Thread: Stand at the anchor/Стоять на якоре

My flashcards threw up this phrase, which seems a bit random to me:

Stand at the anchor / Стоять на якоре

Is there some secondary meaning (other than just seafaring/sailing) in either English or Russian? I don't know it, from English.. But it's not my native tongue and ocassionally there are expressions that I don't know...

Could it be that they mean "stand at the helm" maybe? (Which can perhaps be a metaphor for running some kind of operation...) Does anyone recognise this phrase as a proverb or metaphor, or are they really trying to teach naval expressions to a beginner...

Originally Posted by Hanna

My flashcards threw up this phrase, which seems a bit random to me:

Stand at the anchor / Стоять на якоре

Is there some secondary meaning (other than just seafaring/sailing) in either English or Russian? I don't know it, from English.. But it's not my native tongue and ocassionally there are expressions that I don't know...

Could it be that they mean "stand at the helm" maybe? (Which can perhaps be a metaphor for running some kind of operation...) Does anyone recognise this phrase as a proverb or metaphor, or are they really trying to teach naval expressions to a beginner...

The English phrase is nonsensical. Are these flashcards created by an English speaking person because it looks like literal translation of the Russian phrase?
In English the phrase is "lie at anchor" or, more simply, the ship is "anchored"

In Russian it might be - to loaf around with no particular job to be had in a foreseeable perspective.

Originally Posted by alexB

In Russian it might be - to loaf around with no particular job to be had in a foreseeable perspective.

You can use the English phrase in a similar manner -- that is, metaphorically. But it's not an established idiomatic expression.
It can mean anything from lying in wait to being stable to... imagination is the limit; it is, after all, a metaphor.

Ummm, metaphor.
I love the smell of napalm in the morning too.

phrase is wrong. should be
stand at anchor. this is ok. it's a nautical term.

Originally Posted by alexB

Ummm, metaphor.
I love the smell of napalm in the morning too.

Ah, but that is not a metaphor! Napalm smells lovely, especially in the morning!

Originally Posted by quartz

Ah, but that is not a metaphor! Napalm smells lovely, especially in the morning!

They say that nothing else in the world smells like that.

Originally Posted by Vadim Mo

Originally Posted by quartz

Ah, but that is not a metaphor! Napalm smells lovely, especially in the morning!

They say that nothing else in the world smells like that.

I believe it!