Apedia

Life Riley N Luxurious Carefree Existence Origin Unknown

Word life of Riley
Definition n. A luxurious or carefree existence. [Origin unknown.]
Sentence
When he -- or she -- was not entering Casino in comp. of friends...was playing tenn., riding h's, out on the golf links, lunching with three f's,...

Pongo was familiar with the expression "living the life of Riley", and that it was a life of this nature that The Subject had been leading was manifest in the document's every sentence.
Source Uncle Fred in the Springtime, The Best of Wodehouse, p. 517

Tags: language::english, topic::vocabulary

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