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You are here: Home / Language / What Does the Expression “Spick and Span” Mean and How Did the Phrase Originate?

What Does the Expression “Spick and Span” Mean and How Did the Phrase Originate?

May 17, 2020 by Karen Hill

Today, Spick and Span is a trade name for a well-known cleaner.

But the expression began in the fourteenth century as the nautical term “spick and span new,” to describe a freshly built or refurbished ship.

A spick was a spike, while span was a Viking reference to new wood, but also means any distance between two extremities, such as the bow and stern of a ship.

The wooden ship was so clean that even the spikes looked new.

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Filed Under: Language

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

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