Origin of Svengali?
George du Maurier was one of the most popular English writers of the 1890s. His Gothic 1894 novel Trilby sold more than 200,000 copies in the US alone. But it has always been controversial.
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What is a hooley? Where does the word come from?
hooley noun hoo·ley ˈhülē plural -s Everything about the word hooley is disputed, including the spelling.
Dead as a doornail?
Marley was dead to begin with. There was no doubt about that. Old Marley was as dead as a doornail . A Christmas Carol, Stave One
Where does the word Halloween come from?
Halloween, or All Hallows' Eve , falls on the night of 31 October, in anticipation of All Hallows' Day (1st November).
Origin of Bob's your uncle?
The phrase 'Bob's your uncle' is commonly used in British English and Commonwealth variants. It is a flexible idiom that loosely means 'and there you have it.'
Countries without an official language?
Only four internationally recognised nation-states do not currently have a de jure or official primary language:
What is hype? Where does the word come from?
The first dictionary definition of hype (1967) was ' excessive or misleading publicity or advertising'.