| 释义 |
wild and woolly
wild and woolly1. Coarse, unrefined, or uncouth in appearance or behavior. I was a little nervous about bringing my wild and woolly cousins to the black-tie event in Manhattan, thinking their country ways might not mesh well with my metropolitan colleagues. We all looked a bit wild and woolly after coming back from our three-week camping expedition.2. Exciting, crazy, or out of hand. Things got pretty wild and woolly and Jenny's party last night.See also: and, wild, woollywild and woollyInf. exciting. Things get a little wild and woolly on a Friday evening at Wally's place. The ride home was a little wild and woolly.See also: and, wild, woollywild and woolly uncouth in appearance or behaviour. This phrase was originally applied to the American West. The adjective woolly probably refers to sheepskin clothing worn with the wool still attached to it, seen as characteristic clothing of the pioneers and cowboys who opened up the western US.See also: and, wild, woollywild and woolly mod. exciting; hairy. Things get a little wild and woolly on a Friday evening at Willy’s place. See also: and, wild, woollywild and woolly (West), theThe untamed, wide open western United States. The term dates from the late nineteenth century, popularized by a book title, Adair Welcker’s Tales of the “Wild and WoollyWest” (1891). A publisher’s note on the book said “wild and woolly” referred to the rough sheepskin coats worn by cowboys and farmers, but Franklin P. Adams said “wild, woolly and full of flies” was a cowboy’s expression for a genuine cowboy. Owen Wister’s The Virginian (1902) stated, “I’m wild, and woolly and full of fleas,” which was later picked up in the cowboy ditty, “Pecos Bill and the Wilful Coyote” (ca. 1932) by W. C. White: “Oh, I’m wild and woolly and full of fleas, Ain’t never been curried below the knees.” See also: and, wild, woolly |