Shakespeare may have gotten the idiom from Dutch which has a phrase that roughly means “sit in the pickle,” which would mean sitting in a brine solution used to make pickles. Shakespeare’s dual use of pickled as in drunk and in a pickle as in a difficult situation has bifurcated, and...
Did Shakespeare invent new words for the English language? How many words did Shakespeare invent? Learn more about his contribution to the English language.
When we talk about ‘Shakespeare phrases’ we mean the many sayings, idioms and phrases that Shakespeare invented that are still in common usage today. It’s unlikley that native English speakers are able to get through a day without using one or more Shakespeare sayings in one way or anothe...
Examples of phrases frequently used in daily English conversations.How are you doing today? Where are you from? Long time no see That’s a good one What’s up We will be having a good time. Break a leg What are you up to these days I can’t complain Thank you so much Don’t ...
used in: The Raven aigrette A feather-shaped piece of jewelry worn in the hair or on a hat. From the French word "egret", a white heron prized for its plumage. used in: The Spectacles alarum An old spelling of "alarm". This is the way Shakespeare spelled it. Here, it provides 3 ...
You can thankChristopher Marlowe, playwright and contemporary ofWilliam Shakespeare, for this one. You likely know it well in English since it's frequently used to describe commiseration. Marlowe wrote this Latin phrase, which means "misery loves company," into his playThe Tragical History of Doct...
For example, the play and movie West Side Story took the characters and plot of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet and __42__ them in modern New York City. There are many different ways to turn books into ...
Question: Where does the expression "he wears his heart on his sleeve" come from? Answer: Although the expression first appeared in William Shakespeare's play "Othello", the saying originated in medieval times. In the King's Court, if a knight was jousting in order to defend the honor of...
Some believe Shakespeare was cursed by witches offended by the play - or even that the playwright intentionally cursed the play himself by putting real spells into the witches' dialogue. If you must allude to Macbeth in a theater, it's better to call it "the Scottish play" instead. ...
et tu, Brute?— last words of Caesar after being murdered byfriendBrutus in Shakespeare’sJulius Caesar, used today to convey utter betrayal ex animo— from the heart; thus, “sincerely” ex libris— from the library of; to mark books from a library ...