See CAN’T COMPLAIN.
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have a good/half a mind to, to
To be strongly inclined toward; to be somewhat inclined toward. The first term began life back in the fifteenth century as having a great mind to do something, as in “I have a great mynd to be a lecherous man” (John Bale, Kyng Johan, c. 1550). In 1674 Lord Claren- don wrote in History of the Rebellion, “The duke of Lorrayne had a very good mind to get a footing in Ireland.” The second phrase, which implies indeci- sion—half of one’s mind inclines one way and the other half the other way—was known by 1700 or so and appeared more and more often in the nineteenth century. “She had half a mind to reply,” wrote Edward Bulwer- Lytton (My Novel, 1853).
have a conniption fit, to
Display hysteria; an extreme emotional upset. This term dates from the early 1800s. Seba Smith had it in Major T. Downing
(1860), “And Keziah fell down in a conniption fit.” The phrase has a rustic sound and is heard less often today.
have a bone to pick, to
To have a point to argue, an unpleasant issue to discuss, or a complaint. This term, which alludes both to a dog worrying a bone and to two dogs fighting over a single bone, dates from the early six- teenth century. “I will add this, which may be a bone for you to pick on,” wrote James Calfhill (Answer to Martiall, 1565)—that is, an issue to worry
to death. “There is a bone for the gastronomers to pick,” Sir Walter Scott was quoted as saying about 1830, denoting something for more than one person to argue about.
haul/rake over the coals, to
To administer a severe reprimand. The term alludes to the medieval practice of pulling an alleged heretic over the coals of a slow fire, which is described in numerous sixteenth-century church chronicles. By the early nineteenth century the term had been trans- ferred to more benign kinds of punishment, often signifying only a severe scolding, as in Byron’s poem “Beppo” (1818): “They’d haul o’er the coals.”
hat in the ring, to put/throw one’s
To enter a contest; to become a candidate in an election. This expression comes from boxing, where in the early nineteenth century the practice of throwing one’s hat into the ring indi- cated a challenge. “Throw in his hat, and with a spring get gallantly within the ring,” wrote John Hamilton Reynolds (The Fancy, 1820). Later the term was transferred to other kinds of challenge, particularly political ones. It was so used by Theodore Roosevelt in 1912, when he told a journalist, “My hat’s in the ring,” indicating his candidacy.
hat in hand, to go/with
To behave submissively or obsequiously; to plead for something (pardon, a favor, and the like). The term alludes to the old custom of removing one’s hat as a sign of respect. “A man’s hat in his hand never did him any harm,” wrote Samuel Palmer (Moral Essays on Proverbs, 1710). The custom of wearing and doffing a hat has become far less
common, so the term is dying out, but it is still used in diplomatic circles.
