Let’s play Throwback Thursday
Words!
Since I
missed Wordplay
WEDNESDAY – I’m going today, for a Throwback
Thursday word.
Who
remembers when something you saw or heard became stuck in your … nope, not mind …
CRAW (krô) n. – 1) the crop of a bird
or insect; 2) the stomach of any animal – to
stick in the (or someone’s) craw,
to be unacceptable or displeasing to someone. [WW #54]
Growing up in the country lends itself to a different type of colorful vocabulary than
one learns in school, or the cities – especially when that growing up took
place in mid-twentieth century America.
Rurally
speaking, most everything once (now, not so much) revolved around animals – their importance to country life went far beyond providing
meat for dinner – their survival and “happiness” were paramount to ours.
So
we took notice when something was stuck
in their craw. It could have
been life threatening – before they were fat enough to make the centerpiece of Sunday’s
dinner – or often as not, become your lifelong friend.
While
the phrase in relation to people isn’t so dire, it is definitely irritating and
undesirable to have something stuck in your craw.
My
grandfather used the word fairly often while my father’s generation applied the
analogy to someone who has a stick up their …. well, you know that phrase.
However
you say it, adapting comparisons of animals to humans often makes for graphic
and amusing colloquialisms,
don’t you think?
Word of the Week: CRAW. Can you fit it into your next writing?
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