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"between a rock and a hard place"
Posted by ESC on February 05, 2000
In Reply to: "Between a rock and a hard place" posted by liz on February 05, 2000
: I looking for the origin of the phrase "caught (or stuck) between a rock and a hard place". Thanks
BETWEEN A ROCK AND A HARD PLACE -- From Random House Dictionary of Popular Proverbs and Sayings by Gregory Y. Titelman(Random House, New York, 1996): "Between a rock and a hard place. Forced to choose between two unpleasant options. The expression originated in the early twentieth century in the United States. It usually follows 'to be caught'." The Encyclopedia of Word and Phrase Origins by Robert Hendrickson (Fact on File, New York, 1997) says "the expression was probably born in Arizona during a financial panic early in this century."
