One-Hour Fuel (dry weeds and grass)
"One-hour fuel" is the name that fire prevention workers have termed dry weeds and grass. In West Texas -- where there is plenty of dry grass, for example -- the grass can burn as quickly…
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Sam Hill
Entry in progress -- B.P. Wikipedia: Sam Hill (euphemism)Sam Hill is an American English slang phrase, a euphemism for "the devil" or "hell" personified (as in, "What in…
Green Fairy or Green Lady (absinthe nickname)
The "green fairy" (also called the "green lady" and the "green muse") has been a Paris nickname for the drink absinthe since the 1880s. The "green hour" --…
Synagondo (synagogue + condo)
Several New York City synagogues no longer have congregations to stay operating; the buildings are sometimes turned into condos. New condominium apartments are sometimes built around a…
God’s Dorm (St. Ann’s Church facade and NYU dorm)
New York University built a 26-story dorm at 12th Street (off Fourth Avenue) in 2008-2009. The facade of St, Ann's Church (built in the 1840s) was kept; the real estate blog Curbed.com called…
Sodom South (Greenwich Street between Carlisle and Rector Streets)
Greenwich Street between Carlisle and Rector Streets was called "a kind of Sodom South" in the New York (NY) Times on March 9, 2007. A topless bar (Pussycat Lounge), Thunder Lingerie and…
“Politics stops at the water’s edge”
"Politics stops at the water's edge" is an old political adage, credited to several politicians. The phrase means that, in regards to foreign affairs, the United States is united and…
“Is it bigger than a breadbox?”
"Is it bigger than a breadbox?" (or "Is it bigger than a bread box?") was a catchphrase on the television game show What's My Line?. Like the game of "Twenty…
“The blacker the berry, the sweeter the juice”
"The blacker the berry, the sweeter the juice" (or "The darker the berry, the sweeter the juice") has been used by American blacks since at least the publication of Wallace…
Kosher Style
A "kosher" restaurant must be properly certified. Many delicatessens and restaurants called themselves "kosher style" -- these restaurants are not kosher. The…
Texas Road Fairy
The Texas "road fairy" can build new roads in the state without raising taxes or charging tolls. The "road fairy" is a fiction, of course. There is one citation of "road…
Corn Chip (Fritos)
Entry in progress -- B.P. Wikipedia: Corn chipA corn chip is a snack food made from cornmeal fried in oil or baked, usually in the shape of a small noodle or scoop. Corn chips are thick, rigid and…
“Bread and water can so easily be toast and tea”
"Bread and water can so easily be toast and tea" is frequently cited, but never credited to any author. Something like the phrase is cited in 1903; the exact phrase is cited on the…
“Remember the tea-kettle—though up to its neck in hot water, it still sings”
"Remember the tea-kettle -- though up to its neck in hot water, it still sings" is cited in print from 1920. The saying was a popular one during the hard times ("hot water") of…
Tortilla Chip
Tortilla chips are are small, crispy fried wedges of corn tortillas. In 2003, Texas declared "tortilla chips and salsa" to be the official state snack. The snack is often (but not always)…
“The oldest word in politics is ‘new’”
'There's nothing new under the sun" is a phrase from the Book of Ecclesiastes. "The oldest word in politics is 'new'" is cited in print from at least 1998, when…
“We campaign in poetry, but when we’re elected we’re forced to govern in prose”
"We campaign in poetry, but when we're elected we're forced to govern in prose" said then-New York governor Mario M. Cuomo in a speech at Yale University (New Haven, CT) on…
“Buy with bread, sell with cheese” (wine saying)
"Buy with bread, sell with cheese" (also ""Buy on bread, sell on cheese") has been a saying in the wine industry in France, recorded in English since at least 1972. Cheese…
“Everything but the oink”
Hog packing houses have prided themselves about using almost all of the animal -- "everything but the oink." The phrase "everything but the squeal" dates to about the 1860s.…
Green Giant (Condé Nast building at 4 Times Square)
The Condé Nast building at 4 Times Square in Manhattan has been called the "green giant" (since 1997; the building opened in 1999) because of energy-efficient or "green"…