

Its like saying 'will this come to pass' or 'will this work or come good'.

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You will only know if you proved your bread for the right amount of time when you taste it.

You will only know if you made the right choice / took the right course of action after the event.

IsItTheBlackOneOrTheRedOne · 18/11/2025 22:28

pinkteddy · 18/11/2025 21:24

It should be damp squib. As in a firework that didn’t go off because it was damp. In other words something was a lot less impressive that you were expecting.

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Damp squid comes from the IT Crowd. Roy mistakenly thinks the phrase is ‘damp squid’ not ‘squib’

AlltheHedgehogsontheWall · 18/11/2025 22:28

Once got into a huge argument, which resulted in him storming out of the house, with my ex, who was insisting that "droll" was just another word for "dull".

Mistressofnone · 18/11/2025 22:28

Thanks @WarrenTofficier- I’ll stand my ground with stocky!

@Plusplugthats a good example as I always thought of this saying from the sarcastic angle. Marty McFly says it to Jennifer when he gets back from 1955 and I wondered why she didn’t take offence!

soupyspoon · 18/11/2025 22:28

ToadRage · 18/11/2025 22:26

I was 30 before I ever heard the phrase 'Coals to Newcastle' and hadn't a clue what it meant. My husband explained it to me.

What about busman's holiday?

soupyspoon · 18/11/2025 22:27

I use hyperbole a lot. And thats hyperbole

verybighouseinthecountry · 18/11/2025 22:27

NotForTheMoneyandNotForTheApplause · 18/11/2025 22:22

I don't think I've said that out loud once in the past 40 years, in what contexts have you been saying it so many times?

But never once in front of your husband, I'm intrigued

Edited

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What age are you? Hyperbole is very much spoken about in KS4 English Language.

Westly · 18/11/2025 22:26

I also thought that “diamond in the rough” meant a bright, shining diamond (ie a person) surrounded by “rough”. A bit like finding a diamond in a mine of dirt. So if someone was a diamond in the rough, I thought they were a great person surrounded by dire people.

Supposedly it’s talking about the diamond itself. Like it’s rough cut but needs buffing. So you’re actually saying they have potential, but aren’t quite brilliantly shiny yet.

ToadRage · 18/11/2025 22:26

I was 30 before I ever heard the phrase 'Coals to Newcastle' and hadn't a clue what it meant. My husband explained it to me.

KilliMonjaro · 18/11/2025 22:26

CurlyhairedAssassin · 18/11/2025 21:10

Heavy plant crossing. I was flummoxed by that one for years. Always thought of triffids when I was a kid. Knew it couldn't be that but it was years into adulthood before I knew for sure what it meant. (probably when Google was invented so I could look it up without embarrassing myself by asking an acutal human).

FEED ME SEYMOUR!! 🪴

soupyspoon · 18/11/2025 22:26

Linzloopy · 18/11/2025 22:03

A member of my family frequently uses "the proof of the pudding is in the eating" wrongly - she thinks it means something like "that proves it!"

I've told her that "proof" in the saying means "test", like the way you leave bread dough to "prove" to check the yeast is working and see if it’s ready to put in the oven, or see "proofs" of something that’s being printed to check it's right before the final printing, but she doesn’t believe me.

Edited

It means you'll only know if something has worked or what the experience is, once its done/experienced/finished

Its like saying 'will this come to pass' or 'will this work or come good'.

SagittariusDwarf · 18/11/2025 22:25

verybighouseinthecountry · 18/11/2025 22:24

Since being in primary school I thought pontious meant arrogant/obnoxious and the Biblical Pontious Pilate was an arrogant man called Pilate. I was so shocked to discover in my early 20s, after using pontious as an adjective for years that it was his name. I think I was getting it confused with pretentious 😳

😆😆😆

Heidi2018 · 18/11/2025 22:25

soupyspoon · 18/11/2025 22:21

No, a friend in need, is a friend indeed because they'll do anything for you because you're going to help them, so they are acting 'like a good friend' because they want something out of you.

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No I think it means that they a true friend because they helped you.
A friend (when you are) in need is a friend indeed (to you!)

Suzy2shoes · 18/11/2025 22:25

Put up or shut up refers to boxing or poker.

verybighouseinthecountry · 18/11/2025 22:24

Since being in primary school I thought pontious meant arrogant/obnoxious and the Biblical Pontious Pilate was an arrogant man called Pilate. I was so shocked to discover in my early 20s, after using pontious as an adjective for years that it was his name. I think I was getting it confused with pretentious 😳

JustSawJohnny · 18/11/2025 22:23

Makeitstop2025 · 18/11/2025 21:12

Tall, Dark and Handsome. I always pictured that to mean a white man and that the "dark" was in reference to features such as black/brown hair or brown eyes. A friend told me that the dark was in reference to skin colour and that it basically meant a person of colour.

Before anyone comments that it shows my bias, I am a person of colour!

It doesn't mean just people of colour.

thing47 · 18/11/2025 22:23

Linzloopy · 18/11/2025 22:09

Another one that drives me mad: "Put up or shut up!" People use it to mean "put up with it" but I think it means "put up your fists and fight about it (maybe metaphorically)", i.e. "Do something about it or stop moaning".

You are correct, that's exactly what it means. And it can be metaphorical, as in 'show me the evidence' but I think originally did mean actually put your hands up.

NotForTheMoneyandNotForTheApplause · 18/11/2025 22:22

Kbroughton · 18/11/2025 22:17

I thougt I'd heard a new word when my DH said 'hyperberly' to me. Turns out I have been saying hyperbole wrong for 40 odd years and nobody told me.

I don't think I've said that out loud once in the past 40 years, in what contexts have you been saying it so many times?

But never once in front of your husband, I'm intrigued