Hard cheese
Posted by Less on August 20, 2002
In Reply to: Hard cheese posted by Word Camel on August 19, 2002
: : : Hi,
: : : I learned a phrase "Hard lines" the other day. I know it is used to express the sympathy for someoneone. But I don't know in what context it is used. Does it mean "It's strictly difficult"? Here is an example: A: I failed my driving test again! B: Hard lines. Could you be kind enough to paraphrase these two sentences, and tell me in what miserable situation this phrase will be used. Thank you again.
: : This paste from Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable:
: : "HARD LINES - Hard terms; "rather rough treatment;?exacting. Lines mean lot or allotment (measured out by a line measure)."
: : A more up to date alternative would be "that's tough".
: I've also heard this expressed as "hard cheese". If it's not too cheesy I wonder if the two at related and how.
Thank you for your help.