# Phrases "ruined by people making the obvious stupid joke" **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 9, 2022, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679 "2022-07-09T20:41:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![BippityBoppityBoo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bippityboppityboo/32/5745_2.png) [@BippityBoppityBoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BippityBoppityBoo)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2022, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679/21 "2022-07-11T01:38:37Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > The crowd at a truckstop in Nebraska might have a lot more of that in their speech Go to your room. You know what you did wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2022, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679/22 "2022-07-11T01:50:32Z")
> [@BippityBoppityBoo](#): > > You know what you did wrong. So, is “the crowd at a truckstop in Nebraska” a dog whistle for Black people, Jews and Mexicans? ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2022, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679/23 "2022-07-11T01:58:11Z")
Sorry Mom! ---
**Author:** ![BippityBoppityBoo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bippityboppityboo/32/5745_2.png) [@BippityBoppityBoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BippityBoppityBoo)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2022, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679/24 "2022-07-11T02:02:53Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > So, is “the crowd at a truckstop in Nebraska” a dog whistle for Black people, Jews and Mexicans No. @LSLGuy doesn’t do dog whistles. He momentarily forgot where several friends come from. I was ribbing him. All is forgiven. I was objecting to the gratuitous caricature of Midwesterners. FTR, you can say what you want about Missourians, they’re southerners and on their own. And I’m not old enough to be his mom. Bossy big sister, yes~I’ll wear that hat gladly. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2022, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679/25 "2022-07-11T03:56:52Z")
As a creative director at an ad agency, I got to be the guy who said (CONSTANTLY, it seemed): _“Does **anyone** actually talk this way?”_ \* Where it usually popped up would be a client who was in love with some cliche visual, and needed a turn of phrase to give them a reason to use it. Commercial opens on a souless stock photo of a happy suburban family that has a puzzle-piece hole in it. Voiceover: “We were looking for the missing piece to our family’s life insurance needs… until we called Jablonsky & Associates!” **NO** body would talk that way in real life. It’s only in cheap commercials. . My nonagenerian mother uses a lot of outdated sayings that, if you ask her what she means, get this, she can’t give you a reason for the phrase. “Well, that’s a horse apiece.” “Need a tide-me-over?” “That’s just the bee’s knees!” “A watched pot never boils.” “That doesn’t quite cut the mustard…” “Love you a bushel and a peck!” “That Audrey’s got more cats than you can shake a stick at.” (Umm, mom, did you have plans to take a stick over to Aunt Aud’s and shake it at her cats?) If those phrases aren’t ruined by now, they should be. . \*SPOILER: No, and noone ever did… ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2022, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679/26 "2022-07-11T12:20:31Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > “Military Intelligence” used as the example of an oxymoron, leading people to think oxymorons are just little jokes. > > It isn’t an oxymoron. I always use “American Intelligence” as an awfully good example of the genre. It is, of course, meant to be ironically funny, although there is a definite possibility that many people might take exception. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2022, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679/27 "2022-07-11T20:53:24Z")
> [@digs](#): > > “That doesn’t quite cut the mustard… I know that one. Mustard used to be grown in England (the stacks got as tall as a man). It was harvested by a scythe. If said scythe was dull, it “wouldn’t cut the mustard”. ---
**Author:** ![griffin1977](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/977dab/32.png) [@griffin1977](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/griffin1977)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2022, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679/28 "2022-07-11T21:26:18Z")
> [@digs](#): > > “That’s just the bee’s knees!” There is also the more modern British parlance “The dog’s bollocks”. Unsure whether this is now in the “Ruined by obvious joke” category. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2022, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679/29 "2022-07-13T23:51:11Z")
A classic rock radio station “getting the lead\* out” and playing some Led Zeppelin — but when is the last time this phrase was used in some OTHER context? I don’t think I’ve heard it, so maybe 1970? I’m not even sure what it meant (driving fast, like “putting the pedal to the metal,” maybe?) \*as in the metal, not as in “leadership” ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2022, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679/30 "2022-07-14T00:17:46Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > I’m not even sure what it meant (driving fast, like “putting the pedal to the metal,” maybe?) It means “Hurry up”. A drill sergeant might have shouted it at recruits while rousting them at 0-dark-thirty for a bracing run around the barracks 25 times in the snow. I haven’t used it or heard it used much in recent years, but it’s instantly recognizable. And not just as military slang. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2022, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679/31 "2022-07-14T00:33:14Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > A classic rock radio station “getting the lead\* out” and playing some Led Zeppelin — but when is the last time this phrase was used in some OTHER context? I don’t think I’ve heard it, so maybe 1970? I’m not even sure what it meant (driving fast, like “putting the pedal to the metal,” maybe?) There’s a second half to the phrase that usually gets elided. The full phrase is, “Get the lead out of your ass.” (Or pants, or shoes.) You shout it at someone who is working/moving too slowly, as if they were carrying an extra fifty pounds of dead weight in their pockets. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2022, 10:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679/32 "2022-07-14T10:39:16Z")
