IdiomDaily Life
EnglishCrude
EnglishCrudemake a pass at
Meaning: To make a sexual or romantic advance toward someone.
Example: “At the office party, the new salesman made a pass at the boss's daughter.”
Origin: "Pass" here is probably from fencing or from a hand movement, an attempt or thrust. It was in use by the 1920s; Dorothy Parker's 1926 quip "Men seldom make passes / At girls who wear glasses" helped make it famous.
Equivalents in other languages
French: Proposer la botte à quelqu'un Literally: To propose the thrust to someone- French: Faire du gringue Literally: To make some gringue
More English idioms
- come down on someone like a ton of bricks To criticize or punish someone very severely.
- set tongues wagging To cause people to gossip.
- give free rein To give someone complete freedom to act.
- jump ship To abandon a group or cause, often for a rival.
- left on the shelf To be considered too old to marry; more generally, to be passed over.
- take with a grain of salt To be skeptical about something; not to take it entirely at face value.
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