"shade-tree mechanic", not in (some) dictionaries

[Benjamin Zimmer]

On Wed, Feb 25, 2009 at 10:17 AM, Laurence Horn <laurence.horn at yale.edu> wrote:
>
> At 8:13 AM -0500 2/25/09, Bill Palmer wrote:
>>What is the issue?  The widespread use of the phrase?
>>
>>I have lived all over the US, and, in one circumstance or another, have
>>heard the term very often.
>
> I haven't lived an entirely sheltered life, having resided in and
> around NYC, upstate NY, MA, CA, MI, WI, and CT, and had never heard
> the term until encountering in the song noted below, which led me to
> suspect that there's a strong regional component to it.  It's also in
> neither AHD4 nor the OED, which led me to suspect it's not all *that*
> widespread, given the fact that (unlike, say, "tractor mechanic")
> it's not entirely transparent.

Not having lived on the other side of the isogloss, I had always assumed it was
simply a fresh-air version of the "armchair" modifier (MWCD: "remote from
direct dealing with problems : theoretical rather than practical"). That
analogy certainly works for "philosopher" and "engineer", which can take either
modifier. But it doesn't always correspond -- would-be mechanics are more likely
to hold forth under the shade tree, while would-be quarterbacks and generals are
restricted to the armchair.


--Ben Zimmer

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