 sj |
||
|
||
Strange expressions..
|
|
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Jim Carroll Date: 22 Dec 11 - 07:49 AM "How's your belly off for spots?" To which the reply is; Fine - how's your arse for pimples? Jim Carroll |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Michael Date: 22 Dec 11 - 06:06 AM My Granny Annie used to say 'Up in Annie s room at the back of the clock' we always assumed it was a family thing. She also said 'A whim wham for a goose's bridle'. for the same reason as Bluegrassman's mother. She came from Lincolnshire, UK. Mike |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: MarkS Date: 21 Dec 11 - 06:37 PM Throws nickles around like they are manhole covers. Pinches the penny so tight Lincoln gasps. Short arms and deep pockets. Who - me? |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: GUEST,Bluegrassman Date: 20 Dec 11 - 08:53 PM My mother used to say "Whim Whams For Ducks To Swim In" whenever she was making something we were not to know about. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Joe_F Date: 20 Dec 11 - 08:27 PM My mother had immigrant friends who delighted in translating English idioms, such as "I feel like a cocktail", literally into their native languages. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Bert Date: 20 Dec 11 - 06:25 PM My Granma used to say "He looks like a bundle of arseholes tied up ugly" and "He wouldn't know his prick from his thumb if it didn't have a nail on it" Mum used to say "He looks like a sack of shit tied up with string" If you asked where something was, Dad would say "Up in Annie's room behind the clock"; whereas Mum would say "Under my arm hanging on a kiss curl" |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: GUEST,Spleen Cringe Date: 20 Dec 11 - 12:44 PM One of my mum's favourites was "he's throwing his money around like a man with no arms..." still don't know if it means tightfisted or the complete opposite. One I heard a while back that I vowed to steal was "neither arse nor feather nor hole in the ground." What? |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: GUEST,CrazyEddie Date: 20 Dec 11 - 10:05 AM As a kid, if we were out for a walk, & I asked "How far are we going?" my mum's answer was "We'll go as far as turn-back, where the geese walk barefoot." And "What's that, or "what are you making?" got the response "A loodle-laddle, for winding up the sun". Anything that could not be found was either "Up in Nelly's room behind the wall-paper", or possibly "upstairs in a pie-tent in Ardfert". |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: kendall Date: 20 Dec 11 - 07:07 AM Way the hell and gone... He don't know gee from haw. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: kendall Date: 19 Dec 11 - 02:40 PM Had a face like a dollars worth of salt pork. Ugly as a bucket of ass holes. Dry as a Baptist picnic. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Jim Dixon Date: 18 Dec 11 - 03:09 PM My father would ask me, when I was a kid, "How big would you be if you was twice as big as half ?" I never came up with a good answer. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Paul Burke Date: 18 Dec 11 - 05:39 AM What's that? It's a wheezer for winding the sun up. Where's Mam? She's in a bottle on the roof. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Bert Date: 18 Dec 11 - 12:42 AM How's your belly off for spots? |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Crowhugger Date: 17 Dec 11 - 09:37 PM My father and his mother both said, "making whim-whams to wind up the sun." From my dad it could mean anything from "Hi honey; you're welcome to hang out here but quietly please" to "isn't it obvious?" to "isn't it f-in obvious [i.e. "don't expect me to answer a question to which you can figure out the answer for yourself"] to "go bother your mother". From Grandma it usually meant "I'll be with you in a jiffy" |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: gnu Date: 17 Dec 11 - 05:14 PM Hank... where are ya to? |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Bert Date: 17 Dec 11 - 04:47 PM MtheGM, When My Mum said it, it was a Gooose's Bridle. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: MGM·Lion Date: 16 Dec 11 - 11:23 PM Flash Company has correctly recalled the origin of Whippet [or Whip-it] Quick the cat burglar in Charlie Chester's late 1940s radio show Stand Easy. But nobody has quite got hold of the significance: to 'whip', like to 'pinch', is one of the slang idioms = to steal; so "Whippit Quick" means "steal it fast & adroitly". In my late wife's family, the response to "What are you doing?" was "Making whim-whams for ducks' bridles." ~Michael~ |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: GUEST,999 Date: 16 Dec 11 - 04:10 PM Strange expression. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: GUEST,Hank Williams Date: 16 Dec 11 - 03:57 PM My mother is the only person I ever knew who,when surprised would say "Well good night Miss Agnes" I have NEVER known where that came from. hen3ry@nbnet.nb.ca |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: GUEST,Patsy Date: 21 Sep 10 - 07:51 AM My grandmother would describe an artful but cute child as being 'craftier than a wagon load of monkeys' I've never seen a wagon full of monkeys so I don't know. Also when I was small and she thought I was after something followed up with hugs and kisses she would call it 'cupboard love' meaning I was only after what was in the cupboard. