The word "pound"
is abbreviated 'lb.' after the constellation 'libra' because it means
'pound' in Latin, and also 'scales'. The abbreviation for the British
Pound Sterling (£) comes from the same source: it is an 'L' for
Libra/Lb. with a stroke through it to indicate abbreviation (same goes
for the Italian lira which uses the same abbreviation ('lira' coming
from 'libra'). So British currency (before it went metric) was always
quoted as "pounds/shillings/pence", abbreviated "L/s/d"
(libra / solidus / denarius).
The word "dollar" first originated in the Roman Empire. A mining hole in the mountains of Bohemia produced so much silver it became the official source of coinage for the entire Holy Roman Empire. The mine was in a valley called Joachimsthal, and the coins came to have the same name: "Joachimstalers." Over time this became shortened to "Talers" and over more time, the American pronunciation of the word became the name for the currency that you would most like to have in your pocket.
The $ sign was designed in 1788 by Oliver Pollock, a New Orleans businessman, using a combination of Spanish money symbols.
It is believed that Shakespeare was 46 around the time that the King James Version of the Bible was written. In Psalms 46, the 46th word from the first word is shake and the 46th word from the last word is spear.
The word "Checkmate" in chess comes from the Persian phrase "Shah Mat", which means "the king is dead".
The common goldfish is the only animal that can see both infra-red and ultra-violet light.
The word "Sheriff" comes from Shire Reeve. During the early years of feudal rule in England, each Shire had a Reeve who was the law-keeper for that Shire. When the term was taken to the United States it was shortened to Sheriff.
February 1865 is the only month in recorded history not to have had a full moon.
Many Japanese golfers carry "hole-in-one" insurance, because it is traditional in Japan to share one's good luck by sending gifts to all your friends when you get an "ace". The price for what the Japanese term an "albatross" can often reach $10,000.
The correct response to the Irish greeting, "Top of the morning to you," is "and the rest of the day to yourself."
The Chinese ideogram for 'trouble' symbolises 'two women living under one roof'.
No word in the English language rhymes with month. Try it out here! ..... http://www.rhymezone.com/
In Disney's "Fantasia", the Sorcerer's name is "Yensid" (Disney backwards.)
The cruise liner QE-2 moves just six inches for each gallon of diesel that it burns.
The word 'byte' is a contraction of 'by eight.' The word 'pixel' is a contraction of either 'picture cell' or 'picture element.'
In the Wizard of Oz, Dorothy's last name is Gail. It is shown on the mail box.
The letter W is the only letter in the alphabet that doesn't have just one syllable... it has three.
The term "the whole 9 yards" came from WWII american fighter pilots in the South Pacific. When arming their airplanes on the ground, the 0.50 calibre machine gun ammo belts measured exactly 27 feet, before being loaded into the fuselage. If the pilots fired all their ammo at a target, it got "the whole 9 yards."
In case you ever find yourself piloting a dogsled, shout "Jee!" to make the dogs turn left and "Ha!" to go right. "Yeeha!" is a cowboy word for fun.
The 'y' in signs which read "Ye Olde..." is properly pronounced with a 'th' sound, not 'y'. The "th" sound does not exist in Latin, so the Romans occupying Britain used the rune "thorn" to represent a "th" sounds. With the advent of the printing press the character from the Roman alphabet which bore closest resemblance to "thorn" was the lower case "y".
If you toss a penny 10,000 times, it will not be heads 5,000 times, but more like 4,950. The heads picture weighs slightly more, so it ends up on the bottom more often.
"Speak of the Devil" is short for "Speak of the Devil and he shall come". It was believed that if you spoke about the Devil it would attract his attention. That's why when you're talking about someone and they show up, people say "Speak of the Devil!"
If your eyes are six feet above the surface of the ocean, the horizon will be about three statutory miles away.
The names of all the continents end with the same letter that they start with, e.g. Asia, Europe, Australasia, America.
Dr. Samuel A. Mudd was the physician who set the broken leg of Abraham Lincoln's assassin, John Wilkes Booth. His shame created the expression for ignominy, "His name is Mudd."
Never kill a dragonfly. It only has a 24-hour lifespan.
Rabbits love liquorice.
A walla-walla scene is one where the extras pretend to be talking in the background. When they say "walla-walla" it looks like they are actually talking.
The phrase "rule of thumb" is derived from an old English law which stated that you couldn't beat your wife with anything wider than your thumb.
Some biblical scholars believe that Aramaic (the language of the ancient Bible) did not contain an easy way to say "many things" and used a term which has come down to us as 40. This means that when the bible -- in many places -- refers to "40 days," they meant many days.
Whether you're a Man, a Whale or a Shrew you're life will consist of approximately one and a half million heartbeats. Then you die. Elephants live to about 100 years; Man to about 75; and Shrews - well, you get the point!
