‘Lady Blamey’: meaning and origin
Australia, 1941—an improvised drinking glass made by slicing the top off a bottle—named after Lady Olga Blamey, wife of General Thomas Blamey
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‘blind Freddy’: meaning and origin
personifies the highest degree of disability or incompetence—Sydney, Australia, 1910s—variant, probably referring to a local individual, of the earlier synonymous phrase ‘blind man’
Read Morethe ‘Apaches’ of Paris: meaning and origin
circa 1900: by association with the reputed ferocity of the North-American Indian people, ‘Apache’ came to designate a violent street ruffian in Paris
Read Moremeaning and origin of ‘Dickin Medal’
UK, 1943—a medal awarded to an animal in recognition of an act of bravery—named after M. E. Dickin, founder of the People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals in 1917
Read Moresome early figurative uses of ‘Möbius strip’
US 1960—person of whom only one aspect is known; continual phenomenon—from the one-sided continuous surface formed by joining the ends of a half-twisted strip
Read Moremeaning and origin of the term ‘(Dr.) Kevorkian’
USA, 1990s—purveyor of doom, especially agent of death, force of suicide—refers to Jack Kevorkian (1928-2011), U.S. physician and advocate of assisted suicide
Read Moremeaning and origin of ‘Comstockism’ and ‘Comstockery’
USA—‘Comstockism’ 1878, ‘Comstockery’ 1889—strict censorship of materials considered obscene—after anti-vice activist Anthony Comstock (1844-1915)
Read Moremeaning and origin of the British term ‘(Colonel) Blimp’
1934—pompous, reactionary type of person—from the cartoon character (a pompous retired British army officer voicing a hatred of new ideas) created by David Low
Read Moremeaning and origin of the common noun ‘Debbie Downer’
USA 2005—a pessimistic or negative person—popularised, if not introduced, by the character of Debbie Downer in the U.S. television variety series Saturday Night Live
Read Moresome reflections on ‘to Wyatt’
UK 2006—to play recherché music on a jukebox with the intent of irritating pub customers—attributed to Carl Neville in reference to Robert Wyatt’s ‘Dondestan’
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