‘it is the thought that counts’: meaning and origin
the value to the recipient of a gift lies in the goodwill or affection with which the gift is given—USA, 1885—originally in reference to the Christmas season
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‘sugar skull’: meaning and origin
1843—a representation of a human skull or skeleton, originally crafted from sugar and intended to be eaten and often given to children as a gift around Día de Muertos (Day of the Dead)
Read More‘hen do’: meaning and origin
a celebration for a woman who is about to get married, attended by her female friends and relations—UK, 1987—first used in relation to Stags and Hens (1978), a stage play by William Russell
Read More‘Christmas spirit’: meaning and early occurrences
UK, 1827—a mood or attitude appropriate to the Christmas season, especially one involving feelings of goodwill, benevolence and a willingness to enjoy oneself
Read More‘Quatorze Juillet’: meaning and origin
USA, 1882—the fourteenth of July, the national holiday of the French republic, commemorating the storming of the Bastille on 14th July 1789—also shortened to ‘Quatorze’ (1898)
Read More‘Bastille Day’: meaning and origin
the fourteenth of July, the national holiday of the French republic, commemorating the storming of the Bastille on 14th July 1789—coined in 1837 by Thomas Carlyle
Read More‘beer-pong’: meaning and origin
U.S. College slang, 1972—a drinking game in which players attempt to throw ping-pong balls into cups of beer, which must then be drunk by their opponents—from ‘beer’ and the second element of ‘ping-pong’
Read More‘mischief night’: original meaning
Yorkshire & Lancashire (northern England), first half of the 19th century—the evening of 30th April (May Eve), on which people traditionally indulged in mischievous pranks
Read More‘bring your own booze’ | ‘bring your own bottle’
indicates that a place or event is one to which guests may or should bring their own alcoholic drink—UK, 1858—USA, 1910—in early U.S. use, often referred to the prohibition of alcohol
Read More‘bring-your-own-bottle party’ | ‘bring-a-bottle party’
a party to which attendees are encouraged to bring their own drinks, especially alcohol—‘bring-your-own-bottle party’: USA, 1923, in the context of Prohibition—‘bring-a-bottle party’: UK, 1928
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