Further Reading

Thursday, 20 November 2008

Common Superstitions

Friday the thirteenth is an unlucky day;
A rabbit's foot brings good luck;
An apple a day keeps the doctor away;
To find a four-leaf clover is to find good luck;
If you walk under a ladder, you will have bad luck;
If a black cat crosses your path you will have bad luck;
To break a mirror will bring you seven years bad luck;
To open an umbrella in the house is to bring bad luck;
To find a horseshoe brings good luck;
Step on a crack, break your mother's back;
You can break a bad luck spell by turning seven times in a clockwise circle;
Garlic protects from evil spirits and vampires;
Our fate is written in the stars;
At the end of a rainbow is a pot of gold;
Clothes worn inside out will bring good luck;
Wearing your birthstone will bring you good luck;
If you blow out all of the candles on your birthday cake with the first breath you will get whatever you wish for;
To have a wish come true using a wishbone, two people make a wish, then take hold of each end of the bone and pull it until it separates. The person with the longer end gets his or her wish;
An itchy palm means money will come your way;
A beginner will always have good luck: beginner's luck;
A cat has nine lives;
Eating fish makes you smart;
Toads cause warts;
A cricket in the house brings good luck;
Crossing your fingers helps to avoid bad luck and helps a wish come true;
It is bad luck to sing at the table;
It is bad luck to sleep on a table;
After receiving a container of food, the container should never be returned empty;
A lock of hair from a baby's first haircut should be kept for good luck;
A bird that comes in your window brings bad luck;
To refuse a kiss under mistletoe causes bad luck;
Goldfish in the pond bring good luck;
Goldfish in the house bring bad luck;
For good luck, wear new clothes on Easter;
An acorn at the window can keep lightning out of the house;
If the bottom of your feet itch, you will make a trip;
When a dog howls, death is near;
It is bad luck to chase someone with a broom ;
A sailor wearing an earring cannot drown;
To find a penny heads up, brings good luck;
To cure a sty, rub it with a gold wedding band;
Animals can talk at midnight on Christmas Eve;
A drowned woman floats face up, a drowned man floats face down;
A person cannot drown before going under three times;
To drop a fork means a woman will visit;
To drop a knife means a man will visit;
To drop a spoon means a child will visit;
To drop a dishcloth means bad luck is coming;
If you shiver, someone is casting a shadow on your grave;
To make a happy marriage, the bride must wear: something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue;
The wedding veil protects the bride from the evil eye;
Washing a car will bring rain;
You must get out of bed on the same side you got in on or you will have bad luck;
Evil spirits cannot harm you when you are standing in a circle;
A cat will try to take the breath from a baby;
Warm hands, cold heart;
Cold hands, warm heart;
It is unlucky to rock an empty rocking chair;
To kill an albatross is to cause bad luck to the ship and all upon it;
Wearing an opal when it is not your birthstone is bad luck;
Smell dandelions, wet the bed;
To give someone a purse or wallet without money in it will bring that person bad luck;
A forked branch, held with a fork in each hand, will dip and point when it passes over water.