the coinage of an Irish political term: ‘whataboutery’
1974—coined by the Irish journalist John Healy with reference to the Troubles in Northern Ireland
Read MoreTag: sports & games
‘I should cocoa’: meaning and origin
UK slang, 1936—emphatic agreement, though often ironical—‘cocoa’ is said to be rhyming slang for ‘so’ in ‘I should say so’
Read Morethe Welsh origin of the phrase ‘to let the dog see the rabbit’
1893—to allow someone to get on with their task—originated in Wales with reference to fair-mindedness in sports
Read Moremeaning and origin of the British phrase ‘to be all mouth and (no) trousers’
1961—to be all talk and no action—originally without the negative determiner ‘no’—refers to verbal and sexual arrogance
Read Moremeaning and origin of ‘there’s one, or a sucker, born every minute’
UK, 1806—expresses dismay or glee at the gullibility of people—originally used by those who were exploiting the credulity of others
Read Moremeaning and origin of the British-English phrase ‘64,000 question’
1956—a crucial question or issue—from The 64,000 Question, the name of a TV quiz show adapted from U.S. TV programme The $64,000 Question
Read Moremeaning and origin of the British phrase ‘big girl’s blouse’
1969—a weak, cowardly or oversensitive man—analogy between a cowardly man “in a flap” and an oversize garment hanging loose, fluttering
Read Morea hypothesis as to the origin of the phrase ‘a Chinaman’s chance’
USA, 1893—a negligible likelihood—might refer to the fact that the Chinese had little prospect of obtaining reparations for racial discrimination
Read More‘too many chiefs and not enough Indians’: meaning and origin
USA, 1947, of post-war need for soldiers—origin: when playing cowboys and Indians, a child would rather be the chief than an average Indian
Read Moreorigin of the phrase ‘been there, done that (and got the T-shirt)’
Australia, 1980—seems to have originated in a 1979 tribute song to the Australian cricketer and cricket commentator Alan McGilvray
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