‘to put a zipper on somebody’s mouth’: meaning and origin
to make somebody stop talking, or to prevent somebody from talking—USA, 1930—refers to the noun ‘zipper’, designating a fastening device
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‘birds in their little nests agree’: meaning and origin
children, especially siblings, should not argue among themselves—UK, 1818—alludes to Love between Brothers and Sisters, in Divine Songs Attempted in Easy Language for the Use of Children (1715), by Isaac Watts
Read More‘(as) old as the hills’: meaning and early occurrences
exceedingly or immeasurably old—Britain, 1762—perhaps alludes to the fact that a hill is a permanent feature of a particular landscape
Read More‘like a cock at a gooseberry’: meaning and origin
very quickly and without hesitation; eagerly—Scotland and northern England, 1778
Read More‘bathroom humour’: meaning and origin
crude humour centring chiefly on bodily functions—USA, 1931
Read More‘not the only onion in the hash’: meaning and origin
not the only person or thing to be taken into consideration—USA, 1918, in a story by Harry Charles Witwer—later popularised by P. G. Wodehouse
Read More‘the white man’s burden’: meaning and origin
the alleged duty of the white peoples to bring their civilisation to other peoples regarded as backward—USA, 1865—in early use, often referred to the relations between European Americans and African an Americans
Read More‘the long arm of coincidence’: meaning and origin
the far-reaching power or effect of coincidence—coined in 1888 by the Australian playwright Charles Haddon Chambers in Captain Swift
Read More‘to improve the shining hour’: meaning and origin
to make the best use of one’s time—UK, 1810—alludes to Against Idleness and Mischief, in Divine Songs Attempted in Easy Language for the Use of Children (1715), by Isaac Watts
Read More‘(as) hungry as a hunter’: meaning and origin
extremely hungry—circa 1623 as ‘(as) hungry as a huntsman’—1756 as ‘(as) hungry as a hunter’
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