The saying ‘spick and span’ once meant new, but means extra clean today. A span was a wood shaving. If something was newly built it would have tell-tale wood chips so it was ‘span new’, Spick is an old word for a nail. New spicks or nails would be shiny. However words and phrases often […]
DYK: Did you know? In olden days people didn’t bathe often because they thought if you did, you’d go into decline and die. Consequently, they became quite smelly. They usually only bathed completely in May or October, when the weather was warm. Young ladies started carrying “nosegays” of flowers under their noses the day of […]
DYK: Did you know? “True Blue” or “Coventry Blue” comes from the blue cloth that was made at Coventry, England in the late middle ages. The town’s dyers had a reputation for producing material that didn’t fade with washing. The town’s standing was recorded in 1670 by John Ray in the first edition of A Compleat Collection […]
DYK: Did you know? Swashbuckler is a term that emerged in the 16th century and was used as a term for pirates and swordsmen. A buckle was a kind of small shield. When men wanted to impress people they would stride around town with a sword and buckler on their belts. The buckler would ‘swash’ […]
For centuries the Arabs occupied Spain but they were gradually forced out during the Middle Ages. The upper class in Spain had paler skin than most of the population as their ancestors had not inter-married with the Arabs. As they had pale skin the ‘blue’ blood running through their veins was more visible. Translated from […]
This is one of the most misquoted sayings. The word tenterhooks is often stated as tenderhooks. To be on tenterhooks is to be filled with painful or anxious anticipation or suspense, such as when you’re waiting for the result of an important medical test. A tenterhook is a metal hook that holds the cloth in place […]
Around 1542, when the phrase first appeared, “to go to pot” was to be cut up like chunks of meat destined for the stew pot. When farm animals outlived their usefulness such as a hen that no longer laid eggs would literally go to pot. It was cooked and eaten. Such a stew was usually […]
DYK: Did you know? The fashion for wigs began with the Bourbon kings of France. Louis XIII (1601 – 1643) went prematurely bald and took to wearing a wig. By the middle of the century, and especially during the reign of Louis XIV, The Sun King, wigs were virtually obligatory for all European nobility and […]
DYK: Did you know? Did You Know that Turned the Corner is a nautical term? When Ships sailed past the Cape of Good Hope or Cape Horn were said to have ‘turned the corner’. Three complete historical novels in one book Tapestry of Love Historical Series 2nd edition 2015 – Court records dating back to the 1630s […]
DYK: Did you know? The old saying to ‘Win Hands Down’ comes from horse racing. If a jockey was a long way ahead of his competitors and sure to win the race he could relax and put his hands down at his sides. Three complete historical novels in one book Tapestry of Love Historical Series […]
