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  1. What sparked the figurative usage of “short fuse” in the 1960s?

    May 30, 2022 · The phrase have a short fuse became popular in the mid-twentieth century. and also Dictionary.com states that the expression short fuse was First recorded in 1965–70 …

  2. word for sleep-deprived frustration - English Language & Usage …

    I'm keenly aware of the feeling - the anger or shortened fuse that comes with lack of sleep. I can't figure out a word for expressing it though... Any suggestions?

  3. pejorative language - Word for someone who gets angry the …

    Jun 13, 2014 · Known to have a short fuse? Then, you could be described as choleric. Don't worry; it's not a disease related to cholera. Choleric just means you're testy and irritable. VC …

  4. Where should the apostrophe go on a possessive abbreviation?

    Jun 13, 2016 · When expanding an abbreviation in parentheses, sometimes the thing that was abbreviate was used in a possessive context. Consider the following example: If the Giant …

  5. possessives - Is it correct to use an apostrophe to indicate …

    Nov 12, 2014 · The first meaning is short for "consisting of", while the second is more like "pertaining to" or "associated with". In this sense 's is more precise and to be preferred, as it …

  6. etymology - Why "hoist" in "Hoist with one's own petard"?

    Sep 5, 2013 · By hanging up the petard (basically explosive in a jar with a short fuse) on the door (on a nail you drove in yourself, if necessary), lighting the fuse, and getting the hell out of there.

  7. What do you call a connecting room that's too short to be a …

    Oct 18, 2020 · To go through what it could be and eliminate what it can't be, there are a number of related words each with different nuances. You are looking for a single word for a small room …

  8. Why is "i" before a -tion suffix pronounced like a short vowel even ...

    Dec 12, 2022 · Another example of how the letter U is special is that it is regularly pronounced long before a single consonant letter + vowel letter even when followed by two or more …

  9. Where does the expression "a wide berth" come from

    So it makes sense, then, that we urge people to give a wide berth, metaphorically, to other people that are unwieldy, out of control, generally uncontrollable, potentially dangerous, have a 'short …

  10. How is it we can omit 'what' from 'What the f--k are you doing?' …

    Nov 29, 2016 · Cf The fuck are you talking about? in The Fuse, #8: and Hell/Fuck are you doing? 2 But I as a native speaker I judge that removing How the and who the from the corresponding …