Weird English Words Or Phrases

[The Whovian]

What are some weird English words or phrases that have you thinking "hmmm"?

Here's one that I don't get. we call men "Gentlemen". So how come we don't call women "Gentlewomen"?

[RLAAMJR.]

What are some weird English words or phrases that have you thinking "hmmm"?

Here's one that I don't get. we call men "Gentlemen". So how come we don't call women "Gentlewomen"?

We have "ladies"

[The Whovian]

We have "ladies"

Yes, but why not gentlewomen instead? Women are gentle too

[WAKANDA FOREVER!]

Yes, but why not gentlewomen instead? Women are gentle too

Awwwwwwwwwwww shiiiiiiiiiiiit
Dark Knight1047! What have you done?!?

[RLAAMJR.]

Yes, but why not gentlewomen instead? Women are gentle too

Check the definition of "lady". also, "gentlewoman" exists only that it is not used often.

[Brigonos Chomhgaill]

Yes, but why not gentlewomen instead? Women are gentle too

Like most things in the UK, it's a class thing, as "gentleman" is an unofficial designation given to low-ranking members of the British gentry (the sons of the sons of peers or knights), so the female counterpart is "lady".

"Stitched like a kipper" is one of my favorite English phrases, infamously mangled and incorrectly explained in an episode of Gotham by an actual Englishman. It means to have been successfully framed for a crime, ie: "the pigs have stitched me up for knocking off Jimmy Two-Toes - stitched me up like a fucking kipper."

[The Whovian]

Check the definition of "lady". also, "gentlewoman" exists only that it is not used often.

Ah, okay. Cool

[The Whovian]

Like most things in the UK, it's a class thing, as "gentleman" is an unofficial designation given to low-ranking members of the British gentry (the sons of the sons of peers or knights), so the female counterpart is "lady".

"Stitched like a kipper" is one of my favorite English phrases, infamously mangled and incorrectly explained in an episode of Gotham by an actual Englishman. It means to have been successfully framed for a crime, ie: "the pigs have stitched me up for knocking off Jimmy Two-Toes - stitched me up like a fucking kipper."

I noticed while watching Luthor the characters on the show saying "stitched up".

[Gray Lensman]

For all you non-USA people out there, here's one I saw in an exhibit for the U.S. Soccer Museum (which was at the Albany, NY airport at the time - weird). The origin of the word "soccer"

At the beginning of the 20th century, college sports didn't differentiate much between rugby and football/soccer. Home team got to choose the rules (a rude surprise for someone unprepared for tackling I imagine), and shortly after they started to segregate themselves based on rules set. The group for what became known as soccer was known as 'Association Football, and the word association was often abbreviated as assoc.

This gave rise to the slang terms of 'ruggers' for Rugby rules players and 'soccers' for association football rules players. Eventually the slang term took over and became standard language here in the U.S.

[pearlofthepacific]

"He/she lies like a rug" is one of my favorites.

[Ken Ashcroft]

What are some weird English words or phrases that have you thinking "hmmm"?

Here's one that I don't get. we call men "Gentlemen". So how come we don't call women "Gentlewomen"?

But women can be referred to as 'you guys' by both men and women.

[Shawn Hopkins]

"It's like Deja Vu all over again" was once a funny thing that Yogi Berra said but now it's just a common thing people say without even thinking of the joke anymore. I heard a newscaster use it with no attempt at wit or irony a couple of days ago.

[heretic]

Here is something I would not strange in and of itself, but it does summarize an interesting aspect of our language

The problem with defending the purity of the English language is that English is about as pure as a cribhouse whore. We don't just borrow words; on occasion, English has pursued other languages down alleyways to beat them unconscious and rifle their pockets for new vocabulary.

[Tami]

"Hoist with his own petard" comes from Hamlet and actually means getting blown up with ones own bomb AKA - having one's plans backfire. Even though, every time I read it, my initial mental image is of someone with a hook in their pants being lifted up into the air by a rope.

And yeah, English is one of the most bastard, impure languages on the planet. which is what makes it so popular.

[Tami]

The word "run' actually has 179 different meanings in most dictionaries.