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: GUEST,Guest: HuwG at work Date: 20 Sep 10 - 09:48 AM I have heard a Londoner commenting on someone else's sanity, "He's completely Dagenham East." It wasn't rhyming slang. Dagenham East is four tube (US=subway) stops beyond Barking, on the District Line. Utter lunacy is "Upminster". |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Charmion Date: 20 Sep 10 - 08:29 AM "Bob's yer uncle" is usually explained as a slag on Robert Cecil, Lord Salisbury, who appointed his nephew, Arthur Balfour, to the prestigious post of Chief Secretary for Ireland in 1887. It is also said to originate in the expression "all is bob" (i.e., excellent), found in Francis Grose's 1810 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue. I think the appointment of Arthur Balfour gave new life and form to the older expression. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Joe Offer Date: 20 Sep 10 - 01:21 AM Since I was in a Catholic seminary for high school and college, our high school principal was a priest, a sweet old man who was notorious for using the phrase "as it were." Nice man, but his sermons were really boring. We'd entertain ourselves by counting how many times he could use the phrase in a sermon - most times, it was more than ten. -Joe- |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: GUEST,leeneia Date: 19 Sep 10 - 11:00 PM "as it were" - What does it mean? "bob's yer uncle" - eh what? |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Bill D Date: 19 Sep 10 - 11:27 AM Loblolly Pines are a resinous tree with gooey sap, and which sheds needles all year long. Perhaps being 'messy', like "after an operation" is the origin. *shrug* |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Uncle_DaveO Date: 19 Sep 10 - 10:49 AM GUEST,Dancing Mom said, in part: "I went in and cleaned up the whole loblolly mess" (loblolly being a type of pine tree) In British naval language, at least at the beginning of the 19th Century, the assistant to the ship's surgeon was a "loblolly boy" (not necessarily young enough to be what we'd call a boy), who would, among other things, clean up the mess of blood, guts, etc. after an operation. I have no idea what the connection might be (if there is any) between a loblolly boy and a loblolly pine. Dave Oesterreich |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: GUEST,Me. K Date: 19 Sep 10 - 12:16 AM Lord willing and the Creek don't rise... |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Flash Company Date: 21 Nov 06 - 05:40 AM Dad used to say 'Well, I'll go to the foot of our stairs! when someone said something unbelievable, Grans comment would be 'I'ts all my hind leg and Betty Martin!', If you can make anything of that , you're a better man than I am. Incidentally, I saw a mention of Whippet Quick way back in this thread. This was from a WW2 show 'Stand Easy', featuring Cheerful Charlie Chester. Whippet Quick was 'The Master Criminal of All Time', aided and abetted by Ray-Ling (The Chinese Fence). For some reason their adventures took place in a jungle situated on the African border of Japonica. This gave an excuse for a running joke about the 'dreaded jungle drums' always followed by a chant from the orchestra :- Down in the jungle, chanting every day, You can hear the natives all say....... Followed by a two line tag based on something in that week's news. Hess lands in Scotland looking for a meal, Didn't bring us Hitler, No Deal! The memories of Childhood! FC |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Scoville Date: 20 Nov 06 - 11:09 AM I was thinking of their comparatively weak fingers. You know, new at that whole "grasping" thing and all. Also, once you've been bitten by enough cats, baby teeth don't seem like a very big deal. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Liz the Squeak Date: 20 Nov 06 - 08:32 AM Have you actually tried to take candy from a baby?? Once they've got their little Juanitas* round a chocolate bar they won't let go.. I know, I nearly lost a finger to Limpit trying to pry a bag of chocolate buttons from her! LTS * Juanita - a tooth - one eater.... |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Adrianel Date: 19 Nov 06 - 09:06 PM One of the quaintest I've heard is from a friend of ours from Yorkshire. To express great surprise, she'll say "Well, I'll go to the foot of our stairs". I have no idea of its origin. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Bert Date: 19 Nov 06 - 07:08 PM Duck's disease, he hits his arse every time he steps off the kerb. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: GUEST,Scoville still at Dad's Date: 19 Nov 06 - 03:39 PM Oops . . . "candy from a baby" means something was really easy (often applied to underhanded activities, but I don't know if that's normal or just because it has the association of being a mean thing to do). "Piece of cake" would also apply. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: GUEST,Scoville at Dad's Date: 19 Nov 06 - 03:37 PM Our intern broke us all up when she said that so-and-so was "uglier than homemade sin". Judiann--"candy from a baby" is pretty common in the U.S. I don't know the specific origins, except that I assume it's extremely easy to take candy from a baby. