Something that is the bee’s knees is excellent; of high quality; desirable; enjoyable; or extremely good.
Origin of “The Bee’s Knees”
The bee’s knees has a curious, and perhaps unexpected, origin. You have to wonder how a bee’s knees came to mean something very good. Do bees even have knees? And, what’s so great about them? Well, the original meaning of this idiom made more sense. Bee’s knees simply referred to something small; something of a diminutive nature.
Then later, the expression changed to mean something of excellent quality; something great. There are some colorful theories as to how this meaning is derived that serve as an excellent lesson in false etymologies for idioms.
Consider animal idioms, in general. Many of them tend to draw on our common knowledge of the animal, whether biological or just stereotypical. For example, the idiom ‘snake in the grass’ is transparent and easy to understand. A snake hiding in the grass is something to be wary of, indeed. It may be poisonous. So, the meaning of snake in the grass, a deceitful,treacherous and sneaky person, makes perfect sense.
And, many of us perceive bats as being blind, or we know they have very weak eyesight. So, the idiom blind as a bat needs little explanation.
Now look at another familiar bee idiom: busy as a bee:
We understand bees to be busy creatures, always working in the hive or buzzing around collecting nectar or pollen. We see them as industrious and on the move. So, the idiom busy as a bee is about as transparent as an idiom can be. It’s quite compositional, meaning you can deduce the meaning from the words used. The bee’s knees does not follow this pattern. Its meaning is not apparent from the words that are used.
You’d be forgiven in thinking the bee’s knees meant something impossible since bees do not have knees!
Even if we do imagine bees do have knees, maybe the bee’s knees means something very small as the knee of a bee would have to be extremely tiny. And, as above, this was the original meaning. Then, it changed to become something very good. How do we deal with this?
Well, some, expecting the idiom to follow the same pattern as those other familiar idioms, have relied on a colorful story. Only this time it involves uncommon knowledge about bees.
Bees collect pollen from flowers and they load it onto tiny patches of hair on their legs. These are called scopa (scopae plural). The hair holds onto the pollen so it can be flown back to the hive. Therefore, we can perhaps see these scopae as analogous to knees!
This pollen stored on the bee’s knees is flown back to the hive to make honey. And honey is something of the highest quality, perhaps precious and sought after. Therefore, the bee’s knees, where they carry pollen, came to mean something of valuable, of high quality, etc.
The problem with this theory is that pollen isn’t used to make honey, nectar is. Since pollen isn’t really used to make honey, the theory evolves. The pollen is incidentally transferred from flower to flower by the bees, helping the flowers to reproduce. This is why bees are so important to the environment. And, aren’t flowers precious? So, the bee’s knees refers to something precious or excellent; the best.
As you may be understand, we have twisted ourselves into a linguistic pretzel to try to make this idiom fit our expectations. It’s an etymological quagmire and, what’s more, it can never be proven or disproven. Furthermore, it relies on the idea that the pollen-collecting apparatus on a bee’s legs is commonly understood enough to give birth to an idiom. These theories are colloquially called folk etymologies.
Folk etymology is a technical linguistic term that means something very specific, but in layman’s terms we can think of it as something that’s made up by ‘the folk.’ This is why such a theory is called folk etymology. The theory is made to fit the circumstance; to make the idiom fit a mold. Idioms are stubborn. They do not always cooperate.
Now, try to come up with such a theory for a similar idiom: the cat’s pajamas! While colorful stories satisfy our need for sensible and interesting origins, it’s more likely that the bee’s knees changed its meaning because of the existence of idioms like ‘the cat’s pajamas.’
Here are some other similar idioms:
- the dog’s bollocks
- the spider’s ankles (Irish)
- the ant’s pants
- the fox’s socks
- the camel’s hump
Many of these idioms are contemporary to each other. They all came about and were used during a similar time period. In other words, it is likely that the existence of these other animal idioms to mean something very good caused the bee’s knees to be used this way also and this change to the opposite meaning happened very quickly. People simply expected the idiom to mean something
excellent.
Bee’s knees to mean something small was used during the mid to late 1800s. It often to referred to someone’s height as being ‘no higher than a bee’s knees,’ similar to how people say down South, ‘knee-high to a grasshopper.’
By the early 1900s, its present meaning was already common.
Movie Citations
Because “the bee’s knees” is one of the most famous examples of 1920s Roaring Twenties slang, screenwriters often use it in period pieces to establish authentic vintage dialogue, or in modern settings to show a character using retro slang for comedic, romantic, or nostalgic effect.
- The High-School Popularity Pitch: In the comedy The School of Rock (2003), Dewey Finn uses a double dose of 1920s slang to convince a student that playing in a rock band guarantees social status: “You could be the ugliest sad sack on the planet, but if you’re in a rocking band, you’re the cat’s pajamas… you’re the bee’s knees.” / “Bee’s knees?” / “Yeah, the bee’s knees. You’ll be the most popular guy in school.”
- The Outdated Romantic Line: In the crime drama Things to Do in Denver When You’re Dead (1995), Jimmy “The Saint” uses the phrase as an intentionally old-fashioned pickup line, admitting it belongs to a bygone era: “Because if I may say so, Dagney, you are most definitely the bee’s knees.” / “Does this rap ever work?” / “Alas, in the old days. Uh, now I rarely get a chance to try it.”
- The Authentic Flapper Era Praise: In the vintage musical comedy Good News (1947), set in the 1920s, characters layer multiple period idioms together to defend a classic “flapper” girl: “What do you mean, ‘silly flapper’?” / “She’s great! She’s the bee’s knees, the cat’s meow, and she loves you.”
- The Retro Press Headline: In the satire Roxie Hart (1942), set during the media-circus era of the late 1920s, a character uses the phrase to describe explosive, high-profile publicity: “Two-bit scuffles? Eight pictures and nine columns in two days. I guess that ain’t the bee’s knees.”
- The Heartwarming Praise: In the romantic drama Letters to Juliet (2010), the idiom appears in a recount of a historic WWII love story, describing a nurse who captured a sailor’s heart: “Petty Officer First Class Robert Beal… said that the nurse was the bee’s knees and that the kiss was a completely spontaneous moment and a celebration of real love.”
Similar 1920’s Idioms
- The Cat’s Pajamas: Something or someone that is exceptionally attractive, stylish, impressive, or highly desirable (a quintessential piece of 1920s jazz-age slang).
- The Dog’s Bollocks: British slang used to describe something that is outstanding, top-tier, or the absolute best in its category.
- The Ant’s Pants: Australian slang used to describe a person or thing that is remarkably fashionable, clever, or impressive.
Other Similar and Related Idioms
- Worth Its Weight in Gold: Very valuable or very useful; to be very good; excellent; the best of its type.
- A Cut Above: Better than other people or things, especially those that are similar; to be superior; to be of higher quality.
- The Pick of the Litter: The finest or most desirable option chosen from a group of equal or similar choices (originally referring to selecting the healthiest puppy or kitten from a newborn litter).
- The Cream of the Crop: The very best individuals or items within a specific group; the highest quality tier of any collection.
- Top-notch / Top of the Line: Something constructed to the highest standards of quality, craftsmanship, or performance; the premier tier of a product or service.
- Crème de la Crème: The ultimate best of the best; an elite group or item that stands above even high-quality peers (borrowed directly from the French phrase for “cream of the cream”).
