Nasty, Brutish and Short Meaning The life of mankind when in his natural state. Origin Nasty, brutish and short aren’t a firm of particularly unpleasant lawyers but a quotation …
Name will be Mudd Meaning Reputation will be ruined. Example If word gets out that you are a peeping Tom, your name will be mudd. Origin A reference to …
Name and Shame Meaning The publication of the identity of a person or group that is culpable in some anti-social act in order to shame them into remorse. Origin …
Namby-Pamby Meaning Weak and affectedly sentimental. Origin Namby-Pamby was the disparaging nickname given to the English poet and playwright, Ambrose Phillips. His contemporaries Henry Carey, John Gay, Alexander Pope …
Nail Your Colours to the Mast Meaning To display one’s opinions and beliefs. Also used to mean to show one’s intention to hold on to those beliefs until the …
My Giddy Aunt Meaning My giddy aunt is an expression used to denote surprise. Origin The giddy in this instance is probably unrelated to a sense of spinning around …
My Better Half Meaning My husband or my wife. Origin This term wasn’t originally restricted to referring to one’s spouse as we use it now, but to a dear …
Mouth-Watering Meaning Delicious; tasty enough to make you salivate. Origin The term mouth-watering has been used since the late 18th century to describe people whose mouth was salivating at …
Middle of The Road Meaning Something unadventurous or inoffensive; opting to go neither one way nor the other. Origin This phrase conjures up similar images to that of ‘sitting …
Meet Your Waterloo Meaning Arrive at a final decisive contest. Origin This phrase refers to the 1815 battle outside the Belgian town of Waterloo in which Napoleon Bonaparte was …
