IdiomDaily Life
English
Englishhave the blues
Meaning: To feel sad or depressed.
Example: “Every January, when the holidays are over and the days are dark, I get the blues.”
Origin: Short for "the blue devils," which in the 18th century meant low spirits and later the hallucinations of delirium tremens. "The blues" is recorded for melancholy from the mid-18th century, well before the name passed to the music that grew up in the American South at the end of the 19th century.
Equivalents in other languages
French: Avoir le cafard Literally: To have the cockroach- French: Avoir le bourdon Literally: To have the bumblebee
More English idioms
- have bigger fish to fry To have more important things to deal with.
- navel-gaze To be absorbed in oneself and one's own concerns to an excessive degree.
- be a pain in the neck To be very annoying.
- have one's cake and eat it too To want two things that cannot both be had.
- muddy the waters To make a situation confusing, often on purpose.
- be bone idle To be extremely lazy.
Explore another collection: False Friends
Words that look familiar in another language but mean something else entirely.
- Lectura Actually means 'reading'. A lecture is una conferencia.
- Compromiso Actually means 'commitment', 'obligation', or 'engagement'. For a negotiated compromise,…
- Gracioso Actually means 'funny' or 'amusing'. For gracious (kind and polite), say amable.
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