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Wind Liu Shun Posted 13 years ago
Vocabulary

Origin of "Sure as shooting"

Could someone tell me the origin of "Sure as shooting"?
I know it means to be very sure, dead sure.
What is so sure about shooting? Shooting here refers to shooting with a gun, right?
  

Top answer

com/certainties

— Fandorin

  • com/certainties
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5 Answers
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This common expression probably stems from the no longer used “Sure as a gun,” variously attributed to the poet John Dryden and the playwright William Congreve (quote) http://www.thefreedictionary.com/certainties
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Yeah, what is sure as a gun supposed to mean? Is it to compare a gun and an arrow to suggest gun is much more accurate weapon?
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I suppose a gun back then was attributed to "near-to-failproof" weapon. Just a wild guess though.
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If you want to get rid of someone, the surest way is to shoot him dead.
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Sure fire is an even more abbreviated version.
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