to keep the home fires burning
1
6.4
- idiom
- Archaic
:
mantener el hogar cálido
- While her husband is away on business, she makes extra effort to keep the home fires burning for their children.
- keep the home fires burning
Examples
-
During the winter, it's important to keep the home fires burning and create a cozy atmosphere.
-
Keeping the home fires burning is a costly business.
Blog text (19) -
Keeping the home fires burning is a costly business.
Blog text (19) -
Every holiday season, families gather to keep the home fires burning with love and laughter.
Antonyms
How Welcoming
31
1.0
- Archaic
1
6.4
21
1.0
5
3.0
100
3.5
Surface Forms
Morphology
keep + the + home + fire + burning
The phrase literally evokes keeping the household hearths alight, so a learner who knows 'keep', 'home', 'fire(s)', and 'burning' can infer a general sense of maintaining domestic warmth or routine. However, its conventionalized, slightly metaphorical extension to maintaining morale, a welcoming atmosphere, or continuity during someone's absence (with historical wartime connotations) is not fully predictable from the parts, so it is only partially transparent.
Etymology
The idiom keep the home fires burning comes from the simple image of a family's real fire at home; to keep the home fires burning meant keeping the fire lit for cooking and warmth while loved ones were away. So, it now means 'to keep a warm and caring home' while someone is away.