Let’s say that someone says, “The name Barcelona rings a bell but I can’t remember where it is”, would you understand what they mean? Stay around if you do not know what it means. Another way of saying this idiom is to use it with the word ‘any’ in it. Such as, “Does it ring any bells?”
Let’s look at a longer example and see if you can guess the meaning of the expression by reading around it.
Henry: Mary, Tom is off on holidays. Isn’t he? Rita was telling me that Tom told her that he might be going somewhere sunny. Do you know anything more about it?
Mary: Now that you bring it up, Tom saying that he wanted go somewhere warm does ring a bell. He was speaking fondly of Copacabana. I have a feeling that that’s where he went.
Henry: Lucky guy! I would love to be there with him right this instant. Ipanema would be lovely too.
Mary: I know I’ve heard of Copacabana but Ipanema doesn’t ring any bells though.
Henry: Doesn’t it? It’s another famous tourist destination in Brazil.
Can you guess its meaning now? It simply means that something reminds you of something or is familiar. In other words, when someone tells you something or you see something, it reminds you of something or it is familiar to you.
Here’s another example:
Phil: Cherry, are you familiar with these travel procedures?
Cherry: I’m afraid they don’t ring any bells at all. I might have to ask Karen to show me how to do it.
Well, it’s now your turn to add some examples below…
