WHAT IS the meaning and origin of the idiom “show someone a clean pair of heels”?
(N. Kamesh, Chennai) This is a relatively old expression, which means to run faster than someone who is trying to catch you. Some people consider the idiom to be old fashioned. Here are a few examples. *The thief jumped down from the balcony and showed the policeman a clean pair of heels. *The students showed the Security Guard a clean pair of heels. Another meaning of “show someone a clean pair of heels” is to defeat an individual easily. *When it comes to growth in the markets, China has shown Russia and America a clean pair of heels. *Half way through the race, Mankad picked up his pace and showed everyone a clean pair of heels The expression comes from the sport (if one can call it that) of cockfighting. The Romans, I understand, were extremely fond of this sport. What they used to do in order to make the fights really bloody was to attach metal claws or spurs to the feet of the birds. You can just imagine the result. But sometimes a bird refused to fight and simply ran away. Since
