The Origin of Phrases

Comments on article "The Origin of Phrases"
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Bob.A There is an alternate and orrigional meaning to item 15 "Flash in the Pan".
This stems from the English civil war and so predates the American meanig by several hundred years.
In old flintlock guns, the hammer would strike the anvil and set of the gunpowder in the "Pan" when you attempted to fir the rifle.
This would hopefully ignite the gunpowder in the barrel and expel the bullet, the object of the exersise after all.
But occasionally the gunpowder would "Flash in the Pan" but this would not result in the desired firing of the bullet.
Hernce something that has all the show but no substance, very similar meaning to what you have.		 6/23/2011
Gun Guy Flash in the pan actually comes from flint lock firearms. When you prime the pan with powder and it is in turn supposed to ignite the charge inside the rifle. However if the powder in the pan fails to ignite the main charge it will result in just a worthless "flash in the pan". One would expect the gun to go off but it doesn't. Hence expecting a bigger event then what actually happened. 4/29/2011
isa really useful
thanks!		 3/26/2011
Steve there are enough errors here to consider the entire list suspect. 9/22/2010
docweasel "flash in the pan" has nothing to do with panning for gold. It has to do with an old breech-loading musket, which ignited the gunpowder in the "pan", sometimes resulting in a misfire: there was a flash in the pan, but no bullet shot off. 7/13/2010
Jen This is a great site. WIsh I could submit some expressions I've been wondering about too. 4/24/2010
dwarakanath I wish to know the origin of the phrase "Teachers' Whisky". Why a whisky be labeled as the Teachers' Whisky? 2/25/2010
Joe S i want to query a phrase that is not on the short list offered.
How do I do that?		 12/29/2009
chris j With regard to passing the buck, I believe it refers to when poker players of old passed the deal they would also pass the buck knife. This was done in the event of the dealer being accused of foul play, an all to frequent occurrence, the buck knife was used as a deterrence for those that may challenge or falsely accuse the dealer of underhanded dealing. 8/18/2009
Claude Marilyn,
"Ride the River" is used by the Border Patrol, referring to someone you can trust in hard times while patrolling the Rio Grande. I'm not sure where it came from before that, but I suspent a variation has been around for quite some time.		 7/2/2009
Claude #15. Flash in the pan; A shooting term referring to the priming pan of a flint lock musket. Sometimes the priming charge will flash without igniting the main charge. This term is still used in flintlock shooting sports.

#18. When the chips are down, it's the moment of truth. All bets are on the table and the chips are down. The hand is called and the players will see who wins and who loses.		 7/2/2009
linda like this...it got down to business, stepped up to the plate, and shouldered the responsibility...lol...would love to see more like "got your back" and "put your hands together." 3/21/2009
barry origin of "red shirted" (before star trek) 3/19/2009
hugo martinez I found your expressiosn just impressive! Could u please help me with the expression I wind myself up? Does it mean I control myself? Thanx 3/18/2009
Kris 17. Roll with the punches
Meaning - To brave through the hard times.
Origin - This is a boxing term - it means deflecting a direct hit.

WRONG! It comes from moving WITH the punches, not to deflect them. Ie, to try to move with circumstance when challenges come rather than against them.		 12/25/2008
Mike k I truly enjoy your web site. Do you have an iPhone format version? 12/25/2008
Marla do you not have a search feature? Looking for origin of "it came to light". But while I'm at it, the Egg on your Face isn't just about egg showing up, it's about the obviousness of what you have been eating. thanks. 7/31/2008
Neil Robertson "When the chips are down" doesn't mean 'bleak times'. Rather, it describes the key moment, when a decision or resolution is imminent.

That implies to me that while the assertion that the chips referred to are gambling chips is right enough, the phrase refers to the moment when bets are placed, and the cards or roulette ball will soon decide who wins.		 6/5/2008
jim No 18 is not correct. It is a gambling expression, but it means when there's a lot at stake, i.e., when you have a lot of chips "down" on the bet. It doesn't mean bleak times, it means times when you have a lot riding on the consequences of an action 6/2/2008
Colin Hunt Flash in the pan has it's origin in the days of Flintlock rifles. If the gunpowder had not been primed properly there would be a flash in the pan where the charge was placed and the shot wouldn't be expelled. There would be a bright flash which could look promising but failed to live up to it's promise. 4/1/2008
mmonsein do you have any information on the origins of the term "self defeating behaviors" thanks 7/13/2007
Marilyn How can I find out the origin of the phrase "you'll do to ride the river with". I know that it means you've proven to be trustworthy, but what does the "ride the river with" mean?

Thanks.		 4/10/2007
Randy Vaughn Hello,

It originally was said sarcastically I think,I get a feeling it's like an agent or a Hollywood producer talking to an actor or whatever, like talking on the phone lets do lunch sometime.......Love Ya, Mean It......like that maybe.do you know the origin?...I think it was after 1980 when it started, but the specifics I wish I knew.

Thank You,

Randy Vaughn
Lakeside, California
 11/22/2006
david braly What's the origin of the phrase: Heebe Jeebe? 9/19/2006
observer I disagree with your definition of "ducks in a row." It comes from old arcade games at the carnival where you could shoot at ducks. You would have your ducks lined up in a row so you could shoot at them one by one succession. 9/13/2006
Dr.Z very good. Helped me a lot! 9/1/2006
Miranda ....gayer than four o clock?
any idea where that came from?		 8/8/2006
Jim McMahon #15 is DEAD WRONG...the phrase is much older, and has to do with a mis-firing flintlock fire arm. The weapon has a tree event ignition cycle: 1) flint on the hammer strikes the frizzen, and makes sparks 2) sparks fall on the priming power in the pan 3) flame from the pan ignites the main charge and discharges the projectile. When step 2 fails to cause step 3, the powder flashes, but doesn't discharge the main powder charge; hence, a "flash in the pan" 5/11/2006
Gnazio I like what you did with site. 10/12/2005
Lila Nice article. It's always exciting to know the origin of something ^_^ 5/8/2005
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