Booby prize
A booby prize is a joke prize usually given in recognition of a terrible performance or a last-place finish. Booby prizes are typically worthless, but they are sometimes jokingly coveted as an object of pride. Notable examples of booby prizes include the wooden spoon, which originated at the University of Cambridge as an award for the lowest grade in a mathematics exam before becoming popular in sports,[1] and the title of lanterne rouge , given to the last-place finisher of the Tour de France.[2]
The word booby stems from the Spanish bobo meaning silly, which in turn came from the Latin balbus meaning stammering; the word booby to mean dunce appeared in 1599. Booby prize literally means "idiot's prize". The OED dates this usage to 1893. Booby trap and booby hatch are related terms.[3] [4]
See also
[edit ]References
[edit ]- ↑ "Six Nations: Wales receive the Wooden Spoon - but what is it?". BBC News . 2024年03月16日. Retrieved 2025年02月19日.
- ↑ Ingle, Sean (2018年08月06日). "Last but not least: Craddock wears Tour's red lantern as badge of courage". The Guardian . ISSN 0261-3077 . Retrieved 2025年02月19日.
- ↑ "The Straight Dope: What's the origin of "booby trap"?". www.straightdope.com. Archived from the original on 2008年11月20日. Retrieved 2025年02月11日.
- ↑ "Booby Prize and Booby Traps. Why Booby?". WYTV. 2024年10月02日. Archived from the original on 2024年10月03日. Retrieved 2025年02月19日.
