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Tie the Knot (Origin)
What Is the Origin of the Saying "Tie the Knot"?
The term "tie the knot" means to get married.Table of Contents
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Examples of Use:
- I'm not ready to tie the knot. I want the travel the world.
- Do you think they've tied the knot because she's pregnant?
- Jack and Jill will tie the knot in a quiet yet elegant ceremony.
The first known example of a knot being used for marriage comes from a Middle English version of "The Legend of St. Katherine" (circa 1225), which features the following line:
- "Swa ye cnotte is icnut bituhhen unc tweien." ("Cnotte" is Middle English for knot. This translates as "As we are fastened and tied together, so the knot is knitted between us two.")
- "So to the priest their case they tell: He ties the knot." (Matthew Prior wrote "Alma" during his 2-year (1715-17) impeachment by Robert Walpole, who is regarded as the first Prime Minister of Great Britain. "Alma" was Prior's longest humorous poem, showing he maintained his cheerful philosophy while kept in close custody.)
- "He has tied a knot with his tongue [vows], that he cannot untie with his teeth: that is, he is married." (This features in Grose's work "The Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue.")
- When I do tie the knot, it will be one time, for good. (Actor Shemar Moore)
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