I have heard this expression and I can only speculate what it means...
2006-09-24 14:27:16 · 11 answers · asked by Anonymous in Education & Reference ➔ Quotations
Meaning
A difficult position from which it is unlikely one can escape.
Origin
From the Eight Ball version of the game of billiards, which is played on a pool table. The balls are numbered and must be potted in order. The game is forfeited if a player's cue ball hits the (black) eight ball first. A 'behind the eight ball' position leaves a player in imminent danger of losing.
Relating to pool as it does, it is no surprise that the expression is American. It dates from the early 20th century - the earliest citation I can find is from the Ohio newspaper 'The Marion Star', May 1916:
"When John Lewis came out and put America behind the eight ball I went around grabbing 'Kindly Step To The Back of the Car' signs from elevators on account of they kind of expressed the message of Lewis to the American people."
2006-09-24 14:31:59 · answer #1 · answered by jsweit8573 6 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Behind The Eight Ball
2016-12-13 06:48:17 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The answerer jsweit8573 is completely right, and everybody else is wrong. It means you are stuck with a problem situation where you know what ought to be done (strike onto some particular other ball) but there is something awkward which prevents you doing it (the eight ball, which you must not strike onto, but blocks your path to every other ball).
The UK equivalent is "snookered". Very old golf players will also remember being "stymied" on the putting green, when it was your turn to play but the other player's ball was lying between yours and the cup and he didn't have to lift it. If someone told me they were "stymied", I'd understand exactly the same as "snookered", because the word was still being used in normal speech for quite a while after the golf rule about it was changed.
2006-09-25 01:39:00 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Behind The 8 Ball
2016-10-05 00:55:57 · answer #4 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
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RE:
What does being "behind the eight ball" mean???
I have heard this expression and I can only speculate what it means...
2016-02-02 23:14:40 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
This Site Might Help You.
RE:
What does being "behind the eight ball" mean???
I have heard this expression and I can only speculate what it means...
2015-08-23 20:36:13 · answer #6 · answered by ? 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Jesus did. It's in the Bible. Here is the reference. Matthew 16:21 From that time Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day. 22 Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You." 23 But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God's interests, but man's." Jesus said this to Peter because he was giving Jesus bad councel that would have thwarted what He came to do. Satan is the adversary and seeks to thwart God's will. When people act or advise something that would thwart God's will, they are wittingly or unwittlingly doing Satan's bidding. So get behind me Satan. Don't thwart me from God's purpose.
2016-03-13 05:31:06 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
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satan was a doberman that I owned, and it became a very popular thing with mormons when I said "get thee behind me satan" cause then she stopped biting them
2016-03-27 00:54:43 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
It means your fanny's in the fire if you don't get that term paper finised before tomarrows 8 o'clock tutorial so stop wasting time here and get back to work. You've got less than twelve hours left ! :)
2006-09-24 14:37:23 · answer #9 · answered by S.A.M. Gunner 7212 6 · 1⤊ 2⤋
it basically means that you have the decision to make, good or bad, its on you. Your the man with the plan, or it can your between a rock and a hard spot and you have to deal with it.
2006-09-24 14:32:23 · answer #10 · answered by mr_fixit_11 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