Deep Six: It Is Well Hidden

deep-six. It means to hide something or put it where it will not be found. You can also deep-six, or reject a proposal.

deep six is the bottom of the ocean. "Deep," in this case, means deepest. The "six" in the expression comes from the six feet that make up a fathom -- which is a little less than two meters.

give it the deep-six. He will drop it from the ship to the ocean bottom.

deep-six an unplesant letter from a former friend.

Another expression linked to sailing is batten down the hatches. That is what sailors do to prepare their ship for a storm at sea.

to sail under false colors.  Experts on language say the expression was born more than two hundred fifty years ago, when pirates sailed the seas, attacking and robbing trade ships.

showed their true colors. They raised the pirate flag -- with its picture of a skull and crossed bones.

This VOA Special English program, Words and Their Stories, was written by Marilyn Christiano. This is Warren Scheer.