work one's fingers to the bone

Meaning: To work extremely hard.

Language: English

Literally: (Already vivid in English)

Example: “She worked her fingers to the bone to keep the shop open.”

Category: Body & Senses

Origin: A comic exaggeration of hands worn away by labor. The phrase is recorded from the 19th century.

Equivalents in other languages

watch one's back — To stay alert to hidden threats.
set someone's heart racing — To excite or alarm someone.
forget one's own head — To be extremely forgetful.
take to one's heels — To run away.
drag one's feet — To delay deliberately.
be tone-deaf — To be unable to tell musical notes apart; also, to have no sense of how others feel.

move with the times — To keep up with change instead of clinging to old ways.
beat the drum for something — To promote something loudly and publicly.
any old how — Carelessly, with no attention to doing it properly.
where the sun doesn't shine — Somewhere hidden; also a rude way of naming the body.
without a fight — With no resistance at all.
pave the way — To prepare the ground so that something can happen later.

Backpfeifengesicht — A face that is just begging to be slapped — someone so smug you can't help the urge.
Tartle — That panicky pause when you go to introduce someone and realize you've forgotten their na…
Tampo — Pulling back your warmth and affection when you've been hurt — going quiet and distant, h…