Riding shotgun: Difference between revisions

'''Riding shotgun''' was used to describe the guard who rode alongside a [[stagecoach]] driver, ready to use his [[shotgun]] to ward off bandits or hostile [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]] who felt violated by unauthorized colonization. In modern use, it refers to the practice of sitting alongside the [[driver (person)|driver]] in a moving [[vehicle]]. The phrase has been used to mean giving actual or figurative support or aid to someone in a situation.<ref>{{cite web|work=dictionary.reference.com|url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/shotgun|title= Define Shotgun at Dictionary.com|publisher =Dictionary.com|accessdate=11 February 2013}}</ref> The earliest coining of this phrase dates to at most 1905.<ref name=phrases/>