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Discussion Groups / ESL Teaching / February 2004keep their rifles undertheir beds
hi, all, I have come across this passage: "Now that it is surrounded by EU countries on all sides, Switzerland feels less need to be armed to the teeth to repel potential invaders. Since the mid-1990s, it has been reorganising and drastically cutting down the size of its militia army. In future, most men will need to keep their rifles under their beds only up to their late 20s instead of well into middle age." I wonder if the author means literally men are required to keep a rifle under their beds (a special case in that country), or it actually mean something else? Is "keep their rifles undertheir beds" an idiom? Regards, Anthony "A. Kong" <ahwkong2000-at-anti-spam-yahoo.com> wrote on 17 Feb 2004: > hi, all, > [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > actually mean something else? Is "keep their rifles under their > beds" an idiom? It is a figurativee statement, a trope. They don't have to keep their rifles under their beds. It's akin to keeping one's pistol under one's pillow: that way, it's always handily available.  SignatureFranke: EFL teacher & medical editor. > "A. Kong" <ahwkong2000-at-anti-spam-yahoo.com> wrote on 17 Feb 2004: > [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] > rifles under their beds. It's akin to keeping one's pistol under one's > pillow: Which is a good way to get shot in the head, by the way. | "Now that it is surrounded by EU countries on all sides, Switzerland | feels less need to be armed to the teeth to repel potential invaders. [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] | under their beds (a special case in that country), or it actually mean | something else? Is "keep their rifles under their beds" an idiom? Somebody Swiss may be along in a while with the definitive answer, but my understanding is that all Swiss males have compulsory military training and are issued with a rifle, which is kept in a locked case and is only to be used under military orders. As CyberCypher says, it's a figurative statement, which includes both the idea of readyness and the fact that they are already in possession of a firearm. Owain |
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