Chrysti The Wordsmith: The Whole - 4

Greetings verb of yours. I'm Christie the wordsmith from Montana State University in Bozeman. Recently on this series we've been exploring the abundance of cliches beginning with the words the whole w h o l e such as the whole enchilada and the whole nine yards. Both of which mean all everything. The total amount last time we pulled up three of the many possible explanations for the origin of the whole nine yards. Some think it refers to the capacity of a cement mixer truck. Others claim it's related to the length of ammunition belts in World War Two fighter planes. While some sources assert that nine yards of fabric the whole nine yards was the perfect amount for the construction of a wedding dress or burial shroud. Other words Miss claim the origin lies in the maritime trade and that the yards in this expression are actually yard arms or spans that held the sails of a vessel. Since each mast of a three masted sailing ship carried three yard arms a ship sailing with the whole nine yards

arms or yards was fully seaworthy and operational. Everyone has a favorite derivation of this common expression. If yours wasn't mentioned in this roster send it on through my website wordsmith radio dot org. Next time I'm Christie the wordsmith another in this family of phrases. The whole kit and caboodle David divorce. CHRISTIE The wordsmith a sponsored by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and Zoot enterprises a high tech firm in Bozeman Montana offering challenging careers and innovative solutions for the financial services industry. Zoot web dot com.