Why is it called swings and roundabouts?

The Oxford online dictionary identifies “swings and roundabouts” as such and gives this definition: “A situation in which different actions or options result in no eventual gain or loss.” The idea is that in carnivals, where the proprietor might be losing money on one ride, such as the swings, he is likely to be doing …

What does swing some roundabouts mean?

phrase. If you say that a situation is swings and roundabouts, you mean that there are as many gains as there are losses. [British]

How do you use swings and roundabouts in a sentence?

(idiomatic, UK) Gains and losses that offset each other. If, in order to save money, you never buy a parking ticket, you are more likely to get fined, so it’s all swings and roundabouts really. Whether we pick up Mary first and then John or John first and then Mary is a matter of swings and roundabouts.

What they gained on the roundabout they lost on the swings?

So what they gained on the roundabout they lost on the swings. If you see, on the other hand, that existence—this is, as I said, my basic metaphysical assumption which I won’t conceal from you—that existence is musical in nature, that is to say, that it is not serious, it is a play of all kinds of patterns.

What do you lose the swings?

proverb The losses, setbacks, or negative aspects of a certain situation are offset or balanced by equally advantageous or positive elements, or vice versa. (The formation of the phrase can also be reversed.) Primarily heard in UK.

Where is swings and roundabouts from?

It’s originally a saying of fairground folk, and it means that a loss in one field [selling tickets for the swings] is balanced by profit in another [selling tickets for the roundabouts].

What you lose on the swings?

said to mean that the positive and negative results of a situation or action balance each other: “The route through town would be shorter, but there’ll be more traffic.” “Well, it’s just swings and roundabouts.”

What is the meaning much of a muchness?

much of a muchness. : very much the same.

What is a roundabout defined as?

1 : a circuitous route : detour. 2 British : merry-go-round. 3 : a short close-fitting jacket worn by men and boys especially in the 19th century. 4 : rotary sense 2.

What does ups and downs mean?

phrase. If you have ups and downs, you experience a mixture of good things and bad things. Every relationship has a lot of ups and downs. The organisation has had its ups and downs.

What is the meaning interregnum?

1 : the time during which a throne is vacant between two successive reigns or regimes. 2 : a period during which the normal functions of government or control are suspended.

What is the meaning of idiom hand in glove?

: in extremely close relationship or agreement working hand in glove with the police.

Why do they say’swings and roundabouts’?

For whatever reason, the fairground owner may be losing money on the swings, but gaining it on the roundabouts. So the situation is balanced. “They’re giving everyone a pay rise, but now we’re all expected to work longer hours. So, swings and roundabouts, really…”

Which is the best definition of a roundabout?

A situation in which certain gains, advantages, or other positive aspects or outcomes are offset or balanced by equally disadvantageous losses, setbacks, or negative outcomes (or vice versa). Primarily heard in UK.

When was the poem’roundabouts and swings’written?

– Kris Feb 14 ’16 at 15:15 I have just read the poem “Roundabouts and Swings” written by Patrick R. Chalmers and published in 1912, which user 160355 mentions. The third and fourth lines in the second stanza, where the ‘Pharaoh’ (gypsy/gipsy) answers the question “‘ow d’you find things go?”

Where does the phrase’what we lost on the swings’come from?

So what we lost on the swings… What you lose on the swings, you make up for on the roundabouts. Its origin is from the fairground. For whatever reason, the fairground owner may be losing money on the swings, but gaining it on the roundabouts.