Why do people say "at the drop of a hat"?
Question
When someone doesn't need any encouragement to do something, they say they will do it "at the drop of a hat". Where does that phrase come from?
Amanda, Enfield
Answer
** Definitive **
Name: James, Birmingham
Qualification: I work in the derivation of phrases at Birmingham University
Answer: The origin is that at the start of a fight, they would take off their hat before they took off anything else. This led to a hat being dropped to start a race in the Midwest of America. Hence, the drop of a hat.