tried googling it but I only got the idiom and not an actual answer
that’s how W. W. Jacobs decided to call it
Most arbitrary decisions like this can be blamed on Victorians.
If you’re cute and fuzzy, it’s a paw.
If you’re big, tailless, and (mostly) hairless (read:ape), it’s a hand. Wikipedia refers to upper gorilla extremities as arms and hands:
A 2018 study investigating the hand posture of 77 mountain gorillas[…]
I have no actual idea but that’s my general guess.
Dwarves have paws, elves have hands
dwarves have mitts
Though I wouldn’t claim it to be an objective truth, my wife has previously declared me both cute and fuzzy.
Though I may have (consensually) pawed at her on occasion, she’s never claimed that I have paws.
Animals have paws, humans – hands. Like humans have faces while animals – muzzles. But my English is quite basic, so I’m not sure if I correct.
Animals have faces, the muzzle is the snout (nose and jaw structure)
Nah, raccoons def have little tiny hands.
You are indeed not correct, paws are distinctly different from hands and the muzzle is a specific part of an animal’s face.
Paws are different from hands in that they’re made up ONLY of fingers, the equivalent to our wrist is way above the paw as part of the leg.
And the muzzle (also called snout) is the jaws+nose, the bit on e.g. a dog that sticks out in front of the face. It doesn’t include things like the eyes.
Nah, paws are specific types of appendages. Monkeys have hands. But it’s possible that back when the idiom was coined, it was different bc of that kind of logic.
Humans are animals
And you’re a pedant who pretends to not understand what I am talking about.
They are! and they haven’t been particularly consistent with language, if you have the opportunity do write down all of these inconsistencies as you learn English - they are a wonderful source of humor
Because the term pre-existed Darwinism.
Right?!
i think both hands
*paws
Finally someone asking the important questions
Humans have hands. Humans arent monkeys (according to idiots). Monkeys are animals, but less than human. Lesser beings have paws. According to idiots.
