The Mencken passage I quoted under 'Poker Words' raises a like question about baseball words.

H.L. Mencken (1880–1956), The American Language (1921):
The Englishman is naturally unfamiliar with baseball, and in consequence his language is bare of the countless phrases and metaphors that it has supplied to American. Many of these phrases and metaphors are in daily use among us, for example, fan, rooter, bleachers, batting-average, double-header, grand-stand-play, Charley-horse, pennant-winner, gate-money, busher, minor-leaguer, glass-arm, to strike out, to foul, to be shut out, to play ball, on the bench, on to his curves and three strikes and out.

These too are familiar to me in the US (except for 'gate money'. What about you on the other side of the pond?

Never heard of any one of them!

Seems like you've bowled us a googly there, Wordnerd.

When I was between six and twelve years old, in southeast Kansas, I and all of my playmates had a box of glass marbles under the bed. We played games, such as ... each player put three marbles in the center of a three- or four-foot-diameter ring drawn in the dirt, then take turns shooting from outside the ring, keeping whatever marbles get shot out of the ring. That was called "playing for keeps," which was forbidden by all mothers.

We called the marbles "doogies."

Has anyone else heard that word?

While looking for an etymology of googly online, I found a page that suggested that screwball was a similar term from baseball. I'd never heard of the baseball term (except in its extended meaning of eccentric or irrational), but am familiar with the cricketing term. It has always amazed me how many sports terms have made it into the language as metaphors.

Please note, I am not suggesting that the extended meanings of googly and screwball at at all similar or alike. They're not. Just the sports terms are as similar as two different games played with balls and bats can be.

Sorry, Jerry, I haven't heard of your "doogie."

Is "busher" in reference to our president? Bush league? I've never heard of that.

Many of the phrases listed are recognised over here as americanisms, and the gist is understood (usually by the context). A few (such as "fan" -- assuming that term did in fact originate with baseball), are used in everyday speech, and some (such as "three strikes and you're out" or "rain check") are borrowed on occasion.

We played for keeps as well in my Reading, England youth, however, we used chinas and alleys, with the odd catsize and ball-barian thrown in.

What's baseball then?

This time, Graham, I am not going to bite! Remember, I did with your questions about Michael Jordan.

'Fan' is surprising because it doesn't even sound like an Americanism.

Of the rest, a few would be easily understood if they were used metaphorically in a story without context: he struck out (he didn't even get to first base).

Some would give me only a vague idea of the intention: a double-header is something double, a batting-average is some kind of average score, a pennant-winner is something that wins (though with no idea whether the pennant is important or not), grand-stand-play might be the same as grandstanding, a minor-leaguer is someone of minor importance. That is, devoid of a baseball context, none of these metaphors really do anything for us unless it's obvious from the component words.

I would have no idea about Charley-horse, glass-arm (some kind of weakness? but what?), on to his curves, busher (except that I have heard of a Bush League, from a Peanuts cartoon, so I'd guess that that's minor minor). I believe bleachers are some part of the stands, but it wouldn't tell me anything about a person.

Charley-horse is a peculiar term, like cooties and hickeys and hives, Americanisms that I read or hear quite a lot, but never explained (well, no reason to explain common words) -- except that I never get any exact idea what they mean. Muscle-strain? Love-bite? Fleas? (I don't want to know; really.)

quote:

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Originally posted by Kalleh:
This time, Graham, I am _not_ going to bite! Remember, I did with your questions about Michael Jordan.

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Sorry, but I couldn't resist asking.