Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Phrases
Assignment: Go to the site (http://www.phrases.org.uk/ meanings/index.html). You will need to enter this directly into your address bar without any spaces. Search the etymology of common phrases and then post as your comment the phrase you have chosen. Then include an explanation of the history of the phrase in your own words so that a reader can understand. IMPORTANT: Once a phrase has been chosen and commented on by another student, it may not be used again.
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*phrase: ups-a-daisy
ReplyDelete*definiton: used to encourage a child to get back up after they have fallen.
*origin: comes from an old saying upaday which means the same thing. day changed to daisy from the flower called day which closed at night and opened during the day.
*easier way: used to make a child laugh off a fall.
Phrase:vice-versa
ReplyDeleteDefinition:the other way around
Origin:Latin, and it is a translation to English.
-Cierra Condra
*Phrase- son of a gun
ReplyDelete*Definition-a rogue scamp
*Origin-The most commonly repeated version in this strand is that the British Navy used to allow women to live on naval ships. Any child born on board who had uncertain paternity would be listed in the ship's log as 'son of a gun'. While it is attestable fact that, although the Royal navy had rules against it, they did turn a blind eye to women (wives or prostitutes) joining sailors on voyages, so this version has plausibility on its side.
-Christian saylor
*phrase: break a leg
ReplyDelete*definition: said to someone for good luck.
*origin: The term 'break a leg' appears to come from the belief that one shouldn't utter the words 'good luck' to an actor.
-Kaylee Massey
Phrase: A bunch of fives
ReplyDeleteDefinition: A fist; the fives are the five fingers
Origin: The phrase appears in 1825, The English Spy- "With their bunch of fives." It is also reporting as appearing.
-Logan Lovegrove
Phrase: You Son of a Gun
ReplyDeleteDefintion: A rouge
Origin:The phrase originated as 'son of a military man. The most commonly repeated version in this strand is that the British Navy used to allow women to live on naval ships. Any child born on board who had uncertain paternity would be listed in the ship's log as 'son of a gun'.
-Jameson Banning
Loose lips sink ships
ReplyDeleteMeaning
Unguarded talk may give useful information to the enemy.
Origin
loose lips sink shipsThis phrase was coined as a slogan during WWII as part of the US Office of War Information's attempt to limit the possibility of people inadvertently giving useful information to enemy spies. The slogan was actually 'Loose Lips Might Sink Ships. This was one of several similar slogans which all came under the campaigns basic message - 'Careless Talk Costs Lives'.
The slogan was in use by 1942, as this example from the Maryland paper The News, May 1942 shows:
At countians [attendees at the local county school] registered in the high school lobby before the opening of the meeting, they were surrounded on all sides by placards bearing such admonitions as "Loose Lips Might Sink Ships", "Defense On The Sea Begins On The Shore", "Defense In The Field Begins In The Factory" and patriotic creeds and slogans.
the loose lips sink ships is from Teal
ReplyDelete~Phrase-- Back to square one
ReplyDelete~Definition-- Back to the beginning, to start again.
~Orgin-- There are three widely reported suggestions as to the origin of this phrase: BBC sports commentaries, board games like snakes and ladders and playground games like hopscotch. Let's examine them in turn
~Shelby Bryant
*Phrase: Down in the dumps
ReplyDelete*Definition: Unhappy or depressed, low-spirited, melancholy
*Origin: 'The dumps' wasn't a place but a commonly used mediaeval expression meaning; melancholy or depression. The earliest printed record of it is in Henry More's A dialoge of comforte against tribulation, 1529
Mitchell Pettit
*a leopard cannot change its spots
ReplyDelete*The notion that things cannot change their innate nature
*From the Bible, Jeremiah 13:23
Monica Moritz
Phrase:
ReplyDeleteIn a pickle
Definition:
In a quandary or some other difficult position.
Origin:
The earliest pickles were spicy sauces made to accompany meat dishes. Later, in the 16th century, the name pickle was also given to a mixture of spiced, salted vinegar that was used as a preservative. The word comes from the Dutch or Low German pekel, with the meaning of 'something piquant'. Later still, in the 17th century, the vegetables that were preserved, for example cucumbers and gherkins, also came to be called pickles.
Helen Hatfield
Phrase: the whole 9 yards
ReplyDeleteDefinition: going the whole way
Origin: in 1960 a guy wrote a football book and quoted this phrase, it is said to be used for other different things besides football
-Brayton Adams
Beware the Ides of March
ReplyDeleteOrigin
From Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, 1599. 'Beware the Ides of March' is the soothsayer's message to Julius Caesar, warning of his death.
