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priming the pump

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May 13, 2017, 21:45
Kalleh
priming the pump
This phrase has been in use for more than 80 years this site says, and yet Donald says he coined the phrase. Oh. My. This site likens our president to a modern-day Henry the VIII.

Language Log talks about it here, and finds it in use from at least as far back as 1921.
May 13, 2017, 22:44
arnie
Language Log (of course) has articles on this here and here.


Build a man a fire and he's warm for a day. Set a man on fire and he's warm for the rest of his life.
May 15, 2017, 10:03
bethree5
Next thing you know, he'll be claiming he took the initiative in creating the internet! Surprisingly, Gore was not exaggerating. (Can't paste url's just now. Google "Gore invented the internet, select the snopes.com link, scroll down & read the cite from Kahn & Cerf.)
May 15, 2017, 17:33
BobHale
No. Next thing he'll be saying that while he didn't make the world, if he had he'd have done it in five days and under budget. Of course he probably wouldn't have paid the sub-contractors.


"No man but a blockhead ever wrote except for money." Samuel Johnson.
May 15, 2017, 17:40
BobHale


Or maybe he'll be the new Doctor Who and he did coin the phrase because he travelled back in time to do it... and then went on to build The Great Wall of China


"No man but a blockhead ever wrote except for money." Samuel Johnson.
May 15, 2017, 20:32
Kalleh
That is interesting about Gore, Bethree.