Watching Your | WordReference Forums

• Forums Rules/Help/FAQ Help/FAQ Members Current visitors Interface Language

Dictionary search: English-Spanish English-French English-Italian English-German English-Dutch English-Russian English-Portuguese English-Polish English-Romanian English-Swedish English-Czech English-Greek English-Turkish English-Chinese English-Japanese English-Korean English-Arabic Spanish-English French-English Italian-English German-English Dutch-English Russian-English Portuguese-English Polish-English Romanian-English Swedish-English Czech-English Greek-English Turkish-English Chinese-English Japanese-English Korean-English Arabic-English Spanish-French Spanish-Portuguese Spanish-Catalan French-Spanish Portuguese-Spanish English definition English synonyms English collocations English usage Italian definition Spanish definition Spanish synonyms Catalan definition Spanish conjugation French conjugation Italian conjugation English conjugation Log in Register What's new Search

Search

This forum This thread Threads Everywhere Search titles and first posts only Search titles only Note By: Search Advanced search…

• Rules/Help/FAQ Help/FAQ
• Members Current visitors
• Interface Language

Menu Log in Register Install the app Install How to install the app on iOS

Follow along with the video below to see how to install our site as a web app on your home screen.

Note: This feature may not be available in some browsers.

• English Only
• English Only

You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.You should upgrade or use an alternative browser. watching your <six>

• Thread starter Thread starter NewAmerica
• Start date Start date Nov 27, 2018

NewAmerica

Banned

Mandarin Does "watching your six" mean "watching your very life"? Simply a wild guess. Our unabridged dictionary gives little clue of the word "six" used this way. ***************** CIA's not supposed to work this side of the fence. He's a DOD advisor. You really believe that? You need somebody watching your six, 'cause I promise you they aren't. Source: Sicario (an American film)

JulianStuart

Senior Member

Sonoma County CA English (UK then US) It means keep an eye on what is behind you. It is miltary in origin - you always face noon and reference directions of enemies by the clock face: and your six o'clock is behind you. Most of this thread ( Watch your six ) is in English A quick search of other resources finds Meaning of "watch your six" What does 'Watch your six' mean? - Idiom Definition - UsingEnglish.com

kentix

Senior Member

English - U.S.

JulianStuart said: you always face noon Click to expand...

I have always heard it as "12 o'clock". Have you really heard "noon"?

JulianStuart

Senior Member

Sonoma County CA English (UK then US)

kentix said: I have always heard it as "12 o'clock". Have you really heard "noon"? Click to expand...

I think 12 o'clock and noon are suffciently similar for their use in the explanation of the concept, no?

kentix

Senior Member

English - U.S.

JulianStuart said: I think 12 o'clock and noon are suffciently similar for their use in the explanation of the concept, no? Click to expand...

Honest answer - no. An analog clock face has 12 o'clock, it doesn't have noon.

AnythingGoes

Senior Member

English - USA (Midwest/Appalachia)

kentix said: Honest answer - no. An analog clock face has 12 o'clock, it doesn't have noon. Click to expand...

For me, only twelve o'clock works for "straight ahead".

JulianStuart

Senior Member

Sonoma County CA English (UK then US) Did the OP understand the concept of "watch your six"?

NewAmerica

Banned

Mandarin

JulianStuart said: Did the OP understand the concept of "watch your six"? Click to expand...

Yeah, I got it. I understood "face noon" as "face high noon" or "face your twelfth direction" (of your wrist watch), the opposite of your six.

kentix

Senior Member

English - U.S. The thing is, if you watch war movies, they literally say "Bogey at 12 o'clock", meaning an unknown plane has been spotted straight ahead. Or they could say at "12 o'clock high", meaning straight ahead but at a higher altitude than the observer. But they never say noon. Noon is a time, not a direction indicator on a dial. Who's to say it's not midnight instead of noon? (Answer, it's neither.)

