What does the phrase get on the horn mean?

What does the phrase get on the horn mean?

The phrase ‘get on the horn’ is an expression meant as an imperative, directing someone to use the phone immediately.

Why do we say sit tight?

If someone asks you to sit tight, they want you to take no further action until told otherwise. This phrase is particularly poetic: If something’s up in the air, it’s floating around, or not settled. The phrase is brand-new, relatively speaking.

Why is the phone called the horn?

Horn is slang for telephone for the same reason “horn” is applied to loudspeakers, ear trumpets, powder horns, etc. All of them resemble animal horns, e.g., ram’s horns.

Is it in the horizon or on the horizon?

Senior Member. You need to say on the horizon. I suppose at the horizon could mean at the same distance from here as the horizon. At is appropriate for a static place; the horizon is the outline of the Earth at the furthest point one can see.

What does the phrase bear down mean?

: overcome, overwhelm. intransitive verb. : to exert full strength and concentrated attention. bear down on. 1 : emphasize.

What does took everyone’s breath away mean?

inspire someone with awed respect or delight; astonish someone. 1988 Janet Frame The Carpathians The speed of the process took everyone’s breath away.

What does left holding the bag mean?

Abandon someone, force someone to bear the responsibility or blame. For example, Her friends said they were too busy to help with cleaning up, and left Lucy holding the bag. This expression is often put as be left holding the bag, as in When they quit the clean-up committee, Lucy was left holding the bag.

Where does the phrase ” I’m on the horn ” come from?

: : Usually used when people want to call someone on the phone. Wondering if anyone had any idea about its origin. : The horn is the phone. For example, people also say “I’m on the horn” during a call. I’m guessing that this nickname came from the shape of early receivers, which were roughly cylindrical with one flared end.

Where did the saying’if you mess with the bull you get horned’come from?

One member of the listserv stated that he had originally heard a variation of the quote, “F*ck with the bull, and you get horned,” when he was in the Army circa 1961. The man who reported this quote said getting “horned” meant getting a disproportionate punishment to deter you from breaking Army rules.

Where did the phrase sailing around Cape Horn come from?

It originally referred to sailing around Cape Horn (at the southern tip of South America), which was a long and dangerous journey.

Why was spitting called’round the Horn’?

In the days of the tall ships any sailor who had sailed around Cape Horn was entitled to spit to windward; otherwise, it was a serious infraction of nautical rules of conduct. Thus, the permissible practice of spitting to windward was called ’round the horn.’