“To call on the carpet” means to scold someone, originally by an authority figure to a subordinate. Its origins are uncertain, but may refer to a servant being summoned to a carpeted area or to a table where authorities sat. The phrase is primarily used in the US, while in Britain a similar rebuke was once referred to as “papering” someone. Other theories suggest the phrase originated from English racecourses or Victorian business practices.
“To call on the carpet” means to severely scold or scold the person who is subject to the figurative summons. In many cases, and probably in its original meaning, it referred to an authority figure who chastised a subordinate. In modern usage, however, it could be used to describe a chastising peer or even a subordinate admonishing a superior.
The actual phrase “call on the carpet” is an idiom with its use restricted primarily to the United States. To describe a similar rebuke in Britain it once referred simply to “papering” someone. This meaning of the word has fallen out of use and is rarely heard in modern spoken or written English.
There are a couple of theories about the origins of the phrase. There doesn’t seem to be a consensus as to which is correct.
The most common explanation of the phrase’s history describes an interaction between a master and a servant. The servant’s work would mostly be done in uncarpeted rooms, while the master’s quarters and living area would be carpeted. The servant received a literal “call to the rug” and was summoned to the carpeted area of the master of the house to be rebuked, giving the idiom its meaning of rebuke.
The other theory is that the carpet referred to a cover over a table at which judges or magistrates would sit to examine various matters. When the phrase “call on the carpet” entered popular usage in the 19th century, it was often used to refer to a matter considered by an authority. Eventually the phrase “on the mat” to describe something under consideration became “called on the mat” and the meaning changed, probably because it was common for the issue under discussion to be misconduct and authorities sitting at the table could follow their discussion by reprimanding the person in front of them.
There are other theories, though not as commonly accepted as the first two, about the origin of the phrase. One says that the word “carpet” meaning a reprimand began around English racecourses where underlings stood on a particular piece of carpet to receive reprimands. Another states that in Victorian times in some businesses a man was only allowed to have a carpet in his office after he had achieved a certain level of promotion. Thus the authorities had their offices carpeted and to receive a “carpet call” one had to be summoned before someone of rank.
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