at sixes and sevens/ all over the shop

airbolt | 22:30 Thu 30th Sep 2004 | Phrases & Sayings

2 Answers

I was wondering knew how the phrase " all over the shop " came into use?

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wide boy/spiv

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Quizmonster

By far the most likely explanation is that it came from an old dice-game, but if you click here, a link will take you to a website which offers two other possible sources, including a biblical one. The idea that it has anything to do with the order of London Guilds has been dismissed.

'All over the shop' was slang originally used in boxing as in 'he knocked him all over the shop'. Since then, it has been used to mean anything/anyone who is utterly disorganised.

Quizmonster

My apologies. My opening paragraph above referred to the 'at sixes and sevens' phrase, on the assumption that you were asking about that, too.

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