Superfluous wheels again

[Neal Whitman]

My column at Visual Thesaurus (by subscription) picks up the discussion
of "third wheels" and "fifth wheels" that Charlie Doyle began here
(http://listserv.linguistlist.org/cgi-bin/wa?A2=ADS-L;55bc4661.1303E).
Garson's 1949 antedating of "third wheel" still stands. COHA has "fifth
wheel" back to 1839, always in a simile comparing someone's utility to
that of "a fifth wheel to/on a wagon/cart/coach."

There's also some information about "friend zone" the verb: past
participle "friendzoned" from 2007; unmistakable preterite "friendzoned"
from 2009.

http://www.visualthesaurus.com/cm/dictionary/third-wheeling-it-in-the-friend-zone/

Neal

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