Published on 12, July, 2020
My head is a repository of all the old sayings my mum used when I was little and they stuck.
I only ever hear people my age (50+) using these now.
It's a shame if their use disappears completely.
I'd be curious to know whether any of the younger members of the forum know/use these.
Please share any you know.
There is a lot of wisdom in these.
A few that spring to mind immediately.
A stitch in time saves nine.
He who hesitates is lost.
Look before you leap.
A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
Jack of all trades, master of none
A rolling stone gathers no moss.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained
Out of the frying pan, into the fire
Youth is wasted on the young
Kill two birds with one stone.
A bad workman blames his tools
A fool and his money are soon parted
Honesty is the best policy
Absence makes the heart grow fonder
Careless talk costs lives
Don't rob Peter to pay Paul
"If you sup with the Devil, use a long spoon", and, "The devil to pay and no tar hot". The second is nautical, like "Three sheets in the wind" (being drunk). The devil was a timber element at the junction of the hull and the deck and difficult to access, and 'paying' was the act of applying tar to seal it and make it waterproof.
There is another nautical phrase that not many people know the origins of, "To be at loggerheads". On board a wooden ship fire is a great danger and its use was carefully controlled. The only open fire was in the galley and it was insulated from the fabric of the ship by layers of bricks. Tar needed to be melted near where it was going to be used, so loggerheads were employed. A loggerhead was an iron bar with a ball of iron at one end. The ball of the loggerhead was heated in the galley fire then used to melt tar. Seamen would use them in fights, sometimes as a form of sparring, for fun, sometimes in deadly earnest in grudge fights. Serious injury or death could result from either.
All excellent info Martin! I haven't heard thr first two, but have the third one. I seem to remember "I like the cut of your jib" is also nautical themed too.
Cheers. Yes indeed. "Swinging the lead" is another one. The 'lead' was a rope marked in fathoms with a lead weight at the end, used to measure the depth of water under the vessel. It had to be swung out to the front to allow it to sink to the bottom before it was vertically under the leadsman. It was very tiring physical work and after a stint as leadsman the sailor would be excused further strenuous work until he had recovered. Falsely claiming that you had been 'swinging the lead' would be a way of avoiding heavy work.
I have heard that saying before but never actually knew what it meant. Every day is a school day! Thank you!