“ad fontes!”
On the pattern of phrases such as ‘nom de guerre’, ‘nom de théâtre’ and ‘nom de plume’, ‘nom de —’ is used, often humorously, to form phrases denoting a pseudonym, an alternative name.
Read MoreUSA, 1954—used of a theory that a political event or development in one country, etc., will lead to its occurrence in others—the image is of a falling domino causing an entire row of upended dominoes to fall
Read MoreCanada and UK, 1978—to publicly disclose perceived wrongdoing or failure on the part of a person or institution; to expose private behaviour to public censure—earlier longer phrases include ‘blame’
Read MoreUK, 1890—used to indicate that the person or persons guilty of a misdemeanour will not be named, in order to spare them recrimination—‘pack drill’: a military punishment involving a lengthy period of marching up and down carrying full equipment
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UK and Ireland—used of someone who makes a mistake because of poor eyesight—refers to the British optical retail chain Specsavers Optical Group Ltd, in particular to its advertising slogan, ‘should’ve gone to Specsavers’
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USA, 1928—Based on the contrast between the adjectives ‘little’ and ‘big’, this humorous phrase means: to applaud a woman for an achievement.
Read Moredismissal from employment—UK, 1882, as ‘the noble order of the boot’—‘the boot’ refers to kicking somebody out—the phrase puns on two acceptations of ‘order’: an authoritative command and an institution founded for the purpose of honouring meritorious conduct
Read MoreUSA, 1937—an uneasy sensation felt, especially in the stomach, as a result of nervousness or apprehension—based on the notion that the fluttering of butterflies may produce a similar sensation
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UK, 1955—‘cobblers’, short for ‘cobbler’s (or cobblers’) awls’, is rhyming slang for ‘balls’, i.e., ‘testicles’, and figuratively ‘nonsense’, ‘rubbish’
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African-American, 1966—different things please or satisfy different people—‘stroke’ denotes a comforting gesture of approval or congratulation, and, by extension, a flattering or friendly remark
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word histories 