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by anonymous on August 10th, 2006

anonymous

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Who came up with the expression "The cat's out of the bag"?

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  • by maddock on August 10th, 2006

    maddock

    The generally accepted origin of this idiom is middle English:

    "In medieval England, piglets were sold in the open marketplace. The seller usually kept the pig in a bag, so it would be easier for the buyer to take it home. But shady sellers often tried to trick their buyers by putting a large cat in the bag. If a shrewd shopper looked in the bag - then the cat was literally out of the bag."

    Comments

    • Wow, you learn something every day! Thankyou!

      anonymous

      by anonymous on August 11th, 2006

    • And that is also the origin of the phrase that poor buyer used when he got home and "let the cat out of the bag."

      "Never again will I buy 'a pig in a poke'" (poke = bag)

      shsh38

      by shsh38 on February 24th, 2010

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