lulu
noun (informal)

- a remarkable or outstanding person or thing

- a person or thing considered to be outstanding in size, appearance, etc.

Dictionary(dot)com / Collins Dictionary

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WORD ORIGIN

"Lulu" has been linked back to the 1896 English translation of German plays about the character Lulu by Frank Wedekind. Lulu was portrayed as an amoral but irresistible femme fatale, so her name may have become associated with someone or something remarkable or formidable.

While its exact origin is unclear, the use of "lulu" for something remarkable seems to have emerged in the late 1800s, likely inspired by the French feminine name Louise and its associations with an irresistible or extraordinary woman or character.

Since the early 20th century, it has become commonly used in American English.

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SEEING DOUBLE

Words with two identical syllables:

- ack-ack = an anti-aircraft gun or the fire that it releases

- booboo = a mistake

- bonbon = a chocolate or sweet

- couscous = a North African side dish

- dum-dum (with hyphen) = an unkind description of someone who isn't smart

- dumdum (without  hyphen) =  is a particularly damaging bullet that expands on impact

- froufrou = decorative pieces added to clothing, especially women's clothing

- cancan = a bawdy dance that started in France (women doing the cancan wear froufrou dresses, kicking their legs high)

- juju = a West African charm or object with supernatural power

- lulu = someone or something that is spectacular or amazing

- murmur = a heart condition that creates an abnormal beating sound

- murmur = a quiet, sometimes unrecognisable muttering

- no-no = something that shouldn't be done because it's unacceptable

- pompom = the ball on the end of a knitted cap

- so-so = something not good and not bad (it’s somewhere in between)

- yo-yo = a toy that goes back to at least 500 B.C.

- yum-yum - an interjection used to express pleasurable satisfaction especially in the taste of food

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SYNONYMS

absolute gem, ace performance, banner headline, big thing, breathtaking sight, cause célèbre, dazzling display, doozy, feather in one's cap, game-changer, heart-stopper, knockout, landmark occasion, leading light, LULU, major coup, marvelous feat, masterpiece, matter of note, milestone, model example, outstanding performance, pièce de résistance, prodigy, purple patch, a quantum leap, rare bird, real dilly, red-letter day, remarkable display, sensation, shining example, showstopper, signal event, spectacular achievement, star turn, striking example, stunning achievement, talking point, top-notch performance, tour de force, whizz, wonderling

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SMUGGLE OWAD into an English conversation, say something like:

“That was a LULU of a party on Saturday night, it will remain long in memory.”

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