Did anyone think about how the sayings we use everyday turn into phrases? This week, i read an article about the origin of phrases in studio classroom magazine, and i think the article is very interesting. So, i went to find the sourse of the phrase "it rains cats and dogs." and there are some interesting legends about the phrase. :) What i found is below... ------------------- the article's about to begin ------------------ How “It rains cats and dogs” Became Into a Phrase The phrase “it rains cats and dogs” means “it rains heavily.” Why does this phrase present in this way? There are some sayings about how it became. A long time ago, the houses people live in were not as tall as they are now, and the roof was usually thatched with straw. The domestic animals, such as cats and dogs, love to sleep on the frame under the canopy. When the rain pours too quickly, the cats and dogs would be shocked and awaken, sometimes even fell down to the ground. Because the felling are seen to be the one of the heavy rain, people use the phrase “it rains cats and dogs“ as it rains heavily. The second saying is from a corrupted word “catadoupe” in French, which means “waterfall” in English. However, the sound of catadoupe is too similar with English words “cat and dog,” over a long time, the English phrase “it rains cats and dogs” came into the end. The last saying is from the mythology of North Europe. In ancient time, there is a God named Otis, who handles the power of military, culture, and knowledge. The North European thought that, Otis’ dog (to be thought as wind) would chase fiercely after a cat (to be thought as rain) when the heavy rain came. Therefore, when we intend to convey how heavy it rains to someone, we can use “it rains cats and dogs” or another phrase “it never rains but pours.” Furthermore, if you think these phrases are not literally enough to express, maybe you can say “it rains the elephants and the whales.” PS. Information was adopted and translated from the Website below: http://www.atm-roc.net/front/bin/ptdetail.phtml?Part=07041652&Rcg=31061 Did anyone has information about the interesting phrases? Let' discuss! -- 我的生活部落格 欢迎参观 :) http://www.wretch.cc/blog/petitebelle --

※ 发信站: 批踢踢实业坊(ptt.cc) ◆ From: 218.172.199.127 ※ 编辑: petitbeau 来自: 218.172.199.127 (09/07 16:17)