nigger in the woodpile

• nigger in the wood-pile, nigger in the wood pile

First attested in the 1840s.^[1] This etymology is incomplete. You can help Wiktionary by elaborating on the origins of this term.

nigger in the woodpile (plural niggers in the woodpile or niggers in woodpiles)

1. (offensive, ethnic slur, dated) A hidden motive, influence or factor; a concealed (potential) snag; something suspicious.

   Synonyms: nigger in the fence, Ethiopian in the woodpile, monkey in the woodpile

   • 1858 December 20, “The Huntington and Whitley Case”, in The Legislative Sentinel, volume I, number 14, page 137:

     Democra s^[sic] placed no nigger in the woodpile—the imputation came with a bad grace from the gentleman from Kosciusko.

   • 1964 September, “News: BR role in London traffic patterns”, in Modern Railways, page 200:

     (Bus traffic in the London area fell 33 per cent, although the total for public transport increased by 8 per cent; but private car journeys, the nigger in the public transport woodpile, went up 78 per cent in the decade).

• While nigger in the woodpile largely disappeared from American English by the 1960s, it has continued to see occasional use in British English into the 2020s. Regardless, it is still dated and highly likely to offend even in British use.