The Ides of March didn't signify anything special in itself - this was just the usual way of saying "March 15th." Each month has an Ides (usually the 15th) and this date wasn't significant in being associated with death.
Months of the Roman calendar were arranged around three named days and these were reference points from which the other (unnamed) days were calculated:
Kalends (1st day of the month).
Nones (the 7th day in March, May, July, and October; the 5th in the other months).
Ides (the 15th day in March, May, July, and October; the 13th in the other months).
phrase: In a pickle.
ReplyDeleteDefinition: In a quandary or some other difficult position.
Origin: The earliest pickles were spicy sauces made to accompany meat dishes. Later, in the 16th century, the name pickle was also given to a mixture of spiced, salted vinegar that was used as a preservative. The word comes from the Dutch or Low German pekel, with the meaning of 'something piquant'. Later still, in the 17th century, the vegetables that were preserved, for example cucumbers and gherkins, also came to be called pickles. The 'in trouble' meaning of 'in a pickle' was an allusion to being as disoriented and mixed up as the stewed vegetables that made up pickles.
-Barking up the wrong tree.
ReplyDelete-Meaning
Making a mistake or a false assumption in something you are trying to achieve.
-Origin
The allusion is to hunting dogs barking at the bottom of trees where they mistakenly think their quarry is hiding.
In a Pickle
ReplyDeletemeaning: when your in a difficult position
origin: comes from the dutch or german word pekel.
Troy Estes
-Randa
ReplyDeletePharse: Nothing succeeds like success
ReplyDeletedef: A proverb, expressing the idea that success breeds further success.This view was first put into print by Sir Arthur Helps, in Realmah, 1868:
Orgin: "Nothing succeeds like success." [Rien ne réussit comme le succès.]
We would be remiss in our duties if we didn't include the corny old joke:
"Nothing succeeds like a parrot with no teeth."
Katie Morin
Phrase: The apple of my eye
ReplyDeleteDefinition: Originally meant cenrtal part of the eye.Figuratively means something or usually someone cherished above others.
Origin:First appears in old english attributed to king aelefred. It also appers in William Shakesspear's a midsummer night's dream in 885 AD. It also appers several times in the bible.
Jason JUdd
Phrase: other fish in the sea
ReplyDeleteDefinition:There are even better ones out there. Don't be upset over what you've lost.
origin: This proverb is often used as a consolation for losing a girlfriend or a boyfriend, and has been traced back to about 1573. First attested in the United States in _Keziah_ (1909) by J. C. Lincoln, the proverb is found in varying forms: "There are plenty more fish in the sea"; "There are more fish in the sea than ever came out of it"; "The sea is full of other fish"; "There's more than one fish," etc.
.m.A.c.Y o.L.d.S.
Phrase-As cold as stone
ReplyDeleteMeaning-Very cold.
Origin-From Shakespeare's Henry V, 1598:
~Anja Davis~
Meaning
ReplyDeleteA picture tells a story just as well as a large amount of descriptive text.
Origin
This phrase emerged in the USA in the early part of the 20th century. Its introduction is widely attributed to Frederick R. Barnard, who published a piece commending the effectiveness of graphics in advertising with the title "One look is worth a thousand words", in Printer's Ink, December 1921. Barnard claimed the phrase's source to be oriental by adding the text "so said a famous Japanese philosopher, and he was right".
By : Allison Wall
Phrase: Eaten Out of House and Home
ReplyDeleteDefinition: To consume very much
Origin: From Shakepeare's Henry IV
the above one is From the code man... Cody raines
ReplyDeletePhrase- no brainer
ReplyDeleteDefinition-Somethings that should be or is easy to figure out.
origin/history:No-brainer is American in origin and first began being used there in the 50's and it appeared in the Long Beach Independent, December 1959:
-Daniel Campbell
Phrase: Keep up with the Joneses.
ReplyDeleteDefinition: Strive to match one's neighbours in spending and social standing.
Origin: It originated from the "Keep up with the Joneses" comic strip by Arthur Momand. The word 'Joneses' meant 'the neighbors'.
-Kindra DuLong
Phrase: pig in a poke
ReplyDeletedefinition:An offering or deal that is foolishly accepted without being examined first.
origin/history: Poke is still in use in several English-speaking countries, notably Scotland and USA, and describes just the sort of bag that would be useful for carrying a piglet to market.
Haley Bare -
Phrase: Don't try to teach your Grandma to suck eggs.
ReplyDeleteDefinition: Don't offer advice to someone who has more experience than oneself.
Origin:
These days this saying has little impact as few people have any direct experience of sucking eggs - grandmothers included. The notion of advising the young not to offer advice to those who are older and more experienced wasn't new even then.
