![]() Like an adult with a bunch of 8-year-olds or a professional basketball player among ordinary-height adults. The origin of this is literal: picture a crowd of people, with one person who is so tall that his or her head and shoulders are higher than the tops of everyone else's heads. There's no competition - they're head and shoulders above If someone or something is head and shoulders above other people or things, he, she, or it is a lot better ![]() ![]() However, it is also a play on the common idiom head and shoulders above (the rest). (As I see John Feltz just answered while I was typing this.) Its name is a reference to the fact that if dandruff is really bad, dandruff flakes (bits of dead skin from the scalp) can fall off one's head and show up on one's shoulders. The shampoo is specifically an anti-dandruff shampoo. For example, using the American idiom like gangbustersmay be a bad idea if you are likely to be read by British or Australian readers.īelow is a list of all our posts on idioms.Īccording to Hoyle and according to CockerĪsleep at the switch and asleep at the wheelĪt the end of one’s rope or at the end of one’s tetherĪt Wits End – Meaning, Origin and Correct SpellingĪ Blessing in Disguise – Idiom, Meaning & OriginĪ cog in the wheel and a cog in the machineĪ Light at the End of the Tunnel – Meaning, Origin & ExamplesĪ New Lease on Life – Idiom, Origin & MeaningĪ Shot in the Arm – Idiom, Meaning & OriginĪ shot in the dark and a stab in the darkĪ taste of one’s own medicine and a dose of one’s own medicineīackhanded compliment and left-handed complimentīack in the Saddle – Idiom, Origin & Meaningīack the wrong horse and bet on the wrong horseīarking Up the Wrong Tree – Idiom, Meaning & Originīated Breath or Baited Breath – Meaning and Originīatten Down the Hatches – Meaning and Originīeat swords into plowshares and beat swords into ploughsharesīehind The Eight Ball – Meaning And Originīell the Cat (or To Bell the Cat) – Idiom & Meaningīetter Late Than Never – Idiom, Meaning & Originīlow your own trumpet and toot your own hornīreadcrumbs, breadcrumb trail and trail of breadcrumbsĬall the Shots (or Calling the Shots) – Idiom & MeaningĬarry a torch for someone, torch song and torch singerĬarved in stone, set in stone and written in stoneĬase in Point or Case and Point – Meaning & DifferenceĬash on the nail and cash on the barrelheadĬhamping At The Bit Vs Chomping At The Bit & MeaningĬheckered Past or Chequered Past – Idiom, Origin & MeaningĬome-to-Jesus moment and come-to-Jesus meetingĬoming Down the Pike vs.There are a couple of ways that we use the phrase head and shoulders. Idioms generally convey a casual tone, and it’s risky to use them whenever there’s a possibility that a substantial portion of your readers won’t understand. And some are simply metaphors (e.g., in the doghouse, kick a hornet’s nest). Others use recognizable words in strange ways (e.g., cut to the chase, rule of thumb). Some idioms are expressions that keep their meanings even after their origins have been forgotten. Others include words or phrases that are rare outside their idiomatic uses (e.g., rest on one’s laurels, sleight of hand). Although most of us only use a few idioms in our everyday speech, it’s believed that there are tens of thousands of them in the English language. ![]() These expressions are usually figurative and would be nonsensical if read literally. An idiom is a word or phrase whose meaning can’t be understood outside its cultural context. ![]()
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