place. The original D-day was June 6, 1944, when the Allies launched the invasion of Eu rope by land- ing troops on the Normandy beaches. The culmi- nation of months of preparation, D-day is
remembered as one of the most decisive dates in world history. In fact, D-day was initially set for June 5, but had to be postponed for 24 hours due to adverse weather conditions. The D in D-day was an abbreviation of “Day.” Next Monday is D-Day
for Wall Street. See also longest day.
dead . . . and never called me mother! An expres- sion of mock dismay, as typifi ed by melodramatic 19th- century drama and fi ction. Though associ- ated particularly with the hugely pop u lar senti- mental novel east lynne (1861) by Mrs. Henry Wood, the line does not actually appear in the original book, but was added in a successful 1874 stage adaptation of the novel. The line occurs in a scene during which a mother grieves over her young son, who has died unaware of his mother’s true identity. It was one of those “dead . . . and never
called me mother!” per for mances that would never con- vince any modern audience.
dead bury their dead, let the See let the dead
bury the dead.
dead- end kids Youths who seem doomed to a
disappointing future by virtue of their unpromis- ing, impoverished backgrounds. The allusion is to a group of U.S. child actors called the Dead End Kids, who appeared in the role of street hooligans in a series of fi lms during the 1930s, among them
Angels with Dirty Faces (1938). He was a dead- end kid
in his youth but grew up to become one of the most infl u- ential men in the city.
dead lion See living dog is better than a dead lion, a.
dead man’s hand A stroke of bad luck, or an unlucky omen. The allusion is to the hand of cards
that Sheriff Wild Bill Hickok was holding when he was shot in the back in a Deadwood saloon on August 2, 1876 (supposedly black aces and black eights or, according to another tradition, two jacks and two eights). Ever since then a similar combi- nation of cards has been called a “dead man’s hand.”
He froze when he saw that he had been dealt the fabled dead man’s hand.
dead man walking A person who is considered as
good as dead. The phrase, which became more widely known through the 1995 fi lm Dead Man
Walking, was traditionally called out by prison guards escorting condemned prisoners from death row to the execution chamber in U.S. prisons. In modern usage, the phrase is sometimes applied to offi cials who are considered to be clinging to offi ce long after their resignation or dismissal has become inevitable. Since that defeat the leader of the party has
been a dead man walking.
dead parrot Something that is totally defunct.
The allusion is to the celebrated “dead parrot sketch” fi rst performed on British tele vi sion in the 1970s by the monty python comedy team, in which a disgruntled customer attempts to return a dead parrot to a pet store only to be met with the store own er’s blank refusal to admit that the bird is actually dead. This policy is a dead parrot as far as
the rest of the government is concerned. See also sick as a parrot.
Dead Sea fruit A bitter disappointment or disil-
lusion. The allusion is biblical in origin, referring to the fruit trees grown on the shores of the Dead Sea by the morally degenerate Sodomites. The fruit of these trees was said to be beautiful to look at but bitter to the taste and “within full of ashes,” in the words of the French traveler Jean de
Thevenot (1633–67). It is also known by the name
apples of Sodom. “Like to the apples on the Dead Sea shore, / It is all ashes to the taste” (Lord Byron,
Childe Harold, 1817).
Dean, James See james dean.
Dear John letter A letter from a lover ending a relationship. The phrase dates from World War II, when many men serving in the armed forces over- seas received such letters from their sweethearts at home after the latter tired of their long separa- tion. In modern usage, the term may also be applied to similar letters of rejection from other parties, such as employers. He had just received a
Dear John letter from head offi ce, informing him that his ser vices were no longer required.
death by a thousand cuts A painful and pro-
longed pro cess of destruction or humiliation. The allusion is to a traditional method of execution developed originally in ancient China, which involved the victim being slowly cut to pieces by “a thousand knives.” This gradual reduction of public
ser vices is simply death by a thousand cuts.
death is nothing at all Death is an insignifi cant event, which is not to be feared. The phrase is a quotation from a piece of writing by Henry Scott Holland (1847–1918), which is often recited at funerals: “Death is nothing at all. I have only slipped away into the next room. I am I and you are you. What ever we were to each other, that we are still. Call me by my old familiar name, speak to me in the easy way which you always used . . .” Scott Holland was a canon of St. Paul’s Cathedral in London and the author of various sermons and other writings. It has been suggested that he fi rst wrote these lines to be recited after his own death.
