When hell freezes over
2017.07.11
Meaning:
Simply, ‘when hell freezes over’ means ‘never’ or ‘no chance’. Why? As you probably know, ‘hell’ is the opposite of ‘heaven’. When I asked my Japanese students, ‘How is the weather in hell?’ they seemed to think I was crazy; there is no concept of a temperature for hell. But for people from Christian, Jewish or Islamic cultures, ‘hell’ is a place of heat and fire. In summer, we might say, ‘It’s hot as hell’. So ‘I will do X when hell freezes over’ means ‘I will *never* do X’.
Example:
A: Why don’t you wear this cute lace bikini? You’ll look cute!
B: I will wear that when hell freezes over!
A: Go on! Say sorry to John. You know you want to be friends.
B: I will say sorry to him when hell freezes over! He was wrong!
Talking Point(s):
What is something you would do when hell freezes over?
大人からの英会話getgo 西船橋・荻窪・津田沼・本八幡