-Dalton Craig
Phrase-Keep Your Nose Clean/Keeping One's Hands Clean
ReplyDeleteDefinition-be innocent in any wrongdoing; stay out of trouble
Origin/History-it is an 18th century English phrase which referred specifically to the avoidance of corruption. Keeping your hands clean is mostly found in 18th century literature. Now the phrase Keeping your nose clean, is used around jails and said when getting out of jail, they say Keep your nose clean and don't let me see you around here again.
keeping your nose clean is by Nicole Boggs
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeletePhrase-Shiver my timbers
ReplyDeleteDefinition-An oath, expressing annoyance or surprise.
Origin-Those of a certain age will remember Robert Newton, rolling his eyes and yarring it up in his archetypal Hollywood pirate role - Long John Silver in the 1950 film Treasure Island
Garrett Jackson
*phrase- by the skin of your teeth
ReplyDelete*origin-The phrase first appears in English in the Geneva Bible, 1560, in Job 19:20
*meaning- barely or hardly. since your teeth don't have skin.
Better late then never.
ReplyDeleteBasically, the person is highly annoyed and is trying to not sound like a jerk by saying something positive.
Catherine Partridge
Phrase: Better half
ReplyDeleteDefination:My husband or my wife
Origin:This term also refers to a good friend.It's origin is a dear friend.Better quality than quantity
-Bailee Chilman
-my bad: my mistake;im to blame
ReplyDelete-Origin: It origintaed in 1970. At that time many people used slang but on one wrote it down. Because that's not the case now, my bad has become a commonly known slang phrase.
-Danielle Skaggs
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteDerrick Martin
ReplyDeletePhrase: speak of the devil
definition: the sudden appearence of somebody while you are talking about them.
origin: England. It was orginally said as "speak of the devil and he will come" and was only used in a negative way.
Phrase: Please excuse my french.
ReplyDeleteMeaning: Please forgive my swearing.
Orgin: A coy phrase used when someone who has used a swear-word attempts to pass it off as French. The coyness comes from the fact the both the speaker and listener are of course both well aware the swear-word is indeed English. This usage is mid 20th century English in origin. A version of it is found in Michael Harrison's All Trees were Green, 1936: "A bloody sight better (pardon the French!) than most."
-Alexis Weber
The salt of the earth
ReplyDeleteMeaning
This phrase means things of worth.
Origin
The phrase 'the salt of the earth' derives from the Bible, Matthew 5:13 (King James Version):
phrase- filthy rich
ReplyDeletemeaning-very rich, possibly having become so by unfair meanings
origin-in the 16th century it was said "filthy lucre" lucre means money. febuary 1929 Lima news used filthy rich and has been used since
Annie Weber
Phrase:The Big Easy
ReplyDeleteMeaning:Nickname for the city of New Orleans
Origin:Given to the city to contrast "The Big Apple," New York's nickname, showing New Orlean's more relaxed style and atmosphere.
By:Nick Brunner(B4)
Phrase: Chick flick
ReplyDeleteMeaning:
A film with characterization and storylines that appeal especially to women.
Origin: "Chick Flick" were movies that appealed to woman in 1990's..really a few years prior to that "chick flick" were movies were more sexual films made for males.
-jessica cruser
i just wanna say mrs.Taylor didn't tell me i had to put my name on here so now i'm really behind on all of this!!!!
ReplyDelete*phrase- by the skin of your teeth
*origin-The phrase first appears in English in the Geneva Bible, 1560, in Job 19:20
*meaning- barely or hardly. since your teeth don't have skin.
DANIEL VOGEL
Phrase-A fool's paradice
ReplyDeleteMeaning-A state of happiness based on false hope
Origin-An early phrase, first recorded in the PASTON LETTERS, 1462 "I would not be in a folis paradyce." *Angela Campbell*
Phrase:On Cloud Nine
ReplyDeleteMeaning:In a state of blissful happiness
Origin:One of the classifications of cloud which were defined by the US weather bureauin the 1950s. Fluffy cumulonimbus type that are considered so attractive.
Kristine Gasper
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeletePhrase- Run Amok
ReplyDeleteDefinition-To behave in a wild or unruly manner.
Origin- The term originated in Southeast Asia. "Amok" meant a murderous frenzy or rage. This term came from the state of mind of a warrior called the Amuco, a class of warriors who were employed in local power struggles in Java and Malaysia.
Max Tukey
May 25, 2010 11:13 AM
Carbon Copy
ReplyDelete-exact copy of original product
Origin:
this derives from carbon-paper, which was and is sometimes still used today make copies of typewritten documents today.
