lord

noun An anticlimactic or disappointing end following an otherwise exciting, impressive, or entertaining display. It is used as a distinct phrase, separate from the grammar and syntax of the sentence, and taken from the full proverbial phrase "After the Lord Mayor's show comes the dust-cart" (referring to the street cleaners who follow the annual procession of the Lord Mayor of London to clean up the pageant horses' dung). Primarily heard in UK. We were expecting a great match after our brilliant win last week, but our team played so poorly that it was a bit of an after the Lord Mayor's show.

rural If all goes as it should; if everything goes well. We've had a lot of delays, but Lord willing and the creek don't rise, we should have the house finished before winter. A: "Do you reckon we'll have enough from this harvest to make ends meet?" B: "The good Lord willing and the creek don't rise."

Beelzebub (who, depending on the usage, can be either Satan or a less-specific demon). Beelzebub's Hebrew name literally means "lord of the flies." You can't tempt me, lord of the flies!

Keep going, despite trouble or stress. The phrase is widely believed to have been said by a Navy chaplain during the attack on Pearl Harbor; it later became the title of a popular patriotic song. Until help comes, there's nothing we can do but keep trying to plug the holes in the roof. Praise the Lord, and pass the ammunition!

You should not rely solely on prayer to attain the things you want; hard work and effort will be rewarded. You can't just sit around, waiting for the phone to ring, you have to keep auditioning—the Lord helps those who help themselves.

A phrase said when things have not happened as one had hoped or expected. It implies that everything happens for a reason. I know you were really excited about that job, but maybe it's for the best that you didn't get it—the Lord works in mysterious ways, after all. I thought that getting divorced would be the worst experience of my life, but then I fell in love with my divorce lawyer. The Lord works in mysterious ways!

Very intoxicated. Do you remember last night at all? You were as drunk as a lord!

very drunk. (*Also: as ~.) After his fifth cocktail, Michael was as drunk as a lord. Judy bought herself a case of beer and proceeded to get as drunk as a skunk.

Prov. People are attracted to the wealthy and powerful. Although the prince was vulgar and unpleasant, he always received plenty of invitations to social gatherings; everybody loves a lord.

Rur. If all goes well. Tom: Will you be able to get the house painted before the cold weather sets in? Jane: Yes, God willing and the creek don't rise. We'll be able to visit our daughter for Christmas, Lord willing and the creek don't rise.

Fig. to dominate someone; to direct and control someone. Mr. Smith seems to lord it over his wife. The boss lords it over everyone in the office.

Fig. I certainly have tried very hard. Alice: Why don't you get Bill to fix this fence? Mary: Lord knows I've tried. I must have asked him a dozen times—this year alone. Sue: I can't seem to get to class on time. Rachel: That's just awful. Sue: Lord knows I've tried. I just can't do it.

Fig. My goodness! (An exclamation of surprise.) Lord love a duck! How that rain is coming down! Lord love a duck! Did you see that cat chasing that dog?

no one but God knows. The Lord only knows if John's marriage will be a happy one. How Mary can stay so cheerful through her terrible illness, the Lord only knows.

to behave as if you are better than someone else Unfortunately, some senior faculty have a habit of lording it over younger professors.

very drunk He rolled out of the club into a taxi, drunk as a lord. We'd get drunk as a skunk at lunch and sleep all afternoon.

to behave as if you are better than someone else and have the right to tell them what to do She likes to lord it over the more junior staff in the office.

someone who you must obey because they have power over you I have to go and cook supper for my lord and master.

Also, drunk as a fiddler or skunk ; falling-down or roaring drunk . Extremely intoxicated, as in He came home drunk as a lord. The three similes have survived numerous others. The first was considered proverbial by the mid-1600s and presumably alludes to the fact that noblemen drank more than commoners (because they could afford to). The fiddler alludes to the practice of plying musicians with alcohol (sometimes instead of pay), whereas skunk, dating from the early 1900s, was undoubtedly chosen for the rhyme. The most graphic variant alludes to someone too drunk to keep his or her balance, as in He couldn't make it up the stairs; be was falling-down drunk. And roaring drunk, alluding to being extremely noisy as well as intoxicated, was first recorded in 1697. Also see dead drunk.

Domineer over, act arrogantly toward, as in After Mary was elected president, she tried to lord it over the other girls. [Late 1500s] Also see queen it.

To act in a domineering or superior manner toward: "She's lorded it over me all our adult lives because she went to college" (Jane Stevenson).

Extremely drunk. Members of the nobility could afford to keep quantities of wine, beer, and liquor on hand, and as much out of envy as stating a fact, the common folk described anyone, titled or not, who had a load on by that phrase. In these more egalitarian times, “drunk as a skunk” and, less elegantly, “shit-faced drunk” have replaced “drunk as a lord.”

An effete and spoiled goody-two-shoes young man. The youngster was the title character of the 19th-century novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett. He lived in New York City with his mother, the daughter of a British lord who had eloped to the States against the wishes of her father. Summoned to England, the lad wins over his grandfather's cold heart through his innate goodness and good sense and becomes heir to the title. Although the title character was not at all spoiled or sissified, his hairstyle and clothing certainly gave that impression. That's why generations of privileged actual or supposed effete spoiled brats were taunted by sneers of “Look—here comes Little Lord Fauntleroy!”

Someone who does a multitude of jobs. Ko-Ko, a character in Gilbert and Sullivan's comic opera The Mikado, held the position of Lord High Executioner. The only other town official was Pooh-Bah, who went by the title Lord High Everything Else. Accordingly, if you're saddled with many jobs at your place of business, with or without accompanying titles, you may call yourself or be called “Lord High Everything Else.” But no matter what you are called, your boss is still the grand Pooh-Bah.