Meaning
Travelling on foot, especially because no vehicle or other transport is available. Informal and jocular. Apostrophe placement varies because speakers no longer perceive a literal owner named Shanks. Regional use: Scotland, the wider United Kingdom, and Commonwealth English; mare forms also North American.
Origin
The joke treats a person's shanks, or lower legs, as a mount. The Scottish form 'shanks-naig' appears in Robert Fergusson's verse in 1774. Mare, nag and pony forms developed later; 'Shanks's pony' became usual in Britain and parts of the Commonwealth, while 'shank's mare' is familiar in North America.
Research Sources
References used to check this entry’s meaning, history, or documented forms.
Variants
- Shank's mare
- Shanks' pony
- Shanks's nag
Usage Examples
- The last tram had gone, so we returned by Shanks's pony.
- For the final mile the only reliable transport is Shanks' pony.
- He saved the bus fare and took Shank's mare across town.