saturday night palsy

Questions

What does saturday night palsy mean?

Paralysis due to radial nerve compression in the arm, resulting from direct pressure against a firm object.

Where does saturday night palsy come from?

Introduced mistakenly as a simplification of saturnine palsy, a complication of lead poisoning which has a similar presentation. Folk etymology associates it with carousing and intoxication on Saturday nights, which causes the individual to fall asleep in unnatural positions, such as on a chair or bed with one arm hanging over the edge.

How to pronounce saturday night palsy

1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “saturday night palsy”.
2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “saturday night palsy”.
4. Repeat and practice — Say “saturday night palsy” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.