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Meet a deadline -

Probably one of the most popular phrases you'll hear throughout your entire life. First as a student, and then as an employee. Hopefully you won't die if you don't meet these deadlines, but crossing the original deadline would have that result!

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Meet a deadline -

A deadline was an actual line drawn on Civil War prisons. If a prisoner escaped and crossed that line, he would be killed. Not quite the same consequence as not responding to an email, right?

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Diehard - The term "diehard" dates back to the 1700s. But it wasn't quite used to describe a huge fan of something. Instead, it was attributed to those who struggled the longest when hanged!

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Diehard -

A few years later, the term became popular after its use in 1811’s Battle of Albuera, when British officer William Inglis supposedly told his men: "Stand your ground and die hard … make the enemy pay dear for each of us!"

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Wash one’s hands -

To "wash one's hands" of something is to discard any kind of responsibility in a given situation. What, exactly, is the context for this?

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Wash one’s hands -

This is literally what Pontius Pilate did, when he condemned Jesus Christ to die on the cross.

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Bite the bullet -

The phrase essentially means doing something/making a difficult decision that we've been hesitant to make.

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Bite the bullet -

It can be traced back to soldiers in battle who would have to go under emergency procedures without anesthesia or alcohol to numb the pain. They'd have to literally bite down on a bullet instead. 

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Running amok -

You know, when things get a little wild, crazy, or out of control. The word Amok comes from the Amuco, a band of Javanese and Malay warriors who would go on killing sprees for unknown reasons. There was believed to be some sort of mental condition afflicting those peoples.

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Running amok -

Captain James Cook wrote about it in 1772: “To run amok is to … sally forth from the house, kill the person or persons supposed to have injured the Amock, and any other person that attempts to impede his passage.”

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God bless you -

We've all heard it after someone sneezes. But why do we say it specifically after sneezing?

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God bless you -

Its origins can be traced back to the plague. It was used to express a desire for your soul to remain in your body, because the Black Death could take it.

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Sold down the river -

One is "sold down the river" when one is victim of a betrayal, or you got screwed over/cheated by someone. The expression was used in reference to slave trade.

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Sold down the river -

Slaves would literally be sold and sent down the Mississippi River to work on plantations in the South.

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Crocodile tears -

This is a popular phrase usually used to describe false sorrow and faking an emotional response. But the whole phrase is based on a medieval myth.

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Crocodile tears -

People back then believed that crocodiles actually cried tears of sadness while they killed and ate their prey.

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Mad as a hatter -

This one is fairly easy to associate with the Mad Hatter in Lewis Carroll’s book 'Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.'

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Mad as a hatter -

But the character himself is quite dark. Back in Victorian times, men were actually suffering from mental health problems caused by exposure to mercury, which was used to make felt hats more flexible.

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Pulling my leg -

"Pulling my leg" is usually used when someone is trying to fool us, or playing us in a way. It's a popular expression in the UK, and it can be traced back to Victorian London.

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Pulling my leg -

Back then, dragging a person by the leg was a common way for robbers to get their hands on one's possessions.

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To wreak havoc -

We tend to associate this phrase with things getting out of control and the destruction that may come with it.

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To wreak havoc -

The origins of the phrase actually mean the same, but it was used on the battlefield to give soldiers permission to do whatever they wanted, including committing slaughter. The practice was actually outlawed in England in the 1300s.

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A snafu -

This expression is often used when something has gone wrong. But what does it mean, really?

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A snafu -

"Snafu" comes from the World War II military acronym S.N.A.F.U., which stands for Situation Normal, All [ ] Up. Which, in the context of war, means exactly that.

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Taken aback -

This expression is often used when one is caught off guard, not expecting something. It's origins are also quite dark.

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Taken aback -

It comes form the idea of attacking someone from behind. The element of surprise usually makes it an effective way to conduct an attack.

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Got gypped -

This phrase is used when a person is scammed, such as being cheated out of money or sold a poor-quality product. The origins are based on prejudice against Romani people, often referred to as gypsies. 

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Bum-rush -

We've all seen moments when crowds bum-rush the field when their teams win an important game. It essentially means a great force. Its origins? Well, it was used back in the 19th century to convey eviction or dismissal of freeloaders in saloons.

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Be-all, end-all -

William Shakespeare has made a huge contribution to the English language. He is credited for inventing numerous phrases and words. "Be-all, end-all" is one of them.

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Be-all, end-all -

The phrase is used to describe a defining moment/the most important thing in a scenario. The playwright first used it when Macbeth was about to kill the king in his famous play 'Macbeth.'

Sources: (Reader's Digest) (History)

See also: Common English words and phrases you'll be surprised to know have racist origins

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