kill the fatted calf

The now commonly-used English idiom “kill the fatted calf” (meaning having a celebration for someone who’s been away a long time) was first coined in 1526 in the English New Testament translation of William Tyndale. (Source: Crystal 2010, p. 277)

For other idioms in English that were coined by Bible translation, see here.

See also fattened calf and fatted cattle.

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