What's a "gouge"?
#12
Prime Minister/Moderator

Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 44,888
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From: Engines Turn or People Swim
I'm not sure how it came to mean "inside info" but it did start in the navy. Maybe it was a military acronym that was phonetically similar to "gouge"?
#15
It may be an evolution of the noun "gauge": a standard of measurement or a device for measuring. As a UAW metalworker, I would set up a machine to cut desired lengths of steel by using a gauge. For cutting a pattern, the setup standard was called a template.
#16
from wiki:
In U.S. Navy jargon, gouge is the essential piece of information; the heart of the matter; or outstanding test-preparation material (such as an old test copy). A person who is tired of hearing all the extraneous information surrounding a problem might exclaim "Just give me the gouge!" Also used generally as a mark of excellence: "Did you see his sweet new car? It's totally gouge."
Originated at the U.S. Naval Academy and introduced from there into the wider navy, where it sees less frequent usage.
In U.S. Navy jargon, gouge is the essential piece of information; the heart of the matter; or outstanding test-preparation material (such as an old test copy). A person who is tired of hearing all the extraneous information surrounding a problem might exclaim "Just give me the gouge!" Also used generally as a mark of excellence: "Did you see his sweet new car? It's totally gouge."
Originated at the U.S. Naval Academy and introduced from there into the wider navy, where it sees less frequent usage.
#19
Prime Minister/Moderator

Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 44,888
Likes: 684
From: Engines Turn or People Swim
from wiki:
In U.S. Navy jargon, gouge is the essential piece of information; the heart of the matter; or outstanding test-preparation material (such as an old test copy). A person who is tired of hearing all the extraneous information surrounding a problem might exclaim "Just give me the gouge!" Also used generally as a mark of excellence: "Did you see his sweet new car? It's totally gouge."
Originated at the U.S. Naval Academy and introduced from there into the wider navy, where it sees less frequent usage.
In U.S. Navy jargon, gouge is the essential piece of information; the heart of the matter; or outstanding test-preparation material (such as an old test copy). A person who is tired of hearing all the extraneous information surrounding a problem might exclaim "Just give me the gouge!" Also used generally as a mark of excellence: "Did you see his sweet new car? It's totally gouge."
Originated at the U.S. Naval Academy and introduced from there into the wider navy, where it sees less frequent usage.


