we’re heading into the meaning of phrases again today … this one is a bit of a rollercoaster 🤷🏻♂️
#tdil the origins of the phrase “burning the candle at both ends” 🕯
these days, we understand this well known phrase to mean that someone is super busy … working too much, going to bed late and waking up early 🙄 #nofun
back in the day, it literally didn’t mean anything like this 🙈 when peeps originally said this back in the 18th century, they were literally talking about burning a candle at both of its ends 😳
back then, candles were hella expensive and burning a candle horizontally, from both ends, was considered incredibly wasteful … because the candle would burn out really quickly 😕
but how did it take such a drastic turn to today’s meaning?! 🤷🏻♂️ well, at some point, the candle began to symbolise life (no one can say exactly when).
the thinking behind it is that, when you work too hard, your life force disappears faster and you don’t live as long … just like the candle burning at both ends ☠️
and there you have it! pretty short and a tad morbid, but at least you’re now a tiny bit cleverer than you were before 😉
bye! 😎 #tdil
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want to extend your candle life force? have a relax and read the goodness over ->here<-
(image time! the header is ->here<-, the second pic is ->here<- and the other is ->here<-)