“If the mountain does not go to Mohammed”, “On a silver platter”, “And you, Brutus!” - how firmly these phrases entered our lives. And each of them can very briefly and accurately, in just a few words, describe the current situation or convey experienced feelings.
What it is?
Winged words or expressions are phraseological units drawn from historical events, folklore and various literary sources - artistic, journalistic, scientific. They often meet the names of literary characters, historical figures, geographical names. These may be quotes from speeches of famous people.
Most winged phrases lose their original meaning and are already used in relation to current realities.
Winged words can possess features of aphorism or just be figurative or used figuratively. They, like proverbs, are known to many, are often and universally used, have special expressiveness and accurately convey thought.
Where did this name come from?
The phrase “winged words” itself belongs to Homer and has by no means the meaning that is attributed to him now. The Greek poet in his Odyssey had in mind a loud speech. Later, however, the expression “winged words” took on Homer's lips a slightly different meaning. It began to mean a smooth speech, the words of which fly from the mouth of the speaker to the ear of the listener.
This phrase found its current meaning thanks to the publication in 1864 of a collection of popular quotes compiled by the German scientist Georg Buchman. Since then, expression has become a term used in stylistics and linguistics.
The history of the appearance of some winged phrases dates back to ancient times. Some of them relate to mythology, others to historical events or speeches by prominent figures and philosophers of the past. Translated from Latin and Greek, winged phrases have firmly entered our lives, having lost, however, their original meaning. And the expressions gleaned from mythology are generally used only in a figurative sense.
Sources
The winged words, the source of which is the Bible, occupy a special place. Individual phrases or even whole sentences - biblicalisms - are often found in everyday speech and give it a special coloring and meaning. The most famous of them are “do not judge, let not you be judged”, “a book with seven seals”, “the voice of one crying in the wilderness” and many others.
In addition to biblical quotes, a separate niche is occupied by literary sayings found in the works of Russian and Ukrainian classics - N.V. Gogol, A.S. Pushkin, M. Yu. Lermontov. A huge source of winged expressions are fables by I. A. Krylov and “Woe from Wit” by A. S. Griboedov. Much later, a collection of such phrases was replenished with quotes from the works of Ilf and Petrov.
Losing its original meaning, partially changing under the influence of time, winged words nevertheless adorn our speech, make it richer and more interesting. Some expressions are instructive, others give a humorous coloring to the words. Increasingly, winged expressions can be found in the headings of books and articles.
Conclusion
However, some phrases in different countries may have a slightly different meaning, although they are taken from the same source. There are expressions that have no analogues at all in another language, and when translated, they will seem completely meaningless. It is worth knowing to people who want to show off their speech and knowledge abroad, so as not to get into an awkward position. It is better to memorize a few winged expressions that are actively used in this country. This will be the best evidence of a genuine interest in the culture and history of the host country.