Couch potato

A couch potato is (originally U.S.) slang for a person who spends most or much of his time sitting or lying on a couch, or perhaps an or ,http://www.oxfordstudent.com/2002-05-02/ox2/2 watching television in his underwear and often drinking beer. Typically, couch potatoes are supposed to be overweight or out of shape.

Related Topics:
U.S. - Slang - Couch - Television - Underwear - Beer - Overweight

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The word first appeared in a December 1979 edition of the Los Angeles Times, and entered the Oxford English Dictionary 14 years later. The exact origin of the term is unknown but many believe it relates to some people?s habit of eating potato chips while watching TV.

Related Topics:
Los Angeles Times - Oxford English Dictionary - Potato chips

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Some studies have said that the "couch potato lifestyle" is a serious health hazard to its practitionershttp://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2233736.stm; in the United Kingdom, a plan

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of the Prime Minister's Strategy Unit tied attempts "to combat the couch potato culture" to " international sporting performance" http://www.pm.gov.uk/output/Page3900.asp.

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Ten studies presented at the 2003 meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine suggested that there could be a genetic basis for the "couch potato lifestyle".http://www.bayarea.com/mld/cctimes/living/health/6500983.htm

Related Topics:
2003 - American College of Sports Medicine

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Various activities have been designed for or around the couch potato, including a type of investment portfolio ("Couch Potato Portfolio")http://www.investopedia.com/articles/mutualfund/03/043003.asp, and fantasy football leagues.

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The phrase has coined a spin-off 'mouse potato' (or 'computer potato'), meaning one who spends too much time in front of a computer. The origin of the neologism 'mouse potato', obviously a play on words between a (computer) mouse and a couch, is unknown.

Related Topics:
Play on words - Mouse

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Greyhound dogs, who are well-known for their sprinting ability, are sometimes called "forty-five mile per hour couch potatoes."

Related Topics:
Greyhound - Dog - Sprint

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