The phrase a frog in one’s throat is an idiom. We will examine the definition of the phrase a frog in one’s throat, where it came from and some examples of its use in sentences.
To have a frog in one’s throat means to be temporarily hoarse due to phlegm collecting in one’s throat. Having a frog in one’s throat is temporary, it is not an ongoing condition or a serious medical malady. Usually, one may clear one’s throat by affecting a slight cough. The expression to have a frog in one’s throat first appeared in the United States during the 1800s, and comes from the fact that a person so afflicted sounds as if he is croaking like a frog. All other stories floating around the internet about frogs being a medieval cure for various maladies is apocryphal.
Examples
John Prine had a frog in his throat which marred the vocal quality of his solo acoustic performances but it was more than made up for by the power of his songwriting – ‘Angel from Montgomery’ being a prime example – there are few greater American songwriters than Prine. (Forbes Magazine)
His vocal performance on You Wear It Well produced more grimaces than grins, and he was forced to re-start his version of the Sutherland Brothers’s Sailing because of “a frog in his throat.” (The Times Colonist)
Morrell found a frog in his throat as he spoke about his time with Texas basketball coach Shaka Smart. (The Citizen Times)
Nothing like testing hands-free while sick in bed: I discovered that voice recognition is great with all three devices, even with a frog in your throat, and am now equipped with useless trivia. (The New Daily)
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