where did the term knocked up originate?
According to the Random House Historical Dictionary of American Slang, the phrase knocked up, meaning pregnant, first appeared in print in 1830! An 1860 slang dictionary defined the term this way: Knocked up. ... In the United States, amongst females, the phrase is equivalent to being enceinte.. The Oxford English Dictionary traces the expression back as far as 1813 and says it's of American origin.