"Don't Do A <NAME>"

Question

What does this pattern mean?

Don't Do A <NAME>

In which <NAME> is the name of a person being talked about?

Also note that this is sometimes phrased as "Pull a [name]" instead of "Do a [name]". They mean the same thing. — Era, Commented Feb 4, 2016 at 19:35

Ryan __________ · Accepted Answer · 2014-11-10 00:04:54Z

3

Using names as a verb is a fairly recent development in English. While context is everything, it usually means something along the lines of:

Don't do what [name] tends to do.

or

Don't act like [name].

Here, the speaker is almost inventing a word based on the name.

answered Nov 10, 2014 at 0:04

Ryan __________

1043 bronze badges

3

In "do a [name]", the name is being used as a noun—note the article.
– user230
Commented Nov 10, 2014 at 12:15

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