What happens if you say boo to a goose

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Thread starter chopin7 Start date Jun 9, In Lenten Stuffe , the English pamphleteer Thomas Nashe circa used to say bo to in the sense of to gainsay :.

It is found in A seconde admonition to the Parliament , an open manifesto of the Puritan party written in , in which is evoked someone who can scarse say as they say shue to a goose.

Or proverbs English, and Latine, methodically disposed according to the common-place heads, in Erasmus his adages , the schoolmaster John Clarke died recorded the following proverb: He cannot say shooh to a goose. Iohn Bridges, for it is a worthy worke: Or an epitome of the fyrste Booke of that right worshipfull volume, written against the Puritanes, in the defence of the noble cleargie, by as worshipfull a prieste, Iohn Bridges, Presbyter, Priest or elder, doctor of Diuillitie, and Deane of Sarum , a religious pamphlet written under the pseudonym of Martin Mar-Prelate: He is not able to say bo to a goose.

Like this: Like Loading Follow Following. Is there any evidence that this is the correct origin? Improve this question. James Fenwick James Fenwick 1 1 gold badge 2 2 silver badges 6 6 bronze badges. Geese around their eggs are particularly aggressive, as are ones that are used to being fed by humans — Zach Saucier. Add a comment. Active Oldest Votes. The Phrase Finder confirms the origin, but Etymonline probably explains the rationale behind the saying in a clearer way: Say boo to a goose : It's just a country proverb, perfectly clear to anyone who is familiar with geese, as in earlier centuries virtually all rural European people would have been.

Anybody who shouts loudly and firmly at geese can intimidate them; indeed minding geese was traditionally a job for small girls. Anybody who doesn't dare say "Boo! VSD boo to a goose : To be able to say Bo! A little boy who comes across some geese suddenly will find himself hissed at immediately, and a great demonstration of defiance made by them, but if he can pluck up heart to cry 'bo!

The word 'bo' is clearly selected for the sake of the explosiveness of its first letter and the openness and loudness of its vowel.

Improve this answer. That didn't work for me. I got nipped hard.