Meaning of "I'll fix your little red wagon"?

[Kathleen in VA]

Came across this expression on a FB post and was wondering if anyone here knows what it means. I googled it and I kind of get that it means "I'll punish you." But what I can't figure out is in what context someone would use this phrase and also, how would it be said? Is the emphasis on "I'll" or "your"?

[Reeciecup]

It's something my grandmother used to say to my dad when he had misbehaved. She had a million little sayings like that she used with him.

[TN Mama]

I've only ever heard it said, "I'll fix your wagon." I've always taken it to mean, "I'll get you!" or "I'll take care of you!" And whenever I hear it I see John Wayne for some reason? :lol: Maybe he said it in an old movie I watched with my dad. Who knows.

[Hunter's Moon]

A reference to a spanking, perhaps?

 

I've only ever heard it, "I'll give your wagon a fixin'"

[Farrar]

I love this phrase. I also think of it as meaning "I'll get you!" I feel like I've only ever heard it said somewhat sarcastically though. In an almost joking manner.

 

I have no idea of the origins... anyone know? I think in my mind, if someone wanted to get you they could break your wagon while you weren't looking. But that's just a guess.

[Hunter's Moon]

I love this phrase. I also think of it as meaning "I'll get you!" I feel like I've only ever heard it said somewhat sarcastically though. In an almost joking manner.

 

I have no idea of the origins... anyone know? I think in my mind, if someone wanted to get you they could break your wagon while you weren't looking. But that's just a guess.

:iagree: That'd make sense, especially if said sarcastically like, "yeah, I'll get right on that"

[shalom22]

According to my Scholastic Dictionary of Idioms it means: to get even with or to punish someone; to thwart or frustrate another or cause his or her failure in something.

 

Origin: Some people think this idiom may have come from the days of the great westward migration in America in the 1800's, when the covered wagon was the main means of transportation. One meaning of the word "fix" is to take revenge upon or get even with. It might also mean tying up and holding secure, as in tying up a wagon so it cannot roll away. Today, "fix someone's wagon" means to plot against that person to do something bad to him or her.

[2_girls_mommy]

I always think of this having to do with covered wagons too. I have never heard it with "little red" in there :)

[sparrow]

According to my Scholastic Dictionary of Idioms it means: to get even with or to punish someone; to thwart or frustrate another or cause his or her failure in something.

 

Origin: Some people think this idiom may have come from the days of the great westward migration in America in the 1800's, when the covered wagon was the main means of transportation. One meaning of the word "fix" is to take revenge upon or get even with. It might also mean tying up and holding secure, as in tying up a wagon so it cannot roll away. Today, "fix someone's wagon" means to plot against that person to do something bad to him or her.

 

I've always just heard "I'll fix your wagon!" without the "little red" and assumed it was a revenge thing in the 1800's.

 

In the past month, I've come across the saying, "Bless your little cotton socks". I'd never heard it before, I love it, and I'm trying to incorporate it into my everyday speech :D. I found this explanation for it. Is this a commonly used phrase regionally? It sounds southern to me.

[TN Mama]

In the past month, I've come across the saying, "Bless your little cotton socks". I'd never heard it before, I love it, and I'm trying to incorporate it into my everyday speech :D. I found this explanation for it. Is this a commonly used phrase regionally? It sounds southern to me.

 

Sounds cute, but I've never heard it before.

[MamaSheep]

I've only heard it used, and used it myself, in a joking sort of way, but yes it basically means "I'm plotting a fitting revenge for what you just did to me". Emphasis can be on either "I'll" or "your" depending on what you want to emphasize. If you emphasize "I'll" then you're stressing the fact that "I" am the one who will serve up your punishment. If you emphasize "your", you stress the fact that the revenge is targeted and personal...I'm coming for YOU. For example, if my dh hits me (gently) with a snowball while my hands are full coming in from the car I might holler, "Just you wait until I put this stuff down. Then I'll fix your little red wagon, pal!" Except more often I'm inclined to say something like, "Watch it, buddy, I know where you sleep."