q in a corner
Preserved but no longer current.
An old children's game, per- haps the same as our "Puss in the corner"; also something not seen at first, but sub- sequently brought to notice. The thong to which seals are attached in legal documents is in French called the queue] thus we have lettres scettees sur simple queue or sur double queue, according to whether they bear one or two seals.
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 “q in a corner” mean?
An old children's game, per- haps the same as our "Puss in the corner"; also something not seen at first, but sub- sequently brought to notice. The thong to which seals are attached in legal documents is in French called the queue] thus we have lettres scettees sur simple queue or sur double queue, according to whether they bear one or two seals.
Is “q in a corner” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.