How did “spick and span” come to mean very clean?

Today, Spick and Span is a trade name for a well-known cleanser, but the expression began in the fourteenth century as the nautical term “spick and span new,” to describe a freshly built or refurbished ship. A spick was a spike, while span was a Viking reference to new wood, but also means any distance between two extremities (such as the bow and stern of a ship). The wooden ship was so clean that even the spikes looked new.

What’s the origin of the expression “son of a gun”?

Early in the eighteenth century, wives and girlfriends (as well as the occasional prostitute) were allowed to go to sea with the sailors during long voyages. When one of them became pregnant and was about to give birth at sea, a canvas curtain was placed near the midship gun where the birth would take place. If the newborn’s father was in doubt, and it often was, the birth was registered in the log as the “son of a gun.”

Why do we say that someone arrogant needs to be “taken down a peg”?

A ship’s colours are raised or lowered to signal the ship’s status. “All flags flying” signals great pride, but flags could also indicate degrees between failure and conquest. These flags were once held in place by a system of pegs, so lowering them was done by taking down a peg. This was a shame to the ship and its crew and gave us the expression for humiliation: to be taken down a peg.

Why do we say that someone is “on the spot” when they’re facing big trouble?

To be “on the spot” means you’re in serious difficulty, and it comes from the pirates of the Caribbean. The “spot” is the ace of spades, a card that pirates ceremoniously showed to a condemned person indicating that he was about to be executed as a traitor. To be put on the spot has become much less dire, and instead of being a signal that you’re being put to death, it has evolved into meaning, “Explain yourself or you’re out of here.”

Why would you give a “swashbuckler” or a bully a “wide berth”?

Swashbuckler, a word we use for a pirate, was created from the archaic words swash, meaning “to make noise by striking,” and buckler, meaning “shield.” A swaggering brute yelling and banging his sword on his shield was called a swashbuckler. These bullies were given a “wide berth,” which in nautical lingo means to anchor or berth a ship a safe distance away from another that might cause trouble.

Why does “jury-rigged” mean a temporary repair with whatever is at hand?

In the seventeenth century, when a ship’s mast was damaged at sea, a “jury mast” was rigged to hold the sail until the replacement could be found. Because this was a critical situation the repairs had to be done within a day, or in French un jour, which in this case is the origin of jury. Something jury-rigged is a temporary repair and has nothing to do with “jerry-built,” which means permanent bad work.

Why are military guards, some garden fences, and people on strike all called “pickets”?

A picket line, of course, is a group of union people exercising their right to protest, while a military picket is a guard on duty to protect the perimeter of an encampment. The word picket comes from the early French settlers, who made fortified stockades from sharpened tree trunks, which they called piquet, meaning “pointed sticks.” It lives on in the pointed slats of picket fences and in the actions of union strikers.

Why do we say, “Lock and load” when preparing for the inevitable?

The expression “lock and load” comes from American G.I.s during the Second World War and refers to loading the M1 rifle for imminent combat. The phrase means to insert a full ammunition clip into the rifle, then lock the bolt forward, forcing a round into the chamber ready to fire. The original order was “load and lock,” but after John Wayne reversed the order to “lock and load” in The Sands of Iwo Jima, the expression stuck.

What is the meaning of the battle cry “Give no quarter”?

In battle, to give no quarter means to take no prisoners. In this case, the word quarter has no numerical value but rather refers to the antiquated use of the word for a dwelling place or area, such as the Latin Quarter or a soldier’s living quarters or barracks. To grant or give quarter would mean to show mercy and provide prisoners with shelter. “No quarter asked and no quarter given” means this is a fight to the death.

Why does “sally forth” mean to go forward with a new venture?

Today it implies less danger, but to “sally forth” was originally a military term meaning to suddenly rush forward. The Latin derivation of sally is salire, meaning “to leap.” Castles and fortresses had closely guarded openings in the walls designed for mounting a quick counterattack against a siege. These were called sally ports, from which the defenders would vigorously rush, or sally forth, into battle.

