Strange Sayings Phrases and Their Origins
We say an awful lot of things in phrase form today which we take for granted will be understood. Generally many of the phrases and sayings used are understood. Some, of course, are regional but many are universal but how did they originate ?
Some popular sayings and their supposed origins. I say supposed as it can be conjecture and some seem to have more than one possible source proffered
Dead Ringer
-
Something or someone which looks exactly alike
Comes from substituting race horses in order to fix the odds or fool punters. Ringer being the substitute and exact look-a-like
A Flash in the Pan
-
A short lived shallow spectacle.
A flintlock gun term, sometimes the powder would flare up in the pan creating a bright flash but not igniting the powder to fire the ball - hence short-lived showy but no real action
Three Sheets to the Wind
-
To reel about drunkenly.
This is a nautical term which a surprising number are. Presumably the British language was spread by sailors and our country has a rich maritime history.
Anyway, three masted ships with all three sales up are very difficult to steer and reel about like a drunken man. From around the 1700s as so many more were
Dressed to the Nines
-
Particularly smartly dressed
1: From tailoring parlance, the best suits would be made from the finest cloth and using the whole piece of cloth which came in lengths of 9 yards
2: Theatre tickets, once upon a time the best tickets cost 9 pence. So if you sat there you would dress accordingly
Keep Your Shirt On
-
Don’t get overly excited.
A precursor to a fight used to be the removing of shirts to avoid damaging them as, at the time, they were expensive items.
Paint the Town Red
-
A wild night out.
When Roman soldiers conquered a town or city they rejoiced and partied much harder than the youth of today. Amongst other activities they would paint the house walls with the blood of their enemies
Read between the lines
-
The implication or underlying meaning of something
Secret messages used to be concealed between the lines of books or letters. Using things like lemon juice which worked as invisible ink
Let’s have some more example. Post your own whether you know the meaning or not.
The more obscure the better - we can even try and track down the meaning of some !
Femme Fatale said,
July 19, 2007 @ 10:16 pm
Rod,
I am pleased you have brought this subject up.
Talking to a friend today about things of good value and he finished the conversation with:
It’s Cheap at Half the Price,
with which I agreed, then after thinking about it for a while I could not make sense of this saying.
I have used this many times, but I do not fully understand it. Can you help?
A few of others:
No use crying over spilt milk,
Shutting the gate after the horse has bolted and
The grass is always greener on the other side.
I will think of some more for you.
FF
xx
Rod said,
July 20, 2007 @ 8:36 am
FF,
It’s Cheap at Half the Price
This has never made sense to me in the context in which it’s used.
Nor did it to Kingsley Amis it seems who wrote into a newspaper claiming it actually meant something was expensive rather than cheap.
A dictionary of phrases explains the contrary version thus
As to crying over spilt milk, I much prefer Tony Soprano’s words of wisdom in his idiom of much the same meaning:
You Can’t Put the S**t Back in the Donkey classic !
Best
RC
A Retired Bookdealer said,
July 20, 2007 @ 12:19 pm
Pigs Might Fly.
Interestingly I believe most of the sayings I use date back to the Anglo Saxons !.
Femme Fatale said,
July 20, 2007 @ 5:56 pm
Rod,
Thank you so much for that.
This now means that I will sleep soundly tonight, I have spent many a sleepless night pondering
FF
xx
Rod said,
July 20, 2007 @ 6:36 pm
FF
we aim to please - you may now sleep the sleep of the righteous, as I once did !
erik santana said,
February 13, 2008 @ 4:55 am
somebody once said,”never pet a burning dog”, then i was like “what? that seems like a very obvious thing to not do.” then they said it was an old saying. i never heard this one before. where would this have possibly come from and where was there ever an over abundance of burning dogs that created this situation?
Rod said,
February 13, 2008 @ 8:02 am
Hi Erik
thanks for the comment and welcome to the site.
It’s a new one on me !
Regards
Rod
Tammy said,
July 1, 2008 @ 12:39 am
Accually the term dead ringer comes from a time when a metal alloy would cause a person to be comatozed and pesumably dead, After exuuming a few bodys they realized the scrat marks on the inside of the coffins . so to ratify the problem they would bury the dead with a string comming from the coffin to the out side grave attached to a bell so if the person was alive they would ring the bell it is also where the term saved by the bell comes from,
Andy said,
July 7, 2008 @ 11:25 am
‘Three Sheets to the Wind’
A sheet is actually the rope that secures the sail and not the sail itself. When the sheet (rope) came loose the sail and sheet would flap in the wind. Three sheet in the wind and the sail would flap and flutter all over the place just as a drunk would!
One sheet = Tipsy
Two Sheets = Slurred speech
Three Sheets = Can barely walk
kavita jalan said,
March 23, 2009 @ 9:17 am
Wanted to know what does follow something down to the T mean?
Rod said,
March 23, 2009 @ 10:33 am
Hi Kavita
thanks for the comment and welcome to the site.
I think the saying refers to the crossing of the t when writing.
‘dot the i’s and cross the t’s’
When hurrying the dot on the i and cross on the t get missed so down to a t means nothing missed.
