Download or read book Allen's Dictionary of English Phrases written by R. E. Allen and published by Penguin Group. This book was released on 2006 with total page 840 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Allen's Dictionary of English Phrasesis the most comprehensive survey of this area of the English language ever undertaken. Taking over 6000 phrases, it explains their meaning, explores their development and gives citations that range from the Venerable Bede to Will Self. Crisply and wittily written, the book is packed with memorable and surprising detail, whether showing that 'salad days' comes from Antony and Cleopatra, that 'flavour of the month' originates in 1940s American ice cream marketing, or even that we've been 'calling a spade a spade' since the sixteenth century. Allen's Dictionary of English Phrasesis part of the Penguin Reference Library and draws on over 70 years of experience in bringing reliable, useful and clear information to millions of readers around the world - making knowledge everybody's property.