Take this sentence:
I gave a beggar all my change, and he lit up like a candle.
It's used in Norwegian, but I wonder if it's perfectly clear what it means in English, and are there better idioms to use instead?
English Language & Usage Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for linguists, etymologists, and serious English language enthusiasts. It only takes a minute to sign up.
Sign up to join this communityTake this sentence:
I gave a beggar all my change, and he lit up like a candle.
It's used in Norwegian, but I wonder if it's perfectly clear what it means in English, and are there better idioms to use instead?
It is a common idiom in English. But because we have pretty much moved away from candles to electric light, it's used nowadays mainly in literary contexts, as a formula.
The expression on the face shows delight.
The original phrase was "lit up like a Roman candle."
A Roman candle is not a candle at all, but a kind of firework, a long cylinder that shoots streams of burning stars and rockets skyward. You can watch an entertaining video of one here. It originally came from China but was imported to Europe through Rome and so got its name (the same thing happened with Venetian blinds and turkeys).
Given that background, "he lit up like a candle" might imply more vigor in his reaction than you actually intend.
And you might consider George Orwell's advice on the subject: "Never use a metaphor, simile, or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print." Come up with something original.