| SloMotion |
01-11-2012 05:55 AM |
I love when they reference those Navy phrases in their articles :), it makes me feel all warm & fuzzy . . . lol.
- "Scuttlebutt" in slang usage means rumor or gossip, deriving from the nautical term for the cask used to serve water (or, later, a water fountain).[1][2]
- The term corresponds to the colloquial concept of a water cooler in an office setting, which at times becomes the focus of congregation and casual discussion. Water for immediate consumption on a sailing ship was conventionally stored in a scuttled butt: A butt (cask) which had been scuttled by making a hole in it so the water could be withdrawn. Since sailors exchanged gossip when they gathered at the scuttlebutt for a drink of water, scuttlebutt became Navy slang for gossip or rumours.[2]
References:
1.^ Definition of scuttlebutt from the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary Retrieved 2008-03-16
2.^ a b Naval Historical Center: Nautical Terms and Phrases
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