House and Hamlet

Posted by Bruce Kahl on September 24, 2003

In Reply to: House and Hamlet posted by GPP on September 24, 2003

: : What does "house and hamlet" mean when used as if it were a single word? Like in "in every house and hamlet of that land".

: : Thanks

: : Giampaolo

: I've never heard the phrase, but a hamlet is a very small village.

The phrase is alliterative and sounds like something from a fairy tale--"And the king ordered his subjects to search for the silver slipper in every house and hamlet of the land".
The phrase means a wide geographic area,every nook and cranny.