A - Z Database
Originally, children's slang for penis, first recorded in Britain 1905.
No room to swing a cat' or 'not enough room to swing a cat' are metaphors used to describe a small, cramped space or a crowd of people crammed togethe...
See No room to swing a cat
See No room to swing a cat
A dastard is a malicious or cowardly person, and dastardly describes his or her malicious or cowardly behaviour. Both words date from 1552.
Golf is not an acronym as bogus etymology on the internet would have us believe. The game was invented in Scotland and the word entered the English la...
'Hamlet without the Prince' is an idiom that describes an event or occasion at which the expected principal participant is not present. It derives fro...
See Speech is silver, silence is golden
This is an ancient proverb, which extols the value of silence over and above the value of spoken words. The concept, but not the actual expression, ap...
See Sail close to the wind
Everyone knows that 'galore' means 'in abundance', but have you ever wondered where the word comes from? According to the OED, it is first cited in th...
A foolish, giddy, reckless person, scheme, or plan. Dates from the mid-1500s and derives from the perceived giddy, pointless and mad antics of hares....
Currently, a British dialectical/colloquial expression that means 'not liking the cold' and is mainly used in the Midlands and north of England. The w...
The phrase 'keep someone honest' is commonly used in English and means to prevent someone from breaking a commitment or bending the rules. It's often...
To be or to keep on one's toes means to be ready or alert for some action or purpose. It may derive from foot racing when one toes the starting line a...