# Phrases that don't really make sense **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 16, 2015, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856 "2015-04-16T19:18:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2015, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856/41 "2015-04-17T02:01:46Z")
“Head over heels.” But wait, isn’t that the normal state of things? So what’s your point? “Heels over head” would make a lot more sense. ---
**Author:** ![excavating\_for\_a\_mind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e8c25b/32.png) [@excavating\_for\_a\_mind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/excavating_for_a_mind)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2015, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856/42 "2015-04-17T02:27:44Z")
> [@Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](#): > > I used to be confused by “the whole nine yards”. Coming at it from an American football viewpoint, it leaves you one yard short. > > I’m now told that the expression comes from tailoring. It seems to me that in the early 20th century, a first down was awarded for 9 yards (at least in some collegiate competitions, anyway). My father had a program from a 1910 (or was it 1911?) game, between Carlisle and some other team\* but it mentioned a rule change for that year was that a first down would require 10 yards to be made, not 9 as it had been in previous years. My father kept the program (it had been his father’s), not for that tidbit, but because of one of the players, Jim Thorpe. \*In using Wikipedia, it just may have been the 1911 game between Carlisle and Syracuse, one that Syracuse won and I believe my Grandfather was a child living in Syracuse at the time. As this was over 100 years ago, anyone who was there is dead (as is my father), I cannot verify this info. I do think I may be able to find that program, though. I will put it as a high priority, due, in part, to this thread. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2015, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856/43 "2015-04-17T02:33:12Z")
_Sometimes you eat the bear … and sometimes the bear eats you._ Seriously, how may people that you know eat bear? How many have been eaten by a bear? Probably not that many. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2015, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856/44 "2015-04-17T02:56:31Z")
> [@blondebear](#): > > _Sometimes you eat the bear … and sometimes the bear eats you._ > > Seriously, how may people that you know eat bear? How many have been eaten by a bear? Probably not that many. Well, I was thinking about asking you out on a date… ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2015, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856/45 "2015-04-17T03:18:34Z")
What goes around, comes around. Not always, and not often. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2015, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856/46 "2015-04-17T03:19:43Z")
> [@blondebear](#): > > _Sometimes you eat the bear … and sometimes the bear eats you._ > > Seriously, how may people that you know eat bear? How many have been eaten by a bear? Probably not that many. I haven’t eaten bear. Who has? ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2015, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856/47 "2015-04-17T03:35:02Z")
> [@kevja](#): > > **Everything happens for a reason** > > Really. Explain the reason, please. People often like to get ‘conflate-y’ over this one, conflating “reason” with “cause”. Sure, there is a cause for every action or occurrence, that’s pretty undisputable. But a pre-ordained “reason” is another matter completely. I fucking hate this one in particular, being a paraplegic wheelchair user. I don’t think I need to say more. :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/channing_idaho_banks/32/250_2.png) [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Channing_Idaho_Banks)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2015, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856/48 "2015-04-17T03:42:59Z")
I hear this one so often, “Yeah, no…” It’s so annoying. And confusing. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2015, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856/49 "2015-04-17T03:48:02Z")
> [@buddha\_david](#): > > “Head over heels.” But wait, isn’t that the normal state of things? So what’s your point? > > “Heels over head” would make a lot more sense. “ass over teakettle” 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Isamu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/7c8e57/32.png) [@Isamu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isamu)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2015, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856/50 "2015-04-17T03:53:19Z")
> [@Rhiannon8404](#): > > How about, You cannot continue to be in possession of your cake and also consume it? Well, if we want to nitpick, it would have to be something like: You cannot consume your cake, and then expect to still be in possession of it, other than for a brief period wherein it remains, albeit vastly altered or in peices, in your digestive system. Eventually components of the now extinct cake will be incorprated into your corporeal body, but they will no longer be in cake form. ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2015, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856/51 "2015-04-17T05:05:17Z")
> [@gigi](#): > > “ass over teakettle” 😕 That’s one. My old man used to say “ass over tea cups” and it doesn’t make any sense either. I wonder if it’s referring to some kind of Jack & Jill type story. ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2015, 7:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856/52 "2015-04-17T07:57:24Z")
> [@Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](#): > > I used to be confused by “the whole nine yards”. Coming at it from an American football viewpoint, it leaves you one yard short. > > I’m now told that the expression comes from tailoring. Actually, no one knows where it comes from. There are a lot of claimed etymologies, but none of them is supported by evidence. I’ve seen claims that it refers to the amount of concrete in a cement truck (which actually isn’t nine cubic yards), or that it’s the length of a full bolt of cloth (which actually isn’t nine yards). The academics who study such things have never come up with evidence showing what the phrase originally referred to. As for “have one’s cake and eat it” - I believe in the U.K. the phrase is usually “eat one’s cake and have it.” This doesn’t flow as smoothly (in my opinion), but the word order makes more sense. ---
