Idiom of the week: A bun in the oven

Don't you love it when you're baking a bun in the oven and your whole house smells like paradise?

However, if you ever hear someone say, 'Mary's got a bun in the oven', don't expect an invitation for a bite of something spongy. Chances are you're being told that Mary's having a baby some time soon!

English is loaded with euphemisms for "pregnancy": "in the pudding club" (old-fashioned), "in a delicate condition" (polite), "on stork watch" (funny), "up the duff" (informal)... I chose "to have a bun in the oven" because it struck me as the kindest of all, and probably the easiest to remember. 

The origin of this idiom is uncertain, but it doesn't take a big stretch of the imagination to decipher it. After all, there's a clear parallelism between a woman's womb and an oven, and between a baby and a bun. And who can resist a freshly-made bun? Who can resist an adorable baby? The fact that the idiom has been used in movies, books and TV shows for ages now has contributed to its massive popularization 

So, remember, if you find out your best friend's got a bun in the oven, don't ask her to save some in a tupperware for you... Say "congratulations"!