pepper bush
n.— «Mr. Taylor was believed to have had deepened economic relations with the company and publicly referred to it as his “pepper bush,” a Liberian term for something so dear to oneself.» —“Taylor’s ‘Buddy’ Arrested in Holland Faces War Crimes Charges” by Moses M. Zangar, Jr. The News (Monrovia, Liberia) Mar. 21, 2005. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, a word-pecker is “a person who trifles or plays with, or quibbles over, words.” This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Word-Peckers” I always love it when I’m looking through...
How do dictionaries define colors? And why are some of those definitions so confusing, like “stronger than carmine” and “bluer than fiesta”? Dictionary editor Kory Stamper explains it all in her new book. Plus, the story behind the expression more...