meaning and origin of the phrase ‘to keep an ear to the ground’
USA, 1815—from the practice of putting one’s ear to the ground in order to detect the vibration of sounds in the distance before they can actually be heard
Read MoreCategory: public affairs
origin and meanings of ‘dreaming spires’
the city or university of Oxford; the sheltered condition of unworldly academics—from the poem ‘Thyrsis’ (1866), by Matthew Arnold
Read Moremeanings and origin of the phrase ‘all dressed up with nowhere to go’
USA, 1910—originated as a line in the musical comedy The Girl of My Dreams—allegedly coined by music-hall artist Nita Allen
Read Moremeanings and history of the British-English phrase ‘to drop a brick’
UK, 1920—to commit a blunder; to make a tactless or indiscreet remark—meaning obscure in some early uses
Read Moremeaning and origin of the phrase ‘bread and circuses’
UK, 1869—inaccurate translation of Latin ‘panem and circenses’ (literally ‘bread and circus games’) as used by the Roman poet Juvenal
Read More‘buttered bread’ in phrases denoting fortunate situations
The image of one’s bread getting or being buttered has long been used to denote getting or having benefits, advantages.
Read More‘trickle-down theory’ and ‘crumbs from a rich man’s table’
‘crumbs from a rich man’s table’—late 18th century—from the parable of the rich man and Lazarus in the gospel of Luke, 16:19-31
Read Moremeaning and origin of the phrase ‘to paper over the cracks’
to use a temporary expedient—UK, 1889—origin attributed to Prussian statesman Bismarck in a letter written during the negotiations of the Convention of Gastein (1865)
Read Moreorigin of ‘bee’ (social gathering for a specific purpose)
USA, late 18th century—perhaps a folk-etymological alteration of British dialectal variants of ‘boon’, meaning ‘help given by neighbours’
Read Moremeaning and origin of the phrase ‘to dodge the column’
to avoid work, to shirk one’s duty—originated in military slang during the First World War, the word ‘column’ denoting a formation of marching soldiers
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word histories 