<P> According to Michael Quinion , `` ( i ) nvestigations by the Oxford English Dictionary in 2007 when revising the entry turned up early examples of the use of Ps and Qs to mean learning the alphabet . The first is in a poem by Charles Churchill , published in 1763 : `` On all occasions next the chair / He stands for service of the Mayor , / And to instruct him how to use / His A 's and B 's , and P 's and Q 's . '' The conclusion must be that this is the true origin . '' </P>
<P> According to Michael Quinion , `` ( i ) nvestigations by the Oxford English Dictionary in 2007 when revising the entry turned up early examples of the use of Ps and Qs to mean learning the alphabet . The first is in a poem by Charles Churchill , published in 1763 : `` On all occasions next the chair / He stands for service of the Mayor , / And to instruct him how to use / His A 's and B 's , and P 's and Q 's . '' The conclusion must be that this is the true origin . '' </P>
where did the phrase mind your p 's and q 's come from
where did the phrase mind your p 's and q 's come from
a poem by Charles Churchill
a poem by Charles Churchill