The Origin of Sayings
There are so many sayings that we use in our everyday language that, despite being odd and somewhat bizarre, have become so commonplace we don’t think to question where they came from . Just who is “Bob“ and why is he my uncle?! We wanted to take a more detailed look at some of these phrases and where they derived from.
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“Sleep Tight”
Meaning to sleep well and get a good night’s sleep. This phrase dates back to the time when ropes supported the mattresses people slept on. The tighter the rope the was, the more stable the mattress.
“The Hair Of The Dog”
When someone drinks more alcohol in a bid to cure their hangover. Believed to have originated in medieval times for when an individual was bitten by a rabid dog. People believed that applying the same dog’s hair to the wound would cure the victim.
“A Baker’s Dozen”
Another saying that’s believed to have originated from medieval times. It’s common knowledge that a baker’s dozen is one more than the standard twelve. Bakers were often penalized for selling ‘underweight’ bread and so, in order to avoid whatever that punishment might have entailed, they always provided an extra loaf when selling a dozen.
“Paint The Town Red”
Essentially meaning a wild night out, this one is thought to have originated from a night of drunkenness that the Marquis of Waterford shared with a group of friends in the town of Melton Mowbray in 1837. The group vandalised the town; knocking over flowerpots, smashing windows and quite literally covering various parts of the town in red paint.
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Got any interesting theories on where some of our favourite sayings and phrases originated from? Feel free to share them and leave a comment below.
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