Brazil cost
n.— «Brazilian companies can be very productive….They all face, however, what is known as the “Brazil cost” to do business, which is paid when they have to ship products through bad highways in most of the country (the state of São Paulo is the exception in this case), an insufficient rail system, and outdated ports. That is one of the ways Brazilian companies and the country as a whole lose in the global competitiveness game.» —“Energy Tribune Speaks with Paulo Sotero” by Robert Bryce Energy Tribune (Houston, Texas) June 4, 2007. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
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...
In a nautical context, the word heave refers to the action of a ship rising or lifting with the waves. The past tense is hove, and if a boat hove into view, it slowly came into sight, as if gradually appearing on the horizon. This is part of a...