A British soldier of the Second World War selects a jacket for his "demob suit". These suits are one of the possible origins of the phrase.
"The Full Monty" cafe in Middleton, Greater Manchester in May 2008, not long before it closed
"The full monty" (or "the full Monty") is a British slang phrase of uncertain origin. It means "everything which is necessary, appropriate or possible; 'the works'".[1] Similar North American phrases include "the whole kit and caboodle",[2] "the whole nine yards",[3] "the whole ball of wax", "the whole enchilada", "the whole shebang", or "[going] the whole hog".
The phrase was first identified in print by lexicographers of the Oxford English Dictionary in the 1980s. Anecdotal evidence exists for earlier usage;[2] the phrase was also used as the name for some fish and chip shops in Manchester during the same period.[3][4]
Hypothesised origins of the phrase include:
- Field Marshal Montgomery's preference for a large breakfast, even while on campaign.[2][3][5]
- A full three-piece suit with waistcoat and a spare pair of trousers from the Leeds-based British tailoring company Montague Burton.[2] When British forces were demobilised after the Second World War, they were issued with a "demob suit". The contract for supplying these suits was partly fulfilled by Montague Burton.[5]
- Gamblers' jargon, meaning the entire kitty or pot, deriving from the card game called monte.[5]
References
- ↑ "full monty, n. (and adj.)". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. 2001.
- 1 2 3 4 Dent, Susie (2009). What Made The Crocodile Cry?: 101 Questions about the English Language. Oxford University Press. pp. 151–152. ISBN 978-0-19-957415-5.
- 1 2 3 Gooden, Philip; Lewis, Peter (2012). Idiomantics: The Weird and Wonderful World of Popular Phrases. London: Bloomsbury Publishing. pp. 7–8. ISBN 978-1-4081-5743-5.
- ↑ Games, Alexander (2007). Balderdash & Piffle: One Sandwich Short of a Dog's Dinner. BBC Books. pp. 213–214. ISBN 978-1-84607-235-2.
- 1 2 3 Quinion, Michael (12 January 2002). "The Full Monty". Worldwidewords.org. Archived from the original on 4 February 2015.
Further reading
- "It's in the dictionary, d'oh!". BBC News. 14 June 2001.
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