# Phrases you're surprised people aren't familiar with **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 20, 2011, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974 "2011-09-20T18:44:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974/41 "2011-09-21T00:23:11Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > FWIW “room to swing a cat” gets about 710,000 hits on Google; “room to swing a dead cat” only gets 6990. Meanwhile “swing a cat” gets 266,000 hits and “swing a dead cat” gets 490,000. So more people need room when swinging live cats but in general, they prefer swinging deceased felines. ---
**Author:** ![Gleena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b3f665/32.png) [@Gleena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gleena)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974/42 "2011-09-21T00:41:00Z")
> [@Cunctator](#): > > The only time I’ve ever come across it is in reading _Gone with the Wind_, where it appears a number of times. Possibly as there are no June bugs in Australia? I may have told this story before. For me, I once referred to a rather firey associate of our company who had been frustrated in his desire to have us all fired by going over our heads to the Grandboss as ‘being filled with impotent rage’. Co-workers laughed. Later, one pulled me aside to tell me it was harsh and unnecessary to say that. Sure, the guy is a rude bastard and all, but it’s really mean to say he can’t get it up because we made him mad. I was unable to explain what the phrase really meant for some time, since I couldn’t breathe I was laughing that hard. ---
**Author:** ![XRaeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/f14d63/32.png) [@XRaeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XRaeth)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974/43 "2011-09-21T01:07:46Z")
> [@runner pat](#): > > The version I heard ends with “…and those who can’t teach, administrate.” That’s funny the version I’m familiar with ends “…and those who cant teach, teach gym.” ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974/44 "2011-09-21T01:35:50Z")
Back in the mid 90’s when BBSs were all the rage, somebody told me she did something for Ss and Gs. I was like what? For shits and giggles. Huh? I had never heard that phrase before, and to be honest, even though I’ve sense learned what it means, it makes no sense. The giggles part does, but shits? A few years ago there an ad where the devil calls Jack from **Jack in the Box** to tell him that some deal being run couldn’t possibly be true and he caught Jack in a lie. Jack convinces him that the deal is true and the devil responds, “My bad.” I had to ask my wife he meant, because I never heard that phrase before and it sounded like a non sequitur to me. ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974/45 "2011-09-21T01:59:30Z")
It’s actually a line from _Hellboy_, but around here, too many drivers don’t grasp the meaning behind **Red means stop!** which can make driving more terrifying than necessary. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974/46 "2011-09-21T02:18:42Z")
“As the crow flies” I used this recently and the person I was speaking to didn’t know what it meant. ---
**Author:** ![JoelUpchurch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f05b48/32.png) [@JoelUpchurch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoelUpchurch)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974/47 "2011-09-21T02:34:46Z")
What this means is that there are a lot of people (most) that do little or no recreational reading. that means a lot of words and phrases are going to be meaningless to them. [ul] [li]like a pig on ice[/li][li]lock stock and barrel[/li][li]keelhauling[/li][li]before the flood[/li][li]scofflaw[/li][li]antebellum[/li][/ul] ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974/48 "2011-09-21T02:54:20Z")
Like a pig on ice - Never heard it. lock stock and barrel - Heard it plenty of times. Not sure what it means, but I’ve heard it. keelhauling - Heard it. Know what it means. before the flood - Sounds vaguely familiar. Not sure what it means though. scofflaw - Heard it, on the Simpsons I think. Know what it means. antebellum - Heard it. Know what it means. ---
**Author:** ![keturah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e95f7d/32.png) [@keturah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/keturah)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974/49 "2011-09-21T03:49:20Z")
Here is one I have heard but don’t understand. “You talk like a man with a paper asshole” Anyone have some insight? ---
**Author:** ![Apollyon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/apollyon/32/4238_2.png) [@Apollyon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apollyon)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974/50 "2011-09-21T03:58:28Z")
> [@Nobody](#): > > lock stock and barrel - Heard it plenty of times. Not sure what it means, but I’ve heard it. The whole kit & caboodle… the whole shebang… > [@](#): > > before the flood - Sounds vaguely familiar. Not sure what it means though. Antediluvian? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![LouisB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dfb087/32.png) [@LouisB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LouisB)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974/51 "2011-09-21T04:09:31Z")
