英语词汇big cheese的起源、历史背景-英语词源词典

词汇	big cheese
词源	big cheese. A big cheese, for “a boss or important person,” is an Americanism dating back to about 1890. But it derives from the British expression the cheese, meaning “the thing or the correct thing, the best.” The British expression, in turn, is a cor- ruption of the Persian or Urdu chiz (or cheez), “thing,” that the British brought back from India in about 1840. A big cheese thus has nothing to do with cheese and should properly be “a big chiz.”
随便看	helpmeet hem and haw hemorrhoids hemp henchman henpecked henry henry higgins henry rifle he or she doesn’t miss much hepatica hepplewhite style herba sacra herb of grace herb robert herculean task hercules’ club herd-s grass here lies one whose name was writ in water here-s lookin’ at you kid here-s mud in your eye here-s to swimmin’ with bowlegged wimmin here today gone tomorrow hermannia hermaphrodite

英语词源词典收录了13259条英语词源词条，基本涵盖了全部常用英语词汇的起源、历史，是研究英语词汇或通过词源学英语的必备工具。