"The Whole 9 Yards"

[Scout]

I always heard that the phrase "the whole 9 yards" was a reference to the length of the ammo belts for WWII era fighter plane machine guns but I've also heard some claim it had to do with the length of tartan used to make a kilt. According to this article though, we might all be wrong ...

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/27/bo...=fb-share&_r=0

[McClef]

Most "Tank" kilts are eight yards but you can have more.

I only have one nine yard kilt.

[Scout]

Most "Tank" kilts are eight yards...

Yes, that's one of the reasons I never put much stock in that version of the phrase's origins (plus the fact that it doesn't appear in print until post WWII) . There's a rental shop nearby though that insists on it and includes the claim in their advertising!

[Steve Ashton]

As one of those weird people who like to find the meaning behind words and phrases this is one of those great mysteries. No one is sure where or when this phrase started.

The number of rounds for a weapon is counted in rounds not length of belt.
Kilts are 4 or 8 yards.

So neither of those apply.

The mystery continues and the myths are enduring.

[be da veva]

When I was younger, it was claimed by some family members that you needed the ''whole nine yards'' of single width tartan to cut in half and make a 4.5 yard of double width tartan for a great kilt. Never heard of the ammo belt though....

[svc40bt]

The explanation I have heard is that it is a sailing reference: a ship having three masts, each mast having three yards from which a square sail is hung thus, the whole nine yards is a ship under full sail.

[mookien]

I thought it was the name of a movie. Also, "the whole six yards" is inherently different than "the whole nine yards" - by about three yards, I think. Furthermore, the earth is slowing in its orbit, so is experiencing relativistic elongation - maybe by about three yards since the 1920s. That would explain it.

Happy New Year.