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You know that expression "all hat, no cattle" which is frequently used to describe that pseudo-cowboy currently squatting in President Gore's house?

I think we have a sequel here. This is from a delightful column on the origins of odd phrases.

(via The Telegraph (UK))

"All mouth and trousers"

This strange expression comes from the north of England and is used, mainly by women in my experience, as a sharp-tongued and effective putdown of a certain kind of pushy, over-confident male. Proverbial expressions like this are notoriously hard to pin down: we have no idea exactly where it comes from nor when it first appeared, although it is recorded from the latter part of the 19th century onwards. However, we're fairly sure that it is a pairing of "mouth'', meaning insolence or cheekiness, with "trousers'', a pushy sexual bravado. It's a wonderful example of metonymy ("a container for the thing contained'').