> [@digs](#): > > My nonagenerian mother uses a lot of outdated sayings that, if you ask her what she means, get this, she can’t give you a reason for the phrase. > > “Well, that’s a horse apiece.” “Need a tide-me-over?” “That’s just the bee’s knees!” “A watched pot never boils.” “That doesn’t quite cut the mustard…” “Love you a bushel and a peck!” “That Audrey’s got more cats than you can shake a stick at.” (Umm, mom, did you have plans to take a stick over to Aunt Aud’s and shake it at her cats?) > > If those phrases aren’t ruined by now, they should be. Aw, now you make me feel old. I suppose I’ve only said “a watched pot doesn’t boil” in reference to actually boiling water, but getting a snack to tide me over sounds like normal language to me. ---
**Author:** ![eburacum45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eburacum45/32/8690_2.png) [@eburacum45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eburacum45)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2022, 11:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679/33 "2022-07-14T11:02:17Z")
> [@griffin1977](#): > > There is also the more modern British parlance “The dog’s bollocks”. I tried to find a source for this peculiar phrase (which is probably too scabrous to generate any repeatable jokes). Interestingly, the phrase was formerly used to describe a punctuation mark, consisting of a colon followed by a hyphen. **:—** Such marks were used in the Declaration of independence, apparently. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dog's\_bollocks\_(typography)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dog%27s_bollocks_(typography)) ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2022, 11:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679/34 "2022-07-14T11:53:35Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > I suppose I’ve only said “a watched pot doesn’t boil” in reference to actually boiling water, Good one. Same here. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2022, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679/35 "2022-07-14T14:32:24Z")
I recognize the others and have even used some of them, but “That’s a horse apiece.” is totally new to me. Anyone have any translation or background on that one? ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2022, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679/36 "2022-07-14T16:58:46Z")
Perhaps two riders with two horses as opposed to “ride and tie”? That is when you’ve got two riders and only one horse. One starts walking while the other rides about five miles, ties the horse to something handy, and starts his own walk. When the first walker reaches the horse, he mounts and rides it five miles past the second walker, ties it and starts walking again. Rinse and repeat for the whole day. It’s faster than just walking and a lot less wearing on the horse than riding double. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2022, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679/37 "2022-07-14T17:24:02Z")
Back in my WoW days, there was That Guy in my guild who could not resist leaping in with “the cake is a lie!” whenever anyone mentioned the words “cake” or “lie,” in any context whatsoever. Any joke, statement or question involving cakes or lies would get squashed flat by this guy. Every. Damn. Time. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2022, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679/38 "2022-07-14T17:45:28Z")
> [@DesertDog](#): > > … > It’s faster than just walking and a lot less wearing on the horse than riding double. Cool. Thank you. Today I learned about “ride and tie”. Probably never have a chance to use the technique or the phrase, but cool nevertheless. ---
**Author:** ![Reno\_Nevada\_Jr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ecc23a/32.png) [@Reno\_Nevada\_Jr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reno_Nevada_Jr)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2022, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679/39 "2022-07-14T18:51:28Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > Back in my WoW days, there was That Guy in my guild who could not resist leaping in with “the cake is a lie!” whenever anyone mentioned the words “cake” or “lie,” in any context whatsoever. I cannot find my physical copy of [Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds](https://gutenberg.org/files/24518/24518-h/24518-h.htm), but the Internet came to my rescue. > And, first of all, walk where we will, we cannot help hearing from every side a phrase repeated with delight, and received with laughter, by men with hard hands and dirty faces, by saucy butcher lads and errand-boys, by loose women, by hackney coachmen, cabriolet-drivers, and idle fellows who loiter at the corners of streets. Not one utters this phrase without producing a laugh from all within hearing. It seems applicable to every circumstance, and is the universal answer to every question; in short, it is the favourite slang phrase of the day, a phrase that, while its brief season of popularity lasts, throws a dash of fun and frolicsomeness over the existence of squalid poverty and ill-requited labour, and gives them reason to laugh as well as their more fortunate fellows in a higher stage of society. Mackay mentions a few catch phrases that were everywhere in London in the 1850’s, and have since vanished from the vernacular. The mechanism and spread of catch phrases is a little different in 2022 than it was in 1852, but the tendency of catch phrases to catch on, spread like wildfire, and vanish is unchanged. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2022, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679/40 "2022-07-14T19:04:36Z")
In another thread today I used “close but no cigar”, then only afterwards noticed that it fit right in with where this thread has gone: poking at now-ancient and faded bits of tatttered idiom from a bygone era. It felt totally natural to write and I suppose I actually use it fairly regularly in speech when I need an idiom for “almost success”. Huh. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-ruined-by-people-making-the-obvious-stupid-joke/967679.md?page=3)