coon's age



coon's age

Also, a dog's age. A very long time, as in I haven't seen Sam in a coon's age, or It's been a dog's age since I went to the ballpark. The first phrase rests on the mistaken idea that raccoons ("coons") live a long time. The variant may reflect a similar assumption but the true origin is not known. [c. 1835] Also see donkey's years.
See also: age

Common Names:

NameGenderPronouncedUsage
Machlah-Biblical Hebrew
Zephaniahze-fə-NIE-ə (English)Biblical
NezİH-Turkish
JoŽEfYAW-zhefSlovene
ChristaKRIS-tah (German), KRIS-tə (English)German, Danish, English
Krister-Swedish