A-Z Database
A clanger is an indiscreet, embarrassing mistake or remark that reverberates for all to hear or witness and, if you drop one, then you are deemed to h...
Make a mistake or miss an opportunity, dates from the mid-20th century and derives from virtually any ball sport, baseball, cricket, rugby, American F...
These idioms generally omit the phrase 'of water' in phrases that strictly speaking should be 'a drop of water in a bucket of water' or 'a drop of wa...
Why do we use the word drop in the construction of this everyday expression? It becomes obvious, however, as soon as we think of the phrase ‘drop a le...
see Put the hammer down
Drop-dead gorgeous means breathtakingly beautiful and first appeared in print in The Times, February 1985, in an article about Michelle Pfeiffer. Befo...
see Clutch/grasp at straws
British slang for a home, place or dwelling dates from the early 20th century. According to Eric Partridge and others, derives from the criminal pract...
To campaign vociferously for supporters, an Americanism dates from the early 19th century and derives from beating drums loudly to gain attention.
This expression dates from the 17th century, reflecting the fact that the British aristocracy had both the time and the money to spend on drinking to...
This expression owes more to rhyming than any such behaviour attributed to skunks. It is an American expression dating from the 1950s.
Rhyming slang for wife, Duchess of Fife/wife, dates from the early 20th century. See also trouble and strife and my old dutch.
To dither, prevaricate or hide away, as in aping the antics of a duck, dates from the mid-20th century. Some sources allege that it is rhyming slang f...
see Like a duck to water
To duck someone or plunge into water dates from the 14th century, as does the meaning to bend or stoop quickly. Both these meanings stem from the anti...