What "Have A Bone To Pick" REALLY Means

Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part I of a two part series on the saying "have a bone to pick [with someone].

This post provides answers to the question "What does have a bone to pick?" really means. A definition for the related saying "picking a bone [with someone] is also included in this post.

This post also includes an example of the saying "have a bone to pick" from recent political news about United States Republican Presidental candidate Donald Trump.

Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2015/08/angie-stone-bone-2-pic-video-lyrics.html for Part II of this series.

Part II of this series showcases a video of & lyrics for the Neo-Soul song "Bone 2 Pic" by Angie Stone. Explanations of some of that song's lyrics are also included in this post.

The content of this post is presented for etymological, cultural, and entertainment purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.

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WHAT THE SAYING "HAVE A BONE TO PICK (WITH SOMEONE) MEANS & WHERE THIS SAYING MAY HAVE COME FROM
http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/a+bone+to+pick+with a bone to pick with somebody
"a small disagreement with someone
Example: My sister and I had a bone to pick with our parents over where we'd go on vacation.

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From https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080217001803AARJBHu Where Did The Saying "I Have A Bone To Pick With You" Come From?
anonymous: "My mother used to say this when she heard that I did something she didn't approve of and would always say "you know i have a bone to pick with you" before telling me why she was pissed.

How did that saying start? What is it referring to?"

-snip-
"pissed" = angry, annoyed

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Best Answer: J, 2006
"Apparently, it relates to dogs gnawing on a bone for a long time, until it's "picked" all the meat off. So if you have a bone to pick with someone, then you have a problem that will take some time to work out."

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From http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=bone+to+pick
"bone to pick

something to argue about, a matter to discuss

Joe sounded angry when he said, "I have a bone to pick with you.""
by VAKI5 May 09, 2005

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From https://www.englishforums.com/English/HaveABoneToPickWithSb/cnnbz/post.htm
MrPedantic: 10th June 2006
[Regarding "have a bone to pick with you"]
"This means "I have a dispute or unpleasant matter to settle with you".
A similar Irish phrase is "I have a crow to pluck with you".

It seems to be a reference to picking the last bits of meat off a bone. This is a difficult business; the implication is that settling the dispute will mean a lot of difficult and detailed discussion."...

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EDITOR'S COMMENT
When my mother prefaced her reprimand with "I have a bone to pick with you", she was signalling that although she was not happy about my actions or words, she didn't consider it to be something very serious.

The related saying "picking a bone with someone" means to argue with someone or to fight someone over something small and relatively inconsequential.

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EXAMPLE FROM A RECENT POLITICAL ARTICLE
Editor's Note: Reading this first example is what motivated me to write this post.

From http://www.thewrap.com/omarosa-defends-donald-trump-says-megyn-kelly-had-a-bone-to-pick/ Omarosa Defends Donald Trump, Says Megyn Kelly ‘Had a Bone to Pick’
By Daniel Holloway on August 9, 2015
"Donald Trump’s former “Apprentice” candidates have rushed to his defense in the wake of his debate dust-up with Fox News’ Megyn Kelly.

Kelly pressed Trump about his past use of derogatory comments to describe women.

Omarosa Manigault, one of the best-known contestants from “The Apprentice” — the reality series Trump used to host for NBC — called out Kelly Sunday on CNN’s “Reliable Sources” for her questioning of Trump at Thursday’s Republican presidential debate.

...“Look, it’s so clear to me that Megan Kelly had a bone to pick with Donald Trump,” Manigault told “Reliable Sources” host Brian Stelter Sunday. “Everyone saw it.”"

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This concludes Part I of this series.

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