“I’ve Got a Frog in My Throat” and Other Famous Sayings!

Every wonder about the origin of some of your (or your parent’s) favourite expressions?  Wonder no longer!  The hardworking crew at the “The Stylist Team” has done extensive research and come up with the sources of many of the tried and true..    Have a look at a few of them here.

The Acid Test

This term came from the California Gold Rush in the 19th century, when prospectors and dealers used acid to distinguish gold from base metal – if the metal dissolved in a mixture of hydrochloric acid and nitric acid, it was real.

The Female of the Species is More Deadly than the Male

This now famous phrase is a line from Jungle Book author Rudyard Kipling’s poem The Female of the Species , published in 1911.

Frog in the Throat

The earliest use of this name for a sore throat, was actually supposed to be a ‘cure’. In The Stevens Point Journal, November 1894, the Taylor Bros advertised a medicine called ‘Frog in the Throat’ that will “cure hoarseness” for only 10 cents a box. What a bargain…

Fools Rush In (Elvis liked that expression so did Corey Hart)

This is a shortened line from English poet Alexander Pope’s An Essay on Criticism, 1709: “For Fools rush in where Angels fear to tread”. The ‘fools’ in question are literary critics – although fool did not have such negative connotations in the 18th century.

The full list can be found in their article called “Everyday Sayings Explained”

photo:  pixabay.com