where does the term "ride him out on a rail" come from?
79415
There is a good example in the movie\nO Brother Where Art Thou with George Clooney.
681212
It's generally attributed to the 'rustic' South, though it has seen common useage as far back as pre-Colonial English pubs.\n\nIt generally means to be passed out, though to such a point that such a person would not respond to even the strongest of stimulation.  Similar to the term "dead to the world".
347795
The term ' Riding Shotgun' refers to the days before automobiles, when horse-drawn wagons traversing the mostly empty spaces between cities would be attacked and robbed by outlaws and hostile Indians. All wagons travelling at the time had a man with a DOUBLE BARREL shotgun that sat on the bench seat to the right of the driver.\n\nThe term today refers to riding in the front passenger side seat.
468482
This phrase stems from a kissing booth at a carnival that was held in Podunk, Iowa.  It turns out that the young lady that was going to occupy the booth was thrown from the animal that she was riding on the way to said boot and injured her mouth so they decided to use the animal that she was riding, her Jackass.  So for a buck you could kiss to her jackass, or as she would say “kiss my jackass”, and over time it was shorten too, well you know.
964315
Yes, I've heard that phrase used to indicate that a man is gay.  I guess it refers to the habit of some guys, like Richard Simmons for example, to prance and dance around.  I like Richard Simmons, he's cool.
899603
It's fairly self explanatory within the poem.  Longfellow wrote it to create a sense of nationalism and used Paul Revere's ride as the vehicle to create that nationalism. Longfellow wanted to create a national legend, as many English poets had done centuries before. He was trying to create an epic poem, in my opinion.  However, Paul Revere didn't actually make that grand of a ride, it was Isreal Bissel who had the longest trek.  Revere only rode a couple of miles, but that's neither here nor there.  \n\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Midnight_Ride_of_Paul_Revere\n\nSee if that gives you a jump start.
411949
The origin of the word is obscure. The first recorded use of the word was in the British satirical magazine Punch on 25 September 1918, although an earlier possible reference uses the word push [4]. The OED records a definition of the word as a noun from 1890, meaning "a dandy".\n\nA popular but false etymology states the expression originated from the phrase "Port Out, Starboard Home", which, before air-conditioning, were allegedly the most desirable cabin locations on ships travelling to and from British colonies in the Far East because they were shaded from the sun in both directions. However, extensive searching of shipping company records and tickets from that period has failed to reveal any evidence for explicit "Port Out, Starboard Home" reservations. [1][2][4].\n\nThis false definition is not helped by a song in the musical version of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. The song P.O.S.H. including the lyrics:\n\n"Whenever I'm bored I travel abroad but ever so properly, \n"Port out, starboard home, posh with a capital P-O-S-H, posh."
523829
the term crack usually refers to a big hit "He just Cracked him" along with getting "Jacked up" "Railing" someone "laying someone out", etc, all mean hitting a guy really hard. What others would you lke to know?
627166
The slang word Rube was here long before Rube Goldberg adopted it as his moniker.\n\nRube is old circus sideshow slang for Rubber neck\nits a reference to people from the hicks who will pay money to look at anything.\npeople when they lean over to take a closer look very often will stretch their neck out  hence the term Rubber neck.
175670
i think, "across the country" & "on a train" are the adverb phrases...\n\nphrase is a group of words with meaning without a verb\nadverb adds meaning to the verb\n\nso i guess "across the country" & "on a train" are things describing the "place" as in time/place/people etc... \n\nno guarantee i'm 100% correct though
1058993
Actually, the reference originally came from a song that was popular in 1956.  It was by the Jayhawks and called Stranded In The Jungle.  It managed to climb the Billboard charts to #18.\n\nThe story is about a guy who gets stranded in a jungle and all he wants to do is get back to his girl in the states.  He gets knocked out, wakes up in a big pot and smells something cooking then realizes he's about to be the main course for a tribe of cannibals.  The next line is "Great googly moogly let me out of here! " \n\nOf course the expression has been used in numerous other songs since but now you know the complete story goes back half a century.
555893
It's slang from the UK & Ireland, a made up phrase to avoid cursing when surprised or annoyed.\n\nIt's also a slang term for a sexual position.
98950
"Who chose cake?"\n\nIt's exact etymology is unclear but this much is certain: the British coined the phrase. \n\n"The first documented appearance of the term is in 1943, in an small book of British military slang, although sources claim it was used in the RAF throughout World War Two, and was originally a Yorkshire dialect term in use at least since 1914."
1068818
It is a poetic reference to automobiles as they drive past monuments to the brave war dead. \n"Everywhere,\ngiant finned cars nose forward like fish;\na savage servility\nslides by on grease."\n\nSavage servility means to be cravenly submissive; a reference to the cowardice of those who will not fight for their country/beliefs.  Sliding on grease refers to the lubrication in the auto.\n\nFrom the poem "For the Union Dead" by Robert Lowell (1917-1977)  about the American Civil War hero, Robert Gould Shaw and the monument in Boston of Colonel Shaw leading the 54th Massachusetts.
244151
"Although this does have a literal meaning, to threaten with a stick, we in the United States give it much more fanciful interpretations. If we say, "There are more filling stations in town than one can shake a stick at," we mean nothing more than that the town contains an abundance of places at which one may purchase gasoline for one's motorcar. That American usage dates from early in the nineteenth century. One may speculate that it arose from the play at warfare by small boys--George Washington Jones flourishing a triumphant wooden sword over the considerable number of British soldiers who surrendered at Yorktown, more, in fact, than he could wave his "stick" at. then, too, we use the expression to indicate a comparative that may express derogation, and have done so for well over a hundred years. David Crockett, in his *Tour to the North and Down East* (1835) wrote of one place at which he stayed, "This was a temperance house, and there was nothing to treat a friend to that was worth shaking a stick at."
855341
It means stay out of my life. Can't remember the origin, probably the 80's.
123218
"in an interview what Howie had to say about this song...it's just about that perfect time of day, to seize an opportunity. Just when you find that perfect moment to make your move, you better take the chance, because you'll never get it back. "\n\nFound at the link below