Etymology of Words and Phrases, Part 6

Entertainment, History, Humor, Mysteries 6 Minutes

TURN A BLIND EYE – The phrase “turn a blind eye”—often used to refer to a willful refusal to acknowledge a particular reality—dates back to a legendary chapter in the career of the British naval hero Horatio Nelson. During 1801’s Battle of Copenhagen, Nelson’s ships were pitted against a large Danish-Norwegian fleet. When his more conservative superior officer flagged for him to withdraw, the one-eyed Nelson supposedly brought his telescope to his bad eye and blithely proclaimed, “I really do not see the signal.” He went on to score a decisive victory. Some historians have since dismissed Nelson’s famous quip as merely a battlefield myth, but the phrase “turn a blind eye” persists to this day.

Admiral Horatio Nelson

WHITE ELEPHANT – White elephants were once considered highly sacred creatures in Thailand—the animal even graced the national flag until 1917—but they were also wielded as a subtle form of punishment. According to legend, if an underling or rival angered a Siamese king, the royal might present the unfortunate man with the gift of a white elephant. While ostensibly a reward, the creatures were tremendously expensive to feed and house, and caring for one often drove the recipient into financial ruin. Whether any specific rulers actually bestowed such a passive-aggressive gift is uncertain, but the term has since come to refer to any burdensome possession—pachyderm or otherwise.

CROCODILE TEARS – Modern English speakers use the phrase “crocodile tears” to describe a display of superficial or false sorrow, but the saying actually derives from a medieval belief that crocodiles shed tears of sadness while they killed and consumed their prey. The myth dates back as far as the 14th century and comes from a book called “The Travels of Sir John Mandeville.” Wildly popular upon its release, the tome recounts a brave knight’s adventures during his supposed travels through Asia. Among its many fabrications, the book includes a description of crocodiles that notes, “These serpents sley men, and eate them weeping, and they have no tongue.” While factually inaccurate, Mandeville’s account of weeping reptiles later found its way into the works of Shakespeare, and “crocodile tears” became an idiom as early as the 16th century.

DIEHARD – While it typically refers to someone with a strong dedication to a particular set of beliefs, the term “diehard” originally had a series of much more literal meanings. In its earliest incarnation in the 1700s, the expression described condemned men who struggled the longest when they were executed by hanging. The phrase later became even more popular after 1811’s Battle of Albuera during the Napoleonic Wars. In the midst of the fight, a wounded British officer named William Inglis supposedly urged his unit forward by bellowing “Stand your ground and die hard … make the enemy pay dear for each of us!” Inglis’ 57th Regiment suffered 75 percent casualties during the battle, and went on to earn the nickname “the Die Hards.”

57th Regiment

RESTING ON YOUR LAURELS: The idea of resting on your laurels dates back to leaders and athletic stars of ancient Greece. In Hellenic times, laurel leaves were closely tied to Apollo, the god of music, prophecy and poetry. Apollo was usually depicted with a crown of laurel leaves, and the plant eventually became a symbol of status and achievement. Victorious athletes at the ancient Pythian Games received wreaths made of laurel branches, and the Romans later adopted the practice and presented wreaths to generals who won important battles. Venerable Greeks and Romans, or “laureates,” were thus able to “rest on their laurels” by basking in the glory of past achievements. Only later did the phrase take on a negative connotation, and since the 1800s it has been used for those who are overly satisfied with past triumphs.

READ THE RIOT ACT – These days, angry parents might threaten to “read the riot act” to their unruly children. But in 18th-century England, the Riot Act was a very real document, and it was often recited aloud to angry mobs. Instituted in 1715, the Riot Act gave the British government the authority to label any group of more than 12 people a threat to the peace. In these circumstances, a public official would read a small portion of the Riot Act and order the people to “disperse themselves, and peaceably depart to their habitations.” Anyone that remained after one hour was subject to arrest or removal by force. The law was later put to the test in 1819 during the infamous Peterloo Massacre, in which a cavalry unit attacked a large group of protestors after they appeared to ignore a reading of the Riot Act.

