Friday, February 19, 2010

WHAT'S IN A PHRASE - "MAKING WITH THE EYES"



T
he "
wool is being pulled over your eyes" when you allow yourself to be inveigled into something. Inveigle comes from aveugle, French for blind, which goes back to oculus, the Latin word for eye (ab + oculus, without the use of your eyes).


If you "make eyes at a girl" or "give her the eye" you are ogling her. Ogle comes from the Dutch word for eye and is related both to the German word auge and the Latin oculus. A supercillious person is one who arches his eyebrows and looks down his nose at you; in other words, "a high-brow" who "high-hats" you. Supercillious is made up of super (above or high) and cillia (eyelids or eyebrows). A person who is haughty (French haut, high) is just "uppity."

If you "close your eyes to" something that you know is going to happen you are guilty of conniving, the literal meaning of which is "winking along with."


5 comments:

Angelo said...

Ano naman po ang ibig sabihin ng "in a wink of an eye?"

Angelo said...

Ano naman po ang ibig sabihin ng "in a wink of an eye?"

Carlo said...

How about "kahit kaunting pagtingin?"

Nathan said...

Very informative! New phrase to live by.

Unknown said...

Now I know the word to use kapag may nagtaas ng kilay sa akin!