BLUE STOCKING

Blue stocking is a derogatory word used to describe women who are very intellectual or academic.
In the 18th century Mrs Elizabeth Montagu founded a society for intellectuals in London. The fact that one of its most prominent members, Mr Benjamin Stillingfleet, would always wear blue stockings, gave origin to the expression and name to an important number of clubs, predominantly attended by women, where thinkers of the day gave talks and discussed ideas.

COUCH POTATO

Couch potato is a derogatory term used to describe people who spend much time sitting around and watching television in a very lazy way. This expression is composed of the words COUCH, a synonym for SOFA and POTATO which, in this case, metaforically refers to the danger of becoming a vegetable as a result of very little mental and physical activity.
E.g.: “You are always there, eating crisps and watching TV, like a couch potato”.

GO WEST

To Go west is an old fashioned expression which means to die or retire, when applied to people, and to be lost or become unattainable when referring to things.
This phrase alludes to the sun when it is setting which first goes west, then sinks slowly and finally disappears.
E.g.: “When you go west nobody will miss you.”

EAT HUMBLE PIE

When you eat “humble pie” you behave in a way which shows that you are sorry about a mistake that you made.
In the Middle Ages, when a deer was killed, the finest cuts were served to the Lord of the manor and his peers. The “umbles” that is the inside part of the animal, especially the intestines, were baked into a pie and eaten by the servants.
Over the time the word “umbles” was corrupted to “humble” which means submissive or meek.
E.g.: “It was my fault. I’ll have to eat humble pie and talk to him.”

A DARK HORSE

This expression describes a person whose abilities are not well known but may soon surprise others by doing much better than expected.
This is a racing word originally applied to new horses whose real potential was concealed by their owners until the day of the race.
Benjamin Disraeli, the famous English writer and politician, used it in his novel “The Young Duke” published in 1831.
“… a dark horse which never had been thought of rushed past the grandstand in sweeping triumph.”