What was the cost in human life to liberate each Kuwaiti citizen during Operation Desert Storm?

After Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait, an American-led military force liberated the tiny country in 1991 — but at what cost? There were 491,000 Kuwaiti citizens, who made up only 28 percent of the country’s population. The rest, or 72 percent, were immigrant labourers. Estimates are that 150,000 Iraqis were killed during the war, while 141 American, 18 British, 2 French, and 44 Arab soldiers gave their lives. This means it cost one life to liberate every three Kuwaitis.

What orbital advantage did Cape Canaveral have to cause NASA to choose the Florida location for its first space launches?

Cape Canaveral was chosen as a launch site not only because NASA needed the booster rockets to fall harmlessly into the ocean but also, and more importantly, because the earth moves from west to east at 910 miles an hour. This Florida location allowed them to fire a rocket to the east with an added velocity push of 17,300 miles an hour from the spinning of the earth.

How did a telegram bring the United States into the First World War?

In 1917, the British intercepted a cable from the German foreign minister to their Mexican ambassador proposing an alliance whereby the Mexicans would reacquire Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico if that country would join Germany in an attack from the south on the neutral Americans. The British made the telegram public on March 1, and the outcry forced the United States into the war a month later.

Why did First World War fighter pilots wear long silk scarves?

The dashing image of First World War fighter pilots wearing long silk scarves had nothing to do with fashion. The open-cockpit biplanes were very primitive with no rear-view mirror, so the pilot depended entirely on his own vision to avoid or mount an attack. The scarf was used to wipe grease from his goggles and to keep his neck from chafing against his collar as he constantly turned his head while watching for the enemy.

American English Idioms

all's well that ends well
- a successful outcome is worth the effort

all thumbs
- clumsy

at the end of one's rope
- at the limit of one's ability to cope

bark worse than one's bite
- not as bad-tempered as one appears

bend over backwards
- try very hard

bite the bullet
- endure in a difficult situation

bite the dust
- go down in defeat

blow it
- fail at something

bury the hatchet
- make peace

cat got your tongue?
- can't talk?

come alive
- brighten up and become active

cough up
- give unwillingly

different strokes for different folks
- everyone has different interests and tastes

dressed to kill
- wear one's finest clothing

dressed to the teeth
- dressed elegantly

drive someone up a wall
- annoy someone greatly

duck soup
- easy, effortless

early bird catches the worm
- arriving early gives one an advantage

eating someone
- bothering or worrying someone

eyes are bigger than one's stomach
- take more food than one can eat

face the music
- accept the consequences

feed someone a line
- deceive someone

feel like a million dollars
- feel wonderful

fishy
- strange and suspicious

for a song
- for very little money

for the birds
- uninteresting and meaningless

fork over
- hand over, give

get away clean
- escape punishment

get in someone's hair
- bother someone

get off someone's back
- bothering someone

get the ax
- be dismissed, fired

get the ball rolling
- initiate action

get the jump on someone
- the advantage over someone

get up on the wrong side of the bed
- wake up in a bad mood

give it one's best shot
- try hard

give someone the slip
- make a getaway

go fly a kite
- go away!

go to bat for someone
- help out and support someone

go to the dogs
- become rundown

hang on
- persevere

have the world by the tail
- successful and happy

hit the ceiling
- become very angry

hit the hay
- go to bed

horse around
- play around

horse of a different color
- quite a different matter

hot under the collar
- extremely angry

if the shoo fits, wear it
- admit the truth

in stitches
- laughing very hard

in the hole
- in debt

jump down someone's throat
- become angry with someone

jump the gun
- to be hasty

keep under one's hat
- keep something a secret

kick the bucket
- die

kick up one's heels
- celebrate

knock someone's socks off
- enthuse and excite

leave someone high and dry
- abandon someone

lemon
- something defective

let sleeping dogs lie
- do not agitate a potential source of trouble

let the cat out of the bag
- inform beforehand

lose one's shirt
- lose a great deal of money

make a splash
- be successful and attract attention

make ends meet
- pay one's bills

mind one's P's and Q's
- take care in speech and action

money talks
- money can influence people

not have a leg to stand on
- to have no good defense for one's opinion or actions

