# What's this type of stock phrase called? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 10, 2012, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-type-of-stock-phrase-called/643649 "2012-12-10T22:57:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Silver\_Tyger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/fbc32d/32.png) [@Silver\_Tyger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_Tyger)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2012, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-type-of-stock-phrase-called/643649/1 "2012-12-10T22:57:19Z")
I’m sure somebody will come up with it minutes, but my brain is refusing to work. When two words are pretty much always used together, like ‘bated breath’ or ‘free rein’ ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2012, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-type-of-stock-phrase-called/643649/2 "2012-12-10T23:59:54Z")
“Collocation” is probably the word you’re looking for. Though “stock phrase” or “set phrase,” as a subset of “expression,” is probably a more useful description in many cases. “Idiom” is not accurate for examples where the meaning of the phrase can be discerned from the meaning of the words without additional context. ---
**Author:** ![Silver\_Tyger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/fbc32d/32.png) [@Silver\_Tyger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_Tyger)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-type-of-stock-phrase-called/643649/3 "2012-12-11T00:03:25Z")
No, it was a two word term. It was a type of cliche, I believe. I wish I could think of better examples. ---
**Author:** ![am77494](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d2c977/32.png) [@am77494](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/am77494)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-type-of-stock-phrase-called/643649/4 "2012-12-11T00:09:10Z")
Compound words ? ---
**Author:** ![Jragon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Jragon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jragon)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-type-of-stock-phrase-called/643649/5 "2012-12-11T00:11:55Z")
Fossilized term? ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-type-of-stock-phrase-called/643649/6 "2012-12-11T00:23:00Z")
I don’t understand what you’re saying. “Bated” and “breath” are both very frequently used away from one another. “Free” and “rein” are also similarly quite often found apart. The stuff you gave as examples are just stock phrases, or something. ---
**Author:** ![Shmendrik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Shmendrik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shmendrik)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-type-of-stock-phrase-called/643649/7 "2012-12-11T00:33:24Z")
> [@drewtwo99](#): > > I don’t understand what you’re saying. “Bated” and “breath” are both very frequently used away from one another. “Free” and “rein” are also similarly quite often found apart. > > The stuff you gave as examples are just stock phrases, or something. I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen “bated” used without “breath.” i would agree about “free” and “rein”. ---
**Author:** ![Silver\_Tyger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/fbc32d/32.png) [@Silver\_Tyger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_Tyger)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-type-of-stock-phrase-called/643649/8 "2012-12-11T00:34:52Z")
> [@drewtwo99](#): > > “Bated” and “breath” are both very frequently used away from one another. “Free” and “rein” are also similarly quite often found apart. Really? Where else is ‘bated’ used? I might have been thinking of ‘fixed expression’. I’m having a word moment about it. ---
**Author:** ![fumster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e9c0ed/32.png) [@fumster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fumster)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 7:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-type-of-stock-phrase-called/643649/9 "2012-12-11T07:29:02Z")
> [@Silver\_Tyger](#): > > Really? Where else is ‘bated’ used? Before “breath” or after “master”. ---
**Author:** ![moriah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b2d939/32.png) [@moriah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moriah)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 7:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-type-of-stock-phrase-called/643649/10 "2012-12-11T07:56:58Z")
> [@Silver\_Tyger](#): > > No, it was a two word term. It was a type of cliche, I believe. I wish I could think of better examples. Actually, ‘cliche’ is the word you’re looking for. ---
**Author:** ![tellyworth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/977dab/32.png) [@tellyworth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tellyworth)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 8:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-type-of-stock-phrase-called/643649/11 "2012-12-11T08:15:45Z")
[Siamese twins](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siamese_twins_(English_language))? ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 8:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-type-of-stock-phrase-called/643649/12 "2012-12-11T08:32:10Z")
I thought it was baited breath. Learn something new everyday. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 8:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-type-of-stock-phrase-called/643649/13 "2012-12-11T08:41:28Z")
Bated is a perfectly good word… “His fears were bated when he found his daughter in the playground,” for example. In no way is it required to precede the word “breath.” Not only that, but bated also refers to the flapping of wings, which is also where you’ll also see it used (although it just a homophone). ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 8:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-type-of-stock-phrase-called/643649/14 "2012-12-11T08:51:02Z")
> [@drewtwo99](#): > > Bated is a perfectly good word… “His fears were bated when he found his daughter in the playground,” for example. In no way is it required to precede the word “breath.” Not required, but as a practical matter almost no modern English speaker uses it for any purpose other then to preface the word “breath”. Googling, I can only find one use of the word that isn’t in front of breath, and that case looks like it might be a mis-spelling of “baited”. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 8:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-type-of-stock-phrase-called/643649/15 "2012-12-11T08:56:23Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > Not required, but as a practical matter almost no modern English speaker uses it for any purpose other then to preface the word “breath”. Googling, I can only find one use of the word that isn’t in front of breath, and that case looks like it might be a mis-spelling of “baited”. I suppose that’s because it’s an exact synonym of abated, which modern english speakers will use quite commonly. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 11:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-type-of-stock-phrase-called/643649/16 "2012-12-11T11:33:46Z")
Do you mean words that only exist because they appear in an idiom but have fallen out of use elsewhere? Like “spick” in “spick and span”, or “kith” in “kith and kin”? They’re called [fossil words](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fossil_word). ---
**Author:** ![Silver\_Tyger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/fbc32d/32.png) [@Silver\_Tyger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_Tyger)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-type-of-stock-phrase-called/643649/17 "2012-12-11T16:41:25Z")
I thought it was something like a ‘locked phrase’ or ‘welded phrase’ but I can’t find anything like that. I’m 90% certain it was ‘fixed expression.’ ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-type-of-stock-phrase-called/643649/18 "2012-12-11T19:23:35Z")
Bound collocation? Frozen idiom? ---
**Author:** ![ekedolphin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ekedolphin/32/10003_2.png) [@ekedolphin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekedolphin)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-type-of-stock-phrase-called/643649/19 "2012-12-12T02:06:40Z")
> [@Colophon](#): > > Do you mean words that only exist because they appear in an idiom but have fallen out of use elsewhere? Like “spick” in “spick and span”, or “kith” in “kith and kin”? > > They’re called [fossil words](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fossil_word). That’s what the OP was looking for. Ignorance successfully fought! 🆒 Um, probably. ---
**Author:** ![moriah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b2d939/32.png) [@moriah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moriah)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2013, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-type-of-stock-phrase-called/643649/20 "2013-03-11T02:43:36Z")
Just saw this article: word chunking… [http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/19/magazine/19FOB-OnLanguage-Zimmer.html?ref=onlanguage](http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/19/magazine/19FOB-OnLanguage-Zimmer.html?ref=onlanguage)