meaning and possible origin of ‘to push the boat out’
UK, 1915—to be lavish in one’s celebrations or spending—Army and Navy slang: to buy a round of drinks—’a boat’ might be metaphorical for ‘a glass’ (i.e., ‘a drink’)
Read MoreTag: sports & games
meaning, origin and early instances of ‘to lie doggo’
UK, 1882—to remain motionless and quiet; to keep a low profile—probably from ‘dog’ and suffix ‘-o’, with allusion to the characteristically light sleep of a dog
Read Moremeaning and origin of the British phrase ‘to go down the pan’
UK, 1950—to be completely lost or wasted; to fail utterly—alludes to ‘pan’ in the sense of the bowl of a toilet
Read Morea hypothesis as to the origin of ‘to get down to brass tacks’
USA, 1868—‘brass tacks’: the nails studded over a coffin, hence figuratively the end of any possibility of deceit, the return to essentials
Read Moremeaning and history of ‘to laugh/cry all the way to the bank’
USA, 1908—to relish – or ironically deplore – the fact that one is making money, especially undeservedly or at the expense of others
Read Morea Briticism: ‘Gavin and Stacey’ used as an attributive modifier
2019—used to mean ‘Anglo-Welsh’—from ‘Gavin & Stacey’, a sitcom about the relationship between an Englishman and a Welsh woman
Read Moremeaning and origin of the phrase ‘six feet under’
USA, 1924—dead and buried—short for ‘buried six feet under ground’—alludes to the normal depth of a grave
Read Moremeaning and evolution of ‘had one but the wheel(s) came off’
UK, 1924—used to indicate that the speaker has been inattentive or has not understood what has just been said
Read Morethe acronym ‘Wags’ and its derivative ‘Gwags’
‘Wags’ (2002): the wives and girlfriends of the England World Cup football team—‘Gwags’ (2006): golfers’ wives and girlfriends
Read Moremeanings and origin of ‘all over the shop’
UK, 1862—‘in every direction’ and ‘in a disorganised or confused state’—apparently originated in sports slang
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