on ice
- set aside for future use

on one's last legs
- sick and failing

on the line
- in danger of being lost

out of the woods
- out of danger

out on a limb
- in a risky position

paint the town red
- carouse and have a good time

pay through the nose
- pay too high a price

people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones
- one should not critisize when one is equally at fault

play it by ear
- improvise as one goes along

pull someone's leg
- fool someone

pull strings
- exert influence

put one's money where one's mouth is
- follow through with a stated intention

raise a stink
- protest strongly

scratch someone's back
- return a favor

sell someone short
- underestimate someone

sell someone down the river
- betray someone

shake a leg
- hurry!

shape up or ship out
- behave properly or leave!

shoot the breeze
- chat informally

shoot of one's mouth
- express one's opinions loudly

smell a rat
- feel that something is wrong

spread oneself too thin
- become involved in too many activities

stick to one's guns
- maintain one's position

stick out one's neck
- take a risk

spill the beans
- reveal a secret

sitting pretty
- in a fortunate position

snow job
- insincere talk

string someone along
- lead someone on dishonestly

straight fro the horse's mouth
- from a reliable source

take the bull by the horns
- take a decisive action in a difficult situation

toot one's own horn
- boast

talk through one's hat
- make a foolish statement

tongue-in-cheek
- not serious

turn someone off
- disgust someone

up one's sleeve
- concealed

wet blanket
- dull or boring person who spoils the happiness of others

Why is the control area of an aircraft called a “cockpit”?

When the hideous sport of cockfighting was legal, the birds were taken to a pit in the ground where they fought to the death. These fights were quick and bloody, and for this reason, the “cockpit” became the designated name of the room on a warship were surgeons attended the wounded and dying. During the First World War, pilots, like the roosters, were inserted into a confined space to do battle, and so they named that space the cockpit.

Why when waking up do we say,“Rise and shine” or “Shake a leg”?

“Rise and shine” comes from a 1916 United States Marine Corps manual that instructed noncommissioned officers to enter the privates’ barracks in the early morning and use the phrase to wake the men. While rise means “get up,” shine means “make sure your boots and brass are ready for inspection.” The Royal Navy used “shake a leg” to warn any women who might be sleeping in a hammock to show a leg or suffer the embarrassment of being rousted with the men.

Where does the disciplinary order “toe the line” come from?

“Toe the line” is the same as “toe the mark” and means “follow the rules or pay the consequences.” In many sports, such as foot racing, the athletes were required to stand with their toes against a scratched line to ensure a fair start. As punishment in the navy, no matter what the weather, young trainees were forced to stand for hours with their toes touching a seam on the ship’s deck, and this too was toeing the line.

Why is a single-minded person said to be “zeroed in”?

Before the modern era, rifle gunsights were aligned to hit a target at a known distance. Therefore, with the guesswork removed, any adjustment from a set position would be zero. The same principle applies to artillery batteries, which adjust their fire to a fixed point or “ground zero,” a term still used with satellite- and laser-guided bombs and missiles. Like the single-minded person, they’re zeroed in.

Why is someone who doesn’t live up to expectations called a “flash in the pan”?

On a pioneer flintlock rifle the hammer struck a flint to create a spark that ignited a small amount of priming powder in what was called the pan. This ignition then set off the main charge of gunpowder, causing a small explosion that fired the bullet through the barrel. When the powder in the pan didn’t ignite properly it created a flash, but the rifle wouldn’t fire. It looked good, but it was only a “flash in the pan.”

Why do we say that a guilty person must “face the music”?

To “face the music” comes from the military “drumming out” ceremony for disgraced soldiers. This ritual called for only drums to accompany the dishonoured as he was stripped of his rank and colours in front of his assembled unit. For cavalrymen, this humiliation was enhanced by having the offender sit backwards on his horse so that while leaving he could still see, as well as hear, the drums and the band. He was forced to face the music.

Why are foot soldiers called “infantry”?

