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Is it "The Coast is Clear" or "The Ghost is Clear"?

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Previous

check out my new Swatch
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Shaanyboi

Banned
Coast.

As in "the coast is clear, there is nobody around to shoot at our boats if we need to make land" during wartime. I don't know if this the actual reason, it's just what always made sense to me.
 
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Earthpainting

Member
Here's what a quick Googling comes up with:
"The phrase first appears in print in 1531 where it describes a vessel which had safely cleared the coast, then later Shakespeare used it in 'Henry VI' as a reference to visibility.
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Now vessel is most likely referring to a spiritual vessel, which alludes to the physical body. These ghosts clear the coast of existence, as in they pass on from this plane to the next. Putting the pieces together, the saying means that your soul is at rest, and you are not going to be stuck down on Earth haunting folks. Shakespeare's penchant for adding ghosts to his stories is widely known, so it makes sense that he'd use it.
 
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Haly

One day I realized that sadness is just another word for not enough coffee.
hydrophilic attack said:
While we're at it :

It's "toe the line"

not

"tow the line"
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Tow the line has taken on its own definition at this point i think.

It rankles me as well but what can you do? At least it makes logical sense unlike "could care less".
 
eXistor

eXistor

Member
Why don't people stop to think for just a second? That solves most questions right there. Every time I hear a phrase or see a word I don't know, I look it up. Why the hell would it be "up and Adam"? Think about it and it makes zero sense. Why not look it up and within seconds you'll have found the answer and you're a smarter person for it. It really baffles me how people could even think the things they do sometimes. I know the thread is most likely made for fun, but the stupidity of people on even the simplest of things really bothers me.
 
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Poppy

Member
i used to think that segue had one syllable and that there was a different word for the "segway" pronunciation

but i'm pretty sure i didn't think that it was actually the word "segway"

so in conclusion i remember i got a concussion once when i was about 8 years old
 
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Forerunner

Member
Numb said:
Break a leg
Why do people want my leg to break if they mean well?
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I was curious so I looked it up.

Break a leg is an idiom in theatre used to wish a performer "good luck" in an ironic way. Well-wishers typically say break a leg to actors and musicians before they go on stage to perform. The origin of the phrase remains obscure. The expression reflects a theatrical superstition in which wishing a person "good luck" is considered bad luck. The expression is sometimes used outside the theatre as superstitions and customs travel through other professions and then into common use. Among professional dancers, the traditional saying is not "break a leg," but "merde."
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hydrophilic attack

Member
Haly said:
Tow the line has taken on its own definition at this point i think.

It rankles me as well but what can you do? At least it makes logical sense unlike "could care less".
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Does it though?

The phrase means: "conforming to rules and standards". As in lining up before a military inspection, or sporting event. What does it have to do with towing?

Being a semantics nazi is tough
 
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Spectone

Member
Shaanyboi said:
Coast.

As in "the coast is clear, there is nobody around to shoot at our boats if we need to make land" during wartime. I don't know if this the actual reason, it's just what always made sense to me.
Click to expand...

No I think its main usage came from smugglers who would want to know if authorities had staked out the beach. Spies on land would check it out then signal that the coast is clear to ships offshore which would then land and unload their cargo. Thus the phrase may be even older than the 1531 occurance.

Which makes me ask, when did this sort of smuggling start? Smuggling is originally a way to get goods past authorities so they don't need to pay import tax. When was the first usage of import tax? Did the ancient Romans or Chinese tax imports? Or was it done later? Smuggling is also a way to get supplies and weapons through to insurgents as well but that would be a rarer use.
 
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FUME5

Member
I thought "break a leg" originated in theatre, someone broke their leg before a performance, leading to the understudy playing the part and going on to be a star.

So, good luck for you, not necessarily everyone else.
 
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Media

Member
Not going to go through the whole thread, but I believe the term the coast is clear came from either naval/military reasons. Correct me if wrong.

Or perhaps civilian reasons like weather trouble?

Anyhow, it just means you are safe.

Edit: wait this makes more sense.

Spectone said:
No I think its main usage came from smugglers who would want to know if authorities had staked out the beach. Spies on land would check it out then signal that the coast is clear to ships offshore which would then land and unload their cargo. Thus the phrase may be even older than the 1531 occurance.

Which makes me ask, when did this sort of smuggling start? Smuggling is originally a way to get goods past authorities so they don't need to pay import tax. When was the first usage of import tax? Did the ancient Romans or Chinese tax imports? Or was it done later? Smuggling is also a way to get supplies and weapons through to insurgents as well but that would be a rarer use.
Click to expand...
 
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