Chrysti The Wordsmith: For the Birds

Greetings This is Christy Smith Christy the wordsmith from KGO FM and Bozeman Montana. The expression that's for the birds refers to something trivial worthless or nonsensical. Someone might say for example those people actually jump into a lake in the middle of the winter that is for the birds. Well not as popular as it once was 60 years ago the expression was definitely hip and up to the minute especially among American G.I. eyes during World War 2. A former soldier interviewed for the language quarterly called American speech in 1957 said in 1942 when I entered the army the disparaging term that's for the birds was in common use among officers and enlisted men. The metaphor alludes to birds eating droppings from horses and cattle and most dictionaries concur with this soldier's assessment of the phrase's origin. The cliche has been linked to the undigested grain in horse and cow manure which small birds can glean and eat such an an appetizing meal at least by human standards is fit for no one but the smallest and lowliest of birds

giving us a metaphor for something worthless trivial or ridiculous. But in another theory the expression originates in the chicken yard where birds are fed the scraps and leftovers rejected by people. The food is rotten or unpalatable and therefore strictly for the birds. Kristie the wordsmith has recorded and produced in the studios of am on the campus of Montana State University in Bozeman. Good day verbal horse. Christi the wordsmith is 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.