Why is it called a frog in the throat?

Question

It's not life or death, just wondered where it comes from?

Answer 1

It used to be thought that if you drank water from a pond that had frogspawn in, a frog could live and hatch out in your throat, which naturally would block your voice. Quacksalvers (that's the traditional English equivalent of snake oil merchants) used to have a scam whereby the quack's stooge used to pretend to be so afflicted; the quack would administer his medicine, lo and behold the stooge would cough up a live frog and "regain his voice", and all the gullible peasants would buy this wonderful cure. For this reason, an obstruction in the throat is known as a "frog".

Answer 2

Meaning

Temporary hoarseness caused by phlegm in the back of the throat.
Origin

This is probably an American phrase. There are many examples of its use in the USA from the late 19th century, but none from other English-speaking countries until the middle years of the 20th century. The earliest reference I can find is from an advertisement for a proprietary medicine that adopted the term as its name, in The Stevens Point Journal, November 1894:

"The Taylor Bros. say that 'Frog in the Throat' will cure hoarseness. 10 cents and box."

In December of the following year, The Middletown Daily Argus ran a similar advert for a rival product:

"Throat Lozenges - Our own formula for 'frog in the throat' - tickling might cough - hoarseness, etc. 10C a box."

Whatever the source of the phrase, ten cents bought you a cure.

Answer 3

It used to be thought that if you drank water from a pond that had frogspawn in, a frog could live and hatch out in your throat, which naturally would block your voice. Quacksalvers (that's the traditional English equivalent of snake oil merchants) used to have a scam whereby the quack's stooge used to pretend to be so afflicted; the quack would administer his medicine, lo and behold the stooge would cough up a live frog and "regain his voice", and all the gullible peasants would buy this wonderful cure. For this reason, an obstruction in the throat is known as a "frog".

Answer 4

-In the middle east there in the middle age lived a king that had a wife very bothering and starving. One day she ate a frog thinking she was eating another thing and she died with the frog stuck in her throat. So came the expression "a frog in the throat". Be happy!

Answer 5

Temporary hoarseness caused by phlegm in the back of the throat... and the earliest reference to this is in an advertisement for a medicine that adopted the term "Frog in the Throat" as its name, in The Stevens Point Journal, November 1894:

"The Taylor Bros. say that 'Frog in the Throat' will cure hoarseness. 10 cents and box."

Answer 6

The expression is said to allude to the medieval fear of drinking water containing frogspawn, when it was believed frogs would grow inside the body. Hoarseness or "gagging" was thus allegedly caused by a frog trying to escape from the stomach by way of the throat

Answer 7

"There was a time, prior to clean drinking water being freely available, that folk would drink water drawn from ponds and streams. Medieval legend will have us believe that people feared swallowing frogspawn lest tadpoles would hatch in the stomach. The idea of a live frog trying to make an escape by way of the throat isn't a pleasant one."

Answer 8

Actually, I believe it comes from the word "ranula" which was an old medical term used to describe a lump in the throat and this word means "little frog"!

Answer 9

Well its comes from way back when people had flu they sounded like they were croaking like a frog or toad when they tryed to talk!
Although Frog and Toad is slang for road , frog came to mean a French person and Toad a Road!

Answer 10

when you have a bad sore throat

your voice comes out all croaky,
similare to a frogs call.

Hence you have " a frog in your throat "

>^,,^<