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Bunny Trails: A Word History Podcast
Episode 186: Give an Inch, Take a Mile
Record Date: March 16, 2023
Air Date: March 22, 2023
Intro
Shauna:
Welcome to Bunny Trails, a whimsical adventure of idioms and other turns of phrase.
I’m Shauna Harrison
Dan:
And I’m Dan Pugh
Each week we take an idiom or other turn of phrase and try to tell the story from its entry into the English language, to how it’s used today.
Opening Hook
Have you ever shown someone a little kindness, and then had that person take advantage of you? I’m sure many, if not all, of us have had that happen before. It is probably more rare than we think, but because we as humans remember negative experiences so well, we remember those times where someone took advantage of our hospitality or kindness. As you might have guessed, we even have a saying for such a thing. I gave an inch and they took a mile.
Meaning
This phrase is interesting for a couple of points. First, it is one I’ve heard many times and I’ve used a few times as well. But it is still a resoundingly negative phrase. It’s also interesting because it is a latter version of an earlier phrase, which will get to in a few.
First, the definition from the Oxford English Dictionary.
Quote
give him an inch and he'll take a mile: the slightest concession will be unscrupulously exploited.
End Quote
I feel like dictionaries shouldn’t be allowed to use big words in their definitions. Scruples are a thought or circumstance that troubles the mind or conscience. So if someone did not have scruples, or were unscrupulous, it means they are not troubled with doubts and are willing to do most anything. So our definition means the slightest thing given will be exploited without hesitation or doubt. Basically, taken advantage of.
https://www.oed.com/view/Entry/173744?rskey=1Rmka9&result=2#eid
But as I alluded to earlier, give an inch and they’ll take a mile wasn’t the original usage of this phrase. And my reason for doing this episode is because of our top patron, Mary Halsig Lopez. She recently asked about the phrase, Give them an inch and he’ll take an ell. That is E-L-L. I knew that ell was an obsolete unit of measurement, equally roughly 45 inches. I can’t remember what I’m supposed to do for work tomorrow, but I have that stuck in my brain folds. Anyway, I didn’t realize that ell was used before mile in this phrase. Back to the Oxford English Dictionary for the definition of ELL.
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A measure of length varying in different countries. The English ell = 45 in.; the Scotch = 37·2; the Flemish = 27 in. Now historical or with reference to foreign countries, the English measure being obsolete.
End Quote
An ell in this way has been used since the 1000s when it appeared in the West Saxon Gospels. I won’t attempt to read the phrase since Old English is basically a different language.
The Oxford English Dictionary has examples of this one, too. Here’s a quick definition, which is probably a better way to have defined our phrase as it is used today.
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Contrasted with inch, span, etc.; esp. in proverbial phrase, give him an inch and he'll take an ell: meaning that undue advantage will be taken of a slight concession.
End Quote
This one has been around for a long time as well. The first attestation from the Oxford English Dictionary is from another dictionary in 1546. This is by John Heywood and is titled A dialogue conteinyng the nomber in effect of all the prouerbes in the englishe tongue · 1st edition.
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Ye lyked..better an ynche of your wyll, Than an ell of your thrifte.
End Quote
While not the same syntax as our current phrase, it is one of the first instances I could find ell being used figuratively and in contrast with an inch. And it wasn’t long before we were seeing things begin to follow the syntax, like this early version from 1580 in Humfrey Gifford’s “A posie of gilloflowers”
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Whereas shee tooke an inche of liberty before, tooke an Ell afterwardes.
End Quote
Here’s another from 1860 in
Quote
End Quote
One more for this version, this one from 1916 out of the Friend’s Intelligencer. It was written by William C. Allen who had been studying compulsory military training in schools.
Quote
End Quote
One more for this version, and this is from Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis in 1952. It was adapted from radio talks made between 1941 and 1944. This one is actually the reason we are doing this phrase, because our Patron Mary was recently listening to this book and sent the phrase our way.
