help with English expressions

[Admiral]

Got to find a few examples of English number expressions (~10), if the English speaking population of this forum could lend a hand I would aprreciate it

Things like "20/20 vision", "the 64,000$ question"...

[Brian Ellis]

Speaking 20 to the dozen (speaking too fast to be intelligible)
A baker's dozen (=13)
100, not out (a good score in cricket, sometimes applied to old people's age)
Unlucky 13
Lucky 7
Cat with 9 lives
On all fours (on hands and knees)
At sixes and sevens ( all mixed up in one's mind)
In 7th heaven
4 eyes (wearing glasses)
10 to 1 (probable)
21 today (old coming-of-age, from a song)

[rylan]

Here is a big list

http://www.englishdaily626.com/slang.php

[Wombat]

Speaking 20 to the dozen (speaking too fast to be intelligible)
100, not out (a good score in cricket, sometimes applied to old people's age)
21 today (old coming-of-age, from a song)

...never heard any of those.

10 to 1 (probable)

. That would be IMprobable.

Others are things like "six of one, half a dozen of the other." (either choice is the same)
"The whole nine yards."
"Three strikes"

[Admiral]

many thanks to all

[Fat Tone]

I think it is 19 to the dozen, and 10 to 1 on, but Brian has been away from such influences for a long time

[VJ]

I like the fact that same expressions can have totally different meanings in different languages.
For instance:
if you say in English: "he has turned the corner", it means he has passed the worse and is improving.
if you say in Dutch: "hij is het hoekje om" (which is a literal translation!), it means he died.


Jörg

[Umfriend]

In some cases though, both may apply.

[az]

Funnily enough, there is no expression like "turning the corner" in german, though there is "Jemanden um die Ecke bringen" (to lead someone around the corner), which means to murder someone.

[KvHagedorn]

20/20 vision means normal/average vision. It it the standard by which visual acuity is measured. It means that a person with 20/20 vision could see at 20 ft the same line on an eye chart that would indicate normal vision. A person with 20/10 vision could see the line from 20 ft that the person with 20/20 vision would need to move up to a distance of 10 ft to see. A person with 20/100 vision would need to be 20 ft away to read the line that a normal person could read from 100 ft, etc. So the ratio is (distance subject can see object)/(distance average-normal person can see the same object)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snellen_chart

[KvHagedorn]

Funnily enough, there is no expression like "turning the corner" in german, though there is "Jemanden um die Ecke bringen" (to lead someone around the corner), which means to murder someone.

Lots of idioms in German like this.. one of the more difficult things in any language.

[KvHagedorn]

There used to be a game show on American TV called "The $64,000 Question." It was a lot like "Who Wants to be a Millionaire." The $64,000 question was the big money question.. answer it and you won the $64,000. This has entered the language as an idiom for the biggest and most important unknown in a set of circumstances.

[Sasq]

I like the fact that same expressions can have totally different meanings in different languages.
For instance:
if you say in English: "he has turned the corner", it means he has passed the worse and is improving.
if you say in Dutch: "hij is het hoekje om" (which is a literal translation!), it means he died.


Jörg

ahh well see thats 'kicked the bucket'

[Brian Ellis]

ahh well see thats 'kicked the bucket'

Also popped one's clogs or turned up one's toes, amongst many others.

[Umfriend]

Isn't there something like: "Carruthers, old chap, that ain't cricket!" - to say something was foul play?