mmjmaske

Bury the hatchet - to end a quarrel or become friendly. It was used literally around the time native indians were around what is the United States now; it meant to keep weapons under the ground or hidden until such a time they were needed again.

Pay the ferryman - back in the olden days when people believed in Greek mythology, people put coins over the eyes of the dead so they have fare to get into the underworld Paying your dues - When I graduated college and joined the workforce, the only jobs open to me were entry level, low paying jobs. There was no way around it, I was told that working those jobs was "paying my dues" because I was a student for so long

Catlike reflexes - a bit literal, but cats are super quick to react. A cat's reflexes are pretty good. Quick as a cat or Quiet as a cat - Also pretty literal and self-explanatory, but cats are really quiet and move pretty fast. Yeah I'm pretty fond of cats :grin:

You're driving me nuts! - to make someone giddy or crazy. Hitting a speed bump - having to slow down what you're doing because of an obstacle in the way.

Oh my god, please don't. Everyone around me seems to use it in casual conversation. It's crazy stupid! I get soooo pissed off by that phrase. It's not even catchy! It was probably used once at the right time, and people started adopting it, and now they've blown it out of proportion without any kind of context whatsoever. :angry:

A popular "Bird" idiom made for fish: "A fish in the hand is worth two in the sea"

When I was a student, I'd use winding sentences, complicated words and repetition, just to get my papers to the required length. I could've said it clearly in a few sentences, but I don't get to make the rules. :bored: As a result, I somehow learned a lot of words I can hardly use in casual conversation, but I write a lot better now so there's that!

I'd make my name something commonly used and banal or really mundane, if only for people's initial confusion when I tell them my name. Words such as: Refrigerator Streetlamp Recliner Of course I'd never really do it, it's just a fun thing to think about :grin:

Here's a popular/infamous one: Anne Frankly, I did Nazi that coming! (And frankly, I did not see that coming) ... sorry, I'll shut up now :speechless:

I'm Filipino, so you'd expect my first language to be Tagalog, right? My mother is a writer, so the first language I learned was English. It proved to be a good parenting desicion on their part; I've gotten awards and praise for my communication skills both in and out of school/work :grin: Thanks, Mom!

In my opinion, the fastest, easiest way to learn new words is to constantly read books with those words, and to use said words in your day-to-day speech. Practice makes perfect!

I always loved those kind of books! I'd read through them like a regular book and try to piece together the beginning and end of whatever page I was on. I feel that helped with my critical thinking and I could sort of predict what was going to happen.

A great many books have some kind of inspirational message in them, and the impact of each depends largely on the reader. It's the same principle with the quote "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder"; it's all a matter of opinion.

You can improve your grammar by analyzing whatever sentence you make. If it "feels wrong" when you read it, then you already know you have to improve!

I use it only, and only when texting my mother. She likes being in and current, so she started using abbreviations with me and I sort of got infected. :grin: