Idiom – Ducks in a Row

Ducks in a Row – Idiom of the Day

Meaning:

To organize everything perfectly and be well prepared for something that is about to happen.

Origin:

It was initially believed that the phrase originated in the 1970s, in Stephen King’s novel The Stand, in 1978, where he used the expression, “line up one’s ducks.” It was later found in a 1932 edition of the Washington Post. The earliest reference that we know of, however, is from a November 1889 issue of The Plaindealer.

Now in the early 1900s, bowling pins were much shorter and fatter than the modern ones and were called “ducks” because they looked like, well, ducks(duh!). Furthermore, this was before automatic resetting machines, so they had to manually reset the pins in neat rows between rounds. Having “one’s ducks in a row” meant the bowler was ready to send the next ball down the alley.

Usage:

1. The cops are coming to my place for my passport verification, and I need to have all my ducks in a row to make sure everything goes smoothly.
2. The lawyer had all his ducks in a row for his big defence of the murder-accused rapper MC Thug.
3. I need to have all my ducks in a row for the big presentation tomorrow. 
4. The mayor’s chief of staff had to have all his ducks in a row for the official statement before the mayor’s re-election campaign.
5. As the minister’s permanent secretary, I have to have all my ducks in a row for any possible questions I might get in the inquiry hearing.