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Pat down

Posted by Victoria S Dennis on November 18, 2010 at 18:26

In Reply to: Pat down posted by Gabe on November 18, 2010 at 16:15:

: What's the origin and meaning of "pat-down" As in:
: Airport 'pat-downs' cause growing passenger backlash By Derek Kravitz, Washington Post, November 13, 2010 Airport travelers call it groping, prodding or just plain inappropriate - a pat-down that probes places where the sun doesn’t shine. The Transportation Security Administration calls it the new reality of airport security.

A pat-down is the kind of body-search that airport security staff give you if you set off the metal-detectors. If you've never had one, I can tell you it's exactly what the phrase sounds like - they go pat-pat-pat down your body to see if they can find anything there that oughtn't to be.(VSD)

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