Yeah, no idea. Both M-W and OED note the first recorded usage was 1813 for flammable, but neither note a source. Actually, nvm, the online OED says the original source is a translation (of what, I dunno) by Thomas Busby, an English composer.
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Seriously though, since it specifies a translation, this is the most likely source: “About the same time (1813) Busby completed a translation of Lucretius into rhymed verse.” Lucretius wrote “The Nature of Things,” which is probably related.
apr 23, 2025, 3:39 pm • 1 0 • view
The other original score of “Burn, Baby, Burn”?
apr 23, 2025, 3:26 pm • 1 0 • view