TAKE POWDER
dər verb (used without object)
1.
British Dialect. to rush.
noun
Idioms 2.
British Dialect. a sudden, frantic, or impulsive rush.
3.
take a powder, Slang. to leave in a hurry; depart without taking leave, as to avoid something unpleasant: He took a powder and left his mother to worry about his gambling debts. Also, take a runout powder.
Origin:
1625–35; origin uncertain
1625–35; origin uncertain
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To take powder
Collins
World English Dictionary
powder (ˈpaʊdə) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n | |
| 1. | a solid substance in the form of tiny loose particles |
| 2. | any of various preparations in this form, such as gunpowder, face powder, or soap powder |
| 3. | fresh loose snow, esp when considered as skiing terrain |
| 4. | slang (US), (Canadian) take a powder to run away or disappear |
| —vb | |
| 5. | to turn into powder; pulverize |
| 6. | (tr) to cover or sprinkle with or as if with powder |
| [C13: from Old French poldre, from Latin pulvis dust] | |
| 'powderer | |
| —n | |
| 'powdery | |
| —adj | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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00:10
Take powder
is always a great word to know.
So is callithumpian. Does it mean:
| a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes. |
| a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc. |
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
powder
late 13c., from O.Fr. poudre (13c.), earlier pouldre (11c.), from L. pulverem (nom. pulvis) "dust" (see pollen). In the sense "powdered cosmetic," it is recorded from 1570s. In figurative sense, powder keg is first attested 1855. Powder room, euphemistic for "women's lavatory,"
is attested from 1941. Powder puff first recorded 1704; as a symbol of femaleness or effeminacy, in use from at least 1930s. Phrase take a powder "scram, vanish," is from 1920, perhaps from the notion of taking a laxative medicine, so one has to leave in a hurry; or from a magician's magical powder, which made things disappear.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary
powder pow·der (pou'dər)
n.
A dry mass of pulverized or finely dispersed solid particles.
Any of various medicinal or cosmetic preparations in the form of powder.
A single dose of a powdered drug.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
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