Jewish lightning
nounEtymology
From the stereotype of Jews engaging in this practice.
Definitions
The supposed cause of a fire that is deliberately started to collect insurance money,…
The supposed cause of a fire that is deliberately started to collect insurance money, without leaving evidence of arson.
- I can refute any charges that it was a case of 'Jewish lightning', but I admit that the fire did happen at the most opportune moment!
- The torching of overinsured buildings was so common that arson became known as "Jewish lightning." Forty-four percent of the arson cases reported by the New York Times in the 1890s were linked to Jews.
The neighborhood
Vish — recursive loop
No curated loop yet for Jewish lightning. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.
sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA