IDIOMS AND MISCONCEPTIONS

English for Today by Ganiu Abisoye Bamgbose (Dr GAB)

IDIOMS AND MISCONCEPTIONS

He sold the house for reasons to ~him~ (nonstandard).
He sold the house for reasons best known to himself (standard).

I have three ~blood brothers~ ; others are my cousins (nonstandard).
I have three brothers ; others are my cousins (standard). A blood brother is a man who has sworn to treat another man as a brother, typically by a ceremonial mingling of blood.

She asked if I would come and I warned her ~to paddle her own canoe~ (nonstandard).
She asked if I would come and I warned her to mind her own business (standard). To paddle one’s own canoe is to be independent and self-sufficient: You can come to stay with me if you can paddle your own canoe.
GAB