American idioms use sports metaphors as symbols

American idioms use sports metaphors as symbols

This baseball player is definitely keeping on his toes!

Meeting new people all the time really keeps me on my toes. Instead of just being around people I happen to know all the time, I get to meet great people and at the same time sharpen my own social skills. Keeping on my toes means I feel more stimulated and mentally alert. Generally, to keep on your toes means to watch out or be careful. For example, parents really have to keep on their toes when their children become teenagers. Maybe this expression is based in sports, like many other idioms. Such idioms use a physical posture or position as a symbol for an abstract concept such as mental stimulation. On my toes means I am ready to take action, poised and watchful. It does not necessarily mean my heels have left the ground, so the use is metaphorical.

This shows focus

When runners get ready to sprint, just before the starting gun they raise their heels and put more weight on the front of the foot, so they are actually on their toes. Basketball players have to keep on their toes all the time. Being “caught flat footed” means being caught off guard, unsuspecting. For example, “The surprise attack by the guerillas caught us flat footed. We were all asleep in the barracks.” If they had been on their toes, they would have posted guards around the camp. The guards were only flat footed metaphorically since they were lying down asleep in reality.

Besides keeping me on my toes, meeting a lot of new people makes me “think on my feet,” means adapting quickly and constantly to changing situations. Standing, walking, and running while at the same time thinking means you can respond to changing situations and modify your behavior continuously. Athletes generally have to think on their feet, and so do CEOs, politicians, and parents. In public debates when candidates must answer their opponents, they must think on their feet. Texting or other aids are not allowed under debate rules. Some questions may require candidates to think on their feet, and to express themselves spontaneously instead of according to a script. Sometimes the results are unintentional disasters, losing face for candidates who try to think on their feet. They really drop the ball when they come under pressure.

Keep your eye on the ball

Balls of various size and kinds are used in all kinds of sports. Players must constantly pay attention to the ball’s location and trajectory. They must keep focused “on the ball,” whether it is golf, tennis, baseball, or billiards. Coaches always tell their players in batting practice “Keep your eye on the ball.” More generally, a reputation for being on the ball means you are regarded as competent and efficient. For example, Democratic voters think President Obama has more on the ball than any of his Republican opponents. Naturally Republicans believe the opposite. Keeping your eye on the ball means staying very focused on your goal. When it comes to tracking my retirement investments, I really keep my eye on the ball. Keep your eyes on the prize is another way of saying keep your eyes on the ball. Since eyes rhymes with prize the former expression has a nice sound.

Baseball pitchers often put a spin on the baseball so that if actually hit, it will fly out of bounds. Putting a spin on events means selecting only certain facts and using them to justify one’s own position. This is exactly what happens in court, where prosecution and defense lawyers try to put different spins on the same set of facts and circumstances. Politicians (mostly lawyers) are masters of spin. Since the early 1900s, public relations became a profession devoted to molding public opinion. Conservative media like Fox spin the news to reflect opinions of conservative voters, while their liberal opponents work just as hard spinning the other way. Every day we are bombarded by messages trying to spin us in certain directions: buy this, believe that. We may never agree about what the world is really like, but we can agree that everyone has their own spin on what it all means.

Oops! I dropped the ball!