The word soldier is from the Latin word solidus, meaning a gold coin, because it cost money to raise an army of mercenaries. The word infantry is from infant, with a Latin derivative meaning “non speaking,” because, like children, well-disciplined soldiers never talk back or challenge orders. Curiously, another use of the word soldier is in reference to an army ant, due to the fact that other than humans, ants are the only creatures on earth to go into battle in formation.

Why is an all-out fight called a “pitched battle”?

One of the meanings of the word pitch is “to set things in order.” For example, when you pitch a tent, you are using a military expression for lining up the tents in rows. Unlike a skirmish or a surprise attack, a pitched battle was one in which the two sides lined up in formation facing each other until the order was given for the carnage to begin. The two disciplined sides held their ranks as they approached and then met each other in what was called a pitched battle.

Why do we say “deep six” when we mean to eliminate or destroy something?

During the Watergate scandals, John Dean said that John Erlichman told him to shred some sensitive documents and then deep six the briefcase by throwing it into the river. “By the deep six” is a nautical term referring to sounding the water’s depth and means six fathoms (eleven metres or thirty-six feet). In the navy, to deep six something meant to dispose of an item by tossing it overboard into deep water where it couldn’t be found.

Why doesn’t an “ovation” signify a “triumph”?

A triumph was a Roman celebration of a military victory over an enemy of the state. The victorious commander rode a chariot in a grand parade with his entire army and the booty and slaves he had won. An ovation was a less elaborate honour for a general who had won victory without bloodshed, perhaps by treaty or reason. He was denied a chariot and either walked or rode a horse during a less imposing ceremony.

Why are armoured battle vehicles called “tanks”?

In ancient India, large pits were dug to collect the monsoon rains and were called tanken. In the seventeenth century the concept was brought home to Britain and was introduced in English as “tank,” a place to store water. In 1915, when the British designed a heavily armoured combat vehicle, they built them under the cover of building water tanks and shipped them to the front in crates marked “Tanks.” They were introduced at the Battle of the Somme.

Why is someone who exposes political corruption called a “muckraker”?

When President Teddy Roosevelt called the reporters who exposed political and corporate corruption “muckrakers,” the term caught on and is now used to describe tabloid journalism. Muck is manure, and the word was borrowed from John Bunyons’s book Pilgrim’s Progress, wherein a man — even though he had been promised a celestial crown — constantly kept his eyes and his muck rake on the filth of the floor instead of looking only to his halo.

Why do we call someone seeking political office a “candidate”?

In ancient Rome, someone seeking election would appear in public wearing a white robe to symbolize his pure character. Candidate comes from candidatus, meaning a man wearing pure white. Not fooled by the white toga, the Romans said that politicians needed to make three fortunes while in office: the first to pay back the money borrowed to buy votes, the second to bribe officials when eventually tried for misconduct, and the third for retirement.

Why is political favouritism called “pork barrel politics”?

Long before refrigeration, North American farmers kept supplies of salt pork stored in barrels, and the amount of meat on hand indicated the family’s prosperity. If the barrel was low on pork, it meant the possibility of disaster through starvation. When a politician sought and gained favouritism for his constituents, he was said to have filled the pork barrels of those who had elected him, thereby assuring his re-election.

Where did the sarcastic phrase “Bob’s your uncle” come from?

“Bob’s your uncle” is a common British phrase and now means that you’ve accomplished something without much effort. It originated in 1887 when Prime Minister Robert Cecil appointed his nephew, Arthur Balfour, chief secretary for Ireland. The public was outraged at this blatant act of nepotism and began using “Bob’s your uncle” to describe any situation where favouritism influenced the outcome.

Why are governmental and legal delays called “red tape”?

English monarchs used to write legal decrees on rolls of parchment and then bind them up with red silk ribbons. To give their work an important appearance, government bureaucrats copied the “red tape” practice. Not to be outdone, lawyers followed with ribbons of their own. The expression took hold after Charles Dickens described the frustration of dealing with governmental and legal bungling as “cutting through red tape.”