lovecraft68
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Just curious if these are your words or the author that you're quoting.
Wondering which of you is so ignorant as to refer to an addict struggling to kick their habit as a "dreg"
Phraseology Tidbits
- Thread starter sr71plt
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Just curious if these are your words or the author that you're quoting.
Wondering which of you is so ignorant as to refer to an addict struggling to kick their habit as a "dreg"
sr71plt
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You'll just have to keep wondering.
sr71plt
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It's all about guts
We can thank novelist Ernest Hemingway for the phrase "grace under pressure," which has come to mean doing the right thing under pressure to do otherwise. Hemingway used the phrase most famously in a 1929 New Yorker interview ("the Artists Reward") of him by Dorothy Parker. She asked him what he meant by "guts" in his writings; he answered that he mean "grace under pressure," which he explained meant an artist or sportsman or professional sticking to the code of his art, sport, or profession even when under intense pressure to cave into contrary convention. Hemingway first used the term, however, in a 1926 letter he wrote to novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
We can thank novelist Ernest Hemingway for the phrase "grace under pressure," which has come to mean doing the right thing under pressure to do otherwise. Hemingway used the phrase most famously in a 1929 New Yorker interview ("the Artists Reward") of him by Dorothy Parker. She asked him what he meant by "guts" in his writings; he answered that he mean "grace under pressure," which he explained meant an artist or sportsman or professional sticking to the code of his art, sport, or profession even when under intense pressure to cave into contrary convention. Hemingway first used the term, however, in a 1926 letter he wrote to novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
sr71plt
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Please pass the honey buns
The proper spelling of the term is "just deserts" (not "just desserts") and has nothing to do with post-dinner sweets. It's from the French deservir, "deserve"--folding back on the meaning of the term, getting what one deserves.
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
The proper spelling of the term is "just deserts" (not "just desserts") and has nothing to do with post-dinner sweets. It's from the French deservir, "deserve"--folding back on the meaning of the term, getting what one deserves.
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
sr71plt
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Full speed ahead
The literal reference to the phrase "pull out all the stops," used in the context of making every effort on some action is attributed to pipe organs, where the air flow to the pipes (to make them sound a note) was controlled by knobs, called stops, on the organ console. The literary use of the term has been traced to Matthew Arnold, in Essays in Criticism (1865), with the phrase "knowing how unpopular a task one is undertakin when one tries to pull out a few more stops in that . . . somewhat narrow-toned organ, the modern Englishman."
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
The literal reference to the phrase "pull out all the stops," used in the context of making every effort on some action is attributed to pipe organs, where the air flow to the pipes (to make them sound a note) was controlled by knobs, called stops, on the organ console. The literary use of the term has been traced to Matthew Arnold, in Essays in Criticism (1865), with the phrase "knowing how unpopular a task one is undertakin when one tries to pull out a few more stops in that . . . somewhat narrow-toned organ, the modern Englishman."
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
sr71plt
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Winning combination
The sandwich of "club sandwich" fame and potato chips (crisps in ye olde England) may have been "born" in the same place--the club sandwich in upstate Saratoga Springs, New York, at the Saratoga Club-House (a gentlemen's gambling house)--in 1894--and the potato chip much earlier at the Sarasota Springs resort in 1853.
Other explanations on why a club sandwich is called a club sandwich include that they were likened to the double-decker club cars of late nineteenth-century American railway cars (master chef James Beard bought into this explanation and declared a three-decker club sandwich to be a bastard) or that the word "club" implies "combination to make a total."
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
The sandwich of "club sandwich" fame and potato chips (crisps in ye olde England) may have been "born" in the same place--the club sandwich in upstate Saratoga Springs, New York, at the Saratoga Club-House (a gentlemen's gambling house)--in 1894--and the potato chip much earlier at the Sarasota Springs resort in 1853.
Other explanations on why a club sandwich is called a club sandwich include that they were likened to the double-decker club cars of late nineteenth-century American railway cars (master chef James Beard bought into this explanation and declared a three-decker club sandwich to be a bastard) or that the word "club" implies "combination to make a total."
