meaning and origin of the British-English phrase ‘64,000 question’
1956—a crucial question or issue—from The 64,000 Question, the name of a TV quiz show adapted from U.S. TV programme The $64,000 Question
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“Nice one, Cyril!”, or the birth of British catchphrases
a view on the manner in which catchphrases created by comedians and advertising gain currency
Read Moreorigin of ‘bodkin’ (a person wedged between others)
isolated use in The Fancies, Chast and Noble (1638), by John Ford—1795 as ‘to ride bodkin’—seems to allude to the thinness of the tools that have that name
Read Moremeaning and origin of ‘damp squib’ and of French ‘pétard mouillé’
UK, 1837—something intended, but failing, to impress—if damp, a squib [a small firework] will fail to work
Read Moremeaning and origin of the British phrase ‘(as) daft as a brush’
1892, as ‘mazed as a brish’ (Devon)—meaning: extremely stupid—possible origin: anything is daft that does all the hard work
Read Morean investigation into the origin of the portmanteau word ‘bankster’
USA, 1931—presented as being of French origin, but French earliest known uses, in 1933, are from American English
Read Moremeaning and origin of the British phrase ‘big girl’s blouse’
1969—a weak, cowardly or oversensitive man—analogy between a cowardly man “in a flap” and an oversize garment hanging loose, fluttering
Read Morea hypothesis as to the origin of the phrase ‘a Chinaman’s chance’
USA, 1893—a negligible likelihood—might refer to the fact that the Chinese had little prospect of obtaining reparations for racial discrimination
Read More‘too many chiefs and not enough Indians’: meaning and origin
USA, 1947, of post-war need for soldiers—origin: when playing cowboys and Indians, a child would rather be the chief than an average Indian
Read More‘curiosity killed the cat’: meaning and origin
1868, but late 16th century as ‘care [= disquiet] killed a cat’—the image is perhaps that disquiet would exhaust the nine lives allotted to a cat
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