COMMON IDIOM-07 | BURN THE MIDNIGHT OIL

BURN THE MIDNIGHT OIL

”Burn the midnight oil,” which means “to work late into the night.” অর্থাৎ রাত জেগে কাজ করা অর্থে এই Idiom টি ব্যবহার করা হয়। রাত হচ্ছে নিঃসন্দেহে নিদ্রার জন্য কিন্ত আমরা অনেকটা শখ করেই এখন রাত জেগে জেগে কাজ, আকাজ দুটোই করি। নিজের শরীরের তেল নষ্ট করার বিষয়টাকে বুঝাতে এখানে ‘BURN THE MIDNIGHT OILD’ ’মধ্য রাতের তেল পুড়ানো কে বুঝানো হয়েছে। প্রয়োজনে রাত জাগুন বা অপ্রয়জনেই জাগুন, দুটোই শরীরের জন্য বেশ ক্ষতিকর।  তাই midnight oil আমরা তখন ই burn করবো যখন এই burning থেকে আমরা ভালো কিছু পাবো।

⠀☑ Example Sentences

1. Jill has been burning the midnight oil lately; I guess she has a big exam coming up.
2. It is a very hard assignment, and I had to burn the midnight oil to get it completed on time.
3. The assignment was very long so she was forced to burn the midnight oil to get it done on time.
4. My brother has a big function next week so he is already burning the midnight oil. I keep advising him to take it slow.
5. Nowadays People are burning the midnight oil without any reason.
6. Go to your bed and don’t burn the midnight oil.
7. I am feeling so sleepy after burning the midnight oil.
8. However, she may decide to burn the midnight oil with some more reading.
9. Lawmakers were burning the midnight oil last night, as the debate continued.
10. I’ve got to get this report finished by tomorrow so I guess have to burn the midnight oil tonight.
11. If you really want to make a change in your life, you need to burn the midnight oil of your life.
12. She was burning the midnight oil preparing for her daughter’s wedding when she had a heart attack.

♜ORIGIN OF THIS IDIOM:

In 1635, this phrase was used by Francis Quarles in literary work which was a synonym for the word ‘elucubrate’. It literally meant to work by the side of a candle. To burn the midnight oil was the English way of saying that someone was working hard through the night because candles were used in the olden times to provide light at night. The word ‘elucubrate’ was defined in 1623 as doing things by the candlelight. Recently candles are no longer used as a source of light during the night but the phrase is still popular and has been used in an album by Dolly Parton and Porter Wagoner.

What’s an Idiom?

An idiom is a widely used saying or expression that contains a figurative meaning that is different from the phrase’s literal meaning. For example, if you say you’re feeling “under the weather,” you don’t literally mean that you’re standing underneath the rain. “Under the weather” is an idiom that is universally understood to mean sick or ill. Idioms often summarize or reflect a commonly held cultural experience, even if that experience is now out of date or antiquated. For instance, you might say that someone should “bite the bullet” when they need to do something undesirable. The phrase’s origin refers to wounded soldiers literally biting down on a bullet to avoid screaming during a wartime operation. That common occurrence from the past resulted in a phrase we still use today.

Prepared by-
FAYSAL KHAN (FK)
BA, (Hons), MA; English (ELT)
Founder and CET, FKENGLISH
ইংরেজি শিক্ষক এবং কনটেন্ট রাইটার,
উদ্ভাস-উন্মেষ

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KNOW MORE GRAMMARS- 

1. Definition and classification of parts of speech.

2. Definition and classification of punctuations.

3. Use of capitalization and punctuation marks.

4. How to make WH Questions.

5. Difference between phrase and idiom. 

6. How to find out the parts of speech. 

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