The quick and the dead

[Tanja]

I've found the expression in my dictionary.

And I want to ask: does this really mean "people that are alive and people that are already dead"???

Obviously, etymology refers to classification of pedestrians...

[Casiopea]

Originally Posted by Tanja

I've found the expression in my dictionary.

And I want to ask: does this really mean "people that are alive and people that are already dead"???

Obviously, etymology refers to classification of pedestrians...

Try HERE. 8)

[Tanja]

Originally Posted by Casiopea

Try HERE. 8)

:D Yeah, that's pretty good. I think I' ll read it afterwards with great pleasure.
But now I still wonder, why can not we use "the alive and the dead" instead of "the quick and the dead"? Would it be a mistake to use such an expression?

[Casiopea]

Originally Posted by Tanja

:D Yeah, that's pretty good. I think I' ll read it afterwards with great pleasure.
But now I still wonder, why can not we use "the alive and the dead" instead of "the quick and the dead"? Would it be a mistake to use such an expression?

quick - Old English, cwic "living, alive" SOURCE
quicken - to come or return to life
the quick and the dead - those who have died and come back to life

All the best, :D

[Tanja]

Originally Posted by Casiopea

quick - Old English, cwic "living, alive" SOURCE
quicken - to come or return to life
the quick and the dead - those who have died and come back to life

All the best, :D

"those who have died and come back to life" => the quick Right?

Can the word "quick" mean those people who are just alive, who have never died(like you and I)?

And generally speaking, is this expression an idiom?