English words problem,looking for help

[echoinvally]

"he said coalition military action had left Colonel Gaddafi on his heels and greatly weakened and added that it was his expectation that the libyan leader would ultimately step down“

 

can somebody here kindly tell me what's "on his heels" means in this sentence?

 

if you can show a good translation in Chinese and add some examples of how to use this phrase, I'll be very grateful for your help

 

 

 

[anonymoose]

From the context, one can guess that it means something like "in trouble" or "in disarray" or something like that. Personally, though, I can't recall ever having seen this expression before. So if you want to learn this in order to improve your English, I'd suggest don't bother.

[Demonic_Duck]

Much more common is "keep [some person] on [their] toes", which means keep them alert and make sure they don't get complacent, but by the looks of it "keep him on his heels" means something more like put him in a difficult situation. I agree with anonymoose though, it's rare enough not to bother learning, perhaps it's only this particular writer who uses this phrase.

[Shelley]

This seems like someone has got things muddled, as others have said it doesn't really make sense.

 

"at his heels" means to be chased after, to cause someone to run away.

 

Never heard on his heels. I would not place much credence in this usage.

[liuzhou]

SET BACK ON ONE’S HEELS: Surprise, shock, or disconcert, as in “The news of their divorce set us back on our heels.” This idiom, with its graphic image of someone being pushed back, dates from the first half of the 1900s. (American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms)

[Demonic_Duck]

Good find. One for the "your new English words" thread?

[Altair]

I am quite familiar with this expression as well.  Perhaps it is used only in America.

 

I have always assumed that the expression comes from boxing and describes receiving a punch that knocks your upper body backward so that the balance of your weight shifts from being over the balls of the feet to being over the heels.

 

Try standing up and then lifting your heels off the ground so that you stand only on the balls and toes of your feet.  Now let your heels back down and try lifting the front of the feet so that only your heels are in contact with the ground.  You should find that standing only on your heels is much more unstable than standing only on the balls of the feet.

 

The expression to "[knock someone back] on their heels" means that the person is temporarily in a defensive position in which they first have to get back their equilibrium before they can do anything else effectively.

 

For me, the "on ... heels" part of the phrase is mandatory, but everything else can be modified to suit the circumstances.  I normally would also expect the word "back" to be used and normally think of the phrase as beginning with "knock back."  The essential thing is not necessarily the specific words, but to accurately describe the imagery.

[Shelley]

Ah I recognise it now.

[Altair]

After further thought, I think the most common variation of this phrase is to be "rocked back on your heels."  Here is a link to a YouTube video.

[hedwards]

It's a common expression in America, but I do agree that it's probably not worth learning. It's essentially the same as having them on the ropes. You've got them off balance and another push should cause them to fall.

 

I'm not sure what the origins of it are, but I'm sure it's a physical metaphore that refers to fighting. If they're just on their heals they'll be unable to respond as well as they're mostly off balance. On the other hand, if they're on their toes, they're in a really good position for whatever might come.

 

And while we're at it, being caught flat footed is the other option it means unprepared, but doesn't necessarily mean that things have been resolved.

[Flickserve]

Didn't realise it was an American expression but yes, a reference to boxing is what I had in mind - hit by some severe strikes but not yet lost.

 

'on the ropes' implies receiving more sustained pressure from all aspects with a seemingly more desperate and losing situation..

[hedwards]

Interesting, around here we use them mostly interchangeably. Perhaps we can blame Sylvester Stallone for that.

[Altair]

Below is how I understand these expressions, and a few more.  They all evoke strong mental images for me.

 

"Let your guard down"

This refers to dropping your hands or sword that should normally be in a protective guard position before the face (or body in the case of a sword). This action usually occurs through fatigue or inattention and opens an easy path for your opponent to strike a blow.  It means you have exposed a vulnerability through negligence and that you have therefore needlessly received a blow or a setback.  The severity of the blow or setback is not stressed, but rather the negligence.  Typically uses are: "Don't let your guard down" or "Company X let its guard down when it failed to keep abreast of cutting edge research."

 

"Rest on your laurels"

This refers to the crown or wreath of laurel leaves given to athletic victors in ancient Greece.  It implies dwelling too long on past accomplishments and therefore failing to accomplish what is needed in the present.  You can "let your guard down" because you were "resting on your laurels."  Typically uses are: "Don't just rest on your laurels, you need to work on new achievements" or "That famous player was no longer contributing to the team and was just resting on his laurels."

 

"To be caught flat footed"

This means you were not acting in an agile way and so were struck or received a setback.  The stress is on the lack of an agile flexible response or on a lack of preparedness, not on the severity of the result.  A typical use might be: "We need better business intelligence, or we are going to get caught flat footed when our competitor launches its new product."

 

"To be rocked back on your heels"

This refers to receiving a punch that forces you to tilt your torso backwards and shift your weight from the balls of the feet to the heels.  It means that you temporarily cannot counterattack and will continue to suffer increasing losses until you are able to regroup or collect yourself and return to equality or even to the offensive.  The stress is on the acuteness of the setback, the inevitability of short-term losses, the impossibility of a counterattack, and the immediate need to recover stability.  In the quote in the original post, the expression evokes the image of Gaddafi and his forces being in a disordered retreat.  A typical use might be: "We got rocked on our heels when our competitor launched a new innovative product that has been taking over the market.  We are going to need to redirect our research."

