[Ads-l] knock for a loop (1916), throw for a loop (1925)

Douglas G. Wilson douglas at NB.NET
Sat Jan 24 23:57:20 UTC 2015


Along with "knock for a loop" I see numerous instances of the synonymous 
"knock for a goal" back to 1915, often in boxing.

I also see (in baseball) in the same era "knock for a home run", "knock 
for a two-bagger", etc., where at a glance it's apparently the batter 
"knocking" the pitcher.

Maybe the "goal" is analogous to a "home run"? Hockey? Football?

Then what is the "loop"? Was "loop" ever used for "home run"?

Perhaps those more familiar with sports slang can make more of these 
expressions.

I also see "knock for a row", often expanded or elaborated (fancifully?) 
(e.g., "... row of garages", "... row of Chilean doorknobs", "... row of 
Chinese pagodas", "... row of duck pins", "... row of Nevada horse cars").

Mostly from GenealogyBank.

-- Doug Wilson

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



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