0:00 - How to Say, “Milk it.”
0:39 - Examples of “Milk it.”
1:34 - Meaning of “Milk it.”
2:14 - Origin of “Milk it.”
4:24 - More Examples of “Milk it.”
5:16 - Conclusion
“Milk it.”
If someone says that they are “milking it”, they mean that they are trying to get as much of something from another; such as favours, goodwill, kindness, respect, sympathy, etc.
On the other hand, if someone says that you “got milked”, they mean that someone took advantage of you, took more from you than fair, fooled you into being too generous.
“If your company is matching your retirement contributions, you should milk it as much as possible!” your dad might be advising you to put as much of your paycheque into a retirement account as allowable.
Maybe you’re gossiping with a friend, “Oh yes, I heard that her new boyfriend was rich, too - and apparently she’s milking him dry! I wonder when he’ll realize he’s getting milked?”
“We are already seeing some of the dire consequences of humans milking mother nature,” a prominent scientist might be trying to encourage ecological awareness.
As you can see, if you “milk it”, you are trying to derive as much as possible, take the full amount, get a larger share - “milking it” not necessarily being negative or positive in this case.
On the other hand, if someone or something “gets milked”, it is usually negative and means that too much was taken, an unfair portion was given, people acted in a shameful manner.
The origin of the various “milk” idioms almost definitely comes from the human practice of obtaining the milk of other animals for their own consumption.
According to archaeological evidence, humans milked the first cow 8,000 years ago in England and other parts of Northern Europe.
Thus, milking a cow, or other animal, is making use of it to the fullest extent possible, perhaps explaining why the idioms; “milk it”, “milk someone for something”, “got milked” and other milk idioms came about.
Milking something is often harmless - such as a child milking his or her parents for sympathy after getting hurt…
… while something getting milked by a few people may also be benign (though immoral) - such as a few people choosing to continue receiving welfare benefits rather than trying to better themselves…
… but there are also many instances where the continued milking of something, usually by many people, causes unprecedented harm; such as corrupt politicians emptying their country’s coffers…
... or the environmental impact that humans milking the Earth have had. Anthropogenic, or human made, climate change is causing suffering amongst not only animals and plants, but upon our fellow humans.
“Poor countries are getting milked by corporations that encourage burning rainforests down in order to plant cash crops,” a documentary might be exploring the causes of global warming and climate change.
Perhaps you were accepted to two great universities and your friend says, “You should milk the one that is offering you a full scholarship!”
“Businesses these days tend to focus on milking existing customers, as it’s much more expensive to acquire new customers,” a business professor might be lecturing.
So, the next time you or a friend are taking full advantage of, making the most of, squeezing something for all it’s worth, just know that you’re “milking it”!
#superduperenglishidioms #englishidioms #idioms #proverbs
References: https://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/...
https://english.stackexchange.com/que...
/ the-origins-of-milk-why-did-the-first-cow-...
Информация по комментариям в разработке