greasy pole
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.38 in modern English
16
Scrabble Score
10
Letters
1
Syllables
9
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A sporting event that involves staying on, climbing up, walking over or otherwise traversing a pole that has been made slippery.
Countable; Uncountable
noun
The work and scheming that leads to the position of prime minister or other leadership position.
Countable; Uncountable
Example Sentences
- "He advertised about the town, in long posters of a pink colour, that games of all sorts would take place here; and set to work a little battalion of men under his own eye. They erected greasy-poles for climbing, with smoked hams and local cheeses at the top."
- "The mud was unspeakable. The paths through the beet-fields were simply a succession of lumps, as slippery as a greasy pole, with huge pools everywhere."
- "I have climbed to the top of the greasy pole."
- "Merkel sacrificed her “Thatcherite” agenda to get to the top of the greasy pole. One should be careful, however, with explanations that reduce Merkel to a mere tactician."
- "They have strong opinions, which they moderate while climbing up the greasy pole of politics or advancement at work."
Usage
Inflected Forms
greasy poles (plural)
Synonyms
grease pole
greased pole