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Where did the expression shake a leg which means hurry up come from?In: Idioms and Slang |
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In the days of wooden ships and iron men, ships of war would go to sea for many months at a time. As a sign of rank having its privilege, senior ratings could bring their wives aboard for the deployment. The crew slept in hammocks in the mess decks which were rigged each night and unrigged (triced up) at reveille. Women did not have to turn out right at reveille but waited until the men were clear. The master-at-arms while enforcing reveille, to make sure that the person still in the hammock was a woman, would demand that she 'show a leg', later morphed into 'shake a leg'.
Source: Scuttlebutt from more than 50 years ago.
First answer by Bats1. Last edit by Bats1. Contributor trust: 1 [recommend contributor]. Question popularity: 0 [recommend question]
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