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An Arm and a Leg (Origin)
What Is the Origin of the Saying "An Arm and a Leg"?
The term "an arm and a leg" means very expensive. It is usually seen the phrase "It costs an arm and leg."Table of Contents
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Examples of Use:
- Nice car! That must have cost an arm and a leg.
- Going to university used to be free in the UK. Nowadays, it costs an arm and a leg.
- Their burritos cost an arm and a leg, but they're the best in town.
Competing Theory
This term originates from America after World War II. During the war, many servicemen lost arms and legs. Therefore, for some, the price of the war was "an arm and a leg." Of course, this was a high price for anyone to pay for anything, and it soon came into common usage to mean "expensive."Competing Theory
This term is an amalgamation of "I would give my right arm for something" and "Even if it takes a leg," which are ways of expressing a costly sacrifice to get something.Competing Theory
The term "an arm and a leg" originates from how portrait painting were priced. Paintings featuring just a head and shoulders were the cheapest. Larger, full-body paintings (i.e., those with arms and legs) were far more expensive. Detractors of this theory note that the term is far more recent than when portrait paintings were fashionable.Previous and Next Sayings
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