bog standard
ordinary, nothing special
TRANSLATION
bog standard = durchschnittlich, gewöhnlich, stinknormal --- GOOGLE INDEX bog standard: approximately 450,000 hits
STATISTICS
IN THE PRESS
The UK cannot compete with the Chinese and the Indians in BOG-STANDARD manufacturing, but we can still aspire to be a world beater in financial services.
(The Guardian)
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In 5 years time, you'll probably be able to listen to Internet radio on a BOG-STANDARD mobile phone.
(Digital Spy forums)
(The Guardian)
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In 5 years time, you'll probably be able to listen to Internet radio on a BOG-STANDARD mobile phone.
(Digital Spy forums)
Did you
know?
bog standard
adjective
- completely ordinary
(Cambridge International Dictionary of Idioms)
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WORD ORIGIN
Much has been written and discussed regarding the origin of "bog standard". But English wordsmiths around the world can only agree to disagree. One theory is that bog is an alteration of box, as in box standard, which refers to a product that you can use right out of the box without modifications or improvements. Other people believe bog is a shortened form of bog-house, an older word for toilet or latrine.
Others point to the word bog in the context of a swamp or marshy area. The implication is that houses in such areas are typically of sub-standard quality. Finally, a common story has it that bog is really an acronym for "British or German", because Great Britain and Germany established many of the manufacturing standards during the industrial revolution. There is no evidence that the phrase bog-standard was used before the 1960s however.
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SYNONYMS
common, conventional, garden variety, generic, mediocre, normal, pedestrian, plain, plain Jane, routine, run-of-the-mill, simple, undistinguished, unexceptional, uninspired, unremarkable, usual, vanilla, workaday
(Roget's New Millennium™ Thesaurus)
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ANTONYMS
extraordinary, unique, unusual
(Roget's New Millennium™ Thesaurus)
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IMPRESS YOUR FRIENDS TODAY
say something like:
"I just use a bog standard mobile phone, I don’t need all those fancy features."
adjective
- completely ordinary
(Cambridge International Dictionary of Idioms)
---
WORD ORIGIN
Much has been written and discussed regarding the origin of "bog standard". But English wordsmiths around the world can only agree to disagree. One theory is that bog is an alteration of box, as in box standard, which refers to a product that you can use right out of the box without modifications or improvements. Other people believe bog is a shortened form of bog-house, an older word for toilet or latrine.
Others point to the word bog in the context of a swamp or marshy area. The implication is that houses in such areas are typically of sub-standard quality. Finally, a common story has it that bog is really an acronym for "British or German", because Great Britain and Germany established many of the manufacturing standards during the industrial revolution. There is no evidence that the phrase bog-standard was used before the 1960s however.
---
SYNONYMS
common, conventional, garden variety, generic, mediocre, normal, pedestrian, plain, plain Jane, routine, run-of-the-mill, simple, undistinguished, unexceptional, uninspired, unremarkable, usual, vanilla, workaday
(Roget's New Millennium™ Thesaurus)
---
ANTONYMS
extraordinary, unique, unusual
(Roget's New Millennium™ Thesaurus)
---
IMPRESS YOUR FRIENDS TODAY
say something like:
"I just use a bog standard mobile phone, I don’t need all those fancy features."
