This. The other, rude PP above with the “smart google” is missing the point. The dictionaries that attribute a source to the secondary meaning (the repetitive loop) attribute it to the movie. OP’s husband’s theory doesn’t make sense. https://www.dictionary.com/browse/groundhog-day https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/groundhog-day |
exactly. We’re not talking about Groundhog Day existing before the movie (duh). We’re talking about whether or not the use of the phrase oh it’s like Groundhog Day (something happening over and over ) due to the movie. Google again see what you come up with. |
Congratulations on making yourself look like a jack ass over the phrase Groundhog Day. Yet I’m guessing this is probably a groundhog type moment for you. |
I know, right?! It’s her only redeemable performance! |
Are you suggesting this usage of Groundhog Day is part of a vast Internet conspiracy to attribute the phrase to a popular movie? |
That’s a dreadful lie! Show me another actress who can deliver a line in dolphin with the sincerity Andie does. |
Haha, careful, PP, or I’ll force you to watch her robotic “Is it raining? I hadn’t noticed” scene from 4 Weddings on repeat. 🤣 |
So as not to derail the OPs Q and a very interesting and surprisingly lively discussion re: the phrase, could someone start a separate thread about “Why do so many people dislike Andie MacDowell?” I’ve always liked her, but so many people don’t. Why? |
So, I grew up in Pennsylvania in the 1970's and we used the phrase similar to the current usage well before the movie. However, the exact meaning was slightly different before the movie. Before the movie, the meaning of "Groundhog Day" was going and doing something that you knew was pointless or fake to convince yourself that it mattered. In this case it referred to going out in February of every year to watch a rodent to determine if the winter was going to last 6 more weeks or not, since, in essence, the duration of the winter was unlikely to be either affected or detectable by said-rodent. So if you had a groundhog day action, it was generally something you repeated regularly that was pointless, but you did it anyway.
The concept of the phrase was elaborated far more extensively in the movie and became more common usage to repeat actions ad infinitum. So, it was already in use, but in a bit more general/generic way than the current evolved usage. |
She was fabulous in Bad Girls, which is a perfectly delightful movie that does NOT deserve 13% on Rotten Tomatoes. Fight me. |