[Lexicog] "spin doctor"

[Fritz Goerling]

Hi there, Patrick,

As I am not a native speaker of English I believe you and Steve White, who
said the same about this term coming from sports.
As I play table tennis, I know what a top spin is. I don't know cricket but
have heard about the term "googly" (through Peter Kirk,
an Englishman on this list) which must refer to when you give the ball a
strong spin.

Thanks.

Fritz





  Hi again Fritz -

  The definition that you quote seems to me a good one, but I don't think
the expression has anything to do with spinning a yarn (which is a metaphor
from the wool trade).  It's from "putting a spin on [something]", which is,
I believe, a metaphor from either cricket or baseball. In cricket, unlike
baseball, the ball is allowed to bounce between the bowler (= pitcher) and
the batsman (= batter). Slow bowlers put a lot of spin on the ball, which
causes it to change direction quite dramatically when it bounces, thus
deceiving or confusing the batsman. I believe that in baseball spin causes
the ball to swerve in the air.

  I'm copying this to my former colleague Philip Durkin at OED; who may be
able to say when and where "spin doctor" originated and indeed whether the
metaphor is from cricket or baseball. (He will, I hope, correct any errors
in what I've said here.)


  Patrick Hanks

    ----- Original Message -----
    From: Fritz Goerling
    To: lexicographylist at yahoogroups.com
    Sent: Friday, May 21, 2004 6:37 PM
    Subject: RE: [Lexicog] Semantic extensions


    I am interested in the origin of the expression "spin doctor". Is this a
semantic extension or what
    has happend to "spin" in this expression? I found the following
definition:
    a public relations person who tries to forestall negative publicity by
publicizing
    a favorable interpretation of the words or actions of a company or
political party
    or famous person; "his title is Director of Communications but he is
just a
    spin doctor"
    My hunch is that this is close to the meaning of "to spin a yarn" (= to
tell a tale).

    Fritz Goerling




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