What is Digg?60 Comments
- xTRUMANx, on 10/10/2007, -3/+21TAKE IT UP A NOTCH
Meaning: Take things to a higher level, enter the next phase
Origin: Year 3000. Take it up a notch became a catchphrase for the world renowned chef Elzar who brought the word to prominence in his t.v. show whenever he was about use his spice weasel. Usually, the phrase is followed by a BAM for emphasis. - Azimuth1, on 10/10/2007, -2/+15"Origin: Actually refers to tree stumps."
I always thought it came from Cricket. In Cricket, the batsman can go out by being "stumped". - inactive, on 10/10/2007, -1/+10I've been taken down a peg! A whole peg!
- tnatharik, on 10/10/2007, -4/+12What is the origin of "digg it"?
- chicoer2001, on 10/10/2007, -5/+11Pig in a Poke reminds me of "European Vacation"
- Paroparo, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4Grope and run?
- Erectile, on 10/10/2007, -2/+6That's what I would've thought too, seeing as being stumped is often a pretty confusing way to be dismissed.
- VeganG, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4Maybe you need more fiber. You could try eating the pages after you read them.
- crashingechelon, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3"pig in a poke it's good to be a pig...oink..oink oink"
It's been a while since i've seen that movie - TheHappyRobot, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3I want someone to go whole-hog on a longer list, lickity split!
- boyo81, on 10/10/2007, -3/+6This is a lot of guesswork if you ask me...
Stumped - about tree trunks. Hmmm. It is pretty obviously a cricket reference. If you (as a batsman) are not in your crease when the ball is either bowled or fielded then the bails are knocked off and you are 'stumped'. - Poco, on 10/10/2007, -1/+4Funny that the origin quotes are taken from books like "The Whole Ball of Wax" and "To Coin a Phrase" but there is no mention of those two phrases in the list.
- patman76, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3If you caught somebody pulling a scam when buying a "pig in poke" you had "let the cat out of the bag"
- JazJon, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Someone post more history links, I remember reading about "dont let the bed bugs bite" and other phrase history.
- 2oonhed, on 10/10/2007, -1/+3Now that's a horse of a whole different color so don't get your bowels in an uproar if you get your tit caught in the ringer.
...and don't take any wooden nickels. - Caleb83, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Be aboveboard! I've always wondered what this means, ever since I read it in this article. Thankfully, the etymology is right below.
- CamelToad, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Uncle John's has helped me think my way through countless stools.
- fudgeigor, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Got a bee in your bonnet? Wheres that?
- ostracize, on 10/10/2007, -1/+2They're all euphemisms for sex:
"STUMP SOMEONE"
"PLAY FAST AND LOOSE"
"GOT OFF “SCOT-FREE”"
"TAKE SOMEONE DOWN A PEG"
"BUY A PIG IN A POKE"
"KNOCK OFF WORK"
"BEAT THE RAP" - opusaz, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Dugg for including sources.
- Panthereater, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1I'd like to know who coined the term "from the get go". Ugh, every time i hear it i cringe.
- racheldorman, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1The BBC are about to run a second series of 'Balderdash & Piffle' covering a similar topic, helping the Oxford English Dictionary to update the origins they publish for some of the words and phrases we use in modern-day English in the UK:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/programmes/wordhunt/
For all the research that has gone into both series, it would be a lot harder to fault the credibility of these sources! - macditty, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1how about them apples? whats that have to do with the price of eggs in china? anyone?
- SillyRabbits, on 10/10/2007, -1/+2I think a few of those explanations are a little questionable. Even some of the ones that I know are correct, give a really poor explanation that's only half true.
- bovious, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1My! How very...authoritative.
- MovieBlog, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Here's my favorite site for word origins:
http://word-detective.com/backidx.html - mrkmrk, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1The description, at least to me sounds like Michael's speech in the Business School episode (S03E17, mind you).
"It could be... a.... thingmajig. Or a hoozy-whatsy. Or... a 'Whatchamacallit.' *throws candy, lands on the floor* Now. You need to sell those in order to have... a 'Paaay Dayyy.' *throws candy* And, if you sell enough of them, you will make... a '100 Grand.' *throws candy, hits student in the face* Satisfied? *holds up a Snickers*" - thirdman, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Some comprehensive sites:
http://www.etymonline.com/index.php
http://www.phrases.org.uk/ - Revenuer, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1With all due respect to the game of cricket, I always assumed to stump someone referred to the tradition of political debates of old being held (literally) on tree stumps and to stump someone meant to ask a question they couldn't answer during said debate.
- FrederikNS, on 10/10/2007, -2/+2No, it's actually "Knock it up a notch"
- Cyclops0T8, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1Actually that's just urban legend. The word actually originates from using the thumb for measurement.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rule_of_thumb
- mrdorian, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0these dont ring any bells at all!
- macditty, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1i know that "drop a dime" on someone, meaning to snitch, or report to police comes from way back before pay phones were $.75, and only cost a dime. the snitch would call the police when something went down, 'dropping a dime' on the criminal. or at least thats what ive come to think it means anyway.
- BritSwedeGuy, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1I'm pretty sure more than one of these are wrong, too many of them are claiming US origins when they're probably British and far older - the full OED would probably have the actual sources.
e.g. "Stumped"? Cricket. - snypa, on 10/10/2007, -4/+4Another one to the list: RULE OF THUMB: old enligh law where a man could only beat his wife with a stick no thicker than ones thumb.
- colsandurz45, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1posh
port out, starboard home
british people who sailed to N. America wanted rooms on the corresponding sides of the boat to avoid too much sunlight in their room, which heats it up. - Egg333, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0Better title: "Origins of things you remember Grandpa saying"
- peranadigital, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1There's a whole lot of maybe in this list.
- doughardison, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1..also a line from the dike, who on her first day of work at the slaughterhouse becomes acquainted with the brothers MacManus, in 'Boon Dock Saints'.
If I recall correctly, this was about the time she punched one of the brothers in the sack. - inactive, on 10/10/2007, -4/+4Why does the writer insist on mentioning the 'frontier' or 'old west', but neglects to mention the origin of almost all the other sayings ?
Buried as inaccurate. - gossipninja, on 10/10/2007, -3/+3i though the phrase was "kick it up a notch" that was then followed by BAM
- glasnostic, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1Our local sports caster here in San Antonio who recently retired was the origin for “It ain’t over till the fat lady sings”.
- turnthepage, on 10/10/2007, -2/+2I've been in hock all this time. Who knew?
- Sornos, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1Dugg for a Simpson's quote that apparently no one recognizes.
- doughardison, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1How about 'floating an air biscuit'?
Seemingly originated from the movie 'Weird Science', but could be found to pre-date, if sufficient research were applied - fugeelama, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1http://www.duggmirror.com
- davidphan, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0actually, the cat out of the bag means the truth is out.
See my comment below by davidphan for the details. - davidphan, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0The cat is out of the bag is also derived from the bagging of Cats and Pigs
The Cat out of the bag means that the truth is out
At fairs, pigs were sold and put in bags. However, sometimes cats would be used instead of pigs. So when the cat was revealed, the truth was out that the cat was in the bag not the pig. - hfactor, on 10/10/2007, -2/+1Are those actually well-known? I`ve never heard them used, except the "ring any bells" phrase.
/foreign - thirdman, on 10/10/2007, -2/+1A lot of those are debatable, another possible origin for "stumped" is the same derivation as "stump speech" - where someone makes an outdoor speech to an audience, large tree stumps being a natural perch for rural orators. As heckling was a big part of this practice, the verb "to be stumped" took on the meaning of being stuck for an answer.
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