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English idiom/expression | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Specific Languages |  | |
| caam_imt Triglot Senior Member Mexico Joined 4863 days ago 232 posts - 357 votes  Speaks: Spanish*, EnglishC2, Finnish Studies: German, Swedish | Message 1 of 4 17 January 2012 at 8:08pm | IP Logged |
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While reading "The use of Force" by William Carlos Williams, I came across the following
sentence: "She did not move and seemed, inwardly, quiet; an unusually attractive little thing, and as strong as a heifer in appearance". I was just wondering what exactly is the part "as strong as a heifer in appearance" supposed to mean in this context. Any ideas? 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| s0fist Diglot Senior Member United States Joined 5047 days ago 260 posts - 445 votes Speaks: Russian*, English Studies: Sign Language, German, Spanish, French | Message 2 of 4 17 January 2012 at 10:20pm | IP Logged |
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There's an expression "as strong as an ox" which means very strong. And a heifer is a young cow.
I do not think "as strong as a heifer in appearance" really means anything, just a jumbled simile. A google search reveals that this is pretty much the only source of the quote. I suspect the author is trying to say she's beautiful, but figured heifers are more beautiful than oxen, hence the mess. Alternatively, perhaps, the author is translating something from another language. Either way it doesn't seem like a proper usage of the idiom in English. 2 persons have voted this message useful | |
| espejismo Diglot Senior Member Russian Federation Joined 5052 days ago 498 posts - 905 votes Speaks: Russian*, English Studies: Spanish, Greek, Azerbaijani | Message 3 of 4 17 January 2012 at 11:41pm | IP Logged |
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"Heifer" is a slang term for an overweight woman. I guess the idea here is that she does not look fragile or sickly – quite the opposite.
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| caam_imt Triglot Senior Member Mexico Joined 4863 days ago 232 posts - 357 votes Speaks: Spanish*, EnglishC2, Finnish Studies: German, Swedish | Message 4 of 4 21 January 2012 at 11:26am | IP Logged |
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Thanks guys!
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