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#73934
06/22/2002 9:22 PM
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Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 1
stranger
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stranger
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 1 |
Does anyone know the origin of the phrase "fish or cut bait"? Does "cut bait" mean "cut up bits of bait to use when you get around to fishing, rather than sit there and waste time"? Or does it mean "cut the bait off the hook and throw it away, since you're not actually using it"? Thanks.
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#73935
06/22/2002 10:30 PM
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Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 819
old hand
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old hand
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 819 |
Hi, REDBLUE! I've always understood it to mean cut the bait off and quit pretending to fish. It suggests a half-hearted attempt, IMHO. I think its implication is similar to "poop or get off the pot," or, more recently, "hang up and drive!" 
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#73936
06/22/2002 10:37 PM
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Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858 |
Dear redblue: I remember seeing this phrase in stories about codfishermen. They had to work hard, and
waste no time, because fish might stop biting, or weather might change. Someone in the dory had to cut bait
for others to put on hooks and cast overboard. So when ashore, and impatient with someone wasting
time, or indecisive, "Fish or cut bait!" was a challenge to them to get moving.
Here's a discussion from a site I found:
"
Meaning
Either do some useful work or leave and let other get on with it.
Origin
US origin. Cut bait means stop fishing. "
(I don't believe "cut bait" meant stop fishing.)
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#73937
06/25/2002 5:48 AM
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Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 833
old hand
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old hand
Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 833 |
dear wwh, your explanation makes sense to me: do one or the other, but don't just sit around. Get busy. Either fish, or cut (up) bait for those who are fishing.
Let us go in peace to love and serve the board.
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#73938
06/25/2002 9:15 AM
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Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296 |
I think both explanations make sense. I wonder which one is really the original? Somebody better start fishing for the right answer, or cut out baiting us with tempting suggestions!
Waiting with bated breath,
WW
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#73939
06/25/2002 1:36 PM
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Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 819
old hand
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old hand
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 819 |
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#73940
06/27/2002 2:19 AM
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Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 45
newbie
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newbie
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 45 |
I once worked with a voluble Glaswegian who had a joke and/or story for every occasion and would often while away work time chatting. One of the commonest phrases he would use when going back to work was "Well, I'd better go - this is neither fishing nor mending nets". I always loved that one, and I guess it is a close relative of the "fish or cut bait" discussed here.
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#73941
06/27/2002 2:39 AM
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Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858 |
Dear Geoff: "Baited breath" Have you seen the comments on Altoids in some of the alternate newsgroups? A new dimension to Monica Lewinsky's specialty. Here's URL: http://urbanlegends.about.com/library/blaltoids.htm
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#73942
06/27/2002 2:42 AM
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Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 2,605
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 2,605 |
Altoids? Ah, the invaluable research this board provides!
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#73943
06/27/2002 2:49 AM
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Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858 |
Keiva: you are not welcome to post anywhere on AWADtalk.
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#73944
06/27/2002 10:42 AM
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Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 2,379
Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 2,379 |
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