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: fat B****rd Date: 19 Nov 06 - 02:20 PM He/She's got a face like a robber's dog. Bugger my rags. ?? |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Rowan Date: 18 Nov 06 - 11:43 PM Midchuck reminded me of Cunning as a dunny rat. Flash as a rat with a gold tooth. He's so low he could dangle his legs off a tram ticket. and He's so low he could wear a top hat under a snake's arse. Cheers, Rowan |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Donuel Date: 18 Nov 06 - 01:48 PM Once you have mastered the art of appearing sincere, you can do anything. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Jim Dixon Date: 18 Nov 06 - 01:42 PM Why is a leg cramp called a Charley horse? (or maybe Charlie horse) |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Midchuck Date: 18 Nov 06 - 12:27 PM That girl is so tall she could stand flat-footed and piss in the radiator of a Chevy pickup. (You have to be old enough to remember when cars and trucks had external radiator caps.) Crazier than a shithouse rat. Uglier than death takin' a shit. (Both from a native Vermonter friend of mine, many years ago.) P. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Spot Date: 18 Nov 06 - 04:11 AM Allo.. My favourite.... "Sour as a crow's arse" Spot :-) |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: GUEST,thurg Date: 17 Nov 06 - 10:28 PM Here's one my father produced out the blue when we were travelling this summer, although I have the feeling he didn't pick it up from MTV: whenever there was some comment or direction on which way to turn, he would follow it with, "Left to the buggy; right to the wheel." Pronounced in a meditative, wistful manner. Now what the heck would it mean? |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Bert Date: 17 Nov 06 - 07:31 PM Bent as box of top hats. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Amos Date: 17 Nov 06 - 07:11 PM Certainly not. Hotter than a two-dollar pistol is the equivalent of "red-hot", which happens with cheap pistols when you fire them. "Bent as a two-bob note" is, like the Yank equivalent "fishy as a three-dollar bill", a reference to one's moral turpitude. A |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Rowan Date: 17 Nov 06 - 06:41 PM Is "hotter than a two-dollar pistol!" the same as "bent as a two bob note!"? Around here "Flat out like a lizard drinking" is self explanatory but I remember an ex mother-in-law telling us to "unwrap your rung!" when she meant "get a wriggle on!" and was too polite to say "get yer arse into gear!" Cheers, Rowan |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Paul from Hull Date: 17 Nov 06 - 06:38 PM A friend's Grandmother has ths strange but amusing expression for someone she has a less then good opinion of: "Oh, 'e's crummy, & dogs follow 'im" ...I've never heard it anywhere else, but have a feeling its not original to her. Anyone else heard it? |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: GUEST,judiann Date: 17 Nov 06 - 06:06 PM i want to know where the expression "like taking candy from a baby" originated .It sounds like an american term ? |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Spud Murphy Date: 07 Jun 01 - 05:39 PM kitty corner is as Burke describes. Squeejawed is probably a non symetrical diagonal offset, closer to beitng anti-goglin, which is realy bent out of shape. Spud |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Don Firth Date: 07 Jun 01 - 12:47 PM Yeah, I came up with the same thing. That's hotter than a two-dollar pistol! Don Firth |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: jeffp Date: 07 Jun 01 - 12:36 PM Believe it or not, kitty-corner is in my dictionary. It comes from cater-corner - diagonal, in a diagonal position [From obsolete cater, four at dice, from Middle English, from Old French catre, four, from Latin quattuor.] jeffp |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Burke Date: 07 Jun 01 - 12:30 PM Kitty-corner is a diagonal relationship. The house next to the house behind us, is kitty-corner to our house. Also cattywompus. I don't know squeejawed, but I assume that's the same. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: gnu Date: 07 Jun 01 - 12:22 PM Watch two cats square off for a fight and it will become obvious. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Kim C Date: 07 Jun 01 - 12:20 PM Grab, probably the same place as cattywompus or squeejawed. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Grab Date: 07 Jun 01 - 12:01 PM From being over in the States, an Americanism - "kitty-corner" which I believe means "on the opposite site of the junction". Where in the world did _that_ one come from? Graham. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: BobP Date: 07 Jun 01 - 11:46 AM In the Navy, aboard a submarine, many years ago, When switching between fresh water tanks, I'd walk past the "conn" and in a voice loud enough to let three people, who neeeded the information, know, I'd say, "One's one service, two's on fill" or some variation. Then, I'd wait to make sure each responded with "Aye". One day, for no particular reason, I sang it to the tune of "Camptown Races" and the replies came back doodah, doodah, doo-dah-day. Just one of many fond memories from long days at sea.
