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Origin of laughable?

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Laughable Adjective : to inspire laughter: comically ridiculous. A variation based on laugh which evolved from the Middle English laughen, laghen  

How many new words in Shakespeare?

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Estimates of the number of new words and phrases used in the complete work of William Shakespeare vary considerably.  In 1942, leading Shakespeare scholar Alfred Hart, wrote that the Stratford playwright is "credited by the compilers of the Oxford English Dictionary with being the first user of about 3,200 words."  That number is now considered an overestimate. But by how much? A British Council website from 2016 suggests 'more than two thousand' while the invaluable Online Shakespeare Biography goes with around 1200.

Who is Shashibiya?

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The name Shakespeare  (transcribed  Shashibiya) first appeared     in a Chinese language publication in a translation of Milner’s The History of England in 1857. But it was the publication of Lin Shu’s Tales from Shakespeare in 1904 that first brought the Bard to a wider Chinese audience.  Lin Shu remarketed Shashibiya for a Chinese readership. He promoted the plays as traditional ‘stories of gods and spirits’. One of these tales was used for the first professional production of Shakespeare in China: a staging of The Merchant of Venice in 1913. Read more :  Shakespeare in China   (3 minute free read on Medium)

Top 10 most quoted lines of poetry in English?

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Photo by  Taylor Ann Wright  on  Unsplash Mark Forsyth ( The Inky Fool )  has analysed Google Search query result data for lines of verse requested online. Here is the Top Ten: 10 .  Tis better to have loved and lost 2,400,000 Tennyson 9. Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair 3,080,000 Shelley 8. To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield 3,140,000 Tennyson 7. Tread softly because you tread on my dreams 4,860,000 W.B. Yeats Anthony Hopkins recites He Wishes For The Cloths Of Heaven by W.B Yeats 6. Not with a bang but a whimper 5,280,000 T.S. Eliot 5. And miles to go before I sleep 5,350,000 Robert Frost 4. I wandered lonely as a cloud 8,000,000 Wordsworth 3. The child is father of the man 9,420,000 Wordsworth 2. I am the master of my fate 14,700,000 William Ernest Henley 1. To err is human; to forgive, divine 14,800,000 Alexander Pope Complete Top 50 Commentary English:Fun Facts & FAQ Teaching Pack

Where does 'catch a cold' come from?

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Lest the bargain should catch cold and starve. (Iachimo, Act 1 Scene 4)   Shakespeare introduces the phrase 'to catch cold' in Cymbeline (1610). This was his 'comeback'  play after theatres had been 'dark' (closed) for a long period due to a plague epidemic in London.  'Catch cold' is a euphemism here. Iachimo is thinking of something more serious than a blocked nose and a sore throat. The Common Cold: Vocabulary Worksheet

What is the 'be all and end all'? Where does it come from?

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The 'be-all-and-end-all' is now used to refer to a decisive life-changing event. It is usually used in the negative e.g. Your exams are important but are not the be-all-and-all.

What is an eysore? And a sight for sore eyes?

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English can be a very confusing language. An eyesore is something - typically a building - which is not pleasing to look at. This building is an example:  Eyesore: this building site may turn into a swan one day! A sight for sore eyes is the opposite - something is which aesthetically pleasing to the eye. This is often used as form of flattery e.g. you're a sight for sore eyes What is the origin of eyesore? Shakespeare did not coin the phrase - though he is responsible for eyeball.   He did, however, provide an early example in The Taming of the Shrew, albeit one that is more metaphorical than is typical in modern English:  Why, sir, you know this is your wedding-day: First were we sad, fearing you would not come; Now sadder, that you come so unprovided. Fie, doff this habit, shame to your estate, An eye-sore to our solemn festival! And sight for sore eyes? First recorded example comes in another giant of literature: Jonathan Swift   in A complete collection of gen

Who was Shashibiya? When did he first arrive in China?

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We can be pretty certain that Shashibiya never visited China. His work, however, has long been venerated by Chinese intellectuals. The first reference to him came in in a translation of Milner’s The History of England in 1857. Can you guess who I am talking about? See here

In which play does 'a ghost and a prince meet. And everyone ends in mincemeat'?

Hamlet. At least according to the wonderful Howard Dietz lyric for 'That's Entertainment' in the Hollywood musical 'The Band Wagon' (1952).