Flash off

The term flashing originally comes from the mishap when using a weapon that the fuse burns down but the rifle does not go off. In this context it was said that the gun flashed . The term can also be found in the meteorological context when the lightning stops after a thunderstorm ( the sky has flashed ). But also the discharge of lightning ( lightning rods ) was colloquially represented as flashing off .

All three meanings flowed into the eloquent phrase to turn someone down , which means that someone has no success with another person's cause and is suddenly rejected.

Quotes

Some men are like filming in the dark: you have to flash them so that a light can dawn on them. ( Uta Sax )

literature

• German dictionary by Jacob Grimm and Wilhelm Grimm ( Brothers Grimm )