To pay full attention to the exact details, watch your manners, to behave carefully, to show good manners
Etymology:
- The origin of this idiom relates to the early 17th century and it became very popular in the late 18th. The choice of letters “p” and “q” also makes sense with the idiom as both the words are often confused while reading or writing. Another relation can be made from the English pubs which had “p” and “q” representing pints and quarts. Another aspect is described to relate this idiom with dance moves taught by the French dancing instructor. These dance moves are known as pieds and queues. All the views can be established yet there is no proof of the exact origin of this idiom.
- 91 Views
Submitted on February 25, 2019
Translation
Find a translation for the Mind Your P's and Q's phrase in other languages:
Select another language:
- - Select -
- 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
- 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
- Español (Spanish)
- Esperanto (Esperanto)
- 日本語 (Japanese)
- Português (Portuguese)
- Deutsch (German)
- العربية (Arabic)
- Français (French)
- Русский (Russian)
- ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
- 한국어 (Korean)
- עברית (Hebrew)
- Gaeilge (Irish)
- Українська (Ukrainian)
- اردو (Urdu)
- Magyar (Hungarian)
- मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
- Indonesia (Indonesian)
- Italiano (Italian)
- தமிழ் (Tamil)
- Türkçe (Turkish)
- తెలుగు (Telugu)
- ภาษาไทย (Thai)
- Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
- Čeština (Czech)
- Polski (Polish)
- Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
- Românește (Romanian)
- Nederlands (Dutch)
- Ελληνικά (Greek)
- Latinum (Latin)
- Svenska (Swedish)
- Dansk (Danish)
- Suomi (Finnish)
- فارسی (Persian)
- ייִדיש (Yiddish)
- հայերեն (Armenian)
- Norsk (Norwegian)
- English (English)
Nearby phrases
Some more phrases from our dictionary similar to Mind Your P's and Q's
How to pronounce this phrase?
Citation
Use the citation below to add this Mind Your P's and Q's definition to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"Mind Your P's and Q's." Phrases.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 31 Oct. 2024. <https://www.phrases.com/phrase/mind-your-ps-and-qs_44861>.
Discuss this Mind Your P's and Q's phrase with the community:
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In