‘to put lipstick on a pig’: meaning and origin
USA, 1959—to (seek to) make minor or superficial improvements to something considered fundamentally unappealing or inadequate
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‘to spit feathers’ (to be angry): early occurrences
Australia, 1940 (?)—UK, 1963—origin unknown—either somehow derived from the sense ‘to be parched’ of the phrase ‘to spit feathers’ or a distinct phrase which happens to be identical in form
Read More‘to spit feathers’ (to be parched): origin and early occurrences
USA, 1850—based on the image of a thirsty person whose mouth is so parched that it feels as if it were filled with feathers and that the person thus feels choked
Read More‘to smoke like a chimney’: meaning and origin
to smoke tobacco very heavily —UK, 1824, as “smoking away like the chimney of the King of the Netherlands”
Read Moreoriginal meaning of ‘dead man’s float’
a floating position, used as a survival technique, consisting in lying on one’s back in the water—UK, 1841
Read More‘skull-bucket’: meaning and origin
USA, 1968: colloquial humorous appellation for a crash-helmet—also, USA, 1942: protective head-covering worn by soldiers
Read More‘milk-bar cowboy’: meaning and origin
a young man who, as part of a motorcycle gang, congregates in or around a milk bar—New Zealand, 1951—such gangs congregate there because milk bars stay open long after the shops are shut
Read More‘to poison the wellspring’: meaning and origin
to corrupt the very essence (of something)—UK, early 19th century—has particularly been used in theological contexts
Read More‘reasonable force’: meaning and origin
UK, 1809—the level of physical force deemed appropriate or justifiable by law in protecting oneself or one’s family or property; also: in apprehending a criminal suspect or preventing a crime
Read More‘kerb-crawl’: meaning and origin
to drive slowly along the edge of a road (UK, 1924)—specifically: with the intention of soliciting people for casual sexual activity (Canada, 1926)
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