A-Z Database
see Like a lamb to the slaughter
A lame duck is an ineffectual, weak person and the expression dates from the late 1500s. It was also stockbroker slang from the 1760s for a defaulter....
The lowest non-commissioned officer rank in the British army, below that of corporal, dates from the early 1600s. The lance prefix is a relic from the...
see Milk and honey
The original reference to this is from the Bible. It was the land to which Cain was exiled after he had killed his brother Abel (Genesis 4:16). Since...
Originally a biblical phrase Job 28:13 “Man knoweth not the price thereof; neither is it found in the land of the living.” It is also in Psalms 52:5 “...
This word dates back to the 1400s when it meant someone who owned so much land that some of it was rented out to tenants. It still retains this meanin...
In the sense of a sweeping, overwhelming majority of votes, especially in an election campaign, this usage is originally American dating from the late...
see In the lap of luxury
see In the lap of the gods
So called because the larder was originally the room in which bacon was hung. The word dates from the 1400s when lard was originally fatty bacon and t...
see La-di-da
The expression large as life dates from the early 19th century and originally described portraits or statues, which are literally life-size. Lewis Car...
Larger than life is a more modern expression dating from the mid-20th century describing persons or characters whose behaviour is more flamboyant or e...
To frolic, play tricks etc dates from the early 19th century. Sometimes also known as skylarking and derives from the aerobatic antics of the European...