'pucker up' vs. 'brace yourself'

[Torsten]

So, is there any connection between these two phrases? (to pucker up and to brace oneself)
How often do you pucker up for something and what is it?
_________________
Test Of English for International Communication
TOEIC Preparation & TOEIC Vocabulary

[Yankee]

Hi Torsten

Well, now, that question brought an immediate chuckle.

I usually "pucker up" just before a smooch and I rarely brace myself for smooching.

One the other hand, I think my nephew usually braces himself at least a little whenever his Aunt Amy wants a goodbye kiss.

Amy
_________________
Amy
.
ESL teacher, translator, and a native speaker of American English

[Tom]

Dear Amy

I think badly sewn dresses also pucker up, and then we brace ourselves for wearing them because we do not want to waste our money.

Tom

[Yankee]

Hi Tom

That's true.

I also thought of something else.
I love the taste of lemons! In fact, I love lemons so much that I sometimes eat them similarly to the way someone else might eat an orange. But, I tend to brace myself a bit for the first sour bite. And just after that first blast of lemon, my mouth usually puckers up.

Amy
_________________
Amy
.
ESL teacher, translator, and a native speaker of American English

[Torsten]

Well, I was referring to instances in which you pucker up for something unpleasant such as kissing the ground...
_________________
Test Of English for International Communication
TOEIC Preparation & TOEIC Vocabulary

[Yankee]

Hi Torsten

Without any other context, I associate "pucker up" very strongly with the mouth and particularly with kissing, but usually a pleasant sort of kissing. That's why I used the word "smooch" in my first post. And that's why a connection with "brace onself" made me chuckle.

But, you could say that someone's face puckers up at the very thought of having to do something particularly unpleasant. The forehead might get wrinkled, the mouth might be tightened, etc. (A different sort of puckering as compared to kissing.) And in that situation, that person would probably also want to brace himself before having to do the unpleasant thing.

Amy
_________________
Amy
.
ESL teacher, translator, and a native speaker of American English

[Jamie (K)]

[Fan of Arabian horses]

[Jamie (K)]

[Torsten]

[Jamie (K)]

[Torsten]

OK Jamie, I know that learning English from lyrics might be tricky but if pop groups like Jon Bon Jovi pucker up to kiss the ground that the phrase might get a new meaning, wouldn't you agree? In the lyrics below pucker up means, get ready to hit the ground, at least that's how I interpret it:

I'm learning how to fall (learning how to fall)
Learning how to take a hit (learning how to fall)
Had to walk before I crawled
It was winner take it all
I'm learning how to fall... (learning how to fall)
Yeah, I got the hang of it

I was flying through the clouds
Pucker up, it's time to kiss the ground
_________________
Test Of English for International Communication
TOEIC Preparation & TOEIC Vocabulary

[Jamie (K)]

[Yankee]

Hi Torsten

I think if you wanted to use the expression "pucker up" in any way other than to describe what lips that are preparing to kiss somebody look like, you would need a very specific context. And if you wanted to indicate that someone's face "puckered up", then you'd need to explicitly use the word "face" in the sentence. If you fell flat on your face, it wouldn't just be the lips that puckered before you hit the ground.

I also would not use "pucker up" to describe kissing the ground --- unless I was trying to be humorous or sarcastic or.

In the Bon Jovi Lyrics, you might also interpret the use of the word "fall" to be an indirect reference to "fall in love". He could be taking a chance on love --- either success or failure. If successful, we can expect a lot of kissing. Figuratively speaking, a failure could be described as "falling on your kisser." Torsten, I wouldn't expect these lyrics to lead to a fundamental change in the use of "pucker up".

Hi Jamie

I think it's good that you mentioned the word "pope", but I also got the feeling that Michael was intentionally having some fun with the language when he wrote "Big Papa".

Amy
_________________
Amy
.
ESL teacher, translator, and a native speaker of American English

[Yankee]