While the phrase retains its military application, it now carries the suggestion of extreme fastidiousness in maintaining a sharp, scrubbed, disciplined appearance. This expression found its first widespread use in the armed forces, where it alluded to the common custom of spitting on a shoe or other leather item and buffing it to a high polish. Spit and polish Meticulous attention given to tidiness, orderliness, and a smart, well-groomed appearance. It would seem that in dropping the new from the expression the emphasis shifted from newness itself to those qualities usually associated with new things such as freshness, cleanliness, tidiness, and neatness. According to the OED the longer expression first appeared in the late 1500s, while the abbreviated term more popular today came into use about 1665. Orderliness is a synonym for neatness in tidiness topic. Spick and span Spotlessly clean, neat and tidy a shortened form of the expression spick and span new meaning ‘completely brand-new.’ Although the exact origin of the expression is unknown, it has a possible connection with span ‘a chip or piece of wood’ and the obsolete meaning of spick ‘spikenail.’ Thus, a brand-new ship would have all new spicks and spans. Neatness noun The state of being neat and smart and trim. In the event of a fire, for example, you dont want obstacles like. Said when Bristol was in its palmy commercial days … and its shipping was all in proper good order. As well as preventing your employees from getting sick, cleanliness can also save lives. Commanders (ENTJ), unsurprisingly, prefer an orderly and structured environment, with over three-quarters (76) of Commanders agreeing that a tidy home is important to them. Obsessions about neatness and cleanliness are experienced by. An entry under “Bristol fashion and shipshape” in Smyth’s Sailor’s Word-book (1867) reads: As I mentioned, no two cases of OCD are alike, and OCD can take thousands of diverse forms.
EXAMPLES OF NEATNESS AND TIDINESS FULL
The word often appears in the full phrase all shipshape and Bristol fashion, dating from the days when ships of Bristol, famous for its maritime trade, were held in high regard. The original nautical term meant fully rigged or ship-rigged, as opposed to temporarily or jury-rigged. This proverbial simile, which dates from the 1780s, is said to have derived from the fact that a whistle must be clean and dry in order to produce a sweet, pure sound. Some theorize the expression derived from the French cap-à-pie Trom head to foot’ others see it as a corruption of the French nappes pliées ‘folded linen.’ The story that it gained popularity in the United States because of the systematic and orderly arrangement of apple slices in pies baked by New England women is at least as amusing as the others are credible.Ĭlean as a whistle Very clean completely clean also clear or dry as a whistle. The OED’s first citation is from Sir Walter Scott in 1813.
The phrase may seem “as American as apple pie,” but its origin is British, and murky. Apple-pie order Excellent or perfect order.
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