‘loony bin’: meaning and origin
1909 to 1923 in stories by English author P. G. Wodehouse—a facetious appellation for a home or hospital for people with mental illnesses—‘loony’: shortened form of ‘lunatic’
Read More1909 to 1923 in stories by English author P. G. Wodehouse—a facetious appellation for a home or hospital for people with mental illnesses—‘loony’: shortened form of ‘lunatic’
Read MoreAmerican English 1921–British and Irish English 1923—although it was already a cliché, ‘schoolgirl complexion’ was popularised by the advertising slogan for Palmolive Soap
Read Moregreat vitality, enthusiasm and liveliness—UK, 1922—originally (from 1921 onwards) used in the advertisements for Kruschen Salts
Read MoreUK, 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 Moreto be insane—late 19th century—originated in the fact that in 19th-century productions of Shakespeare’s ‘Hamlet’, Ophelia appeared with straws in her hair in her ‘mad scene’
Read MoreBritish, 1925—‘to throw a spanner in(to) the works’: to cause disruption, to interfere with the smooth running of something—synonym (American English): ‘to throw a monkey wrench into’
Read More‘a stiff upper lip’: a quality of uncomplaining stoicism—now understood as referring to what is believed to be a quintessentially British trait, the repression of emotion, but originated in fact in North America (USA, 1811)
Read MoreUK, 1919—possibly a mere euphemism for having too much to drink, regardless of the actual number of drinks that have been consumed (‘eight’ probably arbitrary)
Read MoreThe image of the deaf adder originated in the Book of Psalms, 58:4-5: “the deaf adder that stoppeth her ear; which will not hearken to the voice of charmers”.
Read MoreThis phrase originated in the history of American slavery: the river was the Mississippi and down implied the transfer of slaves from north to south.
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