“He who is content with his lot probably has a lot”
"He who is content with his lot probably has a lot" is a pun on "his lot" (meaning "his allotted or apportioned share") and "a lot" (meaning…
“The cream rises until it sours”
Dr. Laurence J. Peter, along with co-author Raymond Hull (1919-1985), wrote The Peter Principle (1969), stating "in a hierarchy every employee tend to rise to his level of incompetence."…
Fumbling, Bumbling Idiots (Federal Bureau of Investigation or FBI nickname)
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) was founded in 1908 and conducts federal criminal and intelligence investigations. The unflattering FBI nickname of "Fumbling, Bumbling Idiots"…
“If you want to put yourself on the map, publish your own map”
A business is said to be "on the map" when it becomes known to many and/or influential clients. "If you want to put yourself on the map, publish your own map" is a jocular…
“Exceptions prove the rule—and wreck the budget”
A budget often comes with conditions or exceptions. "'Exceptions prove the rule' -- and wreck the family budget" was written by newspaper columnist Olin Miller in May 1963.…
“There is hardly anything that some man cannot make a little worse and sell a little cheaper”
"There is scarcely anything in this world that some man cannot make a little worse and sell a little cheaper, and the buyers who consider price only are this man's lawful prey" is a…
“Nothing succeeds like success”
"Nothing succeeds like success" and "fortune favors the fortunate" are proverbs that mean that one success (or fortune) will lead to another. The proverb was popular in 19th…
“Nothing recedes like success”
"Nothing succeeds like success" is a French proverb from the 19th century. "Nothing recedes like success" -- that is, nothing goes away faster than success -- is a jocular…
Saleathon (sale + marathon)
A "saleathon" or "sale-a-thon" (sale + marathon) is an event that retailers often hold featuring discounted products. "Saleathon" has been cited in print since at…
Sellathon (sell + marathon)
A "sellathon" or "sell-a-thon" (sell + marathon) is an event that retailers often hold featuring discounted products. "Sellathon" has been cited in print since at…
Red Tag Sale
A "tag sale" is a retail sale where the sale items bear a colored tag. "Red tag sale" has been cited in print since at least 1888, "blue tag sale" since at least 1890…
Saleabration (sale + celebration)
A "saleabration" or "sale-a-bration" (sale + celebration) is an event that retailers often hold featuring discounted products. "SALEabration" has been cited in print…
Sellabration (sell + celebration)
A "sellabration" or "sell-a-bration" (sell + celebration) is an event that retailers often hold featuring discounted products. "Sell-abration" has been cited in print…
Doorbuster
A "doorbuster" (also "door-buster" or "door buster") is a sale on goods that is so low-priced that customers will wait for the store to open and seemingly break down…
“‘Nouvelle cuisine’ is French for ‘not enough food’”
The term "nouvelle cuisine" (French for "new cuisine") was popularized in the 1960s and was characterized by an attractive food display of small portions. "Nouvelle Cuisine…
“Any country with ‘democratic’ in the title isn’t”
"Any country with 'democratic' in the title isn't" was written by sportswriter Jim Murray (1919-1998) in the Los Angeles (CA) Times on August 3, 1980. The German Democratic…
“Bureaucracy is a method for transforming energy into solid waste”
"Bureaucracy is a method/process for converting/transforming energy into solid waste" is a bumper sticker saying that has been cited in print since at least 1981. The authorship of the…
“Gravity is what you get when you eat too much and too fast”
"Gravity is what you get when you eat too much and too fast" was included in a 1931 list titled "Boners: Being a collection of schoolboy wisdom, or knowledge as it is sometimes…
“Hamilton started the Treasury with nothing; that’s the closest our country has been to being even”
"Alexander Hamilton started the U.S. Treasury with nothing -- and that was the closest our country has ever been to being even" was credited to American humorist Will Rogers (1879-1935)…
“Crime does not pay…as well as politics”
"Crime does not pay...as well as politics" has been credited to Alfred E. Neuman, the fictional mascot and cover boy of Mad magazine. It's not known when this first appeared in Mad,…