CyderInACan Posted January 25, 2019 Report Share Posted January 25, 2019 Old but interesting article that for some reason I came across on twitter. Had always wondered why Nutmeg was the phrase we use and maybe this is why! Football is a funny old game as Greavesie used to say - and some of the language used is pretty odd too https://www.theguardian.com/football/2005/sep/07/theknowledge.sport "Where does the word nutmeg come from?" asks Kevin McDay and others. In previous Knowledges, we've examined several possible answers, including that nutmeg is 1940s cockney rhyming slang for leg. However, in his superb book Football Talk - The Language And Folklore Of The World's Greatest Game, Peter Seddon points out a far more likely etymology for nutmeg: that it comes from duplicitous practice in the nutmeg trade. As he points out, the verb nutmegged is listed by the Oxford English Dictionary as "arising in the 1870s which in Victorian slang came to mean 'to be tricked or deceived, especially in a manner which makes the victim look foolish'." The word arose because of a sharp practice used in nutmeg exports between America and England. "Nutmegs were such a valuable commodity that unscrupulous exporters were wont to pull a fast one by mixing a helping of wooden replicas into the sacks being shipped to England," writes Seddon. "Being nutmegged soon came to imply stupidity on the part of the duped victim and cleverness on the part of the trickster." Considering that so much of football's language dates from its formative years, that seems a better explanation for the word nutmeg than any we're heard before or since. It certainly sounds more convincing than Jimmy Hill's claim that nutmeg was coined during the 1940s to describe the skill of placing the ball between an opponent's legs before retrieving it the other side. Or indeed the suggestion made in Alex Leith's book, Over the Moon, Brian: The Language of Football, that nuts - a term commonly used for nutmeg in the north of England - "refers to the testicles of the player through whose legs the ball has been passed and nutmeg is just a development from this." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slartibartfast Posted January 25, 2019 Report Share Posted January 25, 2019 I always understood it to be rhyming slang for "legs" ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperDziek Posted January 25, 2019 Report Share Posted January 25, 2019 I was expecting this thread to have more spice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CyderInACan Posted January 25, 2019 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2019 48 minutes ago, slartibartfast said: I always understood it to be rhyming slang for "legs" ? I never had a clue and just accepted it as it was! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tinmans Love Child Posted January 25, 2019 Report Share Posted January 25, 2019 1 hour ago, SuperDziek said: I was expecting this thread to have more spice. If you want a modern twist on curry, Nutmeg in Clifton Village is well worth a visit! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vespa Red Posted January 25, 2019 Report Share Posted January 25, 2019 I recall one midweek trip to Walsall (circa 1987 maybe), my mate Jim turned up having had a night on the nutmeg (it brings a new meaning to "a night out on the spice"). He wasn't very well. Has anyone else had a "common household flavouring for hallucinogenic substitute experience?" This is Viz isn't it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AppyDAZE Posted January 25, 2019 Report Share Posted January 25, 2019 1 hour ago, Vespa Red said: I recall one midweek trip to Walsall (circa 1987 maybe), my mate Jim turned up having had a night on the nutmeg (it brings a new meaning to "a night out on the spice"). He wasn't very well. Has anyone else had a "common household flavouring for hallucinogenic substitute experience?" This is Viz isn't it? Nah, I'll just stick to smoking banana skins Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bristolmoose Posted January 25, 2019 Report Share Posted January 25, 2019 Is there a term for a triple nutmeg as seen performed last night by Kante? There should be, it was brilliant! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red-Robbo Posted January 25, 2019 Report Share Posted January 25, 2019 In France it's called a petit pont (little bridge). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CyderInACan Posted January 25, 2019 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2019 5 minutes ago, Red-Robbo said: In France it's called a petit pont (little bridge). At least that makes sense! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poland_exile Posted January 25, 2019 Report Share Posted January 25, 2019 2 hours ago, Tinmans Love Child said: If you want a modern twist on curry, Nutmeg in Clifton Village is well worth a visit! yes, had hoped this was going to be a post about curry! what a place, beats ashton gate for food hands down Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tinmans Love Child Posted January 25, 2019 Report Share Posted January 25, 2019 1 hour ago, poland_exile said: yes, had hoped this was going to be a post about curry! what a place, beats ashton gate for food hands down The lamb byriani with the naan bread seal is immense! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Show Me The Money! Posted January 25, 2019 Report Share Posted January 25, 2019 1 hour ago, CyderInACan said: At least that makes sense! You wouldn't shout it out after doing one though would you "PETIT PONT!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poland_exile Posted January 25, 2019 Report Share Posted January 25, 2019 25 minutes ago, Tinmans Love Child said: The lamb byriani with the naan bread seal is immense! spent five days back in bristol earlier in the month and ate there everyday! star turn for me: pork cheek vindaloo! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperDziek Posted January 25, 2019 Report Share Posted January 25, 2019 5 hours ago, Tinmans Love Child said: If you want a modern twist on curry, Nutmeg in Clifton Village is well worth a visit! Do they pass the curry dishes through your legs onto the table? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CyderInACan Posted January 26, 2019 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2019 14 hours ago, poland_exile said: spent five days back in bristol earlier in the month and ate there everyday! star turn for me: pork cheek vindaloo! Mmmmmmm Pork cheeks. Lovely. Think they’re also, weirdly, called Bath Chaps! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sniper Posted January 26, 2019 Report Share Posted January 26, 2019 My Gran used to put Nutmeg on top of the Rice Pudding, ******* horrible stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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