11/13/2022 0 Comments Night call![]() This phrase meant that the speaker was leaving work early, only working half of the day. The expression call it a day is actually part of a longer phrase used in the early 1800s: call it half a day. It is also common to call it a day when one is engaged in a task he is not enjoying. In this case, someone may call it a day in the hopes that a fresh start in the morning will bring more success. One may call it a day because he has successfully completed something, or he may call it a day because nothing is going right and he is unsuccessful. When one is tired and has been working hard, it is time to come to a stopping point and call it a day. We will examine the meaning of the idioms call it a day and call it a night, where they came from, and some examples of their use in sentences.Ĭall it a day is an idiom used when one ceases to work. In addition to learning vocabulary and grammar, one must understand the phrasing of the figurative language of idiomatic phrases in order to know English like a native speaker. Many English as a Second Language students do not understand idiomatic expressions such as beat around the bush, spill the beans, let the cat out of the bag, chin up, on the ball, barking up the wrong tree, kick the bucket, hit the nail on the head, under the weather, piece of cake, when pigs fly, and raining cats and dogs, as they attempt to translate them word for word, which yields only the literal meaning. Mastery of the turn of phrase of an idiom or other parts of speech is essential for the English learner. Figures of speech have definitions and connotations that go beyond the literal meaning of the words. An idiom is a metaphorical figure of speech, and it is understood that it is not a use of literal language. English idioms can illustrate emotion more quickly than a phrase that has a literal meaning, even when the etymology or origin of the idiomatic expression is lost. Often using descriptive imagery, common idioms are words and phrases used in the English language in order to convey a concise idea, and are often spoken or are considered informal or conversational. An idiom is a word, group of words or phrase that has a figurative meaning that is not easily deduced from its literal definition. Call it a day and call it a night are idioms that came into use in the twentieth century. ![]()
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