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nigger in the woodpile

noun

Etymology

First attested in the 1840s.

Definitions

  1. A hidden motive, influence or factor

    A hidden motive, influence or factor; a concealed (potential) snag; something suspicious.

    • Democra s^([sic]) placed no nigger in the woodpile—the imputation came with a bad grace from the gentleman from Kosciusko.
    • (Bus traffic in the London area fell 33 per cent, although the total for public transport increased by 8 per cent; but private car journeys, the nigger in the public transport woodpile, went up 78 per cent in the decade).

The neighborhood

Vish — recursive loop

No curated loop yet for nigger in the woodpile. 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