|
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Kim C Date: 07 Jun 01 - 11:37 AM I thought that taking candy from a baby was an expression for doing something unkind. The other night I was in the company of an entertaining gentleman who said things like "my grandmama would snatch me bald-headed," and "he's over there grinnin like a jackass eatin briars." I also like the expression, "wound up tighter than a 2-dollar pocketwatch." |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Linda Kelly Date: 07 Jun 01 - 11:32 AM My mother when resigned to something would say 'Mothers sold the pig. Pig's sold. Soldier on.' -now you know where I get it from! |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Bardford Date: 07 Jun 01 - 10:46 AM My wife inherited this phrase from someone in her Nova Scotia lineage - "Your ass is a star." meaning "you don't know what your talking about", or, more to the point "you're full of shit." Example: Me- "There is a statue of Elvis on Mars." Her - " Yer ass is a star." Bardford |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: hesperis Date: 07 Jun 01 - 10:43 AM Hey! I'm not a wreck! Er, well, um... Only sometimes. And never because of alcohol. *bg* |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: wdyat12 Date: 07 Jun 01 - 10:16 AM I once had a roommate with a glass eye. He would always say to me "I'll keep an eye out for ya." wdyat12 |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Arnie Date: 07 Jun 01 - 09:34 AM when I first visited a friend's granddad in Barnsley, South Yorkshire, he asked me 'How's thee laiking me old cocker?' Now being from West Yorkshire, this meant absolutely nothing to me - we talk proper in the West Riding! The answer of course, as given above, is 'fair to middlin'. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: GUEST,pete Date: 07 Jun 01 - 08:02 AM re coitus interruptus,in Portsmouth the term was "getting off at Fratton" which was two stops before Portsmouth harbour station.Presumably the Royal Navy like to be extra careful. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: GUEST,chuck Date: 07 Jun 01 - 12:36 AM An old-timer friend of mine in sSouth Dakota once described a very tall person this way: "He's gotta bend down to hear thunder." |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: GUEST,Jimmy Date: 06 Jun 01 - 11:51 PM During my stay in Liverpool (Eng) I was always impressed by the local idioms. My favourite was "I'll get off at Edge Hill." Edge Hill was a town which was the penultimate stop on the rail line from London to Liverpool (Lime Street). In Liverpool, where there was a high percentage of catholics, the expression meant "I shall use Coitus Interruptus", |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: GUEST,Dancing Mom Date: 06 Jun 01 - 10:44 PM Giac, I have heard those expressions. My dear mother-in-law says "c'yarn", as in, "The house is as nasty as c'yarn." He ain't no bigger'n a fried apple fart" or "fart in a whirlwind". "I went in and cleaned up the whole loblolly mess" (loblolly being a type of pine tree; don't know how she put those together); a "whizerdilly fit" is similar to a hissy fit. When asked how's she is doing, a friend says, "I'm fine as frog's hair." My great-grandma used to say, in exclamation, "Good night, Miss Agnes!" Sharon |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: gnu Date: 06 Jun 01 - 10:34 PM DaveO... yeah, i've heard that many a time and never knew the actual connotation / implication. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Uncle_DaveO Date: 06 Jun 01 - 10:31 PM When I was a kid, my mother, when aggravated extremely, would come out with: "Good...night...nurse!!!" Bedamned if I know what the expression means, but I sure knew what it meant when it came out of HER mouth! DAve Oesterreich |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: gnu Date: 06 Jun 01 - 10:29 PM Naemanson...another of that ilk is : Still able to sit up and take nourishment... a favourite of a great uncle of mine, long gone, god rest. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: gnu Date: 06 Jun 01 - 10:20 PM Well, those of you who participated in the Mudcat Shite-Free Tavern thread know what "Dry as Turkey Turd Beer" means. Here's another coined by another relative of mine, my grandmother : Drink lots of cold water and walk slow. She was a wise woman. As opposed to my grandfather, who was always saying things like : I'd rather try to shove butter up a wildcat's ass with a hot poker. A bit too obvious, but, perhaps, wise as well, especially when referring to tangling with Gramma. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Naemanson Date: 06 Jun 01 - 09:44 PM My father, when asked how he is doing, will often reply, "Still fogging a mirror..." |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Uncle_DaveO Date: 06 Jun 01 - 08:57 PM Rollo: Sorry, didn't mean to sound gruffy. My intent in the last clause was to try to give the impression (usually true) that I don't take myself TOO seriously. Otherwise stated, I'm not above making mistakes (which I'd demonstrated), and not above confessing the mistake when I'm shown to have goofed. Dave Oesterreich |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Rollo Date: 06 Jun 01 - 07:55 PM By the way, Dave, your answer about "Es tut mir leid" sounded a little bit gruffy to me. I did not want to sneer on you because you made a mistake. I am sure I make more than one mistake while trying to express myself in english. But it is not easy to make jokes in postings and not step on the "victim`s" toes. You see, all you get is the written word, no mimic, no modulation of the voice. Es tut mir leid. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Rollo Date: 06 Jun 01 - 07:48 PM Steve, there is a nice story about "Gruess Gott", which only the southerners say, by the way. Originally it was something like "greetings in the name of god", but was shortened a bit over the years... Now a man entered an elevator going up in a skyscraper, and a priest was inside. Behaving in good manners, the man greeted the priest with "Gruess Gott". Now, literally this means "Give God my greetings". And so the priest answered: "Sorry, I am not planning to go so far upstairs..." |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Dorrie Date: 06 Jun 01 - 05:18 PM Whatever floats your boat-a girl at my school used 2 say that all the time and i never understood love Dorriexxx |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Don Firth Date: 06 Jun 01 - 01:21 PM Oh, yeah! And the guy who got his nose punched "flipped out of his tree!" Don Firth |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Don Firth Date: 06 Jun 01 - 01:18 PM "Bugle" as mentioned above sometimes refers to nose. I once heard someone describe someone punching someone else in the nose as "he skipped one off his bugle." Hyperbole (as distinct from hyperbola). Don Firth |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: CRANKY YANKEE Date: 06 Jun 01 - 08:20 AM Stand up straight Look intelligent And Don't drag your knuckles. Just being funny, don't take offense. Jody Gibson |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Giac Date: 06 Jun 01 - 08:17 AM When asked how she was feeling, my aunt would say, "Oh, fair to middlin' I suppose." To the same question, her sister (my mother), would respond, "Pretty apt to be arguin' too." Both expressions came from their mother's family. There is a local expression for something with a bad odor. "Smells like c'yarn (carrion) in the road." And, describing a child tackling an adult task, or trying to fight with an older child or adult. "He warn't no bigger than a fart in a whirlwind."
|
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Lyndi-loo Date: 06 Jun 01 - 07:21 AM My Mother used to say those too Sian. She also used to say about something big that it was "big enough to call Chi on" which I assume means that it's big enough to give it a name. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: sian, west wales Date: 06 Jun 01 - 07:14 AM Well,if we're doing other languages - I always wondered who thought of the Welsh expression for raining cats 'n' dogs ... raining old women and walking sticks. (bwrw hen wragedd a ffin). And speaking of skin, if someone is in a really-really bad mood he's wearing "croen ei din ar ei dalcen", or he's wearing the skin of his ass on his forehead. sian |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: gnu Date: 06 Jun 01 - 07:08 AM Skin off my nose... in British common law, one is said to have the right to swing one's arms freely in the air, but that right ends where the other fellow's nose begins. Thus, when commenting on the action(s) of others, if another's action(s)do not bother you, it's "no skin off my nose". My aged aunt, when asked how her health was holding up, would reply, "I can hear a flea fart and I can pick fly shit off pepper." When she met someone overweight, she would greet them with, "And what have you been EATING ? Everything ?" |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Les from Hull Date: 06 Jun 01 - 06:41 AM The naval expression skin off my/your back refers to flogging. So 'that's no skin off my back' means 'I won't be flogged/punished for that'. The boxing idion seems right for nose. When I was a little boy (oo, haven't you got a good memory, Les!) if I asked my grandma what she was baking, she would always say 'whim-whams for ducks to chase at!' I never heard that anywhere else. Les |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: English Jon Date: 06 Jun 01 - 06:30 AM My Granny has a few classics: how are you doing? - she'll reply "oh, not so dusty". I have no idea whether that's good or bad. "running around like a fart in a collander" is a particular favourite when busy. etc. EJ |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Steve Parkes Date: 06 Jun 01 - 03:34 AM And don't you Germans say "Grusse Gott" for hello, when we say Goodbye [God be with you]? Steve |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: katlaughing Date: 06 Jun 01 - 12:08 AM Yes, Matt, the poem is spelled that way, but in all the references I've seen of the actual ship it is spelled Hesperis. Rollo, thanks! I didn't want to say anything because my high school German is VERY rusty, but I remember "O, das tut mir leid" as being one of the first phrases we learned to say "I am sorry." O das tut mir leid, DaveO.**BG** kat |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Uncle_DaveO Date: 05 Jun 01 - 09:14 PM Rollo, I _HAVE_ been known to make mistakes, in German and even in other things! Dave Oesterreich |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Burke Date: 05 Jun 01 - 08:13 PM The OED doesn't explain the derrivation, but it sure give a lot of examples for "skin off ..." Skin off my bugle?
no skin off one's nose and varr. (colloq.), a matter of indifference to one. 1920 S. LEWIS Main Street xxv. 312 Go to it. No skin off my ear, Nat. Think I want to be fifth wheel in the coach? |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Rollo Date: 05 Jun 01 - 06:28 PM We should ask Hesperis about this wreck of her. *GGG* |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Matt_R Date: 05 Jun 01 - 06:16 PM Actually, it's the "Wreck of The Hesperus". It's a poem by Longfellow, I believe. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Rollo Date: 05 Jun 01 - 06:10 PM Dear Dave, Either you folks learn more about the origin of german words than we germans do, or you made a mistake... *GGG* Transliterated, "Es tut mir leid" means "It does harm to me", not "It does me heavy". I think this is quite a beautiful way to say you are sorry. "Leid" stands for pain, suffering, harm, expecially of the soul.
|
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Spud Murphy Date: 05 Jun 01 - 06:06 PM Arnie: You must be thinking of the nasal derivation. I am pretty sure the naval interpretation is in regard to the skin of one's belly. Spud (And I will attest to that by the hair on your chinny-chin-chin.) |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Mr Red Date: 05 Jun 01 - 05:41 PM Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase & Fable points to the Book of Job (xix, 20) for a source of the "skin of one's teeth". No reference to "skin off my nose" which is far more familiar to me than "back". However it does refer to "cutting off ones nose to spite ones face".BR>is this related by any chance? |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: katlaughing Date: 05 Jun 01 - 05:22 PM We've always warned people off something with "walk wide of the Widow of Windsor!" My mom would say she looked like the "Wreck of the Hesperis" before she got "dolled" up to go out or if she came in from gardening and the wind, etc. The Hesperis being an actual shipwreck...
|
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Linda Kelly Date: 05 Jun 01 - 04:48 PM When you have just stated the obvious, a favourite expression in our household used to be 'Queen Anne is dead.' |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: GUEST,Souter Date: 05 Jun 01 - 04:46 PM How about "It's like taking candy from a baby." Has anyone ever tried to take candy from a baby? It's hard, not easy, but this expression means something that isn't hard at all. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Naemanson Date: 05 Jun 01 - 04:35 PM I've heard of pitching a hissy fit. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Matt_R Date: 05 Jun 01 - 03:44 PM I just want to know who King Creole is! |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Mike Byers Date: 05 Jun 01 - 03:28 PM Here are a couple: My grandmother, when confronted by something odd/bad/dangerous that my brothers or I had done would say, "Well, you're a caution to snakes!" And my friend Mary (she got this from her mother) claims when someone is acting upset, they "pitched a hissy with a crepe tail." |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Naemanson Date: 05 Jun 01 - 01:12 PM Re: whippet quick - A whippet is a very fast dog, similar to a greyhound. Might this be connected to this idiom? Re: Skin of the teeth - Remember this is an old saying and that regular dental hygiene is a relatively recent development. Those who have had to go a few days without brushing their teeth should be familiar with the "skin" of their teeth. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: GUEST Date: 05 Jun 01 - 01:08 PM I think the answer in the crossward puzzle is back not nose "no skin off my back" |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: BobP Date: 05 Jun 01 - 01:02 PM "I brought my teeth just for the picture", John Harford.
