[Ads-l] "long drink of water" redux

[Ben Zimmer]

Thanks for this! The Scottish origin looks like a strong hypothesis based
on these cites:

---
John Service, _The Life and Recollections of Doctor Duguid of Kilwinning_,
1887, p. 103
Stair had grown up into a great lang drink, and would faukled, as Robin
Cummell said, if he fell.
https://archive.org/details/liferecollection00serv/page/103/mode/1up
cited by The Dictionary of the Scots Language:
https://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/drink
---
I’m sure I dinna ken' what she sees to admire in yon great big
ostrich-neckit lang drink o' water, wha only needs to be weel steepit in
tar to mak' a first-rate telegraph pole.
John Mackey, "Jessie’s Dream, or In Love with the Minister," _John o’ Groat
Journal_, Nov. 21, 1888, p. 3
https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/search/results?NewspaperTitle=John+o%27+Groat+Journal&BasicSearch=%22lang+drink%22
---

Ken Liss (who found the 1888 cite) has more on this on his blog:

https://etymology.kenliss.com/blog/long-drink-of-water/

--bgz

On Thu, Dec 4, 2025 at 1:12 AM Emily Gordon <
0000205244c4ee9d-dmarc-request at listserv.uga.edu> wrote:

> There are juicy speculations, Scots, and cites on this Stack Exchange post
> on the phrase:
>
>
> https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/235815/what-does-it-mean-to-call-someone-a-drink-of-water
>
>
> On Tue, Dec 2, 2025 at 10:12 AM Ben Zimmer <
> 00001aae0710f4b7-dmarc-request at listserv.uga.edu> wrote:
>
> > If we're looking at the same thing, the 1912 cite is actually for "tall
> > like a drink of water."
> >
> > ---
> > The Times (Hammond, Ind.), Aug. 6, 1912, p. 4, col. 7
> > Supposing then on the other hand that you're a sparse person and rather
> > tall like a drink of water.
> >
> >
> https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-times-tall-like-a-drink-of-water/186067856/
> > ---
> >
> > That similative usage is akin to Garson's 8/6/06 find ("'Fritz' looks
> like
> > a drink of water") and mine from 9/2/06 ("a figure like a long drink of
> > water"), as opposed to the full-on metaphor (as in the 11/12/06 cite).
> >
> > There's also a "long, tall drink of water" from 1914:
> >
> > ---
> > Birmingham (Ala.) News, Sept. 2, 1914, p. 10, col. 1
> > Long, tall drink-of-water Perryman heaved in such great shape for Atlanta
> > that the Barons were unable yesterday to score.
> >
> >
> https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-birmingham-news-long-tall-drink-of-w/186068104/
> > ---
> >
> > (Lanky baseball pitchers were often the ones being described as long/tall
> > drinks of water in the early days.)
> >
> > --bgz
> >
> > On Tue, Dec 2, 2025 at 7:36 AM Jonathan Lighter <
> > 00001aad181a2549-dmarc-request at listserv.uga.edu> wrote:
> >
> > > There's also a "tall drink of water," in Newspapers.com from 1912 and
> > > GenealogyBank from 1922.
> > >
> > > JL
> > >
> > > On Tue, Dec 2, 2025 at 1:26 AM ADSGarson O'Toole <
> > > 00001aa1be50b751-dmarc-request at listserv.uga.edu> wrote:
> > >
> > > > Interesting topic, Ben. Here is a slightly earlier match without the
> > > > "long".
> > > >
> > > > Date: August 6, 1906
> > > > Newspaper: Cole County Daily Democrat
> > > > Newspaper Location: Jefferson City, Missouri
> > > > Article: Local Epitome
> > > > Quote Page 3, Column 3
> > > > Database: Newspapers.com
> > > >
> > > >
> > >
> >
> https://www.newspapers.com/article/jefferson-city-tribune-drink/186052674/
> > > >
> > > > [Begin excerpt]
> > > > "Fritz" Raithel, the hot proposition on High street, left today for a
> > > > trip to Niagara Falls and Coney Island. "Fritz" looks like a drink of
> > > > water when he has Sunday clothes on and he will certainly startle the
> > > > New Yorkers.
> > > > [End excerpt]
> > > >
> > > > Here is a match with "drink of carbonated water".
> > > >
> > > > Date: May 26, 1906
> > > > Newspaper: The Atlanta Constitution
> > > > Newspaper Location: Atlanta, Georgia
> > > > Article: Grounds Damp; Nothing Doing
> > > > Quote Page 9, Column 3
> > > > Database: Newspapers.com
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > >
> >
> https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-atlanta-constitution-carbonated/186052840/
> > > >
> > > > [Begin excerpt]
> > > > All of the Atlanta players lost flesh on the road. Baxter Sparks says
> > > > he lost 20 pounds. He looks as if he'd lost a few surplus
> avoirdupois,
> > > > but if we were to lose 20 pounds he'd look like a drink of carbonated
> > > > water.
> > > > [End excerpt]
> > > >
> > > > Garson
> > > >
> > > > On Mon, Dec 1, 2025 at 11:03 PM Ben Zimmer
> > > > <00001aae0710f4b7-dmarc-request at listserv.uga.edu> wrote:
> > > > >
> > > > > Back in 2005, I posted about "long drink of water" = 'tall slim
> > person'
> > > > (in
> > > > > HDAS from 1936), with cites from 1914-15.
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > https://listserv.linguistlist.org/pipermail/ads-l/2005-May/049271.html
> > > > >
> > > > > In 2009, OED3 added "long/tall drink of water" to the entry for
> > > "drink,"
> > > > > taking it back to 1913. Here it is from 1906 (the first cite is
> > > > similative).
> > > > >
> > > > > ---
> > > > > Buffalo Times, Sept. 2, 1906, p. 40, col. 7
> > > > > Joe Moore, who has a figure like a long drink of water and who
> hails
> > > from
> > > > > Chicago, is known in the crook world as "Chicago Slim."
> > > > >
> > > >
> > >
> >
> https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-buffalo-times-long-drink-of-water/186047513/
> > > > > ---
> > > > > (New York) Evening World, Nov. 12, 1906, p. 4, col. 1
> > > > > Judge Charies N. Bulger, of Oswego, laughed heartily at the State
> > > > > Chairman's description of the tall, slender-necked Brooklyn
> statesman
> > > as
> > > > > a "long drink of water."
> > > > >
> > > >
> > >
> >
> https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-evening-world-long-drink-of-water/186046806/
> > > > > ---
>

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