|
|
Definition of Cock-and-bull story
1. Noun. An interesting but highly implausible story; often told as an excuse.
Generic synonyms: Fib, Story, Tale, Taradiddle, Tarradiddle
Definition of Cock-and-bull story
1. Noun. (idiomatic) A far-fetched and fanciful story or tale of highly dubious validity ¹
¹ Source: wiktionary.com
Lexicographical Neighbors of Cock-and-bull Story
Literary usage of Cock-and-bull story
Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:
1. The Crime Against Kansas: The Apologies for the Crime. The True Remedy by Charles Sumner (1856)
"The whole tale, with the mode of obtaining the copy of the constitution, is at
once a cock-and-bull story and a mare's nest ; trivial as the former, ..."
2. Slang and Its Analogues Past and Present: A Dictionary, Historical and by John Stephen Farmer, William Ernest Henley (1891)
"That sounds like a cock-and-bull story, said the young fellow whom they call John.
... Giving ear to a COCK- AND-BULL STORY that can't be true ! ..."
3. An American Glossary by Richard Hopwood Thornton (1912)
"1830 A terrible cock and bull story about their ship having been p. 195. 1836 Ho
told a cock and bull story about his having come from taken by a pirate. ..."
4. Notes and Queries by Martim de Albuquerque (1857)
"Cock-and-Bull Story (lit S. ix. 209.) — As the origin of this expression appears
to be left an open ... This comes very near to a “cock-and-bull story. ..."
5. Dictionary of Idiomatic English Phrases by James Main Dixon (1891)
"A cock-and-bull story—an absurd tale. P. Mrs. Hookham plainly declared that ...
I did hear some cock-and-bull story the other day about the horses not ..."
Other Resources:
