Be off the hook

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The phrase being off the hook means “having overcome a difficult situation, survived the worst” or (jokingly) “being over thirty years old” in the sense of “not being very young”.

The saying comes from card games such as Schafkopf and Skat , where those “tailors become” who achieve 30 or less than thirty eyes (points), that is, less than half the sum necessary to win. (Conversely, with more than 30 you are “tailor free”.) In the student beer game Lustig, Meine Sieben , a pair of scissors was drawn on the table in front of the seat of the person who stayed under thirty. As a punishment, the victim had to drink twice as much beer.

It used to be ridiculed that a tailor weighs no more than 30 plumb bob , thereby alluding to the inadequate earnings and the socially poor position of those who work in this trade. This is where the origin of the equation thirty points = thirty plumb bob = cutter can be seen.

swell

  • Lutz Röhrich: Lexicon of proverbial sayings. Volume 4, Above spoilers. Herder Verlag, Freiburg, Basel and Vienna 1994, ISBN 3-451-04400-5 , p. 1388.
  • Duden: The dictionary of origin, Volume 7, ISBN 3-411-20907-0