Simon先生の英語ブログで学ぶ使える英語表現ーWalking on Eggshells「卵の殻の上を歩く」

Hello, this is Simon.

まず、Simon先生の英語ブログを読んでみよう！

My son has finally begun to walk. It’s still early days, so he’s a bit wobbly on his pegs, but he seems to be able to get around the house on two legs now.

I’m not sure if this has given him new confidence to explore, but he is into everything now. Anything he can get his hands on, he either throws, slams on the floor or shoves in his mouth. He’s becoming like a bull in a china shop, developing a healthy appetite for destruction, and taking a walk on the wild side, whenever he gets the chance.

His older sister is very fond of him, and he absolutely worships the ground she walks on. He wants to do everything she does including playing with all her toys. Unfortunately that doesn’t always go down well with her. When I see him with one of her toys (usually in his mouth), I tell him “You’re walking on thin ice”, but he just beams at me continues doing what he’s doing. It’s okay if my daughter is in a good mood, but if not, she can get very upset, and it doesn’t take much from that point to trigger a full blown meltdown. When she gets upset, we remove the toy, tell him off and try to clam her down. Then we spend the next half hour or so walking on eggshells.

His development is full of ups and downs, and isn’t always a walk in the park, but I must say, I’m enjoying every minute of it, drama and all.

ーそれでは、本文の中からピックアップした英語表現を見てみましょう！

wobbly on his pegs

The phrase “wobbly on one’s pegs” simply means unstable while standing or walking. “Pegs” in this case means legs. I’m not sure if this is because it rhymes or it relates to old wooden artificial legs called “pegs”. There used to be a Disney character called Peg-Leg Pete.”

“take a walk on the wild side”

The expressions to “take a walk on the wild side” means to do something that is a little daring, risky or even dangerous. You may be familiar with the Lou Reed song “Walk on the Wild Side” from the 70’s. It has been used a lot in popular culture over the years.

“a bull in a china shop”

The expression “a bull in a china shop”, I think is pretty easy to picture. It describes someone who is destructive. This can be physically, meaning that they tend to break things a lot, but it can also mean they cause other kinds of damage. For example, someone who is very tactless and uncaring in what they say could be called this because of emotional damage they cause (e.g. Pay no attention to what he says. He can’t help himself. He’s like a bull in a china shop.)

“worships the ground she walks on”

To “worship the ground someone walks on” means to idolize that person or be completely infatuated with them (e.g. He’ll do anything his new girlfriend says. He worships the ground she walks on.)

“walking on thin ice”

I think this is also very easy to picture. It means to put yourself in a precarious situation, which could easily turn bad if you are not careful (e.g. I’d stop talking if I were you. You are walking on very thing ice.)

“walking on eggshells”

The expression “walking on eggshells” is similar to “walking on thin ice”. It means to be acting in a very careful way so as not upset or anger someone, or further upset or anger them. Picture yourself walking on eggshells and the kind of feeling that would come with it. If you weren’t extremely careful they could break and make a huge mess.

a walk in the park

If something is “a walk in the park” it means that it is very easy to do, even to the point of being quite enjoyable. An actual walk in the park requires little effort and is very easy to do, so I think it is fairly easy to imagine. Other variations are to say that something is a “cakewalk” or a “breeze”.

With my son finally beginning to walk, I thought it would be a good chance to introduce some idioms related to walking, as well as a couple of others, just for good measure.

It’s getting colder and colder, so stay warm and take care!

See you next month!

※Simon先生の英語ブログをもっと読んで使える英語表現を学びたい！という方はこちらからどうぞ！

フルーツフルイングリッシュで英語表現の楽しさ感じてください。初めての方には英作文添削チケット2回分をプレゼント。
「無料英語テスト800問（解説付）」メルマガも大人気。今すぐチェック！

Simon

Hello! My name is Simon.

I am from New Zealand, and have been living and teaching English in Japan since 1999.

My hobbies include movies, playing the guitar, gardening and hiking.

※このブログでは英語学習に役立つ情報アドバイスを提供していますが、本ブログで提供された情報及びアドバイスによって起きた問題に関しては一切、当方やライターに責任や義務は発生しません。
※ここでの情報や助言を参考に英文を書いたり下した判断は、すべて読者の責任において行ってください。ここに掲載されている記事内の主張等は、個人の見解であり当社の意見を代弁・代表するものではありません。