Clichés and Sayings of the Victorian Era

Often in the historical books we read, we become fascinated and curious about some of the witty and thought provoking language of the time. So, we thought to invite you to travel back with us to the Gilded Age, to learn some of the popular lingo originating or in use during that fascinating period of contrasts.

Had Me Stumped : an American term derived from trying to plow in fields where stumps had yet to be cleared. One of its first written uses was featured in 1833.

Hand Over Fist: another Americanism, it started as Hand Over Hand, a nautical saying about climbing the rigging of a ship. By the 19th century, it had evolved to Hand Over Fist, and was used to refer to taking in something, i.e. money, rapidly..

Happy-Go-Lucky: another 19th century popular phrase, it means to be carefree, happy and unfettered.

Hard and Fast: as did Hand Over Fist, Hard and Fast also has its base in nautical lingo, originally referring to beached or dry docked ships. Thus using it for describing something which is fixed or rigid; unmovable.

Hard as Nails: another popular Victorian saying, and was used in Charles Dickens' "Oliver Twist" in 1837.

Hat's in the Ring: this term was coined around 1820, whereby a man accepted a challenge or dare by throwing his hat in the boxing ring. Became a very popular saying with politicians in the early 20th century..

Have a Field Day: a term which was popular by 1848, originally referred to troops marching for review or mustering for maneuvers.

Hear a Pin Drop: phrase believed to have originated in 1816 when used in "The story of Rimini" by Leigh Hunt.

Heart as Big as All Outdoors: again, thought to be American in origin, all outdoors encompassed a huge expanse. This particular saying was quoted by John Neal in 1825, only without the word "heart".

Heavens to Betsy: thought to be American, it's not sure just who Betsy was. The earliest it shows in print is 1892 in "Huckleberries from New England Hills" by R.T. Cooke.

Hell to Pay: the exact origin of this phrase is unknown, but Wellington used it in 1811 when fighting against Napoleon in the Peninsular War.

Hell-Bent for Election: popular with the politicians, of course, the term Hell-Bent itself had been used extensive as early as the mid 1830's.

Hell for Leather: Rudyard Kipling used this phrase in his 1899 "Story of the Gadsbys", and might have originated this saying used to describe racing at top speed for something, many times with abandoned..

High and Dry: used to denote something left stranded or lost, this term was popular in the mid 1800's and also had nautical origins, as in beached or stranded ships.

Hit Below the Belt: this term began in the boxing sport around 1865, when a rule was instituted that hitting an opponent below the waistline was being unfair.

Hit Pay Dirt : originated with the miners digging for gold out West, and was popular throughout the U.S. by 1884.

Hitch Your Wagon to a Star: this phrase was coined by Ralph Waldo Emerson in one of his essays circa 1870.

Hive of Industry: one of the creations of the industrial revolution in the latter 1800's, meant to denote a busy place.

Hog the Limelight: limelight was actually the first successful stage lighting which was developed in the early 19th century. Of course, to hog it was to become the center of attention.

Hold Your Horses: in the beginning, literally meant hold your horses. By the mid 1800's in was used to also describe impatient people.

Hold the Fort : you can thank William Tecumseh Sherman for this gem. He supposedly coined it while signaling to another general during the a Civil War battle in 1864.

Horse Sense: another 19th century American term, based upon the dependency of a horse and its tendency to do the right thing. It began to appear in print as a popular Western phrase by the 1870's.

Hot Stuff: 19th century slang term used for an original idea or project worthy of extra attention.

Imagination Runs Riot: this phrase originated in 1847 and was thought to be coined by Hugh Miller in his "First Impressions of England".

In a Pigs Eye: while this saying has been around awhile, it was first used in the negative sense around 1870, and used by a reporter who wrote satire.

In a Rut: while this saying has been around for a while, it was first used in print to define being in the same old routine in the 1839 "Essay on Chartism" by Thomas Carlyle.

In the Groove: no definitive starting date on this phrase, but its use to describe playing or working well was widespread by the late 1860's.

Iron Hand in a Velvet Glove: this phrase, which defers to a strength and power being disguised behind a false facade of gentleness, can be attributed to Napoleon in the early 1800's.

Ivory Tower: this is a term which is French in origin and was created by French writer Charles Augustin Sainte-Beauve in an 1837 poem, used to describe a place that is separated from reality.

Johnny Come Lately: the mid-1800's Americanized version of the early 19th century British saying, which was Johnny Newcome or Johnny Raw, tied to the nautical and meant a newcomer, such as a new sailor.

Keep Your Eyes Peeled: this saying of keeping alert or wary, was first noticed in print in 1833 in a Kentucky broadsheet but as "keep your eye skinned"; it was later spotted using the world "peeled" instead in a St. Louis newspaper in 1853.

Keep Your Shirt On: popular by the mid 1850's, it is thought to relate back to the premise of a man who disrobes from his coat and shirt in answer to challenge to a fight or duel, and used to mean to keep calm.

Keep a Stiff Upper Lip: probably a derivative of the British saying, "Keep your pecker up", and refers to the trembling of the upper lip when faced with danger or troubles. To keep a stiff upper lip is to face this danger with courage and without showing emotion.

Keep the Ball Rolling: originated in the presidential campaign of 1840, when part of the campaign gimmickry was William Henry Harrison rolling large balls at political rallies and parades, chanting the slogan, "keep the ball rolling.".

Kid Glove Treatment: this alludes to the soft and fragile quality of kid gloves and their allusion to elegance and nobility. To treat someone with kid gloves on was to treat them gently and delicately.

Kit and Caboodle: boodle (or buddle) is an old Dutch word, boedel, meaning a large crowd, and was used in the early 19th century with large frequency. Kit was in use long before the 1800's and has many meanings, including a portable collection of items, such as tools, etc. The "ca" on caboodle was simply an addition added onto the word, perhaps making it roll off the tongue better than kit and boodle. It denotes "everything" or the whole lot of goods.

Knee-high to a Grasshopper: popular by the mid 1850's, and meant short. Sometimes used with other animals such as frogs, toads, etc..

Knock the Spots Off: another U.S. invention, this phrase may relate to shooting at targets, or to fighting a pimply faced opponent and beating them badly enough to "knock the spots off". Whichever, it came into prominence by the mid 1800's and was used to convey beating one soundly or winning unanimously.

Know the Ropes: again, another saying tied to the nautical, and referring to the riggings and ropes used to handle ships. Its first known use in print to mean knowing your situation or the workings of a task, was in "Two Years Before the Mast" by Richard Henry Dana in 1840.

Knuckle Under: meaning to give in or submit, this version was first in prominence around the latter part of the 1890's, and refers to bending to one's knee in submission. Up until the late part of the 19th century, it was usually spoken as "to knuckle down".

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