IdiomDaily Life
English
Englishnothing doing
Meaning: Refusal; there is no chance of that happening.
Example: “I asked for a discount, and the answer was nothing doing.”
Origin: American slang from the early 20th century, short for something like "there is nothing doing here," that is, nothing happening.
Equivalents in other languages
Spanish: No hay tu tía Literally: There is no your aunt
More English idioms
- have had it up to here To be completely fed up.
- sly as a fox Very cunning.
- walk a tightrope To be in a situation where one small mistake would be disastrous.
- a spare tire A roll of fat around the waist.
- count one's chickens before they hatch To rely on something good before it has actually happened.
- small potatoes Something unimportant or trivial.
Explore another collection: False Friends
Words that look familiar in another language but mean something else entirely.
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- Conveniente Actually means 'affordable', 'good value', or 'suitable'. È conveniente = It's a good dea…
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