Callissa Ketterling
Phrase: lock,stock and barrel
ReplyDeleteDefinition: the whole thing
Origin:Expected to be originated in 1752 by James Ray Words used as early as 1400's
Kameron Logan
Phrase: By the book
ReplyDeleteDefinition: to do it the right way; by the rules
Origin: a guideline by the bible, the early phrase was 'I swear it to be true'
By: Shane Adams Per-4
Phrase: As cool as a cucumber
ReplyDeleteMeaning: calm and unruffled
Origin: First recorded in John Gay's Poems, New Song on New Similies, 1732
-Mindy Talkington
Phrase: Go out on a limb
ReplyDeleteDefinition: To do something new that you may be afraid of doing
Origin: The figurative definition started at the end of the 19th century in the USA
Jordyn Austin
Phrase: It never rains, but it pours
ReplyDeleteDefinition: When troubles come they come together
Origin:The origin of It never rains, but it pours is not known. The phrase was used in the early 18th century.
jessie ballenger
Phrase: Shiver My Timbers
ReplyDeleteMeaning: An oath, expressing annoyance or surprise.
History: Robert Louis Stevenson used shiver my timbers several times in his books. "Robert Newton was the one to use the saying shiver my timbers!, in a movie" Of course, Newton made the most of such 'parrot on the shoulder' phrases and it also appears several times in the film's screenplay. Newton's version, like that of all self-respecting stage pirates, was shiver me timbers, with the occasional 'aaarh, Jim lad' thrown in. Here is the first appearance of the phrase in print is in Frederick Marryat's Jacob Faithful, 1834: "I won't thrash you Tom. Shiver my timbers if I do."
-Tori McQueen
Phrase:Snug as a bug in a rug
ReplyDeleteMeaning:Very snug
Origin:Apperared in the 1700's and refered to snug as being on a ship, bug as a ghost, and rug as rags.
~Leann West~
Phrase:La Dolce Vita
ReplyDeleteMeaning:In Italian "the sweet life" or the good life.
Origin: This phrase entered the language following the success of the 1960 film La Dolce Vita. This was written and directed by Federico Fellini and starred Marcello Mastroianni, Anita Ekberg and Anouk Aimée.
~Brianna Perry
Phrase- Steal my Thunder
ReplyDeleteDefinition- When a person uses your ideas or inventions to their own advantage.
Origin- An unsuccessfull playwright was written and they rolled metal balls around in a wooden bowl to make the thunder sound.The guy who wrote it got his idea stole from him. Therefore he was upset that someone "stole his thunder."
-Elizabeth schamel
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeletePhrase- Hold your horses
ReplyDeleteMeaning- Hold on; Be patient
Origin- It started among the New Orleans people in the 19th century.
Ashley Barber
Love is Blind
ReplyDeleteIt is used in Two Gentlemen of Verona, Henry V and The Merchant Of Venice written by Shakespeare.
Shelby Campbell.
Meaning
ReplyDeleteTrickery - double dealing. Also, more recently, sexual shenanigans.
Origin
The term is first recorded in the first edition of 'Punch, or the London Charivari', Vol 1, Sept, 1841:
Briana Campbell
A rose by any other name would smell as sweet
ReplyDeletemeaning- It doesn't matter waht something or some one is named or called all that matters is who they are inside.
origin- From Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet when Juliet is talking to herself in her garden wishing she could see Romeo again.
-Illyanna Coy
Phrase- don't look a gift horse in the mouth
ReplyDeleteMeaninng-don't be ungrateful for the gifts you recieve
Origin-it is a very old saying that nobody realy knows who first created it
~Jaclyn Capes~
Phrase: A Cock and Bull Story
ReplyDeleteMeaning: An unbelieveable Story
Origin: It is said to have orginated in Stony Stratford ("The Jewel of Milton Keynes"), Buckinghamshire, England. The Cock and The Bull were the two main coaching inns and the banter and rivarly between the two inns were said to be outrageous and were often called cock and bull stories.
Kasha Parks
*Phrase- The early bird catches the worm.
ReplyDelete*Meaning- Success comes to those who prepare well and put in effort.
*Origin-This is first recorded in John Ray's A collection of English proverbs 1670, 1678:
"The early bird catcheth the worm."
-Maqenzi Hovious
Phrase-Break a leg
ReplyDeleteMeaning-to an actor it means good luck
origin-actors believed in superstitions.
Lacy Allman
Full of Piss and Vinager.
ReplyDeleteThe earliest known use of this phrase is used it John Stienbecks "Grapes of Wraths".