They keep telling me that death is nothing at all, but people still look both ways when they cross the road.
Death, where is thy sting? Death is nothing to
fear. The expression comes from 1 Corinthians 15:55, which questions the signifi cance of mortal death when compared with everlasting life in heaven: “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?” In modern usage, the phrase is best known for its inclusion in funeral ser vices.
He died with a smile on his face, as if to say, “Death, where is thy sting?”
death’s door, at At the point of death; very ill.
The phrase derives from Miles Coverdale’s trans- lation of Psalm 107:18, as found in the Book of
Common Prayer: “Their soul abhorred all manner of meat: and they were even hard at death’s door.” “He had had more than one attack of delirium tre- mens after his father’s death, and had almost been at death’s door” (Anthony Trollope, Doctor Thorne, 1858).
Deborah (debrb) A courageous woman, espe-
cially one noted for her virtue or devotion to God. The original Deborah was a biblical prophet and judge who urged Barak to lead an army against the invading Canaanites, spurring him on to victory at the Kishon River, a triumph she celebrated in a memorable victory ode dubbed the “Song of Deb- orah” (Judges 5:1–31). “Stay, stay thy hands! Thou art an Amazon / And fi ghtest with the sword of Deb- orah” (William Shakespeare, Henry VI, Part 1, 1589).
deep calleth unto deep A meta phor evoking a
profound spiritual or philosophical understanding between two individuals, parties, etc. The phrase comes from Psalm 42:7, which interprets water- falls or cataracts as representing the soul’s restless
yearning for God: “Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of thy waterspouts: all thy waves and thy bil- lows are gone over me.” There existed an immediate
bond of mutual understanding between the two great men, a vivid illustration of deep calleth unto deep.
Deep Throat A covert source of information,
usually otherwise unidentifi ed. The original Deep Throat was the person who leaked information about the watergate scandal to Washington Post journalists Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward in 1972–74. In 2005 he was revealed as being Mark Felt, deputy director of the FBI. The code name itself was an allusion to the 1972 sex fi lm Deep
Throat starring Linda Lovelace. What we need is a
Deep Throat on the inside of the or ga ni za tion to spill the beans. See also all the president’s men.
Defarge, Madame See madame defarge.
defenestration (deefenbstrayshbn) The act of
throwing someone or something out of a window. The word came to prominence through its associa- tion with an incident involving a breakdown in relations between Roman Catholic and Protestant members of the Bohemian National Council sit- ting in the castle at Prague in 1618 prior to the start of the Thirty Years’ War. Two of the Catholics present were thrown out of the window by their Protestant opponents, fortunately escaping seri- ous injury by landing in the moat. The incident has since become known as the Defenestration of Prague. In modern usage the term has been used fi guratively of the dismissal of a person from high offi ce. The se nior management has been much reduced
as a result of recent defenestrations.
Deimos (daymbs) A personifi cation of fear. In Greek mythology, Deimos was identifi ed as the
god of fear, son of Ares and Aphrodite. The spirit of
Deimos had possessed them and they charged as one for the exit.
Deirdre (deerdrb, deerdree) The archetype of a
woman whose beauty causes only tragedy. Accord- ing to Irish legend, Deirdre was the daughter of a storyteller whose beauty, it was predicted, would bring about the ruin of Ulster. King Conchobar’s plans to marry her were disrupted when she eloped with Naoise, one of the three sons of Usnech, and fl ed with him to Scotland. Conchobar lured them back with promises of forgiveness, but when they returned, he had the three brothers killed. Deirdre is variously said to have committed suicide or to have died of grief a year later. Her story was dramatized by both William Butler Yeats (Deirdre, 1907) and John Millington Synge (Deirdre
of the Sorrows, 1910). What with all her moaning and
grieving she’s a regular Deirdre and no mistake.