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I knew she would take me to the dentist next morning. I could not get what I wanted out of her without getting something more, which I did not want. I wanted immediate relief from pain: but I could not get it without having my teeth set permanently right. And I knew those dentists; I knew they
started fiddling about with all sorts of other teeth which had not yet begun to ache. They would not let sleeping dogs lie; if you gave them an inch they took an ell.
End Quote
As we just mentioned, this version of the phrase continued on into the 1900s. And though it is largely out of favor now, I did see a few instances of it still being used.
As for our phrase today, with mile instead of ell, we began seeing it in the early 1800s. So the two were used at the same time for over 100 years. There was also just the first part of the phrase used, to give an inch, meaning to concede something. Though in every usage I found, it was in the negative of that, meaning they would not give an inch or they refused to give an inch. We’ll explore more on that in our behind the scenes video available to all Patrons at any level. Join them at patreon.com/bunnytrailspod.
Moving to take a mile, In the Journals of Ralph Waldo Emerson, we see an October 8, 1837 usage of the phrase when speaking about a young southerner whom he called “a spoiled child with graceful manners”.
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Treat them with great deference, as we often do, and they accept it all as their due without misgiving. Give them an inch, and they take a mile. They are mere bladders of conceit.
End Quote
This quote from Emerson in 1837 was the first time we saw it in print. He was an eloquent writer, so it is possible he coined this version of the phrase.
And one from 1846,
Quote
End Quote
Next up is from an article in The Bridgemen’s magazine, which was the periodical of choice for the International Association of Bridge, Structural, and Ornamental Iron Workers. This is from a letter to the editor by A.D.Clark from Indianapolis Local No. 22 dated December 22, 1903.
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End Quote
Here’s one from the 1918 book Twentieth Century Athenians by Ray Robinson:
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End Quote
One more before we move to our modern uses. This one is from a Statement made by the Honorable Frank Carlson, Governor of the State of Kansas to Congress in 1948.
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End Quote
Now a quick note of thanks to our awesome sponsors before we continue with our modern uses of the phrase.
Modern Uses
1989 Movie
In Disney’s version of the Little Mermaid, Sebastian is talking to King Triton about Ariel, saying:
Quote
Teenagers. They think they know everything. You give them an inch, they swim all over you.
End Quote
But that usage is also a play on this line from Disney’s version of Snow White, 1937, where Grumpy Dwarf says:
Quote
But I’m warnin’ ya, you give ‘em an inch, and they’ll walk all over ya!
End Quote
1980 Song
In the song “Real Situation” by Bob Marley and the Wailers, off the 1980 album Uprising!, we hear this take on the phrase:
Quote
Give them an inch, they take a yard
Give them a yard, they take a mile
End Quote
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5dTvFZf8UE
1994 Play
The play Rent opened on Broadway in 1996, but it started with a three-week workshop in 1994. And one of the songs from the show takes a slightly different look at the phrase. In the song Goodbye Love, which is basically a group of people fighting through song, a rapid back and forth section goes:
Quote
[JOANNE:]
She's in denial
[MIMI:]
He's in denial
[MARK:]
Guys!
[JOANNE:]
Didn't give an inch when I gave a mile
[MIMI:]
I gave a mile
[ROGER:]
Gave a mile to who?
[MARK & BENNY:]
C'mon guys, chill
End Quote
Scene with 2008 cast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-k-tFA6cB8
Lyrics: https://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/rentcast/goodbyelove.html
1995 Book (Burr, sea, ah, gah)
This next one is a book that was released in 1995. It is by José Antonio Burciaga and Cecilia Burciaga and was originally released under the title Give ‘Em an Inch and They’ll Take the Whole Enchilada. It’s now marketed under the title Give ‘Em an Inch and They’ll Take a Mile. According to GoodReads, Tony Burciaga “was a Chicano artist, poet, and writer who explored issues of Chicano identity and American society.” https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/145332.Jos_Antonio_Burciaga
Here is a quick synopsis from the publisher:
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The authors offer a collection of wit and wisdom from the Mexican kitchen of their childhoods, including their mothers' home recipes and homespun advice, stories, proverbs, anecdotes, and historical facts about Mexican food and wine.
