Every day we use expressions without considering their literal meanings or giving thought as to where they originated. Many of those expressions or phrases came from the 18th century (1700 to 1799) and it is interesting to know the origins of some of those phrases and their meaning in that period. This is just a little on the lighter side for your reading enjoyment and appreciation for those phrases.

“Sleep tight — don’t let the bedbugs bite,” or just “Sleep tight”: Used flippantly to tell someone to have a good night’s sleep, this phrase comes from the 18th century rope bed. Beds were wooden in that time and instead of the box springs of today, hemp rope was used to support the mattress. The support or strength came from interweaving the rope back and forth around pegs lining all four sides of the frame. This created “small squares” of rope that your mattress would lay on. As it was used the rope would stretch, causing sagging, and thus require tightening with a tool called a rope bed tightening wrench. Taking the wrench to each wrap on a peg or hole in the frame, both types were used, pulls the rope tighter. This is done sequentially around the bed until it is tightened from one end to the other. The tightened ropes give a firm base on which to place the mattress. Hence “sleep tight.”

Mattresses were totally different as well from those of today. They were typically made of pillow ticking and stuffed with straw, hay or corn husks. Perhaps you may wonder how these beds are to sleep on. Rope beds are extremely comfortable, and you will get a good night’s rest once it is adjusted where you want it. The drawback to these mattresses was that over time they became infested with ticks and/or bed bugs, particularly those beds in 18th century taverns.

Taverns? In the 18th century, the definition of a tavern is: 1. A place where liquors, beer, etc., are sold to be drunk in the premises; a saloon; a bar; 2. An inn(1). Many wayside taverns existed in the 18th century that served both as a food establishment selling spirits as defined, but also as an inn providing rooms for travelers. Given the time it took to travel from place to place, taverns were kept busy and several people often shared beds with strangers. Beds such as these were not cleaned nor given fresh coverings over them as we see in our hotels or motels today. (My skin is crawling at these customs and that is an apt expression!) The difficulty of cleaning and the constant use of the straw, hay or husk mattresses by many people resulted in the infestation with ticks and/or bed bugs.

“The tavern in Colonial America, or the ‘ordinary’ as it was referred to in Puritan Massachusetts, was a staple in the social, political, and travel lives of colonial citizens from the very beginning of this country’s existence. Samuel Cole in Boston opened the first tavern on March 4, 1634. It was not long before the demand and necessity for taverns in New England, and throughout the colonies, was overwhelming. In 1656 the General Court of Massachusetts held towns accountable with fines if they did not sustain an ordinary.(2)”

Taverns were a significant part of the culture especially in the build up to and during the Revolutionary War, even with some House members meeting in taverns to discuss the issues of the day among themselves. Those who were unable to read would congregate in taverns to hear the news read and discussed. It became for most townspeople a crucial gathering place, and travelers on their way to other destinations would use the taverns not only as a waystation for food and drink, but to catch the local news and tell of news from where they had recently been, or to sleep overnight.

Now back to idioms and the last one of those related to beds.

Hit the hay — One filler for mattresses was hay, so it meant going to bed.

Chalk that one up! — Used today for a couple of reasons, but in an 18th century tavern, your tab was kept by making a mark for each drink or food ordered on a chalkboard. When you were finished with your dinner and drinks the keeper would total all the marks that were “chalked up” and the client was presented with his bill. In modern usage it is used to highlight a point made that may be added to a list of discussion points, or something expressed in a way that others note you made a significant comment that should be remembered or addressed.

Don’t go off half-cocked — this comes from the flintlock firearm. After the rifle or pistol is loaded with black powder the hammer is pulled back to the fully cocked position. The hammer holds the firing mechanism, or flint. Pulling the trigger releases that hammer causing it to move forward and strike the frizzen, creating extremely fine pieces of metal (sparks) from the flint as it pushes the frizzen out of the way causing it to fire. Half-cocked, the hammer is back half the distance and is in a locked position for safety. If the mechanism is broken, or breaks, the firearm will allow the hammer to go forward causing the firearm to go off when you do not want it to. In modern usage, going off half-cocked is saying something, usually in anger or frustration, that you will regret later.

Ever hear, “I bought it, lock, stock and barrel”? This means one has all the parts, the lock — the firing mechanism, the stock or wood, to hold it all together, and the barrel — everything needed to make a fully operational rifle. In modern usage, you bought or believed everything.

Read the Riot Act — Have you heard someone say, “He’ll read you read the riot act if you do that”? In the 18th century the saying meant a warning that was read aloud to the entire town in the town square. It was a warning against wrongdoing and made you accountable — now you have been warned. Today, the meaning is basically the same, however, it is not usually a warning read in town, but people being warned that your actions are wrong. Obviously one that has not been used a lot on the West coast this year!

Straight laced — Ladies wore corsets, which went around the torso and would lace up the front. Uncomfortable (I am told!), and tight, they used it to fit proper clothing and to help maintain posture. Today the idea is similar but means to appear too proper and dignified — too uptight.

Dressed to the Nines — Dressed to the nines developed as an extension of the much earlier phrase to the nines, meaning ‘to perfection, to the greatest degree:’ the 20-volume Oxford English Dictionary’s first example of this earlier form dates back to 1719. While not used much anymore, the phrase would mean you have put on and worn your finest clothing .

Plain or Smooth Sailing — Things will get easier from this point on, such as sailing in calm waters, or planning your route as though on a smooth straight line as though the world was flat.

Pull out all the stops — this phrase comes from the pipe organs in churches and classical music. Each pipe has a “stop” that acts as a baffle that controls the amount of airflow. The volume of the organ can be adjusted by adding or removing the stops. By pulling out all the stops, all pipes are playing at their loudest.(3) Today the meaning is to use everything you have to accomplish what you are trying to do.

Windfall — We still hear this term used a lot. In the 18th century, during a strong wind, old dry or dead tree branches would fall. If you were fortunate enough not to be hit by them, the dry old wood that had been the tree, was dropped on the ground for your use in your cooking fire or woodstoves you had for heat. Most food that was cooked in the 18th century was done over an open fire and a lot of wood was consumed in this process. The “windfall” was an unexpected gift of good fortune. Still used today the same way.

NOTES:

1. Webster’s New Universal Unabridged Dictionary, Second Edition, Simon and Shuster Pub., 1983, New York, New York.

2. Steven Struzinski, The Gettysburg Historical Journal, V1, Art. 7, 2002, The Tavern in Colonial America,

3. https://williamsburgprivatetours.com/old-colonial-era-idioms-sayings-we-use-today/, accessed August 10, 2020.