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Say what? 7 common expressions and their origins

I like the cut of your jib – let’s bury the hatchet.

04/06/12 10,122 Views 14 Comments

ALL OF US have regurgitated clichés and common phrases without a second thought about where they came from.

Here, we take a closer look at the origins of some old expressions still knocking about today…

Say what? 7 common expressions and their origins
1 / 7

  • Sweet Fanny Adams

    If you're of a delicate disposition, it might be best give this one a miss. Fanny Adams was an eight-year-old English girl who met a grisly end in 1867 after she was snatched by Frederick Baker, a solicitor's clerk, while playing in a field. Fanny's body was found several hours after she was abducted, but it was so severely mutilated that it took several days for all the remains to be found and put back together. A few years later, when British seamen received rations of tinned mutton, they were so put off by the sight that they decided the tins contained the mutilated remains of the “sweet Fanny Adams” – which in naval slang mean “nothing at all”. Image: Peter G Trimming via Flickr/Creative Commons

  • Cut of your jib

    Another nautical phrase - a jib is a a triangular sail on a ship. It became known as a way of commenting on a person's appearance or demeanour in the 19th century when Sir Walter Scott used it in St Ronan's Well. It's thought the phrase alludes to the nose or chin of a person. Image via by mikecogh/Flickr

  • Lowbrow, highbrow...

    ... and even "middlebrow" all came from - yep, you guessed it - phrenology. Practitioners of the abandoned 'science' had an inkling that the human brain was a terribly important organ – but lost their way slightly by deciding to focus on the shape of the skull instead. An easy mistake to make... we guess. During phrenology's heyday (1820s-1840s) it was believed that having a high eyebrow line indicated a great intellectual capacity – and vice versa. Image via garryknight/Flickr

  • Pleased as punch

    To be ‘pleased as punch’ with something – or even, on those rare occasions, yourself – isn’t a bad feeling at all. But where does the phrase come from? Its origin can be found in the old English summertime slapstick fun that is Punch and Judy. While that may be unsurprising enough, those uninitiated with the joys of the puppet show should bear in mind that Punch is essentially a maniac who kills everyone he meets. Image: alexbrn/Flickr/Creative Commons

  • Eat your heart out

    Now used to laugh into the faces of your enemies, “eat your heart out” began its journey as a slightly less triumphant creature... In days of yore, there was widespread faith in the physiological theory that “humours” – based on the four fluids found in the human body – influenced a person’s character of behaviour. The four cardinal humours were (hold onto your breakfast) blood, phlegm, choler (yellow bile) and melancholy (black bile). Melancholy and envy were believed to be bad for the heart – literally draining the organ of blood, or ‘eating’ away at it. In later years, the phrases began to be used as an insult. Image: Sarah G/Flickr/Creative Commons

  • Always the bridesmaid, never the bride

    You may be surprised to learn that this well-worn phrase was first used by Listerine in the 1920s. This cheerful and empowering ad tells the story of Edna, lamenting: "Her case was really a pathetic one. Like every woman, her ambition was to marry." The cause of her dreadful failure? Bad breath. Poor Edna.

  • Bury the hatchet

    While many common expressions are figurative in nature, this one comes from an actual practice by Native Americans. While conducting peace negotiations, tribes would bury all their weapons - clubs, tomahawks and scalping knives - as a sign of good faith. Their trust was not always well-founded. Image: irrezolut/Flickr/Creative Commons
  • If you're of a delicate disposition, it might be best give this one a miss. Fanny Adams was an eight-year-old English girl who met a grisly end in 1867 after she was snatched by Frederick Baker, a solicitor's clerk, while playing in a field. Fanny's body was found several hours after she was abducted, but it was so severely mutilated that it took several days for all the remains to be found and put back together. A few years later, when British seamen received rations of tinned mutton, they were so put off by the sight that they decided the tins contained the mutilated remains of the “sweet Fanny Adams” – which in naval slang mean “nothing at all”. Image: Peter G Trimming via Flickr/Creative Commons
  • Another nautical phrase - a jib is a a triangular sail on a ship. It became known as a way of commenting on a person's appearance or demeanour in the 19th century when Sir Walter Scott used it in St Ronan's Well. It's thought the phrase alludes to the nose or chin of a person. Image via by mikecogh/Flickr
  • ... and even
  • To be ‘pleased as punch’ with something – or even, on those rare occasions, yourself – isn’t a bad feeling at all. But where does the phrase come from? Its origin can be found in the old English summertime slapstick fun that is Punch and Judy. While that may be unsurprising enough, those uninitiated with the joys of the puppet show should bear in mind that Punch is essentially a maniac who kills everyone he meets. Image: alexbrn/Flickr/Creative Commons
  • Now used to laugh into the faces of your enemies, “eat your heart out” began its journey as a slightly less triumphant creature... In days of yore, there was widespread faith in the physiological theory that “humours” – based on the four fluids found in the human body – influenced a person’s character of behaviour. The four cardinal humours were (hold onto your breakfast) blood, phlegm, choler (yellow bile) and melancholy (black bile). Melancholy and envy were believed to be bad for the heart – literally draining the organ of blood, or ‘eating’ away at it. In later years, the phrases began to be used as an insult. Image: Sarah G/Flickr/Creative Commons
  • You may be surprised to learn that this well-worn phrase was first used by Listerine in the 1920s. This cheerful and empowering ad tells the story of Edna, lamenting:
  • While many common expressions are figurative in nature, this one comes from an actual practice by Native Americans. While conducting peace negotiations, tribes would bury all their weapons - clubs, tomahawks and scalping knives - as a sign of good faith. Their trust was not always well-founded. Image: irrezolut/Flickr/Creative Commons

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Jennifer Wade
jen@thejournal.ie

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