Origin of "scot-free"

English Edification Enrichment-
What is the meaning and origin of "scot-free"?


When you say that someone escaped "scot-free" what you are implying is that the individual escaped a tricky situation without being punished or harmed. The expression carries with it a sense of dissatisfaction. You feel that the individual deserved to be punished, but he wasn't. Here are a few examples.

* His father is a politician and so he got off scot-free.

* Sanjay got away scot-free because people refused to testify.

* Renu made sure that Jyothi didn't get off scot-free.

Many people think that the "scot" used in the expression refers to the people in Scotland. It doesn't. "Scot" is the old word for what we today call "tax". So in the old days when you got off "scot-free" you got off "tax-free". In other words, you escaped without having to pay your taxes. Nowadays, it's only politicians who manage to escape scot-free!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A good manager has at least 10 good qualities!

A Good Manager (Part - 1) A good manager has at least 10 good qualities The attributes of a good manager. There isn't a magic formula for good management, of course, but if you're a manager, perhaps these tips will help you be more effective: 1 Choose a field thoughtfully.  Make it one you enjoy. It's hard to be productive without enthusiasm. This is true whether you're a manager or employee; 2 Hire carefully and be willing to fire.  You need a strong team, because a mediocre team gives mediocre results, no matter how well managed it is. One mistake is holding on to somebody who doesn't measure up. It's easy to keep this person on the job because he's not terrible at what he does. But a good manager will replace him or move him to where he can succeed unambiguously; 3 Create a productive environment.  This is a particular challenge because it requires different approaches depending on the context. Sometimes you maximize productivity by giving everybody hi...
Read more

English Edification Enrichment (12)

What is the meaning and origin of the expression "once in a blue moon"? When something happens "once in a blue moon" it happens very rarely. Here are a few examples, * My brother George lives in Russia. I see him once in a blue moon. * We have visitors once in a blue moon. * How often does Tendulkar come to office? Once in a blue moon. There are several explanations as to the origin of this expression. According to scientists, whenever a volcano erupts, the sulphur and dust particles that are thrown up into the atmosphere often cause the moon to appear blue for some time. When the volcano on Krakatoa (an island between Java and Sumatra) exploded in 1883, rocks were hurled thirty miles high into the air and dust from the volcano fell nearly three thousands miles away. After this eruption the moon looked blue for several days. Luckily for us, volcanoes don't erupt every day, so a blue moon continues to be a rare phenomenon. Another explanation offered by scholar...
Read more

What is Work-life balance? Why it is important? Let us split this in to 5 segments 5 ways to maintain work-Life balance.

Image
What is work-life balance, and why is it important? How the  work we do for a living takes priority over everything else in our lives.  How our want to excel professionally can push us to go to any length damaging our well-being. Work-life balance is the state of evenness where an individual equally prioritizes the requirements of his or her career and the requirements of one's personal life. What causes work-life imbalance? Who or what is the culprit? The causes are - Accountability at work Overspending Being the only provider at home Long hours spent at work Who or what is the culprit? Over two decades before, I remember this supervisor to whom I used to report was so much against employee’s well-being. One day when I was leaving after my day’s work at around 630 pm the supervisor casually asked if I am going home straight? I mentioned I am heading to the gym for a workout f rom the very next day he mailed everyone to assemble for a meeting at 630pm.  How is this? Emp...
Read more