A-Z Database
An informal proverb used to discourage retaliation or reciprocation, in that a wrongful action is not a practical or morally appropriate way to correc...
When used as an adjective, as in 'a two-bit actor', it is a derogatory idiom that means something of very little worth or value. This usage dates from...
see Double-edged sword
Deceitful, insincere, dishonest i.e. having two faces, one for the truth the other for deceit, dates from the early 1600s.
To two-time is a verb that means to cheat, to betray, or to deceive, sometimes in a romantic or sexual context. It is of American origin and is freque...
This was already a proverbial saying by the late 1500s and was originally indicative of lovers wishing to be on their own.
see twat
Generally accepted name since about c. 1700 for someone from Yorkshire, derives from Scottish and Northern dialect in the 14th/15th centuries for a do...
U means socially acceptable or correct and non-U means the opposite. They stand for ‘upper class’ and ‘non upper class’ respectively. These expression...
Referring to a difficult or dangerous person is American, from the mid-19th century. See also Cool customer.
Both ‘um and ah’, which is more British, and ‘hem and haw’, which is more American, are expressions of hesitancy when dithering to find the right word...
Uncle Tom Cobley and all is a quaint British expression signifying a seemingly interminable crowd of people and dates in this sense from the late 19th...
Of one's own accord, without assistance. From the obvious allusion to steam-powered engines that seem to continue working of their own accord once...
To get something under one’s belt means that something has been safely or satisfactorily achieved, experienced, or acquired and dates in this sense fr...
To keep something under one’s hat is to keep something secret or confidential, away from public scrutiny, and dates in this sense from the late 19th c...