The Whole Nine Yards

Hi, everyone.  I have a fascinating idiom for you today,  The Whole Nine Yards.  The Phrase Finder website states that of all the English idioms that are examined for their origins and meanings there, this phrase is asked about the most often.  Everyone agrees about what it means:

All of something; the full measure or extent of something. To fully encompass or perform something

I was mugged. They took my wallet, my keys, my shoes, – the whole nine yards!

Four bedroom home, located in Country Club Estates. Running distance from Golf Course. Completed and ready to move in. This home has "the whole nine yards" in convenience 

He give' the executive board  the whole nine yards"  and read an item-by-item report on the project that took over two hours

 

Yet, it is about the origin of the phrase that people have widely different opinions.

Here's a list of the many and various suggested origins sent in by readers of that website. This piece is quite long, so here's a summary:

• The earliest known citation of the phrase in print is from 1964, which argues strongly against any of the supposed mediaeval, Victorian or even World War II origins.
• The weight of circumstantial evidence, based on the number of early citations, is that the phrase originated in the American military, although the context of the coinage is uncertain.

It is very possible that the phrase was coined by servicemen in Vietnam. In this case, the probable  source for this would be the Montagnard hill tribes (pronounced "Mon-tan-yard),of which there were nine tribes  who lived in the northern highlands of Vietnam. They  were referred to by  a slang  name that the US forces had given them: 'the Yards'. Thus, The Whole Nine Yards.  Judging on the basis of the first time that this phrase actually appears in print, this is the strongest candidate for the origins of the idiom. Other strong possibilities are:

• • The length of RAF Spitfire's machine gun bullet belts. (9 yards/27 feet).
  • The length of ammunition belts in ground based anti-aircraft turrets, etc. No evidence to show that any of these measured nine yards has been forthcoming.
    
    
• Tailors use nine yards of material for top quality suits. Related to 'dressed to the nines'?
  
  
• The derivation has even been suggested as being naval and that the yards are shipyards rather than measures of area or volume. Another naval version is that the yards are the spars of sailing ships. The name for the spar that hold the sails is a yard. Large sailing ships had three masts, often with three yards on each. The theory goes that ships in battle can continue changing direction as new sails are unfurled. Only when the last sail, on the ninth yard, is used do the enemy know which direction the ship is finally headed.
  
  
• A mediaeval test requiring the victim to walk nine paces over hot coals.

The origins put forward are astonishingly various and, by definition, as there can be but one actual origin of the phrase, almost all are entirely wrong. So no one really knows the origins of this idiom, but this are the most popular choices for its origins.

Here are the current percentage scores.

Catch on

For some strange reason, some ideas just don't catch on

Today's phrasal verb is  Catch On.  It has two  meanings. The first one is:
To finally understand or perceive what is going on.

Everyone else realised what was happening, but it took Henry ages to catch on

Notes: Intransitive
Synonyms: Get the hang of, pick up, figure out

The second meaning is:
To become popular

Many  music critics were shocked when techno caught on  in the clubs.
It wasn't long before the internet caught on.  Virtually everyone and their grandmother was "online". 

Notes:  Intransitive
Synonym: Succeed

Jockey For Position

Those horses and their jockeys are working hard to "jockey for position".  Three of them will end up in the Winner's Circle.

Today's idiom is Jockey For Position, which means:

1. Literally,. to work one's horse into a desired position in a horse race.  

 

The racehorse,Magical Wine, was behind, but jockeying for position. 

 

2. Figuratively,  to work oneself into a desired position.  If a number of people want the same opportunity and are struggling to emerge as the most likely candidate, they are jockeying for position.

 

The political candidates were jockeying for position, trying to get the best television exposure.  

I was jockeying for position with the other guys to see who could date Monica, but I didn't have enough  money.

The basketball players jockeyed for position under the backboard for the rebound

Play Someone Off Against (someone else) and Play Both Ends Against The Middle

My guess is he knows a lot about how to play his enemies off against each other.

Today's phrasal verb is Play Someone Off Against (someone else), which means:
To  scheme in a manner that sets opposing parties or interests against one another so as to advance one's own goal: to have more control or power over a situation.  

