the power behind the throne
Meaning: Someone with no official title who secretly controls a leader.
Language: English
Literally: (Already vivid in English)
Example: “The senator's chief of staff is the real power behind the throne.”
Category: Daily Life
Origin: The image is of an adviser standing behind a monarch. A version is found in the 18th century; the modern phrase is common from the 19th century.
Equivalents in other languages
- French: Une éminence grise — literally: A gray eminence
More idioms — Daily Life
- born in a trunk — Raised in a family of traveling performers and in the business from childhood.
- the road to hell is paved with good intentions — Good intentions are worthless, or even harmful, if they lead to bad actions.
- against all odds — Despite great difficulty or opposition.
- cold hard cash — Actual money in coins and bills, not credit or promises.
- cherchez la femme — There is probably a woman behind this situation.
- throw money down the drain — To waste money.
More English idioms
- fall into someone's lap — To come to someone without any effort.
- fire in the belly — Strong ambition and drive.
- all fired up — Very excited or enthusiastic.
- the oldest trick in the book — A very familiar trick that should not fool anyone.
- a slippery slope — A small step that leads to worse and worse consequences.
- snug as a bug in a rug — Very warm and comfortable.
From our tongue twisters
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- Red lorry, yellow lorry. — The 'l/r' alternation drill — deceptively short, yet almost impossible to say fast withou…
- How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood? — A 'w/ch/ck' drill that accelerates comically — and nobody really knows the answer.