broker than the Ten Commandments
- idiom
- Informal
:
más pobre que las tablas de la ley
- After losing his job, John is broker than the Ten Commandments.
Examples
-
He spent so much on his car repairs that he's now broker than the Ten Commandments.
-
During university, I was often broker than the Ten Commandments before payday.
-
After that surprise bill, I felt broker than the Ten Commandments.
-
I'm broker than the Ten Commandments!
-
After that surprise bill, I felt broker than the Ten Commandments.
-
During university, I was often broker than the Ten Commandments before payday.
-
He spent so much on his car repairs that he's now broker than the Ten Commandments.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
Having little money or possessions
237
1.8
Having no money
24
4.3
Having no money
1
7.6
Having almost no money
Having no money to pay for things
Having almost no money or things
Not having much money or valuable things
How Poor
20
6.5
- Informal
- Informal
237
1.8
107
2.9
33
3.4
Surface Forms
Morphology
broker + than + the + ten + commandment
The comparative form 'broker' (understood as 'more broke') plus the clear comparative structure 'X than Y' makes the broad meaning 'very poor' partly derivable from the constituents. However, invoking 'the Ten Commandments' as the point of comparison is a humorous/cultural benchmark with no literal connection to money, so the exact exaggerated idiomatic force is not fully predictable to a B1 learner without prior exposure.
Etymology
Broker than the Ten Commandments is a joking phrase that plays on the word broke and the Bible story where Moses smashed the stone tablets that held the Ten Commandments. Because the tablets were literally 'broken' and that sounds like 'broke', the phrase means 'extremely poor' or having 'no money'.