THE BARD: “By the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes!”

This quote, from Macbeth, of course, is one of our favorites from the works of William Shakespeare.

The impact of the Bard is nearly immeasurable. So many words and phrases are part of the lexicon from Shakespeare’s work. Here are a few we’ve gathered: “Send him packing” — Henry IV, Part I

“As good luck would have it” — The Merry Wives of Windsor

“More fool you” — The Taming of the Shrew

“Short shrift” — Richard III

“Neither here nor there” — Othello and The Merry Wives of Windsor

“Mum’s the word” — Henry VI, Part II

“With bated breath” — The Merchant of Venice

“The green-eyed monster” — Othello

“Vanish into thin air” — Othello and The Tempest

“All of a sudden” — The Taming of the Shrew

“Wild-goose chase” — Romeo and Juliet

“The be-all and end-all” — Macbeth

“Up in arms” — Henry VI, Part II and Richard III

“Eaten out of house and home” — Henry IV, Part II

“Devil incarnate” — Henry V and Titus Andronicus

“Heart of gold” — Henry V

“Foregone conclusion” — Othello

“All that glitters is not gold” — The Merchant of Venice

Popularized, or created by, Shakespeare include bandit, critic, dauntless and dwindle.

To elbow someone was also a Shakespearean first, as were lackluster and lonely, scuffle and swagger, unaware and uncomfortable.

The playwright and poet also coined the terms addiction and arch-villain, blushing and bloodstained, champion and courtship, discontent and drugged.

There are websites devoted to the man and his work, including shakespeare-online.com, from where much of this information was culled. The site reported that Shakespeare invented more than 1,700 words, but many were likely in use at the time, and he was the one to record them.

Either way, what an impressive legacy.