A-Z Database
US slang for a battered old car from c. 1920. Perhaps from Jalapa a Mexican town where, supposedly, many old American cars ended up; otherwise the ori...
British slang for clear profit, good fortune or luck dates from the late 19th century when jam was considered a treat or luxury. Jam as preserve i.e....
Jam jar is rhyming slang for car, jam jar/car, dates from the 1920s.
British expression for something pleasant or something extra, believed to have originated in the navy from the late 19th/early 20th century. See also...
see Jam
British expression that means something promised that never comes, rather like pubs that have signs that proclaim, “Free beer tomorrow”. Why jam? The...
Full to capacity, chock-a-block, a combining of jammed full and packed to capacity, dates from the 1950s.
Rhyming slang for sweetheart, jam-tart/sweetheart, dates from the mid-19th century, See also Tart.
A frolic, a carousel, a spree, originally US slang first cited from 1872, but the origin is unknown. Since 1920, it is the annual rally of the Boy Sco...
British slang for lucky or fortunate dates from the late 19th century when a bit of jam meant a stroke of good luck or sweet fortune and, hence allude...
see Months of the year
see Yarpie
US military slang for a marine, dates from WWII and derives from the dress uniform that US marines wear.The high collar makes it look as if the marine...
see Snatch victory from the jaws of defeat
A frequently encountered but erroneous explanation for this expression is that people crossing busy streets never do so in a straight line. Because of...