Russian roulette
Meaning: Any high-risk activity undertaken needlessly, where disaster may strike without warning.
Language: English
Literally: (Already vivid in English)
Category: The Absurd
Origin: The phrase originates from an actual deadly game played by Russian soldiers in the 19th century, in which a revolver with a single loaded chamber is spun and fired at the head.
More idioms — The Absurd
- nothing short of — Absolutely; entirely; completely—nothing less than the full extent of what is stated.
- hammer and tongs — With great vigor and force; in a determined and vigorous manner.
- rhyme or reason — Any logical sense or reasonable explanation.
- blow up in one's face — To fail spectacularly or cause a plan to collapse in an embarrassing way.
- tilt at windmills — To waste effort fighting against imaginary enemies or pursuing hopeless causes.
- one is a poet and doesn't know it — Someone has unintentionally created a rhyme or spoken in verse without realizing it.
More English idioms
- pull back the curtain — To expose a hidden truth or reality behind an appearance.
- present company excepted — These remarks do not apply to anyone currently present in this conversation.
- on sufferance — Tolerated reluctantly and only because one has no better choice.
- set in stone — Unchangeable and permanent, fixed beyond modification.
- friend of Bill W. — A recovering alcoholic, especially one in Alcoholics Anonymous.
- wear out one's welcome — To overstay one's time as a guest until one's presence becomes unwelcome or burdensome.
From our untranslatable words
- Chōu kōng — To steal a moment of escape from a hectic schedule — finding a sliver of free time and us…
- Jugaad — A creative, frugal fix — a clever improvised solution that gets things done with whatever…
- Cafuné — The tender act of running your fingers through someone's hair — an intimate gesture of lo…