Description

This article is from the alt.usage.english FAQ, by Mark Israel misrael@scripps.edu with numerous contributions by others.

159 "more honoured in the breach than the observance" (Phrase origins - alt.usage.english)

From "Hamlet", Act 1, Scene 4. Shakespeare meant "BETTER broken
than observed", not "more often broken than observed".

Continue to:

• prev: 158 "mind your p's and q's" (Phrase origins - alt.usage.english)
• Index
• next: 160 "more than you can shake a stick at" (Phrase origins - alt.usage.english)