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The origins of the phrase "Waiting for the other shoe to drop"

DerekJohnsonDerekJohnson Administrator, Swaye's Wigwam Posts: 63,563 Founders Club
In another thread, I just said "I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop." Immediately after, I wondered how that phrase originated. Here's what I discovered:

"In the tenements of New York City in the late 19th and early 20th century, apartments were built with bedrooms on top of one another. It was common to hear your upstairs neighbor take off a shoe, drop it, and then repeat the action. It became shorthand for waiting for something you knew was coming."

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  • PurpleThrobberPurpleThrobber Member Posts: 44,237 Standard Supporter

    In another thread, I just said "I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop." Immediately after, I wondered how that phrase originated. Here's what I discovered:

    "In the tenements of New York City in the late 19th and early 20th century, apartments were built with bedrooms on top of one another. It was common to hear your upstairs neighbor take off a shoe, drop it, and then repeat the action. It became shorthand for waiting for something you knew was coming."

    That'd be sort of awkward having mom and dad getting jiggy overhead.....

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