tyre-kicker
a customer who looks but never buys
TRANSLATION
tyre-kicker = potentielle Kunden, die grosses Interesse zeigen und viel nachfragen, trotzdem nie etwas kaufen
STATISTICS
IN THE PRESS
Cable Wireless, the loss-making telecoms group, today defended its decision to reject a takeover approach from Hong Kong's PCCW, saying it was not prepared to open its books to TYRE-KICKERS.
(The Evening Standard)
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The Los Angeles Times has in the past called Disney CEO Michael Eisner a TYRE-KICKER - someone who likes to take a close look at possible purchases but ultimately chooses none of them.
(The London Independent)
(The Evening Standard)
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The Los Angeles Times has in the past called Disney CEO Michael Eisner a TYRE-KICKER - someone who likes to take a close look at possible purchases but ultimately chooses none of them.
(The London Independent)
Did you
know?
tyre-kicker (UK) tire-kicker (US)
idiom
- a possible customer who asks a lot of questions about a product but never buys anything
(Oxford University Press)
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WORD ORIGIN
Tyre-kicker derives from the expression “kick the tyres”, which is a pointless gesture by potential car buyers when examining a car that they really have no intention on purchasing. Tyrekickers are not restricted to potential car buyers meanwhile.
The word tire is thought to be an aphetic form (a word that is derived from another word by dropping a vowel) of attire, which means dress or covering. In this sense, the tire is a covering for the wheel.
Interestingly, the original spelling was tyre, shifted to tire in the 17th and 18th centuries, but changed back to tyre in British English in the early 19th century.
(sources: Online Etymology Dictionary)
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SMUGGLE OWAD INTO A CONVERSATION TODAY
say something like:
“We must be careful at the trade fair to separate the real prospects from tyre-kickers.”
idiom
- a possible customer who asks a lot of questions about a product but never buys anything
(Oxford University Press)
---
WORD ORIGIN
Tyre-kicker derives from the expression “kick the tyres”, which is a pointless gesture by potential car buyers when examining a car that they really have no intention on purchasing. Tyrekickers are not restricted to potential car buyers meanwhile.
The word tire is thought to be an aphetic form (a word that is derived from another word by dropping a vowel) of attire, which means dress or covering. In this sense, the tire is a covering for the wheel.
Interestingly, the original spelling was tyre, shifted to tire in the 17th and 18th centuries, but changed back to tyre in British English in the early 19th century.
(sources: Online Etymology Dictionary)
---
SMUGGLE OWAD INTO A CONVERSATION TODAY
say something like:
“We must be careful at the trade fair to separate the real prospects from tyre-kickers.”
