meanings 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 MoreTag: food
meaning 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 Morean investigation into the origin of the phrase ‘an old Spanish custom’
UK, 1932—hypotheses as to origin: successful music-hall song(s) – clichés about Spain – coined by Herman Cyril McNeile
Read Moremeaning and origin of the phrase ‘bread and circuses’
UK, 1869—inaccurate translation of Latin ‘panem and circenses’ (literally ‘bread and circus games’) as used by the Roman poet Juvenal
Read Moreorigin of ‘bread-and-butter letter’ and of its synonym ‘Collins’
letter of thanks for hospitality: ‘bread-and-butter letter’ (USA, late 19th century) – ‘Collins’ (UK, early 20th century, from the name of William Collins in Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice)
Read More‘buttered bread’ in phrases denoting fortunate situations
The image of one’s bread getting or being buttered has long been used to denote getting or having benefits, advantages.
Read Moreorigin of the phrase ‘the best thing since sliced bread’
After ready-sliced bread was introduced, improvements in the baking industry were assessed by comparison with it—hence the figurative use of ‘since sliced bread’
Read MoreHow ‘breadline’ originated in the action of a philanthropist.
originally (late 19th century) the queue of needy men waiting to be given bread outside Fleischmann’s Vienna Model Bakery, Broadway, New York City
Read More‘trickle-down theory’ and ‘crumbs from a rich man’s table’
‘crumbs from a rich man’s table’—late 18th century—from the parable of the rich man and Lazarus in the gospel of Luke, 16:19-31
Read More‘(just) what the doctor ordered’ (exactly what is needed)
‘(just) what the doctor ordered’: very beneficial or desirable under the circumstances—origin: USA, second half of the 19th century
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