Discover the origins and usage of the idiom 'to vanish into thin air' with examples from literature and legends. Stay tuned for an exciting episode on magician Harry Houdini and learn about challenging words in an upcoming quiz.
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Meaning And Mystery Of The Idiom
"To vanish into thin air" means to disappear suddenly and completely, leaving no trace behind.
The phrase adds mystery, as if something evaporated or disintegrated rather than simply leaving.
insights INSIGHT
Shakespearean Origin
The idiom traces back to Shakespeare's Othello where Othello says, "go, vanish into air, away."
Over time that phrasing evolved into the modern expression we use today.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Concrete Examples Of Vanishing
Shauna gives examples: Atlantis sinking, Sherlock Holmes losing a thief, and a magician making a rabbit disappear.
These illustrate how the idiom applies to places, people, and objects vanishing mysteriously.
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Hi everyone. Welcome back! I am curious, have you ever heard a story about a magician making a rabbit disappear? Have you ever seen it? Maybe you've read a novel, perhaps a mystery, where a character disappears and nobody knows what happened to them. These scenarios perfectly illustrate our expression of the day, which is to vanish into thin air.
To vanish into thin air conjures images of something or someone disappearing suddenly and completely, almost like magic. But where did this phrase come from, and why do we use it to describe such mysterious disappearances? Join me today as we explore the origins, usage, and intriguing examples of how to use this idiom in real life contexts.
Anyway, be sure to stay tuned for next week's episode, which is about the world-famous magician Harry Houdini. I've been wanting to tell his story and talk about his magic for a long time now. I promise you, it'll be an exciting episode full of descriptions and explanations of challenging words. And of course, it'll have you on the edge of your seat. Be sure to stay tuned for part two, it'll be posted shortly.
Premium Content:
Season 4 (Episodes 150 - 200) = Each episode includes a quiz, the PDF transcript (the text of the audio) with definitions of challenging words and the mp3 file.
American English Podcast