", A second-rate singer who produces noise rather than music, Example: "Get that whooperup belting Celine Dion off the stage! He knows Lucy finds it funny, so he does it to make her laugh. "A woman whose hair is dishevelled, and hanging about her face; a slattern. Most microwaves perform essentially the same functions, but their aesthetics is one way to tell them apart. The 10-cup (uncooked) capacity can keep a big table fed, while the non-stick interior makes clean-up simple. I weren’t a-goin’ to fight, so I waited for the food, and did with my ’owl as the wolves, and lions, and tigers does. As I rounded the corner onto Kings Lane, I spotted my old crony (friend) George. Whenever I see crony today it is paired with capitalism to give it a negative connotation, e.g., ‘that factory deal was just another example of crony capitalism, where back-room deals enrich the powerful…’ Perhaps outside of the political and economic sphere, or outside of the U.S., the word has a less negative reputation. Writer George W. Bungay, for example, co-opted the phrase to call out early temperance supporters who had lost faith in the movement. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the oldest recorded use of the term ‘Mother Earth’ refers to ‘her’ reproductive qualities. Below are some of the tome's most hilarious, vivid, and archaic insults, arranged in alphabetical order for your put-down pleasure. Have you got a Big Question you'd like us to answer? Copper-rattle (Navy) . ", Example: "Quit being such a meater and jump out of the plane, Frank! 4. From a time when hair was worn long. ", "An ill-dressed shabby fellow; also a mean-spirited person. “Crony” is still widely in current use. Yet, like so many other words, it remains taboo. A Victorian word for “penis.” 2. Call it 8 Bells.’ And they do. Fishermans’ daughters don’t seem anything like water to me. If voters managed to flip the Senate to a Democratic majority—or at least closer to it—they could possibly render him ineffective. Have you proved your Downton Abbey knowledge of Downtonisms. Since new U.S. presidents and members of Congress elected in November don’t actually take office until the following January, this creates an awkward gap for their predecessors. Back then, presidential inaugurations occurred in March—the same month a new congressional session began. Its origins … BESPAWLER. If you have a grilling enthusiast who wants to keep up their commitment in cooler weather, consider this Cuisinart tabletop grill. Though they didn’t have the language to express it clearly, Victorian England periodically had homophobic heart attacks, as is evidenced in the case of Fanny and Stella, a pair of flamboyant trans-women. Plain plum-pudding spotted dough. Cutting.). According to The Phrase Finder, The Congressional Globe used lame duck to describe “broken down politicians” back in 1863, and it had started to appear in newspaper articles referencing politics not long after. But while the term lame duck is now often used to refer to any outgoing politician in general—regardless of whether or not they’re figuratively limping through the end of their term—it wasn’t always that way. So how about 'Cheers to you, you great arf'arf'an'arf'. [Excerpts from Passing English of the Victorian Era, a Dictionary of Heterodox English, Slang and Phrase. ). A bespawler is a … By the end of the century, ‘pisser’ was a popular word. A British slang word for “cheater,” invented by William Shakespeare himself. It needs rain, which the Victorians enjoyed referring to as ‘waterworks,’ as in “The fireworks were put out by the waterworks.” Though, colloquially, that just makes us think of tears. Susie Dent, lexicographer and etymologist said: “Flowery, affectionate birthday greetings are all well and good, but we all know that if you really want to show your loved ones how much you care, there’s nothing better than lobbing a carefully-chosen insult their way.”, “The trouble is, our usual pieces of invective might be feeling a little tired by now.