fruity workers - Wordsmith.org

Hello!

I'm desperate to find this out for a competition at work...

Has anyone ever heard of any fruit that is sometimes called a "black-coated worker"?

I've tried everywhere I can think of to come up with this but with no success.

I'm guessing it could be a blackcurrant, but who knows?
It's probably UK idiom but not one I'm familiar with.

Anyone? :)

G

Never heard of it. Have you tried plugging it into a search box (google or other) and see what you find?

That's a new term to me too, although it may well originate in the UK. I'm puzzled by the term "black-coated" - doesn't seem to fit the blackcurrent somehow, made me think of prunes (they have a reputation for working!), but I'm somewhat colour blind and someone just told me that prunes are purple, not black as I always thought. So I, at least, have learned something!

dxb.

dxb: Prunes do look black. I think you may be onto something, but probably googling will be the best bet.

I got no hits googling:

"black-coated worker" fruit

I also got no hits googling:

"black-coated fruit"

I know - it's got me completely stumped.

I've tried about half-a-dozen search engines, online dictionaries, real-live paper dictionaries, but nothing even came close.

Weird...

I'm beginning to think they've completely made it up!

Perhaps the question was supposed to be "In *my house* what fruit are called blak-coated workers...?"

:)

If I ever find out the answer, I'll be sure to let y'all know!

G

Dear Ny:

Thanks for letting us know.

I think dxb's answer that a prune is a black-coated worker makes an awful lot of sense. Dried prunes really do look black and their skins can peel off like a coat, and, as dxb pointed out, there is "work" they do.

Best regards,
WW

Waded through some pycckuu stuff about clerical workers and then found this:

http://www.royal-navy.mod.uk/static/pages/386.html

Good instincts, dxb.

And great research, Faldage!

And, if wwh is reading this thread, check out Faldage's site! You'll enjoy reading the terms there.

Fantastic! Thanks a million.

That's an amazing piece of detective work there - how did you come to end up on a site of naval slang? Was it just serendipity or an informed guess?

Thanks to everyone for their input, much appreciated.

G

I googled "black-coated worker". The first couple of sites were about the clerical workers (including one in Russian, AKA pycckuu) but the ninth hit was the Bingo.

Gonna split the prize with us?

Geez! First-hit! "black coated workers slang" -- 3 hits... Royal navy, Aussie Navy, and Zildean navy (don't start with the 3 boats, SJM!

)...slang for stewed prunes!

http://www.royal-navy.mod.uk/static/pages/350.html

http://www.gunplot.net/traditions/Navalterminology.html

Also, coal miners.

You feeling like chopped liver yet, Faldage?

P�t�, m'dear, p�t�.

In reply to:
Also, coal miners.

Since the question was about fruits, Juan, do you mean to imply that coal miners are fruits?