And who would have thought that you say that without imagining where it came from?
From ages when people said “the snake is going to smoke” without even imagining the Second World War, to today when “hitting the water with donkeys” seems natural — our everyday speech carries traces of the past. There are common expressions that we use without thinking, but each of them has a curious and sometimes surprising story.
Here are ten examples — and their origins might make you want to go back in time.
10 expressions you use every day and don’t even know where they come from
1. The snake will smoke
It was an incredulous comment about Brazil’s participation in the Second World War: “it’s easier for a snake to smoke” than for this to happen. But it happened: and the Army embraced the expression as a symbol of the Brazilian Expeditionary Force. According to the website Superinteressante, the term gained strength in 1944.
2. Crowdfunding
Vasco fans, in the 1920s, collected contributions from fans to reward players after victories. “Cow”, in the animal game, represented high value — hence the name.
3. For English see
In the 19th century, Brazil pretended to take measures against the slave trade to please England, without actually taking action. It was a facade — “for the English to see”.
4. Kick the bucket
Origin somewhat uncertain. One theory suggests that, in hangings, condemned men were positioned over buckets that were kicked over; another talks about rural slaughterhouses.
5. Hitting the hay
In the colonial era, donkeys carried goods along trails. They often fell in floods or crossed rivers that carried cargo and animals to the bottom. Whoever lost everything “hit the ground running”.
6. Messing up
“Bedelho” was a small lock or something insignificant. To insert the nuisance was to place something irrelevant where it is not called for — to intrude.
7. Half-bowl
During the time of the Portuguese monarchy, servants received food according to their rank: those less favored had “half a bowl”.
8. Pay the price
There is an Italian tale (15th century) in which a peasant sells a duck as payment for a favor. When confronted, the husband “pays the price”. The expression became firm with the meaning of shouldering someone else’s blame.
9. Friend of the jaguar
In Brazilian comics from the 1960s, there was a character who betrays friendships all the time: “Amigo da Onça”. Hence the association with the false or treacherous person.
10. Saint of the hollow dick
In colonial Brazil, wooden saints were hollowed out to hide gold and precious stones. Inside, they were hollow, and the outside seemed sacred — hence “hollow dick saint”, a word for someone who is false.
Each carries a fragment of our history — from war, monarchy, rural life, popular culture or theater. We use phrases every day whose roots span centuries.
The next time you say “there’s no point in crying over spilled milk” or “getting your horse out of the rain”, stop for a moment and think: what ancient story is behind this phrase that comes out almost without thinking?
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