The Whole Nine Yards Post

This blog was initially going to have a few explanations to the origins of phrases used is everyday language, but quickly developed into the origin of just one. Namely where does the phrase “The Whole Nine Yards” originate? I will do a blog on the origins of some other phrases at a later date, but in the research stage many questions had arisen as to the origin of the above title.

One article I read about it was from an American author who states that the phrase didn’t appear in print before the early 1960’s. He didn’t do his research all that well because I found a reference to it in the USAAF manual and also it appears in the RCAF manuals circa World War 2.

The first time I read the phrase was in a private’s diary from the trenches of World War 1 on the western front. He was fighting during the first battle of Ypres and the sergeant gave the machine gunners the order “give the bastards the whole nine yards”. This was how long the belt was in the Vickers machine gun.(Pictured above)

Nine yards is also a phrase that tailors use. To make a good quality suit nine yards of quality cloth is used. This is where the expression “DRESSED TO THE NINES” comes from.

Going even further back into history, The Royal Navy ships used during the voyages of discovery had a phrase called the Ninth Yard. This refers to two things:

1. The three masts were situated three yards apart running along the centre line of the ship. Thus The Whole Nine Yards.

2. The Foremost sail was called Ninth yard because its leading bottom edge was nine yards away from the apex of the bow. The one behind that was the sixth yard. The nearest sail was called the third yard.

The Naval theme to this will be carried on fairly extensively in the blog referring to the origins of phrases used in everyday language. There are more references to this particular phrase and I suspect that this debate will just go on and on. Unlike me, I’m finished for now.

.