• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer
Zippy Facts Logo

Zippy Facts

Interesting Random Facts

  • Animals
  • Culture
  • Firsts
  • Food
  • Geography
  • Health
  • History
  • Inventions
  • Language
  • Mythology
  • Odds
  • People
  • Religion
  • Science
  • Space
  • Universe
  • World
You are here: Home / Language / Where does the expression “to stick one’s oar in another’s boat” come from and What does it mean?

Where does the expression “to stick one’s oar in another’s boat” come from and What does it mean?

February 15, 2020 by Karen Hill

The expression “to stick one’s oar in another’s boat” means: To enter without invitation into the affairs of another; to interfere or meddle; to butt into a conversation or the like; to add one’s two-cents’ worth.

There’s no telling where this originated.

Its first appearance in English is in the Apophthegmes, That is to Saie, Prompte Saiynges (1542), translated by Nicolas Udall from the collection, in Latin, of adages garnered by Erasmus, published in 1500.

In Udall’s translation it is thus given:

Whatsoeuer came in his foolyshe brain,
Out it should, wer it neuer so vain.
In eche mans bote would he haue an ore,
But no woorde, to good purpose, lesse or more.

Along in the eighteenth century the “boat” phrase was occasionally dropped, and we in America now use “stick” more frequently than either “put” or “have.”

Related Facts

  • Where does the expression "till the cows come home" come from and What does it mean?
  • Where does the expression "to come out flat footed" come from and What does it mean?
  • Where does the expression "to come out at the little end of the horn" come from and What does it mean?
  • Where does the expression "come off your perch" come from and What does it mean?
  • What does the expression "to get one's come uppance" mean and Where does it come from?
  • Where does the expression "to be ahead of the game" come from and What does to come out ahead mean?

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.

Previous Post: « What does the phrase “to get it in the neck” mean and Where does it come from?
Next Post: Where does the phrase “snake in the grass” originate and What does snake in the grass mean? »

Footer

Follow

  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • GitHub
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Medium
  • Pinterest
  • StumbleUpon
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Categories

Accomplishments Animals Culture Firsts Food Geography Health History Inventions Language Mythology Odds People Religion Science Space Universe World Your Body

About

Zippy Facts empowers the world by serving educational content that is accessible to everyone.

A tribute to growing up, zippyfacts.com showcases interesting and unusual facts about the world.

Our mission is to use technology to facilitate knowledge transfer and sharing.

Copyright © 2021 Zippy Facts

  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy