It was necessary to keep a good supply near the cannon. In cold weather the sea spray would turn to ice thus freezing the cannon balls together and onto the ring. When the drop is enough the balls will fall off and roll around. Cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey idioms. Aug 16, 2007 this expression does not literally mean what you are thinking. The phrase brass monkey weather refers to very cold weather that is extremely out of the ordinary. Finally, if you are having trouble getting to sleep, here is the alleged historic derivation of the term cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey. When they used cannons on ships there was a rack for holding the cannon balls called a brass monkey when it got to cold the cannon balls would shrink faster than the brass cannon ball stand and fall through the holes. They say that in cold weather, the brass would expand faster than the iron balls, causing the balls to fall off and roll around the deck creating havoc for the crew.
Cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey meaning and. The reference to the testes of the brass monkey appears to be a 20thcentury variant on the expression, prefigured by a range of references to other body parts, especially the nose and tail. Freezing the balls off a brass monkey at last, today was the first day the snow and ice had sufficiently receded to allow us in to the national park park, we we were up at our usual lazy time and got down to breakfast at about 9. The other day, i used the expression brass monkey weather and was asked to explain. The phrase cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey is a colloquial expression used by some english speakers. When cold the iron cannon balls wouldnt fit in the cannon. Cannon balls were made of iron and the classic brass monkey was made of brass, an alloy with a muchgreater thermal expansion than iron. Supposedly when the monkey with its stack of cannon ball became cold, the contraction of iron cannon balls led to the balls falling through or off of the monkey. Freeze the balls off a brass monkey posted by li yar on september 02, 2004.
However, how to prevent them from rolling about the deck. In the heyday of sailing ships, all war ships and many freighters carried iron cannons. It was a bitterly cold, snowy and windblown evening in early january when i told my son that it was, cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey. The webs largest and most authoritative phrases and. The brass monkey freeze indicator our brass monkey freeze indicator is more than an attractive desk ornament and paperweight. Jun 18, 2014 so chilling as to freeze the balls off a brass monkey. Central otago hoar frost enough to freeze balls off a. Jun 23, 2016 we are about to freeze the balls of a brass monkey as the epic tv crew head to iceland for a bone chilling surf trip. In winter water in the stand would turn to ice and expand, thus freezing the balls off the brass monkey. Cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey tebyan net.
In those days, cannonballs were stacked beside cannons in a pyramid formation called a brass monkey. To freeze the balls off a brass monkey means it is very cold. The plates had indentions in them that held the balls on the bottoms of the stacks. The origin of the phrase cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey. Freezing balls off a brass monkey archive straight. Was cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey a. The question is, has this oftsuggested scenario ever come to pass. Download a free grammar checker download grammarlys app to help with eliminating grammar errors and finding the right words. See more ideas about bathroom heater, electric radiators and infrared heater. The atlantic diversions crew of chris mcclean and noah lane packed the warmest. It was a cold snap in the middle of spring with winds cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey. The most popular version is that in the days of sailing ships, armed with cannons, the iron cannon balls had to be close to the cannon itself. This is generally perceived as a humorous reference to some unfortunate brass monkey who loses his testicles if the weather is too cold. So this is were the quote, cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey comes from.
The reference to the testes as the term balls is commonly understood to mean of the brass monkey appears to be a 20thcentury variant on the expression, prefigured by a range of references to other body parts, especially the nose and tail. Theres also some kind of football game in town tonight, meaning people wearing strange clothes in strange colours are wandering about drunkenly. The phrase cold enough to freeze the balls off or on a brass monkey is a colloquial expression used by some english speakers. It is cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey and mine are considerable more sensitive. He could charm the tail off a brass monkey, make you laugh, show you a good time. Origin and meaning of cold enough to freeze the balls off.
A monkey is a rack made of cast brass or light bronze used to contain a stack of cannon balls, a bit like a modern set triangle. In napoleonic times cannon balls were stacked high on a stand called a brass monkey. Central otago hoar frost enough to freeze balls off a brass monkey. And so the phrase cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey was born. A brass monkey was used to hold the cannon balls in a pyramid shape, when it became freezing cold the holder brass monkey would contract and the cannon balls would fall off. What does cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey expression mean. Stick around till the end to find out the meaning behind the phrase its cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey, its my favorite. Naval historical center, which cites the random house historical dictionary of american slang, the first recorded use of the term brass monkey appears to dates to 1857 when it was used in an apparently vulgar context by c. As the temperature drops, the brass monkey contracts more than the iron balls. The saying, its so cold out there it could freeze the balls off a brass monkey, comes from the civil war. The phrase finder takes exception to the previous answer. It is usually used with the qualifier enough, a verb, and some physical appendage of the monkey, most commonly in the semivulgar phrase, cold enough to freeze the balls testes off a brass monkey. Thus came the expression, cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey.
The storage method devised was to stack them as a square based pyramid, with one ball on top, resting on four, resting on nine, which rested on sixteen. Freeze the balls off a brass monkey phrase meaning and origin. Balls off a brass monkey december 29, 2017 december 31, 2017 leland olson hoel it has oftentimes been said winter time in south dakota usa gets so cold it will freeze the balls on a brass monkey, which sounds like a very serious thing for the monkey. Aug 12, 2008 the expression cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey supposedly comes from the navy. Add be cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey to one of your lists below, or create a new one. Meaning of be cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey in english. When i was growing up in upstate pennsylvania, my father used to declare this would be the fate of a brass monkey exposed to the kind of cold we had in the mountains.
The term to freeze the balls off a brass monkey is exactly that. It was made of brass and the cannon balls were not, so when it got cold enough, the two metals would contract by different amounts and the cannon balls would no longer fit properly in the holder and thus fall off. Abbey in his book before the mast, where on page 108 it says. I went into a house this morning that was cold enough to freeze the. Over riders attending the 2018 brass monkey rally are sleeping in belowzero. We are about to freeze the balls of a brass monkey as the epic tv crew head to iceland for a bone chilling surf trip. Found on your site the common story about this expression the one about the stacks of cannonballs on the ships deck and its debunking. If the base of the stack were one metre long, the drop in temperature needed to make the monkey shrink relative to the balls by just one millimetre, would be around 100 degrees celsius. Add be cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey.
Definitions, usage examples and translations inside. Where does the term freezing the balls of a brass monkey. When references to brass monkeys started appearing in print in the mid19th century, they did not always mention balls or cold temperatures. Freeze the balls off a brass monkey posted by peter on september 01, 2004. Its cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey definition.
Freeze the balls off a brass monkey posted by bob on september 01, 2004. If there were such thing as a fitting called a monkey designed to be affixed to a ships deck to constrain cannonballs, it wouldnt be unusual for it to be made of brass, bronze or copper just because these metals can be polished up to look nice, and to resist corrosion. Skuff tv surf how to freeze the balls off a brass monkey. A the full expansion of the phrase is cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey and is common throughout the englishspeaking world, though much better known now in australia and new zealand than elsewhere. The big one, of course, is cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey, often rendered as brass monkey weather. Freeze the balls off a brass monkey posted by ward on september 01, 2004. This is one of those sticky, but entirely untrue, stories. The phrase cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey didnt rear its head into common usage until the 20th century. Its cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey definition and. When the temperature dropped to around freezing the brass would contract thus causing the cannon balls to fall onto the gun deck.
In very cold weather the brass would contract, spilling the cannonballs. Dec 08, 2016 brass contracts faster than iron when it gets really cold, so when the temperature dropped on deck, the brass monkey would shrink, and the cannonballs would pop out. The origin of the phrase cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey the short version. A brass monkey was in fact a rack used on gun ships during the napoleonic wars to store cannon balls. Some references say that the brass triangles that supported stacks of iron cannonballs on sailing ships were called monkeys and that in cold. A brass monkey is a naval term for the holder that holds the cannon balls. This expression does not literally mean what you are. Definition of cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey in the idioms dictionary. Notwithstanding the doubtful veracity of the etymology, cannonballs are disposable, ships fittings arent. If its said to be cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey it is very cold indeed. The two balls are traditionally mounted on brass arms, which were called monkeys by sailors in the 18th and 19th centuries.
