Tag: Scotland

origin of ‘to sack’ (to dismiss from employment)

.Reading time 8 minutes.

The verb to sack (someone) means to dismiss (someone) from employment. This verb seems to have appeared in the first half of the 19th century. For example, the Perthshire Courier (Scotland) of Thursday 29th April 1841 reported that at the Glasgow assizes, during the trial for the murder of a superintendent of Railway labourers, one […]

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the authentic origin of ‘a pretty kettle of fish’

.Reading time 11 minutes.

The phrase ‘a pretty kettle of fish’ originally referred to a net full of fish, which, when drawn up with its contents, is suggestive of confusion, flurry and disorder—‘kettle’ being a form of ‘kiddle’, a noun denoting a dam or other barrier in a river, with an opening fitted with nets to catch fish.

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meaning and origin of ‘Shanks’s pony’

.Reading time 7 minutes.

  “Go by Shanks’ pony – Walk short distances and leave room for those who have longer journeys” – a Second World War poster by Lewitt-Him for the Ministry of War Transport – image: Imperial War Museums     The phrase Shanks’(s) pony, or mare, etc, means one’s own legs as a means of conveyance. It is […]

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