 

"To receive a body blow"

This refers to being punched in the body, as opposed to being punched in the face.  A damaging punch to the body has a different effect than a similar punch to the face.  It forces you to curl up and temporarily destroys the foundation for your strength to do much of anything else.  The expression means that you have received a setback that has gone all the way to your core foundation and that you will need time to recover from this.  If time is unavailable, you are in danger of imminent defeat.  The stress is on the the severity of damage that has occurred and the effect that has on your ability to survive.  An example usage is: "That new product our competitor launched has been like a body blow to our bottom line.  We may no longer have enough financial resources to keep up."

 

"To be on the ropes"

This refers to when a boxer is punched so hard that he or she partially loses consciousness, staggers backwards, and falls onto the ropes that mark the borders of the boxing ring.  Without these ropes, the fighter may well have been knocked to the ground.  In this position, the fighter is very vulnerable and at great risk of being knocked out.  The expression means that you have suffered a setback that has put you in a very vulnerable position so that if the attack persists you are in danger of imminent defeat.  The stress is on the fact that an immediate and persistent attack is likely to finish off the person "on the ropes."  An example would be: "With his victory at Pengchang, Xiang Yu had Liu Bang and his forces on the ropes, but by allowing Liu Bang to escape and regroup, Xiang Yu was unable to put an end to the war."

 

"To be on your last legs"

This refers to a person, or perhaps a horse, that is visible exhausted to the point that the legs appear to be buckling.  It means that the person or animal is in danger of imminent collapse and that you should anticipate this outcome.  The stress is on the inevitability of collapse if nothing intervenes to prevent it.  An example might be: "With the persistent corruption, empty treasury, and increasing rebellions in the countryside, it was clear to the commander that the dynasty was on its last legs and that some drastic action was needed to avert disaster."

[roddy]

Two more I'd add, probably from British English

 

To be on the back foot - similar idea, imagine a fighter getting pushed back

To be at sixes and sevens - on the defensive, from the numbers traditionally worn by defenders in football 

 

Not related at all, but one I just thought of people might be interested in - to be on your uppers. Means you're so poor you've worn right through the soles of your shoes and are now walking around in just the uppers. 

[russmeier]

I can say as a native American English speaker with nearly five decades of speaking behind me that I certainly don't often use or hear the phrase "rocked back on your heels." It may be a regionalism. Or perhaps it has faded out of widespread usage now in the 21st century. I grew up and have lived my entire life in the middle of the U.S. - think Chicago for geographical reference. So, if it is a regionalism, I'd be interested to hear where in the U.S it is more commonly used. Interestingly, every other phrase in Altair's post #13 is very familiar. I regularly use, hear, and read these others phrases. Similarly, Roddy's second phrase in post #14 "to be at sixes and sevens" is also familiar although less common.

[Altair]

Since I began to doubt myself, I somehow managed to do a Google search of eBooks and came up with this page of passages using the phrase "was rocked back on his heels."

 

Here are some of the examples (from a variety of geographic locations) for those for whom the link does not work:
 

"'What, my love? Why did I do what?' 'Why did you kill all those babies?' Kirkhope was rocked back on his heels. This was impossible, ..."

 

"Joe was rocked back on his heels by the vicious verbal attack and sarcasm. Sure Kate had warned him, but this was downright antagonistic."

 

"The instant he pushed clear of the revolving doors Gerry was rocked back on his heels by a wolfish blast that had arrived in New York direct from the Arctic."

 

"Of course" "Well — that's not true. I have a venereal disease." Mateo was rocked back on his heels. He pulled out his blue handkerchief. "But — how did that happen? I don't get it. Is it something serious?" "No. A few years ago it would have ...

 

 

When I did a straight Google search of the same phrase, I came up with a bunch of Harlequin romances that used it in a sense I frankly did not quite understand, since it seemed to describe some sort of static body position rather than a position resulting from a sudden external stimulus. The other references were surprisingly mostly from the UK (The Guardian and the Telegraph) and appeared in papers describing Tennis matches.

 

Some examples:
 

 

"The No 2 seed, who was rocked back on his heels in the middle of the set, broke back, as the evening light began to crumble."

 

"Raonic unleashed another devastatingly potent first serve at 212 kilometers, but the quicksilver reactions of Dimitrov were evident once more. He produced an excellent return with good depth. Raonic was rocked back on his heels and could barely get that ball back into play."

 

"The world No1 was rocked back on his heels, and immediately conceded his own serve to trail 2-1. Roddick was on his way to taking the first set."

 

 

 

By the way, another phrase in line with the earlier ones is: "to get caught with your pants down."  It means to be surprised and put at a disadvantage during a temporary period of vulnerability.  I find the phrase somewhat inappropriate for mixed gender groups.  It has a joking tone inappropriate for some serious situations, such as most scholarly usage.

 

It is actually unclear to me what this phrase physically refers to, since I can think of two or three distinct reasons that might cause you to have your pants down. The mildest possibility would be a reference to the temporary difficulty in running or escaping when you are undressing and have your pants down around your ankles.  When your pants are on or off, it is easy to run; however, when they have fallen around your ankles, you can't run well.

 

A secondary possibility would be that this refers to the same physical situation, but with the additional assumption that you are going to the bathroom.  This would compound the difficulty of taking evasive action if there is a sudden need to.

 

The last possibility would be a reference to being caught in a state of undress during an inappropriate sexual activity.  With your pants on, there is always the possibility of inventing an innocent explanation for being in close proximity to an inappropriate partner; however, with your pants down , there would be no doubt as to your improper purpose.

[russmeier]

Altair,

I agree with all of your suggestions for then "caught" phrase. They all represent an embarrassing situation. That is the gist of the phrase - to be embarrassed because of something with no good way to escape.

This is fun. English idioms are certainly interesting. One that I have always liked, although it is probably not as thematic as the others we've talked about is "caught red handed."