Search results
Mar 11, 1994 · Noting that the earliest citation of “on the fritz” in the Oxford English Dictionary is from 1903, word detectives William and Mary Morris guess that it all started with the comic strip The Katzenjammer Kids, which began around that time.
The Origins of “On The Fritz”. The exact origin of this idiom is unclear, but it is believed to have originated in America in the early 20th century. Some speculate that it may have been derived from German immigrants who used a similar phrase “auf der Fritz” which means “in a state of disorder”.
Jul 17, 2023 · Origin. What's the origin of On the Fritz? The exact origin of the phrase “On the Fritz” is somewhat uncertain, but it is believed to have originated in the United States in the late 19th or early 20th century. There are two different etymologies for the expression.
Aug 11, 2001 · William and Mary Morris, in the Morris Dictionary of Word and Phrase Origins, suggest that it may nevertheless have come from someone called Fritz — in the comic strip called The Katzenjammer Kids.
on the fritz -A 20th century phrase meaning 'out of order, not working' that can be applied to people, machines, almost anything. Though there was speculation that the fritz in this expression came about as a reference to the nickname for Friedrich, a common German name, during World War I, the…
May 26, 2021 · The two leading hypotheses for the origins are, first, that on the fritz comes from the German pet name Fritz, short for Friedrich. Specifically, the cartoon characters the Katzenjammer Kids, Hans and Fritz, are often put forward as inspiration for the phrase.
People also ask
Where did the phrase 'on the Fritz' come from?
What does it mean when something is on the Fritz?
What etymologies are there for 'Fritz'?
Where did on the Fritz come from?
Just as humans mess up, so do our machines. The phrase on the fritz dates to the beginning of the 20th century--a time, perhaps, when electric appliances were becoming more common (and consequently break down) in American homes. However, nobody knows the exact origin of the term.
