living over the brush

[leylander]

what does the expression mean

[mac44]

A couple living together unmarried.

[RATTER15]

Like me!! I live in sin lol

[granniesmith]

This comes from an old gypsy custom. At the end of the "marriage ceremony" the happy couple would jump over a brush.

[pauln90]

This a previous answer

http://www.theanswerbank.co.uk/Phrases-and-Say ings/Question404584.html

[VS Prasad]

The phrase, "living over the brush", used to describe an unmarried couple who live together, originated in the tunnel building days of the 19th Century. If a boy and a girl (usually camp followers from the towns, prostitutes in reality) took a liking to each other then the other men and women would respect them as man and wife. They could not afford a church wedding so, holding hands, they jumped over a brush or broom handle held by two older people. They were then "married" in the eyes of their peers.

http://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board/9/mes sages/383.html