IdiomDaily Life

English

not get off the ground

Meaning: To fail to make any progress at all.

Example: “The community garden never got off the ground for lack of water.”

Origin: An aircraft that never leaves the runway. The figurative use is common from the mid-20th century.

Equivalents in other languages

German: auf keinen grünen Zweig kommen Literally: To not come onto any green branch

More English idioms

green with envy Extremely jealous.
keep someone on a short leash To keep someone under close control.
not for all the tea in China Under no circumstances.
rein someone in To bring someone under control.
keep one's feet on the ground To stay realistic and unaffected by success.
become second nature To become so familiar that one does it without thinking.

Explore another collection: False Friends

Words that look familiar in another language but mean something else entirely.

Actual Actually means 'current' or 'present'. For actual (real), say real or verdadero.
Largo Actually means 'long'. For large, say grande.
Molestar Actually means 'to bother' or 'to annoy'. ¿Te molesta el ruido? = Does the noise bother y…

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