Sideburns or Burnsides?

The name sideburns comes from Ambrose Burnside, a Union general in the Civil War. He sported some truly epic facial hair. 

It was such a distinctive look that people began referring to the style as "burnsides," which eventually slid around to become "sideburns".

Boycott

We all know that a boycott is "an act of voluntarily abstaining from using, buying, or dealing with a person, organization, or country as an expression of protest"  (Wikipedia)


But the word "boycott" is quite recent and entered the English language during the Irish "Land War". It comes from the name of Charles Boycott, the land agent of an absentee landlord. He was subject to social ostracism organized by the Irish Land League in 1880 after he tried to evict eleven tenants from the land. Despite the difficult economical situation, all other tenants and employees refused to perform further work for him.

You little devil .... 's advocate!

Although "playing devil’s advocate" now means to take a position just for the sake of argument, it has its origins in the Roman Catholic Church. 

When considering someone for sainthood, the Promoter of the Faith, aka the Devil’s Advocate, would take the opposing view and try to poke holes in the case supporting that particular canonization.

Poor king...

"Checkmate" is more literal than you think: The chess term is an alteration of "shah mat," a Persian phrase that meant "the king is ambushed."

Lost in poetry...

Just be warned, before you start writing a poem: no word in the English language rhymes with:  month, orange, silver or purple.

Goodbye... but is it?

The word ” GoodBye” comes from the word ” GodBye” used in Old English which used to mean:  “God be with you”.

From game to job: knuckle down!

The expression "to knuckle down", meaning to apply oneself earnestly or vigorously originated from playing marbles: players used to put their knuckles to the ground for their best shots

Jukebox

The jukebox is a great invention and it's name remains the same in many languages. But what does "juke" mean? 

Juke is an old english word that means "Dancing".so next time you hear one, don't just listen but stand up and get some exercise, after all this is what it was meant for!

Can women testify?

If we would go by the origin of the word "testify", women could not do it. The word was based on men in the Roman court swearing to a statement made by swearing on their testicles. 

Why is jeans textile called denim?

The cotton textile used to make jeans is called denim because originally it was imported "from Nimes" (de Nimes) a small town in south of France

The word "Jean" was refering to a different, lighter cotton textile. It comes from the french name for the town Genoa in Italy: Gênes, where the first denim trousers were made.

Why trousers and not trouser?

This piece of clothing was made of two parts, one for each leg. The pieces were put on each leg separately and then wrapped and tied or belted at the waist. 

Think about garters or tights for men!

The Romans encountered this style of clothing among the Galli and they called them Braccae. Roman who typically wore tunics found them first quite effeminate even though this was a typical man attire.