Up the creek definition and meaning collins english. The addition of without a paddle in alternative for. In a channel 4 time team archaeology special about the royal naval hospital in gosport, tony robinson asserted that the phrase up the creek comes from the route to the hospital that wounded naval personnel took along haslar creek. Without a paddle is a 2004 american comedy film directed by steven brill, written by jay leggett and mitch rouse, and based on a story by harris goldberg, tom nursall, and fred wolf. Change your default dictionary to american english. Another iteration of the phrase involves a slang scatological word. Up the creek without a paddle family games treasurehouse. What does up the creek without a paddle expression mean. Up a creek up shit creek to be up the creek means to be in trouble, in a serious predicament, or an awkward position. From longman dictionary of contemporary english be up the creek without a paddle be up the creek without a paddle also be up shit creek without a paddle not polite spoken problem to be in a very difficult situation if i dont get my passport by friday, ill be up the creek. Dolphins can be seen breaching the waters surface playfully awaiting the catch from the fishingshrimping boats. Creek definition and meaning collins english dictionary. The full idiom is up the creek without a paddle, though it is often shortened to simply up the creek. The origin of the phrase up the creek without a paddle is murky.
The dictionary of american slang has send up sentence someone to prisonno mention of rivers. Up the creek without a paddle idioms by the free dictionary. Upthecreek dictionary definition upthecreek defined. Well, if you get up the creek in a boat and lose your paddle, youre in trouble bc you need that paddle to get out so if you are in a bad situation and you need a way to get out of it, but have none then you are up the creek without a paddle. Be up the creek without a paddle phrase definition and. Up shit creek without a paddle definition of up shit. What is the origin of the phrases up the creek and up. The name up the creek without a paddle was used for no particular purpose, except that we had been canoeing that day. Throughout the day you will see children running up and down the boardwalks with parents walking hand in hand. Definition and synonyms of be up the creek without a paddle from the online english dictionary from macmillan education. Meaning of idiom up the creek without a paddle to be up the creek means to be in trouble, in a serious predicament, or an awkward position. What is the origin of up a creek without a paddle answers.
The film stars seth green, matthew lillard, dax shepard, ethan suplee, abraham benrubi, rachel blanchard, christina moore, bonnie somerville, ray baker and burt reynolds. The addition of without a paddle in alternative forms is considered by some to suggest an intensification of the difficulty of the situation. A i saw that, too, and was struck by the supposed connection. In discussing up the creek, a euphemistic form of up creek without a paddle, paul beale revising editor of eric partridge, a dictionary of catch phrases says the word is invariably creek.
The oxford english dictionary records the first use of up the creek as being in american english in 1941. The man who died and the wife who lied cohen, tammy on. This slang phrase, like most street slang, is difficult to date and determine the origin of precisely. This is the british english definition of be up the creek without a paddle.
Up a creek without a paddle is the standard expression, but the passion of this young mans view of the judicial system in the bahamas is not only amusing but stirring in its own way. A smithsonian safari through zimbabwe, botswana and zambia makes use of just about every modern transport vehicle bar trains. Up the creek and up a creek idiom definition grammarist. Sheldons quote from the lizardspock expansion reddit. The reading manager and his players looked up the creek without a paddle as they trailed 32 in injury time. If someone is up the creek, they are in a bad or difficult situation, or are wrong in. This gem is great for an evening stroll to catch the setting lowcountry sun as well. Up the creek meaning in the cambridge english dictionary.
Up the creek without a paddle definition of up the. Five years after the shattered remains of his red cano. Up a creek without a paddle idioms by the free dictionary. Up the creek without a paddle was invented around thirty years ago when some friends grew tired of playing euchre and five hundred, and decided to develop a new game which was both challenging and yet simple to play. Bob mcgraw is in his 12th year of college, goofing his way through life. Theres an old saying up the creek without a paddle, meaning you are in a tight spot. Synonyms for up the creek include in a fix, in a predicament, in difficulty, in dire straits, in hot water, in trouble, in the soup, in a tight spot, in difficulties and in a spot. Up the creek without a paddle funny cartoons from cartoonstock directory the worlds largest online collection of cartoons and comics. Up shit creek without a paddle whats the meaning of the phrase up shit creek without a paddle. Well be up the creek if we lose those files, so we should back them up regularly. Get a up a creek without a paddle mug for your guy nathalie. Meaning of idiom up the creek without a paddle also.
See glossary if you are confused about any card game terms. The phrase is a gentrified version of a wwii saying up shits creek without a paddle which summons up a mental picture more graphic than the current refined one. In australia it means that youre in a lot of trouble, with no foreseeable way out. Up the creek without a paddle cartoons and comics funny. We do game drives in specially adapted 4x4s, boat cruises on luxury river craft, view the vic falls from helicopters, move from one country to another in luxury coaches or private aircraft, and skim along the zambezi in small power boats in search of the formidable. What is the origin of the idiom up the creek without a.
View american english definition of be up the creek without a paddle. What is another word for up the creek without a paddle. Memorable quotes and exchanges from movies, tv series and more. Whats the origin of the phrase up shit creek without a paddle. What does up a creek without a paddle expression mean. Looks like my offthewall strategy has me up shit creek without a paddle. Marys book, up the creek with a paddle, is a superbly honest and truthful testimony to the benefits of taking low dose naltrexone ldn. Cheap trick on live from daryls house hdtv duration. With matthew lillard, seth green, dax shepard, matthew price. Paddle definition, a short, flat bladed oar for propelling and steering a canoe or small boat, usually held by both hands and moved more or less through a vertical arc. The excremental version coneys the same idea, but makes the situation even worse. See also up a creek without a paddle, up shit creek. Up a creek definition at, a free online dictionary with pronunciation, synonyms and translation. A salt creek is a creek leading throught the salt marsh or mashland to the ocean its very easy to get stuck in one and, without a paddle, a boatman would have no way to get out.
Up shit creek without a paddle to be in a bad situation which is either slowly or rapidly getting worse with no evident way out. Should you be armed with a paddle, you still, typically, have a slow long recovery. Is this true, or is there an earlier and different origin for the phrase. I have no savings, so if i get fired from my job, ill be up the creek without a paddle. Mary details noels success with ldn for his primary progressive multiple sclerosis in particular, and also includes many other ldn stories from people with a variety of autoimmune diseases. Up the creek fail this test and youll be swimming up the creek. The saying up a creek is shortened from up the creek without a paddle, meaning you are in a difficult situation without the necessary tools to get out of it. To be up the creek means to be in a prickly predicament with no means of alleviating the problem. With tim matheson, jennifer runyon, stephen furst, dan monahan.
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