wigwam for a goose's bridle

wigwam for a goose's bridle

1. (Australia) A notional object put forward as an explanation when asked about something one does not want to tell.
   • 1954, Moore Raymond, Smiley, page 41:

     "Where you goin'?" he called.
     "To git a wigwam for a goose's bridle!" yelled Smiley insolently, recalling one of the sayings of Granny McKinley, the oldest inhabitant.

   • 1989, Di Brown, Angry Women: An Anthology of Australian Women's Writing, page 44:

     When he wasn't at work he was usually off to see a man about a horse or to buy a wigwam for a goose's bridle. But he never brought the horse home like I asked him to, though we had a big enough backyard.

   • 2003, Gwenda Davey; Graham Seal, A Guide to Australian Folklore, page 62:

     A well known 'family saying' is the mysterious 'Wigwam for a goose's bridle', said by adults to curious children who ask once too often 'What are you making?'

• whim-wham for a goose's bridle

• see a man / see a man about a dog / see a man about a horse