A youngster, or an adult for that matter, who struts around trying to impress others with his importance, is said to be “too big for his breeches.”
Just as with the independent hog on his chunk of ice, this expression gives us another instance of an absurdly recent first appearance in print of an obviously old expression.
The first appearance is credited to H. G. Wells, and as recently as 1905. But the expression was in use in America before 1850, at least in the Ohio farming region in which my mother was raised, and is undoubtedly much earlier, probably going back to the eighteenth or even the seventeenth century.
“Too big for one’s boots,” very probably a euphemism of the vulgar “breeches,” was respectable enough to appear in print by 1879.
Today we have moved to the other extreme: he of the swelled buttocks of 1850, of the swelled foot of 1880, is now called a swellhead, or is said to have a head too big for his hat.
Related Posts
-
Does the human brain make new cells to replace old ones?
Although recent studies have shown that the brain can grow some new cells, you'd be wise to take good care of the ones you were born with. You can't generate enough of the…
-
Are all stars burning out and are new ones forming?
Stars are being born as well as dying, but the rate varies greatly from galaxy to galaxy. Stars form from huge clouds of dust and gas. If a cloud begins to contract because…
-
Why do Male Chimpanzees have Bigger Testicles compared to Humans and Gorillas also have Tiny Ones?
It's sad but true, male Chimpanzees have bigger testicles than humans, and they're even bigger than a Gorillas. Most people think that a gorilla would be hung like an ape, and they're surprised…
-
Where does the expression “to come out flat footed” come from and What does it mean?
There are no ands, ifs, nor buts in the statement of one who "comes out flat footed"; you know exactly what he means and where he stands. We picture him as planted firmly…
-
Where does the expression “come off your perch” come from and What does it mean?
The expression "come off your perch" means: come down a peg or two; don't be too conceited, haughty, or arrogant. The allusion is to the twig serving as a resting place for a…
-
Where does the expression “to be ahead of the game” come from and What does to come out ahead mean?
We, in America, use the expression "to be ahead of the game" in two differing ways. Thus when we say, "Jeff is getting ahead in the store he has recently opened," we mean…
