A six-figure-a-year

[Johnyxxx]

Hi,

Can anybody help me to understand what the bold text means?

They come flooding into the office, the entire staff—even Mrs. Merryweather, the former receptionist with the cat’s-eye glasses and gallstones (whom Zuckerman had assumed was dead). Two surviving partners in golf pants and Rolexes, three junior agents, an anorexic secretary, a pair of slacker grad-student readers, an old lady with blue-rinse hair, and a six-figure-a-year accountant with a Percodan habit—this motley group could make an alarming racket.

HEAVY by Jay Bonansinga, 2012

Thanks a lot.

 

[SoothingDave]

"Six figure" means he makes/is paid at least $100,000. And less than $1,000,000.

 

[BobK]

With over 20 Koruna to the $US, and salaries in the Czech Republic (??? maybe, as in many European countries) normally expressed as monthly rates, this idiom must sound really weird to you! ;-)

b

 

[Johnyxxx]

With over 20 Koruna to the $US, and salaries in the Czech Republic (??? maybe, as in many European countries) normally expressed as monthly rates, this idiom must sound really weird to you! ;-)

b

You are right on the nail.

 

[MikeNewYork]

I usually hear that as "you hit the nail on the head'.

 

[Johnyxxx]

I usually hear that as "you hit the nail on the head'.

My beloved textbook called 1000 English phrases mentions both cases; be right on the nail and hit the nail on the head. I use them in turns.

 

[MikeNewYork]

I've never heard the first one.

 

[Johnyxxx]

I've never heard the first one.

Of course, I am not a native speaker like you are but if you google "you are right on the nail" with the commas to get the exact phrase, you will get cca. 98.000 webpages, forums etc. where this phrase is used as an analogy of "you hit the nail on the head."
And one of them literally says "you are right on the nail, as we say in England."

 

[MikeNewYork]

And if you Google "hit the nail on the head" you will get 880,000 hits.

 

[Johnyxxx]

And if you Google "hit the nail on the head" you will get 880,000 hits.

Let us wait; it may be that a BrE speaker will sort it out.

 

[MikeNewYork]

It could well be a BrE idiom that has escaped me. It would not be the first.

 

[Eckaslike]

My beloved textbook called 1000 English phrases mentions both cases; be right on the nail and hit the nail on the head. I use them in turns.

Both are fine to me.

If I ask, "Guess how much my car cost?", you might answer "£6,599". I would then be very surprised that you guessed correctly, and so I might reply "You are right on the nail!" or "You got that right on the nail!".

I think it's probably much less frequently used than "hit the nail on the head".

 

[BobK]

:up: I've heard both. Also it's common to reinforce "hit the nail [^here^] on the head" by adding "bang" in the middle.

b

 

[Tdol]

I have heard right on the nail, but it is much less common than the other.