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Where does the phrase fix his wagon come from?In: Idioms and Slang |
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Googlebooks shows this phrase no earlier than mid-20th Century. I'd be inclined to call it modern, but haven't pinned down the origin.
It is not in Wordsworth Dictionary of Proverbs, The Oxford Dictionary of Slang, Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, or Partridege's Dictionary of Catch Phrases. I am advised by a colleague that it is not in the OED.
A somewhat similar phrase, American, with the same meaning, dates back to before 1860. 'Fix his flints.'
See 'London Society' ed. James Hogg, Florence Marryat, 1872, page 492 and 'Life and Sayings of Mrs. Partington,' Derby and Jackson, 1860, p 252. Both are available in Googlebooks.
(n.b. To 'fix flints' in a literal sense means to set them in place in a gun.)
Usage in the phrase, 'fix his wagon to a star', seems unrelated. That phrase is Emerson, 1870, from Society and Solitude.
First answer by Writerjob. Last edit by Writerjob. Contributor trust: 0 [recommend contributor]. Question popularity: 1 [recommend question]
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