Bon Appetex
The Austin Land & Cattle Company restaurant tells its customers: "Bon Appetex!" This Texas version of "bon appétit" hasn't spread to other Texas restaurants, however.…
Education/Schools
Bond Vigilante
The term "bond vigilante " sounds like something out of a James Bond movie, but it simply describes players in the bond market. Ed Yardeni of Yardeni Research, coined the term when he was…
Bone Alley
"Bone Alley" used to be a densely populated and filthy area of Manhattan, at Pitt Street and Willett Street. The New-York (NY) Daily Tribune of May 12, 1875 probably explains the name:…
Bonehead Play or Boner (“Merkle’s Boner”)
"Merkle's boner" occurred on September 23, 1908, when New York Giants baseball player Fred Merkle -- running from first base in the ninth inning of a 1-1 game -- saw the winning run…
Bonghorns & “Book ‘em, Horns!” (Longhorns & “Hook ‘em, Horns!”)
In 2006 and 2007, several members of the University of Texas "Longhorns" football team were arrested (for illegal drugs and other offenses). The team nickname of "Longhorns" and…
Bongo Boulevard (51st Street, between Seventh Avenue and Broadway)
Syndicated newspaper columnist Walter Winchell (1897-1972) wrote in a column in March 1949: "Sights You Never See on the New York Map: (...) 'Bongo Blvd.' (the short block on 51st…
Bonut (biscuit + doughnut)
The "bonut" (biscuit + doughnut) was trademarked by Biscuit Love (a Nashville, Tennessee food truck and later a restaurant) with a first use date of May 2012. The trademark status is…
Boob Tube (television)
The "boob tube" is a nickname for the television -- a tube (cathode-ray tube) for boobs (idiots). "As a chronicler of the boob-tube, I have received hundreds of letters, but the bulk…
Boobeoisie or Booboisie (boob + bourgeoisie)
The writer and critic H. L. Mencken (1880-1956) coined the term "booboisie" (boob + bourgeosie) in the Baltimore (MD) Evening Sun on February 15, 1922. Mencken meant to describe a middle…
Boobus Americanus
The newspaper columnist and American language scholar H. L. Mencken (1880-1956) wrote in 1927 about the words he created: "Of my inventions I am vainest of Bible Belt, booboisie, smut hound…
Boodle Board (Board of Aldermen)
The Board of Aldermen was notoriously corrupt in the 19th century, sometimes earning itself the nickname "Forty Thieves." The 1884 Board of Aldermen became nicknamed the "boodle…
Booger King (Burger King nickname)
Burger King is a fast food restaurant chain that began in 1953. The Burger King nickname of "Booger King" has been cited in print since at least 1990. The name "booger" is often…
Boogie Down Bronx
The New York City borough of the Bronx is sometimes called the 'Boogie Down Bronx" or simply the "Boogie Down." The term reflects the role that the Bronx played in the birth of…
Book Row (or, Booksellers’ Row)
"Book Row" (or "Booksellers' Row") was lower Fourth Avenue, between 9th and 14th Streets. Another "Booksellers Row" opened on Fifth Avenue, near the Barnes and…
Boomer Doomer or Boomer Remover (COVID-19 nickname)
The COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic affected mostly older people, such as baby boomers (people born from 1946 to 1964). COVID-19 was nicknamed the "Boomer Remover" and "Boomer…
Boomer Remover or Boomer Doomer (COVID-19 nickname)
The COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic affected mostly older people, such as baby boomers (people born from 1946 to 1964). COVID-19 was nicknamed the "Boomer Remover" and "Boomer…
Boomerang Buyer
The Wall Street Journal's October 15, 2012 article, "'Boomerang' Home Seekers Become Eligible for Mortgages and Hit Market Again" by Conor Dougherty and Dawn Wotapka,…
Booporium (boo + emporium)
Target stores, beginning September 2017, called its Halloween display a "booporium" (boo + emporium), similar to "bootique" (boo + boutique). Many people, however, pronounced…
Boot Hill (cemetery for those who “died with their boots on”)
The Wild West had several cemeteries called "Boot Hill" (or "Boots Hill" or "Boothill"), for those who "died with their boots on" (from violence). Hays,…
Bootlegger
Entry in progress -- B.P. (Oxford English Dictionary)boot-legger, n.Etymology: -- boot-leg n. + -er suffix1. Compare boot-leg n. 2.One who carries liquor in his boot-legs; (hence) an illicit trader…