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For other uses see Catch phrase (disambiguation)

A catch phrase is a phrase or expression that is spontaneously popularized after a critical amount of widespread repeated usage in everyday conversation (i.e., it "catches" on). Also called a memetic phrase, catch phrases often originate in popular culture (such as motion pictures and television), and typically spread through a variety of media, as well as word of mouth. A catch phrase’s defining features are its sudden, spontaneous, and widespread public reception, and its adopted use by the public, often to its own amusement.

What makes a catch phrase stick

A sign that such a phrase has caught on is its use in many sectors of society — political, social, and cultural. Catch phrases usually decline in popularity after a time, but this is not always the case. The term "Manifest Destiny", for example, was a catch phrase of the mid-nineteenth century, coined by journalist John O'Sullivan in an editorial in 1845. The phrase spread so quickly that people soon forgot who first introduced the term. In time, "Manifest Destiny" ceased to be a catch phrase, instead becoming a standard historical term, and a permanent part of the lexicon of U.S. history.

Some catch phrases derive from misquotations that are so commonly cited they become generally assumed to be correct. Two of the most common modern examples from the not-so-recent past are “Play it again, Sam” (falsely attributed to Casablanca) and “Beam me up, Scotty” (Star Trek). Others only catch on within specific sub-cultures. In more recent times, many such catch phrases have propagated through the Internet. The catch phrase "All your base are belong to us", from a poorly-translated Japanese video game, is one example.

Some catch phrases originate as a slogan in an advertising campaign. The catch phrase “Where's the beef?” became popular in the U.S. as a result of a successful 1984 commercial for Wendy's, a hamburger restaurant chain. Advertising slogans that do not catch on with the public do not, by definition, become catch phrases, and soon become lost to history.

The trademark catch phrase

Some catch phrases become the "trademark" or defining characteristic of the person or character with whom they originated. A notable example is the catch phrase (actually catch word) “D'oh”, the trademark exclamation of Homer Simpson from the long-running animated series The Simpsons. This expostulation has now been added to some dictionaries. A classic “trademark” catch phrase is “Ehh… what's up, Doc?”, which is identified with the Looney Tunes / Merrie Melodies’ star character, Bugs Bunny. Bugs usually intones this wry inquiry quite nonchalantly, pausing at the ellipsis, while idly munching on a carrot.

In the professional wrestling arena, catch phrases are often essential to a wrestler’s gimmick. Some, such as The Rock’s “Can you smell what The Rock is cookin’” and "Stone Cold" Steve Austin’s “Austin 3:16” and “That’s the bottom line, 'cause Stone Cold said so” achieved exceptional popularity. These phrases have proceeded to symbolize pro wrestling itself, even after the active careers of their associated star figures have ended.

Pronunciation is often essential to a catch word or phrase. For example, U. S. sports announcer Marv Albert’s “Yes!” is a catch word mainly due to his distinctive enunciation of that word, and those who imitate or parody it normally attempt to duplicate the announcer’s style. Another example, coincidentally using the same word, would be Frank Nelson's uttering of "Yeeeeeeesssss?" (also parodied in The Simpsons). Another classic example from mid-20th century Hollywood slapstick comedy is associated with Curly Howard, a member of the Three Stooges: his ebullient enunciation of the word “certainly” almost always comes out as: “SOYT-en-ly!”

See also

For further reading

Partridge, Eric (1894-1979) ed. Beale. A Dictionary of Catch Phrases, American and British, from the sixteenth century to the present day (enlarged trade paperback edition) Lanham, Maryland: Scarborough House, 1992 ISBN 0-8128-8536-8

External links

Phrases | Pop culture language | Anthropology

Phrase fétiche | Catch phrase

 

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "Catch phrase".

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