2008-03-22

Siamese Twins

Henry Watson Fowler (1858 - 1933) used the term Siamese twins to refer to groups of words that are joined by and or or. One critical point about Siamese twins is that you cannot reverse the words. For example, black and white but not white and black.

Here is a list of other word pairs that I think are more common everyday conversation:
back and forth: 前後に(= to and fro), (前後[左右]に)行ったり来たり
  • The lawyers argued back and forth.
bells and whistles: 必要とはされないが楽しいまたはあると便利なソフト機能
  • New cell phones have a lot of unnecessary bells and whistles.
black and blue: （打撲で）青黒いあざになった
  • My arms and legs were black and blue after the motorcycle accident.
cat and mouse: 猫とネズミ：ネズミになった子が猫になった子につかまらないようにして遊ぶ遊戯
  • The CIA and KGB played deadly cat and mouse games during the Cold War.
down and out: 一文なし
  • He was down and out after losing all of his money at the casino.
here and there: あちこち
  • The young man lived here and there before settling down and getting married.
high and dry: 見捨てられている
  • We were left high and dry when our company moved to China.
ins and outs: ノウハウ; 何もかも
  • The engineer worked hard to learn the ins and outs of the system.
knife and fork (not fork and knife)

ladies and gentlemen (never gentlemen and ladies)

lost and found: 遺失物取扱所
  • I went to the station lost and found to get my wallet back.
loud and clear: はっきりと分かる
  • It was loud and clear that he was angry after slamming the door shut.
mother and father (not father and mother)

night and day: 昼も夜も休まずに
  • We worked night and day to meet the deadline.
nuts and bolts: 基本を心得ている
  • You can't move to a higher level until you learn the nuts and bolts.
pros and cons: メリットとデメリット; 利点と不利点]
  • Using a credit card has its pros and cons.
sick and tired: 嫌気が差す, うんざりする
  • I am sick and tired of her constant complaining.
stop and go: のろのろ[運転]
  • I was stuck in stop-and-go traffic for three hours.
thick and thin: 楽な時もつらい時も
  • Their marriage survived through thick and thin.
tooth and nail: 猛烈に戦う
  • Hillary Clinton is fighting tooth and nail to become the next president.
Here are a few more phrases. What do you think they mean? Please leave a comment or ask me in class!
touch and go
up and coming
all or nothing
day or night
more or less
rain or shine
sink or swim
sooner or later
black and white
give and take
hit and miss

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