What does blow you to smithereens mean?
The phrase ‘blown to smithereens’ usually means blowing something into pieces and tearing things apart. The pieces would have been turned into tiny fragments that cannot be fixed. It often happens in wars during explosions that throw remains and pieces of things or human bodies far away.
What does the term smithereens mean?
small broken pieces
Definition of smithereens : small broken pieces : fragments, bits the vase was in smithereens on the floor —usually used in phrases like blow to smithereens or smash to smithereens Roughly once a second, a star somewhere in the universe explodes.
Is smithereens a bad word?
It sounds like a good name for an English punk rock band: “The Smithereens.” It does indeed sound like a good name for a band. Smithereens came to the English language around 1810 as “smiddereens,” from the Irish word “smidirin,” which is the diminutive form of “smiodar,” which means “fragment.”
How do you use smithereens in a sentence?
Smithereens in a Sentence
- As the bomb exploded, it blew all of the paper close to it into tiny smithereens.
- Todd knew that if he shared his idea with his father, his dad’s negative remarks would blow his plan to smithereens.
- Using dynamite, railroad workers were able to blast the once solid mountain to smithereens.
How big is a Smithereen?
They use a collider called the Tevatron, which is 6 kilometers (11,765 miles, by my back-of-the-envelope calculation) in circumference. Big science is employed to make little particles into littler particles….
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Where is Smithereen?
‘Smithereens’ is an Irish word. It derives from, or is possibly the source of, the modern Irish ‘smidirín’, which means ‘small fragments’. There is a town near Baltimore, close to the south-west coast of Ireland, called Skibbereen.
What is the definition of unsheathed?
transitive verb. : to draw from or as if from a sheath or scabbard unsheathed his sword.
What is a synonym for smithereens?
Smithereens synonyms In this page you can discover 7 synonyms, antonyms, idiomatic expressions, and related words for smithereens, like: particles, bits, fragments, bit, matchwood, high-heaven and all-to-pieces.
What does adversarial mean in English?
Definition of adversarial : involving two people or two sides who oppose each other : of, relating to, or characteristic of an adversary or adversary procedures (see adversary entry 2 sense 2) an adversarial relationship an adversarial system of justice with prosecution and defense opposing each other.
What is gritty NHL?
Gritty is the official mascot for the Philadelphia Flyers National Hockey League (NHL) team. He is a 7-foot (2.1 m) furry orange creature with googly eyes who wears Flyers gear. Gritty was introduced on September 24, 2018.
What is a gritty movie?
The word “gritty” is often used by reviewers to describe films which portray graphic physical violence, lone wolf characters, and probably a line of coke or two. The combination of unpleasantness in plot and honourable drive in characters seems to draw audiences to these types of films.
Where does the phrase blown to smithereens come from?
What’s the origin of the phrase ‘Blown to smithereens’? ‘Smithereens’ is an Irish word. It derives from, or is possibly the source of, the modern Irish ‘smidirín’, which means ‘small fragments’. There is a town near Baltimore, close to the south-west coast of Ireland, called Skibbereen.
What is the meaning of Smithereens?
blow (something) to smithereens. To break or destroy something into tiny, fragmentary pieces. (Smithereens, first appearing in English in 1829 as “smiddereens,” is likely derived from the Irish word “smidirín” or “smidiríní,” meaning fragment.) The demolition crew blew the building to smithereens in a matter of seconds.
Will the global chatter explosion blow the language to smithereens?
Learn the words you need to communicate with confidence. The vase smashed to smithereens when it fell. The global chatter explosion, it seems, is blowing the language to smithereens. When they came back their fishing smacks were battered to smithereens, and their tackle was all destroyed. Example from the Hansard archive.
What is the origin of the word smithhereens?
Another enticing notion as to the source of ‘smithereens’ is that it refers to the shards of metal formed when iron is forged and hammered in a smithy. Again, there’s nothing but wishful thinking to support that idea. The actual origin is more prosaic. ‘Smiodar’ means fragments in Irish Gaelic.