pony

Definition from Wiktionary, a free dictionary

Wikipedia

Contents 1 English 1.1 Etymology 1.2 Noun 1.2.1 Related terms 1.2.2 Translations 1.2.3 Usage notes 1.3 Verb 2 Italian 2.1 Etymology 2.2 Noun

[edit] English

[edit] Etymology

1659 from Scots sco, apparently from French poulenet (“‘little foal’”) (15th c.), ultimately from Late Latin pullanus (“‘young of an animal’”) (cognate to English foal).

[edit] Noun

pony (plural ponies)

1. Any of several small breeds of horse under 14.2 hands.
2. A cheat sheet used in Latin classes, often tolerated, sometimes not.
3. A measure of one ounce of liquor.
4. A small serving of an alcoholic beverage.
5. (Australian) A serving of 140 milliliters of beer.
6. (British, slang) Twenty-five pounds sterling.
7. (US Merchant Marine Academy) A slate or reference used by Midshipmen to study for an upcoming test or project.
8. (Cockney rhyming slang) Something of little worth. From "Pony and Trap" which rhymes with crap.
9. An elusive and highly unlikely positive outcome.

[edit] Related terms

• dog and pony show
• play the ponies
• pony express
• pony keg
• pony up
• shetland pony

[edit] Translations

[edit] Usage notes

• Regarding "pony" as money: This usage can be dated to the early 19th century and gave rise to the expression pony up meaning "come up with money".

• Regarding "pony" as an elusive and unlikely positive outcome: This usage appears to derive two separate sources, leading to slightly different connotations.

  The first form comes from a joke, most often attributed to Ronald Reagan, known as the "pony joke". Presidential speechwriter and author Peter Robinson recounts the joke: "Worried that their son was too optimistic, the parents of a little boy took him to a psychiatrist. Trying to dampen the boy’s spirits, the psychiatrist showed him into a room piled high with nothing but horse manure. Yet instead of displaying distaste, the little boy clambered to the top of the pile, dropped to all fours, and began digging. 'What do you think you’re doing?' the psychiatrist asked. 'With all this manure,' the little boy replied, beaming, 'there must be a pony in here somewhere.'" This meaning was utilized by authors Kara Swisher and Lisa Dickey in the title of their book There Must Be a Pony in Here Somewhere: The AOL Time Warner Debacle and the Quest for a Digital Future, published in 2003 by Crown Business Books. It is also used frequently by political bloggers, such as Atrios, to refer derisively to the Bush administration's pursuit of success in the Iraq War. Example: "So McCain/Lieberman will pretend the Dems thwarted the plan for victory, even though the president will be the one who won't let them find the pony in Iraq."

  The second form is apparently derived from a 1987 Calvin & Hobbes cartoon in which Susie, Calvin's nemesis, bemoans his treatment of her: "I wish I had a hundred friends. Then I wouldn't care. I'd say, 'Who needs you, Calvin? I've got a hundred other friends!' Then my hundred friends and I would go do something fun, and leave Calvin all alone! Ha! ... and as long as I'm dreaming, I'd like a pony." Political bloggers, particularly on the left, have taken to this meaning when describing a positive outcome that depends on an unlikely event. As described by blogger Belle Waring: "You just wish for the thing, plus, wish that everyone would have their own pony! So, in [Josh] Chafetz' case, he should not only wish that Bush would say a lot of good things about democracy-building and fighting terrorism in a speech written for him by a smart person, he should also wish that Bush should actually mean the things he says and enact policies which reflect this, and he should wish that everyone gets a pony."[1]

[edit] Verb

to pony (third-person singular simple present ponies, present participle ponying, simple past and past participle ponied)

1. To lead (a horse) from another horse.

---

[edit] Italian

[edit] Etymology

English

[edit] Noun

pony m. inv.

1. pony (young horse)
2. pony express