two shakes of a lamb's tail
1
8.3
- idiom
- Informal
:
en un abrir y cerrar de ojos
- You'll be out in two shakes of a lamb's tail.
Examples
-
I'll finish this task and call you back in two shakes of a lamb's tail.
-
Now, you wait here and I'll be out in two shakes of a lamb's tail.
-
If the police are going to scour these hills with dogs, they'll find it in two shakes of a lamb's tail.
Fiction book (1995) -
Just give me two shakes of a lamb's tail to get ready, and I'll be right there.
-
Don't worry, the train will arrive in two shakes of a lamb's tail.
Synonyms
54
1.7
After a very short time
35
2.5
Very quickly in a single moment
30
3.6
In a very short time
3
7.0
Happens very soon
1
3.5
Very quickly, in an instant
1
3.8
In a very short time
Happens very quickly
Very quickly, in almost no time
Very fast, without delay
Antonyms
How Fast
330
1.0
∞
1.0
- Informal
1
8.3
174
1.3
54
1.7
Surface Forms
Morphology
two + shake + of + a + lamb's + tail
The image of 'two shakes' and a 'lamb's tail' evokes very brief, quick movements, so a learner who knows the words might guess the phrase refers to a short amount of time. However, the specific conventionalized meaning 'very quickly/in a moment' is idiomatic and culturally phrased, so the exact sense and idiomaticity are not fully predictable from the parts alone for a B1 learner.
Etymology
The idiom two shakes of a lamb's tail may come from a tiny, quick picture: a lamb giving its two shakes with its tail. Because those shakes are so brief, the phrase now means 'very quickly' or 'in a short time'.