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Don't be such a pill

Posted by James Briggs on November 19, 2003

In Reply to: Don't be such a pill posted by Pillsbury Dough Boy on November 19, 2003

: : Where did "Don't be such a pill," or the use of "pill" to describe something lame, come from?

: My guess... it comes from the phrase "Take a chill pill." which means "relax" or "don't get excited".

Could it be short for 'pillock', a colloquial British word for a dumb or stupid person - at least in the eyes of the speaker?

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