The Second World War



This took place 1939-45, and was fought between Germany, Japan and Italy, on one side, and many countries on the 
other, including China, Britain and the USA.  The leader of Germany was called Hitler; he was the leader of a 
party called the Nazi party, whose members were called "brown-shirts" because they wore brown shirts.  The 
brownshirts wore heavy boots called "jack-boots" and had a special march called a "goose-step".  Some of 
this terminology has become commonly expressed in the English language, and not necessarily in relation to the 
second world war.

(a)  He's a real little brown-shirt [Hitler], isn't he?
(b)  The leaders of that country [organisation] are just a bunch of fascists.  [Meaning: they don't listen to 
advice from others; they treat people badly; they have unreasonable and often prejudiced ways of behaving].
(c)  He's a typical brown-shirt.  
(d)  They just goose-stepped into my office and told me I was fired.
(e)  Why don't you just put on your jack-boots and tell them all they're fired. [an insult to the person you 
are talking to]






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