Say Again

I wrote it without thinking. I said “I’ll keep my eyes peeled”. Normally I would not react, but then I suddenly remembered that my recipient was German. If translated literally, would she be worried? It got me thinking, where did theses sayings come from? Why do we use them? And do people who’s first language is not English think we are crazy for saying them?

I’ll share some examples with you.

‘Break a leg’

Now this is normally used to wish someone good luck before a stage performance, but surely the person is not being sarcastic? In fact it relates to the good old days. After a good performance the crowd would beckon the performers back on the stage to get more applause. As a result this would result in lots of bowing and curtseying which would be hard on their knees – thus breaking a leg was meant in a good way.

‘Back to square one’

What the hell is square one? Why is it square? Actually this refers to a diagram that was printed in the Radio Times between 1927 until 1940. The numbered grids aimed to help listeners follow sporting commentary on the radio.

‘In the Limelight’

Ok so this means centre of attention. I could understand the light part being some sort of spot light but why lime? Well before electricity, spotlights were created by burning lime in an oil or gas flame. The light created turned the actors a green colour so when anyone was taking centre stage, it became known as being in the limelight.

‘Let the cat out of the bag’

Ok this means whoops, I’ve let on a secret that I shouldn’t have done. But it’s a bit hard on cats surely? Well in olden days dishonest farmers would try to cheat their customers by putting cats in a bag and pretend they were selling young pigs. Unwary buyers wouldn't check what was inside until it was too late. But once the cat was let out of the bag, they knew they had been ripped off.

‘Raining cats and dogs’

Of course it doesn’t. So why say it? The problem is one day it may rain cats and dogs and nobody will believe you. It’s because Cats and dogs also caught the plague and often died in the street. When it rained very heavily the bodies of the cats and dogs would get washed into the gutter.

‘Rings a bell’

How can a name ring a bell? Is that possible? Well years ago, before email and wrist watches, church bells were rung to remind people of people of an event like the start of school or a celebration. Later town clocks were built with bells that rang every hour so people would know the time.

‘Mad as a hatter’

Who is a hatter? And why was it mad? Well Hat makers have been associated with madness since the early 19th century when they used mercury to make felt which they turned into fashionable hats. At the time, no one knew that mercury was extremely poisonous and after breathing in the fumes day after day, it caused madness. That's why people who do silly things are said to be Mad as a Hatter.

‘Off the cuff’

Ok I say something that’s unplanned, but how many people wear shirts with cuffs?
It seems for centuries gentlemen have traditionally made after dinner speeches. When thoughts flew into their minds, they didn't always have paper to hand so they wrote on their detachable shirt cuffs

‘Sleep tight’

Now I say this a lot. Why don’t I say sleep loose? Actually that would infer some kind of sexual unfavourable remark so maybe not. The thing is beds used to be built with rope pulled tightly across the bed frame and then the mattress on top. If the rope wasn't pulled tight enough then the mattress would sag and be very uncomfortable to sleep on.

‘Under the weather’

This is just plain stupid. Everyone is under the weather surely? But really when travellers or sailors were ill or seasick on boats it was better to go below decks because the boat didn't rock as much there. So they stayed "under the weather".

‘Put on your thinking cap’

If only my cap made me more intelligent. Well In the olden days when people went to court the judge donned an official cap. When he wore this cap, it meant that he had heard all of the evidence and after thinking a lot about it, he was ready to make his final judgement. Nowadays we use this term to advise people when they have something important to think about.

‘Reading between the lines’

Which lines? Well actually this used to be a way of sending secret messages by writing in between the line of other messages in invisible ink.

‘Every cloud has a silver lining’

If only id did. But what about a Golden one? Blame John Milton’s 1634 offering ‘Comus’.


‘Beat around the bush’

Now I like this one as I can be cheeky and rude. But really this saying came about when people used to hunt game. The birds were chased and scared out of their hiding place, normally a bush. They were then captured and killed. We now say don’t ‘beat around the bush’ meaning don’t procrastinate like the birds did when they hid.


‘Saved by the bell’

One of my favourite t.v shows as a kid. But the saying came from the fact that people who were thought to be dead were waking up during funerals that led to the discovery of the coma. Scratch marks were found on the underside of some coffins and fear of burying someone alive led to the tying a string to the “dead” person’s wrist. The string was attached to a nearby tree and bell. If they woke up and rang the bell, they were saved.



‘Turn the tables’

Well if I did’nt like my food as a kid I used to turn the table so I got my brothers empty plate and he got blamed. But I don’t think they based that’s saying on my fussy eating habits. In fact tables in the past had only one finished side. The family, to preserve the nice side, used the rough underside. When company would come over the whole top lifted off and the finished side was shown. Families would ‘turn the table’.

‘Mum’s the word’

Absolutely nothing to do with poor old mothers. In fact mum used to mean an ‘articulate sound’. It dates back to 1400.

‘Over the threshold’

No idea. Well actually the wealthy had slate floors that would get slippery in the winter when wet, so they spread thresh (straw) on the floor to help keep their footing. As the winter wore on, they kept adding more thresh until when you opened the door it would all start slipping outside. A piece of wood was placed in the entranceway -hence, a "thresh hold."

‘A frog in your throat’

Don’t be silly. Well they were in those days. Medieval physicians believed that the secretions of a frog could cure a cough if they were coated on the throat of the patient. The frog was placed in the mouth of the sufferer and remained there until the physician decided that the treatment was complete. "A frog in your throat"

‘Square Meal’

What’s this all about then? Only eat waffles or what? Well no the British war ships of the time of Nelson and Trafalgar had square plates to fit the tables slung between the cannons below decks. So many sailors were from such poor and under nourished backgrounds they saw this as a "Square Meal" - meaning the only good one they had had.

And finally is it called golf? Well in Scotland, a new game was invented. It one that only men could play. Gentleman Only Ladies Forbidden.... and thus the word GOLF entered into the English language.

Anyway, I’ve got to see a man about a dog.