Peas in a Pod

11/18/2023

Where did the term “Earworm” come from? You know, those catchy songs that stick in your brain until they drive you crazy.

The name seems apt: even the word itself sounds unappealing. Some sources say the word is an English translation of the German name for these kinds of tunes—Ohrwurm.

The English word is actually much older and was another name for the earwig — a insect pest that feeds on ears of corn — which got its name from the belief that they sometimes crawled into people's ears. Yucky thought but not true, however those earworm songs can definitely get deep inside. Source: www.merriam-webster.com

I just can't get you out of my head

03/14/2020

"Minding Your P's and Q's": (punctuation and questioning- R.S.) To be aware - the ability to not just mind one's manners, but be aware of choices, mannerisms, approaches.

02/16/2020

To “toe the line” means to conform to some rule or standard, to fall into line. Politicians, for example, often have to toe their party lines.

(“Tow the Line” ... Reminder: The idiom meaning “to do what is expected” or “to follow the established rules” is correctly spelled “toe the line.” It's an expression that was once used at the start of a race, when runners were called to step into the ready position with their toes on the starting line.)

People may imagine that the spelling “tow the line” is correct as it perhaps derives from some nautical activity. Ropes are often called lines aboard ship and a tow-line is just a line used to tow something on the water. But the phrase is probably nothing to do with ropes. In fact, the exact source is unclear but the phrase is generally taken to derive from the idea of lining up for a sporting activity, i.e. to place your toe on the line for the start of a race. By doing so you are following the rules set out for the activity.

There are other theories as to the origins of the phrase. It may derive from boxing, with early prize-fighters having to stand with one foot on a scratched line on the ground to fight. Others have claimed that it derives from the British House of Commons, where lines are marked on the ground to prevent more adversarial debates from getting out of hand.
From: https://www.dailywritingtips.com/the-line-is-for-the-toe/

11/09/2019

"It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to get into Heaven. Matthew 19:24

The interpretation is that The "Eye of the Needle" was indeed a narrow gateway into Jerusalem. Since camels were heavily loaded with goods and riders, they would need to be un-loaded in order to pass through. Therefore, the analogy is that a rich man would have to similarly unload his material possessions in order to enter e.g. the camel had to be unloaded to pass through it. Thus a rich man would need to free himself of his possesions in order to enter paradise. heaven. the Aramaic language and indeed the word "gamla" (transliterated) does mean both "camel" and "thick rope." Assuming the original manuscript with that teaching of Jesus was recorded in Aramaic and later translated to Greek, the translator may have been familiar with only the "camel" definition of the word. the translation of the word to be either camel or thick rope. It should be stated that rope was often made out of camel hair and could be the cause of confusion

11/09/2019

I often heard my grandfather say, "We are off like a herd of turtles" or my grandmother's traditional phrase when dinner at their humble home was served, "God helps those who help themselves". These statements were part of memories but as a child I never thought about the origin - my own children haven't heard some of these phrases and it occurred to me it might be fun way to explore some of these phrases. This is a start for what will become a podcast in the VERY near future. And we are, as my grandfather would, say off like a herd of turtles!

10/15/2019

This simile, of course, derives from the fact that two peas from the same pod are virtually indistinguishable. The phrase, which is sometimes given as 'like as two peas', is quite old and versions of it date from the the 16th century. For example, John Lyly used the phrase in Euphues and his England, 1580:

"Wherin I am not unlike unto the unskilfull Painter, who having drawen the Twinnes of Hippocrates, (who wer as lyke as one pease is to an other)."

Lyly's use of 'pease' as the singular form was the norm in Tudor England. The word 'pea' came into use as the singular in the 17th century, with 'peas' as the plural. This avoided 'peases', which would have been somewhat of a mouthful. That transition left 'pease' out in the cold and we now hardly use that form, except in the name of the dish of dried peas, cooked to a mush - 'pease pudding'. The pudding is itself now becoming less common as it has been largely superseded by 'mushy peas', which is essentially the same thing. Once that process is complete, 'pease' will be gone from the everyday language - a pity. From: english-for-students.com