m'aide

Pronounced 'May day'

A french term meaning 'Help me'.

Comes from the French verb 'aider' which means 'to help'.

Often in movies, the police, fire-brigade, and generally anyone in trouble may call out 'M'aide! m'aide!' asking for help or assistance.

19👍 50👎

they didn't set the world on fire

A phrase used to describe the averageness of a group of people's actions or behaviours.

Also meaning, nothing special, just average, not 'hot' or on fire.

'They' can be replaced by another pronoun if used to describe a singular person/place/event:
e.g. he/she/it didn't set the world on fire

John: Did you like the concert? Were the Rolling Pebbles any good?
Tim: Oh well look, they didn't set the world on fire but they were alright.

6👍 2👎

it's like shuffling deck chairs on the titanic

A phrase used to describe a situation that is:

a) almost near impossible
b) awkward/tricky
c) difficult

Stemming from the movie, Titanic, where shuffling deck chairs on the sinking ship would have been tricky.

Teacher: I'm trying to get my students to quieten down...it's like shuffling deck chairs on the titanic.

15👍 162👎