"my first rodeo"

[Laurence Horn]

...and a nice addition to the catalogue of negative polarity items, given the unlikelihood of the relevant reading of its appearance in positive contexts like "Sorry, this is my first rodeo".  (Actually there are a few positive first rodeos, but they're in the same ballpark as e.g. "Give a damn!")

LH

On Sep 22, 2011, at 5:02 PM, Jonathan Lighter wrote:

> Several two-dimensional images on cable news lately, including Gov. Perry,
> have used the phrase "This isn't/ain't my first rodeo."
>
> David Barnhart mentioned the expression here in 2006 after it was uttered by
> G. W. Bush.
>
> That was the year YBQ appeared. Next edition, it should go in.
>
> JL
>
> --
> "If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org

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The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org