Að taka einhvern á beinið

Meaning: To give someone a stern talking-to.

Language: Icelandic

Literally: To take someone onto the bone

Category: Body & Senses

Origin: Hauling a person 'onto the bone' pictures pulling them aside for a serious reprimand.

More idioms — Body & Senses

• Mať dlhé prsty — To be light-fingered; a thief.
• Biti ob živce — To be a nervous wreck.
• Sukti galvą — To rack your brains.
• Ņemt kāju pār plecu — To hurry off at once.
• Nina püsti käima — To be snooty and arrogant.
• Namumuti ang mata — To wait in vain for a very long time.

More Icelandic idioms

• Að fara í geitarhús að leita ullar — To seek something where it can't possibly be found.
• Að leggja árar í bát — To give up and stop trying.
• Að leggja höfuðið í bleyti — To sleep on a problem and think hard about it.
• Þetta reddast — Things will work out fine in the end.
• Að ganga með grasið í skónum — To be secretly in love or full of longing.
• Að kasta til höndunum — To do a job carelessly and in haste.

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