It makes no sense.
2006-10-17 03:05:36 · 12 answers · asked by somebody273 1 in Education & Reference ➔ Words & Wordplay
The phrase "by and large" today means "generally speaking," "mostly" or "on the whole." The origin is nautical, and had a very precise meaning. It was an order to the man at the helm of a sailing ship, meaning to sail the ship slightly off the wind. A similar command was "full and by" which meant to "sail as close to the wind as it can go."
The risk of sailing too close to the wind was the danger of being "taken aback" (when the sails press against the mast and progress halts.)
Thus, when a person doesn't want to "sail" directly into a statement, "by and large" is a hedge, a phrase of circumspection, a way of saying that the statement is an imprecise generality.
2006-10-17 03:16:08 · answer #1 · answered by jt1isme 3 · 4⤊ 0⤋
Generally Speaking
2016-12-08 12:32:42 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
By And Large Meaning
2016-09-30 10:51:12 · answer #3 · answered by cistrunk 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
For the best answers, search on this site https://shorturl.im/B2kxl
To me the word BELIEVE suggests that you take as fact something for which you have no empirical proof. eg I believe in God, I believe that I have a soul, I believe that God says I can't have a blood transfusion, I believe that if I covet my neighbour's donkey (system won't let me say a$s) I may not go to heaven, I believe in UFOs etc. If we use the word BELIEVE to mean that we accept a particular explanation as the best answer based on all the knowledge we have at hand then, sure atheists believe in all sorts of stuff. I Believe that failing some cataclysmic event (or clouds) the sun will come up tomorrow. I believe that evolution provides the best theory on how we came to be the way we are today. And here's something I realised just the other day. Everybody believes in the supernatural. Before you scoff... Unless we already know everything there is to know AND nature refers to the material universe and its phenomena as we know it THEN what we don't know is beyond nature (supernatural). There are a lot of beliefs that you can have and God is just one of them.
2016-04-01 04:14:53 · answer #4 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It originates from a nautical term dating back to the 17th century. A ship would sail "by and large", sailing into the wind and then off of it. Over time, the term came to mean, in one "direction and another" and then "in general:.
In nautical terms, "large" and "by" mean:
large -- Nautical. with the wind free or abaft the beam so that all sails draw fully.
by -- (?) I am guessing it means in the direction of the wind (e.g., North by Northwest)
So, a ship with sail in a zig-zagging pattern, covering a wide area.
2006-10-17 07:44:59 · answer #5 · answered by Gin Martini 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
By and large, when generally speaking, means speaking generally.
2006-10-17 03:14:05 · answer #6 · answered by Phlodgeybodge 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
This Site Might Help You.
RE:
Why does "by and large" mean "generally speaking"?
It makes no sense.
2015-08-06 17:18:01 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It means " What people most think" . It's like a slang. That's all.
2006-10-17 03:15:40 · answer #8 · answered by Tyranus 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
By and large means - In any case
Whenever a person communicates he wud always speak in terms of general perception instead of saying wat he intends to.
2006-10-17 03:16:34 · answer #9 · answered by aazib_1 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Idiomatic phrases don't make sense. All languages are full of them.
2006-10-17 04:37:06 · answer #10 · answered by retorik75 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