# Phrases that appear dirty - but actually aren't

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-appear-dirty-but-actually-arent/307198>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [June 6, 2005, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-appear-dirty-but-actually-arent/307198 "2005-06-06T20:17:49Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 4

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**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\
**Post date:** [June 13, 2005, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-appear-dirty-but-actually-arent/307198/61 "2005-06-13T15:33:20Z")

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**"He shot his wad."** Yes, it means that, but it didn’t _originally_ mean that. It once meant “He had a big roll of money and spent all of it.”

**"It’s down to the short strokes."** (Used when something is just about done, ie: “all over but the shouting.”) This actually comes from golf, when the ball is very close to the hole. I’ve heard it used other ways, though.

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**Author:** ![Quercus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/7ab992/32.png) [@Quercus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quercus)\
**Post date:** [June 13, 2005, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-appear-dirty-but-actually-arent/307198/62 "2005-06-13T16:15:42Z")

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Many environmental agencies have a whole LUST division. They’re concerned with leaking underground storage tanks.

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**Author:** ![Sal\_Ammoniac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8dc957/32.png) [@Sal\_Ammoniac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sal_Ammoniac)\
**Post date:** [June 13, 2005, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-appear-dirty-but-actually-arent/307198/63 "2005-06-13T16:29:03Z")

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Yeah, and what’s up with the people who lay pipe for a living? Couplings, unions, female adapters, male adapters, bushings, nipples, ballcocks, three-way ball valves… Man, that’s a repressed crowd of people.

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**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\
**Post date:** [June 13, 2005, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-appear-dirty-but-actually-arent/307198/64 "2005-06-13T16:43:17Z")

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So what about people who put fudge in boxes at the factory? Are they really called fudge-packers, or do they have some kind of long, technical-sounding title now?

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**Author:** ![Pixisis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@Pixisis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pixisis)\
**Post date:** [June 13, 2005, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-appear-dirty-but-actually-arent/307198/65 "2005-06-13T16:52:20Z")

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I once knew a man named Jack Koff …

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