Jacob Wiese
Phrase-A Shot In The Dark. The term 'shot' has been slang for an attempt since the middle of the 19th century. George Bernard Shaw seems to have been the first to use it metaphorically, in The Saturday Review, February 1895.'A shot in the dark' is simply a hopeful attempt to hit an enemy that you can't see. Chelsea Young
ReplyDeleteMy Bad
ReplyDeleteMeaning: It is my fault
Origin: 1970's Slang term
Michael Gasper
Phrase: Excuse my french
ReplyDeleteDefinition: An excuse for swearing even though it's in English
Origin:A phrase used when someone who has used a swear-word and trys to pass it off as French. The coyness comes from the fact the both the speaker and listener are of course both well aware the swear-word is English.
-Hannah Villa
Phrase:The birds and the bees.
ReplyDeleteDefinition:Refering to coy explanations about sex and the reproduction of kids.
Origin:Response to when children ask, "Where do babies come from?" It is just generally used to confuse the children or satisfy their question such as the response, "Snorks drop them off at the mom and dads doorstep." We are unsure who actually first used the phrase, "The birds and the bees."
MaKayla Marksberry
When the shit hits the fan
ReplyDeletemeaning: Messy and exciting consequences brought about by a previously secret situation becoming public.
Origin:This expression alludes to the unmissable effects of shit being thrown into an electric fan. It appears to have originated in the 1930s. I can't say better than 'appears' as the earliest citation of it that I can find is in the 1967 edition of Eric Partridge's A dictionary of slang and unconventional English
David Bingham
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeletePhrase:Make my day
ReplyDeleteMeaning:Carry on with what you are doing - it will be an excuse to behave badly.
Origin:This was made famous by the Clint Eastwood's character Inspector (Dirty) Harry Callahan in the 1983 film Sudden Impact.
~Molly Firsich
Play the race card
ReplyDeletethe phrase is used to gain an advantage in an election.
Origin
this is a term most offened used in the US than any other countries, but was coined in England in the 1960's.
Derek Stewart
Phrase-doube whammy
ReplyDeleteMeaning-a double setback
origin-was origionaly a evil hex.It originated in the USA in the 1940s and is associated with a variety of sports.
Lacy Allman
Loose Cannon
ReplyDeleteMeaning: a spontaneous or unpredictable person, likely to cause damage if not carefully watched by others
Origin: The term is alluded to in Victor Hugo’s novel Ninety Three, 1874. A translation of the French original describes cannons being tossed about onboard following a violent incident onboard ship
brianna kirkham!
ReplyDelete"Knock on Wood"
ReplyDeleteBack in the day people would wrap their knuckles in wood to stave off bad luck. In some countries "knocking on wood" is knocking on their heads.
~Emily Kage~
phrase-as mad as a hatter
ReplyDeletemeaning-completley mad
origin-Mercury used to be used in the making of hats. This was known to have affected the nervous systems of hatters, causing them to tremble and appear insane.
Lacy Allman
Phrase-A Chain Is Only As Strong As Its Weakest Link.
ReplyDeleteMeaning-The weakest person sets how well a group can ever be.
Orgin-This phrase comes from the 18th century.
Chelsea Young
Nothing succeeds like success
ReplyDeleteMeaning: Success in one thing will lead to success in even more things
Origin: This view was first put into print by Sir Arthur Helps, in Realmah, 1868:
Sadie Lovelace
phrase-the early bird catches the worm
ReplyDeletemeaning-Success comes to those who prepare well and put in effort.
origin-the title of the work indicates that this was considered proverbial even in the 17th century.
Lacy Allman
"Davy Jones Locker"
ReplyDeleteIts meaning is the resting place of the mariners.
It came from the historical times when there was believed to an evil spirit that huanted ships and took the souls of other darkened sailors.
-Desiree' Booker
phrase-going to hell in a handbasket
ReplyDeletemeaning- on course for a disaster
origion- Samual Sewall's diary 1714
Eric Curry
phrase-the sky's the limit
ReplyDeletemeaning-there is no limit
origin-Some sources claim that 'the sky's the limit' was coined by Cervantes in Don Quixote. This appears to add to the list of popular fallacies about coinages attributed to Cervantes.
Lacy Allman
Phrase- A Legend In Ones Own Lifetime
ReplyDeleteMeaning-a living person of considerable fame.
Orgin-The original use of this phrase was 'a legend in her lifetime'. That was written of Florence Nightingale by Giles Lytton Strachey.
Chelsea Young
The dodo bird has been extinct for many years. The phrase "dead as a dodo" refers to the bird and since it has been gone for so many years.
ReplyDeleteAlli McFall