DEFINITIONS
The
2019 WORD
OF THE YEAR is...

who's who

SEE SYNONYMS FOR who's who ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a reference work containing short biographical entries on the outstanding persons in a country, industry, profession, etc.: a who's who in automotive engineering.
the outstanding or influential persons in a community, industry, profession, or other group: The who's who of racing will be there.

Content related to who's who

Who Invented The Crossword?Arthur Wynne is usually credited with inventing the crossword. His first puzzle, called a word-cross, was published in December 1913 in the New York World. But there may have been other predecessors to the crossword: in England in the 19th century and an Italian version called per passare il tempo, which means “to pass the time.” Word crosses eventually became known as crosswords, and their creators …
READ MORE
Who Coined The Term Fashionista?In light of a recent article about the birth of the word “fashionista” in which Stephen Fried apologized for coining the term, we’d like to delve into the -ista suffix in hopes of understanding why English speakers combine it with certain words. But first, let’s look at “fashionista.” This word originally appeared in Stephen Fried’s 1993 biography of supermodel Gia Carangi. He invented it as …
READ MORE

Words related to who's who

directory

Words nearby who's who

who'd, who'll, who're, who's, who's afraid of virginia woolf?, who's who, who-does-what, whoa, whodunit, whodunnit, whoe'er

Origin of who's who

First recorded in 1840–50
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for who's who

who's who

noun

a book or list containing the names and short biographies of famous people
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

Idioms and Phrases with who's who

who's who

The outstanding or best-known individuals of a group, as in Tonight's concert features a veritable who's who of musicians. This expression comes from the name of a famous reference work, Who's Who, first published in 1849, which contains biographical sketches of famous individuals and is regularly updated. Its name in turn was based on who is who, that is, the identity of each of a number of persons, a phrase dating from the late 1300s. [Early 1900s]

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.