Break a leg the kids guide to acting and stagecraft by. The sayings and phrases series continues its march through. Instead, it lists an obsolete meaning of to give birth to a bastard child, from circa 1670. The most popular theory is that theater casts and crews are superstitious, believing that straightforwardly wishing someone good luck is. Hope you break a leg and get onstage so that you get paid. Subscribe to our free daily email and get a new idiom video every day. There are some who argue that it originated when john wilkes booth broke his leg after assassinating president lincoln in fords theatre. It may have arisen from the superstition that one ought not utter the words good luck to an actor because it was believed that doing so caused the opposite result.
Scholastic dictionary of idioms book by marvin terban. Definition of break a leg in the idioms dictionary. Translation for break a l eg in the free englishfrench dictionary and many other french translations. Break a leg in michael quinion, ballyhoo, buckaroo, and spuds. Break in definition, an illegal entry into a home, car, office, etc. Theatrical types are well known for their belief in superstitions, or at least for their willingness to make a. Something similar to this theory appears in the nonliteral subsection of the wikipedia article on break a leg. We usually say break a leg to actors and musicians before they go on stage to perform, but it can be used as for other situations too.
Break a leg definition and meaning collins dictionary. This is used for a stage performeror for anyone else who is about to give some kind of a performance, such as an important speech. This means that english idioms should not be taken literally, because their meaning is. With all the break a leg dancing there are many who still warm to graceful soft shoe stepping. Break a leg definition of break a leg by medical dictionary. These example sentences show you how leg break is used. It is typically said to actors and musicians before they go on stage to perform. When you encourage someone to break a leg, you might also want to encourage them to knock em dead or do a great job.
Greens dictionary of slang oup says to compare the english exclamation to the german one and has this as the earliest reference to break a leg. My first stage performance is scheduled for tonight. Ingenious tales of words and their origins, washington, d. Break a leg is a wellknown idiom in theatre which means good luck. To crush is to subject to usually heavy or violent pressure so as to press out of shape or reduce to shapelessness or to small. Translation of break a leg englishmandarin chinese dictionary break a leg. Break a leg is used in informal english when we wish someone good luck, especially before a performance.
Mar 03, 2017 theatre people are a superstitious lot. So the phrase break a leg referred to breaking the visual plane of. The term break a leg may be traced back to the elizabethan language. There are a large number of idioms and they are used very commonly in all languages. There is an older meaning of break a leg going back to the 17th and 18th century that refers to having a bastard natural child. So as not to tempt fate before a performance, show people say, break a leg.
This lesson is following on from small list on english idioms, again you will be able to use the list below to learn any idioms that you read about or hear about you dont understand. An ironic or nonliteral 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, likely first used in this context in the united states in the 1920s or 1930s, 2 probably without specifically theatrical associations at first. Change your default dictionary to american english. Oct 05, 2015 learn english for free with free spirit english. Join dara as he shares common idioms that will help you speak english fluently. To wish a performer good luck might jinx him or her. These examples are from the cambridge english corpus and from sources on the web.
Definition and synonyms of break a leg from the online english dictionary from macmillan education. Break a leg meaning in the cambridge english dictionary. Illustrated throughout with informative howto and candid shots of young working actors, break a leg. English only forum break a leg or an arm english only forum break a leg, break the nose articles usage. Since a successful actor would break a leg onstage and receive applause, the phrase would, in effect, be a wish for good luck. Idiom examples dictionary definitions you can understand. While a break could indicate either upward or downward change, the connotation is negative. Break a leg is an entertainment idiom that is used to wish someone good luck, especially in a live theater production. Breakout definition in the cambridge english dictionary.
Leg break is in our corpus but we dont have a definition yet. Book on out of somewhere boost of someone up boot someone out booze it up bore you to death. An idiom s symbolic sense is quite different from the literal meaning or definition of the words of which it is made. The following lesson provides what does break a leg mean, its origin and how to use this idiom with useful examples. There are several theories regarding the origin of this phrase. Tonights your first time acting in front of an audience isnt it. Translation for break a leg in the free englishfrench dictionary and many other french translations.
It is most common in the theatre, where actors say it to each other or family and friends say it to actors before taking the stage. Examples of how to use leg break in a sentence from the cambridge dictionary labs. This is the british english definition of break a leg. Break a leg, he whispered in my ear before releasing me. Break camp definition of break camp by the free dictionary. Idioms break camp, to pack up tents and equipment and resume a journey or march. C smithsonian books in association with penguin books, 2004, isbn. I shouted out to him before he rushed in for his auditions.
