the origin of the word ‘bully’?
noun (late 17th cent.), perhaps from ‘bull’ (= bovine)—possibly distinct from ‘bully’ (mid-16th cent.), ‘darling’, probably from Middle Dutch ‘boele’, ‘lover’
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meaning and origin of ‘to come the old soldier over someone’
British, 1810—to use one’s greater age or experience to deceive someone or to shirk a duty—from ‘old soldier’ meaning ‘a person much experienced in something’
Read Moreorigin of ‘helpmate’: ‘help meet’, i.e. help suitable
The word helpmate means a helpful companion or partner, especially one’s husband or wife. This noun was originally helpmeet, about which the New English Dictionary (i.e. the Oxford English Dictionary – 1901 edition) explained the following: A compound absurdly formed by taking the two words help meet in Genesis, ii, 18, 20 (‘an help meet […]
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word histories 