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Where does the term acting the goat come from?
We also find ‘acting the goat’ from 1879, when H. Hartigan included it in his memoir Stray Leaves from a Military Man’s Note Book: “Don’t be actin’ the goat.” From ‘acting the goat’ and ‘playing the giddy goat’, it isn’t much of a jump to ‘acting the giddy goat’.
What does it mean when you goat someone?
informal. : to upset or irritate someone The way she’s always correcting other people really gets my goat!
What does the phrase get your goat mean?
To make someone annoyed or angry: “Gavin may seem unflappable, but I know a way to get his goat.” This expression comes from a tradition in horse racing. Thought to have a calming effect on high-strung thoroughbreds, a goat was placed in the horse’s stall on the night before the race.
What does OJ stand for slang?
OJ means “Only Joking.” “Only Joking” is used after a comment to let the recipient know it was meant only in jest.
Where does the phrase act the Giddy Goat come from?
The phrase ‘act the giddy goat’ (or ‘play the giddy goat’) wasn’t coined from scratch but was built up by degrees from earlier phrases. ‘Giddy’ has been used to mean foolish or stupid since the first millennium and has been applied as an adjective to all sorts of creatures.
What is the meaning of the idiom play the goat?
To behave comically or playfully, often to amuse others. Joe never plays the goat—he’s always serious. If you to play the goat, you’re going to have to leave the classroom. Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2015 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
Where did the phrase’play the giddy ox’come from?
Prominent amongst these was the ox and there are several citations of ‘play (or act) the giddy ox’ which pre-date the ‘giddy goat’ variant; for example, the British comic Ally Sloper’s Half-Holiday used the phrase in a March 1892 edition: “Fanny Robinson was flighty; she played the giddy ox – I mean, heifer.”
Where does the saying’don’t be actin the goat’come from?
“Don’t be actin’ the goat.” From ‘acting the goat’ and ‘playing the giddy goat’, it isn’t much of a jump to ‘acting the giddy goat’. This is the ‘giddy’ phrase that has lasted, possibly because of the alliteration. Also, the behaviour of goats can well be called giddy; they are certainly capricious – ‘capra’ is the Latin for goat.