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HifaMo Posted 13 years ago
Vocabulary

reaping the floors of her establishment

"Mrs. Joe was prodigiously busy in getting the house ready for the festivities of the day, and Joe had been put upon the kitchen door-step to keep him out of the dust-pan - an article into which his destiny always led him sooner or later, when my sister was vigorously reaping the floors of her establishment.

This is a quote from Great Expectations by Dickens. The bold part confuses me.

Could you please explain?

Thank you.
  

Top answer

" Dirt is not something edible, so it sounds like it was meant to be humorous. "

— AlpheccaStars

  • " Dirt is not something edible, so it sounds like it was meant to be humorous.
  • "
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1 Answers
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It is a strange use of the verb "reap." Dirt is not something edible, so it sounds like it was meant to be humorous. I read it as: "sweeping the dirt from the floors..."
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