Son of a gun.?

Question

Where is this sentence derived from? Basically, If I call my friend this, I am insulting his mom/dad. So then what would "gun" mean in this context, if anything at all?

I feel as though my IQ has dropped after reading the first 2 responses... especially the second

Answer 1

The phrase originated as 'son of a military man' (i.e. a gun). Most commonly is that the British Navy used to allow women to live on naval ships. Any child born on board who had uncertain paternity would be listed in the ship's log as 'son of a gun'. While the Royal navy had rules against it, they did turn a blind eye to women (wives or prostitutes) joining sailors on voyages.
Also, a baby conceived during wartime. In World War I the term denoted the illegitimate offspring of servicemen.

So yes, in the beginning this was probably a insult. I am not sure if it is as insulting now though because people use it so commonly.

Answer 2

Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary and Webster's Dictionary both define 'son of a gun' term in American English as a euphemism for Son of a bi*ch.

British English
When a Royal Navy vessel entered a port it was common for local prostitutes to visit the ship and elicit custom from the sailors. The sailors and prostitues then had sexual relations, usually on one of the gun decks beside the many guns carried, one of the few places Able and Ordinary Seaman could obtain some sort of privacy. Should the prostitute subsequently fall pregnant by the sailor, she would then attempt to obtain compensation from the father or the navy for the upkeep of the child. This was usually not forthcoming and the father's name would be withheld. When it was fairly certain that the child had been conceived upon board one of His Majesty's vessesls, the infant would be entered into the ship's records as 'child born to gun number X', the X denoting the gun position the sailor responsible for the errant behaviour was allocated-to, his name being omitted to maintain probity.

American English
In American folk idiom this term has similar meaning to the British one, but was derived from military bureaucratic treatment of young enlisted men of uncertain familial background. If a recruit was unable to state his father's name, officers recorded "A. Gun

Answer 3

i will believe murr, maximum of their projects are thoroughly ridiculous and flat out dumb. a range of of the persons (actors) on the tutor do not look to have something more desirable than an get admission to point understanding of firearms. I absolutely have seen a number of their exhibits and could had no interest contained in the easy stuff which contain switching out the better on an AR for a left exceeded person. that is something that isn't quite puzzling and that any experienced gunsmith might want to be able to do in a decently short era of time. If i keep in ideas wisely will's reaction change into something like "purely tell him to counsel on the thanks to shoot it proper exceeded that is what the marine corps has been doing for 2 hundred years". So i agree they many times construct ineffective guns and hack up completely reliable ones which contain at the same time as they tore aside that Thompson and became it right into a get admission to weapon or patrol weapon for SWAT officials. Or their one thousand backyard AK, it will be me yet in case you're taking an AK form rifle hack each thing off and positioned on different parts for my section that is not any longer an AK anymore that is a sparkling rifle, it would want to were an AK yet no longer anymore. that is purely my ideas. they're only there for the lime mild, in the experience that they ever were a gun keep that did something for the electorate they no longer are. Now i doubt they provide you with the time of day except you opt for some completely ridiculous device gun outfitted or you opt for them to positioned your artillery piece decrease back jointly. they don't do justice for the hardworking gunsmiths who do the household projects, nor the dept shops those time-honored gunsmiths run.

Answer 4

Okay, i know this story seems completely illogical but my friend told me this story.
"once upon a time a man was in him bedroom with his wife in bed. a man walked in with a gun because he was angry with the guy. He wasn't a very good shot and when he pulled the trigger the bullet went thru the mans testicles picking up semen. The bullet, then going significally slower entered the woman and empregnated her" hence the "son of a gun". I think the point of it is that son of a gun just means "what were the chances of that happening" or rather something weird or bad.

Answer 5

Son of a gun = Hairdryer.

Haha sorry man.

Answer 6

It goes back to the shotgun weddings because a guy got a woman pregnant and her daddy would go get the offender with his shotgun and the two would get married so the kid wouldn't be illegitimate.

Answer 7

i always thought that in that saying,gun ment d!ck.