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A  GLOSSARY 

OF 

PROVINCIAL   WORDS 

USED   IN 

HEREFORDSHIRE. 

1839. 


BERKELEY 

LIBRARY 

imWz*     TYOF 
CALIFORNIA    J 


PROVINCIAL  WORDS 


HEREFORDSHIRE. 


&&lL7- 


creor^e    Come w&M  <_/•  cw/  s 


GLOSSARY 


PROVINCIAL    WORDS 


HEREFORDSHIRE 


AND  SOME  OF  THE 


ADJOINING  COUNTIES. 


LONDON: 
JOHN   MURRAY,    ALBEMARLE-STREET. 

1839. 


LONDON : 

Printed  by  William  Clowes  and  Sons, 
Stamford  Street. 


LC7+ 


PREFACE. 


The  following  Glossary  is  intended  to  exhibit  a  collec- 
tion of  the  provincial  words  and  expressions  used  in 
Herefordshire  and  some  of  the  contiguous  counties. 

The  only  collection  of  the  provincialisms  of  Here- 
fordshire which  has  been  hitherto  made  is  that  in- 
serted in  Duncumb's  topographical  work  on  the 
county.  As  this  list  is  meager  and  imperfect,  and  as 
it  is  contained  in  a  scarce  and  expensive  book,  it 
seemed  worth  while  to  form  a  new  collection,  and  to 
print  it  separately. 

In  order  that  the  nature  of  the  following  Glossary 
may  be  understood,  it  will  be  convenient  first  to  define 
the  classes  of  words  which  are  included  in  it ;  and 
secondly,  to  state  the  extent  of  country  which  it 
comprehends. 

A  provincial  word  seems  properly  to  mean  a  word 
which  is  not  actually  used  in  the  written  or  spoken 
language  of  educated  persons,  but  which  is  current 
in  the  familiar  language  of  the  inhabitants  of  some 
district. 


597 


A  provincial  word,  as  so  defined,  may  belong  to 
any  one  of  the  four  following  classes : — 

1.  Words  used  by  classical  writers,  but  now  obso- 
lete. Examples  of  this  class  are  furnished  by  the 
words  Cantle,  Mirky,  Pleach,  in  the  following 
Glossary. 

2.  Words  not  obsolete,  but  used  only  in  poetry,  or 
as  technical  terms.  See  Craven,  Dank,  and  To  Oust, 
in  the  following  Glossary. 

3.  Words  which  are  not  known  to  have  ever  been 
used  in  the  language  of  educated  persons.  Such  are, 
for  example,  the  words  Dar,  Gorm,  Niscal,  in  the 
following  Glossary. 

4.  Words  substantially  the  same  as  words  current 
in  the  language  of  educated  persons,  but  modified  in 
form.  In  some  cases,  the  provincial  form  is  more 
ancient  than  the  literary  form  ;  as  the  preterits  col- 
lected at  the  end  of  the  following  Glossary.  In  some 
cases,  there  is  a  variety  of  forms  without  any  indi- 
cation by  which  the  greater  or  less  antiquity  of  either 
can  be  determined  :  see  the  words  Keech,  Pank, 
Queek,  in  the  Glossary.  In  other  cases,  the  provin- 
cial form  is  a  corruption  of  the  literary  form,  arising 
from  ignorance :  as  Atomy,  and  Rusty,  in  the 
Glossary. 

The  following  Glossary  is  intended  to  comprise  all 
words,  coming  within  any  of  the  classes  just  described, 


PREFACE.  Vll 

which  are  current  in  Herefordshire  and  parts  of  some 
of  the  adjoining  counties.  Many,  if  not  most,  of  the 
provincial  words  current  in  Herefordshire  are  (as 
will  appear  from  the  references  in  the  Glossary)  cur- 
rent as  provincialisms  in  other  parts  of  England. 
This  is  likewise  true  of  many  words  included  in  other 
provincial  glossaries.  Indeed,  few  provincial  words 
are  confined  to  any  one  locality.  "  In  collections  of 
this  kind  (Mr.  Hunter  remarks,  in  the  preface  to  his 
Hallamshire  Glossary),  it  is  not  to  be  expected  that 
the  words  are  all  peculiar  to  the  district  in  which  they 
are  gathered ;  or,  indeed,  that  there  will  be  many 
which  are  found  there  and  not  in  other  parts  of  the 
kingdom.  A  pastoral  and  agricultural  region  will 
preserve  more  of  the  terms  which  belong  to  hus- 
bandry :  more  of  the  ancient  terms  of  art  will  be 
found  in  a  manufacturing  district.  Peculiarities  in 
local  circumstances,  in  the  structure  of  habitations,  in 
the  nature  of  the  food,  in  the  amusements  of  the  peo- 
ple, may,  in  a  few  instances,  have  occasioned  the  pre- 
servation of  words  in  some  narrow  district,  and  in  that 
alone ;  but  the  great  mass  of  archaical  words  in  any 
particular  district  will,  of  course,  be  the  same  with 
those  of  any  other  district,  since  they  are  relics  of 
a  language  once  common  to  the  whole  of  England, 
superseded  by  that  new  language  which  custom  has 
gradually  introduced,''  p.  26. 


Vlll  PREFACE. 

Nevertheless,  it  appears  that,  from  the  accidents 
of  tradition,  the  use  of  some  provincial  words  is  con- 
fined within  very  narrow  limits,  though  they  may 
perhaps  be  known  in  other  and  distant  parts  of  the 
country.  Hence  it  is  difficult  to  make  a  complete 
list  of  the  provincial  words  current  over  an  extensive 
district;  and  although  the  following  Glossary  was 
compiled  with  the  assistance  of  gentlemen  resident  in 
various  parts  of  Herefordshire,  it  is  not  impossible 
that  some  peculiar  words  may  have  escaped  the  notice 
of  all  the  contributors.  The  determination  of  the 
meaning  of  provincial  words  is  likewise,  in  many  cases, 
liable  to  doubt ;  since  it  is  difficult  by  conversation 
alone,  and  that  with  illiterate  persons,  to  obtain  an 
induction  sufficiently  wide  for  fixing  the  precise 
import  of  a  word. 

The  words  included  in  the  following  Glossary  are 
generally  current  in  Herefordshire,  and  in  parts  of 
the  contiguous  counties  of  Brecknock,  Radnor,  Mon- 
mouth, and  Gloucester.  The  Gloucestershire  words 
entered  in  the  following  Glossary  were  collected  by  a 
gentleman  whose  residence  is  not  far  from  Gloucester ; 
many  of  these  words  are  marked  in  the  Glossary  as 
being  peculiar  to  the  latter  county,  and  as  not  being 
current  in  Herefordshire.  From  an  examination  of 
these  words,  as  well  as  of  the  short  list  of  agricultural 
provincialisms  used  in  the  vale  of  Gloucester,  which 


PREFACE.  IX 

is  given  in  Marshall's  Rural  Economy  of  Gloucester- 
shire, vol.  i.  p.  323 — 32,  it  would  seem  that  the 
dialect  of  Gloucestershire  approaches  more  to  that 
of  Somersetshire  than  to  that  of  Herefordshire.  The 
provincial  words  used  in  the  Midland  counties,  which 
are  collected  by  the  same  writer  in  his  Rural  Economy 
of  the  Midland  Counties,  vol.  ii.  p.  433 — 45,  agree 
more  closely  with  the  Herefordshire  dialect ;  but  no 
copious  provincial  Glossary,  for  any  of  the  midland 
counties  (as  Shropshire,  Staffordshire,  Warwickshire, 
Worcestershire,  Derbyshire,  or  Leicestershire)  has 
hitherto  been  published. 

A  writer  in  the  Quarterly  Review  has  divided  the 
provincial  dialects  of  England  in  the  following  man- 
ner : — "1.  Southern  or  standard  English,  which  in 
the  fourteenth  century  was  perhaps  best  spoken  in 
Kent  and  Surrey  by  the  body  of  the  inhabitants.  2. 
Western  English,  of  which  traces  may  be  found  from 
Hampshire  to  Devonshire,  and  northward  as  far  as 
the  Avon.  3.  Mercian,  vestiges  of  which  appear  in 
Shropshire,  Staffordshire,  and  South  and  West  Derby- 
shire, becoming  distinctly  marked  in  Cheshire,  and 
still  more  so  in  South  Lancashire.  4.  Anglian,  of 
which  there  are  three  subdivisions  :  the  East  Anglian 
of  Norfolk  and  Suffolk;  the  Middle  Anglian  of  Lin- 
colnshire, Nottinghamshire,  and  East  Derbyshire ; 
and  the  North  Anglian  of  the  West  Riding  of  York- 


X  PREFACE. 

shire ,  spoken  most  purely  in  the  mountainous  parts 
of  the  district  of  Craven.  5.  Northumbrian." — 
(Vol.  55.  p.  354.)  It  does  not,  however,  appear  from 
this  division,  to  which  branch  the  writer  would  refer 
the  Herefordshire  dialect :  nor  does  this  dialect  bear  a 
striking  affinity  to  any  of  the  dialects  exhibited  in  the 
Glossaries,  of  which  a  list  is  subjoined  to  this  preface.* 

It  may  be  observed  that  the  Herefordshire  dialect 
is  not  so  remote  from  the  literary  language,  and  does 
not  contain  so  many  provincial  expressions,  as  some 
other  local  dialects  ;  for  example,  the  Lancashire  and 
Exmoor  dialects,  as  exemplified  in  Tim  Bobbin  and 
the  Exmoor  Dialogues. 

It  may  be,  moreover,  observed,  that  the  Hereford- 
shire dialect,  although  spoken  on  the  borders  of 
Wales,  and  coming  in  contact  with  the  Welsh  lan- 
guage, contains  few  words  borrowed  from  the  Welsh ; 
though  it  contains  more  words  of  Welsh  origin  than 
the  dialects  which  are  altogether  removed  from  this 
contact,  as,  for  example,  the  dialect  of  Norfolk  and 
Suffolk.  The  words  in  the  following  Glossary,  which 
appear  to  be  of  Welsh  origin,  are  to  bag,  Jlannen, 
givethally  kevin,  mawn,  moiled,  pant,  pill,  prill,  ross, 
suck,  tare,  timsarah,  and  tump. 

London,  October,  1839. 

*  Herefordshire  was  a  part  of  the  kingdom  of  Mercia.  See 
Bosworth's  Anglo-Saxon  Dictionary,  Preface,  p.  xvi. 


List  of  Provincial  Glossaries  consulted  in  the  com- 
pilation  of  the  subjoined  Glossary. 


Ray's  Collection  of  English  Words  not  generally  used 
(frequently  reprinted). 

Grose's  Glossary  of  Provincial  and  Local  Words  used 
in  England.  London,  1839  (with  Pegge's  Sup- 
plement incorporated),  1  vol. 

Dialogues,  Poems,  Songs,  and  Ballads,  by  various 
Writers,  in  the  Westmoreland  and  Cumberland 
Dialects,  now  first  collected,  with  a  copious  Glos- 
sary of  Words  peculiar  to  those  Counties.  London, 
1839.     1  vol. 

Glossary  of  the  Dialect  of  Craven.  London,  1828. 
2  vols. 

The  Hallamshire  Glossary,  by  the  Rev.  Joseph  Hunter, 
F.S.A.     London,  1829.     1  vol. 

Ancient  Words  at  present  used  in  the  Mountainous 
District  of  the  West  Riding  of  Yorkshire.  By  Dr. 
Willan.     Archseologia,  vol.  17.  p.  138 — 67. 

An  Attempt  at  a  Glossary  of  some  Words  used  in 
Cheshire.  By  Roger  Wilbraham,  Esq.  London, 
1826.     1  vol. 

Observations  on  some  of  the  Dialects  in  the  West  of 
England,  particularly  Somersetshire.  By  James 
Jennings.     London,  1825.     1  vol. 


xii  List  of  Provincial  Glossaries,  fyc. 

An  Exmoor  Scolding,  also  an  Exmoor  Courtship.  A 
new  Edition,  with  Notes  and  a  Glossary.  London, 
1839.     1  vol. 

A  Dialogue  in  the  Devonshire  Dialect,  to  which  is 
added  a  Glossary.  By  J.  F.  Palmer.  London,  1837. 
1  vol. 

Suffolk  Words  and  Phrases.  By  Edward  Moor. 
Woodbridge  and  London,  1823.     1  vol. 

The  Vocabulary  of  East  Anglia  (Norfolk  and  Suffolk). 
By  the  Rev.  Robert  Forby.  London,  1830.  2 
vols. 

Boucher's  Glossary.  London,  1833.  2  Parts  (un- 
finished). 


GLOSSARY. 


[Note. — The  words  marked  (GL.)  are  used  in  Gloucestershire 
and  not  in  Herefordshire.] 

A. 

A.  pron ,  he,  she,  or  it.  "  In  Gloucestershire," 
says  Marshall,  (Rural  Economy  of  Gloucestershire, 
vol.  i.  p.  324,)  "  an  extra  pronoun  is  in  use,  ou  ;  a 
pronoun  of  the  singular  number,  analogous  with 
the  plural  they  ;  being  applied  in  a  masculine,  a  fe- 
minine, or  a  neuter  sense.  Thus,  cou  wulP  expresses 
either  he  will,  she  will,  or  it  wull."  In  Here- 
fordshire a  similar  pronoun  is  in  use,  but  its  sound 
is  that  of  the  inarticulate  a,  and  is  nearly  represented 
by  the  sound  of  ir  or  ur  in  sir9  bird,  absurd,  &c. 

A.  In  Gloucestershire,  among  the  middling  classes 
only,  a  is  changed  into  e,  when  the  sound  is  as  in 
spade,  gave,  which  are  pronounced  spede,  geve. 
Among  the  lower  classes  it  has  generally  a  broader 
sound,  as  spaad,  gaav. 

To  Abide,  v.  to  bear,  to  endure.  E.  g.  "  the  weather  is 
so  hot,  I  can't  abide  it." 

B 


2  Provincial  Words 

Able,  adj.  wealthy.  An  "able  man,'5  means  a 
wealthy  man. 

Aboove,  prep,  above. 

Abundation,  s.  abundance,  a  large  number  Cor- 
rupted into  Bundation,  in  Gloucestershire. 

Abuseful,  adj.  abusive. 

Afeard,  adj.  or  fart,  afraid.  An  ancient  classi- 
cal word,  still  current  as  a  provincialism  in  many 
parts  of  England.  See  Nares  in  To  AfTear,  Moor 
and  Forby  in  Afeard,  Jennings  in  AfFeard,  Craven 
Glossary  in  Afeard  and  Feard.  Afeard  occurs  ten 
times  in  Shakspeare,  according  to  Ayscough's 
Index.  Aferedia  used  by  Chaucer,  C.  T.  12218. 
Troilus  and  Cressida,  II.  606. 

Again,  or  Agin,  prep,  over-against,  next  to,  oppo- 
site to.  It  sometimes  means  "  before  :  "  as  "  I  will 
do  it  agin  next  Sunday,"  i.  e.  u  I  will  do  it  before 
next  Sunday/'  Also  used  in  Somersetshire  ;  Jen- 
nings in  v.  Againis  used  for  against  in  Skelton's 
Elegy  on  Henry,  fourth  Earl  of  Northumberland. 
(Percy,  vol.  i.) 

r*  Provydent,  discrete,  circumspect,  and  wyse, 

Tyll  the  chaunce  ran  agyne  him  of  fortunes  duble  dy  se."  st.  20. 

See  also  Boucher's  Dictionary  in  Again  and  Anent, 

and  Forby  in  Again. 
Aiddled,  part,  addled.  (GL.) 


used  in  Herefordshire.  3 

All  as  is.  "  All  as  is  to  me  is  this,"  i.  e.,  all  that  I 
have  to  say  about  it,  or,  all  that  I  observe  in  it. 

All  about.  "  To  get  all  about  in  his  head,"  to  become 
light-headed. 

All  about  it.  "  That's  all  about  it :"  that  is  the  very 
point  in  question. 

All  b'ease,  adv.  all  by  ease,  i.  e.  quietly,  gently, 
gradually. 

Also,  prep,  a  corruption  of  all  save.  Thus,  "  six- 
pence also  twopence,"  meaning,  "  sixpence  all  save 
(or  all  but)  twopence,"  i.  e.  fourpence. 

Anty  tump,  s.  ant  hill.  See  Tump. 

Aneaoust,  neaous,  adv.  almost,  near  to.  (GL.) 
Anevst  means  about  the  matter,  nearly,  in  Berk- 
shire, according  to  Grose. 

Anunt,  prep,  against,  over-against.  This  old  word 
exists  in  lowland  Scotch,  and  is  current  in  the 
cognate  dialects  of  Yorkshire  and  Cheshire.  See 
Jamieson  in  Anens,  Craven  Glossary  in  Anent, 
Willan  and  Wilbraham  in  Anenst,  Boucher  in 
Again  and  Anent.  It  is  also  used  in  Derbyshire, 
according  to  Grose  in  Anent:  over  anunt  occurs 
in  Gloucestershire ;  Grose  in  v. 

Apricock,  s.  apricot.  Also  used  in  Somersetshire  ; 
Jennings  in  v.  Apricock  is  used  by  Shakspeare 
in  Midsummer  Night's  Dream,  act  3,  sc.  1,  and 
Richard  II.,  act  3,  sc.  4.     It  is  the  more  genuine. 

b  2 


4  Provincial  Words 

form ;  compare  the  Italian  abricoccolo,  and  the 
Portuguese  albricoque^  from  the  Arabic  word 
albarquqe :  Diez,  Roman.  Grammat.  vol.  ii, 
p.  229.  See  Skinner  and  Junius  in  v.  Apricock. 

Arc,  s.  a  mare's  tail  cloud,  or  cirrhus,  in  the  form  of 
a  streak  crossing  the  sky.  Probably  the  same  word 
as  arch. 

To  Arg,  v.  to  argue.  "  He  would  arg  me  that  it  was 
so."  Also  used  in  Somersetshire  :  Jennings  in  v. 
The  latter  dialect  also  has  the  compound  verb,  to 
downarg:  ibid. 

To  Argufy,  v.  a.  to  signify.  Hence  "  of  no  argufi- 
cation,"  of  no  importance.  The  verb  to  argufy 
is  used  in  the  same  sense  in  Yorkshire,  Norfolk, 
and  Somersetshire  :  Craven  Glossary,  Forby,  and 
Jennings  in  v. 

As.  Used  instead  of  the  relative  pronoun ;  e,  g. 
"The  man  as  I  seed."  "  The  child  as-  was  there." 
So  is  similarly  used  in  German : — 

"  Von  alien  so  da  kamen." 

Burger's  Lenore. 

See  Grimm  D.  G.  vol.  iii.  p.  197.     Tooke,  vol.  i. 

p.  257. 
Aside n,  adv.  on  one  side. 
Askel,  s.  a  newt,  from  ask  or  esk.     The  origin  of 

the  word  is  explained  in  the  Quarterly   Review, 

vol.  lv.  p.  374. 


used  in  Herefordshire.  5 

Asp,  s.  the  aspen  tree.  Asp  is  the  proper  form  of  the 
substantive;  aspen  is  an  adjectival  form.  See 
Bosworth  in  iEps,  JEsp,  and  iEspen,  and  Johnson 
in  Aspen  ;  compare  below  in  Elmen.  The  form 
aspen  appears  to  have  been  preferred  to  asp,  in 
order  to  avoid  confusion  with  the  species  of  serpent 
called  asp. 

Atchorn,  s.  acorn.  "  To  atchorn,"  to  gather  acorns. 
Also  used  in  Cheshire :  Wilbraham  in  v. 

Ater,  prep,  after.  Also  used  in  Somersetshire  and 
Norfolk :  Jennings  and  Boucher  in  v. 

Atomy,  s.  (also  pronounced  otomy),  a  skeleton.  This 
old  corruption  of  anatomy  is  also  used  in  other 
parts  of  England :  see  Nares  and  Boucher  in 
Atomy,  Moor  and  Jennings  in  Mottomy.  The 
corruption  has  arisen  from  a  confusion  of  the 
indefinite  article  with  the  first  syllable  of  the 
succeeding  word.  Instead  of  saying  an  anatomy, 
illiterate  persons  said  an  atomy.  Many  similar 
corruptions  have  taken  place  in  our  own  and 
other  languages.  Thus  a  nadder  has  become 
an  adder  ;  a  nawl>  an  aivl ;  a  napron,  an  apron ; 
a  nide  of  pheasants,  an  eye  of  pheasants.,  So, 
being  an  adept  at  anything  has  been  corrupted 
into  being  a  dab  at  anything,  and  an  abettor  into 
a  butty.  In  like  manner,  number  has  in  some 
dialects  been  corrupted  into  umber \  (Grose  in  v.) 
and   nettle  into  ettle,    (See   Ettles.)     See    also 


6  Provincial  Words 

Tyrwhitt's  Glossary  to  Chaucer  in  Nale,  and 
Boucher's  Dictionary  in  An.  In  Italian,  una 
apecchia  has  become  una  pecchia  ;  una  aguglia, 
una  guglia  ;  V  Alamagna,  la  Magna,  and  /'  ana- 
lomia,  la  notomia.  On  the  other  hand,  /'  onza, 
I'  or  dura,  have  become  la  lonza,  la  lor  dura.  In 
French,  m'amie  has  become  ma  mie,  and  VApouille, 
la  Pouille  ;  whilst  Voisir  has  become  le  loisir,  and 
Vendemain  has  become  le  lendemain,  (like  the 
tother  in  English.) 

Audacious,  adj.  not  shy,  insolent. 

Aul,  or  orl,  s.  an  alder.  Alor,  air,  A.S.  Pro- 
nounced aller  in  Devonshire  and  Somersetshire  : 
Palmer  and  Jennings  in  v.  The  following  are 
proverbial  lines : — 

"  When  the  bud  of  the  aul  is  as  big  as  the  trout's  eye, 
Then  that  fish  is  in  season  in  the  river  Wye." 

In  Yorkshire  and  Derbyshire,  an  alder  is  called  an 
owler  :  Grose  and  Hunter  in  v. 

Aulen,  adj.  of  alder,  as  "  the  aulen  coppice,"  "  an 
aulen  pole."  Compare  Elmen. 

To  Awhile,  v.  n.  Used  only  in  the  expression,  "  I 
can't  awhile,"  I  can't  wait,  I  have  no  time,  that  is, 
probably,  "  I  can't  have  while." 

To  Ax,  v.  a.  to  ask.  This  old  form  of  the  word  (see 
Nares  in  v.)  seems  to  be  current  as  a  provin- 
cialism in  most  parts  of  England.  It  occurs  in  the 
Craven  Glossary,  Hunter's  Hallamshire  Glossary, 


used  in  Herefordshire.  1 

Moor's  Suffolk  Words,  Forby's  East- Anglian  Vo- 
cabulary, Jennings's  Somersetshire  Glossary,  and 
Palmer's  Devonshire  Glossary.  It  is  also  Scotch  : 
see  Jamieson  in  v.     Compare  Boucher  in  v. 

B. 

Backside,  s.  the  back  ;  as,  the  backside  of  the  wood, 
the  house,  &c.  E.g.  "Did  you  see  maister?" 
"  No  :  he  went  out  at  the  backside  now  just." 

Bad,  adj.  "Bad  to  do  in  the  world,"  is  opposed  to 
"  well  to  do  in  the  world."  Poor,  in  straitened  cir- 
cumstances. 

To  Bag,  v.  a.  to  bag  peas  is  to  cut  them  with  a  hook, 
resembling  the  common  reaping-hook,  but  with  a 
handle  long  enough  to  admit  of  both  hands  being 
applied  to  it.  This  expression  is  used  in  a  nearly 
similar  sense  in  Gloucestershire,  and  also  according 
to  Boucher,  in  Shropshire.  Boucher  says,  "  I 
suspect  the  people  of  these  counties  borrowed  this 
term  (bagging  hook)  from  their  neighbours  the 
Welsh ;  adding  to  bach  a  hook,  the  English  of  it." 

Bait,  s,  a  meal  taken  by  a  labourer  in  the  middle  of 
the  day. 

Bald-rib,  s.  spare-rib.  Also  used  in  Gloucester- 
shire. It  is  spelt  ballrib  in  Jennings's  Somerset- 
shire Glossary. 


8  Provincial  Words 

Banky,  adj.  U  a  banky  piece,"  a  field  with  banks  in  it. 

Bannut-tree,  s.  a  walnut-tree  bearing  small  fruit. 
This  word  is  stated  by  Jennings,  p.  10,  to  be  also 
used  in  the  northern  parts  of  Somersetshire.  In 
Grose's  Glossary,  the  expression  "  bannet-tree " 
for  walnut-tree  is  stated  to  be  used  in  Gloucester- 
shire. 

Barm,  s.  yeast,  from  beorma,  A.S.  A  word  used  in 
other  parts  of  the  country.  See  Boucher  in  v.  It  is 
pronounced  burnt  in  Devonshire  :  Palmer  in  v. 

Bash,  s.  1.  the  mass  of  the  roots  of  a  tree  before  they 
separate.  In  Grose's  Glossary,  tc  bashy"  is  stated 
to  be  a  north-country  word  for  "  fat,  swelled." 
In  Norfolk,  according  to  Forby,  "to  cut  a  bosh,  is 
something  stronger  than  the  more  usual  expression 
to  '  cut  a  dash  ;'  something  more  showy  and  ex- 
pensive." Forby  states  that  bosen  out  is  rendered 
by  tumidus  in  the  Promtuarium  Parvulorum  ;  and 
he  compares  the  French  bosse.  See  also  Grose  in 
Bosh.  The  word  svjell  is  similarly  used  in  modern 
slang  language :  Compare  the  description  of  the 
approach  of  Dalila,  in  Samson  Agonistes,  v.  710. 
2.  Bash  is  also  used  to  signify  the  front  of  a  bull's  or 
pig's  head.  Pash  is  a  ludicrous  term  for  the  head 
in  Scotch  :  Jamieson  in  v.  Bash  in  this  sense 
appears  to  be  derived  from  to  bash  or  pash,  to 
strike^  or  push :    see  Todd's  Johnson,  Forby  and 


used  in  Herefordshire.  9 

Crav.  Glossary,  in  Pash,  and  Jamieson  in  Bash. 
The  word  pash  occurs  in  this  sense  in  Winter's 
Tale :— 

Leontes.  How  now,  you  wanton  calf? 

