IdiomDaily Life
English
Englishstand one's ground
Meaning: To refuse to retreat or back down.
Example: “The shopkeeper stood her ground and refused the bribe.”
Equivalents in other languages
Norwegian: Å ha bein i nesa Literally: To have bones in the nose
Origin: Military: soldiers who held their position instead of retreating stood their ground. The phrase is found from the 16th century, and later figuratively of refusing to back down in an argument.
More English idioms
- strange bedfellows People or things that one does not normally expect to find together.
- strapped for cash Not having quite enough money.
- street smarts The knowledge one needs to live on the streets; less literally, it means knowledge of the…
- stretch the truth To be truthful technically, but to distort the truth so that others are led to believe so…
- strike it rich To become rich or successful suddenly.
- string someone along To make someone believe something that is not true.
Explore another collection: Proverbs
Short sayings of timeless wisdom from more than 50 cultures, each with its meaning and origin.
- 千里之堤，溃于蚁穴 (Qiān lǐ zhī dī, kuì yú yǐ xué) A small neglected flaw can bring down something great.
- 情人眼里出西施 (Qíngrén yǎn lǐ chū Xīshī) A lover sees beauty in the beloved that others may not.
- 吃一堑，长一智 (Chī yí qiàn, zhǎng yí zhì) Every setback teaches you something.
Keep exploring