IN SAFE HANDS.
TO BE ON HAND.
TO GET ONE’S FINGERS BURNED.
What do you make of these phrases? By themselves they may not mean much but when used in a context they carry a lot of meaning. Let's take a closer look:
‘Your child is in safe hands with the baby sitter,’ means that the child will be well looked after by the baby sitter.
‘My friend was on hand in my hour of grief,' tells us that the friend was helping me when I was in grief. They were in attendance or available in case of need.
‘I got my fingers burned last time I associated with him,’ means that my experience with him was unpleasant and I learnt a painful lesson, especially in regard to trust in interpersonal relationships.