bull's eye (also bull’s-eye)
colloquial noun-phrase

- the centre of the target in sports such as archery, shooting, and darts

- a shot that hits the bull's-eye

- something central or crucial

- something that precisely attains a desired end

- a large, hard round peppermint sweet

Oxford Languages / Merriam-Webster

—
PHRASE ORIGIN

The term "bull's eye" originated in the early 19th century and refers to the centre of a target with a circular pattern with concentric rings and a solid centre dot (the "bull's eye").

The bull's-eye pattern itself dates back centuries and was inspired by the appearance of an archery target, especially one made of bundled straw. The bundled straw had layers that created rings, and the centre was often marked with a dot that resembled the eye of a bull.

By the 1800s, the bull's-eye design was used for target shooting with guns — hitting the tiny centre dot became synonymous with shooting accuracy and precision.

“Bull's eye" was first used figuratively to mean "a centre of focus or attention" in the 1827 novel "The Last of the Mohicans”. Over time, it has come to signify the perfect hitting of a target or of achieving an objective.

—
EXPERT MARKSWOMAN ANNIE OAKLEY

“I would like to see every woman know how to handle guns, as naturally as they know how to handle babies.”

Annie Oakley (1860-1926)

Oakley developed hunting skills as a child to provide for her impoverished family in western Ohio. At age 15, she won a shooting contest against an experienced marksman, Frank E. Butler, whom she married in 1876. The pair joined Buffalo Bill in 1885, performing in Europe before royalty and other heads of state.

In Europe, she performed for Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, King Umberto I of Italy, President Marie François Sadi Carnot of France and other crowned heads of state. Oakley supposedly shot the ashes off a cigarette held by the newly crowned German Kaiser Wilhelm II at his request.

Chief Sitting Bull, whose army had defeated Custer’s troops at the Battle of Little Big Horn in 1876, was so impressed with Annie Oakley’s amazing precision with a shotgun that he gave her an Indian name, Watanya Cecila, or Little Sure Shot.

Oakley believed strongly that it was crucial for women to learn how to use a gun, as not only a form of physical and mental exercise, but also to defend themselves.

Annie Oakley was one of the first people to be filmed by Thomas Edison, inventor of the motion picture camera.

This 80-second film from late 1894 shows Annie firing a rifle 25 times in 27 seconds and shooting glass balls tossed in the air by manager husband Frank Butler:

http://bit.ly/3w4Te4J

In this short clip, she shoots an object off a dog's head:

https://bit.ly/49lTL0z

—
SYNONYMS

ace, bang on, bingo, BULL’S EYE, central/crunch point, centerpiece, core, crux, dead centre, essence, gist, heart (of the matter), kernel, key/main point, keynote, meat (and potatoes), nail on the head, nitty gritty, nub, nubbin, nucleus, pith, pivot, point, root, sum, vital point (spot)

—
SMUGGLE OWAD into an English conversation, say something like:

“It's a nice feeling to hit the BULL’S EYE with exactly the right word or phrase during a difficult conversation.”

—
THANKS to Barbara for suggesting today’s OWAD.

—
Every month, we spend evening and weekend hours researching and writing your daily OWAD. It remains FREE, AD-free, and ALIVE thanks to voluntary donations from appreciative readers. If you aren’t already, please also consider supporting us - even the equivalent of a single cup of coffee a month will help us cover mailing, site hosting, and maintenance costs. Just head over to our secure DonorBox page:

https://donorbox.org/please-become-a-friend-of-owad-5-3

or bank transfer to Paul Smith
IBAN: DE75 7316 0000 0002 5477 40
Please use your email-address as ‘Verwendungszweck’

Thanks so much,

Paul Smith
(OWAD-Founder)

New Seminar! 1-day “Intelligent English" with Paul & Helga Smith: https://owad.de/intelligent-english