Subtitles section Play video Print subtitles Hi this is Tutor Nick P and this is Idioms 263. The name of the idiom today is mind your own beeswax. Okay. Let's take a look at the note here. This idiom is another way of saying mind your own business. This idiom is often considered to be a euphemism. So you know remember a euphemism that's a nicer way of saying something else. So mind your own business beeswax is a nicer way of saying mind your own business. And to be honest that's probably how it formed or at least that's how they think it formed. Because beeswax sounds a lot like business. All right. Let's continue. Because mind your own business is sometimes taken as as rude or offensive. So you have to be careful how you say mind your own business. Sometimes people are like whoa ! Whoa ! You said that to me . You know , so but if you say mind your own beeswax, it adds a little humor to it. It's a little funny. It's not as strong. So that's why sometimes this, this idiom probably formed. It really is used the same way as mind your own business, but it doesn't sound quite as harsh or quite as rude. All right. So let's continue. Just like it says here. It also adds a little humor to the phrase because like beeswax ? Where did beeswax come from ? But it almost makes people laugh in a way. The phrase could be used directly with someone you think is asking questions that you think are too personal or used as a warning not to interfere in someone else's business. Okay. Good. Let's continue. The first known citing of mind your own business ... of mine your own beeswax appears in a 1929 children's book. Okay. And was often used with children and by children. So it may have caught on that way. Maybe they didn't want to put the offensive term in the kids book and they changed it to beeswax. And then I think kids started using it or parents started using it with kids. But it stretched beyond that. So I mean adults use it, or especially I think women might use it more. As again you know, trying to be careful not to say the one that somebody might consider to be more offensive or rude. All right. So let's continue. You can also say you ... you can also tell someone none of your business. That's another way of saying mind your own business. All right. It sounds a little bit better than mind your own business but mind your own beeswax again would be the one that would add humor to it. All right. Let's look at number one. Number one is in a/b part. And A says "Are you and your boyfriend intimate yet. ? Remember if you're saying intimate. Yeah, especially if girls ask each other are you intimate yet ? It really means like are you having sex yet ? So maybe, maybe the girl depending upon who asked her, she may say. Yeah. That's that's none of your beeswax. You know, so maybe she doesn't want to tell that yet. All right. Number two. I should just tell that nosy neighbor to mind her own beeswax. Okay. Yeah. We often say that's one of the ones that you might actually say mind your own business, if somebody is really nosy. Remember nosy means they're poking their nose into your business. That's kind of the idea where that came from. All right. And the last one here. It's not polite to ask the personal finances of others. You mean other people. You should mind your own beeswax. So this is another one that's kind of a warning that not to interfere in other people's business or not to not to ask about things that are too personal from other people. So we might tell somebody you know, mind your own beeswax. Don't, don't make people feel uncomfortable by asking questions that, that seemed to be too personal. Okay. Anyway, I hope you got it . I hope it was clear. Thank you for your time. Bye-bye.
B1 US beeswax mind idiom intimate humor offensive English Tutor Nick P Idioms (263) Mind Your Own Beeswax 7 0 anitawu12 posted on 2019/08/07 More Share Save Report Video vocabulary