Etymology is fun! It’s especially fun to learn about the quaint old-fashioned practices that gave rise to some of the words we use. Stereotype comes from printing, hard-up comes from sailing, pipe dream comes from opium dens.
Cultural practices change, technology changes, but words stick around—and not just in some long ago, far away place. It’s happening all around us as we speak, a hard truth that mental_floss editor-in-chief Jason recently had to face up to.That’s right. Kids these days don’t know where hang up comes from, and those of us who remember the pre-cell phone era are already receding into the mysterious, etymological past. Here are 15 etymologies to answer the questions of future English speakers. Because the future is already here.
1. WHY DO WE “HANG UP” A PHONE?
Phones used to have two parts to them, a base and a receiver. In order to end a call, the receiver had to be placed or “hung” on the base. (continue reading)