3

Source: C++ Programming for the Absolute Beginner, 2nd Edition by Mark Lee

Example:

The main operation of the computer is executing these instructions. Fetch the next instruction. Execute it. Fetch the next instruction. Execute it. Over and over again. Except this all happens very fast. A 1 GHz CPU can execute one billion instructions per second! Nothing to shake a stick at (though I’m not sure why one would want to shake a stick at things... the motivation seems to be lacking).

If you've got more of something than you can shake a stick at, then you have a lot of it. That's the original expression. Obviously, a billion instructions per second is a whooping number. You sure can try and connect the two ideas—the idiom about having a large quantity of something and the fact that most computers run billions of operations per second these days, but to be perfectly honest I'm not exactly sure where the author is going with his joke (he intentionally distorts the original expression) which is apparently a play on this idiom. Any idea?

Improve this question

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
4

The real meaning of the idiom "Nothing to shake a stick at" is that something is not very impressive. Here is a reference to its origins. Another, more understandable, version is "Nothing to write home about".

At first reading, I thought is was appropriate, after all 1GHz processor isn't much these days, but the exclamation mark indicates that he was impressed at the time of writing.

He has probably mixed up his idioms. The "not sure why" is just a remark about the absurdity of the idiom.

Improve this answer
3
  • 2
    The problem is that the meaning of the phrase and the usage in this case are at odds. He's clearly impressed by the vast speed of the CPU but then uses a statement meaning that it's not impressive. One would think that he perhaps just misused the phrase, really.
    – Catija
    Commented Mar 22, 2016 at 21:31
  • Agreed, @Catija.
    – JavaLatte
    Commented Mar 22, 2016 at 21:35
  • If you look at your reference, the quote is "[it] had more meanings down the centuries than you can shake a stick at." So, to be unable to shake a stick at something means it must be really big. Thus, "nothing to shake a stick at" is something impressively big.
    – Sam P.
    Commented Nov 22, 2018 at 8:41
2

I'm almost certain that this person has the wrong idiom. They're probably looking for

"nothing to sneeze at"

which means it was not an inconsequential thing, i.e. that it's actually quite monumental.

The stick-y idiom is usually used in the sense of

"more X than to shake a stick at"

meaning X is numerous, or

"nothing to shake a stick at"

meaning a confrontation with something should be avoided because it's either dangerous or it's inconsequential and not worth your time.

Improve this answer

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .