bee's knees

English

Etymology

Unknown. One of many such informal phrases coined in the early 20th century for no apparent reason, of which only a few have endured. One possible origin is from the British expression "B's and E's" meaning "be all and end all".

Noun

the bee's knees

1. (idiomatic, dated) Something excellent, outstanding.

   We had strawberry shortcake for breakfast on Saturday and the kids thought it was the bee’s knees.

Synonyms

• cat’s meow
• cat’s pajamas, cat’s pyjamas
• cat’s whiskers
• dog's bollocks
• (vulgar) the shit
• (vulgar) the tits

Translations

• Dutch: jé van hét, nowadays as obsolete as the bee’s knees itself
• French: c'est le must (colloquial), le nec plus ultra (standard)
• Spanish: la mamá de Tarzán (referring to people, Hispano America), lo más, la hostia (colloquial, Spain), la leche (colloquial, Spain), la polla (vulgar, Spain), la repera (colloquial, Spain), la neta (colloquial, Mexico)

References

• Mark Israel, alt.usage.english FAQ
• Kevin Cook, Dubbel Dutch, Kemper Conseil Publishing, 2001, p. 222
• "Bee's knees" in Michael Quinion, Ballyhoo, Buckaroo, and Spuds, 2004.

http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/the-bees-knees.html