In Medieval times (the actually
time period, not the entertainment location) pigeons were kept as domestic
birds for their meat. The pigeonhole referred to the openings in the wall or a hole
in a specially made box for pigeons to live in.
By the late 18th century, the
arrangement of compartments in writing cabinets and offices that were used to
sort and file documents became known as pigeonholes for their resemblance to
the old pigeon compartments.
By the 19th century, the
term changed to refer to something that you would put aside to come back to
later or to classify information.
If you feel that you are
being pigeonholed at work just be thankful that your boss doesn’t plan to eat
you like the poor pigeon.
Thank you Lauren for suggesting this word.
