Lesson 2 Make Your Conversation Colorful
It’s All Greek to Me
Have ____ heard the expression, “It’s Greek to me”?
It means “I can’t understand what you are saying because it sounds ____ a foreign language to me.”
You may wonder why it is ____ French or Italian but Greek.
The reason is that the Ancient Greeks had an enormous influence on Western ____.
Greece was the ____ of Classical Western civilization, and therefore, also left us with some pretty great idioms.
Idioms pose a special challenge in language learning because their meanings are different ____ the words that make them up.
Learning their origins will make it easier to understand what they mean and to figure out ____ to use them.
____ are four English idioms with Greek origins.
Achilles’ Heel
According to Homer, the Ancient Greek ____, the Greeks and Trojans had a war that lasted ten years.
This war eventually ____ known as the Trojan War, where Achilles became the most famous hero.
When Achilles was born, his ____, a goddess of water, attempted to make him immortal.
She ____ him in the magical River Styx.
Wherever the water touched, the part touched ____ become indestructible.
However, because she ____ him upside down by one of his heels, Achilles’ heel remained dry.
This became his ____ weak spot.
Achilles grew up to be a great ____ and survived many great battles.
____, during the Trojan War, Paris, a prince of Troy, shot a poisoned arrow that struck Achilles’ heel, which led to his death.
This is why the idiom “Achilles’ heel” refers to a fatal weakness, especially in a situation ____ all other parts are strong.
Trojan Horse
Even after the death of Achilles, the Trojan War ____ a point where no one could win.
One day, the Greeks came up with an ____.
They ____ a big wooden horse and left it outside the city of Troy.
They ____ to leave the horse behind as a gift for the Trojans.
The Trojans thought they ____ won, so they pulled the horse inside their city gates.
However, the Greeks had ____ their soldiers inside the horse.
That night, the soldiers came ____ of the horse and opened the gates to let in the Greek army waiting outside.
This allowed the Greeks to ____ the war.
____, people use the idiom “Trojan horse” to describe a trick or scheme that is used to hide someone’s true purpose or intention.
Cut the Gordian Knot
Greek legend tells of the Gordian Knot, which was tied by a king named ____.
The ____ was so complex that no one was able to untie it.
A prophet said ____ could untie the knot would become the ruler of Asia.
For hundreds of years, people unsuccessfully tried to ____ the knot.
____, Alexander the Great came along.
He tried to untie it, and it just got ____.
____ thinking for a while, he drew his sword and cut the knot in half!
Everyone was shocked because that was ____ what they had expected.
He explained, “It doesn’t ____ how the knot was untied. The important thing is that it’s undone.”
From that day on, the idiom “cutting the Gordian knot” has been ____ used to describe a simple solution to a complex problem.
Spill the Beans
In ancient Greece, people often discussed ____ matters and made decisions through voting.
They cast votes by dropping a white or black ____ into a clay jar.
White beans were used for positive votes, and black ____ for negative votes.
These votes were cast in secret, so if someone knocked over the jar, whether by accident or on purpose, they ____ the beans and revealed the results of the vote prematurely.
Because of this origin, the phrase “____ the beans” came to mean “reveal information that was meant to be kept secret.”
Idioms are an important ____ of everyday English, and they make the language rich and colorful.
When you run into idioms that are “____ to you,” take the time to study their origins.
It is a fun way to increase your understanding of English, and it can also help you to remember them and use them in the appropriate situations going ____.