Bound Hand and Foot Trivia Quiz

Answer: hand

Something or someone that gets out of hand becomes impossible to manage or control in any effective way. While the subject is often "the situation" or "things", this common phrase can also refer to people: a frustrated teacher might say that her or his students have got out of hand.

As the word hand is often used as a synonym of control or authority (as in expression such as "a firm hand" or "an iron hand"), this idiom aptly conveys the idea of losing control. The origin of the phrase lie in horse riding: a horse (or also a team of horses pulling a conveyance) will get out of hand if the rider loses control of the reins.

Answer: hand

Trying (or turning) one's hand at doing something means starting a new activity or task, generally in a skillful and competent way in spite of the lack of prior experience. In this case, hand denotes manual skill, even if the activity in question is an intellectual one - such as learning a new language.

The phrase was first recorded in writing in 1589, in the Elizabethan era - a period of great societal changes in England, during which practical ingenuity and adaptability to new situations were highly valued.

Answer: hand

Lending or giving someone a hand means helping, assisting or supporting them in performing a task, which can be physical (such as carrying a heavy suitcase) - in which case the hand is quite literal - or intellectual (such as studying for a test). An idiom with a related meaning, "give a hand up", implies helping someone to improve their situation.

According to some sources, this expression is believed to have originated in Old English, but to have been popularized by Middle English poet Geoffrey Chaucer. However, In Chaucer's "Knight's Tale" the phrase was used in its literal sense of offering one's hand to shake in agreement. Its modern meaning of giving assistance dates from the 1590s.

Answer: hand

Biting the hand that feeds you is a very powerful idiom with a strong visual quality, reflecting ingratitude and disrespect towards someone who has helped or supported you. It is often used in reference to adopting an ungrateful or disloyal attitude to a provider such as a parent or employer.

The phrase is believed to have its origins in one of Aesop's fables, "The Gardner and His Dog". In this story, a dog falls into a well, but bites his master who is trying to rescue him - prompting the gardner to abandon the ungrateful creature to his fate.

Answer: hand

Knowing something like the back of your hand means being thoroughly familiar with a thing, a place or a subject. This idiom, unlike others, is quite self-explanatory, as the backs of our hands are something that we have before our eyes every day, and thus know with absolute certainty. A similar idiom that also involves a body part is to know something by heart.

According to some sources, the original phrase mentioned the palm rather than the back of the hand; the latter, however, implies immediate recognition rather than tactile ability. The idiom first appeared in print around the mid-19th century.

Answer: hand

Gaining the upper hand means obtaining control over someone or something - often turning a difficult situation to one's own advantage. This idiom is believed to have originated in an old game in which players would climb up a stick or baseball bat with their hands: the player whose hand ended up on top won the game. Another interpretation has to do with the way a couple holds hands: the partner whose hand is on top is believed to be the dominant one.

A similar idiom, "get/have the whip hand", has its roots in horse riding: the hand that held the whip was the one that controlled the horses.

Answer: foot

Starting off on the wrong foot means beginning an activity or a relationship incorrectly or in a way that is likely to lead to failure. This often implies making the wrong impression or making some mistake early in a new situation. Similar idioms are "to get off to a bad start" or "get off on the wrong track".

Though the exact origin of this phrase is uncertain, it is likely to be related to "wrong" being the opposite of "right", and thus synonymous with "left" - the side that, in ancient times, was considered bad or unlucky (hence the word "sinister" to describe something menacing or scary). Another theory associates the idiom with military marching techniques, which require everyone to start with the same foot - in this case, the left one. The phrase is believed to have originated in the 16th century.

Answer: foot

Keeping or having a foot in both camps means supporting or mantaining involvement with two sides in opposition to each other. This idiom evokes the image of someone straddling an ideal dividing line between two camps - like those that position themselves in the centre of the political spectrum, or want to keep a friendship with both members of a soon-to-be-divorced couple. If examined in a negative light, the phrase may denote an indecisive, ambivalent attitude - similar to "sitting on the fence".

According to some Internet sources, the phrase originated in French in the 1830s, and was adopted into British English in the 1850s. Not surprisingly, it was used in both languages in a political or military context. In Italian, the corresponding idiom is the physically impossible "to keep a foot in two shoes".

Answer: foot

A very common idiom, footing he bill means being responsible for the cost of something - usually for someone else, and particularly when the item in question is expensive. Thus, the parents of a bride (or groom) may foot the bill for the wedding, or a driver may have to foot the bill for damage done to another car.

The phrase originated in the early 19th century, stemming from the bookkeeping practice of writing the total sum of an account at the bottom (foot) of a page. Most of the early examples of the idiom's use are found in books written by American authors.

Answer: foot

If you put your foot down, you use authority or firmness to enforce a rule or prevent something from happening. For example, parents may need to put their foot down to teach their children not to waste money, or an employee may put his or her foot down and refuse to work late every day. "To lay down the law" has a similar meaning, though it implies taking stricter measures - such as giving outright orders.

Another strongly visual idiom - evoking the physical action of setting a foot firmly down on the ground to resist pushback - this phrase may have originated in the early 19th century in a military context, in which putting one's foot down forcefully may signal command or finality.

Answer: foot

Someone who has a foot in the grave is on the verge of death, either because of illness or very advanced age. However, the phrase is occasionally used as a hyperbole to describe a poor but not fatal state of health - such as having a bad case of the flu or other unpleasant but temporary ailment. The idiom is also the title of a British sitcom that ran from 1990 to 2000.

It has been suggested that a similar phrase was used by Greek historian Plutarch in his "Moralia". However, it is more likely that one of its earliest appearances in English occurs in the 1632 tragedy "The Fatal Dowry" by Philip Massinger and Nathan Field. Almost literal equivalents of the idiom also exist in French and Italian.

Answer: foot

If taken literally, putting your foot in your mouth sounds physically impossible for anyone who is not a contortionist. This idiom - often associated with public figures - brilliantly describes the act of making an inappropriate, tactless or just plain stupid remark by mistake. Any casual Internet search will yield dozens of instances of famous people putting their foot in their mouth.

As is often the case with idioms, the origins of this particular phrase are unclear. Some have posited a connection with foot and mouth disease,an infectious viral disease of cattle and other even-toed ungulates. The phrase is believed to have first appeared in print in the US in the late 19th century as a variation of the older (18th-century) British English phrase "to put your foot in it", which implies unintentionally stepping into something unpleasant.