Art  thou  my  calf? 

Mamillius.     Yes,  it'  you  will,  my  Lord. 
Leont.  Thou  want'st  a  rough  pash,  and  the  shoots 

that  I  have, 

To  be  full  like  me, — Act  I.  sc.  2. 

Which  passage  is  correctly  explained  by  M alone 
thus  :  ct  You  tell  me  that  you  are  like  me ;  that  you 
are  my  calf.  I  am  the  horned  bull ;  thou  wantest 
the  rough  head  and  the  horns  of  that  animal,  com- 
pletely to  resemble  your  father."  A  mad-brained 
boy  is  called  a  mad  pash  in  Cheshire  (see  Grose 
in  Pash) ;  which,  as  Henley  remarks  on  the 
passage  in  Winter's  Tale,  is  designed  to  characterize 
him  from  the  wantonness  of  a  calf  that  blunders 
on,  and  runs  his  head  against  anything. 

Bat,  s.  a  wooden  tool  used  for  battering  or  beating 
clods  of  earth. 

To  Bat,  v.  a.  to  strike  with  a  bat. 

Bath,  s.  a  sow. 

Beethy,  adj.  soft,  sticky,  contrary  to  crisp,  overripe. 
It  is  also  said  of  a  person  in  a  slight  perspiration. 
Grose  in  v.  states  that  underdone  meat  is  so  called 
in  Herefordshire;    but  this  sense  is    not   known 

b3 


]0  Provincial  Words 

at  present.  In  Boucher's  Glossary,  to  heath  is 
explained  to  mean  k<  to  dry  by  exposure  to  the  fire." 
To  bathe  is  used  by  Chaucer,  C.  T.  15273,  as 
equivalent  to  bask.  From  these  uses  it  may  be 
inferred  that  beethy  means  such  a  degree  of 
moisture  as  is  created  in  a  porous  substance  by 
imperfect  exposure  to  heat,  sufficient  to  cause  the 
steam  to  pervade  it,  but  not  to  drive  it  off  entirely. 

To  Bellrag,  v.  to  scold  in  a  clamorous  manner. 
"  To  ballerag  "  has  the  same  meaning  in  the  West 
Riding  of  Yorkshire  ;  "to  bullyrag"  in  Norfolk; 
"  to  ballirag  "  in  Devonshire  and  Somersetshire  : 
Willan,  Forby,  Palmer,  and  Jennings,  invv.  "To 
rag "  is  used  in  the  North  in  the  same  sense  : 
Grose  in  v.     Comp.  Crav.  Gl.  in  Bullyrag. 

To  Bellock,  v.  to  bawl,  to  bellow.  A  cow  which  has 
lost  her  calf  bellocks.  Formed,  as  well  as  bellow, 
from  bellan,  A.  S.  To  bullock  is  used  in  Norfolk  : 
Forby  in  v. 

Bent,  s.  the  seed-stalk  of  grass.  Hence  the  popu- 
lar distich : 

Pigeons  never  do  know  woe, 
But  when  they  do  a  benting  go. 

That  is,  pigeons  are  never  in  want  of  food  except 
at  times  when  they  are  reduced  to  the  necessity  of 
living  on  the  seeds  of  the  grass,  which  ripen  before 
the  crops  of  grain.     In  Jennings's  Somersetshire 


used  in  Herefordshire.  1 1 

Glossary,  "bennet';  is  "long  coarse  grass,"  and 
"bennety,  abounding  in  bennets."  In  the  West- 
moreland and  Cumberland  Glossary,  bent  grass  is 
explained  to  be  long  coarse  grass,  which  chiefly 
grows  upon  the  moors.  See  also  Crav,  Gl.  and 
Forby  in  v.  Bent  is  used  in  the  old  ballad  of 
Chevy  Chace, — 

el  Bomen  bickarte  upon  the  bent, 
With  their  broad  aras  cleare." 

Stanza  5. 

and  in  the  ballad  of  Sir  Cauline,  Part  1,  st.  20, 
(Percy,  vol.  i.) 

"  Then  a  lightsome  bugle  heard  he  blow- 
Over  the  bents  so  brown." 

It  is  remarkable  that  the  word  bent,  as  used  in  the 
old  ballad  of  Chevy  Chace,  to  signify  grass  or  field 
generally,  was  mistaken  by  the  author  of  the 
modern  ballad  to  mean  inclination  of  the  mind. 
See  Percy's  Introduction  to  the  modern  ballad, 
vol.  ii. 
See  further  Boucher's  Glossary  in  v.  Bent  is  also 
Scotch,  and  is  used  by  W.  Scott ;  e.  g.  in  Thomas 
the  Rhymer,  Part  3. 

•'  But  footsteps  light  across  the  bent 
The  warrior's  ears  assail." 

Bent  is  so  called,  because  the  seed-stalk  of  grass  bends 


12  Provincial  Words 

with  the  wind.  In  Chancer,  bent  signifies  the 
bending  or  declivity  of  a  hill,  Tyrwhitt  in  v. 

Bessy,  s.  "  Don't  be  a  bessy,"  said  to  a  man  who  in- 
terferes with  a  woman's  affairs  or  business.  (Forest 
of  Dean.) 

Besom,  s.  a  birch  broom.  (In  common  use.)  It  is 
never  applied  to  a  bair  broom.  Used  in  other 
parts  of  the  country;  Grose  in  Beesom  and  Besom. 

To  Bett,  v.  a.  to  pare  the  greensward  with  a  breast- 
plough,  or  betting-iron,  usually  with  a  view  to  its 
being  burnt,  and  the  ashes  spread  for  manure. 
The  sod  when  so  pared  is  called  "  the  betting :" 
thus  "  setting  up  the  betting,"  "  putting  fire  to  the 
betting."  The  same  process  is  known  in  Devon- 
shire and  other  parts  of  England  by  the  name  of 
• '  beat,"  or  "  burning-beat,"  or  "  beat-burning,"  ac- 
cording to  Boucher  in  Beate  burning,  and  Palmer 
in  Beat. 

To  "bete  fires"  is  used  in  Chaucer  for  to  prepare 
fires,  C.  T.  2255.  2294.  In  C.  T.  3925,  "to 
bete ,?  means  to  mend ;  and  in  another  place  to 
64  bete  sorwe  ''  is  to  heal  sorrow.  The  original  sense 
of  the  word  seems  to  be  that  of  mending  or  setting 
to  rights;  connected  with  bet,  bette,  (Chaucer, 
C.  T.  7.r)33,)  and  better.  It  may  tend  to  confirm 
the  notion  that  this  is  the  original  meaning  of  bete, 
if  we  consider  that   "bette,"  adj.,  meant   fertile 


used  in  Herefordshire.  2  3 

in  old  English.  "  Let  the  soil  be  as  fertile  and 
bette  as  any  would  wish,"  quotation  from  Holin- 
shed  in  note  to  Southey's  Life  of  Wesley,  ii. 
p   594.     Now  on  looking  to  u  till  "  we   find   the 

.  general  sense  of  preparing,  setting  in  order, 
narrowed  to  the  agricultural  meaning;  and  so  it 
may  have  been  with  bete,  bette,  and  beti. 

Better,  adv.  more  numerous.  As,  Ci  better  nor  ten." 
See  Craven  Glossary,  in  v. 

To  Bewray,  v.  to  defile  with  ordure.  "gThe  birds 
bewray  the  church."  It  is  used  by  old  writers  in 
the  sense  of  discover  or  betray  :  see  Junius,  Nares, 
and  Tyrwhitt  in  v. 

Bilberry,  s.  a  small  black  bogberry,  the  wortleberry. 

Black  Poles,  poles  in  a  copse  which  have  stood 
over  one  or  two  falls  of  underwood. 

Blob,  s.  a  blister.  Bleb  \  and  blob  occur  in  the 
Craven  Glossary,  with  the  sense  of  a  bubble  or 
blister.  Blob  is  also  Scotch;  see  Jamieson  in 
Bleib  and  Blob.  In  Suffolk,  blob,  according  to 
Moor,  signifies  "a  blunt  termination  to  a  thing 
that  is  usually  more  pointed.  A  parrot's  tongue  is 
said  to  be  blob-indid,  or  to  have  a  blob  end.  A  per- 
son who,  by  biting  his  or  her  nails,  has  injured  the 
shape  of  the  fingers,  would  be  called  blob-Jin- 
gered*  p.  35.  See  also  Forby  in  v.  The  word 
blob  is  etymologically  connected  with  the    Latin 


14  Provincial  Words 

bulbus,  and  other  numerous  words  belonging  to 
the  same  root,  in  which  the  idea  of  roundness  pre- 
dominates. See  the  Philological  Museum,  vol.  i. 
p.  405,  sqq. 

Body,  s.  Used  as  a  term  of  commiseration,  to  de- 
note deficiency.  As  "  A  poor  simple  body."  "  I 
never  seed  such  a  poor  helpless  body  in  my  life ; 
she  canna  do  nothing." 

Body-horse,  s.  the  second  horse  of  a  team  of  four. 
e.  g.    "  Smiler  was  in  the  body  yesterday."    (GL.) 

Bogie,  s.  a  ghost.  Not  peculiar  to  Herefordshire. 
See  Junius  in  Bogie  and  below  in  Bugabo. 

Bolting,  s.  A  "  bolting  of  straw  "  is  a  quantity  of 
straw  tied  up  into  a  bundle  or  small  truss.  When 
straw  is  sold  by  the  weight,  each  bolting  ought  to 
weigh  14  lbs. ;  but  boltings  of  straw  are  often 
bought  and  paid  for  according  to  their  apparent 
size.  The  word  is  also  used  in  Gloucestershire. 
It  is  probably  derived  from  the  peculiar  -mode  in 
which  the  band  of  straw  is  fastened  down,  and,  as 
it  were  belted,  for  the  purpose  of  holding  the  truss 
together.  See  Thrave.  Pease-bolt  is  used  for 
pease-straw  in  Essex :  Grose  in  v. 

To  Boodge,  v.  a.  to  stuff  bushes  into  a  hedge.  Pro- 
bably a  variety  of  to  push. 

Boosy,  n.  s.  the  manger  of  a  cattle-stall.  From 
Bosig  or  bosg,  A.  S.    Bosworth  in  v.    Boose  is  ex- 


used  in  Herefordshire. 


it 


plained  by  Johnson  to  mean  "  a  stall  for  a  cow  or 
an  ox,"  but  he  gives  no  example  of  it  in  any 
writer.  It  is  used  in  Cheshire,  according  to  Wil- 
braham,  and  in  Yorkshire,  according  to  the  Cra- 
ven Glossary,  and  Hunter's  Appendix,  p.  119. 
See  Junius  in  Boose. 

Bottle,  n.  s.  Sometimes  used  in  the  same  sense  as 
costrel,  which  see. 

To  be  Bound,  v.  to  be  sure.  "  He  is  bound  to  be 
there,"  he  is  sure  to  be  there.  Also  used  in 
Gloucestershire. 

To  Box,  v.  n.  to  strike,  as  a  gun  which  recoils.  The 
word  box  signifies  a  blow,  in  the  expression,  M  Box 
on  the  ear."  It  has  the  same  sense  in  Chaucer : 
Tyrwhitt  in  v. 

Brad,  n.  s.  a  nail  with  a  small  head.  This  word 
is  used  in  Cheshire  :  see  Wilbraham  in  v.  Grose 
says,  "  Brod,  a  kind  of  nail,  called  brads  in  the 
south."  This  word,  though  it  occurs  in  other 
provincial  glossaries,  seems  to  be  generally  used, 
and  is  inserted  in  Johnson's  Dictionary. 

Brags,  s.  u  To  make  his  brags"  is  to  brag,  to  boast, 
to  threaten  to  do  great  things,  in  a  presumptuous 
and  confident  manner ;  as,  "  He  made  his  brags 
as  he  would  do  for  'em  all  if  he  met  them  at  the 
fair." 

Brass,  s.  copper  coins.     "  I  paid  him  eleven  pence  : 


16  Provincial  Words 

sixpence  silver,  and  five  pennyworth  of  brass" 
Also  used  in  the  northern  counties :  Grose, 
Crav.  Gl.,  and  Westmoreland  and  Cumberland 
Glossary  in  v. 

To  Brevet  about,  v.  to  beat  about  the  fields  in  search 
of  something.     (GL.) 

Breveting,  adj.  gadding  about.     (Forest  of  Dean.) 

Brouse,  s.  (pronounced  like  house),  cut  brushwood, 
the  smaller  ends  of  bushes.  As,  "  I  did  na  take 
the  faggots  ;  it  was  only  some  bits  of  brouse  anunt 
the  stack.'*     Also  used  in  Gloucestershire. 

Bucking,  n.  s.  the  mode  of  washing  so  called.  This 
old  word  appears  to  be  derived  from  buc,  A.  S.,  a 
bowl  or  tub,  from  which  bucket  is  formed :  see 
Bosworth's  A.  S.  Dictionary  in  v.  Bucato  in 
Italian,  and  bu'e  in  old  French,  signify  washing. 

Bud-bird,  s.  a  bullfinch. 

To  Buff,  v.n.  to  stammer:  whence  "a  buffer,"  a 
stammerer.  This  appears  to  be  an  imitative 
word,  like  hiss,  growl,  murmur,  buzz,  &c. 

To  play  the  Bugan.  To  play  the  devil.  Bug  occurs 
as  well  as  bugbear  in  old  writers :  Johnson  zn  v. 
It  is  said  to  be  derived  from  the  Welsh  bwg,  a 
hobgoblin.  See  Jamieson  in  Boggarde  and  Bo- 
gill. 

Bugabo,  s.  a  bugbear,  a  ghost.  Also  used  in  Glou- 
cestershire. 


used  in  Herefordshire. 


17 


To  Bunt,  v.  a.  (pronounced  boont)  to  push  with  the 
head.  A  sucking  calf,  lamb,  or  colt,  which  strikes 
the  udder  with  its  nose,  is  said  to  hunt.  The 
word  is  also  used  in  Gloucestershire  in  this  sense. 
Slightly  modified  from  the  word  pun,  which  see. 
In  Somersetshire  "to  bunt"  means  to  bolt,  or 
separate  the  flour  from  the  bran  :  Jennings  in  v. 
"  To  bult"  is  used  for  to  bolt  in  Yorkshire  :  Cra- 
ven Glossary  in  v. 

Bur,  s.  1.  The  sweetbread,  or  pancreas,  of  a  calf. 
This  word  is  also  used  in  this  sense  in  Cheshire  and 
Derbyshire :  Wilbraham  and  Grose  in  v.  2.  A 
tree  cropped  to  produce  poles.  A  "bur-oak"  is  a 
pollard  oak.  The  latter  sense  is  probably  derived 
from  a  pollard  tree  having  a  round  bristly  look, 
instead  of  having  spreading  branches.  A  "  bur- 
tree"  means  an  elder  tree  in  the  north  :  Grose  in  v. 

Burrough,  or  Burrow,  s.  the  lee,  the  side  shel- 
tered from  the  wind.  "  Burrow  hurdles "  are 
wattled  hurdles  which  the  wind  cannot  easily 
blow  through.  (GL.)  See  Div.  of  Purley,  vol.  ii. 
p.  186. 

Bursted,  or  Busted,  the  preterit  of  to  burst,  e.  g. 
"  It  bursted  open  the  door."  Also  used  in  Glou- 
cestershire. 

Burying,  $.  a  funeral.  '  To  fetch  a  burying '  is  to 
accompany   the   corpse.     Pronounced    berring   in 


18  Provincial  Words 

Yorkshire :  Mr.  Hunter  doubts  whether  the  word 

be  not  rather  derived  from  bear  than  bury.     The 

conjecture     seems     probable :     see    Boucher     in 

Beoryng. 
Bustle,  s.  a  scolding  bout.     Thus,  "  to  get  into  a 

bustle  about  a  thing"  signifies  to  get  into  a  scolding 

about  it. 
Butt,  s.  the  lower  part  of  the  stem  of  a  timber-tree. 

Also  used  in  Somersetshire. 
Butty,  s.  an  assistant,  comrade,  helpmate,  partner. 

Also   used   in  Gloucestershire.      Corrupted  from 

abettor.     See  Atomy. 
By  your  LEAve,  or  By'r  leave.     An  expression  of 

civility  used  by  an  inferior  to  a  superior,  in  the  act 

of  causing  him  some  slight  inconvenience.     It  is 

nearly  equivalent  to  pardon  and  scusi,  as  used  in 

French  and  Italian. 
Bytack,  s.  a  farm  taken  by  the  bye,  in  addition  to 

another  farm,  and  on  which  the  tenant  does  not 

reside ;  e.  g.    "  Them  bytacks  be  the  ruin  of  the 

country.''     Compare  Tack. 


C. 


Caddling,  adj.  false,  insincere,  cajoling  with  a  view 
of  buying  anything  below  its  value.  Very  often 
applied  to  butchers,  but  always  in  a  bad  sense  : 


used  in  Herefordshire,  \  9 

thus,  "  a  little  caddling  butcher."  "  Don't  be  cad- 
dling  so  long  about  it."     "  I  don't  bid  caddling,  I 
bid  fair."  (GL.)     Scaddle  means  thievish,  rapa- 
cious, in  Kent,  according  to  Grose  in  v. 
Cadger,    s.    an   itinerant   dealer   whose  wares    are 

carried  in  a  small  cart. 
Cag,  s.  the  stump  of  a  branch  protruding  from  the 
tree,   the  stump   of  a    broken   tooth.     Compare 
Snag. 
To  Cant,  v.  to  backbite,  without  reference  to  reli- 
gious hypocrisy. 
Cantle,  s.  a  piece,  a  fragment   (in  common  use)  ; 
e.  g.  u  a  cantle  of  bread"  means  a  corner  off  a  loaf; 
*'  a  cantle  of  a  field,"  a  small  piece  of  a  field.    The 
word  is  used  by  Chaucer,  C.  T.  3010. 

"  Of  no  partie  ne  cantel  of  a  thing." 

And  by  Shakspeare,  1  Hen.  IV.  act  3,  sc.  1. 

"  See  how  this  river  comes  me  cranking  in, 
And  cuts  me,  from  the  best  of  all  my  land, 
A  huge  half-moon,  a  monstrous  cantle  out." 

Antony  and  Cleopatra,  act  3,  sc.  8. 

si  The  greater  cantle  of  the  world  is  lost 
With  very  ignorance." 

See  Nares  in  Cantle,  Grose  and  Moor  in  Cant, 
and  the  Craven  Glossary  in  Cant  and  Canting. 
The  word  kante  or  kant,  for  edge  or  corner,  occurs 


20  Provincial  Words 

in  nearly  all  the  Teutonic  languages.  See  Meidin- 
ger's  Compar.  Dictionary,  p.  193. 

Candle  of  the  Eye,  s.  pupil  of  the  eye.  In  Nor- 
folk and  Suffolk  the  pupil  of  the  eye  is  called  the 
"  bird  of  the  eye ;"  Grose  and  For  by  in  v.,  in  which 
expression  "bird"  means  damsel,  or  girl,  (see 
Jamieson  in  v.)  and  is  equivalent  to  Kopiy  in 
Greek  and  pupil  la  in  Latin.  The  name  is  derived 
from  the  diminished  image  of  himself  which  the 
beholder  sees  iu  the  eye  of  the  person  whom  he 
addresses.     See  Boucher  in  "  Bird  of  the  eye." 

Carlock,  s.  the  weed  charlock. 

Cauve,  s.  calf. 

Char,  or  Cher,  s.  a  job.  "  To  do  a  char  (or  chair) 
for  a  friend,"  is  to  do  a  job  for  a  friend.  u  That's 
a  good  cher,"  that  is  a  good  job;  expressive  of 
approbation.  Also  used  in  Gloucestershire.  See 
Nares  in  Chare.  In  Devonshire  and  Somerset- 
shire this-  word  is  pronounced  choor.  See  Jennings 
in  Choor,  Palmer  in  Chures.  See  Tooke's  Div. 
of  Purley,  vol.  ii.  p.  192. 

Charks,  s.  charcoal. 

To  Chark,  v.  to  make  charcoal,  to  char. 

A  Charker,  s.  one  who  makes  charcoal. 

To  Chastise,  v.  to  question  closely,  particularly  as 
to  some  mischief  done.  A  similar  confusion  of 
examination  and  punishment  occurs  in  the  line  of 


used  in  Herefordshire. 


21 


Virgil,  "  Castigatque,  auditque  dolos,  subigitque 
fateri."  Mn.  vi. 
Chats,  s.  dead  sticks.  According  to  Grose's  Glos- 
sary, "  chat "  means  "  a  small  twig  "  in  Derbyshire  ; 
"  chats"  means  "  keys  of  .trees,  as  ash-chats,  syca- 
more-chats," in  the  northern  counties  ;  and  "  chat- 
tocks"  means  "refuse  wood,  left  in  making4 fag- 
gots," in  Gloucestershire.  According  to  the 
present  usage  in  Gloucestershire,  the  chips  which 
fly  from  the  axe  when  a  tree  is  cut  down  are 
called  chats ;  what  the  carpenter  cuts  off,  chips, 
"  Chats "  is  explained  to  mean  spray- wood  in 
the  Westmoreland  and  Cumberland  Glossary. 
According  to  the  Craven  Glossary,  "chatts-" 
are  "  the  capsules  of  the  ash,  sycamore,  &c, 
called  also  keys"  According  to  Moor's  Suf- 
folk Words,  "  chates,"  or  "  chaits,"  are  "  broken 
victuals;  the  remnants  of  turnips  or  other  food 
left  by  fatting  sheep,  &c,  to  which  leaner  or 
more  hungry  stock  is  turned  in,  to  pick  up 
the  chaits,  or  orts."  "  Chats,"  or  "  chatter 
bushes,"  are  explained  by  Moor  to  be  "  pro- 
truding bushes  of  blackthorn,  &c,  running  into 
a  field  from  the  fence;  or  the  lower  straggling 
branches  of  a  tree,  which  we  otherwise  call 
sprawls"     Forby,  in  v.,  says  that  chaits  is  the 


22  Provincial  Words 

same  word  as  chits,  whence  the  diminutive  chitter- 
lings. In  German,  katze  has  the  sense  of  a  bundle 
or  bunch;  and  it  also  signifies  the  keys  of  a 
tree.  See  Adelung  in  Katze,  No.  5.  The  English 
word  catkins  is  a  cognate  form. 

Chawm,  s.  a  crack  in  the  ground  caused  by  dry 
weather.     Corrupted  from  chasm.  (GL.) 

Cheese,  s.  Cider  hairs  filled  with  must  aud  piled  in 
readiness  to  be  pressed.  A  various  form  of  case. 
It  may  be  observed  that  the  Italian  formaggio  is 
derived  from  forma,  in  the  sense  of  a  case,  i.  e.  the 
case  in  which  the  cheese  is  pressed. 

Chilver,  s.  an  ewe  lamb.  (GL.)  Grose  explains 
it  to  mean  "  the  mutton  of  a  maiden  sheep." 

Chimbley,  s.  chimney.  This  pronunciation  of  the 
wrord  is  mentioned  in  the  Craven  Glossary,  in 
Wilbraham's  Cheshire  Glossary,  in  Jennings's  So- 
mersetshire Glossary,  in  Palmer's  Devonshire 
Glossary,  and  in  Forby's  East  Anglian  Vocabulary. 
It  is  also  usual  in  Gloucestershire.  The  insertion 
of  b  after  m  occurs  likewise  in  homber  and  sumber 
in  this  glossary  :  see  further,  Lewis's  Essay  on  the 
Romance  Languages,  p.  19,  and  Donaldson's  New 
Cratylus,  p.  292.  Sometimes  the  provincial  dialect 
omits  the  b  after  m  :  thus  the  Somersetshire  dialect 
has  timmer  for  timber  (Zimmer,  German),  and 


used  in  Herefordshire. 


23 


the  Somersetshire  and  Devonshire  dialects  have 
emmers  and  yammers  for  embers  :  Jennings 
and  Palmer  in  v.     Compare  Boucher  in  Aymers. 

Chump,  s.  a  log  of  wood  for  burning.  The  thick  end 
of  a  sirloin  of  beef  is  called  the  '  chump  end.' 
This  word  is  also  used  in  Gloucestershire  and  in 
Norfolk  :  Forby  in  v. 

Churm,  s.  a  churn. 

To  Clam,  v.  a.  I.  to  clog  up,  2.  to  starve.  In  Glouces- 
tershire u  to  clam"  means  to  stick  or  adhere,  as  clay 
or  the  like,  so  as  to  hinder  work.  If  clay  or  earth 
sticks  to  the  spade,  so  that  a  man  cannot  dig,  he  is 
said  to  be  'c  clammed  up."  This  old  word  (Nares 
in  Clem)  is  still  current  in  the  north  of  England. 
See  Willan  in  Clam,  Craven  Glossary  in  Clam 
and  Clammed,  and  Wilbraham's  Cheshire  Glossary 
in  Clem.  In  Suffolk  the  word  is  stated  to  be 
nearly  obsolete ;  see  Moor  in  Clammd.  But  see 
Forby  in  v.  It  does  not  occur  in  Jennings's  So- 
mersetshire Glossary  ;  and  in  Palmer's  Devonshire 
Glossary,  "  to  clum"  or  "  clam"  is  explained,  "to 
rumple  or  soil  by  handling,  from  clumian,  Sax.,  to 
daub,  foul,  or  besmear."  From  "  to  clam,"  in  the 
sense  of  "to  stick,"  is  derived  the  adjective 
clammy, 

Clea,  s.  claw.  Each  division  of  the  hoof  of  an  ox 
or  other  cloven-footed  animal  is  called  a  clea.   This 


24  Provincial  Words 

form  is  used  in  Yorkshire,  Cheshire,  and  Norfolk  : 
Craven  Glossary,  Wilbraham  and  Forby  in  v. 

