Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
Break a leg" is an English-language idiom used in the context of theatre or other performing arts to wish a performer "good luck". An ironic or non-literal saying of uncertain origin (a dead metaphor), [1] "break a leg" is commonly said to actors and musicians before they go on stage to perform or before an audition. Though a similar and ...
'Break a Leg' Origin. Hold onto your playbills, because the origin story of "break a leg" has a few different theories! While we can't pinpoint the exact moment this phrase made its debut, it ...
In Australian theatrical circles saying "good luck" is also avoided, but the replacement is often "chookas!" This may be due to the belief among some dancers that saying "break a leg" may actually result in broken bones. According to one oral tradition, one of the company would check audience numbers.
The term ‘break a leg’ is probably of a colloquial origin from the Mid Eng deriving from the Dutch ‘braeke’ with ‘allega’. Braeke or ‘brake’ is ‘to learn through subjection’ as in ‘to relax’ or ‘tame’, as in the O Du. to ‘bridle’ or ‘bit’ (later applied in Eng C16th to torture on the rack).
The post Where Did the Phrase “Break a Leg” Come From? appeared first on Reader's Digest. Skip to main content. 24/7 Help. For premium support please call: 800-290-4726 ...
Related: The Surprising Origins of 'Break a Leg' The Attachment Style That Manifests Good Luck "Those with secure attachments usually maintain healthier, more stable relationships, providing a ...
Amongst actors "Break a leg" is the usual phrase, while for professional dancers the traditional saying is merde (French, meaning "shit"). In Spanish, the phrase is mucha mierda , or "lots of shit", as in Portuguese (“muita merda”).
For example, break a leg is an expression commonly said to wish a person good luck just prior to their giving a performance or presentation, which apparently wishes injury on them. However, the phrase likely comes from a loan translation from a phrase of German and Yiddish origin, which is why it makes no literal sense in English.