It has often been claimed that the brass monkey was a holder or storage rack in which cannon balls or shot were stacked on a ship. The brass monkey in cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey wasnt a stack of cannonballs or a brass three wise monkeys paperweight. Add be cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey to one of your lists below. So chilling as to freeze the balls off a brass monkey. Theres no evidence to prove that that variant existed in the 19th century. My dad called this freezing the balls off a brass monkey. Some references say that the brass triangles that supported stacks of iron cannon balls on sailing ships were called monkeys and that in cold weather the metal contracted, causing the balls to fall off. Early references to brass monkeys in the 19th century have no references to balls at all, but instead variously say that it is cold enough to freeze the tail, nose, ears and whiskers off a brass monkey.
Cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey definition and. Freezing the balls off a brass monkey calkins harbor. Thus, it was quite literally, cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey. Nov 11, 2012 bear grills is in the harsh massachusetts wilderness. Also known by the derivative phrase brass monkey weather. Cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey definition. One explanation has it that the balls were stacked in the familiar pyramid configuration with a wooden triangle holding the bottom layer together.
Freezing the balls off a brass monkey at last, today was the first day the snow and ice had sufficiently receded to allow us in to the national park p. What is he doing writing a blog about such a topic. Freezing balls off a brass monkey archive straight dope. May 25, 2008 a monkey was a kind of tray on wooden fighting ships that held stacked up cannon balls. Some of them are insistent on showing their team tshirts, no matter that its cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey. When exposed overnight to below freezing temperatures, an amazing phenomenon occurs. To freeze the balls off a brass monkey origin and meaning. This expression, which is normally used in relation to the weather is also known by the derivative phrase brass monkey weather. Mar 17, 2015 freezing the balls off the brass monkey, a navy phrase about cannon ballsfiction summary of erumor. When it became extremely cold outside, these stacked cannonballs would crack and break off. Freezing the balls off a brass monkey the high road.
These constructions were nicknamed brass monkeys by seamen who gave us the expression cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey. Freezing the balls off a brass monkey national gun forum. Freezing the balls off the brass monkey, a navy phrase. Download our english dictionary apps available for both ios and android. Cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey. In very cold weather the rope would contract and the balls would no longer fit and then fall off. Definition of its cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey from the collins english dictionary.
Theyd be off the cannon in the same way a child might be off his food. In the 1700s cannon balls and black powder were carried by boys referred to as powder monkeys. The best storage method devised was a squarebased pyramid with one ball on top, resting on four resting on nine. This piece of alleged history explains that in the olden days of sailing ships, cannon balls were stacked on the decks on brass plates called monkeys. The atlantic diversions crew of chris mcclean skuff tv surf freezing the balls off a brass monkey on vimeo. From the phrase cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey. The expression is derived from the original its cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey. And as for the actual differences in these coefficients, visavis iron and brass.
And, just to get you in the mood, click here for the recipe for the brass balls cocktail drink, or for the kick in the balls cocktail drink. Contact us advertise national gun forum archive top powered by vbulletin. When it got really cold the plate would contract at a different rate to the balls and they would fall off. Cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey by edje. All of these variations imply that an actual monkey is the subject of. It therefore seems most likely that the phrase is simply a humorous reference to the fact that metal figures will become very cold to the touch in cold weather. Consequently, when the temperature dropped too far, the brass indentations would shrink so much that the iron cannon balls would come right off the monkey. Hence the phrase cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey. I dont even understand it never mind know where it comes from.
Explanation for the cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey phrase in the dictionary. Looking for phrases related to the word cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey. Origin and meaning of cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey the only consensus to the explanation of this expression is that there is no consensus. Cannonballs were apparently stacked on brass plates the monkey and held in place by a circle of waxed rope. Brass, however, expands and contracts with the temperature and if it got cold enough, the cannon balls could fallgiving real foundation to the phrase cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey.
According to mythology, it came about because in the age of sail, cannon balls were apparently stored on deck in neat pyramids, contained by a brass tray supposedly known as a monkey. Few landlubbers realize that brass contracts much more and much faster than iron when chilled. Skuff tv surf freezing the balls off a brass monkey on vimeo. Cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey appears to have originated in the usa.
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