in the pink
idiom

- in the best of health or condition

Merriam-Webster’s Online Dictionary

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ORIGIN

This curious expression is often thought to be associated with the pink or rosy colour of a healthy-looking face or the pink colour of a new baby. However, there is no evidence that these two conditions are connected to the expression.

The earliest citations of ‘in the pink’ are from the 16th century and, at that time, the meaning was ‘the very best of something’, but not necessarily limited to health.

The earliest example that one can find of pink being used with that meaning is from 1597 in Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet:

Mercurio: "Why, I am the very pinke of curtesie." (courtesy = Höflichkeit)

The reason pink was associated with the idea ‘of highest quality’ is more likely to do with the Dianthus flower (Nelke), of which many varieties are called 'Pinks' and were highly admired during the reign of Elizabeth (I).

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ALL ABOUT PINK

English expressions:

millennial pink = light shade of pink that became especially trendy in 2017

pink-collar work = office jobs traditionally done by women for little money, as opposed to blue-collar work (factory floor) and white-collar (higher salaried office work)

a pink slip = a letter from your employer which tells you that you do not have a job anymore

seeing pink elephants = a euphemism for drunken hallucinations caused by excessive alcohol

to be tickled pink = to be extremely pleased about something

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SYNONYMS

alive and kicking, as fit as a fiddle, as fit as a flea, blooming fit, bursting with health, fighting fit, hale and hearty, in excellent shape, in fine fettle, in good kilter, in good trim, in rude health, IN THE PINK, in tip-top condition, in top form, right as rain, rosy-cheeked, the picture of health, very healthy, very well

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Practice OWAD in an English conversation, say something like:

“Peter stayed home a few days last week because of a bad cold, but now he’s IN THE PINK again.”

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Paul Smith