How did gesundheit work its way into common American usage? From Wikipedia: In German, Gesundheit ( [to your] "Health") is said after a sneeze This is sometimes used in the United States The expression arrived in America with early German immigrants, such as the Pennsylvania Dutch, and doubtless passed into local English usage in areas with substantial German-speaking populations 1 The expression is first widely attested in American English as of
What is an alternative to Bless you after sneezing? Saying "Bless you" (or Gesundheit, or anything else) after someone sneezes does, to some extent, oblige the sneezer to respond with thanks of some kind This may be inconvenient, especially if the person is about to sneeze again, and such an exchange becomes downright silly in a chain of multiple sneezes — especially if, as often happens, the
Secular phrase of bless you (after someone sneezes)? English speakers not comfortable saying bless you might instead use the German loanword gesundheit Related question: What are alternative responses for when someone sneezes?
Looking for the God Bless You of Hiccups FWIW :-) Saint Walburga, a Benedictine nun and healer in the 8th century, is the patron saint of coughing, and a hiccup is (at least etymologically) a kind of cough So perhaps you could invoke her name? Walburga! Sort of like Gesundheit!
Difference between pardon me and I beg your pardon The range of possible meanings that a speaker may intend to convey with either "Pardon me" or "I beg your pardon" in different situations is considerably larger than any fundamental difference in meaning between the two phrases The biggest formal difference between "Pardon me" and "I beg your pardon" is that "I beg your pardon" explicitly (though not always seriously) frames the statement as
What does it mean to shoot oneself in the foot? The Oxford Dictionary of English Idioms says shoot yourself in the foot inadvertently make a situation worse for yourself; demonstrate gross incompetence The Free Dictionary online has Fig to cause oneself difficulty; to be the author of one's own misfortune I am a master at shooting myself in the foot Again, he shot himself in the foot by saying too much to the press The Chambers
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