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
sr71plt
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Hey, man
The expression, usually denoting approval of the unexpected/unconventional, "far out," arose from jazz musicians in the 1950s to describe experimental music of the time that was "far out" of the mainstream.
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
The expression, usually denoting approval of the unexpected/unconventional, "far out," arose from jazz musicians in the 1950s to describe experimental music of the time that was "far out" of the mainstream.
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
sr71plt
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Devaluation
The term used to identify the key question to a problem, the "sixty-four-thousand-dollar question" (taken from the title of a TV quiz show dated to 1955) is inflationary. The title was lifted from an earlier radio program dated to 1942 titled The Sixty-Four Dollar Question. Any day now a Sixty-Four Trillion Dollar Question online quiz show will pop up and it won't have been inspired by the national debt.
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
The term used to identify the key question to a problem, the "sixty-four-thousand-dollar question" (taken from the title of a TV quiz show dated to 1955) is inflationary. The title was lifted from an earlier radio program dated to 1942 titled The Sixty-Four Dollar Question. Any day now a Sixty-Four Trillion Dollar Question online quiz show will pop up and it won't have been inspired by the national debt.
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
sr71plt
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It's a generational thing
The "D" in the phrase "Generation D" stands for digital. This is the generation of folks who have grown up comforable and expert with computers and other electronic devices. Going a step up (naturally), the "E" in the phrase "Generation E" stands for entitlement (which I guess can happen in most any generation).
The phrase "generation gap" was the inspiration for the name of the Gap clothing store--targeting the youths.
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
The "D" in the phrase "Generation D" stands for digital. This is the generation of folks who have grown up comforable and expert with computers and other electronic devices. Going a step up (naturally), the "E" in the phrase "Generation E" stands for entitlement (which I guess can happen in most any generation).
The phrase "generation gap" was the inspiration for the name of the Gap clothing store--targeting the youths.
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
lovecraft68
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Thank you, this one is quite interesting, will use it in a story sometime.
elfin_odalisque
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Just a sign he is out of his depth.
try this from an authenticated wiki source:
Etymology
There are several explanations of the phrase's origin:
A narrowing of the meaning "suddenly or without preparation," from cold turkey being a dish that requires little preparation; originally used for heroin addicts.[7]
From the American phrase talk turkey meaning "to speak bluntly with little preparation".[8]
Some believe the derivation is from the comparison of a cold turkey carcass and the state of a withdrawing addict — most notably, the cold sweats and goose bumps.[9]
Reference to the periods after Christmas and Thanksgiving holidays where cold (leftover) turkey was likely to be eaten, coinciding with the end of those holidays' characteristically high alcohol consumption.
Again, sr with his children's book of trivia, just proves he is incapable of escaping his egotistical bubble - and is frequently wrong.
PennLady
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Because that's so much better than a book that can be cited by author? Seriously? I can't believe you have so little to do with your time that you try to poke holes in something that bothers no one else. Probably because we have the sense to decide for ourselves whether we want to investigate further or take it at face value.
PennLady
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You're welcome. Does Kipfer say anything about the phrase "Who shot Willy?" My mom uses this a lot, as in, "Well, I won't talk about it more because A says this and B says that and soon you're into a 'who shot willy?' situation."
I gather it means a pointless question or moot point, but I'd be curious to know where it came from. Yes, I know I could look it up, but the wondering is also fun.
lovecraft68
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If you haven;t done it, I'm curious about "Nose to the grindstone"
I'd also like to know the origin of when the shit hits the fan, but doubt that has a real classic origin.
I'd also like to know the origin of when the shit hits the fan, but doubt that has a real classic origin.
sr71plt
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You're welcome. Does Kipfer say anything about the phrase "Who shot Willy?" My mom uses this a lot, as in, "Well, I won't talk about it more because A says this and B says that and soon you're into a 'who shot willy?' situation."
I gather it means a pointless question or moot point, but I'd be curious to know where it came from. Yes, I know I could look it up, but the wondering is also fun.
