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The meaning and origin of the expression: Hooray Henry

Hooray Henry

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What's the meaning of the phrase 'Hooray Henry'?

A loud-mouthed but ineffectual upper class fool.

What's the origin of the phrase 'Hooray Henry'?

This sounds very much like a phrase of British origin - possibly from the pen of P. G. Wodehouse. In fact it's an American phrase, coined by Damon Runyon. In a piece for a 1936 edition of Collier's Weekly, Runyon wrote:

"He is without doubt strictly a Hoorah Henry, and he is generally figured as nothing but a lob as far as ever doing anything useful in this world is concerned."

See also - Sloane Ranger.

See other phrases that were coined in the USA.

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By Gary Martin

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