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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
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G'day, Alan, and welcome aBoard! Is the French peter also the origin of our phrase peter out?
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Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 5
stranger
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stranger
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 5 |
One of the definitions for "peter out" is "exhaust", so I suppose there could be a connection there!
(My Oxford dictionary says the origin of "peter out" is unknown, so your guess is probably as good as anyone else's.)
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Joined: Sep 2000
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 2,891 |
I always heard peter out to mean gradually run out.
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Posts: 2,379
Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 2,379 |
<< always heard peter out to mean gradually run out. >>
Or to become exhausted.
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Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613 |
peter out to mean gradually run out. Yep: dissipate.
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Posts: 500
addict
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addict
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 500 |
And then there's James Barrie's remark when asked how his plays did: "Some peter out," he said, "and others pan out."
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Posts: 1,624
Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 1,624 |
 I can tell that you're going to have to shoot it out with Mr Remington, that son-of-a-pun, Elizabeth. Welcome to the looney-bin, by the way. You're a busy lady, judging you by your bio!
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Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 500
addict
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addict
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 500 |
Thanks! Delighted to be here with the other loons! One of the things that immediately occured to me about our word flatulopetic is that it's perfect for the seventh line of a double-dactyl - I've added it to my list....
Yes, I know it looks like I do a lot, but I'm one of those lucky folk who gets to do what she loves for a living. And I can write and knit while I watch the sap boil. Shoulda seen me before I gave up the sheep!
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Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 500
addict
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addict
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 500 |
Re: giving up the sheep - do tell! In my case it meant that the art biz sucked, and I couldn't afford to feed my sheep through the winter. Also it was becoming increasingly difficult to keep the fencing up, as a lot of it went through bush (forest, wood, woods, whatever - lotsa trees and undergrowth).
So what does it mean where you come from?
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