Beech Tree News Network

The English language includes many short sayings. Some of those sayings are descriptive, but some are not as clearly understood. I heard someone mention “the dog days of summer” and decided to do a little research about that saying and four others. The information I found is below.

•The dog days of summer:

According to Wikipedia, the dog days of summer are “the hot, sultry days of summer. They were historically the period following the heliacal rising of the star Sirius, which Greek and Roman astrology connected with heat, drought, sudden thunderstorms, lethargy, fever, mad dogs, and bad luck. They are now taken to be the hottest, most uncomfortable part of summer in the Northern Hemisphere…. Various computations of the dog days have placed their start anywhere from 3 July to 15 August and lasting for anywhere from 30 to 61 days” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dog_days). This sounds like we are well into the dog days of summer.

•Barking up the wrong tree:

This phrase may mean looking in the wrong place or accusing the wrong person. It can also mean that one has completely misunderstood something or is totally wrong. The phrase is an allusion to the mistake made by dogs when they believe they have chased a prey up a tree, but the game may have escaped by leaping from one tree to another (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barking_up_the_wrong_tree). This saying always brings hunting images to my mind.

•Close but no cigar:

“Close but no cigar” refers to an effort that came close to succeeding but fell short at the end. This phrase might have been said to those who failed to win a prize for some activity (http://www.yourdictionary.com/close-but-no-cigar#2kM4Xyqst25y1lVx.99). The phrase reminds me of my grandfather who occasionally smoked cigars. My grandparents used the yellow King Edward cigar boxes (about 5 ½ x 8 ½ x 2 ½ inches) as small storage containers.

•Elephant in the room:

This phrase refers to ignoring a large, obvious problem or failing to address an issue that stands out in a major way. The expression might also apply to an obvious problem no one wants to discuss. The Urban Dictionary explained: “A very large issue that everyone is acutely aware of, but nobody wants to talk about. Perhaps a sore spot, perhaps politically incorrect, or perhaps a political hot potato, it's something that no one wants to touch with a ten foot pole” (http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=elephant%20in%20the%20room). I doubt that we use this phrase very often simply because whatever it would describe is a situation we are already avoiding.

•You are my sunshine:

These words were the title as well as the lyrics of a popular song, first recorded in 1939. I often heard it as a child and then sang part of it to my children – and likely my grandchildren. It was a way for me to tell them how important they were. The part I sang was: “You are my sunshine, my only sunshine, you make me happy when skies are grey.

You'll never know dear, how much I love you, please don't take my sunshine away” (https://www.bing.com/search?q=lyrics+of+you+are+my+sunshine+song&form=PR...). The rest of the lyrics are not as happy.

In a recent article, David Clarke (http://definition.org/13-common-phrases-no-kid-can-explain/) said: “Just as many of the words and phrases of today’s lingo will eventually become relics of history decades from now, we use a number of clichés that have all but lost their meaning.” Mr. Clarke would likely say that most – if not all – of the five sayings above have lost or are losing their meanings. This seems to be the way that language evolves.