Word Origins 2

Question 1

on cloud nine

Answer 1

long the basic source for cloud shapes, in which, of the ten cloud types, cloud No. 9, cumulonimbus, was the biggest, puffiest, most comfortable-looking

Question 2

redneck

Answer 2

According to various theories, red perhaps from anger, or from pellagra, but most likely from mule farmers’ outdoors labor in the sun, wearing a shirt and straw hat, with the neck exposed.

Question 3

Prima Donna -attention seeker

Answer 3

Means First Lady in Italian

Question 4

Spill the beans-let a secret out

Answer 4

Comes from geek voting system with different colored beans votes had to be unanimous so if they were spilled early then everyone would know

Question 5

Throw in the towel-to give up

Answer 5

Comes from boxing when wanting up give up the Corner would literally throw in the towel

Question 6

OK-okay

Answer 6

American Civil War, when the armies wrote in a blackboard, at the end of a battle day, the casualties they had suffered. It was written in the following way: [number of people] K (K for “killed”).Therefore, OK means “0 [people] killed”, undoubtedly a synonym of a good day, or a controlled situation.That could be one of the

Question 7

Sidekick-accomplice

Answer 7

Comes from pick pocketing slang kick meant trousers and the side pocket was known as the safest from theft

Question 8

Upper crust -someone who shows superiority

Answer 8

In Medieval times the upper crust was the part not burnt and the part that was given to the gentry/nobility

Question 9

Robot -machine that helps people

Answer 9

Karl Capek, a Czech playwright was a pioneer in science fiction. He wrote a play during WWI called “R.U.R., which was a group of mechanized monsters revolting against their maker. The Czech term for work or drudgery was robota, and so Capek shortened his characters to be robots.

Question 10

Rub the wrong way-to deal with someone insensitively or bothersomeish

Answer 10

The term goes back to colonial times and wide oak-board floors. Once a week, servants had to wet-rub and then dry-rub these floors. Seems simple? Well, if it wasn’t done with the grain, it looked awful because streaks were made. To the owner, this was worse than not doing it at all

Question 11

Hands down -achieved without great effort

Answer 11

In horse races if the horse was so far ahead the jockey didn’t even have to lift his hands to get the horse to go quicker