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Same old same old

Posted by Ted Rosenthal on July 05, 2009 at 07:28

Some one wanted to investigate the origin of the phrase "same old same old". Everyone seems to have gotten it wrong. It originated during the Korean War. American soldiers in foreign lands often try to make indigenous personnel use English phrases. When an American GI wanted a Korean subordinate to do something which was similar to something the Korean has already learned how to do, the American would use the expression "same-o, same-o. GI's returning to the States took the phrase with them but mainstream Americans missed the meaning entirely.

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