Origins of 3 Golden Sayings

Many phrases have become so commonplace in the English lingo that we don't think twice about using them or wonder where they originated. But if you really stopped to ponder the words you're using, you might get curious about the words and phrases you're using. Here are the origins of three common phrases, all with one thing in common -- gold.

FOOL'S GOLD

It is suspected that this phrase originated in the 1500s, when a man named Martin Frobisher returned to England after a voyage to find the Northwest Passage. The Northwest Passage was sought by many explorers and traders, hoping to find a sea route through the Arctic Ocean over the northern coast of North America. Frobisher returned from his search with a ship full of what he believed to be gold -- in actuality, the mineral he had collected was iron pyrite. This deceptive substance gives off the shiny appearance of gold, but is inherently of no value. Thus, the phrase "fool's gold" was born to denote anything that appears lucrative and attractive but is ultimately lacking substance and legitimate worth.

Other competing theories exist about this phrase's origin, mostly because it wasn't technically used in print until the 1800s. A 2008 movie featuring stars Kate Hudson and Matthew McConaughey was named after this phrase.

GOLD DIGGER

This phrase has gained increasing popularity in the 21st century, brought to the spotlight by rapper Kanye West's 2005 song of the same name. Two months after its release the song topped the billboard charts as the #1 single -- so clearly, this was a message that resonated with the general public. Today, the phrase typically refers to a young female who dates older, wealthy men for the purpose of gaining access to their bank accounts.

The phrase started out, however, in reference to gold miners during the various gold rushes in the 1800s. It may have picked up its current connotations in reference to the women who frequented gold-mining towns in hopes of securing the prospectors' impending fortunes.

ALL THAT GLITTERS IS NOT GOLD

This phrase is similar to the fool's gold idea because it refers to things that give off the appearance of value but lack actual worth. Several early authors used this phrase in their literature, but Shakespeare is thought to be the one who brought it the most attention when he used it in his 1596 play The Merchant of Venice. What's interesting is that gold, in its raw form, does not glitter as much as other minerals, such as the aforementioned iron pyrite. Several plays on this phrase have been made in modern popular culture, in everything from Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" lyrics to poetry in J.R.R. Tolkien's famed novel The Lord of the Rings.