What Does That Mean?

What Does That Mean?

What is a gift horse? How can a fiddle be fit? Is a dead ringer the same as a spitting image?

Below are links to common expressions and words, their meanings, and their often-curious origins. Many have been translated through the centuries and the original connotations are disputed. Keeping that uncertainty in mind, I have chosen the most reasonable and/or interesting explanations.

To suggest more things, use the comments section below!

Current words/phrases: 500

***NEWEST ADDITIONS***

March 24, 2026:
butter someone up, cognac, don’t have a pot to piss in or a window to throw it out of, gird your loins, make a beeline, remember the Maine, Stanley steamer, Yahtzee

ABC

ain't, bought the farm, catch-22 + many others

DEF

don't look a gift horse in the mouth, et cetera, fifteen minutes of fame + many others

GHI

gas-lighting, happy as a clam, in a nutshell + many others

JKL

Jesus H. Christ, kick the bucket, loose lips sink ships + many others

MNO

mayday, neck of the woods, Oedipus complex + many others

PQR

pardon my French, quitting cold turkey, raining cats & dogs + many others

STU

saved by the bell, the bee's knees, under the weather + many others

VWXYZ

vice versa, wiggle room + some others

SOURCES
Google, The Phrase Finder, Mental Floss, Etymonline, idiomorigins.org, Grammarist, Wikipedia.org, wordhistories.net, spellingbee.com, Reader’s Digest, Take Our Word For It, The Conversation, Collins Dictionary, Inverse.com, HistoryNewsNetwork.org, VeryWellMind.com, Grammarphobia.com, Urban Dictionary, Say Why Do I, Greek Boston, GreekMythology.com, Insider.com, Snopes.com, Almanac.com, US Dairy, WritingExplained.com, Bored Panda, The Hindu, U.S. Department Of Defense, Social Security Administration, MirandaRights.org, USCourts.gov, Calemon Law, U.S. Naval Institute, smarty.com, laurenkessler.com, fda.gov, Saint Louis Magazine, heart.org, International Committee Of The Red Cross, American Battlefield Trust, flagladyusa.com, The History Of English, KRQE Albuquerque, Brinks Security, Pure Michigan, Center For Great Lakes Literacy