Lock & Load / Fire in the Hole

[Mike357]

Anybody know where these sayings came from? They are all over American TV & movies and they do my head in!

Is lock and load not back to front? And what hole are they referring to?

:lol:

[spud]

I know what you mean Mike . i really hate the exsperession"gone pear shaped" does itmean that pears are bad arsed????

[Sandgroper]

Don't know how accurate these are - but "Lock and load" sign01 :cool2:

http://www.xent.com/pipermail/fork/2002 ... 12965.html

Lock and Load

This imperative phrase originally referred to the operation of the M1
Garand Rifle, the standard U.S. Army rifle of WWII. Its meaning is more
general now, referring to preparation for any imminent event.

The original phrase was actually reversed, "load and lock." The phrase
refers to inserting a clip of ammunition into the rifle, "loading," and
"locking" the bolt forward thereby forcing a round into the chamber. The
phrase first appears in Gach's 1941-42 In the Army Now. It was
immortalized by John Wayne (who else?) in 1949's Sands of Iwo Jima,
where the Duke reversed the phrase to the current "lock and load."

The term "lock" in this phrase is a different use of the word than in
references to the firing mechanism of a weapon, as in "flintlock."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fire_in_the_hole

"Fire in the hole" is a warning that an explosive detonation in a confined space is imminent. It originated with miners, who needed to warn their fellows that a charge had been set.