14 Common Sayings That Have a Bizarre Origin

13. Eat Humble Pie

Meaning: Making an apology and acting submissively especially in admitting error, sometimes suffering humiliation along with it.

Origin: The saying was believed to have originated during the Middle Ages. When the lord of a manor would hold a feast after hunting, he would get the finest cut of meat while those of lower standing were given a pie filled with animal innards called “umbles”. Thus, receiving an “umble pie” was said to be humiliating because it tells others that the one served is of lower status.

14. Burning the Midnight Oil

Meaning: To work long hours or late into the night

Origin: In the old days, people used oil lamps for lighting and the oil used was obtained from whales which are expensive, and so, to “burn the midnight oil” means the project was so important that they had to use their expensive oil to finish it.

There you have it!  The common sayings, or idioms that you always use, but probably never understood how they actually came about….

 What other sayings do you wonder about?