If you throw someone to the wolves, you’ve given him or her over to a terrible fate or abandoned him/her. For example: “The manager threw his employee to the wolves to save his own skin.” In this instance, a person is sacrificed by another to save his/her job. Another popular way to express this sentiment…
Tag: language
Exploring Wolf References: Wolf Down
To “wolf down” means to eat like a wolf, or quickly and in large chunks without chewing well. The phrase is most often used colloquially. This subject was inspired by #WerewolfWednesday, which I hold each week on my Facebook page. Also see: Keep the wolves at bay Lone Wolf Cry Wolf Keep the wolf from the door…
Exploring wolf references: “Keep the wolves at bay”
The phrase “to keep the wolves at bay” refers to a time when baying wolves were a sign that wolves were still in the distance. The idea is that when wolves are still in pursuit, they are not yet ready to attack. Sometimes shorted to keeping something “at bay,” this also refers to hunting dogs that…
Exploring wolf references: “Lone Wolf”
Lone wolf is an American expression that began in the early 1900s. A “lone wolf” is a person who acts alone or enjoys his or her own company—and not being part of the pack. The phrase persists in popular culture today. Lone Wolf is the title of a 1988 horror film, and Lone Wolf McQuade…
Exploring wolf references: “Cry wolf”
Over the last few weeks, I’ve started exploring common phrases that reference wolves. (Links to previous ones are below.) This week I am exploring the phrase “Cry wolf.” The phrase, which means to cause undue alarm, is derived from the Aesop fable, The boy who cried wolf, in which a lonely young herded cries wolf…
The semicolon: half-right is all wrong
Something about the semicolon seems to trip people up. Maybe it’s the shape: the little round head and tail like a snake. I’m not sure. At any rate, here are a few basic examples of when to use the semicolon. Use a semicolon to join two independent clauses not joined with a conjunction, such as:…
The power of words
The written word is not tantamount to symbols and letters strung together; it has the ability to sway opinions; to declare wars; to create imaginative worlds to visit; and to help us empathize with someone we’ve never met. I think those who have a real love for language appreciate many aspects of how words fit…
Between you and I (Let’s get the word out)
I’ve heard the phrase “between you and I” many times. Often, it seems to be used when someone is trying to be more proper or formal. I even saw it in an episode of Lost Girl, spoken by a character trying to be very proper. Unfortunately, “between you and I” is NEVER correct. It is…
What a Grammar Nazi does not see
The goal of this blog is not to be a Grammar Nazi. Plenty of folks out there already think of themselves as self-appointed Grammar Nazis. I have some issues with this policing of language: It promotes public shaming. It focuses on grammar as aesthetics and pedantic enforcement of rules (rather than meaning). It obscures common…
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