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3 Answers: (the second sounds best to me - but the real one is the third answer!)

The actual answer that I have always been taught is the first one. I have never heard of the second one.

1: P's n Q's: it actually means, Mind your Pints and Quarts. In Pubs when people would start arguing, the bartenders would tell them to mind their own drinks... being pints n quarts!

2: I always thought that Mind your P's and Q's meant to behave appropriately. Also I thought it meant that if you don't mind your P's and Q's You are irresponsible Because if P's and Q's were referred to as Penny's and Quarters and nobody minded or paid attention to them and you lost them then you would have lost your Pennies and Quarters, or P's and Q's.

3: When the Romans, who spoke Latin, went abroad to other parts of Italy to 'negotiate' with their neighbours, they had a problem. All of their neighbours spoke a version of Gaelic - a Celtic language nothing like Latin. The language was difficult to learn and, to make things worse, the primitive Europeans spoke two versions of it, which are still called 'p' Celtic and 'q' Celtic. Welsh and Breton are 'p' Celtic languages, Irish, Scots Gaelic and Manx are examples of 'q' Celtic. If you were a Roman 'negotiator', you had a problem because the neighbours did not wear signs to say whether they were 'p' or 'q' Celtic speakers, and they got offended if you addressed them in the wrong sort of Celtic, mainly because you implied that they were no better than the tribe of utterly uncivilized savages who lived next door. It was, unfortunately, impossible for important Roman visitors to avoid the 'p' or 'q' question. Today when you say 'Son' or 'Son of' in Welsh the word is 'map' - a 'p' Celtic word - and in Irish, the 'q' Celtic word is 'mac'. When the Roman greeted the Celtic chieftain, paying him the appropriate compliment of reciting the lineage of which he was the latest and most magnificent product, the Roman would have to mind his 'p's and 'q's. If he got it wroing and said the Chieftain was "Map Hugh", when he was "Mac Aodh", the same name but with a 'p' rather than a 'q', the Celtic chieftain might be so offended as to finish the diplomatic mission, there and then, with a big Celtic knife. The matter of minding your 'p's and 'q's was important even to ancient Romans.

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12y ago
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15y ago

Opinions vary; strongest advocates seem to separate into two large groups; beer drinkers' waiters and 'hot lead' typesetters A Barman's potboy needed to keep track of his 'pints' and 'quarts', i.e. p's and q's, making sure customers paid for all the beer they drank Typesetters using lead letters in their typesetting machines, which were made up 'backwards' so the page would print properly, had to be careful they never chose a p where they needed a q, and vice versa. I actually worked at a 'hot lead' newspaper in the early 70s, and was amazed how fast a story could be 'set'. I also made darn sure I never ever even came close to either a loosely set page or a bin full of either 'p's or 'q's I think both stories are great, so, I don't really care which one's right!

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12y ago

There are several theories of where this came from but the most widely accepted is from old English pubs. They served beer in pints and quarts. Some say the barkeep would remind roudy drinkers to keep track of the amount they were drinking by reminding them to watch their P and Q's. Others say the people serving the drinks would use it and still others say the young boys that kept the stock up would mind their P and Q's. I personally think the stock boy one makes the most sense.

Sailors were often paid by the ships captain with drinks when they docked at ports. The bar keeper would often change a pint to quart to charge more to the ship, so the saying "mind your p's and q's" was a warning to the sailor to check what he drank before signing off on the bill to the ship.

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15y ago

refers to pints and quarts, as in alchohol consumption and loose lips

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Q: Where did mind your P's and Q's come from?
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Mind your PS and Qs?

to be careful how you behave


What does the idiom mind your PS andQs mean?

Mind your Ps and Qs means to use good manners.


What does keeping up with your PS and Qs mean?

The term Keeping up with your Ps and Qs is generally quoted as Minding your Ps and Qs. This is an old term, which means to Mind your Pints and Quarts, which means to mind your own business, basically, or to take care of a task.


What is the plural possessive of p and q?

The plural form is Ps and Qs.The plural possessive form is Ps and Qs'.Example: Your Ps and Qs' training seems lacking.


