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A bad excuse is better than none; A bad penny always turns up; A bad workman blames his tools; A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush; A cat may look at a king; A chain is only as strong as its weakest link; A dog is a man's best friend; A drowning man will clutch at a straw; A fool and his money are soon parted [4] A friend in need (is a ...
An idiom is a common word or phrase with a figurative, non-literal meaning that is understood culturally and differs from what its composite words' denotations would suggest; i.e. the words together have a meaning that is different from the dictionary definitions of the individual words (although some idioms do retain their literal meanings – see the example "kick the bucket" below).
Breaking a mirror is said to bring seven years of bad luck [1]; A bird or flock of birds going from left to right () [citation needed]Certain numbers: The number 4.Fear of the number 4 is known as tetraphobia; in Chinese, Japanese, and Korean languages, the number sounds like the word for "death".
Jeff Williams' song "Bad Luck Charm" contains the line "I'm a cursed black cat, I'm an albatross, I'm a mirror broken, Sad to say, I'm your bad luck charm". Josh Ritter refers to a lingering albatross in his song "Monster Ballad". The characters are lost in the desert after having been lost at sea.
Bad luck often brings good luck. Every cloud has a silver lining. Every ill-luck is good for something in a wise man's hand. Every medal has its dark side. Every tide has its ebb. No great loss without some small gain; It is an ill wind that blows no one good. Nothing is so bad in which there is not something good.
There are many theories as to the origin of Toi toi toi as an idiom. In folklore it was used to ward off a spell or hex, often accompanied by knocking on wood or spitting. One origin theory sees "toi toi toi" as the onomatopoeic rendition of spitting three times, a common practice in many parts of the world to ward off evil spirits.
By saying the phrase, the bad luck of letting something come between them is thought to be averted. [1] Both walkers must say the phrase, [2] and if they do not do this, then a bitter quarrel is expected to occur. [3] The concept derives from the difficulty of separating butter from bread once it has been spread – buttered bread cannot be ...
The word skidoo, used by itself as a noun denoting a supposed bringer of bad luck, is attested in the early 1910s, in P. G. Wodehouse's Psmith, Journalist. [14] It appeared in newspapers as early as 1906.