big dog n. a large bill for services rendered. Editorial Note: Pure speculation, but consider big dog ‘big-bug, big shot’ (HDAS [1833], 1843), as well as dog ‘a bond or promissory note’ (HDAS 1833) and ‘a gambling marker’ (HDAS 1967). (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
We use the term Milky Way for that glowing arc across the sky. But how people picture it varies from culture to culture. In Sweden, that starry band goes by a name that means “Winter Street,” and in Hawaii, a term for the Milky Way...
The words tough, through, and dough all end in O-U-G-H. So why don’t they rhyme? A lively new book addresses the many quirks of English by explaining the history of words and phrases. And: have you ever been in a situation where a group makes...