IdiomDaily Life
English
Englishmake oneself scarce
Meaning: To leave quickly, or to keep out of the way.
Example: “When the dishes needed washing, my brother made himself scarce.”
Origin: "Scarce" means hard to find, so making oneself scarce is becoming hard to find. The phrase is recorded from the early 19th century.
Equivalents in other languages
Catalan: Tocar el dos Literally: To touch the two
Spanish: mandarse a mudar Literally: To order oneself to move
Dutch: zich uit de voeten maken Literally: To make oneself away with the feet
More English idioms
- one's heart sinks To feel sudden disappointment or dread.
- shoulder to shoulder Side by side, working together.
- grow like wildfire To spread very fast.
- not on your life Absolutely not.
- tread carefully To act with great caution in a delicate situation.
- pull the other one Said to someone telling an obvious lie.
Explore another collection: False Friends
Words that look familiar in another language but mean something else entirely.
Keep exploring