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etymology - Where does the term tuck shop come from? - English . . . A tuck shop was originally a pastry shop selling pastries and sweets to schoolchildren OED The Oxford English Dictionary says the verb tuck (often tuck in or tuck into) meaning "to eat heartily or greedily" is from 1810 The simpler sense "to consume or swallow food or drink" is from 1784, and means to ‘put away’, ‘put out of sight’
etymology - Where did the term Hows tricks come from? - English . . . The full OED has it first recorded 1915 under definition P4 how's (less frequently how are) tricks? - how are things? how are you getting on? colloquial (originally U S ) Compare You never miss a trick (you exploit every opportunity) and How's your luck? (are you getting good opportunities?)
Where does the term heads or tails come from? Some of the earliest known coins were found in the ruins of of Lydia in modern-day Turkey These coins date back to 600 BC, and were engraved with the image of a symbolic animal The "obverse" of these coins was usually the head of the animal (or the full animal), such as the famous Lion-head coin This could explain where the etymology of "heads" and "tails" (as the "back" of the coin could
prepositions - Why is it “tuck in” and not just “tuck”? - English . . . As you can see tuck used to mean both to pull and push , so you need to specify it with a preposition the 'direction' of your action Even though tuck doesn't mean 'pull' anymore, you still need to specify where you 'tucked' your shirt; as in into your pants under the blanket behind other folded clothes in your drawer etc
Origin of the phrase under your belt? - English Language Usage . . . In my opinion, a reference to a weapon under one's belt makes much more sense as the origin for experience knowledge related meaning, than the idea of consumed food or drink Past experience can be used as a "weapon", an instrument for future achievemnts It's much more useful than a food or alcoholic dring, which actually makes you less apt if anything
Whats the origin of flipping the bird? - English Language Usage . . . Flipping seems pretty straightforward, so the real question here is, where did "the bird " come from? Here's one account: bird (3) "middle finger held up in a rude gesture," slang derived from 1860s expression give the big bird "to hiss someone like a goose," kept alive in vaudeville slang with sense of "to greet someone with boos, hisses, and catcalls" (1922), transferred 1960s to the "up
What is the origin of stitched up like a kipper? I think it's a mixture of similes He may have stitched you up, or he may equally have done you In the latter case, he may have done you brown (like a piece of meat is well done) or done you like a kipper (even more so, since kippers are done, or smoked, for many hours) Combining the two is a jocular turn of phrase (like without a paddle to stand on) that is easily picked up by people