‘ginger group’: meaning and origin
a group within a political party or other organisation, which presses for stronger or more radical policy or action—UK, 1916—the image is of providing ‘ginger’ (i.e., vigour) in a party or organisation
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‘glutton for punishment’: meaning and origin
a person who seems eager to take on difficult or unpleasant tasks—UK, 1829—originally, in pugilistic slang, a fighter who “takes a deal of punishment before he is satisfied”
Read More‘ye gods and little fishes!’: meaning and origin
expresses indignation, disbelief or amazement—USA, 1818—expanded form of the exclamation ‘ye gods’—perhaps a reference to the miracle of the loaves and fishes fed to the five thousand in the gospel of Matthew
Read More‘the end of the rainbow’: meaning and origin
used of something impossible to obtain or achieve—1796—the image is of an illusory quest for the treasure supposed to lie where the rainbow appears to touch the ground
Read More‘to give credit where credit is due’: meaning and origin
to acknowledge merit or achievement when it is deserved, even if one is reluctant to do so—UK, 1783
Read More‘Peter Grievous’: meaning and origin
a person who whines or complains—UK, 1769, humorous—‘Peter’ is used as a generic forename, and the adjective ‘grievous’ (meaning ‘aggrieved’) is treated as a surname
Read More‘to give a raspberry’: meanings and origin
‘raspberry’: a rude sound (suggestive of breaking wind) made by blowing with the tongue between the lips, as an expression of mockery or contempt—UK, 1888—‘raspberry’ (short for ‘raspberry tart’): rhyming slang for ‘fart’
Read More‘Mallaby-Deeley’: meanings and origin
a cheap suit of clothes; a (cut-price) tailoring business—UK, 1920, informal—refers to Harry Mallaby-Deeley (1863-1937), a Member of Parliament who opened a cut-price tailoring business in 1920
Read More‘permacrisis’: meaning and origin
defined by Collins Dictionary as denoting “an extended period of instability and insecurity, especially one resulting from a series of catastrophic events”—first used in 1975 by the U.S. political scientist John Pearson Roche
Read More‘a bit of crackling’: meaning and origin
a woman regarded as an object of sexual desire—UK, 1895—from ‘crackling’, denoting the crisp skin or rind of roast pork
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word histories 