What''s the point of getting ducks in a row?

[JulieN]

So you can shoot them?

 

[Lorelei]

I believe that is where the saying came from!

 

[laine]

Too funny! I never even thought about what the phrase meant.

 

[RoseAngel04]

Is this a serious question?!

 

[FireGoddess]

What is the origin of "ducks in a row"??

(Etymology)

Brewer''s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, ISBN 0-06-270133-9

An American expression meaning to have one''s arrangements completed, to have things organized or lined up; or, literally, to have one''s skittles set up. In an American bowling alley the skittles, or pins, are called ducks.

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From the Phrase Finder Forum

Primitive versions of modern bowling were known many centuries ago. Pins of varied sizes and shapes were employed. Eventually they were standardized at fifteen inches in both height and circumstances. Originally called ten-pins, the equipment used in Europe was employed in the earliest American bowling saloons. The game was modified by introduction of a short, slender pin that was compared with a duck and, by extension, called them duckpins. So many people reset so many pins in rows that one who completes a task is commended as having put his ''ducks in a row.''

http://phrases.shu.ac.uk/bulletin_board/4/messages/707.html

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From the Forty Ducks page

How simple it seemed. My marks were excellent. The second year, reading Caesar''s Gallic wars was not. That''s where "Forty Ducks in a Row" came into being. Caesar''s Latin actually read, "Forte Dux in Aro" - translated to "Brave Leader in Battle". We wise guys merely visualized it the other way perhaps because it was easier to remember.

http://www.backinthebronx.com/magazine/issue.XXI/fortyducks.htm

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From Chuck Moreland''s Phrases with Origings page

Baby ducklings swim in a straight line behind the mother duck. If the ducklings stray to far, the mother duck will get them back in line, that is get her ducks in a row.

http://members.aol.com/MorelandC/HaveOriginsData.htm#DucksInARow

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Other possibilities

As a nickname for the soldiers of the Bombay Presidency

From a children''s game called "duckstones"

From an arcade game of marksmanship involving plastic ducks

From a sailor''s trousers, called "ducks".

From military tents made of untwiled linen

From a tank (or similar military vehicle) formation

From the formation ducks use when flying low over water

Of these selections, we suggest that Brewer''s explanation is the most plausible.

 

[ChargerGrrl]

Julie, you crack me up!

 

[JulieN]

Thanks, FG!

 

[fisherofmengirly]

Hmm, I thought a Skittle was a candy, not a duck.

You learn something new everyday. My quota''s met.

 

[bookworm21]

Speaking of ducks in a row....guess what I saw at Disneyland?

 

[bee*]

awwww-they''re gorgeous. I used to foster baby ducklings if there mothers abandoned them and they are just beautiful animals. When they matured into adults, they were reintegrated back in with the others and I love seeing them now as most of them have had their own ducklings now.

 

[IrishAngel7982]

Cinderella~
That''s so cute and incredibly fitting!

 

[Aurelia]

Hello ladies... back when I was an office drone (now an RN and far happier) this picture was racing through the cubicles. I saw this thread and remembered it

Aurelia

 

[FireGoddess]

Date: 8/3/2006 5:57:51 PM
Author: Cinderella
Speaking of ducks in a row....guess what I saw at Disneyland?

Awwwwwwwwwwww cute little duckies!!!

 

[IrishAngel7982]

Aww another cute picture of lil duckies!!!

 

[Fancy605]

Awe! I love ducks. I have a crazy dream of having a duck pond someday. I used to have a pair of ducklings when I was a kid. They were soooo fun.

 

[~*Alexis*~]

These are ducks in a row......................

 

[IrishAngel7982]

YES more ducks! How are you doing Alexis?

 

[~*Alexis*~]

A little better. Things have slowly changed. We are on a trial period and if he messes up thats it. I have some of my stuff packed and what not just in case....I looked at getting a strorage space ad they are pretty cheap and I think I might just go and get one and not tell him and just put stuff in there. Besides it would clean out the attic at least...

 

[IrishAngel7982]

Good for you for sticking to your guns! Stay strong!

 

[JCJD]

I really dislike this phrase when it is used as an excuse for putting something off (like engagement or having children). Ducks breed you know, so there's always a stray duckling not lined up with the others.