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holus-bolus

[ hoh-luhs-boh-luhs ]
/ ˈhoʊ ləsˈboʊ ləs /

adverb

all at once; altogether.

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Origin of holus-bolus

First recorded in 1840–50; mock-Latin rhyming compound based on the phrase whole bolus, or possibly a Latinization of Greek hólos bôlos “whole lump, clod of earth, nugget”; see origin at whole, bolus

Words nearby holus-bolus

holster, Holston, holt, Holter monitor, Holthouse's hernia, holus-bolus, holy, Holy Alliance, Holy Bible, holy bread, holy cats
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for holus-bolus

  • Holus-bolus, 'sicut examen apum,' ye decamp at the word of a single foe!

    The Day of Wrath|Maurus Jkai

  • There was a first-class carr'ge door opin right forninst me, an' into that the gyard crams me holus-bolus.

    Martin Hewitt, Investigator|Arthur Morrison

  • They had just killed the animal, and were roasting it whole, holus-bolus, unskinned and undressed.

    Spinifex and Sand|David W Carnegie

British Dictionary definitions for holus-bolus

holus-bolus
/ (ˈhəʊləsˈbəʊləs) /

adverb

informal all at once

Word Origin for holus-bolus

C19: pseudo-Latin based on whole bolus; see bolus
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