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living over the brush

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leylander | 21:56 Thu 10th May 2007 | Phrases & Sayings
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what does the expression mean
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A couple living together unmarried.
Like me!! I live in sin lol
This comes from an old gypsy custom. At the end of the "marriage ceremony" the happy couple would jump over a brush.
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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

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living over the brush

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