On the occasion of John's passing It seems fitting May his memory live forever in places haunted by the likes of us. \/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/ Could some references to "skin" stuff have evolved, perchance from one Antonio, a man troubled by pending loss of such flesh to one noted as being Shy-Of-Lock. Perhaps Antonio had a bit of the Durante in him and supposed he'd square the deal with little more than his probiscus. To which Shydude might even declare, "this smells", and settle for a date with Portia (well Clinton would have). See John? Your not missing that much. |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Steve Parkes Date: 05 Jun 01 - 12:10 PM If you were more familiar with your Bible, you'd know the original expression was "saved by the hair of your teeth". (No, I know it's not verbatim, but I'm not that familiar either!) "Whippet-Quick" is a favourite of my mother's, usually in the form "Oi, Whippet-Quick!", which can normally be understodd as "if you don't stop that, you'll get a clip round the ear!". When I finally asked her about it, there was some discussion with Dad, and they eventually decided it was a character from "Ray's a Laugh", which was comic Ted Ray's Sunday afternoon show on the BBC Light Programme. He was an upper-class con-man, or some such. "Hold this while I call a cop" rings a bell; was it Groucho Marx? And Sin is only ugly to them that (think they) don't do it! Steve |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Uncle_DaveO Date: 05 Jun 01 - 12:02 PM These are called "idioms", expressions that are peculiar to a particular language because they don't mean what they mean, so to speak. I remember being rather amused when I was learning German, reading that someone went to see Herr Professor Schmidt, and asked the maid to see him. She replied, "Es tut mir leid, er is nicht zu hause." Transliterated, this would be, "It does me heavy, he is not home." Dave Oesterreich |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Bagpuss Date: 05 Jun 01 - 11:56 AM I always liked "keep your eyes peeled". Bagpuss |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: sian, west wales Date: 05 Jun 01 - 11:45 AM I've never understood, "ugly as sin". Surely sin has to be drop-dead-gorgeous or it wouldn't be so attractive (to SO many of us.) sian |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: mousethief Date: 05 Jun 01 - 11:29 AM Do our teeth have skin? It's called "gums" -- mine have it. Do yours? :-) Alex |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: GUEST Date: 05 Jun 01 - 11:18 AM My folks used to say, as they handed you something when they were busy, "Here, hold this while I call a cop." |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Arnie Date: 05 Jun 01 - 11:18 AM Cheers Lyndi-loo - I didn't even know there was a phrase finder website but it will sure prove useful in the future! Even the phrase-finder doesn't seem too sure of the origin of the expression, and as a boxing term it seems a bit weak. However, unless someone comes up with anything more original I'll settle for that! |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Scabby Douglas Date: 05 Jun 01 - 11:13 AM Whenever anyone snatches a proffered item out of another's hands, my mother-in-law (aka Crazy Nancy) always says "Oooh, Whippit Quick, the ratcatcher" But then she is mad. Sd |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Arnie Date: 05 Jun 01 - 11:12 AM Thanks kat/katlaughing but I don't think that's the answer. I have a feeling it might have a naval background but I'm not sure. As for 'by the skin of his teeth, I don't think that teeth have any skin so the expression probably indicates that success seem improbable but was narrowly achieved -that's what I think anyway.... |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: Lyndi-loo Date: 05 Jun 01 - 11:09 AM Have a lookhere |
|
Subject: RE: Strange expressions.. From: katlaughing Date: 05 Jun 01 - 11:04 AM Maybe it is in reference to winning a race by a nose and not losing any skin while doing so? How about "hanging on by the skin of his teeth?" Or am I remembering that one wrong? Do our teeth have skin?:-) |
|
Subject: Strange expressions.. From: Arnie Date: 05 Jun 01 - 11:01 AM Not really a folk question but I wonder if anyone can help. I've just been doing a crossword and one of the solutions was 'No skin off my nose'. Now this is a common expression but it got me thinking - where on earth does it originate? Why should it be used to mean that someone isn't too bothered about something. Anyone out there know the answer as it's just bugging me today!! |
| Share Thread: |
