Idioms

DR

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Do you know Dr. Wright of Norwich?

A sarcastic comment made at a dinner party to urge a guest to keep passing the wine. Allegedly, the real Dr. Wright of Norwich was prone to monopolizing the wine because he was such a conversationalist. Primarily heard in UK. Hey Michael, do you know Dr. Wright of Norwich? Let's keep the wine moving, shall we? A: "So, as I was saying, Mr. Fiddlewich continued his parlay, quite unaware of—" B: "Excuse me, Barnaby? Do you know the Bishop of Norwich?" A: "No, I'm afraid I don't." B: "He's an awfully nice fellow, but he never passes the wine." A: "Ah, I see. Here you are, terribly sorry." Do you fellows at that end of the table know Dr. Wright of Norwich? Because the rest of us down here are getting a bit parched.
See also: know, of

Doctor Livingstone, I presume?

A humorous greeting. The phrase refers to Scottish explorer David Livingstone, who was presumed lost in Africa in the mid-19th century. When reporter H.M. Stanley finally located him, he supposedly greeted Livingstone with this now-famous phrase. You must be the gentleman I'm looking for—Doctor Livingstone, I presume? A: "Aha, Doctor Livingstone, I presume? You're a hard man to track down, I must say." B: "Well, I do like to keep my distance from reporters such as yourself." Doctor Livingstone, I presume? Might I come in and ask you a few questions?
See also: doctor

doctor's orders

Instructions given by one's doctor. Acting upon my doctor's orders, I cleared my schedule and spent the week recuperating at home. Samantha, you need to stay off your foot and use your crutches—doctor's orders, remember? You have an upper respiratory infection, so you need to go home and rest. Doctor's orders!
See also: order

TL;DR

An initialism of "too long; didn't read," used in online communications to indicate that one did not read an online article, post, comment, etc., because it was deemed too long or boring. Sometimes used as a modifier to describe such pieces of writing. Sometimes written "TLDR"; often spelled in lowercase letters. I really want to write "TL;DR" on all these novella-length rants my friend keeps posting on Spacebook. OK, I know that was a huge explanation. The tldr version is that I got burnt out, and I need to take some time away from making ViewTube videos.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

Doctor Livingstone, I presume?

Jocular You are who I think you are, are you not? Oh, there you are. Doctor Livingstone, I presume?
See also: doctor

doctor's orders something

that one is strongly advised to do as ordered or as if ordered by a doctor. I have to spend a month in Arizona. Doctor's orders. I'm doing this on doctor's orders, but I don't like it.
See also: order
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Doctor Livingstone, I presume?

A 19th-century explorer named Dr. David Livingstone became something of a national hero through his articles and lectures about his adventures in Africa. In 1864, Livingstone led an expedition to discover the source of the Nile. When little to nothing was heard from or about Livingstone after many years, Europeans and Americans became concerned. In 1871, the publisher of the New York Herald hired Henry Stanley, a newspaper reporter, to find Livingstone. Heading a group of some two hundred men, Stanley headed into the African interior. After nearly eight months he found Livingstone in a small village on the shore of Lake Tanganyika. As Stanley described the encounter, “As I advanced slowly toward him I noticed he was pale, looked wearied . . . I would have embraced him, only, he being an Englishman, I did not know how he would receive me; so I . . . walked deliberately to him, took off my hat, and said, ‘Dr. Livingstone, I presume?' The phrase “‘Dr. Livingstone, I presume?” caught the public's fancy, and any number of would-be wits greeted friends with it until the phrase lost all traces of cleverness. But that never stopped people from continuing to use it long past the public's memory of who Livingstone or Stanley were.
See also: doctor
Endangered Phrases by Steven D. Price Copyright © 2011 by Steven D. Price
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