What do our toes do for us?
They help us walk and keep our balance. We don’t realize how important they
are till we hurt them. Have you ever stubbed or broken one of your toes?
Do you know where these expressions came from?
“On your Toes” – Meaning you are ready to go and it probably comes from
playing sports. Your weight is slightly forward. You’re standing on the balls of
your feet like a goalie in a soccer game that needs to pay attention and be on the
lookout.
“Toe the Line” – Meaning follow the rules as in long ago when wooden ships
were used in the Royal Navy the barefooted sailors had to stand at attention for
inspection and line up on deck along the seams of the wooden planks ‘toeing the
line”.
“Step on someone’s Toes” – Meaning hurting someone’s feelings or you can
actually step on someone’s toes and hurt them physically.
“Toe Curling” – Meaning something is making you feel uncomfortable enough
to curl your toes or meaning something is pleasant such as walking on a sandy
beach or on a thick rug and you want to curl your toes.
“Rings on your fingers and bells on your Toes” – Meaning you are so happy you
want to dance. This saying could have come from a nursery rhyme or in the days
of court jesters who had shoes with turned up toes that had bells on them.
These are just a few. Can you think of more?