Cleaching  Net,  s.  a  bag-net,  attached  to  a  semi- 
circular hoop  having  a  transverse  piece,  to  the 
centre  of  which  a  pole  is  fixed.  The  net  is  put 
gently  into  the  stream,  and  drawn  towards  the 
bank  when  the  river  is  in  flood,  and  the  fish  draw 
to  the  sides.  Called  a  clinching-net  in  Gloucester- 
shire. 

To  Cleach,  v.  to  use  a  cleaching  net. 

Cockshut,  s.  a  contrivance  for  catching  woodcocks 
in  an  open  glade  or  drive  in  a  wood,  by  means  of 
a  suspended  net.  In  some  places,  cockshut,  from 
an  appellative,  has  become  a  proper  name,  the 
meaning  being  extinct. 

To  Collogue,  v.  n.  to  converse  together  (used  in  a 
bad  sense).  See  Nares,  Hunter,  Craven  Glossary, 
Forby,  Moor,  and  Jennings,  in  v. 

Colly,  adj.  dirty,  smutty,  from  coal.  See  Nares  in 
Colly  and  To  Colly,  Wilbraham's  Cheshire  Gloss. 
in  Collow.  Steevens  on  "  Othello,"  act  2,  sc.  3, 
("  Passion  having  my  best  judgment  collied,") 
states  that  the  word  colly  was  used  in  the  midland 
counties  in  his  time.  In  Gloucestershire,  ac- 
cording to  Grose,  colley  means  the  black  or  soot 
from  a  kettle.  In  Somersetshire,  a  colley,  ac- 
cording to  Jennings,  means  a  blackbird. 


used  in  Herefordshire.  25 

To  Come,  v.  applied  to  the  increase  of  a  river  in 
flood,  as  "  Wye's  a  coming." 

Come  by  now,  used  as  an  exclamation  for  "get  out 
of  the  way." 

To  Come  down  upon,  v.  to  reprove,  to  chide.  The 
same  as  to  "  get  over." 

Comical,  adj.  ill-tempered.     See  Stick. 

Out  of  the  common,  out  of  the  common  way. 

To  Conceit,  v.  and  Conceit,  s.  (sometimes  pro- 
nounced consate.)  To  suppose,  a  notion,  as  u  I 
conceited  it  was  so ;"  "  I  had  no  conceit  of  it." 

To  Concern  with,  v.  n.  to  meddle  with. 

Cop,  s.  The  "  cop  of  a  ridge"  is  the  summit  of  a 
ridge  in  a  ploughed  field  ;  compare  re  en.  Cop  sig- 
nifies a  top  or  summit  in  Welsh ;  but  the  word 
occurs  in  all  the  Teutonic  languages,  and  it  is 
doubtful  whether  its  use  in  Herefordshire  was  de- 
rived from  the  Welsh.  See  Grose  in  Cop  and 
Cope. 

Coppy,  s.  a  coppice ;  so  called,  according  to  Willan 
in  v.,  as  being  a  round  woody  eminence,  from 
cop. 

Cornel,  .9.  a  corner. 

Costrel,  s.  a  small  portable  cask,  used  for  carrying 
beer  or  cider  into  the  field.  This  word  is  in  the 
Craven  Glossary,  and  Grose  calls  it  a  north  coun- 
try word.     It  may  probably  occur  as   a  provin- 


26  Provincial  Words 

cialism  in  other  parts  of  the  kingdom  ;  for  its  usage 

is  ancient.     Costrellus  occurs  in  Matthew  Paris ; 

see  Ducange  in  v.     Costeret  or  cousterei  is  used  in 

old  French,  in  the  sense  of  a  measure  for  wine  or 

other  liquors  ;  Roquefort  in  vv.     This  form  of  the 

word  occurs  in  the  Romance  of  Richard  Cceur  de 

Lion : 

*  Now,  steward,  I  warne  thee 
Buy  us  vessel  [i.  e.  vaisselle]  great  plente. 
Dishes,  cuppes,  and  saucers, 
Bowls,  trays,  and  platters, 
Vats,  tuns,  and  costret ; 
Maketh  our  meat  withouten  let." 

Ellis's  Romances,  vol.  ii.  p.  213. 

Costrel  is  used  by  Chaucer,  Legend  of  Goode 
Women,  2655.  A  costrel  is  probably  so  called 
from  being  made  of  costce,  staves  or  ribs  hooped 
together. 

To  Couch,  v.  n.  to  squat,  to  sit  as  a  rabbit  or  hare. 
From  the  French  coucher. 

To  Cowse,  v.  to  chase  animals,  particularly  sheep 
and  pigs.  It  may  also  be  said  of  an  idle  person, 
that  he  "  goes  tampering  and  cowsing  about." 
Probably  a  corruption  of  to  course. 

Cowt,  s.  a  colt. 

Cratch,  s.  a  rack  for  hay  in  a  stable.  Cratch  is 
also  used  in  other  counties :  Grose,  Moor,  and 
Hunter  in  v.     An  old  word  :  thus  Spenser,  Hymn 


used  in  Herefordshire.  2? 

of  Heav.  Love,  st.  33. 

"  Begin  from  first,  where  he  encradled  was 
In  simple  cratch,  wrapped  in  a  wad  of  hay." 

See  also  Nares  in  Cratch.  Cratch  and  rack  are 
probably  different  forms  of  the  same  word. 

Craven,  s.  (pronounced  cravven),  a  coward.  In 
common  use. 

Crink,  s.  a  very  ^small  child.  In  Gloucestershire, 
according  to  Grose,  a  crinch  means  a  small  bit. 

To  Crowdle,  v.  n.  to  crouch.  "  Crowdled  up"  is 
bent  or  doubled  up,  like  a  sick  animal :  from  to 
crowd.  This  word  has  a  nearly  similar  sense  in 
Yorkshire,  Cheshire,  Devonshire,  Norfolk,  and 
Suffolk.  See  Craven  Glossary  in  Cruddle,  Wilbra- 
ham  and  Moor  in  Crewdle,  Forby,  Grose,  and 
Hunter  in  Croodle,  Palmer  in  Crudle. 

Cue,  s.  a  coop,  hatch,  kennel.     A  variety  of  coop 

Cue  (or  Kew),  s.  an  ox's  shoe.  Also  used  in  Glou- 
cestershire. 

To  Cue  (or  Kew),  v.  to  fasten  shoes  on  the  feet  of 
oxen.  An  old  man  resided  many  years  ago  at 
Michel  Dean,  in  Gloucestershire,  who  was  known 
by  the  name  of  the  Ox-cuer,  from  his  dexterity  in 
this  business,  which  requires  skill  and  care,  inas- 
much as  it  is  necessary  that  the  animal  should  be 
thrown.  The  word  ox-kew  appears  to  have  been 
originally  ox-skew,  and  to  have  been  derived  from 

c  2 


28  Provincial  Words 

the  oblique  or  crooked  form  of  the  iron  plate  which 
was  attached  to  each  division  of  the  ox's  hoof.  The 
absorption  of  the  initial  5  after  a  final  x  would, 
upon  this  supposition,  be  analogous  to  the  corrup- 
tions explained  under  the  word  Atomy. 

To  Curf  potatoes,  is  to  earth  them  up.  From  to 
cover. 

Curious,  adj.  strange;  as  "a  curious  temper." 
The  adjectives,  comical,  curious,  and  ridiculous, 
imply  blame. 

Curst,  adj.  ill-tempered,  cross-grained ;  applied 
both  to  men  and  animals.  An  ancient  usage ;  see 
Nares  in  v. 

Cute,  or  Cude,  adj.  sharp,  acrimonious,  corrupted 
from  acute.  Also  used  in  Cheshire  :  Wilbraham 
in  v. 

Cutwith,  s.  the  bar  of  the  plough  to  which  the 
traces  are  attached.     Compare  Lantree. 

D. 

Daddock,  s.  dead  wood,  touchwood ;  in  Gloucester- 
shire, dead  wood  is  said  to  be  "  daddocky,"  or  "  all 
of  a  daddock."  In  Somersetshire,  according  to 
Jennings,  "  daddick"  is  rotten  wood,  and  "  dad- 
dicky"  is  rotten.  According  to  Grose,  dadacky 
means  tasteless  in  the  western  counties.     Daddock 


used  in  Herefordshire.  29 

has  been  derived  from  dead-oak  ;  but  the  termina- 
tion is  probably  similar  to  that  in  bullock,  paddock, 
mammocks,  and  other  words.  See  Philol.  Museum, 
vol.  i.  p.  685. 
Daffish,  adj.  shy,  embarrassed,  easily  abashed. 
Daftish  has  the  same  sense  in  the  Craven  Glos- 
sary. Grose  has  to  daffe,  to  daunt,  as  a  north 
country  word.  "  To  daff"  is  to  confound,  in  the 
West  Riding,  according  to  Willan  in  v.  DafTe 
signifies  a  fool  in  Chaucer,  C.  T.  4206. 

"  I  shall  be  holden  a  daffe  or  a  cokeney." 

The  Scotch  daft  is  evidently  the  passive  participle 
of  to  daff. 
Dar,  s.  a  mark,  as  a  mark  set  up  in  a  field  to  mea- 
sure by.  "  How  did  you  measure  it  ?" — "  I  did 
stick  up  my  stick  as  a  dar."  In  Chaucer,  to  dare, 
is  to  stare : 

"  That  lie  and  dare 
As  in  a  form  sitteth  a  wery  hare." — C.  T.  13,033. 

Thus  dar  may  mean  a  thing  stared  at ;  as  we  call 

a  colour  a  "  staring  colour,"  which  attracts  notice. 
Dandering,  part,  twaddling.      See  Wilbraham  in 

Dander. 
Dank,  adj.  damp  ;  also  used  in  Gloucestershire.     It 

is  pronounced  donk  in   the  north.     Crav.  Gloss. 


30  Provincial  Words 

and  Grose,  in  v.9  and  see  Hunter  in  v.  The  word 
occurs  in  Shakspeare,  (M.  N.  D.  act  ii.  sc.  3. — 
Julius  Caesar,  act  ii.  sc.  2,)  in  Milton  (Translation 
of  Horace's  Ode,  Quis  multa  gracilis),  and  other 
old  writers  ;  and  it  may  still  be  used  in  poetry. 

Dark,  adj.  blind.  Also  used  in  Devonshire  :  Palmer 
in  v. 

Dashed,  part,  abashed.  Numerous  examples  of 
this  sense  of  to  dash  are  given  by  Johnson.  It 
occurs  in  other  provincial  dialects :  see  Crav.  Gl. 
and  Forby  in  v. 

Dawny,  adj.  damp,  as  "  dawny  wheat."  Dawny, 
near  Windsor,  appears  to  be  named  from  this  word. 
Thony  is  damp  in  the  Craven  Glossary,  and  "  thone, 
thony,"  for  "  thawn,  damp,  moist,"  is  a  north 
country  word  in  Grose.  Dawny  is  a  derivative  of 
the  root  thaw  or  dew. 

Day-house,  s.  a  dairy ;  the  room  so  called.  But 
the  word  dairy  would  be  used  in  such  expressions 
as  "a  dairy-farmer,"  "a  dairy-woman."  (GL.) 
Lye  in  Junius,  v.  dairie,  derives  it  from  deyy 
"  quod  majoribus  nostris  lactariam  denotabat." 
Todd,  in  Johnson,  misquotes  Lye,  by  making  him 
say  that  dey  formerly  signified  milk.  Comp 
Richardson  in  dairy. 

Dead  Alive,  adj.  very  stupid.  (GL.) 

Deadly,  adv.  very,  exceedingly,  like  "mortal. "  (GL.) 


used  in  Herefordshire.  31 

Dead  Man,  s.  a  scarecrow. 

Dergy,  adj.  (g  hard),  short  and  thick-set.  From 
dweorg  or  diver g,  A.  S.  Compare  the  German 
zwerg.  The  word  stuggy  appears  to  be  used  with  a 
similar  meaning  in  Devonshire  :  Palmer  in  v. 

Devil-screecher,  s.  the  bird  called  a  swift.  (GL.) 

Diern,  adj.  severe,  hard,  stern,  as  applied  to  men. 
It  is  also  used  metaphorically,  as  "  a  diern  frost." 
In  A.  S.  dyrnan  means  to  hide  ;  whence  dernunga 
or  dearnunga,  secretly,  and  dern-geligr,  a  secret- 
lier,  an  adulterer  (Bosworth  in  vv.)  Hence  too 
the  adj.  demy  which  in  Chaucer  means  secret :  as 
C.  T.  3200. 

"  Of  derne  love  he  cowde,  and  of  solas." 
And  again,  v.  3297. 

"  Ye  mosten  be  full  derne  as  in  this  cas." 

See  also  Junius  in  v.  In  Scotch,  to  darn  or  dern 
is  to  conceal,  and  darn  is  secret :  (Jam.  in  v.  See 
also  the  ballad  of  Robyn  andMakyne  in  Percy.)  In 
modern  English,  "  to  darn"  is  to  mend,  so  as  to 
conceal  the  hole  by  imitating  the  texture  of  the 
stuff :  see  Todd's  Johnson  in  v.  From  the  notion 
of  concealment  is  derived  the  sense  of  lonely, 
melancholy,  which  dearn  generally  bears  in  the 
writers  of  the  age  of  Elizabeth :  see  Nares  in 
Dearn  and  Derne,  and  Pericles,  act  iii.  sc.  1.  Grose 


32  Provincial  Words 

likewise  says,  that  decern  means  lonely,  solitary,  in 
the  northern  counties.  From  the  same  notion  of 
concealment  is  also  derived  the  sense  of  severe  or 
stern ;  the  ideas  of  close  and  uncommunicative,  and 
severe  or  stern,  being  nearly  allied.  Dearnly  has 
the  sense  of  severely  in  a  passage  of  the  "  Faery 
Queen,"  iiL  1.  14,  cited  by  Nares. 

<•  Long  they  thus  travelled  in  friendly  wise, 

Through  countreyes  waste,  and  eke  well  edifyde, 
Seeking  adventures  hard,  to  exercise 

Their  puissaunce,  whylome  full  dernly  tryde." 

F.  Q.  b.  3.  cant.  1.  st.  14. 

In  b.  2.  cant.  1.  st.  35,  and  in  b.  3.  cant.  12.  st.  34, 
dernly  appears  to  mean  earnestly.  See  Todd's 
Notes  on  the  Passages. 

The  insertion  of  i  before  e  (as  in  diem  for  dern) 
occurs  in  fiern,  piert,  and  tiert,  in  this  glossary. 
Compare  Jiele,  lieve,  brieve,  &c,  Italian.  Other 
examples  from  the  Romance  languages  are  given 
in  Diez,  Rom.  Gram.  vol.  i.  p.  129. 

To  Disburst,  v.  to  disburse.  Common  among  farm- 
ers ;  as,  "  I  have  disbursted  all  the  money  as  was 
gathered  into  (within)  sixpence."  Also  used  in 
Norfolk :  Forby  in  v. 

To  Disgest,  v.  to  digest.  This  is  universal,  and 
many  of  the  country  people  appear  to  think  that 
to  disgest  or  dischest  is  to  pass  the  food  out  of  the 


used  in  Herefordshire.  33 

chest  into  the  alimentary  canal.  Also  used  in 
Yorkshire  :  Craven  Glossary  in  v.,  and  it  occurs  in 
old  writers. 

Dither,  s.  a  confused  noise,  a  bother. 

To  Dither,  v.  n.  to  tremble,  to  shake,  to  confuse. 
"  A  dithering  noise"  means  a  confused  noise. 
This  word  is  also  used  in  the  Forest  of  Dean ;  and 
it  is  current  in  Yorkshire  and  Cheshire  :  see  Craven 
Glossary,  Hunter's  Hallamshire  Glossary,  and 
Wilbraham  in  Dither,  and  Marshall's  Rural  Econ. 
of  Yorkshire,  vol.  ii.  p.  316.  "  To  didder"  is  to 
have  a  quivering  of  the  chin  through  cold,  in 
Norfolk :  Forby  in  v.  "  To  dudder "  also  sig- 
nifies "  to  deafen  with  noise,  to  render  the  head 
confused,"  in  Somersetshire,  according  to  Jennings. 
It  corresponds  to  the  German  zittern. 

Divvy  Duck,  s.  a  dabchick;  i.  e.  a  diving  duck. 

Doited,  adj.  doting. 

Done,  part,  used  for  the  preterit,  as  "  I  done  it"  for 
" 1  did  it."     See  Known  and  Taken. 

Dormedory,  corruptly  Dromedory,  adj.  a  sleepy 
stupid  person  who  does  not  get  on  with  work. 
From  dormir.  Dormitoire  was  an  adjective  in 
old  French,  and  is  explained  by  Roquefort  "  qui 
fait  dormir." 

Dormit,  s.  an  attic  window  projecting  from  the 
roof.    Probably  a  corruption  of  dormitory.    Dormer 

c  3 


34  Provincial  fiords 

means  a  large  beam  in  Norfolk :  Forby  in  v.  The 
latter  word  may  perhaps  be  compared  with  sleeper, 
which  Grose  explains  to  be  a  "  baulk  or  summer 
supporting  a  floor."  The  use  of  the  latter  word 
has  lately  become  familiar  from  its  being  applied 
to  the  supports  of  the  rails  on  railways. 

Doust,  s.  dust.  Dousty,  adj.  dusty.  Dousting,  s. 
dusting.  (GL.) 

To  Dout,  v.  a.  to  put  out,  as  a  candle.  "  He  is 
just  douted," — he  is  just  dead.  Also  used  in 
Gloucestershire. 

Drag,  s.  a  fence  placed  across  running  water,  con- 
sisting of  a  kind  of  hurdle  which  swings  on  hinges, 
fastened  to  a  horizontal  pole. 

To  Dreaten,  v.  to  threaten. 

To  Dresh,  v.  to  thrash.  Also  used  in  Gloucester- 
shire. Pronounced  drash  in  Devonshire  and 
Somersetshire :  Palmer  and  Jennings  in  v. 

To  Drive  a  Boat,  to  propel  a  boat  with  a  pole  or 
paddle. 

To  Drop  out,  v.  to  fall  out,  to  quarrel.  (GL.) 

Droughty,  adj.  (pronounced  drufty),  thirsty ;  from 
drought. 

To  Drow,  v.  to  throw. 

Droxy,  adj.  the  same  as  daddocky,  which  see.  (GL.) 

Duberous,  adj.  doubtful.  Also  used  in  Devonshire, 
Palmer  in  v. 


used  in  Herefordshire.  35 

Duff,  adv.  to  fall  duff,  to  fall  heavily.  Dufian,  A.  S. 
is  to  sink  (Bosworth  in  v.)  Perhaps  that  which 
falls  as  if  it  would  sink  to  the  bottom  falls  duff. 
See  H.  Tooke,  i.  419. 

Dunny,  adj.  hard  of  hearing.  See  Jamieson  in 
Donnar  and  Donnard.  Dunch  is  deaf  in  the 
Gloucestershire  and  also  the  Somersetshire  dialect ; 
whence  (and  not  from  Duns  Scotus),  as  Jennings 
observes,  is  derived  the  word  dunce.  Compare 
Adelung  in  Donner.  Dull  means  hard  of  hearing 
in  Somersetshire  and  Yorkshire,  according  to  Grose 
and  Crav.  Gl. 

To  Dup,  v.  to  do  up,  to  fasten.  (GL.)  In  Hamlet, 
act  4.  sc.  5.  it  means  to  open,  probably  from 
raising  the  latch. 

"  Then  up  he  rose  and  donned  his  clothes. 
And  dupp'd  the  chamber  door."' 

Dyche,  5.  a  mound,  a  dyke,  the  bank  of  a  hedge. 
Dyson,  *.  the  flax,   &c.,  on  a  distaff.     This  word 

appears  to  be  connected  with  the  first  syllable  of 

distaff. 

E. 

Elder,  s.  udder.  The  use  of  this  word  extends  to 
Gloucestershire  and  Worcestershire,  and  it  also  oc- 
curs in  Yorkshire,  Lancashire,  and  Cheshire.  See 
Craven  Glossary,  Hunter,  and  Wilbraham  in  v. 


36  Provincial  Words 

Ellern  Tree,  or  Ellern  Aul,  s.  an  elder  tree. 
The  elder  is  called  eller  in  Yorkshire  and  Cheshire : 
Craven  Glossary,  and  Wilbraham  in  v.  The  older 
adjectival  form  of  el  lam  or  ellern  (used  in  Piers 
Ploughman's  Vision)  is  preserved  in  Hereford- 
shire, as  it  also  is  in  Norfolk  :  Forby  in  Eldern. 

Elmen,  adj.  from  elm.  "  Elmen  tree,"  is  elm  tree. 
Used  also  in  Somersetshire  :  Jennings  in  v.  Com- 
pare Aulen,  Ellern-tree,  Poplern,  and  Tin- 
nen,  in  this  Glossary,  which  adjectives  are  formed 
like  oaken,  ashen,  treen,  golden,  &c.  Dirten  and 
hornen  are  used  in  Somersetshire :  Jennings  in  v. 

To  Empt,  v.  a.  to  empty.  This  verb  is  also  in  Jen- 
nings's Somersetshire  Glossary. 

Etherings,  s.  long  rods  twisted  at  the  top  of  a 
hedge.  Edderings  and  eder  are  used  in  Cheshire, 
Wilbraham  in  v.;  and  ether  in  Yorkshire, 
Essex,  and  Norfolk  :  Craven  Glossary  in  v.  and 
in  Yether,  Forby  in  Ether,  Grose  in  Edder.  Eder, 
edor,  or  efSor  is  a  hedge  in  A.  S.  (Bosworth  in  v.), 
and  consequently  etherings  is  a  word  regularly 
formed,  and  means  hedgings,  or  materials  for 
hedging. 

Ettles,  or  Ettle^s,  s.  nettles.  Also  used  in 
Gloucestershire.  The  common  form  is  the  correct 
one  :  netele  A.  S.  (see  Bosworth  in  v.),  nessel  H. 
German. 


used  in  Herefordshire.  37 


F. 


Fagget,  s.  an  "  old  fagget  "  is  a  term  of  reproach 
to  emaciated  old  people,  equivalent  to  the  familiar 
expressions,  u  a  bundle,  or  bag,  of  bones."  In 
Gloucestershire,  to  call  a  woman  an  old  faggot  is 
almost  the  greatest  insult  that  can  be  offered  to 
her.     Also  used  in  Norfolk  :  Forby  in  v. 

Fainty,  adj.  faint. 

To  Fall,  v.  a.  to  throw  down.  As,  "  she  fell  the 
child."  Also  4t  to  fall  a  tree."  Compare  to*Rise. 
Also  used  in  Norfolk  :  Forby  in  v. 

Fancical,  adj.  fanciful. 

Fatch,  v.  and  s.  thatch. 

Fatches,  s.  vetches. 

Fat-hen,  s.  a  weed  so  called. 

To  Fault,  v.  a.  to  find  fault  with.  "  I  don't  fault 
him  for  that." 

Featherfold,  s.  the  herb  feverfew. 

To  Fear,  v.  a.  to  frighten.  See  Nares  in  v.,  and 
compare  afeard. 

Feast,  s.  a  day  of  merry-making  for  the  country- 
people.  Each  village  has  its  feast,  which  occurs 
on  a  fixed  day  in  every  year.  The  use  of  this 
word  in  Herefordshire  exactly  resembles  that 
described  by  Mr.  Hunter  in  his  Hallamshire 
Glossary. 


3S  Provincial  Words 

To  Feed,  v.  n.  to  grow  fat.  Also  used  in  the 
northern  counties,  Grose  in  v. 

Feg,  s.  grass  which  has  withered  upon  the  ground, 
without  being  severed  from  its  root.  Fog  is  used 
in  a  similar  sense  in  Cheshire,  Yorkshire,  and 
other  northern  counties ;  and  also  in  Norfolk  and 
Suffolk.  See  Grose,  Willan,  Craven  Glossary, 
Moor,  and  Forby  in  v.  Feg  is  used  in  Worces- 
tershire. According  to  Thoresby  and  Watson  in 
Hunter's  Appendix,  p.  Ill,  146,  fog  in  York- 
shire means  aftergrass. 

Fellom,  s.  a  whitlow.  The  word  "fellon"  is  cited  in 
Nares's  Glossary,  with  the  sense  of  "  a  boil  or 
whitlow,"  from  writers  of  the  sixteenth  and  seven- 
teenth centuries.  Fellom,  however,  is  probably 
the  more  correct  form  of  the  word,  having  arisen, 
by  mispronunciation,  from  film.  Film  signifies  a 
tiiin  skin,  and  is  sometimes  applied  to  the  morbid 
skin  which  covers  an  ulcer  ;  thus  in  Hamlet : — 

"It  will  but  skin  andjilm  the  ulcerous  place, 
While  rank  corruption,  mining  all  within. 
Infects  unseen." — Act  3,  sc.  4. 

The  letter  m  does  not  combine  easily  with  another 
consonant  at  the  end  of  a  syllable ;  and  in  several 
words  where  this  combination  occurs,  a  vowel  has 
been  interpolated  before  m,  in  order  to  assist 
the  pronunciation.   Thus  the  A.  S.  besm  and  bosm 


used  in  Herefordshire.  39 

have,  in  modern  English,  become  besom  and  bosom  > 
and  the  A.  S.  word  hearmsceare  (Grimm,  Deutsche 
Rechtsalterthumer,  p.  681)  has  been  corrupted 
into  harumscarum.  So  chrism  (from  chrisma)  was 
corrupted  into  chrisom  and  kirsom  (Nares,  in  vv.), 
and  alarm  into  alarum.  The  Cornish  and  Devon- 
shire word  pilm,  which  signifies  dust,  is  pronounced 
pi/am  or  pillum  (Grose  and  Palmer  in  v.).  The 
Cheshire  word  rism  is  also  pronounced  risom 
( Wilbr.  in  v.);  and  the  word  baron  (in  the  ex- 
pression "  baron  of  beef")  is  derived  from  an  older 
form,  birn  (Crav.  Gloss,  in  v.).  In  like  manner, 
in  Italian,  chrisma,  baptisma,  and  spasma,  became 
cresima,  battesimo,  and  spasimo.  If  the  words 
sarcasm,  schism,  and  chasm  had  become  popular  in 
English,  their  pronunciation  would  probably  have 
been  changed.  (See  above  in  Chawm.)  Where 
/  or  r  follows  a  and  precedes  m,  the  vowel  is 
lengthened,  and  the  following  consonant  is  sup- 
pressed in  pronunciation  :  thus  psalm,  balm, 
calm,  farm,  harm,  are  pronounced  sdm,  bam, 
cam,  fdm9  ham.  The  word  film  is  probably 
connected  with  the  English  and  German  fell. 
In  Yorkshire,  the  word  fellon  signifies  a  disease 
in  cows  :  see  Craven  Glossary  in  v. 

