# the bee's knees

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/the-bees-knees
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

Something or someone excellent, surpassingly wonderful, or cool.

## Examples

- Everyone says that new cafe is the bee's knees.
- My grandfather always tells me that his old car was the bee's knees back in the day.
- While critics often dismiss popular trends, the fans insist that the band's latest album is truly the bee's knees.

## Origin

Attested since 1922, of unclear origin. There are several suggested origins, but it most likely arose in imitation of the numerous animal-related nonsense phrases popular in the 1920s such as the cat's pyjamas, cat's whiskers, cat's meow, gnat's elbow, monkey's eyebrows etc. A popular folk etymology has the phrase referring to the world champion dancer Bee Jackson. Another suggestion is that the phrase is a corruption of business. The singular bee's knee is attested from the late 18th century meaning something small or insignificant in the phrase big as a bee's knee. Also as weak as a bee's knee is attested in Ireland (1870). It is possible that the bee's knees is a deliberate inversion of this meaning but is not attested. Another possibility is that this is a reference to the (visible) blobs of pollen in bees' corbiculae. (folk)

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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.