| Idiom | Bring Home the Bacon |
|---|---|
| Example | Both Richard and Samantha got jobs to bring home the bacon for their children. |
| Meaning | to support a family by working; to earn a living |
| Origin | There are two theories about where this expression came from. One was from the contest at early American county fairs of chasing after a greased pig. If you caught it, you could take it home as your prize. Another possibility is that it came from a practice in the early 1300s. A baron willed that if any married persons in Dunmow, England, swore at the church door that they had not had a single quarrel for a whole year and a day, they would get a free side of bacon to take home. The idiom "bring home the bacon" has, for hundreds of years, meant to score a point, win a game, or earn something of value, such as your salary. |
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