curiouser and curiouser
English
WOTD – 2 November 2022
Etymology
From Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (1865) by the English author Lewis Carroll (1832–1898): see the quotation.
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˌkjʊəɹɪəsə n̩ ˈkjʊəɹɪəsə/, /ˈkjɔː-/
- (General American) IPA(key): /ˌkjʊɹiəsɚ n̩ ˈkjʊɹiəsɚ/
- Hyphenation: cu‧ri‧ous‧er and cu‧ri‧ous‧er
Phrase
- (idiomatic) Used to describe or react to an increasingly mysterious or peculiar situation.
- 1865 November (indicated as 1866), Lewis Carroll [pseudonym; Charles Lutwidge Dodgson], “The Pool of Tears”, in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, London: Macmillan and Co., →OCLC, page 15:
- "Curiouser and curiouser!" cried Alice (she was so much surprised that for the moment she quite forgot how to speak good English). "Now I'm opening out like the largest telescope that ever was! Good-bye, feet!"
- 2015 March 20, Robert Mackey, “Greco-German ‘Fingergate’ gets curiouser and curiouser”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 18 January 2022:
- Greco-German ‘Fingergate’ Gets Curiouser and Curiouser [title]
Translations
used to describe or react to an increasingly mysterious or peculiar situation
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See also
Further reading
- “curiouser and curiouser” under “curious, adj. and adv.”, in OED Online
, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, March 2022.
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