magic garters
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
In the old romances, etc., garters made of the strips of a young hare's skin saturated with motherwort. Those who wore them excelled m* speed.
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 “magic garters” mean?
In the old romances, etc., garters made of the strips of a young hare's skin saturated with motherwort. Those who wore them excelled m* speed.
Is “magic garters” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.