I understand the metaphor to refer to the notches on a man's belt, that when he eats less, his stomach narrows, and so he can pull his belt tighter and fasten it a notch smaller.
The expression "to tighten one's belt" means to economize, to spend less money than before, to make do with less. I am not asking for an explanation of the metaphor, but the origin of the use of this phrase. Who was the first to ever use this phrase? Is it from the bible or any classic texts, or from a famous speech?
2006-11-12 11:17:20 · 4 answers · asked by old c programmer 4 in Education & Reference ➔ Quotations
The saying is from the depression era where there was little money for anything including food so people had to tighten their belts in order to keep their pants from falling---and became synonomous with being economical.
2006-11-12 11:29:25 · answer #1 · answered by Theresa 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
tighten one's belt, a. to undergo hardship patiently.
to curtail one's expenditures; be more frugal: They were urged to tighten their belts for the war effort. 1900's
2006-11-12 12:11:42 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
it comes from the bible- u no the whole gird your loins type of thing. its used mainly when the israelites were going out to war or conquering another nation.
2006-11-12 11:26:19 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The depression era is right. I think you'll find it attributed to FDR if you search for it.
2006-11-12 12:09:11 · answer #4 · answered by bongfuel 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