Re: Pigeonholed

Posted by R. Berg on August 27, 2005

In Reply to: Re: Pigeonholed posted by Bob on August 26, 2005

: : : Where did the term "pigeon holed" come from?

: : The devices used to allocate post/mail to individuals in a company or whatever are (or were) like little open-fronted boxes (an individual or group of individuals would have a box each) which were supposed to resemble the nesting spaces in a pigeon coop.

: : DFG

: As you can see fromt the dictionary definition, it is one word rather than two:
: pi·geon·hole P Pronunciation Key (pjn-hl)
: n.
: 1. A small compartment or recess, as in a desk, for holding papers; a cubbyhole.
: 2. A specific, often oversimplified category.
: 3. The small hole or holes in a pigeon loft for nesting.

: tr.v. pi·geon·holed, pi·geon·hol·ing, pi·geon·holes
: 1. To place or file in a small compartment or recess.
: 2. To classify mentally; categorize.
: 3. To put aside and ignore; shelve.

Dictionary.com is a good resource for questions about single words. This site, Phrase Finder, is concerned with phrases.

• dictionary.com