> 1. "wise guys"
[SNIP]
> So how did the term get narrowed to mafia gangsters
who are not
> usually portrayed as being that swift with the
repartee?
Irony?
> 2. In an article on Eric Ambler, a critic refers to
the phrase "calling a
> spade a bloody shovel."
The phrase is used to describe someone who'll speak their
mind without
mincing words.
It derives from the phrase 'call a spade a spade' ie, to
avoid
euphemism.
To call a spade 'a spade' is then to be straightforward and
avoid
dissembling; to call a spade 'a bloody shovel' is to be still
more
forthright.
ED
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