| E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898. |
| | | Benedict. | | |
|
A bachelor, not necessarily one pledged to celibacy, but simply a man of marriageable age, not married. St. Benedict was a most uncompromising stickler for celibacy. | 1 |
| |
“Is it not a pun? There is an old saying, ‘Needles and pins; when a man marries his trouble begins.’ If so, the unmarried man is benedictus.”—Life in the West. |
|
| |
|
|
