The phrase "out of pocket" is often used in my office to mean "unavailable". I've found reference to this on the internet as well, but no obvious clue to where this meaning comes from.
Where does this particular meaning come from?
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Does your reference not explain this?– Andrew Leach ♦May 23, 2012 at 13:33
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1@AndrewLeach I don't think so. It just assumes that it was derived from the accounting term. I find it equally likely that it is a conflation with "out of band", which has a more accurate meaning.– C. RossMay 23, 2012 at 13:56
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1These are two interesting blogs (not recent, but maybe when this phrase first began being commonly used this way). You'll see theories ranging from it being based on football terminology to nautical terminology to accounting terminology to reporters-in-the-field-being-unreachable terminology. hubbub.typepad.com/blog/2006/10/office_talk_out.html grammarphobia.com/blog/2007/05/out-of-pocket.html– JLGMay 23, 2012 at 13:59
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@JLG Can you add an answer with this content?– C. RossMay 23, 2012 at 14:01
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1I first heard the expression out-of-pocket from a native Texan in the mid 1980s. He used it to mean "unavailable". When I questioned him about the term he said that it was a regional expression.– user30199Oct 31, 2012 at 21:37
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4 Answers
The Oxford English Dictionary says out of pocket meaning "out of reach, absent, unavailable" dates back to the US of the early 20th century:
1908 ‘O. Henry’ Buried Treasure in Ainslee's July 69/2 Just now she is out of pocket. And I shall find her as soon as I can.
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2wth was wrong with O. Henry that he made this up out of nowhere. smh.– Randy LJun 21, 2015 at 15:20
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1@the0ther: O. Henry probably didn't make it up, but is just the first one we know who'd written it down somewhere. Others most likely had already been using it in speech, and others may have written it down too.– HugoJun 22, 2015 at 9:56
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For what it's worth, "out of pocket" written usage spiked way up around 1915-1925, about 7 years after O. Henry's usage. See Google Books Ngram Viewer books.google.com/ngrams Nov 9, 2016 at 22:28
It's a novel use of a metaphoric idiom (with, needless to say, odd syntax).
Happens all the time, though this is the first I've heard this one. Where is this office located?
X is out of pocket normally means that expense has been occurred by X. Who is out of pocket? asks who incurred any expense; Geoff is out of pocket for this claims that Geoff was responsible for paying for this; If you wind up out of pocket, see me about payment is an invitation to submit a voucher for reimbursement. Needless to say, the money is currently unavailable to X.
The metaphor is that money comes out of one's pocket. The odd syntax is to say that the person is out of pocket instead of the money. But it's a fixed phrase and they do get weird.
In the usage cited, X is out of pocket has apparently been reinterpreted, with pocket being metaphorized as X's office rather than X's money -- money (and debt and responsibility) have disappeared entirely from the meaning. And it's X that's unavailable, not X's money.
Very interesting. Thank you.
answered May 23, 2012 at 13:42
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2Do you have any cites for this, or is this your conjecture? Not a criticism, just asking for information. May 23, 2012 at 13:50
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1I hear this commonly. If you think of out of pocket in a fiscal sense as "on your own", then it doesn't seem to big a stretch to me to see out of pocket in a physical sense as out there on your own and unreachable.– mikeYAug 20, 2012 at 17:17
It means something is paid from personal funds.
Somehow "out of pocket" has become a new business catchphrase meaning "unreachable, out of communication", "unavailable", which is incorrect.
Correct use is:
My doctor's office refuses to bill insurance companies any more, so I was out of pocket for the entire payment until I did all of the paperwork myself for reimbursement.
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3You don't answer the question. I know what the correct meaning is, I'd like to know where the newer/incorrect one came from.– C. RossMay 23, 2012 at 13:54
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Probably just the inverse of "in the pocket", meaning that you have something already. May 23, 2012 at 13:56
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1I don't see how you can say that using an idiom with a certain meaning is "wrong". Many people use it with this meaning -- I hear this all the time. I think the definition of a word or phrase is what most people understand it to mean, by definition.– JayMay 23, 2012 at 14:35
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Hmm, "incorrect" may be a bit harsh, I agree. I just meant to say that it's not what it originally meant. May 23, 2012 at 15:01
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I believe that the phrase out of pocket meaning “unavailable” has its origin in cell phone use. Being out of pocket meant being in an area where no cell tower was available, and therefore when out of pocket one was unreachable. For many years, there were many regional pockets not covered by the cellular telephone network. Martha’s Vineyard for years was notorious for lack of cell phone service. Thus, business executives traveling to Martha’s Vineyard would find themselves out of pocket. This cell-phone-specific meaning later morphed into using the phrase out of pocket to mean generally “unavailable, unreachable”.
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Even without citations, I think this usage makes the most sense when you think of a "pocket" being a region with cellphone coverage. Even though cellphones didn't exist in O. Henry's day, it may have just been a co-opted term since the advent of cellphones. Nov 26, 2014 at 20:07
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This expression also common with some U.S. military personnel to indicate unavailability. Apr 15, 2016 at 14:10
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It has nothing to do with cell phone usage. It's usage began in the early 20th century. Mar 31, 2018 at 7:02