Sunday, March 21, 2010

Words to chew on

We had some fun tonight talking about all the different idioisms we use as every day language and how much of it most people don't understand, use it incorrectly and end up making a fool out of themselves. Funny how the English language has changed so much.

Like "pulling someone's leg" Formerly used to describe a person who would trip up someone, aka pull their leg, in order to make them fall and rob them. So the act of stumbling, mishap and comical effect of someone falling over came to be adapted to the making fun of someone in general.

Or "getting someone's goat"? Ever wondered about that one? Back in my grandfather's day, they would place a goat in a stable with the prized race horse. For some reason they had a settling influence on the horse. Now if you were the competitor, you would try to steal that goat, aka getting someone's goat. So today we use it as a reference to an act that upsets someone.

Another one is "to get a rise out of someone". Basically it's to to succeed in annoying someone. Over 300 years ago this phrase was coined by fisherman. Just as the fish rises to the bait and is caught, the person who rises to the lure of a practical joke becomes the butt of it. From its original meaning of raising a laugh at someone's expense.

The last one we talked about was "ego trip" Not much as far as origin on this one other then it was first heard in the 1965-70's--way cool man! The description-Some incredibly annoying people are on permenant ego trips. Wheee. They're fun to watch, being so absorbed in themselves that they can't even listen to anyone else speak. Still, in the end, nobody looks out for you or cares about you more than yourself. Perhaps being on an ego trip is better than having unrealized potiential.

Yes, we do have some interesting discussions at home. With a smart kid, college student and husband as the self proclaimed encyclopedia of useless knowledge, what more do you expect? So when was the last time you gave someone "an ego trip" by simply "pulling their leg" and getting their goat" and all for the sake of "getting a rise out of them"?

Later gators...
C

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