Phrasing Marriage Proposals

By Hermione Gray

VALENTINE'S DAY, with its associations with romance, has become a traditional day to propose marriage - or 'pop' the question. 'Pop' in this case, means unexpected, because the question supposedly comes as a surprise.

 The word 'pop' has a variety of meanings, from father (short for 'poppa'), a fizzy fruit-flavoured drink ('have a glass of pop') to a short time ('I'll just pop over').

The best-known use of the word 'pop' is probably in connection with music, where the 'pop' is short for popular. It is used to describe accessible, commercial music that is aimed at a wide range of people, particularly teenagers.

In the mid-1950s, the term 'pop art' was coined by Lawrence Alloway to describe art that refers to popular culture, such as comic strips or soup cans.

(According to the Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, the first time the word 'pop' was actually used in art was Eduardo Paolozzi's picture I Was a Rich Man's Plaything, in which a pistol pointed at a pin-up is going 'pop'.)

The word 'pop' also features in this much-repeated nursery rhyme, written in the mid-19th century by W. R. Mandale:

'Up and down the City Road
In and out of The Eagle
That's the way the money goes
Pop goes the weasel'

The Eagle, a tavern and theatre in London's City Road, was a busy Saturday night venue, and going 'in and out' required a good supply of cash. Hence, the need to 'pop' (pawn) the 'weasel' (possibly a tailor's iron, or a coat - from the rhyming slang 'weasel and stoat'). A pop shop is another way of describing a pawn shop.

• Other 'pop' expressions:
  Pop one's clogs - to die unexpectedly.
  Take a pop at - to physically attack or criticise.
  Make one's eyes pop - a reaction where a person's eyes open wide and bulge, as if to 'pop' out.