Modul 4: Idiom 09: Blow off steam

Blow off steam. When you boil water, it turns into steam.

When you blow off steam, you get rid of your stress, anger or any other bad feeling so that you feel better.

How can you do it? By doing some physical exercises – like this angry, stressed-out guy in the picture – or by listening to music, going out, eating some delicious meal etc.

But what is the origin of this idiom?

The first trains didn’t run on electricity; instead, they ran on steam. But what produced the steam? Well, boilers.

The water in the boiler was heated by fire. Because of the extreme temperature and the extremely high pressure, there was a danger of explosion.

So, there were safety valves, called “blow-off valves” on boilers. When the blow-off valve was opened, the excess steam (the extra steam) was released, so the pressure got normalised in the boiler.

Look at our illustration: the guy is clearly stressed out and is in anger.

He’s doing some physical exercise (boxing) to release his stress. You can even see the “steam” leaving his head through his ears.

He’s blowing off steam.

Here are some examples before we go to the concept questions …

“My boss drove me crazy today! I’m going running to blow off steam.”

“This little guy can’t stop! You should take him to the playground to blow off steam.”

When I spend too much time with one activity, I become agitated (nervous), and I need to blow off steam, so I take a long walk in the city. It calms me down.

Great.

Let’s look at some situations and check your understanding:

1. When I got home from work the other day, I found my wife listening to some quiet, relaxing music. She looked very angelic – totally relaxed. Was she blowing off steam the moment I entered the room?

No. She may have turned on the music because she had been stressed out, but when I arrived, she had already blown off steam.

2. Is sitting at a desk studying difficult, complicated materials a good way of blowing off steam?

No. Studying difficult materials can put stress on students; that’s why they may need something to blow off steam.

3. When I was a teenager, I played rock music in a band. I loved it because I felt much better after the music sessions. Did these sessions help me blow off steam?

Definitely. Playing some uptempo, loud music is absolutely a way to blow off steam. You should try it too 😉

4. After a wonderful, perfect holiday, do you need to blow off steam?

No. A holiday is a great way to blow off steam. But, after the holiday … when you’re relaxed … you no longer need to blow off steam.

5. After a wonderful, perfect holiday, as you come to the passport control, you run into difficulties with the officer. It takes you hours to get through, so you miss your taxi service. Will you need to blow off steam?

Yes. After such a stressful situation, you definitely need to blow off steam.

Great. Now go practice. See you soon.