Don Budge

1 8.4

An American tennis player who is the first to win the four major singles titles in one year

proper noun
/dɒn bʌdʒ/

: Don Budge

In 1938, Don Budge won the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon, and the U.S. Open in a single year.

Examples

In 1938, Don Budge made history by winning the Grand Slam.
Don Budge made history by winning all four major tennis titles in 1938.
Tennis historians often regard Don Budge as one of the game's greatest pioneers.
Young players study Don Budge's technique to improve their own game.
Did Don Budge really win all four majors in one year?
Don Budge became the first player to achieve a Grand Slam in tennis by winning all four major championships in 1938.
Don Budge is celebrated for being the first tennis player to complete the Grand Slam in history.

Surface Forms

Don Budge main

Morphology

Don + Budge

This is a proper name referring to a specific person and biographical achievement, so its meaning (an American tennis player who won the 1938 Grand Slam) is referential rather than compositional. Knowing the constituent words 'Don' and 'Budge' (neither of which transparently signals this biographical information) would not allow a B1 learner to infer the MWE's meaning, so it is idiomatic/opaque in effect.

Etymology

Don Budge was an American tennis player who in 1938 became the first person to win all four major singles titles in the same year: the Australian, French, Wimbledon, and U.S. championships. That complete sweep is now called the 'Grand Slam', so his name is remembered for being the first to reach that famous achievement.