1819 Peterloo Massacre

PAINT THE TOWN RED – The phrase “paint the town red” most likely owes its origin to one legendary night of drunkenness. In 1837, the Marquis of Waterford—a known lush and mischief maker—led a group of friends on a night of drinking through the English town of Melton Mowbray. The bender culminated in vandalism after Waterford and his fellow revelers knocked over flowerpots, pulled knockers off of doors and broke the windows of some of the town’s buildings. To top it all off, the mob literally painted a tollgate, the doors of several homes and a swan statue with red paint. The marquis and his pranksters later compensated Melton for the damages, but their drunken escapade is likely the reason that “paint the town red” became shorthand for a wild night out. Still yet another theory suggests the phrase was actually born out of the brothels of the American West, and referred to men behaving as though their whole town were a red-light district.

BY AND LARGE – Many everyday phrases are nautical in origin— “taken aback,” “loose cannon” and “high and dry” all originated at sea—but perhaps the most surprising example is the common saying “by and large.” As far back as the 16th century, the word “large” was used to mean that a ship was sailing with the wind at its back. Meanwhile, the much less desirable “by,” or “full and by,” meant the vessel was traveling into the wind. Thus, for mariners, “by and large” referred to trawling the seas in any and all directions relative to the wind. Today, sailors and landlubbers alike now use the phrase as a synonym for “all things considered” or “for the most part.”

16th Century Spanish Galleon

THE THIRD DEGREE – There are several tales about the origin of “the third degree,” a saying commonly used for long or arduous interrogations. One theory argues the phrase relates to the various degrees of murder in the criminal code; yet another credits it to Thomas F. Byrnes, a 19th-century New York City policeman who used the pun “Third Degree Byrnes” when describing his hardnosed questioning style. In truth, the saying is most likely derived from the Freemasons, a centuries-old fraternal organization whose members undergo rigorous questioning and examinations before becoming “third degree” members, or “master masons.

Thomas F. Byrnes
You will need to enlarge this to see details.
This one doesn’t provide any detail but the overall picture should give you an idea.

SPILL THE BEANS –

One explanation dates back to ancient Greece when people would use beans to vote anonymously. White beans were used for positive votes, and for negative votes, black beans or other dark-colored beans were used. These votes were cast in secret, so if someone knocked over the beans in the jar—whether by accident or intentionally—they “spilled the beans” and revealed the results of the votes prematurely. Eventually, in modern times, the phrase “spill the beans” came to mean “upset a previously stable situation by talking out of turn.”

DIME A DOZEN – After the dime was made in 1796, people started advertising goods for “a dime a dozen.” This meant you were getting a good deal on products, such as a dozen eggs. Over time, the idiom evolved to mean the opposite. Instead of something being a good deal, it became a phrase to describe something that’s not valuable and easily available. The first known use of it in this context is believed to have occurred in 1930. From there, people picked up on the phrase’s new meaning and started using it in that context.

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Published by NebraskaFilly

Army veteran (1976-1979), retired with entirely too much time on my hands

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162 thoughts on “Etymology of Words and Phrases, Part 6”

  1. Like

  2. Alrighty then….made it to the bottom but I gotta be honest – I didn’t read literally everything – haven’t read #8 yet.

    Everybody and their brother (list) was on the road and out shopping. Thankfully, the sky cleared and the sun has been shining, altho it’s still ice cold, with enough of a wind to bite. Temp when I got home on my DT was 17 and that has now dropped to 16. LM is curled up on the chair in the sun but came over to the door when I first got back and was carrying groceries to the kitchen.

    I really should go bring some wood and kindling in but….I have to rest up first. That’s going to require some shuffling on the patio and I have to carry the wood in by the armload since I can’t use my cart. I’ve got a big trash can (2 actually) filled with kindling so I’ll bring one of those on the patio, too. Ah, tomorrow morning will do….

