# greatest thing since sliced bread

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/greatest-thing-since-sliced-bread
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

Something amazing, outstanding or praiseworthy, especially a relatively recent invention likely to improve people's lives.

## Examples

- He thinks his new phone is the greatest thing since sliced bread.
- You act like this air fryer is the greatest thing since sliced bread.
- Everyone says the new software update is the greatest thing since sliced bread because it saves so much time.
- My grandmother thinks her new robotic vacuum is the greatest thing since sliced bread because she no longer has to bend over to clean the floors.
- While some critics remained skeptical, the inventor insisted that his revolutionary energy-saving device was the greatest thing since sliced bread.

## Origin

The phrase is an adaptation of an advertising slogan used in 1928 by the Chillicothe Baking Company. As the first commercial entity to sell pre-sliced loaves, the company marketed the innovation as the greatest forward step in the baking industry since bread was wrapped. The current superlative form emerged through later colloquial use, though it preserves the specific commercial optimism of the 1928 campaign.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.