Old-Fashioned Words and Phrases

[tapu]

http://popvssoda.com:2998/

[tapu]

And that's all she wrote!

That's interesting because it has to be delivered exactly that way. You can't say, "I agree but that is all she wrote." It loses its idiomatic meaning (for most speakers) in that context and reverts to the literal: "and she didn't write down anything more."

[T4Texas]

Something my dad would say to me when he got aggravated with me:
Why don't you use your head for something besides a hat rack?

[TickledPink]

Asking someone how they are doing and they reply "fair to midland" and actually finding out it is "fair to midling."

[Gemme]

Originally Posted by Ms. Meander

I was just going to post, "Are you making these up?!", when I saw...

Feel free to make up your own, but at least give us a definition!

Flanapple sounds like a mighty tasty treat, actually.

Originally Posted by Mister Bent

Can't believe this one hasn't come up:

Best thing since sliced bread.

or

Cuter than a bug’s ear.

No need for disbelief; sliced bread *was* mentioned a ways back.

Let's see....

shit eatin' grin
ten ways to Tuesday
don't know him from Adam
apple of my eye
throwing the baby out with the bathwater
baker's dozen
did you get out on the wrong side of the bed today
that takes the biscuit aka that takes the cake
for the birds
throw me a bone
blood is thicker than water
giving someone the bum's rush
bury the hatchet
calling a spade a spade
nitty-gritty

That's all I've got for now.

[Ebon]

"Six of one, half-dozen of the other"

I think I like the explanation the best.

"Six of one, half-dozen of the other" says that two things which people refer to differently are actually the same thing. A "dozen" is a counting word that represents twelve (12) of some particular item, so a "half-dozen" is equal to six (6) of that item, and saying "six of one" is equal to saying "a half-dozen of the other." The "one" and the "other" refer to the two things which you are saying are not so different. Example: "I say she's a stewardess. She says she's a flight attendant. It's six of one, a half-dozen of the other." Although something has been said in two different ways, they ultimately mean the same thing.

[DapperButch]

Originally Posted by Gemme

Flanapple sounds like a mighty tasty treat, actually.



No need for disbelief; sliced bread *was* mentioned a ways back.

Let's see....

shit eatin' grin
ten ways to Tuesday
don't know him from Adam
apple of my eye
throwing the baby out with the bathwater
baker's dozen
did you get out on the wrong side of the bed today
that takes the biscuit aka that takes the cake
for the birds
throw me a bone
blood is thicker than water
giving someone the bum's rush
bury the hatchet
calling a spade a spade
nitty-gritty

That's all I've got for now.

Damn you're good. I must know...did you come up with these yourself, or did you find this on google or something?

Not that you couldn't come up with them yourself, it is just a lot to come up with and I want to know just how impressed I should be!

[tapu]

Originally Posted by Ms. Meander

I was just going to post, "Are you making these up?!", when I saw...

Feel free to make up your own, but at least give us a definition!

Well... there is no definition, other than what it sounds like. I don't have a recipe or anything else.


Here's one I've been trying to insinuate into general culture, but it hasn't taken off yet. Joking! i don't really think one person can do that but here's what happens:

You know that politician "Huckabee." Well I thought his name sounded like an idiom and I made up a meaning and used it whenever I could. The meaning I made up for it is "to throw a fit." (Which, come to think of it is an idiom in its own right.)

Every chance Ive had, I've used it in that context: Man, my boss really hucked a bee over that one.

People either ask me what the heck I said, or they just look at me with suspicion. I haven't heard anyone who''s picked it up. Foo-ee.

[cinderella]

...if 'druthers' was formed from a combination of 'I would rather'....hmmm, kinda makes sense that it would.

Originally Posted by Hollylane

If I had my druthers....

This is one my mother and I use often, but I had a customer use it today too!

[cinderella]

'alienist' - the 19th century term for a psychiatrist when the science was in it's infancy. I got that from a fictional novel I read about the first documented serial killer in NYC. The title of the book was 'The Alientist' by Caleb Carr - a great read.

[little_ms_sunshyne]

Whenever my Abuelita (granny) says she is getting old and it will be her time soon, my Dad always jumps in and says:

"You know what they say about the bad weed...it never dies" lol

Now imagine this conversation in Spanish...yup..very animated.

When referring to "grooming" your special areas...Grandma's advice to me was (keep in mind I didnt ask for any advice),

"If there is no nest, there will be no bird" Ummmm..wonder if Grandma realizes I am not looking for any visits from birds lol

[Sparkle]

I'm quite sure I made this one up...it is a cousin to "Frippery"

Friphoppery verb the action of being showy, frivolous, often bawdy, nonessential.

"After a cocktail (or two) the evening proceeded with much friphoppery."

[little_ms_sunshyne]

Thought of another:

Cant get blood from a turnip

[Ms. Meander]

Originally Posted by Ebon

"Six of one, half-dozen of the other" says that two things which people refer to differently are actually the same thing. A "dozen" is a counting word that represents twelve (12) of some particular item, so a "half-dozen" is equal to six (6) of that item, and saying "six of one" is equal to saying "a half-dozen of the other." The "one" and the "other" refer to the two things which you are saying are not so different. Example: "I say she's a stewardess. She says she's a flight attendant. It's six of one, a half-dozen of the other." Although something has been said in two different ways, they ultimately mean the same thing.

I'm so glad we've got that cleared up.

[Ms. Meander]

Originally Posted by Sparkle

I'm quite sure I made this one up...it is a cousin to "Frippery"

Friphoppery verb the action of being showy, frivolous, often bawdy, nonessential.

"After a cocktail (or two) the evening proceeded with much friphoppery."

Friphoppery! My very favorite Sparkle-word, and not coincidentally - my very favorite Sparkle-activity!

[Ms. Meander]

<<<needs a lesson from Gemme on "multi-quoting"

[Galahad]

"You'll have to lick the calf over again" my grandmothers saying. She meant redo something until it's perfect. Because cows will bathe their calf over and over, as if they missed something. I don't know if this was a common saying or just a family or local saying.

[Chancie]

Originally Posted by little_ms_sunshyne, the science teacher

Thought of another:

Cant get blood from a turnip

Nor can you get blood from a stone.

[Guy]

I remember my grandmother saying in broken english

Always knock with your feet

[Gemme]

Originally Posted by DapperButch

Damn you're good. I must know...did you come up with these yourself, or did you find this on google or something?

Not that you couldn't come up with them yourself, it is just a lot to come up with and I want to know just how impressed I should be!

You should be VERRRRY impressed.



Nope, all of that jumble was from my noggin. I've got more but it tends to come out when the situation warrants it.

Originally Posted by little_ms_sunshyne

Whenever my Abuelita (granny) says she is getting old and it will be her time soon, my Dad always jumps in and says:

"You know what they say about the bad weed...it never dies" lol

Now imagine this conversation in Spanish...yup..very animated.

When referring to "grooming" your special areas...Grandma's advice to me was (keep in mind I didnt ask for any advice),

"If there is no nest, there will be no bird" Ummmm..wonder if Grandma realizes I am not looking for any visits from birds lol

Weeeellllll.......in the old days, a female was referred to as a bird.




For Dapper's Google infactuation (I knew about the term but couldn't remember how it came to be):

bird - woman or girlfriend - now unfortunately a rather unflattering term, but it wasn't always so; until recent times 'bird' was always an endearing term for a girl, derived from the Anglo-Saxon 'brid' which meant 'baby animal', in other words a cute little thing. The origin also gave us the word 'bride'.