Peg:
To peg out; see Lurch
To
take down a peg implies a reduction in status for someone. The Peg in
this case is of the type used in the past to raise or lower a ship's
colours. The higher the colours, the greater the esteem and vise versa.
An alternative explanation comes from as far back as the year 975. King
Egbert was so annoyed about the amount of drunkenness in his Kingdom
that he ordered pegs to be put into the sides of ale kegs and said that
no man should be allowed to drink below the level of the next peg at a
single sitting. No sooner did this edict come into force than people
began to drink from others' kegs in order to take them down a peg and
thus reduce their drinking status.
Pell Mell: To run pell mell means to do so in a vigorous, almost
reckless, manner. The words are derived from Pall Mall, the London
street, in turn derived from an Italian ball game palla (ball) maglio
(mallet) which used to be played on the land that eventually became
Pall Mall. The players were often vigorous and indiscriminate in their
actions, hence the analogy.
Penny: If someone says "the penny has dropped", then they mean that
they finally, and often suddenly, understand a situation. I have found
no authenticated origin for the saying, but it must surely come from
old Victorian slot machines, where a game would only work when the
penny had dropped.
In
for a penny, in for a pound implies taking some sort of risk. Whilst it
may have had an origin in gambling, its modern use relates more to
decision making and deciding if a more risky option is better than a
less risky one. If the risky version is chosen, then the decision is
often accompanied with 'oh well, in for a penny, in for a pound',
implying that the risk is worth taking and must be carried through.
I think the saying must be several centuries old although none of my
reference books give a date.
Petard: If someone is hoist with his own petard then he has been caught
in his own trap; beaten with his own weapons; involved in danger he
intended for others. The Petard was an ancient iron bell shaped engine
of war which was filled with gun powder. It was hoisted, usually on a
tripod, onto gates, barricades etc. to blow them up. The danger was
that it would explode prematurely and involve the engineer who had
fired it.
Peter: If something peters out then it comes gradually and gently to an
end. Most authorities don’t give a source, other than,
possibly, US mid 19thC gold fields. However the saying could come from
US mining where the black powder used as an explosive may have been
known as peter, after the saltpetre
on which it was based. When a seam was truly worked out even the peter
couldn't bring forth more gold.
Phoney: When something or someone is phoney then they are not genuine.
The word comes from "fawney", an obsolete underworld name for the
imitation gold found in rings said to be used by US confidence
tricksters in the 1920s. Exactly the same "fawney" was, however,
current in England in 1811 and the 1920s term must have been a
continuation.
In December 2002 Michael Walsh wrote: "Under "Phony" you refer to the
"fawney". The Gaelic word (certainly in Irish) Fainne (pronounced
Fawnyeh) is in curent use and means a ring (finger ring), which is
clearly the source of fawney."
Pie: When it's all pie in the sky then it's all a bit unlikely;
improbable; open to wishful thinking. The original use of the phrase
had a deal more cynicism in it. It comes from a Trade Union parody of a
well known hymn "The Sweet By and By" (see by and by). The parody
became more popular than the hymn during the days of the Depression. It
went: "You will eat, bye and bye/ In that glorious land above the sky!/
Work and pray, live on hay,/ You'll get pie in the sky when you die!"
(Joe Hill: The Preacher and the Slave.)
Pig: To buy a pig in a poke. See Cat
Pigeon: That's not my pigeon is said to indicate that it is not a
person's fault or responsibility. Pigeon in this instance is an
incorrect spelling of Pidgin as in Pidgin English. "Pidgin" itself is
an extreme Chinese corruption of "Business", hence the saying.
Pikestaff: Something is said to be as plain as a pikestaff if it is
quite clear; obvious; unambiguous. In an earlier form the phrase was as
plain as a packstaff. A packstaff was the staff or stick on which a
pedlar carried his pack. The allusion is clear.
Pillar: To go from pillar to post is to go from one disaster to
another. It is suggested that it comes from the comparison with
criminals going from the pillory to the whipping post.
Another possible definition suggests that the saying was originally
from post to pillar. In this case the comparison is with old, indoor,
tennis courts - Real (=Royal) Tennis is still played on replica courts
today - and relates to the banging about of the balls. (NB: Real Tennis
is 'Court Tennis' in the US.)
If
someone is a pillar of the Establishment then they are a prominent
member of a group, political party or society in general. The origin
seems obvious; "pillars" are "supports" and this is how the phrase
should be constructed. It comes from an Ibsen play. In the original
Norwegian the text was "Support of the Establishment" but became
translated as "Pillar".
Pin: Pin money is now regarded as a term for small amounts of money,
usually saved by a woman. The sum was not always small; in the 14th and
15th centuries pins were very expensive and were only allowed to be
sold on the first two days of each January. Husbands gave their wives
special money for the purchase. As time went by pins became ever
cheaper and the money could be spent on other things. However, the
expression remained.
Pink: In the pink signifies a state of well being; good health. The
pink here has nothing to do with colour, rather with the same source as
pinking scissors. They are both based on the old English pynca meaning
"point", hence "peak" or "apex". Shakespeare in Romeo and Juliet (II,
iv) speaks of "the pink of courtesy".
