the whole of the sum named
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
Cool, in this case, is merely an emphatic; it may have originally had reference to the calmness and deliberation with which the sum was counted out and the total made up.
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 “the whole of the sum named” mean?
Cool, in this case, is merely an emphatic; it may have originally had reference to the calmness and deliberation with which the sum was counted out and the total made up.
Is “the whole of the sum named” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.