V-for Victory
Preserved but no longer current.
On January 14th, 1941, M. Victor de Lavaleye, a member of the exiled Belgian government in London, proposed in a broadcast to Belgium that the letter V should be used as a simple substitute for the letters R.A.F. which were being chalked up on walls, etc., in Belgium.
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 “V-for Victory” mean?
On January 14th, 1941, M. Victor de Lavaleye, a member of the exiled Belgian government in London, proposed in a broadcast to Belgium that the letter V should be used as a simple substitute for the letters R.A.F. which were being chalked up on walls, etc., in Belgium.
Is “V-for Victory” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.