it smells of the lamp
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
Said of a literary composition that bears manifest signs of mid- night study ; one that is over-laboured. In Lat. olet lucernam.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “it smells of the lamp” mean?
Said of a literary composition that bears manifest signs of mid- night study ; one that is over-laboured. In Lat. olet lucernam.
Is “it smells of the lamp” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.