What have we stopped noticing?
The things we say, do, and accept without thinking twice.
Look closer where it comes from, what it assumes, and the case for keeping it
What you mean by it
To earn the household income.
What it's actually picturing
Financial success is represented by a cut of pork.
What it takes for granted
That a good living is measured in animals. Providing for people is pictured as meat arriving in the house.
Worth knowing
Younger than it sounds: first recorded in 1906 American boxing reports, not medieval England. Mildly awkward where pork isn't eaten.
The case for keeping it
It's a fossilized idiom. Nobody is making a claim about breakfast.
Say it plainly
Earn a livingPay the bills
Or have some fun
Bring home the bagels
Where this comes from
- Bring home the bacon · The Phrase Finder