proverbial light bulb

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unpakwon

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Jun 7, 2007
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Korean
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South Korea
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South Korea
Please explain the following in red more easily. When do you use this expression?

Or they see a way to connect precedents to make a solution. Their brains connect the dots, and they feel it as a flash of insight: the proverbial light bulb goes off in their heads. Of course it's not really magic, but it can seem like it at the time.

Thank you.
 
It is used colloquially to indicate the moment that everything suddenly becomes clear to you, or you have a good idea, or you solve a puzzle. To be precise, it should refer to a light bulb being "switched on", rather than "going off". The device is often used by cartoonists, who draw an illuminated light bulb in a "thought bubble" above the head of someone who has just had a good idea.
 
It's a metaphor for an insight or new idea.
 
It's somewhat erroneous to refer to it as the "proverbial" light bulb as there is no actual proverb to do with it.
 
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