elbow-bender
Americannoun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of elbow-bender
First recorded in 1910–15; elbow ( def. ) + bender ( def. ), from the image of a person bending the elbow to pick up an alcoholic drink, usually in a bar
Example Sentences
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From Kerrigan's Kozy Korner to the Stork Club, barrooms have suffered from an influx of "kids and marginal drinkers," which one Manhattan elbow-bender has scornfully dubbed "The Television Set."
From Time Magazine Archive
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