meaning and origin of ‘Matthew effect’ and of ‘Matthew principle’
USA, 1960s—those who already have will receive more—refers to gospel of Matthew—coined by sociologist Robert King Merton
Read More‘to get one’s knickers in a twist’: meaning and origin
(jocular) to become unduly agitated or angry—twisted clothing as a metaphor for mental confusion—UK, 1971, in the comic strip Andy Capp
Read Moremeaning and early instances of the phrase ‘like taking candy from a baby’
USA, 1896—very easy to accomplish, sometimes with an implication of unscrupulousness
Read Moremeaning and origin of ‘to give somebody the (screaming) (h)abdabs’
UK, 1942—fanciful word ‘(h)abdabs’: nervous anxiety or irritation—apparently originated in Royal Air Force slang during WWII
Read Moremeaning and early instances of the phrase ‘like shooting fish in a barrel’
very easy to accomplish—USA, 1902, although recorded in 1898 with perhaps a different meaning
Read Moremeanings and origin of ‘flavour of the month/of the week’
UK, 1967—person or thing that enjoys a short period of great popularity—the particular ice-cream flavour promoted during a month/week
Read Moremeaning and origin of the phrase ‘away with the fairies’
Irish English, 1907—out of touch with reality—ultimately refers to the belief that the fairies spirit away human beings
Read Moreorigin of ‘the gnomes of Zurich’ (international bankers and financiers)
British origin—popularised by Harold Wilson in 1956, but first recorded in The Observer (London) of 30 October 1955
Read Moremeaning and origin of the phrase ‘to know how many beans make five’
to be sensible and intelligent—1784 in a US publication, but attributed to “a gentleman from abroad”—‘blue’, meaningless fanciful intensive, sometimes before ‘beans’
Read Moremeaning and early instances of ‘as the bishop said to the actress’
UK, 1930—‘as the bishop said to the actress’, ‘as the actress said to the bishop’: mischievously implies a sexual innuendo or ambiguity in a preceding innocent remark
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word histories 