Definitions
Wiktionary
- n. An inexhaustible supply, oftentimes of something that appears meager.
Etymologies
- From the widow's cruse of oil that miraculously supplies Elijah during a famine (I Kings 17:8–16). (Wiktionary)
Examples
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Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘widow's cruse’.
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The Aubrey/Maturin List I'm Gonna Mak...
I'm wading through Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey/Maturin novels one by one, and someday, I'll wade through them again and list all the words I learned while reading them.
Edit: I started ma...studdingsail, carronade, mumchance, grumlin-futtocks, crosscat-harpings, holystone, sennit, orlop, orchitis, negus, kevel, altumal and 1112 more...
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X's Y, where X is not somebody's name
Somebody must already have a list like this. But I'm bored, so I'm going to start my own.
cat's pajamas, bee's knees, mare's nest, lion's share, snowball's chance..., widow's peak, busman's holiday, devil's advocate, greengrocer's apo..., baker's dozen, curate's egg, pope's nose and 224 more...
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Widow's walk
widow's peak, widow's weeds, black widow, merry widow, golf widow, grass widow, war widow, widowmaker, widow's mite, widow and orphan, widow-and-orphan ..., widow's chamber and 18 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for widow's cruse.
sionnach An inexhaustible supply of something: in allusion to the miracle of the cruse of oil in I Kings 17:10–16 and II Kings 4:1–7. Jul 18, 2008
chained_bear Usage:
"'You have all heard of the widow's cruse.' No single officer, seaman or Marine showed the least sign of having heard of the widow's cruse, nor any sign whatsoever of intelligence. 'Well,' continued Captain Aubrey, 'Diane shipped no widow's cruse. And by that I mean tomorrow is St. Famine's Day.' Comprehension, alarm, despondency, extreme displeasure showed in the faces of all the old man-of-war's men present; and the hum of whispered explanation kept Jack silent for a long moment. 'But it is not the worst St Famine I have ever known,' he went on. 'Although it is true that today's is the last issue of grog and the last cheese-paring scrap of tobacco, we still have a little biscuit and a cask of Dublin horse not very badly spoilt...'"
--Patrick O'Brian, The Nutmeg of Consolation, 53
A Sea of Words lists its meaning as:
"A supply that, although apparently meager, is or seems to be inexhaustible. It is an allusion to I Kings 17:12–16, in which a widow feeds the prophet Elijah for many days from only a small pot of oil and a handful of meal." (p. 472) Mar 6, 2008