The Big Apple:

An etymological dictionary

Investigating the origins of American words, names, quotations and phrases. Over 41,000 entries.

“Shocked. Shocked!” (meme)

"Shocked. Shocked!" is a popular meme for when something is not shocking. The popular film Casablanca (1942) featured actor Claude Rains as Captain Louis Renault, who was forced by the…

Already Been Canceled (ABC nickname)

The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) began in 1943 and is headquartered on Manhattan’s Upper West Side (near Lincoln Center). ABC had a 1990s reputation for poorly developing any successful…

“Shell out!” (Halloween shout)

"Trick or treat!" is a popular Halloween shout. "Shell out!" is another cry that has been popular in Canada, in use since at least the 1890s. "A large crowd of boys in the…

“Cheater, cheater, pumpkin eater”

"Peter, Peter, pumpkin-eater, / Had a wife and couldn't keep her; / He put her in a pumpkin shell, / And there he kept her very well" is a traditional children's rhyme from at…