If you see or heard the phrase “running like a”, what would you expect to the next word to be?
If you’re from the UK you might say “tap” – that’s certainly what I would expect to come next here.
A tap in this context refers to “A device by which a flow of liquid or gas from a pipe or container can be controlled” [source].
Such devices are commonly known as faucets in the USA [source].
What about in other English-speaking countries?
I picked a cold this week, and yesterday my nose was running like a tap, which is why I decided to blog about this expression. I wondered if people talk about things ‘running like a faucet’ in the USA, and if not, what expression they use.
If you Google “running like a”, the top results (at the time of writing) are “running like a Kenyan on speed”, “running like a girl” and “running like a dog”.
As a USAian I’d probably say my nose was “dripping like a faucet”, though I don’t think it’s a super common phrase. And a “tap” is what police put on a bad guy’s phone.
But what I found more interesting is that you “picked” a cold. I’ve never heard that phrase before, and I’m pretty sure most USAians would be confused by it. The usual phrases for what you do with a cold are “caught”, “get”, or “come down with”.
I picked up a cold is what I meant to write. I could have also caught one, come down with one or just got one.
A few months ago, you could have said, “running like Trump for president”, but that’s old news now.
“I picked up a cold is what I meant to write.”
…or the cold picked you.