Definition of: "the other side of the coin" with explanation and origin
Definition of: the other side of the coin with explanation and origin? Meaning of the other side of the coin with examples in English idiom dictionary.
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Definition of: "the other side of the coin" with explanation and origin
the other side of the coin
the other side of the coin
Meaning
- the opposite aspect, contrasting arguments.
- to look differently at a situation.
- a person should look at a person, circumstance, or thing from an opposing view.
- there is usually more than one side to a story, situation, or matter.
- can also be taken figuratively and literally.
Example Sentences
- You should consider the other side of the coin when a wife leaves her husband and not just blame her for walking out on him.
- We know that our football team has not been performing well. On the other side of the coin, we are improving with every game we play.
- Look, I know that there are always two points of view on a legal matter. On the other side of the coin, we should believe a person when they make an accusation against another individual in a court of law.
- The other side of the coin is that fewer working hours will get you a lower income.
Origin
The metaphor “the other side of the coin” has been in use for about 500 years. In the past, military men would say “on the other side of the shield (or medal)” to show that a thing or situation had two different sides. Remember, shields and medals typically have two different sides, though they are part of the same object. A famous early 20th-century writer named W. B. Yeats wrote the phrase “are the other side of the half-penny” in a popular letter from that era. These two expressions eventually evolved into “the other side of the coin.”
The Origins of the other side of the coin
Circumstances, MoneyEnglish
Related Dictionary
- English Definition & Meaning Dictionary
- English Idioms and phrases Dictionary
- Dictionnaire Français
- Dictionnaire d'expressions idiomatiques et de phrases en français
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English Idioms and phrases
An idiom is a common word or phrase with a figurative, non-literal meaning that is understood culturally and differs from what its composite words' denotations would suggest; i.e. the words together have a meaning that is different from the dictionary definitions of the individual words (although some idioms do retain their literal meanings – see the example "kick the bucket" below). By another definition, an idiom is a speech form or an expression of a given language that is peculiar to itself grammatically or cannot be understood from the individual meanings of its elements.[3] For example, an English speaker would understand the phrase "kick the bucket" to mean "to die" – and also to actually kick a bucket. Furthermore, they would understand when each meaning is being used in context.
To evoke the desired effect in the listener, idioms require a precise replication of the phrase: not even articles can be used interchangeably (e.g. "kick a bucket" only retains the literal meaning of the phrase but not the idiomatic meaning).
Idioms should not be confused with other figures of speech such as metaphors, which evoke an image by use of implicit comparisons (e.g., "the man of steel"); similes, which evoke an image by use of explicit comparisons (e.g., "faster than a speeding bullet"); or hyperbole, which exaggerates an image beyond truthfulness (e.g., "more powerful than a locomotive"). Idioms are also not to be confused with proverbs, which are simple sayings that express a truth based on common sense or practical experience.
