The Archive

Etymology Journal ยท C

Cool your jets

Meaning

This is a command to slow down, calm down, or stop acting in a rush or an angry manner. It is a directive to regain your composure.

Sassy, patronizing

Used in a sentence

  • Cool your jets, we still have twenty minutes before we need to leave.
  • You need to cool your jets and let the boss speak before you interrupt him.
  • Just cool your jets for a second, I am trying to get the map sorted.

The backstory

The phrase is a mid-20th-century invention that draws a metaphor from jet engines. You have to throttle back the fuel to keep the engine from overheating.

Heard in

Nationwide

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