Idiom
Dutch courage
Meaning
The courage or bravado induced by alcohol.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Examples
“He drank a beer for some Dutch courage before his speech.”
“She felt too nervous to ask for a raise, so she relied on a glass of wine for a bit of Dutch courage.”
“The young soldier sought Dutch courage in a flask of whiskey before facing the daunting task ahead.”
Examples
simple
“He drank a beer for some Dutch courage before his speech.”
contextual
“She felt too nervous to ask for a raise, so she relied on a glass of wine for a bit of Dutch courage.”
complex
“The young soldier sought Dutch courage in a flask of whiskey before facing the daunting task ahead.”
Origin
The term originated as an ethnic slur arising from a period of intense political rivalry between England and the Netherlands. The phrase reflects the geopolitical tensions of the era, though the source records no specific dates for its first appearance.
Key words
Related idioms
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