Where did the saying, "Don't look a gift horse in the mouth" come from?

troubleshooter

From when people bought horses and examined them before buying. If they had dodgy teeth they wouldn't. If a horse were a gift you wouldn't be that fussed. Sep 19 01, 1:22 PM

finlady

The answer from the book 'Encyclopedia of Word and Phrase Origins' is similar to troublshooters. "The age of a horse can be roughly determined by examining its teeth. The people knew this long before A.D.400 if witnessed by the appearance of the expression in the writings of St. Jerome, who called it a familiar proverb at the time. An injunction to accept presents gracefully without trying to find something wrong or how much they are worth." Its first English use was "don't look a given horse in the mouth." Sep 25 01, 3:25 PM

Create a Free FunTrivia ID to add to, request more/new answers, or edit this entry

What does the saying "Never look a gift horse in the mouth" mean? Does anyone know the origin of the phrase "Don't look a gift horse in the mouth"? Brits call them ladybirds, Americans call them ladybugs. What's up with this 'lady' thing, and how about the 'bird' part? They don't look like either birds or ladies. Where did this come from? Where does checkers come from?

1 From the Horse's Mouth Ten multiple choice questions themed around horses. But horse enthusiasts beware - not all the "horses" in this quiz are truly equine. Thematic 10Q Average Average 10 Q jamesf Oct 29 07 804 plays 2 Where Did They Come From? You know who sings your favorite song, but do you know where they're from? Some knowledge in international music may help. Place of Origin Tough 10 Q GoodVibe Aug 07 02 714 plays 3 Where Did They Come From? Many popular solo recording artists started out as a member of a band. Can you match the solo artist to his former group? Which Band? Tough 10 Q bigsouthern Mar 25 03 2466 plays