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Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
Joined: Aug 2002
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I never looked at the phrase "by and large" until we watched WALL-E last night but when I did it made me curious. I use it to mean "for the most part" but how did it get that meaning?
Anyone know?
Last edited by Zed; 05/20/09 06:08 AM. Reason: edited for clarity, I hope
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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By and large: with the wind abaft the beam. Sailors delight.
Abaft: to the rear of; aft of: the fife rail abaft the mainmast. In the direction of the stern; astern; aft.
One leading to another. Fife? Turned into a traverso flute.
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Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
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So "by and large" meant tacking back and forth to average the right direction.
Thank you I have a whole new concept for the phrase now.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Me too! That's pretty cool!
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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So "by and large" meant tacking back and forth to average the right direction.
Thank you I have a whole new concept for the phrase now. Tacking is only needed when sailing into the wind. When the wind is coming from the stern, or, indeed, from any direction abaft the beam, there is no need to tack.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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...So you can head straight to your destination without going by and large?
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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In the older, square rigged ships it was not possible to sail into the wind. I'm not sure the etymology offered by the AHD makes any sense, but there you go.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Wgat others have to say: World Wide Words, The Straight Dope, The Phrase Finder, and Scuttlebutt. Thus you see the ship handled in fair weather and foul, by and learge. Samuel Sturmy The Mariners Magazine 1669.
Ceci n'est pas un seing.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Quinion's explanation swells; that of the Dope, blows.
-ron o.
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