Q: Why do mens clothes have buttons on the right while womens clothes have buttons on the left? A: When buttons were invented, they were very expensive and worn primarily by the rich. Since most people are right-handed, it is easier to push buttons on the right through holes on the left. Because wealthy women were dressed by maids, dressmakers put the buttons on the maids right! And thats where womens buttons have remained since. Q: Why do ships and aircraft use mayday as their call for help? A: This comes from the French word maidez, meaning help me, and is pronounced, approximately, mayday. Q: Why are zero scores in tennis called love? A: In France , where tennis became popular, round zero on the scoreboard looked like an egg and was called loeuf, which is French for egg. When tennis was introduced in the US, Americans mispronounced it love. Q. Why do Xs at the end of a letter signify kisses? A: In the Middle Ages, when many people were illiterate, documents were often signed using an X. Kissing the X represented an oath to fulfill obligations specified in the document. The X and the kiss eventually became synonymous. Q: Why is shifting responsibility to someone else called passing the buck? A: In card games, it was once customary to pass an item, called a buck, from player to player to indicate whose turn it was to deal. If a player chose not to assume the responsibility of dealing, he would pass the buck to the next player. Q: Why do people clink their glasses before drinking a toast? A: It was once common for someone to try to kill an enemy by offering him a poisoned drink. To prove to a guest that a drink was safe, it became customary for a guest to pour a small amount of his drink into the hosts glass, and then both men would drink it simultaneously. When a guest trusted his host, he would only touch or clink the hosts glass with his own. Q: Why are people in the public eye said to be in the limelight? A: Invented in 1825, limelight was used in lighthouses and theaters by burning a cylinder of lime which produced a brilliant light. In the theater, a performer in the limelight was the center of attention. Q: Why is someone who is feeling great on cloud nine? A: Types of clouds are numbered according to the altitudes they attain, with nine being the highest cloud. If someone is said to be on cloud nine, that person is floating above worldly cares. Q: In golf, where did the term Caddie come from? A. When Mary Queen of Scots went to France as a young girl, Louis, King of France, learned that she loved the Scots game golf. So he had the first course outside of Scotland built for her enjoyment. To make sure she was properly chaperoned (and guarded) while she played, Louis hired cadets from a military school to accompany her. Mary liked this, and when returned to Scotland (a very bad idea in the long run), she took the practice with her. In French, the word cadet is pronounced ca-day and the Scots changed it to caddie. Q: Why are many coin banks shaped like pigs? A: Long ago, dishes and cookware in Europe were made of a dense orange clay called pygg. When people saved coins in jars made of this clay, the jars became known as pygg banks. When an English potter misunderstood the word, he made a container that resembled a pig. And it caught on. Q: Why do dimes, quarters and half dollars have notches (milling), while pennies and nickels do not? A: The US Mint began putting notches on the edges of coins containing gold and silver to discourage holders from shaving off small quantities of the precious metals. Dimes, quarters and half dollars are notched because they once contained silver. Pennies and nickels arent notched because the metals they contain are not valuable enough to shave. So, now you know
Posted on: Sat, 06 Dec 2014 11:39:38 +0000
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