I found nothing on "Who shot Willy?" We'll have to let Elfin worry about this one (anything to keep her little mind occupied is to the good, I think). Incidentally, as my repeated disclaimer notes, I don't just parrot Kipfer but use her listing of phrases as a takeoff. I do other research (probably just as good as anything Elfin comes up with just to be contrary, given how hazy phrase origin is), concentrating on angles that are interesting to me.
While looking for "Who shot Will?" (which mostly comes up as a book title), I came up with "willy-nilly," which is sort of interesting. Of course this isn't the only explanation offered, but the one I found interesting was that in early English, "nill" was the opposite of "will" (pointing to "everything from here to there" as a phrase meaning) and the phrase was "wille ne, nelle we," which has been dated back to 1000, meaning the same as "hit and miss." Now it's used as "in an unplanned, haphazard fashion." (phrases.org.uk) Shakespeare liked to play with the phrase too (Taming of the Shrew, Hamlet).
(For the record, Kipfer agrees with phrases.org.uk on the willy-nilly origin.)
sr71plt
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Good questions. My posting to PL's "Who shot Willy?" question will hold for today's phrase tidbit. I'll look at the ones you raised for tomorrow.
sr71plt
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Nosy
There seem to be two warring factions on the origin, in use since the sixteenth century of the phrase, "nose to the grindstone," meaning applying yourself conscientiously to your work. Some say it came from the habit of millers to check for possible burning from overuse of the stone cereal was being ground on (and thus burn the cereal) by occasionally putting their nose to the stone and smelling it. (The argument against this being the source is that miller's stones were known as millstones rather than grindstones since before the phrase came in vogue.) The other faction says it comes from knife grinders bending close to the stone to make sure the knife was angled right for grinding.
This fascinating discussion is from phrases.org.uk rather than Kipfer, who apparently doesn't care much about the phrase.
As far as the expression, "the shit hitting the fan," used to describe a previously secret situation being made public unexpectedly, is concerned, the phrase hit the public purview in the 1930s with Eric Partidge's A Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English.
There seem to be two warring factions on the origin, in use since the sixteenth century of the phrase, "nose to the grindstone," meaning applying yourself conscientiously to your work. Some say it came from the habit of millers to check for possible burning from overuse of the stone cereal was being ground on (and thus burn the cereal) by occasionally putting their nose to the stone and smelling it. (The argument against this being the source is that miller's stones were known as millstones rather than grindstones since before the phrase came in vogue.) The other faction says it comes from knife grinders bending close to the stone to make sure the knife was angled right for grinding.
This fascinating discussion is from phrases.org.uk rather than Kipfer, who apparently doesn't care much about the phrase.
As far as the expression, "the shit hitting the fan," used to describe a previously secret situation being made public unexpectedly, is concerned, the phrase hit the public purview in the 1930s with Eric Partidge's A Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English.
sr71plt
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Fruit of plenty
The phrase, "a plum job," traces back to England in the 1600s. "Plum" was the British term then for one thousand pounds, meaning a serious amount of money (and that would truly have been a serious amount of money in the 1600s).
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
The phrase, "a plum job," traces back to England in the 1600s. "Plum" was the British term then for one thousand pounds, meaning a serious amount of money (and that would truly have been a serious amount of money in the 1600s).
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
sr71plt
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Ho hum
The phrase "run of the mill," which has come to mean "just ordinary," has been in use from the 1930s and stems from an early meaning of "run" as "the quantity of something produced at one time" (e.g., a single edition of a daily newspaper printed at one time, is called a run). In a mill, the new "run" of a particular material that's processed to be inspected for quality (and thus hasn't been graded as anything special yet) is called the "run of the mill."
(So, I guess, if you haven't slept with your girlfriend/boyfriend yet, she's/he's just run of the mill.)
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
The phrase "run of the mill," which has come to mean "just ordinary," has been in use from the 1930s and stems from an early meaning of "run" as "the quantity of something produced at one time" (e.g., a single edition of a daily newspaper printed at one time, is called a run). In a mill, the new "run" of a particular material that's processed to be inspected for quality (and thus hasn't been graded as anything special yet) is called the "run of the mill."
