英语词汇run around like a chicken with its head cut off的起源、历史背景-英语词源词典

run around like a chicken with its head cut off. When chickens are slaughtered by decapitation, they run around for a moment before falling down dead. This unpleasant reference hasn’t prevented the term above from being used to describe any person who behaves hectically, who seems to have no con- trol, as in “Don’t run around like a chicken with its head cut off.” The expression doesn’t seem to be recorded anywhere, but it was certainly common 60 years ago—about when I first heard it—and it is probably an Americanism dating back to at least the mid-19th century. In fact, that the term has international use today is demonstrated by advice the Afghanistan Taliban leader Mullah Omar gave to his scattered troops on 11/14/01. “Any person who goes hither and thither is like a slaughtered chicken that falls and dies.”

词汇	run around like a chicken with its head cut off
词源	run around like a chicken with its head cut off. When chickens are slaughtered by decapitation, they run around for a moment before falling down dead. This unpleasant reference hasn’t prevented the term above from being used to describe any person who behaves hectically, who seems to have no con- trol, as in “Don’t run around like a chicken with its head cut off.” The expression doesn’t seem to be recorded anywhere, but it was certainly common 60 years ago—about when I first heard it—and it is probably an Americanism dating back to at least the mid-19th century. In fact, that the term has international use today is demonstrated by advice the Afghanistan Taliban leader Mullah Omar gave to his scattered troops on 11/14/01. “Any person who goes hither and thither is like a slaughtered chicken that falls and dies.”
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