Fellow,  s.  a  young  unmarried  man. 

To  Fettle,  v.  a.  to  settle,  arrange,  put  in  order.   This 


40  Provincial  Words 

word  is  also  used  in  Cumberland,  Westmoreland, 
Yorkshire,  and  Cheshire  :  Cumberland  and  West- 
moreland Glossary,  Grose,  Willan,  Craven  Glos- 
sary, and  Wilbraham  in  v. ;  and  compare  Nares 
in  v.  The  word  fettle  occurs  three  times  in  the 
ballad  of  Robin  Hood  and  Guy  of  Gisborne,  in 
Percy,  vol.  i. 

Field,  s.  a  ploughed  field  as  distinguished  from 
grass  ground.  (GL.) 

Fiern,  s.  fern.     Compare  Diern. 

Fiern-owl,  s.  a  goat-sucker. 

Fildefare,  s.  a  fieldfare.  This  word  is  similarly 
pronounced  in  Somersetshire  :  Jennings  in  v.  In 
Gloucestershire  it  is  sometimes  pronounced  vil- 
dever. 

Filler,  or  Viller,  s.  the  shaft  horse  of  a  cart  or 
wagon.  (GL.)  Also  used  in  Norfolk :  Forby 
in  v. 

Filthy,  adj.  In  Gloucestershire  this  word  is  used  in 
only  two  senses,  viz.,  for  a  field  full  of  weeds, 
especially  couch  grass,  and  for  a  person  who  has 
lice  on  his  body. 

Filtry,  or  Viltry,  s.  trumpery,  filth.  Particularly 
applied  to  weeds  in  a  field  or  garden.  (GL.) 
Also  used  in  Somersetshire  :  Jennings  in  v. 
Another  form  of  Jilt h. 

Fimble,  s.  a  wattled  chimney. 


used  in  Herefordshire.  41 

To  Find,  v.  to  stand  sponsor  to  a  child. 

To  Finegue,  v.  to  avoid  or  evade  a  thing. 

To  Firm,  v.  to  affirm.  So  in  Somersetshire,  to  frunt 
is  used  for  to  affront :  Jennings  in  v.  Compare 
Abundation. 

Fitchuck,  s.  a  pole-cat.  Called  Jitcher  or  fitchet  in 
Gloucestershire.  See  Grose  in  Fitchet  and  Fitchole, 
and  Nares  in  Fytehock. 

Flannen,  Si  flannel.  Pronounced  vlannin  in  Somer- 
setshire, and  Jtannin  in  Devonshire  :  Jennings  and 
Palmer  in  v. 

Flat,  s.  a  hollow  in  a  field.  (GL.) 

Flath,  s.  dirt,  filth,  ordure. 

Fleak,  or  Flake,  s.  a  hurdle.  This  word  is  also 
used  in  Yorkshire :  Hunter  in  Flake,  Crav.  Gloss, 
in  Fleeok,  Grose  in  Fleake.  So  called  from  being 
interwoven  :  compare  the  German  Jlechten,  Adelung 
in  v. 

To  Flee,  v.  to  fly ;  as  "  the  rooks  fled  away,"  for 
flew  away. 

Flitchen,  s.  a  flitcher  of  bacon. 

Flummock,  s.  a  slovenly  person.  Also  used  in  Glou- 
cestershire. 4C  Flammakin  "  is  a  blowsy  slatternly 
wench,  in  Devonshire,  according  to  Palmer  in  v. 

To  Flummocks,  v.  a.  to  maul,  to  mangle. 

Fought,  part,  of  to  fetch, .  Also  used  in  Gloucester- 
shire and  other  counties. 


42  Provincial  Words 

Frany,  adj.  violent  tempered.  From  phrenzied. 

Fresh  liquor,  hog's  lard  without  salt  in  it.  (GL.) 

To  Fret,  v.  n.  Cider,  when  fermenting,  is  said  to 
fret. 

Fretchet,  adj.  fretful,  peevish  ;  or  hot,  fidgety  (of 
a  horse)  :  from  fret. 

Fritful,  or  Frightful,  adj.  fearful,  timorous. 

Frum,  adj.  1.  early.  From  the  A.  S.  frum,  which 
means  original,  primitive.  Frum-bearn  is  first 
born.  In  Cheshire  and  Lancashire,  frim  signifies 
"  tender  or  brittle"  (Wilbr.  in  v.),  which  is  pro- 
bably the  same  word.  2.  Numerous,  thick.  In 
Gloucestershire,  frum  means  thick  and  strong,  as 
mowing  grass.  In  Oxfordshire,  its  meaning  is 
rank,  overgrown.  Frim,  in  the  north,  means 
handsome,  rank,  well-living,  in  good  case,  according 
to  Grose.  From  the  A.  S.  from,  which  means 
stout,  strong,  bold.  Fromm,  in  high  German,  had 
originally  the  same  meaning ;  "  ein  frumer  schlach," 
was  equivalent  to  "ein  heftiger  schlag;"  "ein 
frommer  Ritter:"  Adelung  in  v.  The  two  dis- 
tinct words  frum  and  from  are  now  confounded 
together,  as  the  English  word  light  corresponds  to 
the  German  licht  and  leicht.  The  name  of  the 
Fromey,  a  stream  in  Herefordshire,  appears  to  be 
connected  with  the  latter  sense  of  the  word  in 
question.    It  is  thus  described  in  Leland's  Itinerary, 


used  in  Herefordshire.  43 

vol.  v.  p.  12.  "  Fromey,  a  big  broke,  sumtyme 
raging,  cummetli  by  Bromyard,  as  I  remembre, 
and  so  into  Lug ;  and  about  it  be  very  good  pas- 
tures" 

Fuel,  s.  garden  stuff. 

Fund,  Funded,  part,  found. 


G. 


Gadaman,  adj.  roguish. 

To  Gale,  v.  In  the  Forest  of  Dean,  to  gale  (i.  e.  to 
gavel)  a  mine  is  to  acquire  the  right  to  work  a 
mine  from  the  officer  called  a  gaveller,  and  to  pay 
the  share  of  the  crown. 

Gall,  or  Gaul,  s.  a  place  where  water  breaks  out  on 
the  land.     Compare  Soak. 

Gally,  adj.  wet,  as  applied  to  land.  In  Yorkshire, 
a  gall  means  a  spring  or  wet  place  in  a  field,  and 
gaily  means  spungy,  wet ;  Crav.  Gloss,  in  v.  In 
Norfolk,  a  gall  is  a  vein  of  sand  in  a  stiff  soil, 
through  which  water  is  drained  off,  and  oozes  at 
soft  places  on  the  surface ;  otherwise  sandgalls : 
Forby  in  v.  See  also  Grose  in  galls,  gally-lands, 
and  sandgalls.  Galle  has  the  very  same  meaning 
in  German :  "  Nasse  stellen  auf  den  ackern, 
besonders  wenn  sie  von  kleinen  quellen  herkom- 
men,"  says  Adelung  in  v. 


44  Provincial  Words 

Gally-team,  s.  a  team  kept  for  hire. 

Gallier  (or  Hallier),  s.  one  who  keeps  teams  for 
hire.     From  to  haul. 

Gambrel,  s.  a  cart  with  rails  or  thripples.  In  Suf- 
folk, according  to  Moor,  a  "  gambrel "  is  "  the 
crooked  piece  of  wood  on  which  the  carcases  of 
slaughtered  beasts,  hogs,  and  sheep  are  expanded 
and  suspended. "  The  word  is  similarly  explained 
by  Jennings  in  v.  In  Devonshire,  "  gammerells," 
or  "  gambrils  "  means  not  only  a  butcher's  stretcher, 
but  also  the  hocks  or  lower  hams  of  an  animal : 
Palmer  in  v.  Gambrel  probably  meant  originally 
a  piece  of  crooked  wood ;  and  was  derived  from 
the  word  which  appears  in  different  languages  under 
the  form  hamme,  ham,  gamba,  emdjambe.  Thus 
shipwrights  speak  of  knees  in  ship-building.  In 
like  manner,  the  handle  of  a  scythe  is  called 
hamme  and  hammen  in  Switzerland;  Stalder, 
Schweiz.  Idiot,  in  v.  Hames  (see  below)  has  pro- 
bably the  same  origin.  Cammed  is  explained 
crooked,  in  the  Westmoreland  and  Cumberland 
Glossary.  In  Welsh,  too,  camm  or  gam  is  crooked  ; 
it  also  means  one-eyed,  whence  the  name  of  Sir 
David  Gam.  This  use  of  the  word  is  analogous 
to  the  Spanish  tuerto  from  tortus ;  "  mas  vale  tuerto 
que  ciego."    See  likewise  Crav.  Gl.  in  Cammerels. 

Gamut,  s.  mischievous  sport ;  from  game.     In  De- 


used  in  Herefordshire.  45 

vonshire,  gammet  means  fun,  merriment :  Palmer 
in  v. 
Gapesing,  "  To  go  a  gapesing,"  is  to  go  sight-seeing. 
ct  We  had  a  famous  gapesing."     Probably  from  to 
gape,  in  the  sense  of  to  open ;  viz.,  to  open  the 
eyes.      See   Bosworth   in    Geapan.     Compare   to 
trapes  ("to  go  trapesing  about"),  from  trape. 
Gaun,   s.   a  measure  or   tub    (z.  e.  a   gallon).     In 
Cheshire,  according  to  Wilbraham,  a  gaun   is  a 
gallon, 
Gears  and  Gearing,  s.  horse-harness.  In  Gloucester- 
shire, only  used  for  filler's  or  viller's  gears ;  the 
harness  of  the  shaft  horse  of  a  cart    or    wagon. 
Compare  Forby  in  v. 
To  Geld,  v.  "  to  geld  anty  tumps,''  is  to  cut  off  the 
tops  of  ant-hills,  and  to  throw  the  inside  over  the 
land. 
Giglet,  s.  a  giddy  girl.     In  Devonshire,  according  to 
Palmer,  a  gigglet  is  a  laughing  romp,  a  tom-boy ; 
for  which  reason  wakes  and  fairs  are  sometimes 
called  gigglet  fairs.     In  Somersetshire,  according  to 
Jennings,  gigleting  means  wanton,  trifling,  and  is 
applied  to  the  female  sex.     Grose  states  that  giglet 
is  a  north  country  word  for  a  laughing  girl.     In 
Norfolk,  according  to  Forby,  a  gig  means  a  trifling, 
silly,   flighty   fellow.     From   the  A.  S.   goegl,  or 
gagol,  wanton  :  Bosworth  in  v. 


46  Provincial  Words 

Gigleting,  adj.  giggling.    From  giglet. 

Girl,  s.  an  unmarried  woman  of  any  age. 

Glat,  s.  a  gap  in  a  hedge.  Perhaps  this  word  is  the 
past  participle  of  to  glide,  and  meant  originally  a 
part  of  a  bank  between  two  enclosures  which  had 
slipped  down,  and  consequently  left  a  gap.  At 
present,  glat  signifies  a  gap  in  a  dead  or  quick 
fence. 

To  Gorm,  v.  a.  to  smear,  to  dirty ;  also  used  in  the 
West  Riding  of  Yorkshire :  Willan  in  v.  From 
gor,  A.  S.,  whence  comes  the  word  gore.  Gor,  A.  S., 
signifies  mire,  which  sense  it  still  retains  in 
Norfolk  ;  For  by  in  Gore. 

Gorsty,  adj.  abounding  in  gorse  or  furze. 

Gout,  s.*a  drain  from  a  house.  (GL.)  Derived  from 
the  French  egout,  and  allied  to  the  German  guss,  the 
Flemish  goot,  and  the  English  gutter. 

Gownd,  s,  gown.  Compare  swound  for  swoon,  and 
swounded  for  swooned  in  the  Craven  Glossary. 

Grab,  s.  the  crab-apple.  (GL.) 

To  Graff,  v.  a.  to  dig  with  a  spade.  Ground  can  be 
grafFed,  when  it  is  soft  enough  not  to  require  a 
pickaxe.  "  In  Yorkshire  (says  Grose  in  Dig)  they 
distinguish  between  digging  and  graving  ;  to  dig 
is  with  a  mattock,  to  grave  with  a  spade."  In 
Gloucestershire,  a  "grafting  tool15  is  the  strong 
spade  in  the  shape  of  a  segment  of  a  circle,  used 


used  in  Herefordshire.  47 

in  digging  canals,  and  other  very  heavy  work. 
From  grafan,  A.  S.,  to  dig. 
Greenstone,  s.  The  soft  slaty  rocks  in  Radnorshire 
and  the  borders  of  Herefordshire  are  provincially 
called  greenstone,  as  distinguished  from  free 
sandstone,  or  limestone.  Greenstone  is  not  so 
called  from  its  colour,  but  probably  from  its  being 
often  moist,  when  used  in  buildings ;  in  which 
respect  it  resembles  green  wood.  It  is  difficult  to 
determine  the  sense  of  green  stone,  in  the  following 
stanza  of  Chaucer : — 

"  And  by  a  river  forth  I  gan  cost  ay  [coast] 
Of  water  clear  as  beryll  or  crystall ; 
Till,  at  the  last,  I  found  a  little  way 
Toward  a  park,  enclosed  with  a  wall 
In  compass  round,  and  by  a  gate  small. 
Whoso  that  woulde,  freely  mighte  gone 
Into  this  park  walled  with  grene  sto?ie." 

Complaint  of  the  Black  Knight,  Ellis's  Poets. 

vol.  i.  p.  218. 

Perhaps  its  meaning  in  this  passage  may  be  newly 
hewn  stone.  Compare  the  use  of  the  word  green 
in  the  ballad  of  "  Gentle  Herdsman,"  in  Percy, 
vol.  ii., 

"  Thy  years  are  young,  thy  face  is  fair, 

Thy  wits  are  weak,  thy  thoughts  are  green  : 
Time  hath  not  given  thee  leave  as  yet 

For  to  commit  so  great  a  sin." — Stanza  4. 


48  Provincial  Words 

Grip,  s.  a  narrow  trench  or  gutter.  Also  used  in 
Gloucestershire  and  in  Yorkshire :  Grose  and 
Crav.  Gloss,  in  v.  Pronounced  gripe  in  Somerset- 
shire :  Jennings  in  v.  See  Todd's  Johnson  in  v. 
From  groep,  A.  S.,  a  furrow  or  ditch,  connected 
with  grafan,  to  dig. 

To  Grip,  v.  to  make  grips.  (GL.)  In  Devonshire, 
"  SripPm§  "  is  tne  operation  of  water-furrowing  a 
field  :  Palmer  in  v. 

Grist,  s.  This  word  has  the  common  meaning,  but 
the  i  is  pronounced  as  in  grind. 

Gryze,  s.  a  squeeze  or  abrasion.  As,  "  see  what  a 
gryze  this  horse  has  had  on  his  knee." 

To  Gryze,  v.  to  squeeze  or  abrade.  As,  "  to  gryze 
a  wheel  against  a  post."  Also,  to  wear  or  annoy, 
as  a  "  gryzing  pain"  for  a  constant  pain.  To  gryze 
appears  to  be  the  same  word  as  to  graze  used  in  a 
similar  sense ;  and  is  probably  the  more  genuine 
form,  connected  with  grit,  A.  S.,  and  grist. 

To  Gule,  v.  to  laugh ;  to  glory  or  boast.  As,  <c  he 
comes  guling  like  a  lion."  Also  used  in  the 
Forest  of  Dean. 

Gull,  s.  a  gosling.  The  word  has  a  more  general 
signification  in  Cheshire.    Wilbr.  in  v. 

Gurgeons,  s.  pollard  (between  fine  flour  and  bran). 
Also  used  in  Gloucestershire. 

Guss,  s.  girth.  (GL.)     Also  used  in   Somersetshire  : 


used  in  Herefordshire.  49 

Jennings  in  v.  Pronounced  geese  in  Devonshire  : 
Palmer  in  v. 
Gwethall,  s.  household  stuff.  The  word  is  used  to 
denote  an  entire  collection,  like  "  bag  and  baggage." 
From  the  Welsh  gweddill,  remnants,  orts. 
Gweddilio,  Welsh,  is  to  leave  a  remnant;  and 
gweddw,  is  a  widow  or  person  left.  Gweddill  is 
therefore  connected  with  the  root  of  widow,  which 
seems  to  exist  in  most  European  languages  :  see 
Adelung  in  Wittwe. 

H. 

Hackle,  s.  the  top  covering  of  a  small  stack  of  corn, 
or  of  a  bee-hive,  made  of  straw. 

Haine,  s.  an  enclosure.  (GL.)  See  Adelung  in  Hain, 
which  word  had  originally  the  same  meaning. 

Half- named,  adj.  a  child  privately  baptized,  but  not 
christened  in  church. 

Half-saved,  adj.  half-witted.  Also  used  in  the 
Forest  of  Dean. 

Hames,  H ameses,  s.  pieces  of  wood  on  the  collar 
of  the  horse  to  which  the  traces  are  fixed.  Also 
used  in  Gloucestershire,  as  well  as  in  Somerset- 
shire and  Yorkshire :  Jennings  and  Crav.  Gl.  in  v. 
See  above  in  Gambrel. 

Han.     Have. 

Handler,  s.  the  second  to  a  pugilist. 

d 


50  Provincial  Words 

Handy,  adv.  nearly;  as,  "  handy  a  mile."  (GL.) 

Hatch,  s.  a  half-door.     Not  peculiar. 

To  Haul,  v.  a.  to  carry  in  a  wagon  or  cart,  or  simply 
to  draw.  Compare  the  German  holen.  To  hale  is 
used  in  the  authorized  version  of  Luke  xii.  58, 
"  Lest  he  hale  thee  to  the  judge  :"  ji^ttote  Karaavpn 
at  7rpog  top  Kpirrjv. 

Haulm,  or  H&lm,  s.  used  of  potatoes,  vetches,  peas, 
and  beans.  That  part  of  the  plant  which  is  above 
ground.  In  Suffolk,  this  word  signifies  wheat 
stubble  :  Moor  in  Hahm.  According  to  Grose  it 
is  a  south  country  word,  In  Gloucestershire, 
when  the  ears  of  wheat  are  cut  off,  and  the  best  of 
the  straw  is  picked  out  unbroken,  and  bound  up  for 
the  best  thatching,  it  is  called  halm. 

Hauve,  s.  the  handle  of  an  axe ;  i.  e.  the  helve. 
"  Helve"  is  still  used  in  this  sense  in  Derbyshire, 
Norfolk,  and  Suffolk :  Grose,  Forby,  and  Moor,  in 
v.  It  occurs  in  Deuter.  xix.  5,  and  see  Johnson, 
in  v. 

Hay-Making,  Gloucestershire.  When  first  cut,  it  is 
in  swath  ;  it  is  next  tedded  or  shaken  about ;  it  is 
then  hatched  in  or  raked  into  small  rows  to  be  put 
into  foot-cocks,  the  smallest  of  all  cocks.  The  next 
day,  perhaps,  it  is  again  shaken  about  and  double 
hatched,  or  raked  by  two  persons  into  larger  rows, 
and  put  into  larger  cocks ;  it  is  then  spread  again 


used  in  Herefordshire.  51 

and  wallied  in,  or  put  into  still  larger  rows,  called 
wind-rows,  in  order  to  be  put  into  hay-cocks. 
These  are  carried  together  on  poles,  called  spicks, 
and  put  into  wind-cocks. 

Head.     See  to  Turn  the  head. 

Heartful,  adj.  in  good  spirits. 

Heart-whole,  or  Heart-well,  adj.  sound  as  to 
the  vital  powers,  as  well  as  to  the  appetite. 

Heavle,  *.  a  dung-heavle  is  a  dung-fork.  From 
to  heave  "  Yeevil"  is  e<  a  dungfork"  in  the  Ex- 
moor  dialect  (Grose). 

Heft,  s.  weight ;  also  used  in  Somersetshire:  Jen- 
nings in  v.  Formed  from  heave,  like  weft  from 
weave. 

Heft,  the  preterit  of  "  heave."  "  He  heft  it,"  he 
lifted  it. 

Herence,  Therence,  hence,  thence  (Forest  of 
Dean).  Herence  is  also  used  in  Somersetshire  : 
Jennings  in  v. 

Hern,  pron.  hers. 

To  Hespall,  v.  a.  to  harass.  This  verb  appears  to 
be  derived  from  spillan  or  gespillan,  A.  S. 

Hickol,  or  Yackle,  s.  a  woodpecker.  Pronounced 
heccle  in  Gloucestershire. 

Hidlock,  s.  a  state  of  concealment ;  as,  "  he  was 
in  hidlock."  Also  used  in  Gloucestershire.  Hid- 
lock appears  to  be  formed  from  hide  by  a  mistaken 

d2 


52  Provincial  Words 

analogy  to  wedlock.  The  latter  word  is  com- 
pounded of  median,  and  lac,  a  gift;  and  there- 
fore the  last  syllable  is  not  a  suffix. 

To  Hile,  v.  a.  to  strike  with  the  horns,  as  cattle  or 
deer.  E.g.  ll  You  had  best  take  Fillpail  out  of 
the  leasows ;  she  do  hile  them  young  haifers  un- 
merciful." 

Hilt,  s.  a  young  sow  kept  for  breeding,  which  has 
not  had  any  young.  (GL.) 

Hindersome,  adj.  retarding,  hindering  ;  as,  "  the 
weather  is  hindersome."  Also  used  in  the  Forest 
of  Dean. 

Hinge,  s.  the  pluck.  (GL.)  Pronounced  hange 
in  Devonshire  :  Palmer  in  v. 

Hisn,  pron.  his,  as  "  It's  one  of  his'n" 

Hit,  s.  a  plentiful  crop  ;  as,  "  a  hit  of  apples."  The 
metaphor  is  borrowed  from  striking  a  mark. 

To  Hocks,  v.  a.  to  cut  in  an  unworkmanlike 
manner.  Used  principally  in  reference  to  cutting 
underwood ;  the  stubs  are  hocksed,  i.  e.  split  and 
cut  unevenly  and  irregularly  by  a  person  not  used 
to  cutting  them.     From  to  hack. 

Holt,  s.  hold,  dependence  on  a  person  or  thing ; 
also  a  place  of  safety.  "  To  have  holt :"  to  take 
hold.  When  two  men  are  grappling  with  one 
another,  they  are  said  to  be  in  holt.  Likewise 
used  in  Gloucestershire, 


used  in  Herefordshire.  53 

Holtless,  or  Holdless,  adj.  careless,  heedless. 

Homber,  s.  a  hammer.     See  Chimbley. 

Hongered,  adj.  hungry.  (GL.) 

Hoolet,  s.  an  owl.  In  Yorkshire  the  owl  is  called 
"hullet:"  Craven  Glossary,  and  Hunter's  Hal- 
lamshire  Glossary,  in  v.  See  Grose  in  Howlet. 
The  word  is  old :  Nares  in  Howlet. 

Hoop,  s.  a  bullfinch.  (GL.) 

To  Hootch,  v.  n.  to  crouch. 

Hop-abouts,  s.  apple  dumplings.  (GL.) 

To  Hope,  v.  to  help,  i.  e.  to  holp.  (GL.) 

To  Hopple,  v.  a.  to  hopple  an  animal,  is  to  con- 
fine its  legs,  so  as  to  prevent  it  from  wandering. 
Also  used  in  Yorkshire  and  Norfolk :  Crav.  Gloss. 
and  Forby  in  v. 

Housen,  pi.  of  house.  (GL.) 

Howgy,  adj.  huge,  large.  An  old  word  :  see  Nares 
in  Hugy.  It  occurs  in  the  ballad  of  Sir  Cauline, 
Part  II.  st.  18. 

«  A  hugy  giant  stiff  and  stark, 
All  foul  of  limb  and  lere." 

Also  used  in  the  Forest  of  Dean. 

Huck,  s.  a  hook. 

Hull,  s.  the  husk  of  a  nut  or  of  grain.  This 
word  is  also  used  in  Yorkshire  and  in  Suffolk  : 
Craven  Glossary  and  Moor  in  v.  and  in  Glouces- 
tershire. 


54  Provincial  Words 

Hunch,,?,  alump;   as,  "  a  hunch  of  bread  or  cheese. " 

Hurry,  s.  "  We  shanna  finish  it  this  hurry,"  i.  e. 
this  time,  this  bout. 

Hurtle,  s.  a  spot.  It  is  to  be  observed  that  heurte 
or  hurt  means  a  round  blue  spot  in  heraldry. 
li  The  field  or;  three  heurtes  in  bende.  These 
appear  light  blewe,  and  come  by  some  violent 
stroke  :  on  men  they  are  called  hurtes ;  but  on 
women  they  are  commonly  called  tunge  moles.' ' 
Gerard  Leigh,  Accidens  of  Armory,  fol.  150. 
"  Heurtes,  sorte  de  torteaux  en  termes  d'armoirie." 
Borel  Diet,  du  vieux  francais,  at  the  end  of 
Menage.  Perhaps  hurtleberry,  the  bilberry,  is 
connected  with  this  word. 

Hummock,  s.  a  mound  of  earth.  From  the  same  root 
as  hum-p. 

Hutch,  s.  a  coop;  as  a  rabbit-hutch.  In  Suffolk,  a 
hutch  means  a  chest :  Moor  in  v.  Huche,  in  old 
French,  signified  a  chest  or  closet ;  and  also  a  veil 
for  the  head:  Roquefort  in  v.  In  the  will  of 
Humphrey  de  Bohun,  Earl  of  Hereford,  who  died 
in  1361,  it  means  a  pall  over  a  coffin  :  Royal  Wills 
(1780),  p.  45. 

I. 

