![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
chiroho.livejournal.com posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
fandom_grammarGreetings, fellow grammar lovers! In this week's Say What? the two expressions we'll be looking at have meanings which aren't directly related, but this article will explain more about them and their origins so that you can use them more effectively in the future.
Jack of all trades, master of none
In this proverb, the word jack is used to describe an unskilled worker, and master someone who has received significant training in a particular trade and has completed an apprenticeship. This provides us with the fairly self-explanatory meaning, which is that if you use your time doing bits or this and bits of that, you may end up being competent at those things, but you won't excel at anything. The phrase was recorded in the late sixteenth century, but the first printed use is from T. Fuller's Gnomologia in 1732, which reads:
This isn't a difficult expression to use in your stories, as you can see:
Lightning never strikes twice in the same place
Unlike the previous proverb, this is a figurative expression that is based on a literal belief which we now know to be wrong -- many tall buildings have lightning hit them dozens of times a year. The first recorded use of the expression is in P. H. Myers' Prisoner of Border from 1857, which says:
An example of using this proverb is as follows:
I hope you've learned something about these two expressions and can now figure out ways to work them into your stories. Just try not to be a jack of all trades too often, else lightning might end up striking twice when it comes to reviews. :)
Sources
Simpson, John and Speake, Jennifer (2008), A Dictionary of Proverbs, Oxford University Press
Taggert, Caroline (2011), An Apple A Day, Readers Digest
Jack of all trades, master of none
In this proverb, the word jack is used to describe an unskilled worker, and master someone who has received significant training in a particular trade and has completed an apprenticeship. This provides us with the fairly self-explanatory meaning, which is that if you use your time doing bits or this and bits of that, you may end up being competent at those things, but you won't excel at anything. The phrase was recorded in the late sixteenth century, but the first printed use is from T. Fuller's Gnomologia in 1732, which reads:
By 1804, in Popular Tales by M. Edgeworth, that usage had changed to the proverb we see now.
Jack of all Trades is of no Trade
This isn't a difficult expression to use in your stories, as you can see:
"Sir," Sam said, "I'm not an expert on Ancient technology, so this may take a while to fix."
"Jack of all trades, master of none, Carter," Jack replied, trying not to grin at the resulting eye roll from his subordinate.
"Your logic is flawed, O'Neill. Major Carter is a master of many trades." Teal'c ignored the glare Jack gave him with studied indifference.
Lightning never strikes twice in the same place
Unlike the previous proverb, this is a figurative expression that is based on a literal belief which we now know to be wrong -- many tall buildings have lightning hit them dozens of times a year. The first recorded use of the expression is in P. H. Myers' Prisoner of Border from 1857, which says:
In addition to the original meaning of a bolt of lightning not hitting the same place twice, there is a second meaning that is used in Tinsley's Bones by P. Wilde in 1942:
They did not hit me at all. ... Lightning never strikes twice in the same place, nor cannon balls either, I presume.
Which is rather obvious when you think about it.
The Witness: They say that lightning never strikes twice in the same place.
Mr. Blodgett: It don't because the second time the place ain't there.
An example of using this proverb is as follows:
The staff cannon blast created a large crater, which Jack quickly jumped into.
"Are you sure that is safe, O'Neill?" Teal'c called from behind a tree.
"Lightning never strikes twice in the same place, T," Jack yelled back, ducking to avoid another blast.
I hope you've learned something about these two expressions and can now figure out ways to work them into your stories. Just try not to be a jack of all trades too often, else lightning might end up striking twice when it comes to reviews. :)
Sources
Simpson, John and Speake, Jennifer (2008), A Dictionary of Proverbs, Oxford University Press
Taggert, Caroline (2011), An Apple A Day, Readers Digest
Tags:
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}