**Author:** ![Dervorin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Dervorin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dervorin)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2015, 9:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856/53 "2015-04-17T09:09:41Z")
> [@Martian Bigfoot](#): > > People complaining about “I could care less” is rapidly becoming my new berserk button. > > It’s basic freaking sarcasm. Which is something that the people on this board are supposed to be experts at. So what gives? > > “I couldn’t care less” is a bland and neutral statement of fact. “I could care less” is an ironic inversion, giving the statement a delightful sarcastic fizz. > > So what if it doesn’t make bleeding perfect logical sense? Language often doesn’t. > > (And, concerning that subject, [here’s a relevant xkcd](https://xkcd.com/191/) that you can take with you for the ride.) The assumption of sarcasm might be a reasonable one on this board, but I’m not convinced that it’s an ironic inversion in most cases where this extremely annoying phrase is used. People who I interact with and don’t understand sarcasm even if they are hit over the head with it use “could care less” in all seriousness, not realising how idiotic it sounds. Sarcasm needs to be identifiable as sarcasm, otherwise it doesn’t have any meaning. I’m as exercised about the usage of “could care less” as you are about people complaining about it. I agree that language doesn’t always have to make sense, but a phrase that means the exact opposite of what you’re trying to imply doesn’t exactly inspire confidence. I most definitely could care less about this. ---
**Author:** ![Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blue_blistering_barnacle/32/3386_2.png) [@Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blue_Blistering_Barnacle)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2015, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856/54 "2015-04-17T15:44:15Z")
> [@blondebear](#): > > _Sometimes you eat the bear … and sometimes the bear eats you._ > > Seriously, how may people that you know eat bear? How many have been eaten by a bear? Probably not that many. But people have hunted (and eaten) bear. The saying would make LESS sense if it went, “Sometimes you eat the deer… And sometimes the deer eats you!” ---
**Author:** ![Gothic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/839c29/32.png) [@Gothic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gothic)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2015, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856/55 "2015-04-17T15:53:10Z")
Muscle memory [Muscle memory - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muscle_memory) ---
**Author:** ![Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blue_blistering_barnacle/32/3386_2.png) [@Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blue_Blistering_Barnacle)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2015, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856/56 "2015-04-17T15:53:35Z")
I mean these sayings are all metaphors, so they don’t necessarily have to relate to your personal experience (or even reality). ---
**Author:** ![Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blue_blistering_barnacle/32/3386_2.png) [@Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blue_Blistering_Barnacle)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2015, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856/57 "2015-04-17T15:57:17Z")
I love the “opposite aphorisms”, like “Two heads are better than one.” -vs- “Too many cooks spoil the broth.” ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2015, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856/58 "2015-04-17T19:45:02Z")
> [@Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](#): > > I love the “opposite aphorisms”, like “'Tis better to have loved and lost, than never to have loved at all.” -vs- “Owner of a lonely heart is much better than an owner of a broken heart.” “Look before you leap.” -vs- “He who hesitates is lost.” “Better safe than sorry.” -vs- “Nothing ventured, nothing gained.” “The more, the merrier.” -vs- “Two’s company, three’s a crowd.” “To thine own self be true.” -vs- “When in Rome, do as the Romans do.” ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2015, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856/59 "2015-04-17T19:54:41Z")
Never look a gift horse in the mouth, but beware of Greeks bearing gifts. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2015, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856/60 "2015-04-17T20:06:06Z")
> [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > “All that glitters [_or_ glistens] is not gold”. I once read that it is bad translation from a Latin phrase that actually translates as “Not all that glitters is gold”, which certainly makes sense. > [@Kamino\_Neko](#): > > No, it’s not a translation of anything, it’s Shakespeare’s formulation of an already well known English phrase (which may ultimately trace back to Aesop, but was definitely in use in English at least 2 centuries before Shakespeare wrote The Merchant of Venice, from which that formulation (albeit with the word ‘glister’) came). And it’s a perfectly sensible, if rather archaic, formulation. If it hadn’t become a stock phrase thanks to Shakespeare, it wouldn’t be phrased that way today, but in the context of Early Modern English, it’s a perfectly uncontroversial formulation. The full quote is “All that glisters is not gold; / Often have you heard that told.” The structure of the first line is meant to scan correctly. > [@Derleth](#): > > It’s possible to _make_ **“The exception that proves the rule.”** make sense, but it gets used to mean “Well, my rule is crap and has been disproven, but I’m going to pretend it still works by assuming that the disproof makes it stronger.” Cecil has a whole column on this. Unfortunately, I’m on a tablet with limited CP abilities, so I can’t link you to the column, but if you go to the archives and do a search on the phrase, you should find it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-that-dont-really-make-sense/717856.md?page=4)