graveyard star
n.— «Graveyard star. Milk toast.» —“Lumber Industry Slang and Jargon” in Maine, Iowa, Mich., Wisc., Ore., Mont., Ark., Wy. Lexicon of Trade Jargon , 1938-39. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
A listener who grew up in Newfoundland remembers her grandfather declaring the fog was thick as burgoo. Turns out burgoo was sailors’ slang for a gray, gelatinous oatmeal—exactly the right image for an impenetrable Newfoundland fog. The word appears...
The word pobbies refers to a warm mixture of milk, bread, and sugar that British mothers traditionally gave children to fill them up or soothe them when they were unwell. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Have Some Pobbies for...