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Usenet Posted 23 years ago
Usage

What is "say hey"?

All of a sudden, every second Usenet message has "say hey" in it. Maybe I lead a sheltered life, but until about a week ago I'd never heard this expression.
Does it have any meaning or is jit ust a vacuous ejaculation? Where did it spring from (although I'm guessing it has to be American)? Is it related to the equally incomprehensible "heads up"?
  

Top answer

[nq:1]All of a sudden, every second Usenet message has "say hey" in it. Maybe I lead a sheltered life, but ... it spring from (although I'm guessing it has to be American)?

  • [nq:1]All of a sudden, every second Usenet message has "say hey" in it.
  • Maybe I lead a sheltered life, but ...
  • it spring from (although I'm guessing it has to be American)?
  • [/nq] It's a catchphrase associated with one of the greatest baseball players of all time, Willie Mays of the San Francisco Giants.
  • Just why you should be seeing it now, especially, I couldn't guess.
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15 Answers
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[nq:1]All of a sudden, every second Usenet message has "say hey" in it. Maybe I lead a sheltered life, but ... it spring from (although I'm guessing it has to be American)? Is it related to the equally incomprehensible "heads up"?[/nq]
It's a catchphrase associated with one of the greatest baseball players of all time, Willie Mays of the San Francisco Giants.

Just why you should be se
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Willie Mays has been getting big articles in the news recently because he is number 3 on the career home runs list, behind Babe Ruth, and Barry Bonds is about to overtake him.

It seems unfair that post season home runs should count, but I suppose that they do.
Richard Maurer To reply, remove half
Sunnyvale, California of a homonym of a synonym for also.
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[nq:1]<< (jac23) All of a sudden, every second Usenet message has "say hey" in it. Maybe I lead a sheltered ... a catchphrase associated with one of the greatest baseball players of all time, Willie Mays of the San Francisco Giants.[/nq]
Us oldsters tend to think of Willie Mays as a New York Giant. to begin with, he was a New Yorker, noted for his skill at stoopball. The most famous single thi
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[nq:1]All of a sudden, every second Usenet message has "say hey" in it. Maybe I lead a sheltered life, but ... it spring from (although I'm guessing it has to be American)? Is it related to the equally incomprehensible "heads up"?[/nq]
"Heads up" isn't so incomprehensible. It's what construction workers say when they are working over other exposed workers. It lets those below know there is a p
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[nq:2]All of a sudden, every second Usenet message has "say ... American)? Is it related to the equally incomprehensible "heads up"?[/nq]
"Heads up" has two meanings. It means to be alert about some physical danger. If I'm carrying something unwieldy, I might say "heads up" to warn someone else in the room that they might be struck by the object if they didn't watch out.
It's also an advan
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Brian Wickham filted:
[nq:1]"Heads up" isn't so incomprehensible. It's what construction workers say when they are working over other exposed workers. It lets those below know there is a potential danger overhead. Restaurant workers say, "Watch your back" when maneuvering through a room with a tray of dishes.[/nq]
Or in a Mexican restaurant: "Hot plate!"...
[nq:1]The rest of us have ad
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[nq:2]Is it related to the equally incomprehensible "heads up"?[/nq]
[nq:1]"Heads up" isn't so incomprehensible. It's what construction workers say when they are working over other exposed workers. It lets those below know there is a potential danger overhead.[/nq]
I learned it in a different context. It's what you shout in a park to let people who may not be paying attention know that a f
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( . . . )
[nq:1]Us oldsters tend to think of Willie Mays as a New York Giant. to begin with, he was a New ... plate. (The ball would have cleared the fence in any contemporary ballpark.) He was MVP in his Polo Grounds days.[/nq]
I remember one where he was running fast with his back to the infield, reached high still facing outfieldward and caught the ball without apparently seeing it. Was
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[nq:1](1) That's "ironic" in the American sense. Literally following the safety direction could lead you to be injured by the very thing you were being warned about.[/nq]
That's funny, that has been exactly the English meaning of the word since
1649. From the OED:

"

2. fig. A condition of affairs or events of a character opposite to whatwas, or might naturally be, expecte
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[nq:2]"Heads up" isn't so incomprehensible. It's what construction workers say ... lets those below know there is a potential danger overhead.[/nq]
[nq:1]I learned it in a different context. It's what you shout in a park to let people who may not ... or errant frisbee is headed their way. It's "Be aware! Potentially dangerous object coming." Sort of like a golfer's "Fore!"[/nq]
Or a basket

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