Keeping score of idioms

You might not like sports, but you quote them every day!

Can you identify idioms that originated in sports? Maybe it’s trickier than you think. Sure, some expressions are obvious: Why else would we talk about "throwing a curveball"? But in this article, you might find a few sayings that you thought had other origins. Can you guess which sport has introduced the most expressions on this list? Let’s step up to the plate and dissect 13 sports idioms!

Gold is such a valuable material that "going for gold" appears valid in many different arenas. That very expression could have originated during the Gold Rush era, for example.

But the phrase became popular via repetition in sporting competitions. When athletes applied their full efforts to win first place, they were revered for "going for gold." Today, we use it for anyone striving for excellence in any discipline.

We have gotten very used to using "hands down" as an expression of certainty and hyperbole. "Chocolate ice cream is my favorite, hands down." But what did the hands ever have to do with it?

It traces back to horse racing. When a jockey was far ahead in a race, they would relax their grip on the reins and lower their hands: In short, a certain win. Over time, "hands down" became a term to emphasize something as undeniably the best or easiest.

You can’t be blamed for thinking that a "full-court press" was some sort of judicial strategy. But it isn’t; The court here refers to a basketball game.

It’s a tactic that involves the defending team advancing and disrupting the opponent’s play, applying pressure across the entire court. That’s why we use this expression for all-out team efforts to achieve something, be it in business, politics, or personal matters.

In baseball, a "curveball" is a pitch that spins and curves unpredictably. Basically, a batter’s nightmare, because it is designed to catch them off guard and make them miss.

The dramatic image of facing an obstacle set up by the competition clicked with people. So they started using the expression "being thrown a curveball" when something tricky or unexpected was coming their way.

When you hear that someone "won by a nose," do you picture two human faces lunging for a finish line? You may have, but that’s not the precise origin of the idiom.

It comes from horse racing, where a horse’s snout is really the first part of him (and his rider) to cross the line. Today, we use it for scenarios where we win what we want by a small margin. Like getting to our flight right before the gates close!

A frustrated chef in a cooking competition might also "throw in the towel," but that’s not the origin of this metaphor for surrender. This saying, like so many others, comes from boxing.

When a boxer is taking a beating and can't continue, a dramatic way for the trainer to interrupt or surrender the game would be to throw a towel into the ring. The image has evolved to stand for any form of surrender.

In American football and rugby, you have to catch and hold on to the ball if you want to keep the game alive. Let the ball slip from your hands and you’ll also be letting the rest of your team down.

That’s the origin of the expression. Dropping the ball means someone fumbled an endeavor, usually compromising the luck of other people.

We all understand that this alludes to a person rooting for you and helping. Maybe when you heard this phrase you pictured someone figuratively in the corner of your mind, or of your heart –or of any room you were in.

But the origin is much more literal. As any boxing fan knows, the player’s support staff stay at a designated ringside corner. They are the ones tending to the player with help and encouragement between rounds.

You probably didn’t think that stepping up to the plate was advancing towards a dining table where a delicious feast awaited. But someone else probably did.

The actual meaning of the expression (which means to "rise up to the occasion") comes from baseball, where "the plate" refers to home plate –the spot where the batter stands to face the pitcher. If you are approaching it, it means it’s your turn to take action, face the challenge and deliver results.

This one is easy to guess: Of course, it comes from boxing, where expecting blows is the norm. What isn’t the norm is to courageously accept punches in the face.

To take something on the chin means to face a figurative blow with resilience. A hit directly to the chin is one of the most jarring blows a fighter can endure, so when you are congratulated for having done something equivalent, it means you have withstood a challenge with grace.

When someone says something is a "slam dunk," you probably imagine a sure success or an effortless win.

The term, as you may know, comes straight from basketball. A "slam dunk" is when a player jumps high and forcefully scores by slamming the ball directly into the hoop. Not effortless at all, but by the time the player has the opportunity to perform a slam dunk, their win is usually a sure thing.

No, it does not derive from people putting aside their fancy gloves before having tea. It comes from harsh, bare-knuckle boxing.

In the early days of the sport, fighters wore padded gloves to soften their punches and reduce injury. When the gloves came off, the fight became more brutal and raw: No more pretense. Over time, the phrase evolved to describe any situation where politeness or restraint is abandoned.