(So, I guess, if you haven't slept with your girlfriend/boyfriend yet, she's/he's just run of the mill.
)These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
sr71plt
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Not cooking an actual bunny
Referring to having "a bun in the oven" as being pregnant isn't as old a term as protesting rabbits might think. It only traces back to Nicolas Monsarrat's Cruel Sea (1951).
This leads us to the similarly pregnant phrase "the rabbit died," which traces to the mid 1900s use of toads, rats, and rabbits in pregnany tests that ended up badly for the unfortunate toad, rat, or rabbit being used in the test. References to the first "rabbit test" have been traced to 1947, although there were hints to it back to about 1927.
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
Referring to having "a bun in the oven" as being pregnant isn't as old a term as protesting rabbits might think. It only traces back to Nicolas Monsarrat's Cruel Sea (1951).
This leads us to the similarly pregnant phrase "the rabbit died," which traces to the mid 1900s use of toads, rats, and rabbits in pregnany tests that ended up badly for the unfortunate toad, rat, or rabbit being used in the test. References to the first "rabbit test" have been traced to 1947, although there were hints to it back to about 1927.
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
sr71plt
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Noises Off
Just because there's a discussion of phonetic sex noises going on elsewhere in the forum, I offer one that Pipfer thought important enough to include in her phraseology. The squeaking noise made by someone walking in leather boots or in shoes with rubber soles can be phonetically rendered "gweek-gwak."
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
Just because there's a discussion of phonetic sex noises going on elsewhere in the forum, I offer one that Pipfer thought important enough to include in her phraseology. The squeaking noise made by someone walking in leather boots or in shoes with rubber soles can be phonetically rendered "gweek-gwak."
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
sr71plt
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Three in one
Today's phrase is "hat trick," which originally was from the sport of cricket but now can be used to signal any three-in-one success. The cricket reference, going back to 1909, is "taking three wickets on three bowls," and extended to use in other sports, especially ice hockey. The 1909 origin is based on this being when it came into practice that anyone in cricket who attained this feat was entitled to receive a hat from his club or to pass the hat for a cash collection.
It's today's phrase, because I was informed today that I had attained a first-ever hat trick in a regional writing contest--taking first or second honors in fiction, nonfiction, and poetry (as judged by separate sets of judges). I've been passing the hat all day and only getting dirty looks back.
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
Today's phrase is "hat trick," which originally was from the sport of cricket but now can be used to signal any three-in-one success. The cricket reference, going back to 1909, is "taking three wickets on three bowls," and extended to use in other sports, especially ice hockey. The 1909 origin is based on this being when it came into practice that anyone in cricket who attained this feat was entitled to receive a hat from his club or to pass the hat for a cash collection.
It's today's phrase, because I was informed today that I had attained a first-ever hat trick in a regional writing contest--taking first or second honors in fiction, nonfiction, and poetry (as judged by separate sets of judges). I've been passing the hat all day and only getting dirty looks back.
These tidbits are mainly based on Barbara Ann Kipfer’s book, Phraseology. Where other sources are used, they will be given. Observations from other sources are quite welcome, preferably with the source identified.
nicecthulhu
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Strangely, I've never heard of that one. Then I was never a big fan of Gordie Howe. Bobby Orr was THE player when I started watching.Congrats.
An off shoot of "hat trick", pertaining to ice hockey, is the "Gordie Howe hat trick," when a player manages a goal, an assist and a fight.
"Hat trick" in relation to hockey, at least as I've always heard it, originated in either Toronto or Montreal in the first half of the 20th century. Sorry I can't be more specific. A real hockey fan (i.e. one who still pays attention to it) may have more details. The story I heard was that one of the old-time greats scored three unanswered goals and all the gentlemen in the stands cast their hats onto the ice to show their approval. It was long enough ago that most men wore hats. There was some story that a local hatmaker suggested such a display would encourage the home team to victory. The practice took hold slowly, but eventually became fairly common.
Interesting that it probably migrated from cricket to hockey.
