Spot on

Posted by R. Berg on July 05, 2001

In Reply to: Spot on posted by Andrew on July 05, 2001

: I'm trying to find the origin and meaning of the phrase "Spot on". I believe it means "on the mark" or "right on" etc.

The origin is military. "Spot on" has a short entry in Eric Partridge, Dictionary of Catch Phrases: American and British, from the Sixteenth Century to the Present Day: "Right on the spot, orig. dead centre on target: RAF: WW2 and after. Adopted by civilians in UK, in Aus., in S. Africa. Cf 'bang on!' and 'right on!'"