Thursday, March 26, 2009

Ponder with me.

One of the things I love about the innerweb is the ability to suss out meanings of words and phrases with ease. My current favorite way to check spelling is just typing the word in the Google search bar in my browser. Even if I have it wrong-which is often-Google comes back and asks if I wouldn't rather spell it this way. Of course! And thank you. And off I go.

Phrases are another thing. Where they come from and where they really come from are often two quite different things. I came across this post the other day and enjoyed finding out the original meanings of a number of sayings I've been using for years. Below is a sample. More here.

Common Saying: To get off scot free

Many people think that this saying refers to Scottish people being tight with money - hence something being free, but in fact the word “scot” is an old Norse word which means “payment” - specifically a payment made to a landlord or sheriff. So this phrase - while meaning what most people think it means, has no connection to the Scottish people - it just means to get off without having to pay.

As usual-Who knew?
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5 comments:

  1. JoshMarch 27, 2009 at 4:57 PM

    Next on your ponder parade: Watch your p's and q's. I think I know what it means (based on what I was told and not having looked it up online). What can you find?

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  2. ShellyMarch 27, 2009 at 11:53 PM

    http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_does_watch_your_p%27s_and_q%27s_mean

    From an old printer's axiom. Back in the early days of printing presses, each line of text had to be set up one letter at a time. Since the letters in the press were reversed (so they'd print forward), the printmaker (or typographer) needed to be careful not to confuse one letter for the other.

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  3. ShellyMarch 27, 2009 at 11:54 PM

    http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=P%27s%20and%20Q%27s

    Shortening for "Pints and Quarts", which were the two main measurements for drinks. Whereas now we use pints, half pints, shots etc, there used to be Pints and Quarts.

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  4. ShellyMarch 27, 2009 at 11:56 PM

    http://www.joe-ks.com/phrases/phrasesM.htm

    Comes from the early pub days when beer and ale was served in pint and quart containers. The tab was kept on a chalkboard used to count the pints and quarts consumed. To watch your Ps and Qs is to control your alcoholic intake and behavior.

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  5. ShellyMarch 27, 2009 at 11:59 PM

    http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Where_did_mind_your_P%27s_and_Q%27s_come_from

    2: I always thought that Mind your P's and Q's meant to behave appropriately. Also I thought it meant that if you don't mind your P's and Q's You are irresponsible Because if P's and Q's were referred to as Penny's and Quarters and nobody minded or paid attention to them and you lost them then you would have lost your Pennies and Quarters, or P's and Q's.

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