It refers to a no-win/no-lose situation. It does not require three participants; two is enough.
There's a 19th Century story in Mexico that illustrates the Mexican Standoff very well. Two horse carriages going in the opposite direction entered a narrow street and met halfway through. Neither could move forward, and each insisted that the other back his horse carriage up. Each sent servants for foor and water, and both stayed firm for several days, until the authorities made both of them back up.
This is when you go into a public restroom, into a stall and another person comes in and sits in the stall next to you. Neither of you drop a deuce, waiting for the other to drop first. It makes for a sometimes tense situation
Damn... I was just in the men's room and got caught in a mexican standoff. I finally got up and left. I'm going to give it another try in a few minutes.
A phrase used by sports announcers to describe a tie or draw game. Use of the term has declined in recent years probably because it is perceived as being politically incorrect and also because the rules of some sports have been modified to reduce or eliminate ties or draws.
How appropriate that the World Cup opener between South Africa and Mexico ended in a Mexican Standoff.
Nickname given to bales of marijuana thrown overboard or out of airplanes. Origin is reportedly from members of the US Coast Guard in the area of Southern Florida.
A sunburn or suntan focused on the left arm. It is caused by the left side of the body being the only half that gets exposed to sunlight while driving. Presumably, it would be located on the right side of the body in countries where they drive on the left side of the road.
I had a trucker's tan after driving for 10 straight hours on a sunny day.
British slang for a scientist or technical expert, esp . when the speaker is not certain of the expert’s specific field of study. Not necessarily derogatory, but typically used by persons without a technical background. In the US, the equivalent would be “egghead”, “squint”, or “geek.”
Origin of the word is unknown. Started sometime in World War 2. Given the typical evolution of British slang, could easily have started because what these experts did was confusing or “baffling” to the common person.
When you have to pee in a movie but don’t want to miss anything, and must do the following mental equation: will the amount I have to pee cause enough discomfort to diminish my attention capacity for the remainder of the movie to an extent which is greater than the amount of the movie I would miss by making a mad dash to the restroom.
I saw Satantango last night, wonderful film but by the 5th hour I had to start doing peecalculus.