Name: English Tutor Nick P Idioms (263) Mind Your Own Beeswax
Uploaded: 2019-08-07T14:57:33.000Z
Duration: 4 min 16 s
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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

Basic passive voice

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.