Shining On

[Jim Parish]

Douglas G. Wilson wrote:
> I wonder how the development went semantically. Chapman takes sense 1 as
> possibly originally referring to "mooning" someone (turning one's back on
> someone). I suppose sense 2 could be independently derived from the hunting
> practice of shining deer (baffling the animal with a bright light in order
> to kill it at close range) (just my casual speculation). I don't know
> exactly why the "on" in either case; maybe in sense 2 it could be inherited
> from "put on" or "lead on"?

A different, but possibly related sense which was prevalent in Santa
Barbara in the mid-'70s: "shine on <something>" or, more briefly, "shine
it", meaning not to do it, or to postpone it. I had the impression (possibly
incorrect) that it was derived from "Let the sun shine on it" or some
such phrase.

Jim Parish