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Thread: Where did we get that expression?

  1. #31
    Smile samercury's Avatar
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    So that's where those expressions came from. Pendragon, where did you find the pink elephant? I love it!

  2. #32
    freakishly random Lauralou's Avatar
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    My English Teacher of all ppl told our class where the insult of raising one's middle finger came from. I hope I get it right if not please correct me... Apparently in the olden days I'm not exactly sure when. the penalty for treason was to cut off the offender's middle finger. Therefore in defiance when the king would pass people would stick up their middle figures to insult him.

    She also told us where the "F" word came from. Apparently nobel men had the right to sleep with a peasant's wife before she was married. So while the "deed was being done" there was a sign posted on the door of the woman's cottage which said Fornification Under Creedence of the King. Shortened to the Accronym its the word we all know and r shocked to hear.
    ~*~ Lauren Elizabeth ~*~

  3. #33
    Lady of Smilies Nightshade's Avatar
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    Ive heard the fornification story before and I suppose the middle finger makessense as in the uk its also a reversed peace sign which comes from the 100 years war and the french cutting off archers fingers.
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  4. #34
    Not politically correct Pendragon's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by samercury
    So that's where those expressions came from. Pendragon, where did you find the pink elephant? I love it!
    The Pink Elephant came from here http://www.websmileys.com/ but be warned, not all things are as neat. You have to pick and choose.

    Now, Nightshade, about old Murphy's law:

    The following article was excerpted from The Desert Wings
    March 3, 1978

    Murphy's Law ("If anything can go wrong, it will") was born at Edwards Air Force Base in 1949 at North Base.

    It was named after Capt. Edward A. Murphy, an engineer working on Air Force Project MX981, (a project) designed to see how much sudden deceleration a person can stand in a crash.

    One day, after finding that a transducer was wired wrong, he cursed the technician responsible and said, "If there is any way to do it wrong, he'll find it."

    The contractor's project manager kept a list of "laws" and added this one, which he called Murphy's Law.

    Actually, what he did was take an old law that had been around for years in a more basic form and give it a name.

    That's my story, and I'm sticking to it!

    Where did we get the expression: "Can't hold a candle to you"?
    Some of us laugh
    Some of us cry
    Some of us smoke
    Some of us lie
    But it's all just the way
    that we cope with our lives...

  5. #35
    Life's an illusion. YellowCrayola's Avatar
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    Here:

    CAN'T HOLD A CANDLE TO YOU - ".It goes back to Shakespeare's time, before there was any such thing as street lighting. In those days a person returning home from a tavern or theater would be accompanied by a linkboy, who carried a torch or candle. These linkboys were considered very inferior beings, so to say that Tom couldn't 'hold a candle to ' Harry meant that Tom was very much inferior to Harry." From the "Morris Dictionary of Word and Phrase Origins" by William and Mary Morris (HarperCollins, New York, 1977, 1988).
    Another statement:

    "A phrase dating to the 16th century is "can't hold a candle to," meaning "not fit for comparison to" something clearly superior (as in "Frozen waffles can't hold a candle to the homemade kind"). "To hold a candle to" originally meant to literally assist someone by holding a candle to illuminate the work, i.e., to act as a subordinate. Thus "can't (or "not fit to") hold a candle" meant "not even fit to work as an underling."
    "...You can say anything you want, yessir, but it's the words that sing, they soar and descend.... I bow to them... I love them, I cling to them, I run them down. I bite into them, I melt them down.... I love words so much... The unexpected ones....The ones I wait for greedily or stalk until, suddenly, they drop..." -Pablo Neruda

  6. #36
    Not politically correct Pendragon's Avatar
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    I can confirm YellowCrayola's statements as true. Bring on the bananas! However, I await confirmation from Nightshade on Murphy's Law. Right or Wrong, Lassie? Let's see: Hmm?

    Where do we get the phrase "Dyed in the wool"?
    Some of us laugh
    Some of us cry
    Some of us smoke
    Some of us lie
    But it's all just the way
    that we cope with our lives...

