like greased lightning

Idioms and Phrases

Also, like a blue streak ; like the wind ; like blazes . Very fast indeed, as in He climbed that ladder like greased lightning , or She kept on talking like a blue streak , or The children ran like the wind when they heard there'd be free ice cream . The likening of speed to lightning dates from the 1500s, and grease was added in the early 1800s to further accentuate the idea of haste. The first variant, blue streak , also dates from the early 1800s and alludes to something resembling lightning. The wind in the second variant has been a metaphor for swiftness since ancient Roman times. The blazes in the last variant, first recorded in 1925, alludes to fire or lightning.

Related Words

• speedy