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Old 04-Feb-2008, 01:52
celinecasey
 
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Angry Search for meaning of an idiom

I used to hear this idiom/saying "Outsiders smoke cigars".
I believed it's a british (UK) slang of some sort.
Can anyone explain the meaning?
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Old 04-Feb-2008, 03:05
Editor, UsingEnglish.com
 
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Default Re: Search for meaning of an idiom

I've never come across it. The web has a very few examples, mostly on Asian pages, so it may be an old expression.
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Old 04-Feb-2008, 19:36
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Default Re: Search for meaning of an idiom

Oh .. me neither ....
by the way TDOL, are you Cambodian? Well I see your location is from Phnom Penh which i was brought up :)
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Old 05-Feb-2008, 02:59
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Default Re: Search for meaning of an idiom

No, I am British but living in Phnom Penh at the moment.
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Old 05-Feb-2008, 04:42
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Angry Re: Search for meaning of an idiom

Quote:
Originally Posted by Tdol View Post
I've never come across it. The web has a very few examples, mostly on Asian pages, so it may be an old expression.
Dear editor,
Thanks for the reply. I wonder why you mention "mostly on Asian pages"?
The idiom I asked about was first heard in an old English movie (either American or British I'm not sure)...
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Old 05-Feb-2008, 05:36
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Default Re: Search for meaning of an idiom

Because the pages were Asian, so it could be an exrpression that has stopped being used here, but survived there after the British left. For instance, 'do the needful' was a common enoughexpression in British English in the 19th century, but now is used in South Asia and by South Asian speakers, while it has long since ceased to be current in the UK.
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