MUNDANE MYSTERIES: Where did the phrase “getting cold feet” originate?

Person sitting on the sofa with feet that turned into ice cubes.

MUNDANE MYSTERIES: Where did the phrase “getting cold feet” originate?

We’ve all been nervous in our lives, sometimes to the point that you “get cold feet” and decide not to do something. But how did that saying come to be?

It was originally a military term that warriors would use when their feet would get literally frozen into the ground during the winter. It would prevent them from rushing into battle to fight.

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