OED

Posted by R. Berg on September 05, 2001

In Reply to: OED posted by ESC on September 05, 2001

: : : : : : G'day from Aussie,

: : : : : : we don't have any strange phrases down under, but what about this bonza old pommy one

: : : : : : anyone got any ideas?
: : : : : : Cheers, Pete

: : : : : It sounds from this definition that it is a rhyming variation on "not on your life."

: : : : : NOT ON YOUR NELLIE! (OR NELLY) - " 'Not on your life!' An intensive tag, dating since the late 1930s. Used by, e.g., Frank Norman in his very readable 'Bang to Rights,' 1958. Short for 'not on your Nellie Duff!'; and 'Nellie Duff' rhymes on 'puff,' breath, breath of life, life itself." From Dictionary of Catch Phrases: American and British, from the Sixteenth Century to the Present Day by Eric Partridge, updated and edited by Paul Beale, Scarborough House, Lanham, Md., 1992.

: : : : Isn't Partridge's book wonderful? But now that we both have it, how shall we avoid duplicating each other's labors?

: : : You can be the designated Partridge source.

: : Uh, maybe I spoke too soon. Anyone want to share OED duty? The tiny type in the Compact Edition is really hard to read.

: My OED is one of those book club jobs with tiny pages -- it comes with a magnifying glass -- and I have a hard time reading it. Maybe we could take up a collection and buy the OED on CDs. When all else fails, I do look-ups. But I prefer my nice big-type books.

That IS the Compact Edition. I cope by removing my reading glasses and reading myopia-style, without the magnifier. (All you young myopes out there: Don't have your condition fully corrected surgically. It'll be useful for near vision when you're older.)

Last time I looked at OED's site, the CD-OED for Mac was not available in the U.S. The CD-OED for PC is so expensive that a collection would have to be conducted with weapons.