Ichiro wanted to beat me up and so did Kazu. I did some fast talking and played them off against each other. They ended up fighting and I was able to get away!. 
The president played the House off against the Senate and ended up getting his own way.
He played the two salesmen off against each other to get the best deal. 

Notes: Separable [obligatory]
Synonym: outwit, double-cross

Both of these characters from "Lost" were very good at playing both sides against the middle, especially one the one the right, Ben.  John showed he could play people off against each other, too, as time went on in the series.

Today's idiom, Play Both Ends Against The Middle, is actually a synonym, in idiom form, of today's phrasal verb, Play Off Against, and therefore requires no further definition.

My stepson is a master of playing both ends against the middle between his father and I.

Narrow Down and In The Offing.

He's narrowed down his options of what to next to just playing!

Today's verbal phrase is Narrow Down, which means:

To reduce a list of possibilities from many to a selected few.  

We can narrow the choice down to green or red.
I am not sure which university to apply to, but I have narrowed my list down to three.
I cannot narrow down the rules for this game.  It is complex and you will simply just have to play it and lose a few times before you understand its finer points.

Synonyms:pin down, nail down, narrow, peg down, specify, determine

Today's idiom is In The Offing.  It means:

An event that is imminent or likely to occur soon in the near or immediate future

With exams finished and graduation in the offing, the students enthusiastically celebrated.

Plans for a new highway through this are are in the offing.

Jack: I thought that we were going to get a new copier?  Jill: It's in the offing. It will probably arrive sometime next month.

 

Origin

 

This another one of the many phrases of nautical origin. It is quite simple to understand once you know that 'the offing' is the part of the sea that can be seen from land, excluding those parts that are near the shore.  Someone who was watching out for a ship to arrive would first see it approaching when it was 'in the offing' and expected to dock before the next tide. Something that is 'in the offing' isn't happening now or even in a minute or two, but will inevitably happen before long. The phrase has migrated from its naval origin into general use in the language and is now used to describe any event that is imminent. 'The offing', although more usually used in the context of ships arriving, derives from the adjective 'off',

Chalk Up and Chalk Up To

The world's oldest equine twins, Bill and Ben, have chalked up another milestone; reaching 25 at their seaside retreat in Wales, where they continue to keep staff on their toes. I have two related phrasal verbs Today.  The first is Chalk Up, which means: To score or achieve something, or record a score or victory The company has chalked up its highest ever profits. I chalked up another five kilometers of jogging today.  That makes 20 that I completed this week. I make it a point to chalk up all of my daily expenditures every day so I know how much money I am spending.  Notes: Separable [optional] transitive verb : score, mark up, rack up, gain, win, obtain, get, collect, accumulate  You can chalk up this wonderful piece of art to some very wonderful children The second phrasal verb is Chalk Up To. It means: To explain the reason for a situation, often a problem They chalked the poor sales up to the lower numbers of tourists visiting this year. You will just have to chalk up losing your girlfriend because of your bad temper to experience.  Notes: - Separable [obligatory]

To Be In (The) Good Graces Of

This game winning shot put him back in the good graces of the fans, making up for his previous bad performance the night before

Today's idiom is To Be In The Good Graces Of.  It means,

To be in favor with.

 

I'm finally in the good graces of my girlfriend again.  She accepted my gift and apology.

I'm back in the good graces of my boss.  I  have been working as hard as I can for weeks to  make him forget my last mistake.

Sharon is in the good graces of her landlord. Because she a perfect tenant, he just installed a new refrigerator in her  apartment. 

I like to get in the good graces of my professors.  I find that it really helps my final semester grade. 

The origin of this idiom is difficult to say.  It has to do at least  a couple of the meanings of the word "grace" : generosity of spirit: a capacity to tolerate, accommodate, or forgive people and the  gift of God to humankind: in Christianity, the infinite love, mercy, favor, and goodwill shown to humankind by God

 

Synonym:  To be in good standing with 

Antonym: In the bad graces of, out of good grace with