English
Phrase
must have killed a Chinaman
- (Australia, offensive) A jocular explanation for bad luck.
- 1925, L. M. Newton, The Story of the Twelfth: A Record of the 12th Battalion, page 132
- It appeared as though someone in the Battalion must have killed a Chinaman, as the weather continued rough and stormy, with strong wind.
- For more examples of usage of this term, see Citations:must have killed a Chinaman.
Usage notes
- Because of its negative historical connotations, the term Chinaman is no longer considered appropriate; it persists only in this expression.
References
- “must have killed a Chinaman”, entry in The New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English, Eric Partridge, page 393
- “I must have killed a Chinaman”, entry in A Dictionary of Catch Phrases: British and American, from the sixteenth century to the present day, Eric Partridge & Paul Beale, page 218