Thursday, December 29, 2011

Dead give-away

Why a dead give-away?

The Oxford English Dictionary explains. A give-away is “an inadvertent betrayal or revelation of oneself, of plans, the truth, etc.” Among the meanings of dead: “absolute, complete, entire, thorough, downright.” A dead give-away is “a complete betrayal; also, a person or thing that causes such a betrayal or revelation.” One more nagging question answered. Thanks, OED.

comments: 2

Seth Glickman said...

Also "dead simple"

Michael Leddy said...

Yes, and dead center.