“ad fontes!”
Canada, 1857: an angelic being imagined as being the source of a fall of snow—USA, 1893 (?): an impression in the snow resembling an angel, made by lying on one’s back and moving one’s arms and legs back and forth in an arc along the ground
Read More1937—a shortened form of expressions such as ‘bed-and-breakfast place’ (first recorded in 1881)
Read MoreIreland, 1803—the provision of a bed for the night and breakfast the following morning, especially at a fixed rate, in a hotel, inn, or private home
Read MoreUK, 1801—said of a dead person: to be likely to have reacted with horror to something if they were still alive to experience it
Read MoreUSA, 1951—to act in a way that inadvertently damages one’s cause or reputation or spoils one’s chances—alludes to accidental shooting
Read MoreU.S. slang, 20th century—in reference to a person’s anus, ‘to stick (something) where the sun don’t shine’ expresses contemptuous rejection
Read MoreUSA, 1927: a woman with a silvery-blonde hair colour—USA, 1930: specifically applied to Jean Harlow—also (USA, 1927) ‘platinum’: a silvery-blonde hair colour
Read MoreUSA, 1866—the capacity to eat or drink a lot without ill effects
Read MoreUSA & UK, 1995—to take a pregnancy test of a type involving urinating on a disposable plastic stick which immediately indicates the result—also, more generally: to take any of various other diagnostic tests of this type
Read MoreUK, 1911—a sharp blow to the back of the neck—refers to the practice of killing rabbits in this way, and originated in boxing—Australia, 1913: ‘rabbit killer’, also ‘rabbit-killer punch’
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