XPost: alt.usage.english, alt.english.usage

[bear's service] -- reminds me of [lion's share]

it seems that 99% of the people who use the expression
[lion's share] use it to mean just [a big share]

In everyday use, people often use "lion's share" to simply mean a

large portion, not necessarily taking everything. It's become more of a
general term for getting the biggest part of something.



On Friday, September 23, 2022 at 12:38:13 PM UTC-7, [email protected] wrote:

On Friday, September 23, 2022 at 4:38:49 AM UTC-7, db wrote:

I was reading a piece about how to get rid of slugs in your
garden, and the text (verbose as usual) introduced slugs,
and commented "a sight for sore eyes"; evidently meaning a
bad sight. I assume this has not spread widely though.

We have a word in Danish that has flipped meaning,
"bjørnetjeneste", literally bear's service, meaning a bad
service or favour, but young people now tend to focus on
the strength and size of bears and take it to mean a good
service done.

--
Dieter Britz

https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/sight_for_sore_eyes

Dutch: lust voor het oog

thanks for the Tidbit about flipped meaning !

i found the paragraph.


This is Google's cache of https://www.express.co.uk/life-style/garden/1672708/how-to-get-rid-of-slugs-garden-plants-vinegar-citrus-peel


Autumn is one of the busiest seasons for
slugs with plenty of hiding places to choose from to lay their eggs.
Their long, slimy bodies are not only a sight for sore eyes, but they
can be a nuisance for gardeners too - especially around fruits and
vegetables. While it is almost impossible to stop slugs emerging on a
cool, damp evening, there are lots of quick and effective ways to
prevent (((your))) precious plants from being eaten. According to pest experts, all you need is (((are?))) a few household ingredients to
get the job done.


------ for some reason, reading the paragraph made me think it's a she.
i was right > By Phoebe Cornish


------------- at least she didn't use
the phrase [for a long period of time]

Autumn is one of the busiest seasons -------- bad writing.

--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
* Origin: fsxNet Usenet Gateway (21:1/5)

XPost: alt.usage.english, alt.english.usage

On 3/29/2024 2:27 PM, HenHanna wrote:

[bear's service] -- reminds me of  [lion's share]

          it seems that 99% of the people who use the expression
                  [lion's share] use it to mean just [a big share]

  In everyday use, people often use "lion's share" to simply mean a large portion, not necessarily taking everything. It's become more of a general term for getting the biggest part of something.

On Friday, September 23, 2022 at 12:38:13 PM UTC-7, [email protected]
wrote:

On Friday, September 23, 2022 at 4:38:49 AM UTC-7, db wrote:

I was reading a piece about how to get rid of slugs in your
garden, and the text (verbose as usual) introduced slugs,
and commented "a sight for sore eyes"; evidently meaning a
bad sight. I assume this has not spread widely though.

We have a word in Danish that has flipped meaning,
"bjørnetjeneste", literally bear's service, meaning a bad
service or favour, but young people now tend to focus on
the strength and size of bears and take it to mean a good
service done.

--
Dieter Britz

https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/sight_for_sore_eyes

Dutch: lust voor het oog

thanks for the Tidbit about flipped meaning !

i found the paragraph.

This is Google's cache of https://www.express.co.uk/life-style/garden/1672708/how-to-get-rid-of-slugs-garden-plants-vinegar-citrus-peel

                            Autumn is one of the busiest seasons for
slugs with plenty of hiding places to choose from to lay their eggs.
Their long, slimy bodies are not only a sight for sore eyes, but they
can be a nuisance for gardeners too - especially around fruits and vegetables. While it is almost impossible to stop slugs emerging on a
cool, damp evening, there are lots of quick and effective ways to
prevent (((your)))  precious plants from being eaten. According to pest experts, all you need is    (((are?)))  a few household ingredients to get the job done.

------  for some reason, reading the paragraph made me think it's a she.
                        i was right    >  By Phoebe Cornish

          -------------  at least she didn't use
                         the phrase   [for a long period of time]

  Autumn is one of the busiest seasons  -------- bad writing.

Here are some expressions in other languages that have a similar meaning
to "a sight for sore eyes":

French:
C'est un bonheur pour les yeux (It's a happiness for the eyes)

Qu'est-ce que ça fait du bien de te voir ! (How good it is to see you!) [informal]



German:
Schön, dich zu sehen! (Nice to see you!) [informal] -- not similar!

Ein Augenfest (A feast for the eyes)

--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
* Origin: fsxNet Usenet Gateway (21:1/5)