Why In The World Do We Say THAT? Quiz

Answer: walking in high cotton

Walking in high cotton comes from the idea that if you have a high cotton crop that has produced well then you are in for a serious cash reward. This phrase shows a close connection to the region's agribusiness, especially in times gone by. Even nowadays, cotton is grown all over the south.

Question submitted by logcrawler

Answer: that he is really old

The origin of the phrase seems to be based on the fact that the teeth of animals, especially horses, grow as they age and their gums recede. Remember that old snapshot of yourself as a little kid back in the day when you had such a beautiful smile? Then a couple of years later you see a photo of yourself missing two front teeth and you thought, I know "all I want for Christmas is my two front teeth".

Teeth like the rest of our bodies grow over time. First (usually when you're about six months old), you get your baby teeth. Later they'll fall out, and you'll start the process of making yourself some more new ones. As an adult, you'll likely have 32 "pearlies" of all different types. You'll have incisors (8), canines (4), pre-molars (8), and finally a bunch of molars (12), including wisdom teeth.

Take care of your choppers, orthodontists "will cost you an arm and a leg".

Question submitted by paulmallon

Answer: Female Olympic relay runners

Dateline: 1936 Berlin - the Olympic Games when Germany had put on an impressive show and lay top of the medals table. But with only one slight blemish: no track gold medals! Some American called Jesse Owens won most of THEM. German athletes Marie Dollinger and Ilse Doerffeldt provided the backdrop for this phrase.

But then, approaching the closing ceremony was Germany's big chance. Its dominant women's 4x100m relay squad had won its semi-final in world record time, far ahead of the opposition. All Germany was listening in and watching, because for the first time, scheduled TV coverage was available to those lucky enough to have a set. The Fuehrer himself, with his pals Goering and Goebbels, were in the stands to cheer his girls to victory. Sprint hurdler Emmy Albus got off to a flying start and a smooth handover to Kaethe Krauss saw to it that the Germans developed a lead.

At the second change, Krauss handed on to elegant veteran Olympian Marie Dollinger who flew around the top bend. A poor Dutch handover involving a promising teenager by the name of Fanny Blankers left the Germans nearly 15 metres ahead, and gaining. Hitler must have thought; "Nothing can stop us now!"
But wait! Anchor leg Ilse Doerffeldt mistimed her start, and Dollinger was suddenly too close and the exchange was fumbled. Even Hitler was touched by their effort, and invited the team up to his special box to tell them they did the Fatherland proud. But Germany remembered, and such was the high profile of the sporting disaster, that "so wie Dollinger und Doerffeldt!" entered the language to reflect any event in which chickens had been counted before being hatched!

Question submitted by JacquiD

Answer: Nick

The phrase "In the nick of time" means just in time or at the last moment. In the 1500s, the word nick meant a critical moment. Over time, the phrase changed from "in the nick" to "in the nick of time".

Question submitted by DizWiz

Answer: Yes

"Done a Bradbury" in Australia describes an unlikely competitor in any field who has VERY unexpectedly taken out top position. The origin of this expression refers to Australian speed skater, Steven Bradbury, who, against all odds, came in first place in the 1,000 meter race at the 2002 Winter Olympics. Steven didn't have much of a chance at winning this event, but gamely wanted to try anyway, and as the race began, it was very obvious that he was going to be the last competitor over the line. He was trailing the field by a country mile - until the unexpected happened. All the other racers in the event, in a series of bizarre incidents, fell over, and Steven, with the most delighted and astonished look on his face that you could imagine, zoomed past into first place! It was a wonderful, hilarious moment in our sporting history, and well worth taking its own place in the history of our vernacular.

Question submitted by Creedy

Answer: Horse racing

At the race track, all horses, odds and bets are shown on what is known as the tote board. When you place a bet "across the board", you're betting the same amount on one horse to win, place and show (so you make money if it comes in 1st, 2nd or 3rd).

There are many more phrases that come from horse racing. Some of the most used are "neck and neck", "chomping at the bit", "go the distance", "under the wire" and "give him a run for his money."


Question submitted by VanCoerte

Answer: You made your bed, now you gotta lie in it

The expression is a way of saying that someone has gotten into a situation by their own fault and now has to live with the consequences. It isn't meant to offer much sympathy. This phrase may trace its origins back to a similar French expression from as early as 1590: "As one makes one's bed, so one finds it."

Question supplied by CmdrK

Answer: Thailand

White elephants were considered to be sacred animals in (Siam) Thailand, and if a monarch possessed such a creature it signified that their kingdom was blessed with peace and prosperity. However, it is also believed that should a monarch make a gift of one of these animals, it served as a subtle form of punishment, since taking care of it would probably drive the recipient into financial ruin.

It was a blessing because the animal was sacred and a sign of the monarch's favour, but also a curse because the recipient would be faced with huge expense in order to maintain the elephant, whilst being unable to make any practical use of the creature, hence the origin of the phrase "White Elephant."

Question submitted by moonraker2

Answer: He got it from a reliable first hand source

Certainly when you have to make a big decision, you want all the best information you can get. Who better than a first-hand, accredited person with inside knowledge about the issue at hand? The phrase originated in horse racing circles early in the 20th century.

(At first I couldn't think of a question to ask, and then all of a sudden there it was, "right on the tip of my tongue") :-)

Question submitted by paulmallon

Answer: Going for a wild night out

In 1837, the Marquis of Waterford, a known heavy drinker and mischief maker, led a group of friends on a night of drinking through the English town of Melton Mowbray. The bender culminated in vandalism after Waterford and his fellow revelers knocked over flowerpots, pulled knockers off of doors, and broke the windows of some of the town's buildings. To top it all off, the mob literally painted a tollgate, the doors of several homes and a swan statue with red paint. The marquis and his pranksters later compensated Melton for the damages, but their drunken escapade is likely the reason that 'paint the town red' became shorthand for a wild night out.

Question submitted by vyvviking