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Q: gift horse in the mouth? ( Answered 5 out of 5 stars,   1 Comment )
Question  
Subject: gift horse in the mouth?
Category: Miscellaneous
Asked by: dustyngobler-ga
List Price: $3.00
Posted: 01 Dec 2002 22:22 PST
Expires: 31 Dec 2002 22:22 PST
Question ID: 117569
What is the origin of the expression, "Never look a gift horse in the mouth?"

Any infomation about websites to reseach other quotes would be excelent.
Answer  
Subject: Re: gift horse in the mouth?
Answered By: tlspiegel-ga on 01 Dec 2002 22:43 PST
Rated:5 out of 5 stars
 
Hi dustyngobler,

The origin of "Never look a gift horse in the mouth" was Saint Jerome,
On the Epistle to the Ephesians

Saint Jerome (342 AD - 420 AD) 
From The Quotations Page
http://www.quotationspage.com/quotes/Saint_Jerome/11

The site is called: Quotation Search
http://www.quotationspage.com/search.php3

Other websites where quotes can be researched are:

Quotations by Keyword
http://www.aphids.com/cgi-bin/quotes.pl?act=GenerateSearchForm

Quoteland.com
http://www.quoteland.com/

Find a Quotation
http://www.quotesandsayings.com/finquoteframes.htm

Google keywords:  "quotation never look gift horse mouth"

regards,
tlspiegel-ga

Request for Answer Clarification by dustyngobler-ga on 01 Dec 2002 23:01 PST
I also wanted to know the origin of the meaning in how it was used. 
The origin of what a gift horse and why would you not want to look at
it in the mouth.

Clarification of Answer by tlspiegel-ga on 01 Dec 2002 23:10 PST
Hi dustyngobler,

The meaning of  "Never look a gift horse in the mouth" is:
 
"Don’t be ungrateful when given a gift. You can tell the age of a
horse by its teeth. Checking is sort of like looking for the price tag
on a gift—you could be in for a nasty shock."

From the website: VetCentric - The Cat’s Out of the Bag—Animal Sayings
Solved!
http://www.vetcentric.com/magazine/magazineArticle.cfm?ARTICLEID=1860

Hope this helps!
tlspiegel-ga

Clarification of Answer by tlspiegel-ga on 01 Dec 2002 23:41 PST
And more on the Horse:

From the Bedtime Browser - An Account of the Origins of Many
English Sayings or Why do We say That? by James C Briggs

http://www.briggs13.fsnet.co.uk/idioms%20list.htm

"Never look a gift horse in the mouth is said in order to discourage
too great an inspection of a gift, which might be less valuable than
first thought, thereby taking the gilt off the gingerbread. To those
who know about horses the analogy is clear; the age of a horse is well
mirrored in the state of its teeth. Too close an inspection could
result in a nasty surprise with the animal proving to be long in the
tooth."
dustyngobler-ga rated this answer:5 out of 5 stars and gave an additional tip of: $1.00
Super Helpful.  Thanks.

Comments  
Subject: Re: gift horse in the mouth?
From: tlspiegel-ga on 02 Dec 2002 00:16 PST
 
Thank you very much!  I enjoyed doing the research... 

tlspiegel-ga

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