beat banaghan

English - English

Definition of beat banaghan in English English dictionary

An Irish saying of one who tells wonderful stories, or of something which is amazing and remarkable

Whenever he can find an audience, Doherty will spin some tale of local history or ancestral lineage in that inimitable Irish blend of fact and blarney. 'He beats Banaghan,' as the Irish saying goes of one who tells wonderful stories..

Etymology

() The Classic 1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue speculates "perhaps Banaghan was a minstrel famous for dealing in the marvellous."