the white man's burden






the white man's burden

the task, believed by white colonizers to be incumbent upon them, of imposing Western civilization on the black inhabitants of European colonies – dated

The white man's burden comes from Rudyard Kipling's poem of that title (1899), originally referring specifically to the United States’ role in the Philippines.




Related Idioms and Phrases :



bums on seats

the audience at a theatre, cinema or other entertainment, viewed as a source of income – informal



give someone the bum's rush = get the bum's rush

forcibly eject someone (or be forcibly ejected) from a place or gathering

abruptly dismiss someone (or be abruptly dismissed) for a poor idea or performance - chiefly North American

1998 - Spectator – When James Cameron wrote an uproariously funny piece about the hotel's iniquities. he was promptly given the bum's rush.



on the bum

traveling rough and with no fixed home

vagrant - North American



things that go bump in the night

ghosts, supernatural beings – informal

This expression comes from The Cornish or West Country Litany : From ghoulies and ghosties and long-leggety beasties And things that go bump in the night, Good Lord deliver us! The phrase is used as a humorous way of referring to nocturnal disturbances of all sorts.



bumper-to-bumper

very close together, as cars in traffic jam

(chiefly of an insurance policy) comprehensive, all inclusive



have a bun in the oven

be pregnant – informal



take the bun

be the most remarkable – informal

1925 - P. G. Wodehouse - Letter - Of all the poisonous, foul, ghastly places, Cannes takes the biscuit with absurd ease.



bunch of fives

a fist, a punch – British informal



a bundle of nerves

a person who is extremely timid or tense – informal



a bundle of laughs = a bundle of fun

something extremely amusing or pleasant – informal



drop your bundle

panic or lose one's self-control - Australian & New Zealand informal

This expression comes from an obsolete sense of bundle meaning swag or a traveler’s or miner's bundle of personal belongings.



go a bundle on

be very keen on or fond of - British informal

In this idiom, bundle is being used in the late 19th-century US slang sense of a bundle of money, i.e. a large sum. To go a bundle on was originally early 20th-century slang for betting a large sum of money on a horse.

1968 - Adam Diment - Bang Bang Birds - I don't go a bundle on being told I'm a pro.



go bung

die

fail or go bankrupt - Australian & New Zealand informal

In this sense bung comes from Yagara, an extinct Aboriginal language.

1951 - J. Devanny - Travel in North Queensland - The stations would go bung without the ADOS - one of the missionaries told me.



give it a burl

attempt to do something - Australian & New Zealand informal

1953 - T. A. G. Hungerford - Riverslake - Well you want to give it a burl—you want to come?




the white man's burden :






the white man's burden To HOME PAGE


Idioms Index – Previous Page




Related Links : the white man's burden