I did some research and the OED also suggests a link with ‘tittle’ which means dots on i’s and j’s etc, and that that is the origin of the phrase.
Hope this helps
All the best
rod
Mike said,
July 29, 2009 @ 6:39 am
One of my favorites has always been raining cats and dogs.
The meaning comes from the days of the old thatched roofs in european country folk. During days of heavy rain, the thatched roofs would settle and knock the cats or dogs that took shelter in them out and they would fall down into the living quarters of the home.
There was an additional meaning to this but it has to do with the howling of wind caused by the downward speed of heavy rain through old fashioned gutters on buildings. It was said to sound like cats and dogs. (both have european origin)
Rod said,
July 29, 2009 @ 8:36 am
Hi Mike
thanks for the comment and welcome to the site - hope you’ll return.
I’ve always wondered about that one myself - great stuff
All the best
Rod
glen said,
August 4, 2009 @ 9:38 pm
Re: “Cheap at half the price,” I believe that the reference to “cheap” is not about expense, but rather quality - as in, it’s not a good deal. Otherwise, it may be “cheap at twice the price”.
My two cents…
Keira said,
September 10, 2009 @ 2:23 am
I have also heard that the saying “It’s raining cats & dogs.” may refer to the rains being so heavy as to cause the carcasses of cats & dogs to float about in the streets (remember way back when there was very poor sanitation).
Dave McNaughton said,
February 18, 2010 @ 3:58 pm
What is the origin of the phrase “12 ways from Sunday”? While searching the internet, I’ve also come across ‘6 ways from Sunday’ but prior to that have only known “12 ways from Sunday”.
Thanks.
Dave.
Seaking said,
March 16, 2010 @ 7:57 am
Ever hear the one “Cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey” ?
Olden days, canon balls were stacked inside a brass collar laid on the ground. Unfortunately, when it got so cold, the brass would crack, allowing the canon balls to spill out. The brass collar was called a “monkey”. Thus the term, freezing the balls off the brass monkey. Not the primate
Rod said,
March 16, 2010 @ 7:58 am
Seaking,
that’s very interesting indeed, a well known phrase I’ve heard countelss times - I always supposed there was a pawn broking connection - thanks for taking the time to leave the comment and welcome to the site
All the best
Rod
stuk247 said,
March 17, 2010 @ 7:14 am
That dog will hunt!
stuk247 said,
March 17, 2010 @ 7:42 pm
I also like
Took a preachers seat - meaning fell down
dont know where that came from
or
You raised on a hill? - meaning shut the door behind you
chris keyworth said,
March 17, 2010 @ 7:54 pm
im not homophobic but this spang to mind…
Bent as a Ten bob bit…
regards
chris
Rod said,
March 18, 2010 @ 7:14 am
Stuk
never heard the Preacher’s Seat one
Raised on a hill - around here we say ‘born in a field’ for leaving doors open
Chris,
what about ‘nine Bob note’ I think originally it had different connotations - dodgy, dubious fake etc.
I still think the nautical ones are th best
Cheers
Rod
Martin said,
May 5, 2010 @ 1:19 am
“Gag me with a Spoon”
dont know the origins got it off a book.
great one to say.
History Hunter said,
May 8, 2010 @ 12:02 am
Researching your latest blog on West Ashby and names contained within the church i came across this one for you.
“Do you come from Bardney?”
The story of the arrival of the bones of St.Oswald at the monastery has given rise to a well-known Lincolnshire saying. On the night that Oswald’s bones arrived, the monks shut the abbey gates and refused to allow the coffin in. During the night a ‘pillar of light’ shone skywards from the cart and convinced the monks that Oswald was indeed a saint and that they had been wrong to shut his coffin out. Ever after, so the story goes, they left their gates wide open - hence the saying “Do you come from Bardney?”, meaning that you have left a door open.
Rod said,
May 8, 2010 @ 9:52 am
HH,
I love that one, I’ve not heard it before, excellent - many thnaks indeed
All the best
Rod
Vincent said,
May 13, 2010 @ 2:58 pm
“Three sheets to the wind”
I read that the word “sheets” in this one is short for sheetlines. “To the wind” means that they’re not attached, blowing freely in the wind. In that condition, there’s no control over the sails. So, the boat can’t be steered very well.
Rod said,
May 13, 2010 @ 8:08 pm
Vincent,
thanks for the comment - very much appreciated and welcome to the site.
Any more from anybody else ?
mehquirky said,
August 16, 2010 @ 10:13 pm
Where did the phrase, “Pardon the glove,” come from and what does it mean?
Amiguru said,
August 17, 2010 @ 12:00 pm
Mehquirky,
That’s a new one on me! Never heard it before, but I’m happy to be on a learning curve. Musically, I’ve just listened to an instrumental recording of that title by The California Ramblers, a Jazz Band of the late ’20’s. There is a mention of it being released on a new record by Electrobeam Records in the Presto Times, 25 June 1927. It has a foxtrot rhythm and as far as I can ascertain, no lyrics, which may have given a clue to the meaning.
