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Fall guy is a colloquial phrase that refers to a person to whom blame is deliberately and falsely attributed in order to deflect blame from another party. == Origin == The origin of the term "fall guy" is unknown and contentious. Many sources place its origin in the early 20th century, while some claim an earlier origin. In April 2007, William Safire promoted a search to unearth its origins.〔William Safire, ("Sweet Spot" ), New York Times Magazine, 1 Apr 2007〕〔William Safire, ("Fall Guy" ), ''New York Times'' Magazine, 29 Apr 2007〕 The most likely origin of "fall guy" is a derivation of the slang 'fall' which means to be arrested, so the fall guy is generally the one who is arrested. However, four slightly different usages for "fall guy" survive and their origins are probably different. These usages are: # An innocent scapegoat is unjustly punished for another's action. # A guilty scapegoat takes the blame for the actions of a group. # A dupe takes the butt of jokes. # A worker who takes on the responsibilities of others. The phrase may have multiple, separate origins. Criminal usage goes back to the original sense of "felon" (derived from fallen, morally). 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア(Wikipedia)』 ■ウィキペディアで「fall guy」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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