“Putting Feathers on the Fish” and more common phrases and their history
1. “Putting Feathers on the Fish”
– Origin: In ancient coastal towns, superstitious fishmongers believed that decorating fish with feathers would attract wealth and abundance. It didn’t work (surprise!), so today, this phrase describes any hopelessly impractical attempt to make something better.
2. “The Goose’s Elbow”
– Origin: In 1800s Ireland, people would say, “You’re at the goose’s elbow!” when someone was going in circles or wasting time. Geese don’t have elbows, so the phrase became a humorous way to say someone’s doing something pointless.
3. “Peeling Potatoes in the Rain”
– Origin: During WWII, soldiers on kitchen duty often had to peel potatoes in all weather conditions. This phrase came to mean enduring a thankless or unpleasant task, particularly under uncomfortable circumstances.
4. “Sweeping Shadows”
– Origin: Rooted in an old myth where someone tried to sweep the shadows away from their doorway to ward off bad spirits. It didn’t work, of course, so “sweeping shadows” now means attempting to remove an imaginary problem.
5. “Talking to the Bananas”
– Origin: Early explorers often encountered unfamiliar foods, including bananas, which they would “talk to” in an attempt to figure out how to eat them. Now, it refers to speaking to an audience that’s not responding, or explaining something to people who just aren’t getting it.
6. “Warming the Oyster”
– Origin: In Victorian England, some believed warming oysters would make them taste better. It ruined the flavor, naturally, and the phrase evolved to mean spoiling something by tampering with it unnecessarily.
7. “Skipping the Turnip”
– Origin: In medieval England, turnips were a common ingredient. Skipping it meant a soup was lacking substance or flavor, leading to the current meaning: avoiding something essential and regretting it later.
8. “Spinning Strawberries”
– Origin: In the 1920s, a fad emerged to serve strawberries on a rotating platter at fancy parties. It was more showy than practical, and the phrase now refers to dressing up something ordinary to appear fancier than it is.
9. “Buttoning the Cloud”
– Origin: French poets in the 1700s often wrote about trying to “button clouds together” to create a metaphorical bridge across the sky. It’s now used to describe futile attempts to create connections where none exist.
10. “Dusting the Onion”
– Origin: Farmers would “dust onions” to keep pests away, though it did little good. Now, it’s used for taking an unnecessary precaution, especially for something that probably didn’t need it in the first place.
