very like a whale

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English[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From an exchange between Hamlet and Polonius (discussing the shape of a cloud) in William Shakespeare's play Hamlet.

Adjective[edit]

very like a whale (not comparable)

  1. (slang, humorous) Highly improbable; not to be believed.
    • 1859, Chambers's Edinburgh Journal, page 541:
      'On your way to dine with Sir William Ayr, indeed! Very like a whale that, captain, but not quite so large, you understand!' the sergeant said jeeringly.

References[edit]

  • John Camden Hotten (1873) The Slang Dictionary
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