Tell Me

[jbtullis 0]

The only one I can think of not mentioned is a little off color but from my grandmother.

"sweatin' like a whore in church on Sunday."

[Carlene 12]

My dad used to cut arguments between my sisters and I and he would say, "I know you believe that you understand what you think I said, but I am not sure that what you heard isnt what I meant."

He would also say to us, "I may not always be right, but Im never wrong."

The funny thing is, now I understand what he meant. As children, we were to obey him, even if we knew he was wrong, because we were supposed to respect and honor him (his position as father) even if we did not want to.

The other saying, however still confuses me.

My mom would say "Listen to the eggs, telling the chicken how to hatch!"

Your mom was trying to tell you not to discount the value of experience. eggs (younger people) have not yet hatched....chickens (older people) have. So the chickens know what they're talking about, but the eggs don't.

[mrspruett 0]

"nervous as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs"

"living high on the hog"(i never really understood what the high part of the hog was although I know this means living expensively)

"whatever floats your boat"...trips your trigger...lights your fire...etc.

"between a rock and a hard place"

[Carlene 12]

"nervous as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs"

"living high on the hog"(i never really understood what the high part of the hog was although I know this means living expensively)

"whatever floats your boat"...trips your trigger...lights your fire...etc.

"between a rock and a hard place"

"High on the hog" is literally where the best cuts of meat come from.

[StephC 0]

"High on the hog" is literally where the best cuts of meat come from.

Thats funny because I was thinking it meant the hogback - which is a hill. The rich people live on the hill and the poor in the valley. Another place the rich live is Snob Knob. I never heard of the hogback until I moved to PA either. Or the ridge, theres hogbacks and ridges everywhere. The ridge is the side of the mountain, they cut a road into the side of the mountain and its called the ridge road. The hogback isn't really a mountain its just a big hill.

I remember all those old sayings.

This isn't really an adage but in my family we say - I love you big as the sky - I've been telling my kids that since they were babies. I always made a point of showing them the sky so they could stand in awe of it. Now my kids tell me they love me big as the sky.

[anon 1]

I'm British, so I thought I'd add my own bits of vocabulary

We call a car's 'hood' a bonnet

we don't go on Vacation, we go on holiday,

We don't have trash we have rubbish that we put in bins!

we call faucets (sp?) taps.

As for sayings;

My dad always said you make a great door but you're useless as a window... in other words I can't see the TV, you're in the way!

Were you born in a barn? meaning close the door behind you!!! He said this to an Indian friend who came to visit... she was mortified and went on about her mother being able to afford to have her in a hospital!!!!

[Jachut 487]

We're more British in Australia than American. We say holidays, taps, rubbish and bonnets and boots instead of hoods and trunks. Its a rubbish bin, not a trash can, lol.

I do say "gimme some sugar" to my kids all the time though.

Rubbers are something you use to erase pencil and durex is sticky tape.

[annieM 2]

I love this thread! Many expressions i have never heard before! My parents were children during the depression so they said things like "a stitch in time, saves nine" and "a penny saved is a penny earned". A swear word was "Judas priest!" Also, "stop plagueing the cat".

Now i live in Dayton, OH and people here say "what are you waiting ON" instead of "waiting FOR" and it always amuses me because i picture a waiter bringing what ever they need to them, like the bus. My sister lived in England for a few years and "don't get you knickers in a twist" for don't freak out, is one of my favs.

keep 'em coming guys!

[Ms. Vicki 0]

Don't get your panties in a wad....... (don't get so upset)

Whatever blows yer dress up.... (whatever get you excited)

[Carlene 12]

I had a Scottish friend years ago (pre-kids) when I lived in a downtown, Yuppie apartment complex. We had parties every Sunday out by the pool and one afternoon Isabel said to one of the neighbors, "Brock, would you come around about seven in the morning and knock me up?" We were all laughing too hard to really hear the rest..."Me alarm clock's on the blink."

There was a TV commercial about that same time that featured the line "little Annie's fanny". It absolutely scandalized Isabel. She couldn't believe they would use such a dirty word on TV! I was clueless until she told me what "fanny" meant on the other side of the pond. In America, it's acutally a nice word for butt.