<P> The phrase `` Smoke ' em if you got ' em '' or `` Smoke if you got ' em '' is slang for `` do what you want , if you have the means '' . The first phrase was popular in the United States military during World War II , meaning to take a break . Officers would say `` Smoke ' em if you got ' em '' , allowing the soldiers to take a break and smoke their cigarettes , `` if you got ' em '' referring to the vagaries of war . Cigarettes were nearly impossible to get in Europe during that time because of the deprivations of the war . Along with nylon stockings for women , cigarettes were a luxury item that took on cultural importance beyond their monetary value . Soldiers got a daily allotment of cigarettes with their K ration , the 1940s combat ration equivalent of modern Meals , Ready - to - Eat ( MREs ) . Not all soldiers smoked , and unsmoked cigarettes became a War Department currency . The soldiers traded freely across all borders and social classes . Seventy - five years later , the phrase was a touchstone used in all media to evoke a former heroic period . </P>
<P> The phrase `` Smoke ' em if you got ' em '' or `` Smoke if you got ' em '' is slang for `` do what you want , if you have the means '' . The first phrase was popular in the United States military during World War II , meaning to take a break . Officers would say `` Smoke ' em if you got ' em '' , allowing the soldiers to take a break and smoke their cigarettes , `` if you got ' em '' referring to the vagaries of war . Cigarettes were nearly impossible to get in Europe during that time because of the deprivations of the war . Along with nylon stockings for women , cigarettes were a luxury item that took on cultural importance beyond their monetary value . Soldiers got a daily allotment of cigarettes with their K ration , the 1940s combat ration equivalent of modern Meals , Ready - to - Eat ( MREs ) . Not all soldiers smoked , and unsmoked cigarettes became a War Department currency . The soldiers traded freely across all borders and social classes . Seventy - five years later , the phrase was a touchstone used in all media to evoke a former heroic period . </P>
origin of smoke em if you got em
origin of smoke em if you got em
United States military during World War II
United States military during World War II