A phrase of encouragement typically said to one who is about to perform before an audience, especially a theater actor. An idiom is a saying that does not mean what the words literally express, but rather it has some representative meaning behind the words. Break a leg break a leg is a wellknown idiom in theatre which means good luck. I have heard the expression break a leg all my conscious life from the 1960s forward, and i believe that it is extremely well known today in the united stateshence its inclusion in a book of cliches. May 31, 2015 this feature is not available right now. The expression break a leg has been common among actors since the early 1900s and presumably reflects a theatrical superstition in which wishing a person good luck is considered bad luck. List of idioms beginning with b english lesson what will i learn from the english lesson list of idioms beginning with b. Break a leg break a record break a story break away from something break bread with someone.
Especially on the futures market, a break means a steep decline in price, usually the result of a natural disaster affecting. From aristophanes to zeffirelli, from gerard depardieu to mae west, in break a leg. It is thought to be used due to the superstition that wishing one good luck will result in the opposite, but the exact origin of the phrase is unknown. I wish you good luck on the completion of your book writing for publishing. To break a leg, in shakespeares time, meant, literally, to bow by bending at the knee. A sudden, unexpected change in a securitys price or in a markets value. These verbs mean to become separated into parts or pieces, either by the sudden application of force or by the pressure of internal stress. Ive run into considerable debate over the origin of this one. Among the many sayings for good luck, you can hear actors whisper neck and leg break to each other as the footlights dim and the curtain rises each. Dont actually break your leg common english idioms explained.
Break a leg right before i walked out on stage, my mother told me to break a leg. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the cambridge dictionary editors or of cambridge university press or its licensors. Phrase of the day the idiom break a leg is usually used in theater to wish good luck to actors before they go up on stage. Break a leg definicion y significado diccionario ingles collins. Check out our website for more free english lessons. For example, when someone said, break a leg to him before a choir concert he got very upset and asked me why his friend would want him to get hurt. Break a leg definition and meaning collins english dictionary. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more. Partridge dictionary of slang and unconventional english has to break a leg as to give birth to a bastard, dating from the seventeenth century, but that is probably unconnected.
And other odd things we say sayings and phrases ebook. So it is possible that when an actor is told to break a leg, heshe may just be being exhorted to put on an energetic, exciting performance. Breaka leg in gary martin, the phrase finder, 1997. Break a leg definicion y significado diccionario ingles. Jason sent phillip a fax from the airport before mondays show, with the greeting. Explain to your class what an idiom is, and ask them to listen for and make a note of idioms they might hear or read, whether at school, home, on tv, or in a book. Break a leg is a typical english idiom used in theatre to wish a performer good luck. The idiom break a leg is usually used in theater to wish good luck to actors before they go up on stage. Break a code break a habit break a leg break a record break a story break away from something break bread with someone to break down to break someone of something to break the ice. Test your vocabulary with our fun image quizzes pyright1. When you encourage a friend to sing their heart out before a performance, youre encouraging them to give it their all and have some fun. An ironic or nonliteral saying of uncertain origin a dead metaphor, break a leg is commonly said to actors and musicians before they go on stage to perform, likely first used in this context in the united states in the 1920s or 1930s, probably without specifically theatrical associations at first. This book is amazing my son has aspergers and what that meant for us was the he took everything he heard literally. Learn the meaning of popular english phrases and expressions with example.
To cause to separate into pieces suddenly or violently. Break a leg break a leg break a leg break a leg break a leg arm break a leg out there leg spinner, leg break, a googly, a flipper to break a leg break a leg outside theatre english only forum break a leg. This phrase has its origin in the world of theater. As also is the fact that john wilkes booth, an actor, broke his leg after assassinating president lincoln in a theatre. My favorite having understudied a few times is that it came from the understudies telling the primaries to break a leg enough times that it came to be considered bad luck if they didnt say it.
The phrase break a leg is a jovial encouragement, said to actors for good luck before they go on stage, especially on an opening night. She draws on plays, books, newspapers and tabletalk and her collection of wise and. We use cookies to enhance your experience on our website, including to provide targeted advertising and track usage. Similarly, in the days of vaudeville, companies would book more performers than could. When the team went out for the final race, the coach shouted out to them break a leg. I told my friend to break a leg, before she went on stage. Feb 02, 2020 break a leg in michael quinion, ballyhoo, buckaroo, and spuds. A common wish of luck said before a performance of some kind. Invariably, producers, managers, director and fellow cast members decide to pop their heads around dressingroom doors for a quick chat and a cheery break a leg, darling. Evidently, in the days of early vaudeville, the producers would book more performers. An idiom is a phrase, saying or a group of words that has a metaphorical not literal meaning, which has become accepted in common usage. Gather the examples presented, and redistribute them amongst your charges just to mix it up a bit, this time asking them to uncover the origins of those particular phrases. Break a leg definition of break a leg by the free dictionary.
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