Investigating the origins of American words, names, quotations and phrases. Over 41,000 entries.
"An executive is a man who makes quick decisions and is sometimes right" was written by American writer and philosopher Elbert Hubbart (1856-1915) in 1907. The jocular quotation has been…
Harold Geneen (1910-1997), an American businessman who was president of the ITT Corporation, wrote in his book, Managing (1984): "In the business world, everyone is paid in two coins: Cash and…
"He may be a son of a bitch, but he's our son of a bitch" is what a political constituency (such as a political party or a cultural group) says of its own tarnished politician. This…
President Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882-1945) gave a campaign speech at the Brooklyn Academy of Music on November 1, 1940: "It is an unfortunate human failing that a full pocketbook often groans…
A popular statement about soccer is: “Os ingleses o inventaram, os brasileiros o aperfei oaram.” (Portuguese)“The English invented it, the Brazilians perfected it.” The saying has been…
"However beautiful the strategy, you should occasionally look at the results" is frequently credited to Winston Churchill (1874-1965), but he never said it. The saying first appears from…
"A bad putt is better than a bad chip" is a golf adage that many golfers follow. A chip shot is a little further out from the hole than a putt; a bad putt is "better" because…
"Think again of LTCM – if you have to generate cash and you can’t sell what you want to sell, you sell what you can sell" was written by financial author Richard Bookstaber on his…
"It's very difficult to beat the market when you are the market" is an old financial saying. "And since they are the market, they cannot better the market" was written in…
"Never confuse people who are always around you with people who are always there for you" is a saying that has been printed on many gift items, such as posters and T-shirts. The saying…
"A yawn is a silent scream for coffee" is a jocular saying that has been printed on many gift items, such as coffee mugs, T-shirts and posters. The saying has been popular on Twitter…
"All my life I thought air was free..until I bought a bag of chips" is a jocular line that has been printed on many posters. "I remember when buying a bag of chips was normal...now a…
"If in doubt, do half" is an investment adage that urges reducing risk. "Whilst on the subject of Cottle, one of his catch phrases is 'If in doubt, do half' i.e. close or…
"There is an old saying in asset protection to the effect that 'All bets are off in bankruptcy'" was cited in print in 2014. Bankruptcy rules mean that all investments (or…
The National Hockey League (NHL) had just six teams from 1942-43 until expansion in 1967. The six teams -- Boston Bruins, Chicago Black Hawks, Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens, New York…
U.S. politicians who have "presidential fever" (or are "bitten by the presidential bug") strongly desire to run for president. "The only cure for presidential fever is…
Apple Inc., a consumer electronics company, opened its first Apple store in Manhattan (103 Prince Street, in Soho) in 2002. Another Apple store was located in midtown Manhattan (Fifth Avenue…
Failure is often encouraged in technological fields; lessons learned through failure can lead to success. Sayings such as "fail forward," "fail better," "fail early,"…
The SAT is an examination used for college admissions. A popular SAT joke is: Q: What did the musician/athlete get on his SATs?A: Drool. The SAT joke appears to have started with musicians…
College football has a bowl playoff system; professional football's playoffs end in the Super Bowl. "What's the difference between (insert football team name) and a breakfast…