Reader Opinions
Chris – (on board) October 10, 2024
Mid-60s? This phrase has been around for centuries, originating with ships most commonly (although it can be attributed to taking something on a carriage as they were originally just boards on wheels) You board a ship, you take things on board with you. So when you take something on board, in the figurative sense, you are loading it into your mind, just as you would your luggage (for i.e.) on board the sailing ship.
Paloma – (a bed of roses) October 9, 2024
I agree with Sam Addington.
Too many forget roses have thorns.
Not a comfortable bed.
Chris – (not give a damn) October 3, 2024
MWM is totally right; British origin not American.
Chris – (none of your lip) October 3, 2024
Not the same as none of your business; none of your lips means don’t be cheeky, don’t answer back. Don’t say anything that insults or arguments. The only example above that is even close is the first one.
Kurtiss – (wag the dog) October 2, 2024
They’re not tracing this back farther than 1997? It was used in reference to the 1992 election in the early/mid ’90s, and Joseph Wambaugh used it in Lines & Shadows in 1984. Anyone know anything earlier than those?
Anonymous – (a stitch in time saves nine) September 18, 2024
Where did nine come from?
Scath – (beyond the pale) September 14, 2024
Previous to 1922, Britain-run Dublin was called “The Pale,” and areas outside of Dublin were considered “beyond the Pale.” If you were an anglophile living in Dublin, to venture outside or beyond the Pale was considered dangerous since many Irish hated the British for their dominance over Gallic (Celtic) culture.
TLeaf – (good egg) August 28, 2024
There’s a direct equivalent in Chinese: 坏蛋 or 壞蛋, literally “bad egg”, which I doubt came from the same Hammett origin. Some other Chinese expressions involving eggs: foolish egg, mucky egg, or telling someone to scram: 滚蛋”scram-egg”. But I’m not aware of any Chinese reference to “good egg”.
Chris – (in dire straits or need) August 27, 2024
Surely the phrase comes from the navy, straits being the dangerous waters between lands, dire straits would be excessively dangerous.
Larry Adams – (break a leg) August 26, 2024
I once heard that it was coined after John Wilkes Booth broke his leg after killing President Lincoln while jumping from the box to the stage.
