Between The Devil and The Deep Blue Sea

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Meaning:

Between The Devil and The Deep Blue Sea means that you are nStuck between two awful choices; having two poor alternatives.

Origin:

This expression is said to have existed orally since at least the 1600s. This expression doesn’t have to do with the devil of the Bible but with a seam around a ship’s hull near the water. This term was coined in 1867 in The Sailor's Word-Book: an alphabetical digest of nautical terms.It states:

"Devil - the seam which margins the waterways on a ship's hull".

To be 'between the devil and the deep sea' a sailor would need to be at the very edge of the deck, or even over the side, either way, a very dangerous position.

When a sailor attempted to caulk this seam in heavy seas, he was in serious danger of falling overboard and drowning. Of course, if he didn’t caulk the seam, the ship could fill with water and sink.

In other words, the sailor was faced with two awful choices: risk his life to repair the ship or risk the entire ship by not repairing the ship. This is where the term Between The Devil and The Deep Blue Sea came from. It really turns out to be quite an ethical question.

Example:

Today we do not use this saying as much, but it does have a sister saying, ‘between a rock and a hard place.” But, that is another video.

Today if we are to use this phrase an example would be.

“My partner and I are between the devil and the deep blue sea because both our parents want us to spend Thanksgiving with us but they live on opposite sides of the country.”

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