To  be  III  in  Oneself  is  a  very  common  expression 
for  derangement  of  stomach  or  bowels,  or  slight 


used  in  Herefordshire.  55 

fever.  If  a  woman  is  asked  how  her  husband's 
arm  is,  she  may  reply,  "  O  his  arm  be  better,  but 
he's  ill  in  hisself,  and  canna  eat  his  victuals." 
The  expression  is  used  when  a  person  is  affected 
by  an  internal  disease,  of  which  the  speaker  does 
not  know  the  name. 

Ill-relished,  adj.  disagreeable,  as,  "  an  ill-relished 
person." 

Imp,  s.  a  bud,  or  a  young  shoot  of  a  coppice  which 
has  been  felled. 

To  Imp,  v.  a.  to  bud.  See  Nares  in  v.  Comp.  Ade- 
lung  in  Impfen.    Imp  is  likewise  a  shoot  in  Welsh. 

Innocent,  s.  a  half-witted  person. 

To  Insense,  v.  a.  to  explain  to,  to  make  to  understand. 
This  word  is  known  in  other  parts  of  England : 
Grose  in  v.  According  to  Ray,  it  is  used  about 
Sheffield  in  Yorkshire.  See  also  Hunter  in  v.,  and 
Preface,  p.  xxv.  and  see  Crav.  Gl.  in  v.  It  is  also 
used  in  Gloucestershire.  To  "  make  a  person  sen- 
sible^of  anything,"  is  used  in  a  similar  manner. 

Into,  prep,  within,  short  of.  "  It  is  not  far  into  a 
mile." 

Inwards,  s.  the  entrails  of  an  animal.  (GL.)  Also 
used  in  Norfolk :  Forby  in  v.  From  the  A.S.  inne- 
ivarde,  Bosworth  in  v.     It  occurs  in  Shakspeare. 


56  Provincial  Words 

J. 

Jag,  s.  a  small  quantity  drawn  as  a  load.  The  word 
is  similarly  used  in  Cheshire  and  in  Norfolk : 
Wilbr.  Grose,  and  Forby,  in  v.  It  appears  to  be 
derived  from  jog;  a  small  load  jogged  along.  In 
Yorkshire,  however,  it  means  a  large  cart-load  of 
hay  :  Crav.  Gl.  in  v. 

Jet,  s.  a  descent,  a  declivity  ;  as,  "  a  bit  of  a  jet  to 
go  down."  From  the  French  jef,  and  therefore 
analogous  to  pitch,  which  see. 

Jolly,  adj.  fat. 

K. 

To  Keech,  v.  n.  to  cake,  as  wax  or  tallow.  Keech 
and  cake  appear  to  be  different  forms  of  the  same 
word. 

Keech  of  Fat,  s.  the  internal  fat  of  an  animal,  as 
made  up  to  be  sold  to  a  tallow-chandler.  Also 
used  in  Gloucestershire.  In  the  first  part  of  Henry 
IV.,  Prince  Henry  calls  Falstaff  "  a  greasy  tallow 
keech,"  act  ii.  sc.  4.,  where  the  commentators  as- 
sign to  it  the  meaning  first  stated.  Kichel,  in 
Chaucer,  means  a  little  cake;  "a  goddes  kichel," 
C.  T.  7329,  where  see  Tyrwhitt's  note. 

To  Keek,  v.  to  be  sick,  or  nearly  so.  (GL.)  Pro- 
bably connected  with  the  German  keichen,  to 
pant. 


used  in  Herefordshire.  5*7 

Kevin,  Cavend,  or  Caving  of  Beef,  s.  a  part  of  the 
round  of  beef.  The  same  joint  as  the  lift,  which 
see.     From  the  Welsh  cefn,  back  or  ridge. 

Kew,  s.     See  Cue. 

Kibble,  s.  a  piece  of  wood  22  inches  long,  and  split 
to  a  fit  size  for  burning.  (GL.) 

To  Kick,  v.  a.  to  sting,  as  a  wasp. 

Kind,  adj.  in  good  health,  thriving,  prosperous,  pro- 
mising; applied  to  animals,  vegetables,  &c,  but 
not  to  men.  As,  "  the  horse's  coat  do  stare  ;  he 
hanna  been  kind  all  the  sumber.5'  "  The  weather 
do  look  very  kind"  is  also  said. 

Kindly,  adj.  prosperous,  doing  well. 

To  Knobble,  v.  to  hammer  feebly.  As,  "  he  canna 
do  much;  he  do  just  sit  knobbling  over  a  few 
stones." 

Known,  for  knew.     "  I  known  it  very  well." 

Kyment,  adj.  stupid. 

Kype,  s.  a  coarse  wicker  basket. 

L. 

Lagger,  s.  a  broad  green  lane,  little  or  not  at  all  used 
as  a  road.  (GL.) 

Lammockin,  adj.  (pronounced  lommockin),  slouch- 
ing. Formed  from  lame  :  see  Forby  in  Lammock 
and  Lummox.  "  Lummakin"  is  clumsy,  heavy, 
in  the  Crav.  Gloss. 

d3 


58  Provincial  Words 

Land,  s.  the  portion  of  land  ploughed  between  the 
two  water-furrows.   (GL.) 

Landshut,  s.  a  land-flood.  From  the  water  being 
shot,  or  projected,  over  the  land. 

Langet,  s.  a  strip  of*  ground.  The  same  as  slang, 
which  see. 

Lantree,  s.  the  bar  hooked  to  a  plough  or  harrow, 
to  which  the  traces  are  affixed.  Compare  Cutwith. 

Lawt,  s.  When  a  hare  or  other  animal  which  is  pursued 
is  suffered  to  have  a  fair  chance  of  escape,  it  is  said 
to  have  law  given  it.  This  use  of  the  word  is  so 
general,  and  so  well  established,  that  it  ought  not 
to  be  confined  to  provincial  glossaries.  See  Hunter 
in  v. 

Leaping-block,  s.  a  horse-block.  Called  a  leaping 
stock  in  Devonshire :  Palmer  in  v. 

A  Good  Leapt  Horse  or  A  Bad  Leapt  Horse  is  a 
good  or  bad  leaper.  This  use  of  the  past  participle 
for  the  present  is  familiar  in  German  in  an  ad- 
jectival (as  in  verdienter,  deserving,  bedienter,  a 
servant)  and  in  a  participial  sense  (as  in  Schiller's 
Graf  von  Hapsburg), 

u  Auf  eine  Au  kommt  geritten.^ 
Grimm  D.  Gram.  vol.  iv.  p.  129,  says :  "  Zwischen 
ham  geriten  und  kam  ritende  ist  der  unterschied 
fast   unfuhlbar."     Heyse    D.    Gr.   p.    347,   says, 
"  Ebenso  spricht  man  zwar  richtig  von  berittenen 


used  in  Herefordshire.  59 

pferden,  aber  sehr  unrichti  und  lacherlich  von 
berittenen  reitern  und  unberittenen  cavalier ist en." 
In  Milton,  P.  L.  b.  1.  v.  501, 

"The  sons 
Of  Belial,  flown  with  insolence  and  wine." 

Newton  says,  "  Flown,  I  conceive,  is  a  participle 
from  the  verb  to  fly,"  and  so  Johnson's  Dictionary 
in  v.  understands  it.  The  analogy  of  high  flown 
renders  this  explanation  probable.  In  Virgil  we 
have 

"  Vestigia  presso 
Haud  tenuit  titubata  solo." — Mn.  v.  332. 

for  titubantia. 

Lear,  adj.  Horses  harnessed,  but  drawing  nothing, 
are  called  lear  horses.  Used  in  the  same  sense  in 
Gloucestershire.  In  Dorsetshire,  leary  means 
empty,  according  to  Grose.  In  Somersetshire  and 
Wiltshire,  leer  has  the  same  meaning :  Grose  and 
Jennings  in  v.  In  Devonshire,  leery  or  lary  means 
hungry,  empty,  unladen  :  Grose  and  Palmer  in  v. 
Compare  the  German  leer. 

To  Lease,  v.  a.  to  glean;  whence  Less,  s.  gleaned 
corn.     See  Adelung  in  Lesen. 

To  Leather;  or  Lather,  v.  a.  to  beat.  Not  pecu- 
liar to  Herefordshire.  *  To  strap"  is  similarly 
used  in  other  parts  of  the  country.  The  German 
word  strafe  probably  corresponds  to  the  English 


60  Provincial  Words 

strap;  and,  having  originally  meant  corporal  pu- 
nishment with  a  whip,  came  to  mean  punishment 
generally.     See  Grimm's  D.  R.,  p.  680. 

To  Learn,  v.  a.  to  teach.  Also  used  in  Yorkshire 
and  Norfolk  5  Crav.  GL,  Hunter  and  Forby  in  v. 

Let  it  be,  leave  it  alone. 

Lift,  s.  a  joint  of  beef;  the  same  as  kevin,  which 
see. 

Lighted,  part.  "  To  be  lighted"  is  to  be  delivered  of  a 
child.  Also  a  north  country  expression,  according 
to  Grose.     Compare  the  Italian  sgravarsi. 

Like,  adv.  used  with  a  diminutive  force ;  as,  6i  her 
goes  about  and  eats  her  victuals  like"  i.  e.  M  Though 
she  is  not  well,  she  moves  about  after  a  fashion." 
Also  used  in  Yorkshire  :  Crav.  Gl.  and  Hunter  in 
v.,  and  in  Norfolk  :  Forby  in  v. 

Lissen,  or  Lizzen,  adj.  a  cleft  in  a  rock.   (GL.) 

Lissom,  adj.  i.  e.  lithesome,  active  and  pliant.  From 
lithe.  In  like  manner  blissom9  which  is  used  in 
Somersetshire,  is  contracted  from  blithesome : 
Jennings  in  v. 

Lixom,  adj.  amiable  ;  formed  from  to  like,  as 
buxom  is  formed  from  bugan,  A.  S.  to  bow.  The 
two  latter  words  are  also  used  in  Cheshire  :  they 
are  confounded  by  Wilbraham  in  v.  Lissom  is 
likewise  used  in  Gloucestershire,  as  well  as  in 
Yorkshire,     Norfolk,    Suffolk,     Devonshire,    and 


used  in  Herefordshire.  61 

Somersetshire  :  see  Craven  Glossary,  Forby,  Moor, 
Palmer,  and  Jennings,  in  v. 

Lock,  s.  a  puddle  of  water.  Lake  has  the  same 
sense  in  the  midland  counties,  according  to  Mar- 
shall.    Compare  the  Scotch  loch. 

Lock,  s.  a  "lock  of  wool,"  and  a  "lock  of  hay,"  are 

used  in  the  same  manner  as  a  lock  of  hair.     The 

same  usage  exists  in  Somersetshire  :  Jennings  in  v., 

and  in  Cumberland  and  Westmoreland :  Gl.  in  v. 

It  also  occurs  in  Drayton's  ballad  of  Dowsabel,  in 

Percy,  vol.  ii. — 

"The  shepheard  ware  a  sheepe-gray  cloke, 
Which  was  of  the  finest  loke, 

That  could  be  cut  with  sheere." — Stanza  10. 

Loggy,  adj.  thickset,  chiefly  applied  to  cattle.    From 

log. 
Lommaking,  love-making. 
Lompering,  adj.  idling.  In  Yorkshire,  to  lomper  is  to 

walk  heavily  :  Crav.  Gl.   A  various  form  of  lumber. 
Long  harness,  or  Trave  harness,  cart  harness, 

not  gears.  (GL.) 
Lonk,  s.  the  hip-joint.    From  link.     See  Adelung  in 

Gelenk  and  Lenken.     Lanky  is  a  word  of  similar 

origin. 
Lonk,  s.  a  dingle  which  is  not  very  steep,  a  hollow. 
To  Look,  v.  "  To  look  a  thing  "  is  to  look  for  a  thing. 
Looth,   s.   warmth.     Perhaps   connected   with   the 

German  gluth. 


62  Provincial  Words 

Lost,  s.  loss. 

Lost,  part,  famished.  As,  "  to  be  lost  for  want,"  "  my 
inside  is  lost." 

To  Lot,  v.  ■'  I  lotted  to  do  it."  I  settled  to  do  it. 
(Forest  of  Dean.) 

Lug,  s.  a  pole. 

To  Lug,  v.  a.     The  same  as  to  haul,  which  see. 

Lunch,  s.  a  lump. 

Lunch y,  adj.  lumpy.  Hard  ground,  which  turns  up 
in  large  clods,  is  said  cf  to  plough  up  lunchy." 
In  Suffolk,  Essex,  and  Devonshire,  lunch  or 
luncheon  means  a  lump  of  bread,  cheese,  or  other 
food ;  and  hence  it  came  to  signify  an  extra  meal 
formed  of  such  a  lump.  See  Moor  in  Lunch  and 
Nunch,  and  Palmer  in  Luncheon.  A  lunchin  has 
the  same  sense  in  Yorkshire :  Thoresby  in  Hunter's 
Appendix,  p.  116. 

Lungeous,  adj.  quarrelsome.  Also  used  in  Derby- 
shire and  Leicestershire,  for  spiteful,  mischievous : 
Grose  in  v.    From  to  lunge. 

Lurcher,  s.  a  potato  left  in  the  ground;  i.  e.  a 
lurker,  from  to  lurk.     See  Moocher. 


M. 


Madam  is  used  instead  of  Mrs.  as  a  mark  of  superior 
respect  to  ladies.     The  title  would  not  be  given  to 


used  in  Herefordshire.  63 

any  but  a  person  of  some  power  or  consideration. 
A  farmers  wife  would  be  called  Missus;  the 
Missus,  if  the  name  were  not  added,  and  her 
servant  or  labourer  spoke.  An  unmarried  young 
lady,  if  spoken  of  by  a  cottager,  would  often  be 
called  young  madam.  For  the  use  of  this  word  in 
Norfolk  and  Somersetshire,  see  Forby  and  Jennings 
in  v. 

Maggoty,  adj.  frisky,  playful.  (GL.)  Forby  explains 
this  word  to  mean  whimsical,  freakish,  monkey- 
like, in  Norfolk. 

Maggoty  pie,  s.  a  magpie.  (GL.)  A  corruption. 

To  Make  the  Door,  v.  a.  to  shut  or  fasten  the  door. 

Mammocks,  s.  (pronounced  mommocks),  scraps, 
fragments.  This  word  is  also  used  in  Yorkshire, 
Suffolk,  and  Norfolk,  and  Somersetshire :  Hunter 
and  Forby  in  Mammocks,  Moor  in  Mammuck,  and 
Jennings  in  Mommacks.  See  further  Skinner  and 
Richardson  in  Mammocks.  Mammocks  seems  to 
be  connected  with  the  same  root  as  the  German 
zermalmen  ;  concerning  which  see  Adelung,  in  v. 

To  Mammocks,  v.  a.  (pronounced  mommocks),  to 
maul,  or  mangle.  The  verb  to  mammock  is  used 
by  Shakspeare. 

Mather,  s.  (the  first  syllable  pronounced  like  scathe) 
plur.  matheren.  The  great  ox-eyed  daisy,  a  common 
weed  in  tillage-land. 


64  Provincial  Words 

To  Maunder,  v.  n.  to  talk  in  an  incoherent  manner, 
like  a  person  in  a  state  of  half-consciousness  from 
disease,  sleep,  or  drunkenness.  This  word  is  used 
in  a  similar  sense  in  Yorkshire :  Craven  Glossary, 
in  v.  It  also  occurs  in  Scott's  novels,  and  maun- 
drels  is  explained  by  Jamieson  to  mean  "  idle  stuff, 
silly  tales."  Its  etymology  is  obscure.  From  the  old 
word  maund,  signifying  basket,  was  derived  to 
maundy  or  to  maunder,  in  the  sense  of  to  beg. 
Hence,  perhaps,  to  maunder  came  to  signify  to 
mutter  indistinctly,  as  discontented  beggars  do ; 
and  then  to  talk  in  a  confused,  incoherent  manner  : 
see  Nares  in  Maund  and  Maunder,  Moor's  Suffolk 
Words  in  Maandren,  Palmer's  Devonshire  Glossary 
in  Maunder.  Or  it  might  signify  to  wander  about 
like  a  beggar,  and  then  to  wander  in  conversation  : 
see  Willan  in  Maunder,  Westmoreland  and  Cum- 
berland Glossary  in  Maander  and  Maunder,  and  t 
Wilbraham  in  Dander. 

Mauple,  s.  the  maple.    Also  used  in  Gloucestershire. 

Mawkin,  s.  a  scarecrow.  Not  peculiar  to  Hereford- 
shire.    See  Forby  in  v. 

Mawn,  s.  peat.  Mawn-pit,  s.  a  peat-pit.  Mawn, 
in  the  plur.  Welsh,  means  "  turf"  or  "peat,"  in  a 
collective  sense.  The  singular  "  a  turf  or  peat  "  is 
"  mawnen."  It  belongs  to  a  curious  class  of 
Welsh  nouns,  in  which  the  plural  is  the  primary, 


used  in  Herefordshire.  65 

(because  the  usual),  and  the  singular,  the  secondary 
form  made  by  the  addition  of  the  same  syllable  as 
is  employed  in  the  formation  of  diminutives,  that 
is  "yn"  in  masculines,  and  "  en  "  in  feminines. 
Thus  "plant"  is  children,  "plentyn,"  a  child; 
"had,"  seed,  "hedyn,"  a  grain  of  seed;  "  haidd," 
barley;  "heidden,''  a  grain  of  barley.  Mawnen 
seems  somewhat  irregular  in  not  making  the  accus- 
tomed change  of  the  diphthong  into  o,  or  ow.  See 
Davies,  Ant.  Ling.  Brit.  Elementa.  Oxonii.  1809. 
p.  61. 

Mazzard,  s.  the  head  or  face.  (GL.)  An  old  word. 

Meat,  s.  provender  for  horses  and  cattle. 

To  Meat,  v.  to  feed.  "  To  meat  the  things,"  to  feed 
the  animals. 

Meaty,  adj.  fleshy,  but  not  yet  fat;  as  "Meaty 
things,"  fleshy  cattle. 

Ment,  part,  mended. 

Middling,  adj.  in  good  health.*    "But  middling," 

*  Diminutives  are  at  all  times  used  by  the  poor  ; 
but  in  a  greater  degree  when  they  are  conversing  with 
superiors.  The  habit  appears  to  have  arisen  from  a  desire 
to  excite  compassion,  by  making  themselves  appear  ill  off. 
They  talk  in  the  following  way.  If  you  ask,  ei  What  sort  of 
crop  of  potatoes  have  you  ?"  i!  I  think  I  shall  have  a  few 
taters."  They  would  say  no  more  if  they  expected  the  best 
possible  crop.  "How  are  you?"  "Middling,  or  indifferent, 
well,"  would  be  the  answer ;  though  the  person  was  not  ill, 
and  had  not  had  an  ailing  for  years.     Though  a  man  said 


66  Provincial  Words 

however,  means  that  a  person  is  not  in  good  health. 
These  expressions  are  also  used  in  Gloucestershire. 

"We  do  rent  a  little  house  and  bit  of  garden  of  Mr.  Jones ;" 
his  cottage  and  garden  might  be  the  largest  in  the  district. 
<c  I  did  take  the  man  his  bit  o'  victuals  "  would  mean  his  ordi- 
nary dinner,  and  perhaps  a  large  one  too.  So,  'He  do  get  a 
drop  of  drink  *'  might  mean  six  quarts  of  cider  a-day.  Ask  a 
woman  staggering  under  a  load  of  wood  what  she  has  got  on 
her  head,  she  will  answer,  "I  ha  just  been  picking  a  few 
chats."  (Chats  is  a  diminutive,  meaning  small  sticks.)  On 
the  same  principle  the  cottagers  amplify,  when  talking  of 
those  objects  which  are  expensive  to  them.  "  How  many 
children  have  you  ?"'  Woman.  "  A  large  family  ;  I  ha  had 
ten."  You  do  not  discover,  until  you  ask  a  second  question, 
"  but  I  ha  buried  six  when  they  were  babbies." 

The  habit  of  farmers  and  gardeners,  in  speaking  of  their 
respective  productions,  is  likewise  precisely  analogous  to  that 
which  has  been  just  mentioned  of  cottagers.  No  farmer  or 
gardener  will  admit  times  to  be  good,  or  weather  to  be  alto- 
gether favourable.  If  you  say  to  a  farmer,  u  Wheat  is  as  high 
now  as  any  farmer  can  wish  it,"  he  will  answer,  u  Aye,  but 
look  at  barley,  and  we  ha  had  no  fruit  this  year."  So  if  a  gar- 
dener is  told  that  "  these  are  fine  warm  days  now  for  bringing 
things  forward,"  he  is  sure  to  find  out  that  there  is  too  much  or 
too  little  sun,  or  that  the  nights  are  too  cold  or  too  damp. 
The  reason  of  this,  of  course,  is  lest  much  should  be  ex- 
pected of  them.  Walter  Scott  uses  these  words  in  a  con- 
versation between  Frank  Osbaldestone  and  Andrew  Fairservice : 
"  Gude  een,  gude  een  t'ye.  Fine  weather  for  your  work,  my 
friend."  iS  It's  no  that  muckle  to  be  complained  of,"  answered 
the  man,  with  that  limited  degree  of  praise  which  farmers  and 
gardeners  usually  bestow  on  the  very  best  weather.  In  like 
manner,  if  it  were  the  best  year  of  pheasants  ever  known,  a 
Herefordshire  keeper  would  admit  no  more  than  that  he  had 
a  "  smart  few."  (See  below  in  Smart.) 


used  in  Herefordshire.  67 

Millet,  s.  a  miller,  probably  softened  from  mil- 
iar d, 

Mimmockin,  adj.  an  epithet  applied  to  a  puny  weakly 
child;  as  "  a  little  mimmockin  thing."  Probably 
altered  from  minnock  or  minikin.  See  Forby  in 
Minnock,  and  Philolog.  Museum,  vol.  i.  p.  680. 

To  Mind,  v.  to  watch,  to  look  after.  As  "  I  ha  left 
Bill  at  home  to  mind  the  children." 

Mint,  s.  a  mite.     Minty,  adj.  full  of  mites. 

To  a  Minute.  Accurately,  not  only  as  to  time,  but 
also  as  to  knowledge. 

Mirkshut,  s.  the  end  of  the  evening,  the  twilight. 
(GL.)  From  mirk  ands/mtf;  the  time  when  the 
evening  closes  in. 

Mirky,  adj.  gloomy,  (in  common  use.)  As,  "A 
mirky  day,"  "  Mirky  weather."  Concerning  this 
word,  see  Nares  and  Jamieson  in  Mirk.  It  is  used 
in  Yorkshire :  Will  an  in  v. 

Mishroom,  s.  mushroom.  (GL.) 

Miskin,  s.  a  mixen.      An  ancient  corruption:    see 

There  is  another  expression  usual  among  the  country 
people,  which  is  characteristic  of  their  caution.  "I  suppose," 
does  not  mean  anything  doubtful  or  hypothetical,  but  is  used 
as  a  sort  of  veil,  when  the  speaker  after  all  is  describing  what 
he  himself  knows  for  certain.  As,  "  There  was  a  pretty 
noise  and  bustle  there  last  "night,  I  suppose."  (i  Where  and 
who  made  it  ?"  "  Oh,  I  saw  them  all  fighting  together  at  the 
public  for  half  an  hour."  This  prevails  among  farmers  as 
well  as  labourers.    (See  Crav.  Gl.  in  Indifferent.) 


68  Provincial  Words 

Nares  in  v.  It  is  also  used  in  Kent,  according  to 
Grose  in  v. 

Moggy,  s.  a  name  used  in  fondling  a  calf.  From 
Margaret. 

Moil,  s.  sticky,  wet  dirt.  The  same  as  mullock. 
Also  used  in  Gloucestershire.  To  moil  occurs  in 
Johnson's  Dictionary,  where  it  is  explained  to  mean, 
1.  to  daub  with  dirt;  2.  to  toil  or  labour. 

Moiled,  adj.  dirty  with  wet  mud;  stuck  in  the  mud. 
Also  used  in  Gloucestershire. 

Moiled,  adj.  hornless.  "  A  moiled  sheep  "  is  a  sheep 
without  horns.     From  Moel,  Welsh,  bare,  bald. 

To  Moither,  v.  a.  and  n.  to  confuse,  to  perplex;  to 
be  weak  in  mind.  Moithering,  or  Moithered, 
confused,  silly ;  also  lightheaded  or  delirious.  This 
word,  under  the  form  moider,  is  also  used  in  York- 
shire :  Willan,  Craven  Glossary,  and  Hunter,  in  v. 
Moithered  means  "  confounded,  tired  out,"  in  Glou- 
cestershire, according  to  Grose ;  but  it  appears  not 
to  be  known  there  at  the  present  time. 

Momblement,  s.  confusion,  disorder. 

To  Mooch,  v.  to  play  truant.  To  mouch  means  to 
pilfer  in  Berkshire,  and  micher  means  a  thief,  a  pil- 
ferer, in  Norfolk  according  to  Grose  in  vv.  It  is 
corrupted  from  u  to  mich,"  to  conceal,  an  old  word, 
which  occurs  in  the  expression  "  miching  mallecho," 
secret  malice,  in  Hamlet,  act  iii.  sc.  2.     See  also 


used  in  Herefordshire.  69 

Nares  in  v.  Micher  is  used  by  Chaucer  for  a 
thief;  Tyrwhitt  in  v,  and  by  other  old  writers  for  a 
truant;  Nares  in  v.  In  Devonshire,  to  miche 
means  to  scnlk  or  absent  oneself  from  school  without 
leave,  and  "  michard"  is  a  truant  schoolboy  : 
Palmer  in  vv.  (who  states  that  to  miche  is  derived 
from  the  old  French,  but  no  such  word  as  micher 
occurs  in  Roquefort).  "  To  meech"  and 
"  meecher"  have  similar  meanings  in  Somerset- 
shire :  Jennings  in  vv.  In  the  Forest  of  Dean  "  to 
mooche  blackberries,"  or  simply  "  to  mooch,3' 
means  to  pick  blackberries ;  and  blackberries  have 
thus  obtained  there  the  name  of  "  mooches."  The 
original  meaning  doubtless  was,  (as  is  stated  by 
Grose  in  v.)  to  play  the  truant  in  order  to  gather 
blackberries.  Compare  1  Hen.  IV.  act  ii.  sc.  4. 
"  Shall  the  blessed  sun  of  heaven  prove  a  micher, 
and  eat  blackberries  V*  where  see  the  notes  of  the 
commentators.     See  also  Crav.  Gloss,  in  Michin. 

