good luck charm
13
3.0
- noun
- /ɡʊd lʌk tʃɑrm/
:
amuleto
- In his pants pockets, he fingered a good luck charm that Granny had ordered from a shrine in Tohoku that specialized in amulets for school entrance exams.
- a good luck charm her husband gave
Got given this weird freaky little in Thailand a look tap doll which is meant to be good luck charm that you take on your travels.
- Got given this weird freaky little in Thailand a look tap doll which is meant to be good luck charm that you take on your travels.
- But what, what is true is that during the campaign, people started handing me these good luck charms, right?
- To suggest trashy good luck charms therefore insults us and I ask for apology.
Examples
-
Hey, you have to see my new good luck charm.
Fiction book (2001) -
She's our good luck charm.
-
You ready to be my good luck charm?
-
You always were my good luck charm.
-
I just had to run back up for my good luck charm.
-
It's a good luck charm.
-
He can be my good luck charm.
-
Becker forgot his good luck charm.
Fiction book (1990) -
You're my good-luck charm.
-
She always carries her lucky coin as a good luck charm before every big game.
Synonyms
92
2.3
A small object believed to bring good luck
81
7.2
A small object worn as jewelry that people believe protects them from harm
53
9.1
A feeling of luck and confidence that helps you do well
37
8.2
An object that people often wear as jewelry and think brings good luck or protection to its owner
How Lucky
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase combines 'good' + 'luck' + 'charm' in a directly compositional way: a 'charm' that brings 'good luck', so a learner who knows 'luck' and 'charm' can infer an object (and by extension a person) that brings good fortune. This metaphoric extension to a person is predictable and cross-linguistically common, making the expression immediately comprehensible to B1 learners who know the constituents.
Etymology
Good luck charm comes from the old habit of carrying small objects called charms such as a rabbit's foot or a horseshoe that people thought had special power. That's why a good luck charm today is any object people keep to bring 'good luck' or 'protect' them.