A-Z Database

A-Z Database

All A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Mick

Originally US slang for an Irishman; dates from the mid-19th century and then spread across the English-speaking world by the late 19th century. It de...

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Mickey Finn

An American colloquial expression from the 19th century for strong alcohol, or a mixture of strong alcohol, designed to make unsuspecting people very...

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Midas touch

Sometimes known as the golden touch, the Midas touch is an expression that dates from the 1500s. A person with the Midas touch has the ability to make...

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Middle finger

To give someone the middle finger, pointing it upwards while keeping the other fingers closed as in a fist, is an insulting gesture in many cultures t...

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Midnight oil

see Burn the midnight oil


Midshipman

Since the 1600s, midshipman has been the most junior officer rank in the Royal Navy, the US Navy and many other navies around the world. As a rank, it...

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Miffed

Miffed, meaning to be upset or to be put into A5956an irritable mood, is a British colloquial expression that dates from 1824, according to the OED. M...

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Might is right

This concept is very ancient and appears in various forms in the works of Homer, Hesiod and in Plato (c.428-348 BC) The Republic, Book I, against whic...

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Mighty fallen

see How are the mighty fallen


Military medium

This expression is used to describe the rather innocuous pace of a medium bowler in the game of cricket. As far as is known, it was not heard or cited...

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Milk a situation or something for all its worth

This figurative use of the verb milk, meaning to exploit a situation subtly to one’s advantage dates from the early 1500s, (1526 according to the OED)...

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Milk and honey

A metaphor for abundance or plenty and sometimes good fortune or reward depending on the context, derives from the Bible Exodus 3:8 “A land flowing wi...

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Milk of human kindness

Care and compassion for others is pure Shakespeare from Macbeth, Act I, Scene V, spoken by Lady Macbeth musing on her husband’s character, “Yet I do...

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Milliner

A milliner is a person who makes or deals in women’s hats and trimmings. The word originally meant a native or inhabitant of Milan where the best hats...

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Millstone around the neck

Figuratively, means to carry a heavy, burdensome problem. In ancient times, probably the heaviest object one would encounter was a millstone. The firs...

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