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Kick in the pants

Posted by DGW on March 27, 2002

In Reply to: Kick in the pants posted by TheFallen on March 27, 2002

: : HI,

: : I just heard the phrase "she's a real kick in the pants" the other day and I would like to know what it means. It came from a guy talking about a girl that he knows. If anyone has a clue...I would greatly appreciate and answer. Thanks!

: : Sarah

: My first and instant reaction is to presume that the girl in question was a huge let-down in some way, presumably after having shown some promise... to call someTHING a "kick in the pants" means that the thing in question has suddenly turned out to be a major disappointment. I am almost certain that this is what is meant in this instance, though there is a slightly makeable case for the phrase meaning almost the exact opposite, dependant upon how the word "kick" is interpreted. I'll hurriedly go with my first thoughts though.

I think there are two 'correct' senses of "kick in the pants": disappointment, = "slap in the face"; stimulus, = "shot in the arm". Neither fits a person very well, although either is possible. I think one would have to know the person making the remark. If I heard a stranger say "She's really a kick in the pants" I would take it as something like "She's really something", i.e., a vague reference to her having made some kind of strong impression.

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