Englishkeep your chin up
Meaning: to remain optimistic; to stay courageous during difficulty.
Example: “Keep your chin up; you'll find another apartment soon.”
Origin: Rests on posture that reads the same everywhere: dejection drops the head and pulls the chin toward the chest, while raising the chin is the physical signature of composure and defiance. Because the posture and the mood reinforce each other in both directions — holding the head up genuinely does make a person feel steadier — the instruction is less metaphorical than it sounds. The phrase is American and attested from around 1900, and it became strongly associated with civilian morale during the World Wars, when it was used less as advice about how to feel than as advice about how to carry oneself while feeling something else entirely.
Equivalents in other languages
French: Haut les cœurs ! Literally: Up with the hearts!
More English idioms
- the real McCoy the genuine article; something authentic and high quality.
- cry over spilled milk to regret something past; useless to grieve over unchangeable events.
- go pear-shaped to go wrong; to develop badly; to become misshapen.
- hard pill to swallow difficult to accept; unpleasant truth or reality.
- be on cloud nine to be extremely happy; in a state of bliss.
- get a kick out of something to enjoy something greatly; to find something amusing.
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