Moocher,  5.  a  potato  left  in  the  ground  which 
sprouts  again.  So  called  from  its  lurking  in  the 
ground.     Compare  Lurcher  and  to  Mooch. 

Mop,  s.  a  fair  at  which  female  farm  servants  are 
hired.  As,  "  I  hired  Mary  last  Lemster  mop,  and 
she  staid  with  me  two  year." 

To  Mortify,  v.  a.  to  tease  or  annoy. 

Most,  adj.  mouldy,  soft,  tasteless  by  keeping.     Said 


70  Provincial  Words 

of  a  rotten  vegetable.  This  word  was  also  used 
in  Gloucestershire,  according  to  Grose  in  v.,  but  is 
not  known  there  at  present.  Moskered  means 
rotten  in  Yorkshire  :  Hunter  in  v. 

Mosing,  adj.  burning  without  a  flame. 

To  Mouster,  v.  n.  to  moulder  for  compost. 

Concerning  the  root  of  the  three  last  words  (which 
is  the  same  as  that  of  moss,  moist,  and  musty), 
see  Adelung  in  Moos  and  Most. 

Mostly,  adv.  usually,  generally  a  word  used  by 
Bacon. 

To  Much,  v.  to  fondle,  to  make  much  of. 

Muck,  s.  manure.  In  Lincolnshire,  the  word  muck 
means  moist,  according  to  Grose  in  v.  Muck 
means  wet  dirt  in  Yorkshire  :  Hunter  in  v.  See 
further  Forby  and  Crav.  Gl.  in  v. 

Mullock,  s.  and  Mullocky,  adj.  the  same  as  moil 
and  moiled,  which  see.  Mullock  is  used  by 
Chaucer,  and  is  derived  from  mull,  dust,  rubbish : 
see  Todd's  Johnson  in  v. 

Muncorn  Crop,  s.  a  mixture  of  different  seeds  sown 
to  come  up  as  one  crop.  It  is  commonly  applied 
to  a  mixture  of  wheat  and  rye,  which  makes  bread 
of  an  excellent  quality.  The  same  word  is  used  in 
Cheshire :  Wilbraham  in  v.  It  is  probably  formed 
of  the  old  word  meng,  or  ming  (whence  mingle), 
and  corn.     So  in  Essex  and  Norfolk,  "bullimong" 


used  in  Herefordshire.  71 

means  oats,  peas,  and  vetches  mixed ;  Grose  and 
Forby  in  v. ;  and  in  Norfolk  "  barley-mung"  means 
barley  meal  mixed  with  water  and  milk  :  Forby 
in  v.  See  also  Forby  in  Mung.  The  vowel  in 
meng  or  ming  is  similarly  changed  in  the  preposi- 
tion among.     See  Tooke,  vol.  i.  p.  391. 

To  Munjer,  v.  n.  to  mutter,  to  speak  inarticulately. 
Compare  to  Maunder.  To  munjer  is  to  speak 
obscurely  from  indistinctness  of  utterance;  to 
maunder  is  to  speak  obscurely  from  confusion  of 
ideas.  Also  used  in  Shropshire,  according  to  Grose 
in  Munger.  The  word  is  perhaps  derived  from  the 
French  manger. 

Must,.?,  ground  apples,  either  pressed  or  not  pressed. 
Also  used  in  Gloucestershire. 


N. 


Na,  not. 

Nailpiercer,  or  Nailpercer,  and  corruptly,  Nail- 
passer,  s.  a  gimlet. 

Nan,  an  interjection,  signifying  that  the  speaker  does 
not  hear  or  understand  what  has  been  said  to  him. 
This  word  is  also  used  in  Gloucestershire  and  other 
parts  of  England  :  Craven  Glossary,  Jennings,  and 
Palmer  in  v.    Forby  in  Anan. 

Nast,  s*  dirt,  nastiness.  (GL.)  Probably  connected 
with  nass,  H.  German. 


72  Provincial  Words 

Near,  adj.  niggardly,  stingy.  Also  used  in  the 
northern  counties,  and  in  Norfolk :  Grose  and 
Forby  in  v. 

Nesh,  adj.  dainty,  delicate,  tender.  Nash  andnesA 
are  used  in  the  same  sense  in  Yorkshire :  Craven 
Glossary  and  Hunter,  in  v.  Skinner,  in  v.,  says 
that  nesh  was,  in  his  time,  a  common  word  in 
Worcestershire.  From  nesh,  (nesc,  A.  S.),  and 
not  from  the  French  niais,  is  derived  nice,  which 
properly  means  dainty  or  delicate.  (See  Nares  in 
Nice.)  Neshe  is  used  by  Chaucer,  Court  of  Love, 
1092.     See  Tyrwhitt  in  v. 

Nichil,  s.  A  person  who  pays  nothing  is  sometimes 
called  a  nichil.  Compare  the  Italian  annichilare. 
The  forms  nisgil  and  nisgul  are  likewise  used,  both 
in  Herefordshire  and  Gloucestershire.  In  Lan- 
cashire, "  cry'd  no  child"  means  a  woman  cried 
down  by  her  husband ;  in  which  expression  no- 
child,  according  to  Grose,  is  a  corruption  of  nichil 
or  nihil. 

Niscal,  s.  the  smallest  of  a  brood.  Formed  like  the 
old  word  nescook,  from  the  A.  S.  nesc  or  hnesc,  ten- 
der, delicate :  see  Lye  in  v.  Other  derivatives  of 
this  word  have  a  similar  sense  in  other  provincial 
dialects.  Grose  has  "  Nestling,  the  smallest  bird  of 
the  nest  or  clutch ;  called  also  the  nestlecock,  and 
nestlebub.  North  country  word."  (The  word  nest- 
ling does  not  occur  either  in  the  Craven  Glossary  or 


used  in  Herefordshire.  13 

in  Hunter's  Hallamshire  Glossary.)  In  Suffolk, 
according  to  Moor,  the  weakest  bird  of  a  brood  is 
called  neest  gulp  ;  the  youngest  or  weakest  pig  of  a 
litter  is  called  the  barra-pig  ;  the  youngest  of  other 
animals,  pitman,  or  pinbasket.  See  also  Forby 
in  barrow  pig,  nest  gulp,  pinbasket,  and  pitman. 
In  Somersetshire,  according  to  Jennings,  nestle 
tripe  is  "  the  weakest  and  poorest  bird  in  the  nest ; 
applied,  also,  to  the  last  born,  and  usually  the 
weakest  child  of  a  family ;  any  young,  weak,  and 
puny  child,  or  bird."  In  Devonshire,  according 
to  Palmer,  nestledraft  is  "  the  last  and  weakest 
child  of  a  family."  Other  dialects  possess  dif- 
ferent words  to  express  this  idea.  The  least  pig 
of  the  litter  is  called  a  cadma  or  a  whinnock  in  the 
southern  counties,  and  an  anthony  pig  in  Kent, 
according  to  Grose. 

Nob,  s.  a  common  name  for  a  young  colt. 

Noise,  s.  a  quarrel,  a  scolding.  As,  "  there  was  a 
great  noise,  in  the  house;"  "  I  shall  get  a  noise  for 
this."  This  was  its  genuine  sense  in  old  French; 
see  Borel  and  Roquefort  in  v.  "  Chercher  noise" 
is  still  equivalent  to  "  chercher  querelle."  Noxa 
is  read  by  some  for  rixa  in  Petron.  Satyr,  c.  96, 
and  noise  is  probably  derived  from  this  word. 

Nonstcal,  adj.  corrupted  from  nonsensical. 


74  Provincial  Words 

Nor,  adv.  than.     As,  "  about  the  turkeys  did  you 

say  ?  I  dinna  count  'em  ;  but  I'll  be  bold  to  say 

there  were  better  nor  50." 
Nub,  s.  a  small  lump  of  anything,  a  small  swelling, 

the  head.  (GL.)  "  A  nub  of  coal;"  "  a  great  nub 

of  a  boy,"  a  great  stout  boy  (Forest  of  Dean).     The 

same  as  nob. 
To  Nudge,  v.  to  give  a  slight  knock  or  touch  to  a 

person.     Not  peculiar:    see  Crav.  Gl.   in  v.  and 

Hunter  in  Knudge. 
Nurpin,  s.  a  little  person. 


0. 

To  Obligate,  v.  a.  to  oblige. 

Oddmark,  s.  The  portion  of  the  arable  land  of  a  farm 
which,  in  the  customary  cultivation  of  the  farm,  is 
applied  to  a  particular  crop,  is  called  the  oddmark  : 
e.  g.  a  farmer  might  say,  "  I  have  sown  rather  more 
than  my  oddmark  of  wheat,  or  barley,  this  year.'' 
The  explanation  of  this  word,  given  in  Duncumb's 
Herefordshire,  vol.  i.  p.  214,  is  not  correct. 

Odds,  s.  "  of  no  odds,"  of  no  importance. 

To  Odds,  v.  a.  to  alter. 

Oont,  s.     See  Wont. 

On,  prep,  for  of,  seems  to  be  used  only  before  pro- 


used  in  Herefordshire.  75 

nouns.  As,  "  He  ha  got  the  start  on  him."  "  He 
ha  seen  the  last  on  her."  "  He  ha  drank  the 
bottle  clean ;  he  hanna  left  us  a  drop  on  it." 

On  the  Street,  in  the  street.  "  I  met  him  on  the 
street." 

Ornary,  adj.  for  ordinary.  Shabby,  mean-look- 
ing, bad.  This  word  is  also  used  in  Yorkshire : 
Craven  Glossary  in  v.. 

Orts,  s.  bits,  fragments,  odds  and  ends.  "  Come, 
pick  up  your  orts  and  away  with  you,"  might  be 
said  to  a  servant  who  misbehaved  and  was  turned 
out  of  doors.  Hay  left  in  the  cratch,  and  remnants 
and  refuse  of  other  things,  are  called  orts.  An  old 
word,  still  used  provincially  in  most  parts  of 
England. 

To  Oss  at,  v.  n.  to  set  about  doing,  to  begin  to  do, 
to  show  a  sign  of  doing.  Applied  to  inanimate  as 
well  as  animate  objects.  This  verb  is  used  in  the 
same  sense  in  Westmorland,  Yorkshire,  Cheshire, 
and  Lancashire;  Westm.  and  Cumb.  Gloss,  and 
Hunter  in  v.  Wilbraham  in  Oss,  Craven  Glossary 
in  Osse.  It  is  a  north  country  word,  according  to 
Grose  in  v.  It  is  said  to  be  used  in  Shropshire 
with  the  sense  of  to  dare ;  as  "  he  does  not  oss  to 
do  it."     Perhaps  from  the  French  oser. 

Otomy,  s.  for  anatomy,  a  skeleton.     See  Atomy. 

Ourn,  pron.  ours. 


e  2 


76  Provincial  Words 

To  Oust,  v.  a.  to  turn  out. 

Out,  adv.  fully.  As,  "  not  out  ten  years  old,"  not 
having  completely  reached  that  age. 

Over  the  Door.  Out  of  doors.  "  To  put  a  man 
over  the  door  "  is  to  turn  him  out  of  doors. 

To  Overlight,  v.  n.  to  alight  from  a  horse. 

To  Overlook,  v.  to  bewitch.  The  expression  occurs 
in  other  counties  (see  e.  g.  Palmer  and  Jennings 
in  v.)  and  has  apparently  given  rise  to  the  proverb, 
"  The  devil  looks  over  Lincoln."  It  is  derived 
from  the  general  superstition  of  the  evil  eye.  See 
Grimm's  D.  Mythol.  p.  623,  and  Crav.  Gloss,  in 
Evil  Eye. 

Overseen,  part,  mistaken.  As,  "  I  was  much 
overseen  in  that  business."  The  same  sense  is 
preserved  in  the  conjugate  noun  oversight. 


P. 


Pane,  s.  a  bed  of  vegetables,  or  compartment  in  a 
garden.  This  word  (which  is  commonly  limited  to 
compartments  of  glass  in  a  window)  is  similarly 
used  in  Norfolk :  Forby  in  v.  In  the  will  of  the 
Lady  Clare,  foundress  of  Clare  Hall,  who  died  in 
1313,  "  paane"  is  used  for  a  skirt  (Royal  Will?, 
p.  35)  In  the  will  of  Henry  VI.  it  seems  merely 
to  mean  "  side,"  for  speaking  of  Eton,  he  says, 


used  in  Herefordshire.  71 

"  The  north  pane  of  the  college  shall  conteyn  155 
feet  within  the  walls"  (lb.  p.  300).  The  old  sense 
of  compartments  remains  in  the  word  "  counter- 
pane," a  coverlet  of  chequered  panes.  Panel,  in 
the  sense  of  a  compartment  of  woodwork,  or  the 
square  bit  of  parchment  on  which  the  jurors'  names 
are  written,  is  a  diminutive  of  pane. 

To  Pank,  v.  a.  the  same  as  to  poll,  which  see. 
A  panking  pole  is  a  long  pole  for  beating  apple 
trees.  Bang,  bank,  and  pank  are  different  forms 
of  the  same  word  :  see  Palmer  in  Bang. 

Pant,  s.  a  hollow  declivity  on  the  side  of  a  hill,  gene- 
rally without  water.  From  the  Welsh.  Pant  in 
Welsh  means  a  depression,  a  hollow,  a  low  place  ; 
pannu  is  to  hem  in,  to  make  a  depression ;  and 
pannwl  is  a  dimple.  The  idea,  therefore,  seems 
to  be,  something  enclosed  by  a  raised  edge.  Per- 
haps this  root  is  connected  with  pane.  In  North- 
umberland, according  to  Grose,  a  pant  is  a 
cistern  to  receive  falling  water. 

Parjeting,  s.  the  plastering  in  the  inside  of  a  chim- 
ney-flue, See  Nares  in  v.  The  plaster  is  made 
of  mortar  mixed  with  cowdung,  and  is  used  only 
where  it  is  likely  to  be  made  hot;  being  more 
tenacious  when  so  mixed  than  ordinary  mortar. 
Comp.  Jennings  and  Crav.  Gl.  in  v.  Probably  from 
the  French  parjeter. 


18  Provincial  Words 

Parjeter,  s.  a  tiler  and  plasterer.  (GL.) 

Patienate,  adj.  patient.  Sometimes  pronounced 
almost  like  passionate. 

Pea-esh,  s.  pease-stubble.  The  words  edish,  etch, 
arrish,  or  ersh  are  used,  in  different  parts  of  Eng- 
land, in  the  sense  of  aftermath  or  stubble.  The 
root  of  all  is  the  A.S.  prefix  -ed>  which  means 
"  again." 

Pease-brush,  s.  pease-stubble,  when  harrowed  or 
brushed,  preparatory  to  sowing  wheat. 

Peazen,  or  Pazen,  s.  pease.  (GL.) 

Peg,  s.  pig.  (GL.) 

Pelt,  s.  the  skin  of  a  sheep,  after  the  wool  has  been 
taken  off.  Not  peculiar  to  Herefordshire :  see 
Grose  and  Forby  in  v.  Compare  peltry  in  the 
fur  trade,  and  pelz  German. 

Peramble,  s.  a  long  tedious  discourse.  Corrupted 
from  preamble. 

Perky,  or  Pergy  (the  g  hard),  adj.  saucy,  uncivil, 
impudent,  obstinate.  Also  in  a  good  sense:  in 
spirits,  as  applied  to  a  person  recovering  from  sick- 
ness. In  Norfolk,  perk  means  brisk  :  Forby  in  v. 
"  To  spurk  up,"  is  to  spring,  shoot,  or  rise  up 
briskly,  in  the  south,  according  to  Grose.  Connected 
with  the  words  to  peer  and  to  perk  up. 

Pert,  or  Piert,  adj.  brisk,  in  good  health. 

Peth,  s.  crumb  of  bread.     The  same  word  as  pith. 


used  in  Herefordshire.  79 

To  Pick,  v.  a.  to  glean.  To  pike  has  the  same  sense 
in  the  midland  counties,  according  to  Marshall. 

Piece,  s.  a  field.  Sometimes  applied  to  animals  and 
men,  as,  "  a  sickly  piece,"  a  sickly  child. 

Pikle,  s.  a  hayfork.  Also  used  in  Cheshire  :  Wilbra- 
ham  in  Pikehill.  In  Gloucestershire,  a  hay  fork 
is  called  pike  or  pick.  Pike  and  pich,  or  pitch,  are 
different  forms  of  the  same  word ;  and  from  pike 
comes  pikle. 

Pill,  s.  a  small  creek,  capable  of  holding  small  barges 
for  loading  and  unloading.  From  the  Welsh  pil, 
a  creek.  This  word  is  used  on  the  Severn,  and  is 
probably  peculiar  to  that  river,  as  an  appellative  ; 
but  it  occurs  elsewhere  in  Celtic  districts  as  a  proper 
name.  Thus  a  village  on  the  Falmouth  river  is 
named  Pill;  Pill  town,  in  the  county  of  Kilkenny, 
is  situated  on  a  creek  called  the  Pill  near  the  Suir ; 
and  Pilltown,  in  the  county  of  Waterford,is  on  the 
Blackwater. 

Pitch,  s.  a  steep  hill,  generally  on  a  road.     See  Jet. 

Pitchats,  s.  broken  glass,  china,  &c.  Perhaps  a 
corruption  of  potsherds. 

Pishty,  s.  used  in  calling  to  a  puppy,  as  puss  is  used 
in  calling  to  a  cat.  Also  used  in  the  Forest  of  Dean, 

Pitous,  adj.  piteous,  pronounced  pitis  in  Somerset- 
shire ;  Jennings  in  v.  Pitous  is  the  form  used  by 
Chaucer,  C.  T.  8962,  from  the  French  piteux. 


80  Provincial  Words 

Place,  s.  a  house  with  a  small  quantity  of  land  at- 
tached to  it.  As,  "  What  place  have  you  got  ?" 
"  I  do  live  in  a  nice  little  place  under  the  hill." 

To  Pleach,  v.  a.  to  make  a  hedge  by  partially  cutting 
the  upright  shoots  near  the  ground,  and  then  bend- 
ing them  down  and  intertwining  them  between 
upright  stakes.  An  old  word  (Nares  in  v.),  still 
used  as  a  provincialism  in  many  parts  of  England : 
Grose  and  Moor  in  t\  Pleisseicum  is  domus  subur- 
bana,  Ducange  in  v.  Hence  Plessis  les  Tours  and 
other  places  in  France  (Manage  in  v.)  Pleissiare  is 
pleclere,  and  the  name  is  derived  from  the  pleached 
hedges  round  country  houses  of  this  kind. 

Plim  and  Plimmer,  s.  a  plummet. 

To  Plim,  v.  a.  to  let  down  a  plumb  line. 

Plim,  adj.  upright,  perpendicular.  "  A  horse  goes 
plim;"  j.  e.  he  is  upright,  well-balanced.  The 
word  plum  is  similarly  used  in  Yorkshire  and  in 
Suffolk  :  Craven  Glossary  and  Moor  in  v. ;  and 
the  word  plim  in  Cheshire :  Wilbraham  in  v. 

To  Plim,  v.  to  swell.  (GL.)  Also  used  in  Somer- 
setshire :  Jennings  in  v.,  and  see  Grose  in  v. 
Probably  connected  with  plump, 

Plock,  s.  a  small  field.  Equivalent  to  croft,  as  used 
in  other  parts  of  the  country. 

To  Poche,  v.  "  To  poche  ground"  is  to  tread  it 
when  wet.     A   gateway   about   which  cattle  and 


used  in  Herefordshire.  81 

horses  stand  in  winter,  is  pocked.  Fields  are 
pocked  in  like  manner.     See  Grose  in  Pochy. 

Poplern,  or  Poplen,  adj.  made  of  poplar.  See 
Elmen. 

Poppet,  s.  a  term  of  endearment,  used  to  an  infant. 
"  Pretty  poppet."  The  word  is  similarly  used  in 
Yorkshire,  according  to  the  Crav.  Gloss,  in  v.  In 
Suffolk,  poppet  is  a  term  of  endearment  to  a  young 
girl :  Moor  in  v.  In  Norfolk,  poppet  is  equivalent 
to  puppet :  Forby  in  u.  The  word  occurs  in 
Chaucer's  Sir  Thopas,  v.  13631. 

u  This  were  a  popet  in  an  arm  to  embrace, 
For  any  woman,  smal  and  faire  of  face." 

Compare  Adelung  in  Puppe. 
To  Pother,  v.  a.  to  shake,  to  poke. 
To  Poult,  v.  a.  to  strike  the  branches  of  a  tree  with 

a  pole,  in  order  to  get  the  fruit.     From  pole. 
Pound,  s.  a  pond,  particularly  a  mill  pond.  (GL.) 
Pound-stakle,  s.  the  floodgates  of  a  pond  and  the 

posts  and  frame  which  support  them.  (GL.) 
Pout-ledden,  adj.  spirit-led,  as  by  will  of  the  wisp. 

From  the  Welsh pwca,  a  fiend  or  hobgoblin,  whence 

the    Puck    of     Midsummer's     Night's     Dream. 

"  Pouke"  is  quoted  as  a  spirit  from  the  romance 

of  Richard  Cceur  de  Lion  in  Toome's  Glossary. 
To  Poutch,  v.  n.  to  pout. 

E   3 


82  Provincial  Words 

Povey,  s.  an  owl.  (GL.) 

Power,  s.  a  quantity.  Similarly  used  in  Yorkshire ; 
Crav.  Gl.  and  Hunter  in  v.,  and  in  Norfolk : 
Forby  in  v.     Compare  the  use  of  vis  in  Latin  : 

"  Est  hederse  vis 
Multa  qua  crines  religata  fudges." — Hor.  O. 

Pretty  well,  adv.  expressive.  As  "  He  did  pretty 
well  tell  him  out,"  i.  e.  roundly  or  fully.  It  is 
applicable  to  actions  as  well  as  words. 

Pricked,  adj.  sour,  as  "  pricked  cider." 

Prill,  s.  a  small  stream  of  running  water.  From 
the  Welsh  prill,  a  rill. 

Promiscuously,  adv.  accidentally,  by  chance.  A 
similar  use  of  this  word  prevails  in  Suffolk :  Moor 
in  Pramiscas. 

Pue,  s.  the  udder.  (GL.) 

The  Public,  s.  the  public  house.  The  same  abridg- 
ment is  used  in  Norfolk  :  Forby  in  v. 

To  Pug,  v. a.  to  pluck  out;  as,  "  to  pug  a  rick,"  to 
tug  out  the  projecting  hay  from  a  rick,  in  order  to 
put  it  in  shape;  "  to  pug  a  horse's  mane  or  tail," 
"  to  pug  feathers  from  poultry,"  &c.  "  To  pug"  also 
signifies  "  to  pull "  in  Perthshire,  according  to 
Jamieson  in  v.  To  pug  meant  to  steal  in  old  Eng- 
lish :  Nares  in  Pugging. 

Pulfin,  s.     "A  great  pulfin  of  a  boy,"  a  large  fat 


used  in  Herefordshire.  83 

child.  In  the  Norfolk  dialect,  "pulky"  means 
"  thick,  fat,  chubby,  and  short :"  Forby  in  v.  {i.e. 
bulky). 

To  Pun  (pronounced  poon),  v.  a.  to  beat.  This  old 
word  (Nares  in  v.)  is  also  used  in  Cheshire  :  Wilbr. 
in  v.  In  Yorkshire  it  is  pronounced  pund :  Crav. 
Gloss,  in  v.  According  to  Grose,  "  to  poon  "  or 
"  pun"  is  a  north  country  word  for  "  to  kick."  The 
ordinary  sense  of  punning  is  (as  Nares  observes) 
derived  from  repeatedly  striking  upon  the  same 
word. 

Punishment,  s.  pain,  in  a  general  sense.  As,  "  I 
was  in  great  punishment  with  the  tooth-ache." 
There  is  a  similar  use  of  the  word  in  the  slang  lan- 
guage of  the  prize-ring. 

Pure,  adj.  free  from  disease.  An  answer  delivered 
by  a  servant  to  an  inquiry  after  a  lady's  health : 
"  My  mistress  gives  her  service  to  you,  and  she  is 
pure."  Purely  has  the  same  meaning  in  Norfolk  : 
Forby  in  v. 

To  Put  about,  v.  to  teaze,  or  worry.  As,  "  Now 
don't  go  to  put  me  about"  (Forest  of  Dean.) 

Q. 

To  Quank,  v.  to  subdue.     Probably  the  same  as  to 

quench. 
Quar,  s.  quarry.    (Forest  of  Dean.) 


84  Provincial  Words 

To  Quat,  v.  to  squat.  (GL.)  Quat,  as  an  adjective, 
for  squat,  occurs  in  Devonshire :  Palmer  in  v. 

To  Queek,  v.  a.  to  press  or  squeeze  down,  to  pinch. 
Probably  queek,  queech,  squeech,  and  squeeze,  are 
different  forms  of  the  same  word. 

Queest,  s.  a  wood  pigeon.  This  old  word  (Nares,  in 
v.)  is  probably  contracted,  as  well  as  the  Scotch 
cushat,  and  the  north  country  cowshut,  from  the 
Anglo-Saxon  cusceote. 

To  Quilt,  v.  to  swallow.  (GL.) 

To  Quire,  v.  to  inquire.  (GL.)  To  "  lay  quirance," 
means  to  inquire,  in  Herefordshire. 

Quob,  s.  a  quicksand,  a  shaking  bog.  Quabbe 
is  the  Mecklenburg  word  for  a  marshy  place.  See 
Adelung  in  Quabbeln,  and  Schlegel,  as  below. 

