When Is Two Too Many? When It's a 'Double Whammy'!

2024-08-04

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1
  • And now, Words and Their Stories, from VOA Learning English.
  • 2
  • On this program, we explore words and expressions in the English language.
  • 3
  • We give definitions, examples and notes on usage.
  • 4
  • Today we talk about a word with an unusual history - whammy.
  • 5
  • A whammy can be a magical spell that brings bad luck.
  • 6
  • It can also be an attack or a damaging, destructive blow.
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  • A blow is an incident or event that hits you hard.
  • 8
  • So, one whammy is bad. But what happens when you have two?
  • 9
  • That is called a double whammy.
  • 10
  • People traditionally say they have been hit with a double whammy!"
  • 11
  • The online dictionary Merriam-Webster defines a double whammy as a combination of two usually unfavorable forces, circumstances, or effects.
  • 12
  • Two bad things happen at the same time to make something really unpleasant or difficult.
  • 13
  • It can also mean that two bad things happen consecutively, or one after the other.
  • 14
  • The origin of the expression is unclear.
  • 15
  • Some guess it comes from taking the word "wham" which describes a hard punch or blow and adding a -y ending which makes it sound funny.
  • 16
  • Others say the cartoonist Al Capp popularized the word whammy in his 1950s comic strip Li'l Abner.
  • 17
  • A character named Evil-Eye Fleegle could stop someone by simply looking at them.
  • 18
  • The single whammy was a look with one eye, and the feared double whammy used both eyes.
  • 19
  • Now, let's listen to the expression used in a sentence.
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  • Today, my friend Jonah lost his job.
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  • And then, on the way home, he fell and broke his leg.
  • 22
  • Talk about a double whammy! It has NOT been his best day.
  • 23
  • Here is another example of the expression double whammy.
  • 24
  • On their 3-hour hiking trip, the friends were hit with a double whammy.
  • 25
  • The first was a bad rainstorm.
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  • They were forced to take shelter in a cave.
  • 27
  • Then they realized the second bad thing.
  • 28
  • They left all their food and water in the car.
  • 29
  • There is another English expression that has a similar meaning - a one-two punch.
  • 30
  • The first punch is a difficult blow to take, but then the second one aims to finish the job.
  • 31
  • The expression comes from boxing where one punch is quickly followed by another from the other fist, or closed hand.
  • 32
  • A boxer using a one-two punch is trying to knock out their opponent or to score points.
  • 33
  • Both double whammy and one-two punch are informal expressions.
  • 34
  • One-two punch might be less popular than it once was.
  • 35
  • But double whammy appears in some surprising places in both American and British English.
  • 36
  • And that's Words and Their Stories. Until next time ... I'm Anna Matteo.