Discussion Groups / British English / February 2004

Did he?

Oops! John Briggs is of course right, and I am wrong. "Blood, sweat and
tears" is what Churchill is popularly supposed to have said, rather than
what he actually said. (Just as Rick in "Casablanca" never says "Play it
again, Sam", nor Holmes "Elementary, my dear Watson".)

In uk.culture.language.english on Sun, 29 Feb 2004 17:23:36 +0000, John
Hall <nospam_nov03@jhall.co.uk> wrote:

}In article <d%o0c.39721$gk.1688262@news3.tin.it>,
} Roberto Informatiko Esperto <ksoze____NOSPAM____@libero.it> writes:
}>what's the correct word position for the idiom "blood sweat and tears"?
}>(I mean...Is correct "blood sweat and tears" or "sweat tears and blood" or
}>"tears sweat and blood" or "etc..."....?
}
}All of these are grammatically correct (with a comma after the first
}word). However, Churchill famously referred to "blood, sweat and tears",
}so that version is the one that people will be expecting.

Eats, shoots and leaves.

{R}