2007-10-04 17:19:45 · 4 answers · asked by Mystee_Rain 5 in Education & Reference ➔ Words & Wordplay
"Three sheets to the wind" - Many people are surprised to learn that this expression for drunkenness was born on the high seas. "Sheet" is the nautical term for a rope that controls the tension on a square sail. If the sheets were loose on a three-masted ship, the sails would flap "in the wind."
A ship with its sails "in the wind" would drift out of control until the situation was corrected. Thus, the modern phrase "three sheets to the wind" has come to signify a person who is drunk and out of control.
2007-10-04 17:26:27 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 5⤊ 0⤋
Sheets flapping on a clothesline, in the wind,all floppy,
2007-10-05 01:17:11 · answer #2 · answered by lena 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Because the sheets flap in all directions ,
Rather like those idiot drunks .
Ever try to have a conversation with one of those alkis ?
Their direction , topic , tone . . . everything can do 180s in a blink .
They have no focus and are generally just flapping . . .
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2007-10-05 00:27:02 · answer #3 · answered by kate 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Because the sheets flap and are unstable like a drunken sailor....
2007-10-05 00:41:59 · answer #4 · answered by shootingstars957 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