Story behind words...the idea!

Words, words, words....nice words, cool words, funny words, weird words....

What is a couch potato?
Why is the word "marmalade" just for orange jam and not any other jam?
What does greenhorn mean?
Come and join us on our fun ride to stories behind words, legends, jokes, nick names...
We invite our readers to add new words!

When you know or find a nice story please post it!!

Please mail to brg2700@gmail.com

dead end

has nothing to do with crime!

It means a "street with only one way out", a blind alley.

You can drive in one direction but then you have to turn round and go back!

Sweet tooth

...is someone who really really likes candies, chocolates, sweets, jellies, cookies, puddings, icecream, cakes, pies, lollies, toffies ...
and who eats lots and lots of such sweet stuff!
Yummy...!

stalking

The dictionnaries don´t explain the origin of this word.
We think perhaps it comes from "walking behind a star, a celebrity"?
(just like moon walking?)

Stalkers follow, watch or chat up other persons.
They following the person to certain places, to see where they live or what the person does.
They find out personal and private information, telephone numbers, details on computers,..

When this gets too much it is a crime!

black sheep

Black sheep is a word for an "odd" member of a family:

...a loser, a very naughty boy....
In herds of sheep - when a black lamb is born into a herd of white sheep - you cannot use its wool!
In earlier times black sheep were seen as "the mark of the devil".

But be sure: every black sheep can turn into a winner - it takes some effort and goood luck :-)

Fidget

We came across the word when we were talking about "Zappelphilipp" in German:

the online dictionary then showed us the word "fidget":

It is a person who behaves or moves nervously or restlessly, who plays or fusses.
Well, we know such persons from classes, don´t we?

Smoothie

A smoothie is a chilled, sweet drink made from fresh fruit.

You press and mix fruit like strawberries, abricots, peaches and add crushed ice, frozen fruit or frozen. So you get a drink like a milkshake but without milk!
You can add soda.

The word smoothie comes from about 1900: a sweet-talking very polite person!

sandwich

The story goes that a Lord Sandwich liked this form of food because it allowed him to go on playing cards while eating without getting his cards greasy. So he told his butler to bring him "meat, eggs, cucumber, tomatoes packed in 2 pieces of bread"!

Today we know sandwiches as "fast food" and cheap meals.
You take sandwiches to work, school or picnics.
There is a combination of vegetables, meat, cheese, and/or a variety of sauces.

Tell me: What is your favourite sandwich?

Hobo - just means: poor beggar or tramp!

There are a number of ideas where the word comes from:
"farmhand," or a greeting such as Ho, boy!
or short form of "homeward bound"
The word "hobo" may also be a short form of the hobo's way of travelling,
"hopping boxcars" (= hopping trains!)
And last (very logical) short for the words "homeless boy".

And here you can learn how to draw a cartoon hobo! Try it - you will like it!

Bikini - an island or a sexy swimming-suit?

Both:
A bikini or two-piece is a type of women's swimming-suit with two separate parts, the bra (top) and the panty(brief) leaving the belly uncovered.

But already the Greeks and Romans had such bikinis...!
The modern bikini was invented by a French engineer in 1946.
He named it after the Island of Bikini, an atoll in the Pacific,
where there were nuclear weapon test on July 1, 1946.

So you see: The name Bikini stands for "shock", "explosion", "bomb"!

Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini...

"Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini" is a funny song from the 60s.

It tells the story of a shy girl in a very small bathing suit (a bikini).
She stays in the ocean water so that nobody can see her :-)
The song was "number one" in America in 1960 and also made the top 10 in other countries.
Here you can listen to some versions of the original SONG!

But what about the word BIKINI? Read the next "story" behind the word...

Itsy bitsy...what does THIS word MEAN?

"Itsy Bitsy Spider" (also known as "Eensy Weensy Spider") is a nice little children nursery rhyme: it describes the adventures of a spider as it climbs out of the bath tub, into many different things like a teapot...

It is usually accompanied by some gestures that mimic the words of the song. The first version is from 1962.

Example: The itsy bitsy spider went up the water spout.
Down came the rain, and washed the spider out.
Out came the sun, and dried up all the rain
And the itsy bitsy spider went up the spout again.

You want to WATCH and LISTEN? Click here to see the cartoon!

And here to see the finger play!

spick and span, loosey-goosey, okey-dokey

These words appear in the movie "Mrs Doubtfire", you remember?

spick and span - is "clean", new, fresh or unused!
loosey-goosey - means very relaxed, calm, casual!
okey-dokey is a fun/slang version of OK!

You know, Homer Simpson uses it again and again! ("okely-dokely")