End Quote
https://www.amazon.ca/Give-Inch-Theyll-Take-Mile/dp/1877741124
2007 Art
Give Me an Inch and I'll Take a Mile is an acrylic and tape on canvas painting by artist Jessica Cooper. It depicts flowers in a pot, with one seemingly attempting to escape by growing in a different direction than the others.
https://www.mutualart.com/Artwork/Give-Me-an-Inch-and-I-ll-Take-a-Mile/EF89D175043B7F36
2017 Book
Give Her an Inch, She’ll Take a Mile by Alex Tion. Here’s the synopsis:
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Two newlyweds embark on their dream honeymoon, but things turn on a dime when Katie meets her celebrity crush. Will her adoring hubby be left in the dust?
End Quote
https://www.google.com/books/edition/Give_Her_an_Inch_She_ll_Take_a_Mile/883ZAQAACAAJ?hl=en
2020 Art
On April 17, 2020, photographer Robert Goodwin uploaded a photo he called, Give an Inch, they’ll take a mile. It shows several trees, with many exposed roots, growing on a rock formation.
https://fineartamerica.com/featured/give-an-inch-theyll-take-a-mile-robert-goodwin.html
2021 Song
And finally, Give An Inch Take a Mile is a Country rock song by Derek Crider that is available on iTunes. https://music.apple.com/us/album/give-an-inch-take-a-mile-single/1545415305
Here is the chorus:
Quote
Has everybody in the world gone crazy, has everyone lost there damn
mind, when the foundation gets a little shaky and put on trial, you give
an inch, take a mile, gonna take a mile....
End Quote
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9pxCyc-LeE
Wrap Up
Until Mary sent us the C.S. Lewis quote, I had no idea that take a mile wasn’t the original rejoinder to our phrase. And in many cases, give an inch, or don’t give an inch, is used all by itself with no rejoinder. And in other cases another unit of measurement or phrasing is used with ‘give an inch’. But definitely researching ‘take an ell’ was fascinating for me. Because if someone said ‘take an ell’ to me last week, I would think they mean L for loss, and I should take the loss, an allusion to sports wins and losses. But I have a new appreciation for this now obsolete unit of measurement.
Dan:
That’s about all we have for today. If you have any thoughts on the show, or pop culture references we should have included, reach out to us on social media where we are @bunnytrailspod, or comment on our website bunnytrailspod.com
Shauna:
It’s patron poll time!
Recently we posed this hypothetical situation to our Patrons:
Science will make one non-scary mythical animal become real. What are you picking?
Out of unicorns, winged horses, mermaids, phoenixes, fairies, and gnomes, Fairies was the clear favorite garnering just shy of 70% of the votes.
JGP had a great take on the decision making process here:
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Okay, this is a hard one. Do the fairies grant wishes? Can the pegasuses fly? (And if they can fly, can they carry someone on their backs? Could riding them become a new Olympic sport?) Do all the medicines that purported being made from unicorn horn now become possible? Will the mermaids create maritime nations in previous unclaimed parts of the sea? How are we supposed to choose?
Eventually, I decided to vote for fairies on the off chance that somehow when science made them real they also made the entire fairy realm real. Think of the possibilities! :)
End Quote
Dan:
I like the idea of winged horses assuming they could fly. I'd love to have my own flying horse that I could ride. And I absolutely love JGP’s thoughts about the geopolitical strategies with mermaids claiming regions of the ocean.
Shauna:
I always thought fairies were actually sort of terrifying. But if they are kind and good, then they sound alright. And I like JGP's idea of them bringing the entire realm along with. Magic, for the win!
As a reminder, our silly polls mean absolutely nothing and are not scientifically valid. But Patrons of all levels get to take part. Head over to patreon.com/bunnytrailspod to take this week’s poll!
Outro
Shauna:
Thanks for joining us. We’ll talk to you again next week. Until then remember,
Together:
Words belong to their users.
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