JulianStuart

Senior Member

Sonoma County CA English (UK then US)

kentix said: The thing is, if you watch war movies, they literally say "Bogey at 12 o'clock", meaning an unknown plane has been spotted straight ahead. Or they could say at "12 o'clock high", meaning straight ahead but at a higher altitude than the observer. But they never say noon. Noon is a time, not a direction indicator on a dial. Who's to say it's not midnight instead of noon? (Answer, it's neither.) Click to expand...

I never said someone would say bogey at your noon ("you reference directions of enemies by the clock face: and your six o'clock is behind you.", so I don't really see what the fuss is. The OP understood the concept of the thread topic. What time is noon, anyway?

Mnemon

Banned

Persian - 𐎱𐎾𐎿𐎡 <-----Threads have been merged at this point by moderator (Florentia52)----->

On the way to the shooting range, Kyle texted Littlefield, "This dude is straight-up nuts." Littlefield responded, "Watch my six," military slang meaning "watch my back." Click to expand...

Chris Kyle - Wikipedia I have already heard the phrase from some friends of mine, but I didn't know it was military slang. Could someone confirm that? Is it widely understood? Last edited by a moderator: May 17, 2020

kentix

Senior Member

English - U.S. It's widely understand by people who watch movies involving the military, even if they were never in the military. I'm assuming you understand it comes from the positions of the numbers on a clock face. That system is used beyond the military. If you're a grandma whose hobby is knitting I don't know if you would know it. Last edited: May 17, 2020

dojibear

Senior Member

Fresno CA English (US - northeast) I can confirm this was used by pilots in the military, back in the 1970s. All 12 "clock" positions were used. One person might say to another person "watch out for that aircraft at 2 o'clock high". Here "high" means "above you" and 2 o'clock means 60 degrees right of straight ahead. It is telling someone (clearly and rapidly) where to look. I think using clock positions for directions started with pilots, and later spread to other military people. Other people care less about 30 degree (1 o'clock) versus 60 degrees (2 o'clock), but "behind you/me" is important to every soldier. So "at my 6 o'clock" got used to mean "behind me", and eventually got simplified (or blurred with "watch my back" ) to phrases like "at my six" and "watch my six".

Mnemon

Banned

Persian - 𐎱𐎾𐎿𐎡 Thanks.

dojibear said: I think using clock positions for directions started with pilots, and later spread to other military people. Click to expand...

I've just found the following entry in one of my dictionaries:

check your six used as a warning to a pilot to check behind his aircraft for enemy planes. Based on the clock configuration, with twelve o’clock being straight ahead and six o’clock straight behind US, 1991 Click to expand...

Last edited: May 17, 2020

Roxxxannne

Senior Member

American English (New England and NYC)

kentix said: It's widely understand by people who watch movies involving the military, even if they were never in the military. I'm assuming you understand it comes from the positions of the numbers on a clock face. That system is used beyond the military. If you're a grandma whose hobby is knitting I don't know if you would know it. Click to expand...

I'm a grandma whose hobby is knitting and I know what "watch my/your six," "bogey twelve o'clock high," and the like mean. Also the meanings of SNAFU and FUBAR. I use the expression "X at [number] o'clock" myself, as in the following summary of a fictitious but not impossible conversation: Roxxx: Oh, for heaven's sake, dear, there's a cute little golden-crowned kinglet at 10 o'clock high! In that alder! Roxxx's husband of many years: Huh? Where? Roxxx: Jeez, do you not understand English? 10 o'clock high! Alder! R's h.o.m.y.: You mean in that tree over there? Roxxx: That tree is an oak, and it is at 2 o'clock, and that bird in it is a bald eagle. Bald. Eagle. What planet are you on? This whole bird-watching jaunt can best be described, in the immortal words of Publius Quinctilius Varus, as FUBAR. One should never underestimate the knowledge of military slang known to, and used by, grandmas who knit (as well as their ability to speak poorly of their husbands). Last edited: May 17, 2020 You must log in or register to reply here. Share: Bluesky LinkedIn WhatsApp Email Share Link

• English Only
• English Only

Back Top Bottom