expressions

Boy   Wed Apr 19, 2006 4:56 pm GMT
Hi,

1. I heard this expression in a movie. "It is not over until the fat lady swings."

2. what does "a barrel of monkeys" mean? If you needed more context then I'd copy the whole sentence from my newspaper article that I was reading.

3. What do you call that piece of equipment that helps you to hang your clothes on it? It is normally used in the bathroom/washroom. Get it?

4. How do you pronounce "Liz Hurley" name?

Thanks a lot.
sarosh@mail.vu   Wed Apr 19, 2006 5:14 pm GMT
3. peg
Jim C, Eofforwic   Wed Apr 19, 2006 5:20 pm GMT
1. Its normaly "It's not over till the fat lady sings", it comes from the idea that in Opera, it always ends with a fat lady singing. It means that even if you think something has ended and there is no hope or what ever, that there is still time and that you will know for definate when it has ended. I think. I suppose you got the quote from some action movie, with a cheesy script, and who ever said that wants some larger lady dead.

3. Clothes Horse.
Uriel   Wed Apr 19, 2006 8:02 pm GMT
Yeah, it's "fat lady SINGS", not swings.

A barrel of monkeys (I think) means much confusion, anarchy, disorder.

Liz Hurley -- Liz HER-lee.
Jim C, York   Thu Apr 20, 2006 2:25 am GMT
Liz as in Fizz, not as in Lies
Boy   Thu Apr 20, 2006 12:14 pm GMT
<<I suppose you got the quote from some action movie, with a cheesy script, and who ever said that wants some larger lady dead.>>

No. It was not an action movie like full of guns and killings. It was a movie of two moms living side by side and they tried to claim themselves the best mom of their kids. There were bath-mouthing stuff from the kids to their mothers and vice versa. Also, one mom was a pregnant one who actually had said the above mentioned phrase to the other one who was quite petite by American standards so I couldn't consider her a fat lay. Did you mean powerful/influential lady by "larger lady" or just "fat lady"?

If you meant the influential lady by that phrase then your guess might have been correct after all she was the second mom and not quite old. And there was a tussle between them in the whole movie, bitching each other...:)

I wonder what they call each other. Children can call them step-mothers but what they call each other... step-sisters...???

Thanks everyone for your answers. They were a great help.
Guest   Thu Apr 20, 2006 12:53 pm GMT
Don't take it so literally. In the movie it just means it's not over yet.