Delectable Mountains A place or situation that
offers a view of wonderful things almost within reach. The allusion is to John Bunyan’s great reli- gious allegory pilgrim’s progress (1678, 1684), in which Christian fi nally gets a view of the celes- tial city (heaven) from the peaks of the Delecta- ble Mountains. “We call this hill the Delectable Mountain, for we can look far away and see the country where we hope to live some time” (Louisa May Alcott, Little Women, 1868–69).
delenda est Carthago (delendb est kahrthahgo)
Any obstacle that stands in the way must be removed at all costs. This proverbial phrase is a quotation from Cato the Elder (234–149 b.c.), who took to ending every speech he made in the Roman senate with these words after visiting Carthage in 157 b.c. and realizing that it was becoming a
serious rival to Rome. The president will not be moved
on this issue. It’s a case of delenda est Carthago.
Delilah (dblilb) A seductive, treacherous woman;
a temptress. The biblical Delilah, whose name means “dainty one,” was a Philistine whore who at the command of the Philistine leaders used her seductives wiles to trick samson into revealing the secret of his great strength (his long hair) and then used this knowledge to bring about his ruin, hav- ing his hair cut short as he slept in her lap, as related at Judges 16:4–20. “What is the good of the love of woman when her name must needs be Delilah?” (H. G. Wells, The Invisible Man, 1897).
deliver us from evil A prayer for protection against harm. The expression comes from the Lord’s Prayer: “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil” (Matthew 6:13). In mod- ern usage it is sometimes quoted ironically in the form of a plea for relief from some minor irrita- tion. “‘Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. But what is temptation? What is evil?’” (Anthony Trollope, Barchester Towers, 1857).
Delphic (delfi k) Obscure in meaning; enigmatic;
ambiguous. The Delphic oracle was a shrine situ- ated at Delphi on the slopes of Mount Parnassus, thought by ancient Greeks to be the center of the world. Here a priestess known as the Pythia, seated upon a tripod, communicated messages from the god Apollo on a wide range of topics, from domestic matters to international affairs, often at the request of rulers or other powerful po liti cal fi gures. Many of these pieces of advice were obscure in meaning and open to a variety of interpretations, hence the use of the term Delphic to describe anything that sounds important but is in fact unclear in meaning. At one point in the fi fth
century b.c. the pronouncements of the oracle at Delphi became noticeably more specifi c, recom- mending that the Greeks give up their hopeless re sis tance against the Persians. When the Persians were subsequently defeated, the oracle was heav- ily criticized, and future pronouncements were wisely delivered with more of their former ambi- guity. The temple at Delphi was fi nally closed down in a.d. 390 on the command of the emperor Theodosius. “. . . it was his wont to relapse into grim silence when interrogated in sceptical sort as to any of his sententious oracles, not always very clear ones, rather partaking of that obscurity which invests most Delphic deliverances from any quarter” (Herman Melville, Billy Budd, 1924).
Demeter (dbmeeter) A personifi cation of fertil-
ity. In Greek mythology, Demeter was a corn god- dess equivalent to the Roman Ceres. She was the goddess of fruit, crops, and vegetation and the mother of Persephone. When Persephone was car- ried off to the underworld by hades, Demeter threatened that the earth would remain barren until Persephone was returned to her. It was even- tually agreed that Persephone would spend nine months of the year with her mother, when crops would grow and plants would bear fruit, and three months with Hades, when the earth would remain barren. There was real warmth in the spring sunshine,
suggesting that Demeter had at long last been released from the underworld and returned to the light.
DeMille, Cecil B. See cecil b. demille.
Demon Barber of Fleet Street See sweeney
todd.