    WM, of course, was swamped and they are shoving soooo much more crap in there, there is no room to move around – a lot of Spanish being spoken but people are friendly. Prices for everything are up – small cat food bag used to be around $7, now over $10. A package of 4 cheap furnace filters used to be about $5, now over $7. Even my Healthy Choice frozen meals have gone up.

    The good thing, however, is the gas is $2.59/gallon. I got over half-a-tank for $40, which isn’t bad at all. But that also means the State isn’t getting tax money….here, that’s ok since we often have a budget surplus. With all the people being dumped here, tho, I expect that will change.

    Liked by 1 person

      1. HAARP at it’s finest! Ya’ know, I’m really looking forward to having the fireplace going again. It’s a very efficient one and big, especially for a modular. There are vents on the backside that direct heat down the hallway as well. And it will help add a bit of heat in the crawlspace – the water outlet is fairly close.

        Liked by 1 person

          1. I know…it’s soothing and just makes you feel cozy and warm inside, as well as outside. When I first moved here and was living thru the renovation – couldn’t do anything except outside, which I couldn’t do in the winter anyway….I had my easy chair placed so I could see the TV to my left and the FP to my right. I spent many hours during the bad years just sitting there, trying to find solutions, gazing into the fire. It gets soooo hot, tho, that I can’t sit too close – it is a very deep FP and I’ve burned my arm 3 times adding wood to the back of the box. I did finally learn my lesson the third time but, since I haven’t used it for years now, I sure hope I don’t have to start that learning curve all over again!!! LOL – well, if it does, maybe the scar will be in the same place….

            Liked by 1 person

  3. hmmmmmm….ron to the rescue in CT?

    fka Serena
    December 20, 2022 5:01 pm

    Oh look, God’s gift was hanging in the wealthy northeast again, this time in New Haven CT.

    Frank Pepe’s in New Haven, CT is one of America’s best pizzerias. I’m excited that Frank Pepe’s has opened its first Florida location in Plantation at 341 N. University Drive – check it out: https://t.co/R33vbPKx8s pic.twitter.com/mJsX3wVuMZ

    — Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) December 16, 2022

    And Connecticut Public Radio just happened to publish a story about him on the same day, yet doesn’t mention that or why he was there. It’s actually quite a puff piece, surprising for a rabidly lib outlet reporting on a former Trump protégé. Lib media is actually helping DeSantis distance himself from Trump. Beware when they do that. https://www.ctpublic.org/2022-12-16/encore-gov-ron-desantis-may-be-in-the-middle-of-a-stealth-campaign

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Fuck Ron! On second thought….belay that – ewwww! I’m not particularly attracted to short and stumpy….even if the franchise asked him to appear to boost the FL location, there is no doubt in my mind he is also seeing other people while he is there…..money people…..I can’t see him taking the time for just that pizzeria.

      Liked by 1 person

  4. “Merry Christmas To The Now Fired Fake News!” My stockings have been stuffed with massive layoffs at legacy media outlets

    Emerald Robinson
    3 hr ago
    ENTIRE ARTICLE: “2022 is the year that keeps on giving — if your idea of “giving” is giving pink slips to fake journalists at legacy media outlets. That’s just my cup of tea. Congratulations to the top brass at the Washington Post for announcing mass layoffs due to a huge drop in subscription revenue just before Christmas! That’s actually what I told Santa I wanted. You guys are the best.

    Let’s recap the highlights of this meeting: the Washington Post’s publisher just deemed the Washington Post’s reporters non-essential. Who can argue with that estimation?

    On the other hand: who’s going to warn us that Shark Week is racist now?”

    Liked by 1 person

  5. I am adding a short daily prayer to the board. I would invite each of you, if you wish, to also add one or maybe two of your own liking. I do not want to stifle anyone but please limit yourself to one or two religious postings. here’s one I found that I liked.

    Like

  23. Treading

    James Woods

    #CovidVaccines

    Young fit people suddbely dying, strokes, heart attacks, unusual clots, cancers, is it all random?

    Clarence Thomas

    “$1.7 Trillion”

    “Michelle Obama Trail”

    Treasonous

    Like

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