  7. #37
    Lady of Smilies Nightshade's Avatar
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    Pendragon it was right and I know that dyed in the wool is in my book back home but Im typing this on my lunch brake at work so I cant get to it
    *edit* have you decided to drop the accent then,pendragon also its knickers in a twist not knot
    Last edited by Nightshade; 10-04-2005 at 09:33 AM.
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  8. #38
    Not politically correct Pendragon's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Nightshade
    Pendragon it was right and I know that dyed in the wool is in my book back home but Im typing this on my lunch brake at work so I cant get to it
    *edit* have you decided to drop the accent then,pendragon also its knickers in a twist not knot
    To tell th' truth, luv, wasnae over sure t'was truly an expression 'cross th' whater. 'Sides, lassie, "knickers in a knot" 'tis better alliteration, eh, whot? O're 'ere 'tis "panties/(under)shorts in a wad". That'd be a gud 'un fer our list, don't cha know. Where'd we get th' expression "Dinnae get yer knickers in a twist"? What say, luv? Don't forget folks, the question is: Where did we get the expression : "Dyed in the wool"?
    Some of us laugh
    Some of us cry
    Some of us smoke
    Some of us lie
    But it's all just the way
    that we cope with our lives...

  9. #39
    Lady of Smilies Nightshade's Avatar
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    akkk, I thought hedsuddenly been struck by sense...my mistake
    cant find knickers in a twist I may have to do soome research
    oh you know what Im going to give other peple a chance to reply to the question and if by tommorow its not here Ill do it!1
    My mission in life is to make YOU smile
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  10. #40
    Not politically correct Pendragon's Avatar
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    Sense? Moi? Ye maun be joking! Dear, dear Nightshade. I must laugh to keep from crying. Laugh and the world will laugh with you, but cry, and you cry all alone... An' mind, lassie, 'tis bitter alone...
    Some of us laugh
    Some of us cry
    Some of us smoke
    Some of us lie
    But it's all just the way
    that we cope with our lives...

  11. #41
    Lady of Smilies Nightshade's Avatar
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    The expression Dyed in the wool is usedto describe someone who is fixed in their opinions and inflexible. The phrase came into use in EEnglish wool mills and is first recorded in 1579 . Quite simply wool that gad been dyed before it was treated would retain its colour much better than if it were dyed after weaving (known as "dyed in the piece"). Therefore 'dyed in the wool' became a phrase applied to anything that wasnt easily altered by other processes, such as persuasion.
    There I finally got round to posing it next phrase is "knickers in a twist".
    My mission in life is to make YOU smile
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  12. #42
    Not politically correct Pendragon's Avatar
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    'ere's yer 'nanners fer a co'rect answer!


    I believe but can't confirm, dash it all, that "knickers in a twist, panties/undershorts in a wad" comes from hiking and horseback riding. You sweat and it causes the dreaded "undies creeping disese" in which your underthings become bunched up, twisted, etc. and is very uncomfortable. A person in this condition is apt to not be in the best of moods. Thus it became an expression meaning "don't get upset or snapish". As I say, I cannae confirm. Up t' you, naow, luv, t' gi' me th' right o' it!

    '
    Some of us laugh
    Some of us cry
    Some of us smoke
    Some of us lie
    But it's all just the way
    that we cope with our lives...

  13. #43
    Lady of Smilies Nightshade's Avatar
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    Oh i cant confirm it Im trully wondering what it is but thankfull next week Im buying the next edition of The Red herrings book caleld shaggy dog or somthing so mayber itll be in that
    My mission in life is to make YOU smile
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  14. #44
    Not politically correct Pendragon's Avatar
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    OOOOOOOOKKKKKK.
    Then the new phrase, moving right along.

    Where did we get the expression, "Not up to scratch."
    Some of us laugh
    Some of us cry
    Some of us smoke
    Some of us lie
    But it's all just the way
    that we cope with our lives...

  15. #45
    Lady of Smilies Nightshade's Avatar
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    ok Pendragon (look do you mind jus being Pen? its easier to write)
    I cant find up to scratch so can you please give the answer??
    My mission in life is to make YOU smile
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    "The time has come," the Walrus said,"To talk of many things:

    Forum Rules- You know you want to read 'em

    |Litnet Challange status = 5/260
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