The wild ancestor of the donkey is the african wild ass, e. The donkey or ass equus africanus asinus is a domesticated member of the horse family, equidae. A tall order definition of a tall order by the free. A tall order is something expected to be hard to achieve or fulfil f. Be a tall order meaning in the cambridge english dictionary. Meaning exaggerated as in tall tale is american english colloquial attested by 1846. A tall order definition of a tall order by medical dictionary. Tall order bmx parts and clothing are specifically designed riding transitions, check out tour team riders and watch bmx videos. The following is reprinted from the best of uncle johns bathroom reader. View american english definition of a tall order change your default dictionary to american english.
Meaning having a defined height, whether lofty or not is from 1580s. Example i practiced hard at the dance sessions but the acid test will come when the master will assess our solo performances. Notice how statues and paintings of prominent men often depict them mounted on enormous horses. Tall tale tellers usually claim some sort of personal involvement in the story. A condition of logical or comprehensible arrangement among the separate elements of a group. Tall order definition of tall order by merriamwebster. Aug 07, 2008 the following is reprinted from the best of uncle johns bathroom reader.
Inside story cut a long story short tall order stand tall. The term is a specific use of ambit meaning extent, compass. Synonyms for tall order include struggle, grind, hardship, load, strain, adversity, battle, bother, drain and drudgery. A tall tale is a folkloric story that is generally wildly exaggerated and told for the amusement of the listeners. A request that is often difficult to meet andor fulfill.
Holding these seemingly incompatible forces together would seem. Tall order definition of tall order by the free dictionary. Refers to axe heads, which, in the days before mass merchandising, were sometimes fastened poorly to their handles. Information and translations of tall order in the most comprehensive dictionary definitions resource on the web. The oed says tall also means a large amount, and is originally us slang. A tall order definition of a tall order by medical. The boss wants me to compile 100 pages of data each day, which is a pretty tall order if you ask me. English idioms, proverbs, and expressions are an important part of everyday english. Tall is one of those curious words, like nice, that has had more meanings down the centuries than you can shake a stick at. Learn idiom definition, common idioms list in english with meaning, idiom examples and esl pictures.
Scrabble dictionary most trusted dictionary and scrabble. Definition of a tall order in the idioms dictionary. Tall order definition is something that is very difficult to do. Definition and synonyms of a tall order from the online english dictionary from macmillan education this is the british english definition of a tall order. Its a tall order but jansen believes his teammates can achieve their goal if they put their minds to it. They come up all the time in both written and spoken english.
Holding these seemingly incompatible forces together would seem a tall order indeed. Definition of tall order written for english language learners from the merriamwebster learners dictionary with audio pronunciations, usage examples, and countnoncount noun labels. What i cant seem to find is where this term originated. Winning six gold medals at the olympic games is a tall order, but not impossible. In a reaction, order is the sum of the exponents of all the concentration terms in that reactions rate expression. Meaning when you cut the ground from under someones feet, you do something which weakens their position.
Tall, since the middle of the 19th century, has been used for things large in amount or size but not necessarily in terms of. Tall order posted by james briggs on august 08, 2001. To ask for definitive answers to such grandiose questions would, of course, be a tall order. Baking hundreds of cupcakes in one night is a tall order, but i think we can manage it. We were a pretty tall time coming that last fifteen mile. Thats a tall order, even for some one with howards apparent integrity. Tall order definition and meaning collins english dictionary. Tall, since the middle of the 19th century, has been used for things large in amount or size but not necessarily in terms of height, and figuratively as well as literally.
Tall order definition in the cambridge english dictionary. Tall tale definition at, a free online dictionary with pronunciation, synonyms and translation. When asked by betsy for credit on yet another purchase, david replied bitch, you done owe me fifty bucks and another blow job. Because idioms dont always make sense literally, youll need to familiarize yourself with the meaning and usage of each idiom. A tall order definition and meaning collins english dictionary. If something is a tall order, it is very difficult. Meanings and origins of australian words and idioms anu school. If you say somethings a tall order, you mean that itll be hard to do or difficult to achieve.
The donkey has been used as a working animal for at least 5000 years. What is the origin of the phrase get off your high horse. Getting kids to read 600page books is a tall order these days, but the writer of the harry potter books has managed to do it. Tall order definition for englishlanguage learners from. For example, for the natural decomposition of nitrogen pentoxide, the rate expression is v dn 2 o 5dt k 1 n 2 o 5. Aug 23, 2017 what does the idiom a tall order mean. It has more than 0 idioms and phrases, it will help. Sep 29, 2019 but there was beauty in her, and an inner strength that would allow her to stand tall and accept last nights phone call. Get off your high horse meaning telling someone to stop behaving in an overbearing manner, criticizing everyone and everything, or acting selfrigh. In this idiom, the word tall has the sense of big or considerable. There are more than 40 million donkeys in the world, mostly in underdeveloped countries, where they are used principally as draught or pack animals.
Phrase tall, dark, and handsome is recorded from 1906. Jan, 2020 2009 february 25, tyler hamilton, 50,000 green jobs a tall order, in toronto star. I looked in the archives for a possible origin, but can find none. Native english speakers, or of any language for that matter, naturally inherit the knowledge to know what idioms mean because they have the benefit of hearing them every day as they grow up. The mediators had a tall order bringing together parties with fixed and opposing goals. Why should an order be tall, or a story come to that. Proper usage and audio pronunciation plus ipa phonetic transcription of the word tall order. The economic expansion that enabled the country to stand tall at the start of the century has slowed. Its a bit of a tall order to offer a fully formed alternative view of the world, but.
I can try, but completing the whole ad campaign by the end of the month is a tall order. This use of tall is also seen in tall tale, covered by world wide words who begin. Information about tall order in the dictionary, synonyms and antonyms. Example when team india hit more than 350 runs in the odi, they cut the ground from under the opponents feet. A tall order phrase meaning, pronunciation and more by. If one flew off while being used, it was a dangerous situation. In british history, the pale was the area in and around dublin. Theyve given us three weeks to get the project finished. Order definition and meaning collins english dictionary. Adams wrote in the new egypt 1893 its a tall order, but its worth trying, isnt it. Dec 29, 2006 have been doing some checking and that expression, which is an idiom, is not in any of the dictionaries ive checked.
A tall order phrase definition and synonyms macmillan. Try before you buy demos and trials and score totally free games. If you do something in order to achieve a particular thing or in order that something can. This is not the first time someone has tried to find the origin of tall order can also be large order heres the entry from the url below. Learn to win at any game with our many tools and word lists. Idiom definition to be a tall order something very difficult to do. This is helpful app to you can learn idioms, phrases and proverbs in english very easily and effectively. Their first quotation is from charles dickens american notes for general circulation 1842.
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