As an expression, I can only use logic to work out that when ’squeezing the flesh’, the barrier of a worn glove would imply limited sincerity and would be excused by the expression, ‘pardon the glove’. Pure guesswork on my part but there you have it.
Regards,
Neville
Inquisitiveiam said,
October 1, 2010 @ 12:45 pm
Just looking up some old sayings for a friend and found this site. Informative, entertaining and not the least bit offensive. Well done Rod and all contributors.
Rod said,
October 1, 2010 @ 3:24 pm
Inquisitive,
thanks for the kind words and welcome to the site - hope you ‘ll return
All the best
Rod
renee said,
October 25, 2010 @ 9:48 am
I find my mom and I say saying to each other and we wonder where they came from one would think that I would get them from my mom but that is not always the case.
nothing to shake a stick at
between a rock and a hard place
shit the bed
when you leave a door open ” were you born in a barn
drunker then hogon’s goat
Peter said,
November 19, 2010 @ 7:50 am
Hi Guy’s
It is always do to learn something new, so I have enjoyed reading what you have to say.
Here are a few more that you might have come accross
There is an old Hotel/Pub in Marble Arch, London , which used to have a gallows adjacent to it. Prisoners were taken to the gallows to be hung.
The horse drawn dray, carting the prisoner, was accompanied by an armed guard, who would stop the dray outside the pub and ask the prisoner if he would like ‘’ONE LAST DRINK'’.
If he said YES, it was referred to as ONE FOR THE ROAD.
If he declined, that prisoner was ON THE WAGON.
Rod said,
November 19, 2010 @ 8:08 am
Peter,
thanks for the comment and welcome to the site.
Fabulous story that but I always thought the saying “on the wagon” came from the Temperance Movement, signing the Pledge and all that.
I understood they used to come into town in a wagon and preach a new way of life to miserable sinners such as I
All the best
Rod
katerina said,
April 7, 2011 @ 10:41 am
Does anyone know the derivation of any of these sayings?
“didley squat”
“put that in your pipe and smoke it”
“going for a song”
“dead as a doornail”
“what’s that got to do with the price of fish”
Many thanks
Ritari said,
April 23, 2011 @ 5:45 am
Katerina.
Didley squat I believe means the person knows nothing. As in - he doesn’t know didley squat.
The others, well, I’d love to know myself.
Many thanks….
WHITL3SS said,
June 7, 2011 @ 4:28 am
Where does the term “let bygones be bygones” come from. I know that it means “let what’s in the past stay in the past” but where did it start?
Peter said,
June 8, 2011 @ 10:13 am
In the 15th century, a bygone was was simply ‘a thing that has gone by’, i.e. a thing of the past. Shakespeare used it with that meaning in The Winters Tale, 1611:
This satisfaction, The by-gone-day proclaym’d, say this to him.
Hope that that helps
RButhnot said,
June 8, 2011 @ 4:07 pm
‘like a trump in a colander’ and ‘he would skin a fart’, referring to an ‘unetten’ soul and a miserly one respectively. It would be lovely to imagine they were old Lincolnshire sayings but so much has been borrowed from the Yorkies over the years that they are probably from over the border.
Another, definitely ‘foreign’, is ‘Better to marry over the midden than over the moor’, suggesting that a local person was more acceptable to the locals than a stranger when it came to marriage, the midden being the spot for dumping household rubbish etc. Not very good for the gene pool.
RButhnot said,
June 8, 2011 @ 4:16 pm
I once read a similar thread where one debate was on how the phrase ‘the bees knees’ came about. No one ever suggested it might just be a corruption of ‘the business’. Nowt so queer as folk. In a non-homophobic sense of course.
Peter said,
June 10, 2011 @ 5:44 am
The saying As dead as a doornail is many hundreds of years old. The door nail itself was a plate or nail that was placed behind a door knocker so not to damage the wood and to ensure that the knock was heard.This nail was clearly very unresponsive and dead to the constant assault, hence the saying.
Rod said,
June 10, 2011 @ 7:32 am
Peter,
cheers, I wasn’t aware of the exact meaning - many thanks
Best,
Rod
Peter said,
June 15, 2011 @ 7:22 am
With regards to didley Squat, It appears that it was invented by the Carneys (carnival workers) who traveled from town to town working one county fair after another developed their own private language. They had to do so in order to attract potential gamblers who would pay for a chance at a gimcrack prize. ‘Diddle-e-squat’ seems to have entered the carnival talk to name money - often a nickel or a dime, since that was the going rate for a game of chance. Frequently used to hide talk about a small amount of money, it was an easy and natural transition for the carnival term to indicate very little of anything.”
Peter said,
June 15, 2011 @ 7:24 am
Does anyone know where the saying “I’ll go to the top of my stairs” as I have heard it many times used as an exclaimation of supprise, but do not know its origin.
Cheers
Rod said,
June 16, 2011 @ 6:30 am
Peter,
many thanks I have wondered about ‘didley squat’ myself.
I’ve heard of the saying “I’ll go to the top of my stairs” although I’ve never actually heard it used in person, I’d guess it’s a localized saying
Regards
Rod