Lickety-split

Posted by ESC on January 16, 2004

In Reply to: Phrase History/meaning inquiry posted by George Partridge on January 16, 2004

: Where/how did the phrase "licketty split" originate? Check the spelling- "licketty"???

From the archives:

LICKETY-SPLIT - " adv. 1859, American English, formed from earlier 'lickitie' very fast (irregular formation from 'lick,' n., used dialectally in the sense of fast) + split, n."From The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology by Robert K. Barnhart (HarperCollins Publishers, New York, 1995).