It isn’t a race to a punch bowl at a party. This is yet another expression derived from the world of boxing, which, as you have seen, is a sport that launched more expressions into our language than any other!

This one refers to moments when one fighter manages to hit the other before receiving a blow.

We now use it for people who seize an opportunity and act faster than an opposing party.

Identity crisis

How Siam became Thailand and 9 other countries that chose to rebrand

Image: pure julia

Countries rename themselves for many reasons—shedding colonial pasts, embracing local languages, or settling political disputes. Some changes are subtle, others dramatic, but each reflects deep historical, cultural, or geopolitical shifts. Here are 10 times a nation decided to swap out its old name for a new identity.

Image: Yves Alarie

In 1989, the ruling military junta of the country changed "Burma" to "Myanmar" to reflect what it said was a more inclusive, indigenous identity. The name "Burma" was strongly associated with British colonialism and the dominant Bamar ethnic group.

The UN and many countries recognized the change, but some, like the U.S. and UK, resisted for years as a political stance against the unelected military regime behind the change.

Image: S'mile Vilakati

In 2018, King Mswati III declared that Swaziland would become Eswatini, meaning "land of the Swazis" in the local language. He announced the change during the country’s 50th independence anniversary.

The king cited confusion with Switzerland and a desire to break with colonial-era names as reasons. Also, the new name had already been in unofficial use for years during local events.

Image: Hendrik Cornelissen

In 1972, the island nation officially changed its name from Ceylon to Sri Lanka after becoming a republic. "Sri Lanka" derives from Sanskrit, meaning "resplendent island."

The name "Ceylon" was tied to Portuguese, Dutch, and British colonial rule. However, some companies (like Ceylon Tea) still use the old name as a global brand.

Image: Kaysha

In 1997, after the dictatorial regime of Mobutu Sese Seko was overthrown, Zaire reverted to its pre-1971 name: the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

"Zaire" had been Mobutu’s attempt to Africanize the nation, but reverting to the original name also caused its own problems, since its neighbor is also named the Republic of the Congo, leading to some confusion for both locals and tourists.

Image: Ljupco Dzambazovski

After years of dispute with Greece over the name "Macedonia," the country officially became North Macedonia in 2019. Greece claimed "Macedonia" implied a territorial claim over its northern region of the same name.

The compromise unblocked North Macedonia’s path to NATO and EU talks. Though controversial domestically, the change ended a decades-long diplomatic standoff.

Image: allPhoto Bangkok

Under the Khmer Rouge regime, the country was known as Democratic Kampuchea. After the regime’s fall in 1979, the name gradually returned to "Cambodia," the anglicized form of the original name.

By 1993, with the monarchy restored and a new constitution, "Kingdom of Cambodia" became official. "Kampuchea" is still used in the Khmer language, but not internationally.

Image: Road Ahead

In 1984, revolutionary leader Thomas Sankara renamed Upper Volta to Burkina Faso, meaning "Land of Incorruptible People" in local languages. The old name referred to river tributaries of the region.

Sankara saw the change as a break from colonial legacy and a tribute to national dignity. The people became known as Burkinabé, a new term coined to reflect unity.

Image: Azhar J

This was more a rebranding than a true name change. "The Netherlands" has always been the country’s official name, whereas "Holland" refers only to two provinces. In 2020, the Dutch government stopped using "Holland" in international marketing to avoid confusion.

The change was part of a tourism and trade branding overhaul, with major events like Eurovision and the Olympics adopting "Netherlands" exclusively in their materials.

Image: Mathew Schwartz

In 1939, and again officially after WWII in 1949, the country dropped the name Siam to become Thailand, meaning "land of the free."

The change was mainly driven by a nationalist movement that sought to unify the country under a more inclusive Thai identity. While the name "Siam" carried some specific cultural connotations, the name "Thailand" emphasized sovereignty and the ethnic majority’s rule.

Image: Chloe Evans

In 1980, the unrecognized white minority government of Rhodesia was replaced, and the country became Zimbabwe, derived from "Great Zimbabwe," an ancient city of the region.

The old name honored British imperialist Cecil Rhodes. The new one reclaimed African history and identity after years of brutal conflict.