A-Z Database
see kit and caboodle
So offensive is this word in English-speaking Africa that it is now classified as the k word and in this sense is similar to nigger. Its etymology, ho...
Kamikaze means divine wind in Japanese and was the name adopted by Japanese suicide pilots who flew their planes into US warships towards the end of W...
A kangaroo court is an illegal form of rough justice usually presided over by an unruly mob. Despite its obvious Australian connotations, the phrase i...
Keel over meaning to fall over derives from a keeled vessel that capsizes and this literal usage dates from the early 18th century. The current figura...
As keen as mustard means to be very enthusiastic and dates from the late 17th century. Since the 1400s, the word keen has enjoyed at least three meani...
Sporting terminology from association football meaning no goals conceded that dates from the mid-20th century, some say as long ago as the 1930s. The...
see Clean slate
Standard English that dates from the 18th century meaning to retain one’s composure and keep calm. See also keep one’s cool.
see Don’t keep a dog and bark yourself
see Blow the lid/cover off something
see Up one’s sleeve
Whichever way it is spelt or pronounced what is meant here is the Latin cave, which means beware, as in cave carnem which means beware of the dog. To...
US informal dating from the 1950s meaning to remain calm and retain one’s composure, probably deriving from the earlier expression ‘keep a cool head’,...
see On the ball