phrases and where they come from (Silly goose, show yourself!)

[Rotting_Heart]

Phrases and sayings are weird. Who ever decided to say the words "fuck" and "ass" together and turn it into an insult? Whoever said the phrase "don't pee on my back and tell me it's raining!" to the point it became a common saying? I know these things can come from movies, but even then who scripted them?

I've especially been thinking of the phrase "silly goose" often. What about a goose is so silly? I would say cats and dogs are sillier through the funny videos of them online, and the fact we see them more than geese. But "silly cat/dog" isn't something we say that much to people. Was there a living goose that was so silly to the point it became a saying? Was there a person who was so silly and liked geese so much it became a saying?

Well, if there is, I would like the silliest goose here to show themself and make themselves known so we can ask how to become even sillier, perhaps more magical! 


If you have any goofy sayings from your culture/language then please do share 

[goat]

geese are often associated with silliness, due to their seemingly clumsy manner, that and the waddling and loud honking.  goose itself was once used to refer to anyone that wasn't particularly bright, such as a bumbling oaf or simpleton.  there are probably other examples but that's mostly where 'silly goose' comes from.  :3

[Dan Q]

I don't know where "silly goose" comes from, but I've written (at length) about quite how many goose-related phrases there are! There are so many of them!

[Melooon]

I remember a Chinese friend of mine used to enjoy saying "Long Time No See" because it's apparently the only phrase in English that maps perfectly onto Chinese characters with no translation of meaning needed. That's so unusual that it suggests it might have been imported to English from Chinese originally!

I quite like the term "So Long" as a goodbye, but when you think about it.. what does it mean  I looked it up and no one is really sure where it came from, it just sort of randomly appears around 1860, and there's a bunch of wide theories about it coming from words in other languages, but there's no proof of any.

"Stop lollygagging" is another good one my dad used to say a lot - I've always assumed it was a seafaring term.

"Here's mud in your eye" used as a toast (also by my dad) - I looked this one up too and it seems to have a biblical origin.

OH and a friend of mine likes saying "Let's make shapes" when he's ready to leave - this one is a local term and I really don't understand where its from.. other than I guess you make some interesting shapes as you get up to leave??

[Dan Q]

I remember a Chinese friend of mine used to enjoy saying "Long Time No See" because it's apparently the only phrase in English that maps perfectly onto Chinese characters with no translation of meaning needed. That's so unusual that it suggests it might have been imported to English from Chinese originally!

Oh, I love a loanwordphrase!

I learned the Polish proverb nie mój cyrk, nie moje małpy, which I use (the English translation of) all the time: "not my circus, not my monkeys". It's a wonderfully-colourful way to say "yeah, that's not my responsibility nor my problem". It, too, is a word-for-word translation, but I suppose that's more-common if you stay in the same continent!