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Darby and Joan

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noun
  1. a happily married elderly couple who lead a placid, uneventful life.
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Origin of Darby and Joan

named after a couple mentioned in an 18th-century song
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for darby and joan

Historical Examples

  • It could not begin at once then, that Darby-and-Joan pairing-off that so suitable match which little Olwen had planned.

    The Disturbing Charm

    Berta Ruck

British Dictionary definitions for darby and joan

Darby and Joan

noun
  1. an ideal elderly married couple living in domestic harmony
  2. Darby and Joan Club a club for elderly people
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Word Origin

C18: a couple in an 18th-century English ballad
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for darby and joan

Darby and Joan

1735, characteristic name of an old, happily married couple.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper