Whats the origin of the saying know your onions? In French, there's the expression occupez-vous de vos oignons which means "mind your own business" in English but can be literally translated as "take care of your onions" Know your onions howe
Onion vs onions - English Language Usage Stack Exchange Today I came across a sentence in The Daily Star prices of locally grown onion rose yesterday for the lack of availability I know onion is countable Therefore,it should have been locally grown
word choice - When to use singular or plural of nouns - English . . . In your case I assume you're not planning to extract the onion for use elsewhere - you just want to get rid of it So perhaps extirpate (to remove or destroy totally; do away with; exterminate) might be a better choice
meaning - Origin of the idiom falling off the wagon - English . . . Meaning: Abstaining from consumption of alcoholic beverages Example: Dean Martin never fell off the wagon You have to be on the wagon before you can fall off Origin: The origin of this seemingly mysterious phrase becomes clear when one learns that the original phrase was “On the water wagon” A water wagon was a common piece of equipment in the days before paved roads They were used to
differences - Are smell like and smell of the same? - English . . . Of course, when something causes a smell, that smell is typically similar to the smell of the thing itself If you touch onions, your hands smell like onions, of course (because, I assume, some chemical from the onion rubs off on your hand) The distinction is more clear in metaphor You can "smell of" failure, or of desperation, or of fear
Rule for the pronunciation of the letter O as ʌ vs. ɒ I don't know of any useful rule for when O is pronounced as ʌ There aren't that many words where O in a stressed syllable is pronounced as ʌ , so I think it's most practical to just memorize the pronunciation of each word with this spelling pattern using some method like flashcards Masha Bell's "Improving English spelling" blog gives the following list of words: The main alternative
What is the origin of riding a gravy train idiom? 'Riding a gravy train' idiom means getting a job or other source of income that generates abundant money with little effort However, what is the origin of this phrase and why it makes sense at all
What is the origin of wake up and smell the roses I wonder if roses was the original I, for one, found it in a version of Wake up and smell the ashes, uttered by the mysterious G-Man in the beginning of Half-Life 2, set in post-apocalyptic future