> [@VinylTurnip](#): > > I didn’t learn that a “bumbershoot” was an umbrella until my late 30s— and that was some time after I first heard the word associated with the Seattle festival. I’m 71 and I just now learned that a bumbershoot and an umbrella were one and the same. In fact, I just now learned the word bumbershoot so I guess I killed two stones with one bird. ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974/52 "2011-09-21T04:11:37Z")
> [@VinylTurnip](#): > > I didn’t learn that a “bumbershoot” was an umbrella until my late 30s— and that was some time after I first heard the word associated with the Seattle festival. And here I am just learning it in my mid-30s. I had to explain “I don’t have a dog in this fight” to several new acquaintances once. Awkward. ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974/53 "2011-09-21T04:25:19Z")
> [@Apollyon](#): > > The whole kit & caboodle… the whole shebang… Ah, makes sense. Thanks. > [@](#): > > Antediluvian? 🙂 That sounds perfectly cromulent. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974/54 "2011-09-21T05:02:01Z")
I think I first read the word “bumbershoot” in a Donald Duck comic. When I was a contract programmer, after my project was finished and I was leaving, I’d sometimes return people’s goodbyes with a line from the 1980 movie “Serial” (one of Martin Mull’s final lines, IIRC): “It’s been a slice”. Blank looks. “You know, as in the phrase ‘a slice of life’?” Blank looks. Sigh. ---
**Author:** ![Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maggie_the_Ocelot)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974/55 "2011-09-21T05:23:55Z")
“Bumbershoot” was one of my grandma’s words, so I’ve always known it. She also said things like “Oh my stars and garters!” (an exclamation of surprise), “Skiddywumpus” (askew in some fashion) and “We’ll wait for you like one pig waits for t’other” (we’re gonna start eating without you if you don’t hurry to the table.) All of them were perfectly normal to me growing up, but others have reacted with confusion when I use them in conversation. Also, I miss my grandma. ---
**Author:** ![Peanuthead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peanuthead/32/360_2.png) [@Peanuthead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peanuthead)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 6:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974/56 "2011-09-21T06:42:47Z")
I don’t know anybody under the age 50 who knows the correct answer to the question **"Are you a Turtle?"** You bet your sweet ass I am! ---
**Author:** ![rogerbox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/76d3ee/32.png) [@rogerbox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rogerbox)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 6:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974/57 "2011-09-21T06:42:49Z")
> [@Lilacs](#): > > My best friend and I were watching American Pickers the other night. Mike said, “I’ll be on that like a duck on a June bug!” My friend burst out laughing. “Where does he come up with those sayings?” She asked. She’d never heard it before. Never ever heard this saying before. I don’t even know what a june bug is. ---
**Author:** ![Ostrya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/35a633/32.png) [@Ostrya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ostrya)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 6:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974/58 "2011-09-21T06:50:04Z")
> [@rogerbox](#): > > Never ever heard this saying before. I don’t even know what a june bug is. Maybe more people would have heard of it if is wasn’t a misnomer; the june bug is a not a bug but a beetle. Okay, you’re right, that doesn’t help much does it. ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 6:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974/59 "2011-09-21T06:53:43Z")
> [@Peanuthead](#): > > I don’t know anybody under the age 50 who knows the correct answer to the question **“Are you a Turtle?”** > > You bet your sweet ass I am! So would you mind telling us young whipper-snappers what that means? Or are you too busy resting on your davenport? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Who\_me\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/958977/32.png) [@Who\_me\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Who_me_1)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974/60 "2011-09-21T12:33:40Z")
> [@Nobody](#): > > So would you mind telling us young whipper-snappers what that means? Or are you too busy resting on your davenport? 😃 [The Ancient Order of Turtles](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Order_of_Turtles) And I’m not on my davenport, I’m on my divan. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phrases-youre-surprised-people-arent-familiar-with/596974.md?page=4)