eff off loop
n.— «A recorded message announced “Thank you for calling the European Commission in London. For assistance, please press ‘1’ on your telephone keypad now.” This led to a new message: “Extension 1 is invalid. You may now enter another extension or press ‘zero’ for assistance.” Pressing zero led neatly back to where we started.…This device, increasingly popular with certain corporate bodies, is known in the vernacular as the “eff off loop.”» —“Getting through to the EU” by Christopher Brooker Telegraph (U.K.) Sept. 4, 2005. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
Cat hair may be something you brush off, but cat hair is also a slang term that means “money.” In the same way, cat beer isn’t alcoholic — some people use cat beer as a joking term for “milk.” And imagine walking on a...
One secret to writing well is … there is no secret! There’s no substitute for simply sitting down day after day to practice the craft and learn from your mistakes. Plus, childhood mixups around word definitions can lead to some funny stories...