Ten-foot pole

[nq:1]Recently I came across this sentence: I wouldn't get near one of the new programs in this country with a ten-foot pole. I cannot find the meaning of the phrase "a ten-foot pole." Is it a slang? What does it account for?[/nq]
It's a cliche. The standard phraseology is "I wouldn't touch it with a ten-foot pole," meaning that the speaker finds "it" (whatever "it" is) so offensive that he o

[nq:2]Recently I came across this sentence: I wouldn't get near ... pole." Is it a slang? What does it account for?[/nq]
[nq:1]It's a cliche. The standard phraseology is "I wouldn't touch it with a ten-foot pole," meaning that the speaker finds ... it. In most contexts you'll find it a lot easier just to say something like "I consider it very offensive."[/nq]
... or "scary", or otherwise

Jeremy Chen | alt.usage.english,uk.culture.language.english in
[nq:1]Recently I came across this sentence: I wouldn't get near one of the new programs in this country with a ten-foot pole. I cannot find the meaning of the phrase "a ten-foot pole." Is it a slang? What does it account for?[/nq]
Hi Jeremy,

I am not an English native speaker, anyway I came across this idiom a few ti

[nq:1]Recently I came across this sentence: I wouldn't get near one of the new programs in this country with a ten-foot pole. I cannot find the meaning of the phrase "a ten-foot pole." Is it a slang? What does it account for?[/nq]
Often given as "10-foot bargepole". (A long pole with a hook on the end used for pulling canal boats to the bank of the canal.)

HTH.

[nq:1]I cannot find the meaning of the phrase "a ten-foot pole." Is it a slang? What does it account for?[/nq]
It is a mis-quote. The correct term is "a ten-foot barge pole."

100 years ago they used barges in England to convey good via the British canals. Barges were a common form of public transport. Slow, but cheaper than a coach, but both were horse-drawn. The barge workers used a

In article (Email Removed), Enrico C (Email Removed) writes
[nq:1]Jeremy Chen alt.usage.english,uk.culture.language.english in [/nq]
[nq:2]Recently I came across this sentence: I wouldn't get near ... pole." Is it a slang? What does it account for?[/nq]
[nq:1]Hi Jeremy, I am not an English native speaker, anyway I came across this idiom a few times. I think it's usually said as "I wou

[nq:1]http://www.knls.org says it is an American idiom: "A fun American idiom is I WOULDN'T TOUCH THAT WITH A TEN-FOOT POLE ... want to get involved The pole refers to the long poles used to push barges down a canal or river[/nq]
In fact the British equivalent is simply "I wouldn't touch that with a barge-pole".

Cheers

[nq:2]I cannot find the meaning of the phrase "a ten-foot pole." Is it a slang? What does it account for?[/nq]
[nq:1]It is a mis-quote. The correct term is "a ten-foot barge pole."[/nq]
Not really a "mis-quote": the US and UK versions are different.

In the US, it's "...with a ten-foot pole"; in the UK the wording is "...with a barge-pole".

I've never heard "...with a ten

[nq:2]It is a mis-quote. The correct term is "a ten-foot barge pole."[/nq]
[nq:1]Not really a "mis-quote": the US and UK versions are different. In the US, it's "...with a ten-foot pole"; in the UK the wording is "...with a barge-pole". I've never heard "...with a ten-foot barge pole"; sounds redundant to my ear.[/nq]
Not only is it redundant but the US is giving short measure again -- by

[nq:2]I cannot find the meaning of the phrase "a ten-foot pole." Is it a slang? What does it account for?[/nq]
[nq:1]It's a cliche. (...)[/nq]
Is this some new usage of "cliché"?

Matti