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Knocked up

Posted by Smokey Stover on September 23, 2005

In Reply to: Knocked up posted by ESC on September 23, 2005

: : : "Knocked up". In Australia this phrase is not used as a euphemism for Pregnant. It is used in the sense of being out of breath usually after hard exercise such as a game of rugby or a solid workout in the gym. "Knock" is however used as a euphemism for a Nookie or sexual intercourse - straight or gay.
: : "Knocked up" has been used in a similar sense in Britain since the mid-19th century, to mean not so much "out of breath" but "tired, jaded, worn out". You can be "knocked-up" by a long ordeal, or a bout of illness. (e.g. "You look a bit knocked-up; are you OK?")

: More information in the archives: www.phrases.org.uk bulletin_board 13 messages 350.html

I read, I think, every word in that long thread about knockers of just about every description. I did not notice any discussion of apple knockers. Not that they are relevant to the question here. They concern knocking down rather than knocking up. SS

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