A-Z Database
British military slang for disgruntled and fed up dates from WWI according to Eric Partridge who also maintains that the expression has earlier (late...
Brownie points are merit scores that are earned through good deeds or behaviour. It is originally an American expression that dates the 1950s and that...
To give the brush-off is to rebuff or dismiss rudely, an American colloquial expression from c. 1941.
Any fried or baked mixture of leftover cold meats and vegetables dates from the late 18th century and so-called because of the supposed noise it makes...
No one knows for sure why a US dollar is called a buck, but there are several theories. One is that it comes from the game of poker during the 19th ce...
see Pass the buck
This American expression means to go against or fail to imply with a system or trend. It dates from the early 20th century and derives from buck in th...
To buck up can mean various things depending on the context. It can mean to cheer up or it can mean to hurry up, get a move on, or improve one’s statu...
A list of things to do, places to see before one dies. The expression originated in America during the early 21st century and was popularised by the 2...
Buckle up as a phrase dates from the early 1500s, and until swords were generally discarded as weapons of war during the 19th century, it meant 'prepa...
Buckshee meaning gratis, free or for nothing is the modern variant, dating from c.1916, of the original baksheesh, which dates from the early 17th cen...
Bug as a general name for an insect dates from the 1600s. Bug as an obsession, in expressions like “bitten by a bug” for something or other, dates fro...
Bug off, meaning to go away, get lost, or leave quickly, is American English that dates from the mid-20th century. Probably derives from the British E...
A fear or sometimes an annoyance dates from the late 16th century when it was first used in English folklore to control fractious children at bedtime....
Bugger, on its own, or as in 'bugger me' is a mild British expletive of annoyance or surprise that dates in this sense from the mid-20th century. 'I'm...