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land-office business

 - 3 dictionary results

land-of⋅fice busi⋅ness

[land-aw-fis, -of-is]
–noun
a lively, booming, expanding, or very profitable business.

Origin:
1830–40, Americanism
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To land-office business
land-of·fice business   (lānd'ô'fĭs, -ŏf'ĭs)
n.  A thriving, extensive, or rapidly moving volume of trade.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Idioms & Phrases

land-office business

A thriving, expanding, or very profitable concern or volume of trade. For example, After the storm they did a land-office business in snow shovels and rock salt. This term, dating from the 1830s, alludes to the throng of applicants to government land offices through which Western lands were sold. It has been used for other booming business since the mid-1800s.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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