Put a sock in it
Years ago gramophones didn't have any volume control so to turn the volume down one had to actually put a sock in the trumpet part. Now, people use the term, 'Put A Sock In It" as a request to be quiet or silent.

www.IdiomSite.com

Chellin, I never knew that but have certainly used it over the years !

I didn't know that either chellin. thanks for that snippet.

The term "he's off his trolley" (meaning that someone is going a bit mad) so I was told when I was nursing in casualty some years ago at Blackburn Infirmary - is supposed to have originated from disorientated patients getting off their hospital trolley, & all hell is let loose trying to get the patient back on it! Not sure whether its true or not - but it certainly does happen!!

Carole :ck-smile:

True blue

Meaning

Loyal and unwavering in one's opinions or support for a cause.

Origin

'True blue' is supposed to derive 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, i.e. it remained 'fast' or 'true'. The phrase 'as true as Coventry blue'


taken from

http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/steal-ones-thunder.html

Every country & county have there own quirky sayings ...

My Mum used to say "never cast a clout till May is out" we used to say it meant don't hit us lol .. she said no! it means don't take off your winter clothes .. was it the month of May or the may flower??

Carry her over the threshold

Referring to the now common practice of a newlywed man carrying his wife through the front door of their new home. In colonial times, many houses did not have wooden floors. Instead, dirt, sticks, leaves, etc. were pressed onto the ground to created an even surface. This mixture was known as "thresh." However, when it rained the water would leak through the rooftop and the thresh would wash right out the front door. In order to solve this problem, a man would nail a wooded board, known as the threshhold, into the base of the doorframe to catch the thresh. When a man and woman were married, the man would carry his new wife over the threshhold so she wouldn't trip..

www.idioms.com

There was a commercial advert on TV running for quite a long time until just recently. It was advertising Leg Waxing strips & this young woman going around town trying to persuade other young women to try the product. Does anyone know which one I mean, I always had a good laugh at that advert. Thought she was comical. Whilst she was trying to encourage them to use the Leg Waxing strips & they were reluctant to try it - she'd use old common sayings like......

"Go on - take the bull by the horns".......

"You can do it until the cows come home"........

"Come on - don't stay sitting on the fence"......
_____ ["not that you could in that skirt" - girl wearing very short mini!]

and always something different each advert!!

ha ha -

Yes I remember that advert and always thought that it was daft! lol

Last but not least.

This originated in Theatre.

It basically means the last person announced isnt any less important than the others called before him or her.
www.IdiomSite.com

Chellin I love that and have gone on the site ...

Now this one we can all relate to ... going out as a family and Mum driving.

Back seat driver

meaning someone who watches and gives unwanted advice:((->:

http://www.idiomsite.com/

yes Mattycat

Thats me !!!!


Back Seat Driver
Chellin

Oh!!!!!!! Chellin,

Now I know why I am much happier driving on my own .. but I can tell stories about that!

Like going shopping in the car (sometimes I would walk) then accepting a lift off a friend! invite her in for a coffee .. I had to wait whilst she had gone .. yes .. you got it! I had to walk back and get the car... my excuse "Blond"

To make a long story short
Usually the phrase repeated by a person telling a boring, long-winded story, but who has no real intention of actually shortening the story at all. When you hear this phrase, you know you're 'in for the long haul'."
The origin of this phrase probably dates back to Old English times - long before tv, the internet, or computers came on the scene - w/ guys like Chaucer who used to travel around the countryside with nothing better to do than to tell boring, long-winded stories that no one wanted to hear.

http://www.idiomsite.com/tomakea.htm

The World's yer Oyster!!

We all know what it means, but I wonder where it came from & why?:ck-hrrmm:

Getting Down to Brass Tacks means

"Getting down to brass tacks" means getting serious. Years ago millinery stores had brass tacks set in their counters every 6 inches. Tailors would come in and look over the fabric picking up bolts that they liked, but they weren’t serious until they "got down to brass tacks" and measured out the amount they needed and intenede to purchase.


Chellin

http://www.idiomsite.com/gettingdownto.htm