What does mind you p's and t's mean?

Actually, it's mind your PS and qs. It means, be careful and meticulous in what you say and how you behave. When I was young, I did a little typesetting. Moveable type is lovely stuff, but it's the mirror image of the letters it prints; so a b in type looks like a d. Rotate a d, and you have a p; rotate a b and you have a q. Typesetters had to mind their PS and qs all the time.


Why is the sum of two rational numbers always rational numbers?

Suppose p/q and r/s are rational numbers where p, q, r and s are integers and q, s are non-zero.Then p/q + r/s = ps/qs + qr/qs = (ps + qr)/qs. Since p, q, r, s are integers, then ps and qr are integers, and therefore (ps + qr) is an integer. q and s are non-zero integers and so qs is a non-zero integer. Consequently, (ps + qr)/qs is a ratio of two integers in which the denominator is non-zero. That is, the sum is rational.


Why are rational numbers closed under addition?

Suppose x and y are rational numbers.That is, x = p/q and y = r/s where p, q, r and s are integers and q, s are non-zero.Then x + y = ps/qs + qr/qs = (ps + qr)/qsThe set of integers is closed under multiplication so ps, qr and qs are integers;then, since the set of integers is closed addition, ps + qr is an integer;and q, s are non-zero so qs is not zero.So x + y can be represented by a ratio of two integers, ps + qr and qs where the latter is non-zero.


Why is the difference between two rational numbers always a rational number?

Suppose x and y are two rational numbers. Therefore x = p/q and y = r/s where p, q, r and s are integers and q and s are not zero.Then x - y = p/q - r/s = ps/qs - qr/qs = (ps - qr)/qsBy the closure of the set of integers under multiplication, ps, qr and qs are all integers,by the closure of the set of integers under subtraction, (ps - qr) is an integer,and by the multiplicative properties of 0, qs is non zero.Therefore (ps - qr)/qs satisfies the requirements of a rational number.


What actors and actresses appeared in Ps and Qs - 1992?

The cast of Ps and Qs - 1992 includes: Lesley Joseph as Herself - Host Jonathan Meades as Himself - Host Miles Richardson Tony Slattery as Himself - Host


Why is the sum or product of two rational numbers rational?

Suppose p/q and r/s are rational numbers where p, q, r and s are integers and q, s are non-zero.Then p/q + r/s = ps/qs + qr/qs = (ps + qr)/qs.Since p, q, r, s are integers, then ps and qr are integers, and therefore (ps + qr) is an integer.q and s are non-zero integers and so qs is a non-zero integer.Consequently, (ps + qr)/qs is a ratio of two integers in which the denominator is non-zero. That is, the sum is rational.Also p/q * r/s = pr/qs.Since p, q, r, s are integers, then pr and qs are integers.q and s are non-zero integers so qs is a non-zero integer.Consequently, pr/qs is a ratio of two integers in which the denominator is non-zero. That is, the sum is rational.


Why is the difference of two rational numbers are rational numbers?

Suppose A and B are two rational numbers. So A = p/q where p and q are integers and q > 0 and B = r/s where r and s are integers and s > 0. Then A - B = p/q - r/s = ps/qs - qr/qs = (ps - qr)/qs Now, p,q,r,s are integers so ps and qr are integers and so x = ps-qr is an integer and y = qs is an integer which is > 0 Thus A-B can be written as a ratio of two integers, x/y where y>0. Therefore, A-B is rational.


Why is the multiplication of rational numbers always result in a rational number?

It follows from the closure of integers under addition and multiplication.Any rational number can be expressed as a ratio of two integers, where the second is not zero. So two rational numbers may be expressed as p/q and r/s.A common multiple of their denominators is qs. So the numbers could also have been expressed as ps/qs and qr/qs.Both these have the same denominator so their sum is (ps + qr)/qs.Now, because the set of integers is closed under multiplication, ps, qr and qs are integers and because the set of integers is closed under addition, ps + qr is an integer.Thus the sum has been expressed as a ratio of two integers, ps + qr, and qs and so it is a rational number.