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Ducky

Posted by TheFallen on October 04, 2003

In Reply to: Ducky posted by James Briggs on October 04, 2003

: : : Anyone have any idea what the phrase "I'm just ducky" refers to and/or where it originated.

: : According to Eric Partridge, A Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English "duck" was used as a colloquial endearment from about 1590, and "ducky," as an adjective expressing admiration, derived from that noun and has been used since about 1830.

: When I was a boy in the 1930s in the East End of London a common greeting by a shopkeeper to a well known customer was 'hello, ducks!' I guess this has partly left the language, due to the huge ethnic changes in the East End since that time. However, I bet it still exists in places.

You can still hear the expression "I'm just ducky" used in London. It means "I'm just fine." or "Things are going great for me." It's often used sarcastically.

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