peaches and cream
idiomatic noun-phrase

- used to describe someone who has smooth and pale skin with light pink cheeks (She has a peaches and cream complexion)

- chiefly U.S. (informal) - a situation, process, etc., that has no trouble or problems (He promised her that if she married him, life would be peaches and cream)

Merriam-Webster

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PHRASE ORIGIN

In the southern U.S. peaches topped with whipped cream is a particularly popular dessert. The colour and texture of the dessert leads to peaches and cream being used to describe someone (usually female) who has smooth and pale skin with light pink cheeks.

Georgia is known as the “Peach State” because of the growers’ reputation for producing the highest quality fruit. The peach became the official state fruit of Georgia in 1995.

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WORD-PAIRS

A great way to develop your English vocabulary is to learn well-known word-pairs like “peaches and cream”. The technical term for such word-pairs is “binomial expressions”.

Binomials are regularly used by native English speakers because they are catchy and easy to remember.

There are five broad categories:

(1) Opposites – i.e. “hot and cold”

(2) Synonyms – i.e. “peace and quiet”

(3) Rhyming words – i.e. “meet and greet”

(4) Repetition –  i.e. “again and again”

(5) Alliteration – i.e. “tried and tested”

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TEST YOURSELF – A BINOMIAL QUIZ

How many of the following pairs can you complete? Scroll down for answers.

- short and ??? ….  (kurz und schmerzlos)

- trial and ??? ….   (Versuch und Irrtum)

- wine and ??? ….  (jemanden zu einem guten Essen einladen)

- hustle and ??? ….  (Hektik und Lärm)

- null and ??? ….  (null und nichtig)

- part and ??? ….  (fester Bestandteil des Pakets)

- odds and ??? …. (Krimskrams)

- tit for ??? …. (Gleiches mit Gleichem vergelten)

- prim and ??? …. (sittsam und anständig)

- wear and ??? …. (Verschleiß und Abnutzung)

- spick and ??? …. (blitzblank geputzt)

- nuts and ??? …. (die grundlegenden Details einer Arbeit oder Tätigkeit)

(scroll down for answers)

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- short and SWEET = efficiently brief in duration, especially when referring to an unpleasant task (Today’s staff meeting was short and sweet.)

- trial and ERROR = try several different methods of solving a problem until you find the method that works properly (We found the solution purely by trial and error.)

- wine and DINE = entertain someone to a fine meal (The company wined and dined the prospective clients.)

- hustle and BUSTLE = a lot of noisy activity (He moved to the countryside to escape the hustle and bustle of the big city.)

- null and VOID = having no legal force (The change in the law makes the previous agreement null and void.)

- part and PARCEL = an integral or essential piece (Regular maintenance is part and parcel of owning a car.)

- odds and ENDS = miscellaneous items, fragments and remnants, that are all different and not valuable or important (Under the roof are boxes stuffed full of odds and ends.)

- tit for TAT = actions done intentionally to punish other people because they have done something unpleasant to you (I noticed she didn’t send me a card – I think it was tit for tat because I forgot her birthday last year.)

- prim and PROPER = very formal and correct in behaviour and easily shocked by anything rude (Watch your language over dinner, our guests are very prim and proper.)

- wear and TEAR = the damage or change that is caused to something when it is being used normally (Seat covers on buses take a lot of wear and tear.)

- spick and SPAN = spotlessly clean and neat, just like new (The office kitchen is always spick and span.)

- nuts and BOLTS = the basic details of a job or activity (I’m sure you’ll learn the nuts and bolts of our operations after a few months on-the-job.)

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SMUGGLE OWAD into an English conversation, say something like:

“Whenever I see a peach I'm reminded of the binomial expression 'PEACHES AND CREAM' and also of Lady Di.”

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and,

Paul Smith, IBAN: DE75 7316 0000 0002 5477 40