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Plates of meatMeaningFeet. OriginThis is a well-established example of Cockney rhyming slang. The first use of it that there is a record for is a piece in a 1887 edition of Referee:
The 'feet' rhyming slang meaning was preceded by another rhyming word - 'street'. This is cited in Ducange anglicus, 1857 a reference work with this very specific sub-title - The vulgar tongue: comprising two glossaries of slang, cant, and flash words and phrases, principally used in London at the present day. This lists 'Plate of meat, street'. Phrasefinder is also on
Tudor Phrases and Sayings - a book on the meanings and origins of the phrases and sayings that Shakespeare and Henry VIII used that we use still use every day. |
