Modern Sayings That Came From Falconry

In case you didn’t know it, falconry is hunting using a bird of prey such as a hawk or a falcon, for example. Many of the sayings we commonly use today can be traced back to this form of hunting.

Falconry is an ancient practice, dating back to 4000 to 6000 B.C. It uses a bird of prey to hunt wild game, and many of the words and phrases used in the practice are still in use today. Here are some of them that you might have used recently and never knew they came from hunting with a bird.

Fed Up

We’ve all been fed up with someone or something at one point in our lives, but this term had its origins with a hawk who had eaten its fill of food. The hawk was “fed up” and unwilling to fly or hunt anymore for the falconer. We are often “fed up” when something bothers us, we don’t want to do something anymore, or we’re just not interested, e.g., “I’m fed up with my job.”

Under Your Thumb

A falconer had to maintain tight control of their bird, and this happened when they would hold the leash of the bird tightly under one thumb while the bird was perched on their hand. Today it means having control over…