The phrase "break a leg" is an idiom used to wish someone good luck, especially actors and performers before a show. It originated as a theatrical superstition where saying "good luck" directly was believed to bring bad luck. Instead, "break a leg," which sounds harmful, is ironically said to wish the opposite—success and a good performance. There are several theories about its origin:
- In ancient Greece, audiences showed appreciation by stomping their feet, and if they stomped hard enough, they could break a leg.
- During Elizabethan times, audiences might bang the legs of their chairs on the floor instead of applauding, potentially breaking the chair legs if they liked the performance.
- In early theater, actors hoped to "break the leg line," meaning to cross the curtain line on stage to get a chance to perform and earn payment.
- Another linguistic theory links the phrase to the German saying "Hals und Beinbruch" (neck and leg break), an ironic way to wish good luck, possibly derived from a Yiddish phrase meaning success and blessing.
- The superstition arose from the belief that directly wishing good luck would jinx the performer, so a phrase wishing harm was used instead to bring good fortune.
The phrase has been used in English theater communities since at least the 1920s and is now commonly used beyond the theater to mean "good luck" in a playful and ironic way. It is best avoided in serious contexts but remains a popular encouragement among performers and others.