Demosthenic (demosthenik) Eloquent; persua- sive; possessing or showing great powers of
oratory or eloquence. The Athenian statesman Demosthenes (384–322 b.c.) was greatly admired as an orator, although as a youth he struggled with a weak voice and stammer. He improved his speak- ing technique by such devices as learning to talk clearly with his mouth stuffed with pebbles and competing in volume with the sound of the waves crashing on the shore. Ultimately, his skill as an orator proved his undoing after his criticisms of Philip of Macedonia incurred the latter’s wrath and he was obliged to kill himself by taking poison when the Macedonians invaded. “Those are dis- tinctions which we hardly understand on this thick- headed side of the water. But demagogues, demo crats, demonstrations, and Demosthenic oratory are all equally odious to John Eustace” (Anthony Trollope, The Eustace Diamonds, 1873).
See also philippic.
denarius (denahreebs) Ready money; cash. The denarius was the basic silver coin in ancient Rome.
I bet that car cost a pretty denarius.
Denmark, something is rotten in the state of See something is rotten in the state of den- mark.
Dennis the Menace An unruly young boy. Den- nis the Menace made his fi rst appearance in the British children’s comic book The Beano in 1951 and soon became a fi rm favorite. That same year he also made his debut in U.S. comic strips, although depicted as blond and much younger than the British prototype, who was distinguished by his mop of thick black hair. Her boy is a real Den-
nis the Menace, and destroys just about everything he lays his hands on.
den of lions See daniel in the lions’ den.
den of thieves A place where thieves or other
dishonest characters are likely to be found. Accord- ing to Matthew 21:13 Christ entered the Temple only to fi nd that it had been taken over as a place of business by money changers, causing him to lament, “It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.” Christ then overturned their tables and threw the money changers out of the Temple. In modern usage the phrase is often applied to any fi nancial institution or business suspected of using unscrupulous methods. “The ordinary of Newgate preached to women who were to swing at Tyburn for a petty theft as if they were worse than other people,—just as though he would not have been a pickpocket or shoplifter, himself, if he had been born in a den of thieves and bred up to steal or starve!” (Oliver Wendell Holmes, Elsie Venner, 1861). See also cast money changers out of the temple.
Denver boot A wheel clamp. Comprising a metal
clamp that fi ts around the tire of a car, the device is commonly employed to immobilize vehicles that have been illegally parked until their own ers have paid an appropriate fi ne. The name alludes to the introduction of the fi rst such clamps in Denver, Colorado, in 1949. His new car, which attracted atten-
tion with its whitewall tires and red paint job, fell victim to the Denver boot far more frequently than any of his previous cars.
depart in peace See nunc dimittis.
Desdemona (dezdbmonb) Archetype of an inno-
cent female victim of intrigue and deceit. Desde- mona is the hapless wife of othello in William Shakespeare’s tragedy Othello (c. 1603). Thanks to the evil machinations of the treacherous Iago,
Othello wrongly comes to believe that Desde- mona has been unfaithful to him and murders her. Her name is based on the Greek dusdaimon, mean- ing “ill- fated.” She played Desdemona in this unhappy
sequence of events that resulted in all involved being exposed to public humiliation in the press.
Desert Rats A military force that specializes in
operations in desert areas. The allusion is ulti- mately to the British Seventh Armoured Division, which distinguished itself in action against the German Afrika Korps in Libya during World War II. Members of the division wore a badge depict- ing a desert rat (jerboa). The nickname was subse- quently applied to the Seventh Armoured Brigade, which went on to see action in Bosnia and Iraq. A
new generation of Desert Rats are adding fresh honors to the regimental rec ords.
desert shall blossom, the The land will be
returned to its rightful own ers one day. The phrase comes from Isaiah 35:1–2, which consists of the prophecy that the Israelites shall one day reclaim their homeland in Zion: “The desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abun- dantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing.” This was originally a promise that the Babylonian exiles would return to their homeland in Palestine, but in modern times the prophecy has been quoted