'Run for their money': Why do we say this, plus ‘par for the course’ and more? 3 fun origin stories

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With many thousands of words in the English language, a variety of meanings and interesting origin stories abound. 

Over the decades, certain words used together have become popular phrases used in everyday language.

For example, expressions like "out of the blue" and "under the weather" have different meanings than the literal words might suggest.

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But where do these sayings come from? 

And why do we use them so often? 

Some popular metaphoric phrases have sport origins — with really interesting backgrounds. (iStock)

Here are three idioms connected to sports and their interesting origin stories. 

A rookie in sports usually refers to a pro athlete in his or her first season or year.

The phrase "rookie mistake" is often used when referring to someone who's made a misstep due to their lack of knowledge or experience. 

For example, a person who is learning to drive for the first time might accidentally hit curbs when turning. 

"Rookie mistake" is often used to refer to someone who is new to something and has made a wrong move.  (iStock)

That would be a "rookie mistake" — as it’s something people generally learn to avoid with time and practice. 

"Rookie mistake" is also interchangeable more or less with the phrase "rookie move."

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Although the origin of the phrase is unknown, the word rookie is believed to have originated from the word recruit, used in the 1860s to apply to new members of the military or law enforcement. 

The Oxford English Dictionary defines