Englishin full swing
Meaning: At the peak of activity or intensity.
Example: “By nine o'clock, the festival was in full swing.”
Equivalents in other languages
German: Da steppt der Bär Literally: The bear dances there
French: Battre son plein Literally: To be at its full
Origin: Documented from the mid-1800s, and most plausibly grounded in the literal image of a swinging pendulum, rope, or dancer's body reaching its point of greatest momentum and force — "full swing" as the peak of a motion's natural arc, not yet slowing down. A related, earlier sense of "swing" for the general course or run of a career or period of activity dates back to the 1500s, which may have fed into the modern phrase as well. Either way, "in full swing" settled into describing anything — a party, a project, a season — that has moved well past its tentative beginning and reached its peak level of activity.
More English idioms
- in the loop Informed.
- in the nick of time At the last moment, just before something bad happens.
- in the pink In good health or good condition.
- in the red Losing money; not making a profit.
- in the mainstream In the group that represents the majority; out of the mainstream means on the edge of the…
- it's all Greek to me Incomprehensible or unintelligible.
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Words that look familiar in another language but mean something else entirely.
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