These 5 daily phrases were actually inspired by horse racing
English is said to be a funny language for many reasons. One of them is that it features an exceptionally large number of vowel sounds, roughly 11, compared to the five to six found in other spoken languages. However, it appears to be less of an original language. Rather, it has picked up phrases from different countries or other languages and made them its own. Today, we are going to tell you about five common phrases that have been inspired from the game of horse racing!
Across the board
The phrase ‘across the board’, we all know, is used to refer to everything in a category. Interestingly, it didn’t mean the same, earlier. Rather, it was actually used to describe a style of betting in which people picked one horse and laid equal stakes on all three lucrative outcomes. The three options were: Winning (first place), placing (first or second place), and showing (first, second, or third place). As bookies used blackboards to keep track of odds of the game in the early 20th century, this form of gamble required people to select all of the alternatives across the board. This is how the phrase came into existence.
Give and take
This is another expression that is believed to have its roots in the game of horse racing. People had already begun using the phrase to describe other circumstances that required compromise and fair exchange by the late 1770s. English novelist Frances Burney wrote "Give and take is fair in all nations" in her novel ‘Evelina’ in 1778. This is the first documented use of this broader concept.
Run for your money
If you were a 19th century horse race lover, you would definitely have wanted a run for your money, preferably a lucrative one. Literally, the phrase implied competing very well against someone to win the contest. In this case, it referred to people having their horses perform brilliantly at races against others.
Strangely, a mediocre performance was thought to be better than a brilliant one. Why was it so? Well, a horse could be removed from the race at the last minute due to injury, illness, poor racing conditions, or a number of other factors. Hence, whatever return they got at the end of the horse racing competition was termed as ‘run for your money.’ However, people began using this phrase outside of the race track too, in due course of time, in situations where someone or something proved to be a worthy opponent.
Jockey for position
Simply put, jockeying for position simply implies trying to get into a better spot, whether it's for a better view at a concert or a straighter path to the finish line in a horse race. Since jockeys (the person who rides horses in a race) angle for better positioning during horse races, the phrase's origins may appear evident. However, the term jockey did not always relate to horse race riders. This is what makes its history a little more complex.
Jockey also described horse merchants, who were known for cheating and making shady deals. It was at this time that people started using the phrase as a verb which meant ‘to get an edge over someone by deceiving them’ or ’to obtain something by cheating or outwitting someone.’ According to the Oxford English Dictionary, it was in this context that the phrase ‘jockey for position’ was coined.
Hands down
Hands down nowadays usually means ‘without a doubt’ or ’effortlessly.’ Although, when the phrase first appeared in the 19th century, it referred to horse race that was won indisputably or effortlessly. The implication was, the winning jockey would let go of the reins and cross the finish line with his hands down.