To  Quop,  v.  to  throb,  as  a  gathering.  Also  used  in 
Gloucestershire,  according  to  Grose.  See  Adelung 
in  Quabbeln,  which  is  used  of  the  palpitation  or 
quivering  of  fat  or  soft  flesh.  Quabbeln  is  the 
same  word  as  wabble,  which  is  applied  to  the 
irregular  motion  of  an  arrow  through  the  air ;  see 
A.  W.  SchlegePs  remarks  on  a  translation  of  a 
passage  in  Romeo  and  Juliet,  Krit.  Schriften,  vol. 
ii.  p.  120. 

R. 

Rack,  s.  a  rude  road,  a  narrow  path,  a  track. 


used  in  Herefordshire.  85 

To  Rail,  v.  to  reel. 

Raisty,  adj.  rancid.  Applied  to  bacon  spoilt  by  long 
keeping.  Used  in  other  parts  of  England;  see 
Crav.  Gl.  and  Forby  in  Reasty,  and  Jennings  in 
rasty. 

Raith,  or  Rait,  s.  weeds,  sticks,  straw,  and  other 
rubbish  in  a  pool  or  in  running  water.  According 
to  Grose,  "to  rait  timber,  hemp, or  flax,"  means,  in 
the  northern  counties,  to  put  it  into  a  pond  or 
ditch,  in  order  to  water  or  season  it.  Compare 
Crav.  Gl.  in  Rate. 

Rammily,  or  Rommily,  adj.  tall  and  rank,  as  grass. 
Also  applied  to  animals ;  as  "  a  long,  rammily  colt," 
means  one  leggy,  loose,  ill  put  together.  This 
word  is  also  used  in  Gloucestershire :  Marshall's 
Rural  Econ.  of  Glost.  vol.  ii.  p.  331.  Its  root  is 
the  same  as  that  of  the  verb  to  ramble  (rammeln, 
German).  Ramile,  which  means  "  underwood, 
twigs,"  in  the  Craven  dialect,  is  derived  by  the 
author  of  the  Craven  Glossary  from  the  Latin  ra- 
mulus ;  rammed  which  means  "branchy"  in 
Scotch,  is  derived  by  Jamieson  from  the  French 
ramille.  It  seems  more  probable  that  they  are 
connected  with  the  root  of  ramble. 

Rampaging,  Rampagious,  adj.  riotous,  ill-disposed. 
"  To  rampadge,"  in  Devonshire,  means,  according 
to  Palmer,  "  to  prance  about,  to  scour  up  and  down 


86  Provincial  Words 

stairs."  From  to  romp  or  ramp  :  see  Jamieson  in 
Ramp  and  Jennings  in  Ramping. 

Randy  row,  s.  a  disturbance.  Corrupted  from  ren- 
dezvous. 

Ratch,  s.  a  subsoil  of  stone  and  gravel,  mixed  with 
clay.  According  to  Grose,  "  ratchel "  means 
"  broken  stones  found  under  mould,"  in  Derby- 
shire; and  "  ratcher"  means  "rock"  in  Lanca- 
shire. 

Rathe,  adj.  early ;  e.g.  a  " rathe  hatch  of  birds," 
meaning  an  early  hatch.  Used  in  other  counties  : 
Grose  in  v.  An  old  word  :  Nares  in  v.  It  occurs 
in  Chaucer,  as  well  as  its  comparative  and  super- 
lative, rather  and  rathest.  The  former  likewise 
occurs  in  Spenser  : 

u  The  rather  lambs  been  starved  with  cold." 

Shepherd's  Calendar,  February. 

The  comparative  form  has  remained  in  common  use 
as  an  adverb.  "  I  would  rather  do  so,"  is  pre- 
cisely equivalent  to  "  I  would  sooner  do  so,"  and 
corresponds  to  the  German  use  of  eher ;  "das 
h'atte  ich  eher  gethan."  The  root  of  rathe  and 
ready  is  the  same :  see  Bos  worth  in  hraed  and 
raft.     Home  Tooke,  vol.  i.  p.  4*73. 

To  Rebel,  v.  to  revel. 

Reen,  s.  the  interval  between  the  ridges  of  ploughed 
ground.     Compare  Wilbraham  in  Reean.    Hunter 


used  in  Herefordshire.  87 

states  that  in  Yorkshire,  "  a  line  across  meadows 
which  has  formerly  been  a  hedge  or  a  road  is  called 
the  rain?' 

Rem e tic,  s.  emetic.  Some  use  the  expression  a 
"  remetical  man,"  for  "  a  medical  man."  Remetic 
is  coined  out  of  emetic  and  remedy. 

Reprobate,  s.  applied  only  to  a  common  swearer. 

Rheumatiz,  or  Rheumatics,  s.  rheumatism. 

Rid,  s.  earth  removed  from  the  top  of  a  quarry. 

To  Rid,  v.  to  empty,  as,  "  To  rid  the  stomach,"  for 
to  vomit.  Also  to  clear  ground ;  whence  "  the 
riddings,"  as  the  name  of  a  field ;  ground  which 
has  been  ridded  of  trees  and  bushes. 

Ridiculous,  adj.  scandalous,  morally  wrong.  Com- 
pare Comical  and  Curious,  which  convey  a  similar 
meaning. 

Right,  s.  duty  ;  as,  "  I  have  no  right  to  pay,"  mean- 
ing, I  am  not  bound  to  pay,  I  ought  not  to  pay. 
This  use  of  the  word  also  prevails  in  other  parts  of 
England;  see  e.g.  Moor,  Forby,  and  Hunter  in  v. 

Ripple,  s.  a  small  coppice,  or  thicket  of  underwood. 
Perhaps  the  parish  of  Ripple,  between  Upton  and 
Tewkesbury,  in  Worcestershire,  derives  its  name 
from  this  word.  There  is  still  a  quantity  of  waste 
ground  overgrown  with  bushes  and  timber,  forming 
"  Ripple  Common." 

To  Rise,  v.  to  raise.     Compare  to  fall  for  to  fell. 


88-  Provincial  Words 

Rochlis,  s.  rattle.     cc  The  rochlis  in  the  throat," 
i.  e.  before  death.     Compare  the  German  rocheln. 
"  Wer  scheidet  dort  rochelnd  vom  Sonnenlicht," 

Korner,  Lutzow's  Wilde  jag d. 

See  Adelung  in  v. 
To  Rollick,  or  Rollock,  v.n.  to  romp  or  ramble  in  an 

irregular  wayward  manner,  like  a  child  or  a  puppy. 

Connected  with  roll.     See  Crav.  Gl.  in  Rallakin. 
Root,  s.  a  rut.    (GL.) 
To  Rouse,  v.  a.  to  stir  up,  to  turn  out ;    as,  "  the 

chickens  were   in  the  barn ;    I   did  rouse  them 

out." 
Ross,  s.  a  morass.     From  the  Welsh  rhos. 
To  Row  for,  v.  to  look  for.  (GL.) 
Rowcast,  adj.  rough-cast.  (GL.) 
To  Rowstle,  v.  n.  to  stir  oneself  up.     Used  of  birds 

when  dusting  themselves  in  the  sun.     The  same 

as  to  rustle,  from  to  rouse. 
Rubble,  s.  a  mixture  of  stones  and  earth  in  a  quarry. 

"  Rubble"  is   explained  in   Palmer's  Devonshire 

Glossary  to  mean  loose  gravelly  rubbish. 
Ruck,  s.  1.  a  heap;  as  "  rucks  of  mawn,"  heaps  of 

peat.     Chickens  are  "  all  of  a  ruck"  when  crowded 

under  the  hen.     2.  A  rut  of  a  road.     3.  A  crease. 

Smooth  linen,  when  tumbled,  is  "  all  of  a  ruck  :" 

hence — 
To  Ruckle,  v.  a.  to  rumple,  to  crease.     In  the  York- 


used  in  Herefordshire.  89 

shire  dialect,  ruck  and  ruckle  signify  "  a  great 
quantity,  a  heap  of  stones  :"  Crav.  Gloss,  in  v.; 
and  see  Hunter  in  v.  In  Cheshire  and  Lancashire 
ruck  is  used,  as  a  substantive  and  verb,  in  the 
same  senses  as  in  Herefordshire :  Wilb.  in  v.  The 
meanings  of  ruck  in  Suffolk  are  nearly  similar  : 
Moor  in  v.  The  form  reck  occurs  in  old  English  : 
Skinner  in  v.  Ruck  is  also  Scotch  :  Jam.  in  v. 
The  German  ruck,  the  Scotch  rig,  and  the  Eng- 
lish ridge,  and  rick,  are  other  forms  of  the  same 
word. 

Rudge,  s.  a  ridge  in  a  field.     See  Ruck. 

Rumpled  skein,  anything  that  is  in  great  confusion, 
as  an  account  badly  kept.    (GL.) 

Rundle,  s.  a  hollow  pollard  tree.  Probably  a  roundle, 
from  round. 

R o st y,  adj.  intractable;  corrupted  from  restive.  The 
word  used  in  Yorkshire  and  Norfolk  is  reasty : 
Craven  Gloss.  andForbymv. — See  above  in  Reasty . 
The  desire  of  converting  a  strange  into  a  familiar 
sound  is  a  frequent  cause  of  corruption  in  all  lan- 
guages. Changes  of  this  sort  are  usually  made 
without  any  reference  to  the  meaning  of  the  word. 
Thus  the  French  rondeau  became  round  0,  and 
bourdon  became  burden  (of  a  song)  ;  so  bumble 
bee  became  humble  bee,  kink-cough  became  chin- 
cough,  and  gorstberries,  gooseberries.     The  craig 


90  Provincial  Words 

(i.  e.  throat)  end  of  a  neck  of  mutton  became  the 
scrag  end ;  and  lustring,  a  shining  silk,  so  called 
from  its  lustre,  was  commonly  written  lutestring. 
Livorno  was  changed  into  Leghorn,  Coruna  into 
the  Groin,  and  a  Prussian  fir  into  a  spruce  fir 
(Nares  in  v.)  Compare  Disgest,  Randyrow, 
and  Remetic. 


S.  The  's  of  the  possessive  case  is  used  in  Hereford- 
shire where  educated  persons  would  use  the  par- 
ticle of.  Thus  "  Monnington's  parish"  would, 
in  the  mouth  of  a  countryman,  mean  the  parish  of 
Monnington  ;  in  that  of  an  educated  person,  it 
would  mean  the  parish  belonging  to  Mr.  Mon- 
nington, or  the  parish  in  which  he  lived. 

Safe  to  have,  sure  to  have. 

Sally,  s.  a  willow.  Also  used  in  Gloucestershire  ; 
called  sallow  in  Suffolk :  Moor  in  v.  See  Adelung 
in  Sahlweide,  Stalder  in  Sale.  Compare  the  Latin 
salix. 

Salty,  adj.  rather  salt. 

To  Sauce,  v.  to  abuse.  As,  "  He  sauced  me  shock- 
ing."    Also  used  in  Norfolk  :  Forby  in  v. 

A  Say  so,  s.  a  merely  nominal  advantage. 

Scallage,  or  Scallenge,  s.  a  detached  covered  porch 


used  in  Herefordshire.  91 

at  the  entrance  of  a  churchyard :  Ducange  in  v. 
shows  that  scalus  was  sometimes  used  for  stallus, 
in  the  sense  of  a  seat.  Hence  perhaps  may  have 
been  derived  scalagium.  Concerning  the  termina- 
tion agium,  see  Diez,  Rom.  Gramm.vol.  ii.  p.  252. 

Scambling,  adj.  sprawling.  "  Shambling"  means 
awkward  in  the  gait  in  Derbyshire,  according  to 
Grose. 

Scar,  s.  a  precipice,  a  steep  bare  bank.  This  word 
is  also  Scotch  :  Jam.  in  v.  It  is  likewise  used  in 
Westmorland  and  Cumberland :  Gloss,  in  v.  and 
in  Yorkshire  :  Ray,  Willan,  and  Craven  Gloss,  in  ?;. 
See  Tooke's  Div.  of  Purley,  vol.  ii.  p.  113. 

To  be  Scarified,  v.  to  be  frightened  out  of  one's 
wits. 

To  Scog,  v.n.  to  boast. 

A  Scogger,  s.  a  boaster. 

Scote,  s.  a  dragstafT.    (GL.) 

To  Scote,  v.  to  plough  up  the  ground  by  slipping  in 
attempting  to  stop.    (GL.) 

To  Scrat,  v.  to  scratch.  Also  used  in  Gloucester- 
shire. 

To  Scrawl,  v.  to  crawl.  The  s  prefixed,  as  in 
slanget ;  while  in  quat  and  queech  it  is  omitted. 
Compare  cag  and  skag. 

Scrawling,  adj.  slight.  "  A  scrawling  frost"  is  a 
slight  frost.    (GL.) 


92  Provincial  Words 

Screech,  s.  the  missel  thrush.     (GL.) 

Screeches,  s.  swifts.    (GL.) 

To  Scrouch,  or  Scrowge,  v.  a.  to  crush,  to  press  to- 
gether, to  make  untidy;  foimed  from  to  crouch. 
This  word,  according  to  Grose,  is  also  used  in  Mid- 
dlesex. A  scrudge  is  a  squeeze  in  Westmorland 
and  Cumberland :  Gloss,  in  v. 

Scutch  Grass,  s.  couch  grass.  In  Gloucestershire, 
according  to  Grose,  couch  (vulgarly  pronounced 
squitch)  means  the  roots  of  grass  collected  by  the 
harrow  in  pasture  lands,  when  first  ploughed  up. 

Seedny,  s.  time  of  sowing  the  land. 

Seg,  s.  sedge.  This  mode  of  pronouncing  the  word 
also  obtains  in  Yorkshire  and  Suffolk :  Craven 
Gloss,  and  Moor,  in  v.  Nares,  in  v.,  gives  instances 
of  it  from  old  writers. 

Selfish,  adj.  self-conceited. 

To  Send,  v.  to  "  go  to  send"  is  to  accompany  on  the 
road ;  as  "  he  is  gone  to  send  his  sister  to  Here- 
ford." In  like  manner  to  "  come  send,"  is  to  go 
to  meet.     Compare  the  Greek  7rpo7ri/ji7r£iy. 

To  Shift,  v.  a.  to  move,  to  remove.  A  man  who 
changes  his  clothes  is  said  "  to  shift  himself." 
Also  used  in  Gloucestershire  :  see  likewise  Hunter 
in  v. 

Shimmy,  s.  shift;  now  used  by  cottagers.  From 
chemise. 


used  in  Herefordshire.  93 

Shoul,  s.  shovel.  (GL.)  Also  used  in  Somerset- 
shire :  Jennings  in  v.  Grose  in  Shool ;  in  West- 
morland and  Cumberland:  Westm.  and  Cumb. 
Gloss,  in  v.,  and  in  Yorkshire,  Hunter  aud  Crav.  GL 
in  v      Compare  the  Scotch  deil  from  devil. 

Shuppick,  s.  a  hay  fork.     Probably  from  shove-pike. 

Shut,  a.  a  shoot  or  spout  of  water.     See  Landshut. 

To  Get  Shut  of,  to  get  rid  of.  This  word  is  also 
used  in  Gloucestershire,  as  well  as  in  Yorkshire 
and  Cheshire  :  Craven  Gloss.,  Hunter,  and  "Wilbr. 
in  v.      See  Tooke,  Div.  of  Purl.,  vol.  ii.  p.  130. 

Sich,  or  Sish,  such.    Also  used  in  Gloucestershire. 

Sight,  s.  a  large  number.  C|  A  sight  of  sheep,  birds, 
&c."  Also  used  in  Gloucestershire,  and  in  Suffolk 
and  Norfolk  :  Moor  and  Forby  in  v. 

Of  no  Signification;  of  no  importance.  Also  used 
in  Gloucestershire. 

Simple,  adj.  sickly,  feeble,  helpless. 

Skeg,  s.  the  stump  of  a  branch ;  also  a  rent  in  a  piece 
of  cloth  such  as  would  be  made  by  a  stump  of  a 
branch.  (GL.)  It  is  used  in  the  latter  sense  in 
Somersetshire  :  Jennings  in  v.     See  Cag. 

To  Sklem,  v.  to  steal  slyly.  It  seems  to  be  applied 
exclusively  to  animals,  especially  cats  and  dogs. 
Thus,  "  Lor,  missus,  if  our  cat  hanna  gone  and 
sklemmed  all  our  cream."  "  Come  out,  dog,  get 
bye,  dog.  If  I  hanna  minded  him,  he'd  ha 
sklemmed  aw  our  victuals."    If  this  word  originally 


94  Provincial  Words 

meant  to  steal  for  purposes  of  gluttony,  as  a  cat  or 
dog  does,  it  may  be  connected  with  the  German 
schldmmen  ;  see  Adelung  in  v. 

Slab,  s.  the  piece  which  is  sawn  from  a  tree  in  squar- 
ing it.  Also  used  in  Gloucestershire  and  other 
counties  :  see  Grose,  Crav.  GL,  Wilbraham,  Forby, 
and  Moor  in  v. 

Slade,  s.  a  valley. 

Slammockin,  s.  a  slattern.  This  word  is  also  used 
in  Gloucestershire  and  in  other  parts  of  England  : 
Crav.  Gloss,  in  Slammocking,  Moor  in  Slammaken, 
Jennings  in  Slomaking,  Palmer  in  Slummaking. 
Formed  from  lammockin  (which  see),  by  prefix- 
ing s. 

Slang,  or  Slinget,  s.  along,  narrow  piece  of  ground. 
Compare  Langet. 

To  Slart,  v.  a.  to  stain.  "  To  slart"  is  explained  to 
plash  with  dirt,  in  Thoresby's  Yorkshire  words,  in 
Hunter's  Appendix,  p.  122  and  see  Craven  Glos- 
sary in  v. 

To  Slat,  v.  to  slit.  Slat  is  evidently  the  past  par- 
ticiple of  slit  (like  slate),  made  into  a  new  verb, 
like  hoist,  throng,  sloken  in  Scotch,  and  many  others. 
Compare  to  Hope,  in  this  Glossary. 

To  Sleave,  v.  a.  to  tear  down,  as  a  branch  of  a  tree 
or  a  cutting  of  a  plant. 

S leaving,  s.  a  twig  s leaved  off.  "  To  slive"  means 
to  split  or  to  slice  in  Yorkshire,  Lancashire,  and 


used  in  Herefordshire.  95 

Cheshire :  Crav.  Gloss,  and  Wilbr.  in  v.  In  Suf- 
folk, a  sliver  is  a  splinter  or  a  slice  :  Moor  in  v. 
The  word  is  common  in  old  writers :  see  Nares 
in  v.     Thus,  in  "  King  Lear,"  act  iv.  sc.  2 : — 

'*  She  that  herself  will  sliver  and  disbranch 
From  her  material  sap,  perforce  must  wither." 

And  "  Macbeth,"  act  iv.  sc.  1 : — 

*'  Slips  of  yew 
Slivered  in  the  moon's  eclipse." 

Sled,  s.  a  sledge. 

Slike,  adj.  slippery.     Pronounced  sleek,  or  slick,  in 

Gloucestershire.  Slick  has  become  an  Americanism. 
S linger,  s.  one  who  steals  cloth  yarn  or  the  like  from 

clothiers,  with  a  view  to  its  being  worked  up  or 

finished.  (GL.) 
To  Slither,  v.  n.  to  slide.     Also  used  in  Yorkshire. 

Crav.  Gl.  in  v.     In  Somersetshire,  "  to  slitter"  is 

to  slide,  according  to  Jennings.     "  To  slather"  is 

used  in  Cheshire  :  AVilbr.  in  v. 
Sludge,  or  Slush,  s.  a  wet  or  muddy  place.     As, 

"The  field  is  all  in  a  slush:'     "  The  road  be  a 

complete  sludge."     Hence  Slushy,  muddy. 
Smart,  adj.  in  good  health.     "  A  smart  few"  means 

a  considerable  number.     The  latter  expression  is 

also  used  in  Gloucestershire. 
To  Smirch,  or  Smouch,  v.  a.  to  daub,  dirty,  stain. 

An  old  word  :  See  Johnson  in  Smirch  and  Besmirch. 


96  Provincial  Words 

It  is  formed  from  mirk.  Compare  Scrawl  and 
Queek. 

Snag,  $  a  rough  projecting  stump  of  a  tree.  Also 
used  in  Norfolk:  Forby  in  v.  In  Somersetshire, 
snag  means  a  tooth  :  Jennings  in  v.  Snag  is  used 
in  the  United  States  for  a  tree  lodged  in  a  river, 
and  projecting  from  the  bottom  so  as  to  be  dan- 
gerous to  vessels.  It  is  apparently  the  same  word 
as  nug>  used  in  Devonshire  for  a  knot  or  protuber- 
ance :  Palmer  in  v.  Compare  Cag  and  Skeg. 
"  To  snag,"  in  Cheshire,  means  to  cut  off  the 
lateral  branches  of  trees  :  Wilbr.  in  v.  The  verb 
has  the  same  sense  in  the  Westmorland  and  Cum- 
berland dialect :  Gloss,  in  v. 

To  Snag,  v.  to  teaze,  to  repeat  the  same  thing  several 
times.  (Forest  of  Dean.)  See  Crav.  Gl.  in  knag 
and  snag. 

To  Snite,  v.  to  blow  the  nose.  (GL.)  Also  used  in 
Yorkshire :  Thoresby,  and  Watson  in  Hunter's 
App.  p.  123.  160. 

So,  "  She  is  so,"  she  is  pregnant.  An  euphemismus. 
(GL.) 

Soak,  s.  A  "  green  soak,"  or  "  a  warm  soak,"  is  a 
small  spot  of  marshy  ground,  in  which  a  spring 
rises,  or  which  is  kept  moist  during  the  winter  by 
the  action  of  water.  It  differs  from  a  gall  (which 
see),  as  being  generally  a  low  hollow  place,  whereas 
a  gall  may  be  on  a  sloping  bank. 


used  in  Herefordshire.  97 

Soft,  adj.  foolish.  Thus  we  say  "  a  hard-headed 
person,"  meaning  a  shrewd  or  sagacious  person. 
Used  also  in  Yorkshire :  Hunter  in  v. 

Sole,  s.  a  collar  of  wood,  put  round  the  neck  of 
cattle  to  confine  them  to  the  stelch.  (See  Stelch  ) 
This  old  word  is  also  used  in  Cheshire  :  Wilbr.  in 
Sahl.  From  the  A.S.  sal  or  seel,  a  bond  or  rope 
(whence  seal).  Compare  the  High  German  seil, 
and  in  a  narrower  sense  sahlband  (Adelung  in  v.) 
The  relation  of  this  word  to  sale  and  sally  (which 
see)  makes  it  analogous  to  iMac  7rap'  'Iioviv  6  curb 
\vyov  fcfffiog,  Eustath.  p.  834.  39.  See  Phil.  Mus. 
vol.  i.  p.  413. 

Solid,  adj.  steady  and  serious.  As  "  a  solid  child." 
Used  in  the  same  sense  in  Gloucestershire.  In 
Monmouthshire  it  is  sometimes  used  with  reference 
to  the  intellect,  as  "  He  is  not  quite  solid  in  his 
mind." 

Soller,  s.  an  upper  floor.     Also  used  in  Norfolk  : 

Forby  in  v.     The  loft  on  which  the  ringers  stand 

is  called  a  bell-soller  in  this  county :  Forby  in  v. 

It  is  a  south  country  word,  according  to  Grose  in  v. 

Anything  placed  in  an  upper  room  is  said  to  be 

laid  "on  the  soller."     The  usage  is  old: 

"  On  a  so  leer,  as  Be  vis  looke  out 
At  a  window  all  about, 
Helms  he  saw  and  brynnys  bright.*' 
Sir  Bevis  of  Hamptoun,  in  Ellis's  Romances,  vol.  ii.  v.  160. 

F 


98  Provincial  Words 

"  Some  skilfully  drieth  their  hops  on  a  kell, 
And  some  on  a  softer,  oft  turning  them  well.37 

Tusser,  c.  47.  s.  53. 

The  word  solarium  belongs  to  the  Latinity  of  the 
middle  ages,  and  is  probably  derived  from  solum, 
(like  "  floor,"  applied  to  the  successive  stories  of 
a  house.)  Ducange  explains  it  to  be  "  domus 
contignatio  vel  cubiculum  majus  ac  superius,"  and 
he  cites,  "  Chronica  Australis  anno  869. — Ludo- 
vicus  Imperator  de  solaria  cecidit."  There  was  a 
hall  at  Cambridge,  which 

a  Man  clepe  the  soler  hall  at  Cantabrege." 

Chaucer,  C.  T.  3988. 

See  Tyrwhitt's  note  to  this  passage,  who  says  that  it 
seems  to  have  meant  an  open  gallery  or  balcony, 
which  is  doubtful.  Adelung  in  Soller  discusses  at 
length  the  meaning  and  etymology  of  this  word, 
which  he  appears  to  consider  of  purely  German 
origin,  and  connected  with  sahl.  It  seems,  how- 
ever, more  probable  that  (like  many  other  German 
words  belonging  to  architecture,  as  pforte,  thurm, 
&c.)  it  was  borrowed  from  the  Latin.  Adelung 
himself  states  that  Soller  in  Low  German  is  equi- 
valent to  boden  in  High  German.  Solar  in  Spanish 
is  the  mansion  house  of  a  family.  "  Hidalgo  de 
solar  conocido"  is,  a  gentleman  of  good  family. 
Compare  Tallet. 


used  in  Herefordshire.  99 

Sore,  adj.  "  A  sore  fellow"  means  a  rogue,  a  rascal. 
"  A  sore  time"  means  a  sad  time.  It  is  a  term 
of  strong  disapprobation :  see  Forby  in  Sore,  and 
Wilbr.  in  Sorry. 

Sort,  s.  "  A  thing  of  a  sort"  means  a  correspond- 
ing thing :  "  Words  of  a  sort"  means  a  quarrel. 

Sould,  s.  soul.     Compare  Gownd  and  Lost. 

Spede,  s.  spade.   (GL.) 

Spill,  s.  a  splinter.  Long  thin  splinters  of  wood 
used  in  farm  houses  for  lighting  caudles  are  called 
spills.  Concerning  the  ancient  use  of  this  word 
see  Bosworth  A.S.  Diet,  in  Spild,  and  Nares  in 
Spel  and  Spil.  The  word  now  used  in  Yorkshire 
is  spelk :  Crav.  Gloss,  in  v.  from  the  A.S.  spelc. 
Compare  the  German  spille,  and  the  Italian  spillo. 
The  game  of  spillikins  is  a  diminutive  from  this 
word;  see  Phil.  Mus.  vol.  i.  p.  681. 

To  Spill,  or  Spall,  v.  a.  to  splinter.  It  is  used  not 
only  by  carpenters  to  express  the  splitting  of  wood 
from  surfaces,  but  also  by  masons  to  describe  the 
breaking  of  the  edges  of  worked  stone.  This  word 
also  occurs  in  Gloucestershire,  and  other  counties. 
See  Grose  and  Palmer  in  Spalls. 

Spittle,  s.  a  spade.     Comp.  Crav.  Gl.  in  v. 

Splavin,  ir.  a  great  blotch  of  eruption. 

To  Spottle,  v.  a.  to  splash.     From  spot. 

Sprack,   adj.  lively,  active.     Also  used   in  Glou- 

f2 


100  Provincial  Words 

cestershire,  and  see  Grose  in  v.  Shakspeare  has 
the  word  :  Merry  Wives  of  Windsor,  act  iv.  sc.  1. 
"  He  is  a  good  sprag  memory." 

Spreader,  s.  (pronounced  spreeder),  a  cross-piece  of 
wood,  which  prevents  the  traces  of  the  fore-horses 
of  a  team  from  collapsing.  Also  used  in  Glou- 
cestershire. 

Squilt,  or  Squelt,  s.  an  eruption  or  spot  on  the 
skin. 

Stack,  s.  a  flight  of  stone  steps  up  to  a  hay-loft,  or 
the  like,  on  the  outside  of  a  building.   (GL.) 

Stam,  or  Stom,  s.  stem.  (GL.) 

Stank,  s.  a  dam  which  keeps  back  water ;  e.  g.  in  a 
water-meadow  turfs  would  be  put  in  a  shallow 
ditch  used  for  irrigation,  as  a  stank  to  turn  or  raise 
the  water.  A  stank  is  sometimes  made  acci- 
dentally; stones,  bushes,  &c,  accumulate  in  the 
bed  of  a  brook,  and  stank  back  the  water.  This 
frequently  happens  where  a  fence  of  any  kind 
crosses  running  water.  A  man  shutting  down  a 
floodgate  would  stank  back  the  water.  Also  used 
in  Norfolk  :  Forby  in  v. 

To  Stank,  v.  The  verb  is  most  commonly  used  with 
the  addition  of  the  word  back. 

Stean,  s.  an  earthen  vessel  with  straight  sides.  The 
word  is  also  used  in  Devonshire  :  Palmer  in  v  , 
and  in  Cheshire .:  Wilbraham  in  v. 


used  in  Herefordshire.  101 

Steecker,  or  Sticker,  s.  a  stick  to  stop  a  wagon 
ascending  a  hill. 

To  Steen  a  Well,  v.  a.  to  line  a  well.  Steening  of 
a  Well,  lining  of  a  well.  Also  used  in  Gloucester- 
shire, and  sometimes  applied  to  stoning  a  road. 

Stelch,  s.  the  upright  post  to  which  the  sole  (see  the 
word)  is  attached  by  means  of  a  with.  Formed 
from  stele. 

Stele,  s.  the  wooden  handle  of  a  rake  or  pitchfork. 
This  old  word  (Lye  and  Nares  in  v.)  is  also  used 
in  Yorkshire,  Cheshire,  and  Suffolk  :  Crav.  Gloss. , 
Hunter,  and  Wilbraham  in  Stele,  Moor  in  Stale, 
Grose  in  Stale  and  Steal.  The  expression  "  rake- 
stele  "  occurs  in  Chaucer :  Tyrwhitt  in  v.  The  A.  S. 
stel  or  stele  means  a  column  (compare  0-7-77X77  and 
(ttvXoq)  ;  whence  the  origin  of  stelch  is  obvious. 

Stick,  s.  a  timber  tree.  A  riding  stick  is  commonly 
called  a  rod  or  wand.  Stick,  in  the  sense  of  a 
timber  tree,  is  not  peculiar  to  Herefordshire,  but 
occurs  in  Gloucestershire  and  other  counties.  It 
is  likewise  used  as  a  vituperative  term ;  as  "  a 
comical  stick"  an  ill-tempered  person. 

Stipe,  s.  a  steep  ascent  on  a  road.  As  "  when  you 
come  to  the  stipe."  (GL.) 

To  Stock,  v.  a.  to  peck,  as  a  bird.  To  strike  and 
wrench  with  an  axe  having  a  flat  end.  Hence  a 
stocking  axe.     Also  used  in  Gloucestershire. 


102  Provincial  Words 

Stockel,  Stoggerel,  or  Stockeld,  Si  an  old  pol- 
lard tree.     From  stock. 

To  Strip  the  Cows  is  to  take  the  last  milk  from 
them.  After  calves  have  sucked  all  they  can  get, 
the  cows  stand  a  few  minutes,  and  are  then 
stripped. 

Stub.     A  bull  stub  is  a  bull  that  has  been  cut. 

Stuck,  s.  a  shock  of  wheat. 

Stupit,  adj.  obstinate.     Corrupted  from  stupid. 

Suck,  s.  a  ploughshare,  from  swch,  Welsh ;  whence 
soc  de  charrue  in  French. 

Suity,  adj.  (pronounced  shuty), -uniform.  From  suit. 
Likewise  used  in  Gloucestershire.  Also  Unsuity, 
irregular.  As  "  this  barley  is  so  unsuity,  that  it 
will  not  do  for  malting." 

Sumber,  s.  summer.    Compare  Homber. 

7b  Swale,  v.  a.  to  split  down  or  off.  In  sawing  the 
bough  of  a  tree,  you  must  take  care  lest  the  weight 
should  make  it  swale  down  the  tree.  Grose  says, 
"  swale  or  sweal,  to  singe  or  burn  ;  as,  to  sweal  a 
hog ;  a  swealed  cat,  a  cat  whose  hair  or  fur  is 
singed  off  by  sleeping  in  the  ashes.  Sweal  is  also 
sometimes  applied  to  a  candle  that  drozes  and 
melts,  called  in  Middlesex  flaring.  A  north  and 
south  country  word."  To  sweal,  or  swale,  in  the 
sense  of  melting,  like  a  candle  in  the  wind,  occurs 
in    the    Craven    Glossary,   in    the   Appendix   to 


used  in  Herefordshire.  103 

Hunter's  Glossary,  in  Wilbraham,  and  in  Forby. 
Swelan,  A.  S.  means  to  burn,  see  Bosworth  in  v. 
In  high  German,  schwelen  means  to  burn  slowly ; 
Adelung    in  v.       How    to    swale    obtained    in 
Herefordshire   the  sense   of    splitting,   does    not 
appear. 
Sweltered,  adj.  very  hot.    Also  used  in  Gloucester- 
shire.    In  Devonshire,  "  to  swelter  "is  to  perspire, 
to  be  overcome  with  heat :  Palmer  in  v.    In  York- 
shire, "  to  swelt  "  is  to  overpower  with  heat,  so  as 
to  be  ready  to  faint  away :  Crav.  Gl.  in  v.  "  Swelted  " 
and  "  sweltered"  mean  overpowered  with  heat,  in 
Derbyshire,  according  to  Grose.     "  Sweldersome  " 
or  "  sweltersome  "  is  overpoweringly  hot,  in  Norfolk 
and  Suffolk :    Forby  in  v.     In  the  Westmorland 
and  Cumberland  Glossary,  to  sivelt  is  explained  to 
overcome  with  heat  and  exercise,  to  faint,  to  swoon, 
to  die.     See  also  Johnson  in  Swelt  and  Swelter. 
From  sweltan,  A.  S.,   to  die  :    Bosworth    in   v. 
Swelten  in  old  low  German  meant  deficere,  lan- 
guescere,  ibid.     The  word  sweltered  is  used  in  a 
well  known  passage  of  Macbeth : 

"Toad,  that  under  coldest  stone 
Days  and  nights  hast  thirty-one 
Sweltered  venom  sleeping  got, 
Boil  thou  first  i'  the  charmed  pot." 

Act  4,  sc.  1. 

The   meaning   of    sweltered   in   this    passage  is 

correctly  explained  by  Steevens.     "The  word  (he 


104  Provincial  Words 

says)  seems  to  be  employed  by  Shakspeare  to 
signify  that  the  animal  was  moistened  with  its 
cold  exsudations" 
To  Swill,  v.  a.  to  rinse,  to  wash  out.  Swilian  is  to 
wash  in  Anglo-Saxon :  Bosworth  in  v.,  and  to 
swill  has  this  meaning  in  Shakspeare  : 

•'  Let  the  brow  o'erhang  it, 
As  fearfully,  as  doth  a  galled  rock 
O'erhang  and  jetty  his  confounded  base, 
SwiWd  with  the  wild  and  wasteful  ocean." 

Henry  V.>  act  3,  sc.  1. 
From  washing  or  drenching,  the  transition  was  easy 
to  drinking  inordinately,  which  is  the  common 
meaning  of  swill.  See  Johnson,  Grose,  Moor,  and 
Crav.  Gl.  in  v. 
To  Swinge,  v.  to  singe.  (GL.)  Also  used  in  York- 
shire :  Grose  and  Crav.  Gl.  in  v. 

T. 

Tack,  s.  hired  pasturage  for  cattle,  sheep,  or  horses. 
Used  in  such  expressions  as  "  taking  cattle  into 
tack,"  "  he  has  found  tack  for  his  cattle." 

To  Tack,  v  a  to  hire  pasturage  for  cattle,  sheep,  or 
horses.  "  He  has  tacked  out  his  cattle."  This 
and  the  preceding  word  are  similarly  used  in 
Gloucestershire.  The  use  of  tack,  in  the  general 
sense  of  a  lease,  is  well  known :  see  Wilbraham 
and  Jamieson  in  v.     Compare  by-tack. 

Tack,  s.  timber  at  the  bottom  of  a  river.     Hence, 


used  in  Herefordshire.  105 

when  a  net  catches  in  timber  at  the  bottom  of  a 

river,  it  is  said  to  be  tC  tacked." 
Tail,  s.  Tail  wheat  or  barley  is  refuse  small  grain, 

usually  given  to  the  farmers'  wives  for  their  poultry. 
Taken,  part,  used  for  "  took  ;"  as  "  I  taken  it  away." 

This  use  of  the  participle  (see  Done  and  Known) 

is  exactly  like  the  elliptical  form  in  German  where 

the  auxiliary  verb  is  omitted  : 

(e  Hier,  wo  mir  nichts  als  du  geblieben, 
Hier  ist  mein  Vaterland." 

Heyse,  D.  Gramm.  p.  477. 

The  origin  of  the  Herefordshire  idiom  however  is 
probably  quite  independent,  and  is  to  be  attributed 
to  mere  rustic  carelessness ;  for  in  High  German  it 
is  a  modern  practice  only,  chiefly  allowed  in  poetry, 
and  in  relative  and  dependent  sentences.  It  only 
occurs  when  the  auxiliary  verb  follows  the  par- 
ticiple. In  Swedish,  the  omission  occurs  frequently 
in  relative  and  conjunctive  sentences,  but  not  in 
Danish;  which,  as  Grimm  remarks  (D.  G.  vol.  iv. 
p.  173),  is  a  curious  discrepancy  in  two  closely 
allied  languages. 

Taking,  s.  a  gathering,  an  ulcer,  an  attack  of  sickness. 
It  is  also  used  metaphorically  for  distress  of  mind  ; 
as,  "  to  be  in  a  taking  about  something." 

Tallet,  Tallard,  Tollet,  Tollard,  s.  a  space  over 
a  stable  or  cowhouse,  from  which  it  is  usually  di- 

f3 


106  Provincial  Words 

vided  by  a  rough  flooring  made  of  branches.  It 
bears  the  same  relation  to  a  stable  or  cow-house 
which  a  soller  bears  to  a  house.  The  word  is  also 
used  in  Somersetshire  and  Devonshire :  Grose, 
Palmer,  and  Jennings  in  Tallet.  This  word  is 
probably  contracted  from  tabulata  :  "  ^Edicula 
tabulis  compacta,  vel  in  qua  plures  sunt  tabulae 
usibus  rusticse  domus  destinatae  (seu  potius  sta- 
bulum.")  Ducange  in  v.  Compare  Soller.  Or 
it  may  be  derived  from  the  Welsh  tavlawd,  which 
signifies  a  loft,  or  the  space  next  to  the  roof  in  a 
building;  Owen's  Diet,  in  v.  Tavlawd  is  itself 
formed  from  tavlu,  to  throw  or  cast. 

To  Tang,  v.  a.  To  tang  bees  is  to  make  a  clatter  in 
order  to  draw  a  swarm  of  bees  into  a  hive.  An 
old  word  :  Nares  in  v.  The  word  used  with  the 
same  sense  in  Norfolk  is  to  ting :  Forby  in  v. 

To  Tansel,  v.  a,  to  punish.  From  tancer  or  tencer, 
French,  which  meant  to  dispute,  to  reprimand,  to 
scold,  or  to  correct :  Roquefort  in  Tencer, 

Tantadlins,  s.  apple-dumplings.  (GL.) 

To  Tap  shoes,  v.  to  new  sole,  or  mend  shoes. 

Taplash,  s.  bad  small  beer.  Also  used  in  Glou- 
cestershire. It  is  likewise  known  in  Yorkshire  : 
Grose  and  Crav.  Gl.  in  v. 

Tare,  adj.  eager.  "How  tare  the  flies  be!"  From 
the  Welsh  taer,  eager,  ardent,  urgent. 


used  in  Herefordshire.  107 

Tater,  s.  potato. 

To  Tater,  v.  to  dig  or  raise  potatoes. 

To  Ted,  v.  a.  To  ted  hay  is  to  scatter  hay.  The 
word  is  inserted  in  Johnson's  Dictionary;  and  it 
is  used  provincially  in  other  parts  of  England  : 
Ray,  Willan,  and  Craven  Glossary  in  v.  See 
Haymaking. 

To  Terrify,  v.  a.  to  torment.  For  example,  flies 
terrify  a  horse  that  has  a  sore  back  ;  stones  in  the 
ground  terrify  a  man  digging  it.  This  word  is 
similarly  used  in  Gloucestershire,  and  also  in 
Norfolk  :  Forby  in  v. 

Thave,  s.  a  female  sheep,  in  the  second  year,  which 
has  ceased  to  be  a  lamb,  and  is  not  yet  an  ewe.  It 
corresponds  to  heifer  among  cattle ;  a  heifer  being 
a  female  of  the  ox-kind,  which  has  ceased  to  be  a 
calf,  and  is  not  yet  a  cow.  Theave  does  not  ap- 
pear to  be  used  in  the  northern  counties ;  it  occurs 
in  Moor's  Suffolk  Words,  and  Ray  attributes  it  to 
Essex.  It  is  also  used  in  Gloucestershire :  see, 
however,  Grose  in  v. 

The,  used  as  for  the  demonstrative  pronoun   this. 

"The  day,"  for  "  this  day."      This  usage  is  also 

Scotch : 

"  What  would' st  thou  do,  ray  squire  so  gay, 
That  rid'st  beside  my  rein, 
Wert  thou  Glenallan's  earl  the  day, 
And  I  were  Roland  Cheyne  ?  " 

Elspeth's  Ballad,  in  W.  Scoffs  Antiquary. 


108  Provincial  Words 

These,  for  this.  Thesun,  these. 

Thick,  (th  hard),  pron.  this.  (GL.) 

Thickun,  pron.  this  one. 

This'n,  this. 

Thrave,  s.  (drove,  GL.)  A  "  thrave  of  boltings  "  is 
24  boltings  or  bundles  of  straw.  See  Bolting.  In 
Lancashire  and  Cheshire,  a  "  thrave  "  is  generally 
12,  but  sometimes  24  sheaves  of  corn  :  Wilbraham 
in  v.  Grose  likewise  explains  a  thrave  to  be  a 
shock  of  corn,  containing  24  sheaves.  The  word 
threave  is  also  used  in  Yorkshire  :  Hunter's  App., 
p.  126.     From  )>reaf,  A.  S.,  a  handful. 

Threshal,  s.  a  flail.    From  Thresh. 

Tid,  adj.  playful,  skittish.  (GL.)  It  is  applied  to  a 
spoilt  child,  in  the  Forest  of  Dean.  It  denotes  the 
possession  of  the  qualities  which  naturally  belong 
to  an  animal  or  child  which  is  tiddled,  or  petted. 

To  Tiddle,  v.  a.  to  nurse  a  young  animal  by  the 
hand,  to  pet.  Also  to  entice,  as  "  to  tiddle  him 
on." 

Tiddling,  s.  a  young  animal  nursed  by  the  hand,  a  pet. 
Tid,  adj.  and  to  tiddle,  are  derived  from  tydr,  A.  S., 
tender,  weak ;  and  tydrian,  to  nourish  or  feed : 
Bosworth  in  vv. 

Tidy,  adj.  honest,  well-disposed.  A  "  tidy  man"  is  a 
good  kind  of  man.  It  also  signifies  a  person  who 
is  "  well  to  do  in  the  world."  Tidy  meant  originally 
"punctual,"  "  attending  to  tide,"  or  time.  See  Bos- 


used  in  Herefordshire.  109 

worth,  A,  S.  Diet,  in  Tid  (corresponding  to  high 
German  Zeit)  and  Tidlic,  and  Jamieson  in  Tydy. 
From  tide  in  this  sense  is  derived  titter,  more 
timely,  sooner,  earlier,  used  in  the  northern  coun- 
ties :  see  Westmorland  and  Cumberland  Glossary, 
Crav.  Gl.,  and  Watson  in  Hunter's  App.,  p.  162,  in  v. 

Tiert,  adj.  tart.  A  "  tiert  blow "  is  a  sharp 
blow.     Compare  Diern. 

Tilled  up,  part,  propped  up,  set  up.  As,  "  the  pole 
was  tilled  up  against  the  house ;"  "  that  horse  is 
tilled  up  too  high  on  his  legs,"  meaning  that  his 
legs  are  too  long.  (GL.)  Tilian,  A.  S.,  is  to  prepare 
in  a  general  sense,  as  well  as  to  till  or  prepare 
ground.  "Teeled"  is  used  in  Cornwall  for  "  ready." 
<c  Are  you  teeled  ?"  means,  are  you  prepared.  4t  To 
teel  wires  "  is  to  set  wires ;  "  to  teel  a  gun,"  to 
cock  it.  It  has  accordingly,  in  the  Gloucestershire 
usage,  a  general  meaning  of  to  put  or  set.  "  On 
tille,"  in  A.  S.  is,  "  in  a  fixed  station  :  "  Bosworth 
in  v.  Compare  Bosworth  in  Tealtian,  and  For  by 
in  Tild. 

Timbersome,  adj.  timorous.  Timersom  is  used 
in  Yorkshire,  Devonshire,  and  Somersetshire,  and 
timbersome  in  Suffolk :  Craven  Glossary,  Hunter, 
Jennings,  Palmer,  and  Moor,  in  v. 

Timmy,  adj.  timid,  irritable. 

Tim  Sarah,  s.  A  sledge  touching  the  ground  in 
front,  and  having  wheels  behind,  is  called  a  Tim 


110  Provincial  Words 

Sarah.  This  singular  word  appears  to  be  derived 
from  the  Welsh  tim,  a  little,  and  saerni,  Wright's 
work  (from  saer,  a  wright),  Owen's  Welsh  Diet. 
in  v.  The  composition  is  regular,  according  to  the 
Welsh  practice,  which  resembles  that  used  in  the 
Romance  languages,  as  hotel-dieu,  fete-dieu,  &c. 
See  Diez,  Rom.  Gram.,  vol.  ii.  p.  338. 

Tine,  s.  prong.  The  "  tine  of  a  pikle  "  is  the 
prong  of  a  hayfork.  "  Harrow  tines "  are  the 
teeth  of  a  harrow.  The  word  had  the  latter  sense 
in  old  English,  Junius  in  v.,  and  the  branches 
of  horns  were  called  the  "  tines  of  horns :  "  "  pro- 
tuberantiae  cornuum  obliquae,"  according  to  Skinner 
n  v.  This  word  is  still  used  in  the  latter  sense  in 
Yorkshire:  Hunter  in  v.  From  tynan,  A.  S.,  to 
separate. 

To  Tine,  v.  a.  To  "  tine  a  glat  "  is  to  mend  a  gap 
in  a  hedge  with  dead  wood. 

Tinth,  or  Tinnet,  s.  wood  for  tining.  The  verb 
tine  and  substantive  tining  are  used  in  the  same 
sense  in  Cheshire  :  Wilbraham  in  v.  "To  tyne 
adhuc  pro  sepire  in  quibusdam  Anglise  partibus 
usurpatur,  si  Verstegano  fides  sit;"  Skinner,  cited 
by  Home  Tooke,  vol.  ii.  p.  205,  who  also  quotes  a 
letter  from  Dr.  Beddoes,  in  which  it  is  said,  *•  to 
tyne  a  gap  in  a  hedge,"  means  at  present  "  to  fill  it 
up,"' referring  to  Cornwall.  From  tynan,  A.  S.,  to 
separate,  to  hedge  in. 


used  in  Herefordshire.  Ill 

Tinnen,  adj.  made  of  tin.  Compare  Aulen  and 
Elmen. 

Titter-wren,  s.  a  wren.  (GL.) 

To,  adj.  almost.  As"  she  is  eighty  to,"  i.  e.,  almost 
eighty. 

Toady,  adj.  hateful.     From  toad. 

Tops,  s.  a  term  of  endearment  applied  to  children, 
"  Little  tops." 

Tosticated,  fart,  intoxicated;  also  puzzled  or  con- 
fused. 

To- year,  adv.  in  this  year.  Used  like  the  expres- 
sions, "  To-day,''  "  To-night,"  •'  To-morrow."  The 
same  idiom  occurs  in  Norfolk  and  Suffolk :  Forby 
and  Moor  in  Ta.     It  is  also  used  in  Gloucestershire. 

Towardly,  adj.  prosperous,  doing  well.  Same  as 
kindly.  In  Gloucestershire,  it  means  tractable,  as 
applied  to  a  colt  being  broken ;  in  which  sense  it 
is  used  by  Bacon  :  Johnson  in  v.  It  is  the  reverse 
of  frowardly. 

Tree,  s.  The  "  tree  of  a  spittle  "  is  the  handle  of 
a  spade.  Tree,  in  old  English,  was  commonly  used 
for  wood,  and  treen  for  wooden. 

To  Trim,  v.  a.  to  scold. 

Trin,  s.  a  flat  tub,  used  to  receive  the  cider  from  the 
press. 

Trolly,  s.  a  sledge  used  in  husbandry.  In  Glou- 
cestershire, a  trolly  is  a  sort  of  dray,  with  two 


112  Provincial  Words 

wheels,  used  only  in  a  town.  From  to  troll  or 
trawl,  to  drag  or  roll :  and  see  Adelung  in 
Trollen. 

Trouse,  s.  the  cuttings  or  trimmings  of  a  hedge. 
Nearly  the  same  as  tinth,  which  see.  According 
to  Grose,  "  trousing  a  hedge  or  faggot"  means 
"  trimming  off  the  superfluous  branches,"  in  War- 
wickshire.  Perhaps  this  word  is  connected  with 
to  trounce  ;  compare  the  two  senses  of  to  trim. 

Tump,  s.  a  mound,  a  hillock.  From  the  Welsh 
twmp.    See  Anty-tump. 

To  Tump,  v.  to  put  into  small  heaps ;  as,  "  to  tump 
scrapings  on  the  side  of  the  road."  Johnson  has 
"to  tump,"  and  explains  it  to  be  an  expression 
used  among  gardeners,  in  the  sense  of  fencing  trees 
about  with  earth ;  but  he  cites  no  instance  of  it 
from  a  writer. 

Tun-dish,  s.  a  wooden  funnel,  through  which  liquor 
is  passed  into  casks.  From  tun.  Tunnel  is  used 
for  funnel  by  Bacon,  cited  in  Johnson  in  v.  See 
also  Palmer  in  v. 

Tunning-dish,  s.  a  wooden  dish  used  in  dairies. 

Tup,  s.  a  ram.  This  old  word  is  also  used  in  Glou- 
cestershire. Johnson  in  v.  states  that  it  was 
likewise  used  in  Staffordshire  and  other  counties  in 
his  time.     See  also  Hunter  and  Forby  in  v. 

Turmit,  s.  a  turnip.      Sometimes  abbreviated  into 


used  in  Herefordshire.  113 

mit,  tnip,  and  nip.  Also  used  in  Gloucestershire 
and  other  counties  :  Grose  and  Palmer  in  v. 

To  Turn  the  Head,  to  tend  in  sickness ;  as,  "  my 
woman's  bad  a-bed,  and  there's  nobody  to  turn  the 
head  of  her."  Hence,  to  attend  to,  to  direct;  to 
take  care  of,  to  educate.  As,  "no  wonder  the 
boy  dunna  do  well,  poor  thing;  it  ha  neither  father 
nor  mother,  nor  any  one  to  turn  the  head  of  it" 

Turnpike,  or  Turn  pick,  s.  the  turnpike  road. 

To  Tush,  v.  a.  to  move  a  heavy  body  along  the 
ground  without  mechanical  power. 

To  be  Tussicated,  v.  to  be  driven  about,  to  be  tor- 
mented. 

Tussock,  s.  a  tuft  of  grass  or  weeds.  An  old  word  : 
see  Nares  in  Thussock,  and  Todd's  Johnson  in 
Tussock.  It  is  also  used  in  Norfolk  and  Suffolk  : 
Forby  and  Moor  in  v.,  and  in  Gloucestershire. 
Tusw  is  a  wisp  or  bunch  in  Welsh. 

Twichild,  adj.  doting,  in  second  childhood.  This 
word  is  pronounced  twitchel  in  Cheshire,  where  it 
has  a  similar  meaning.  It  is  supposed  by  Wilbra- 
ham  to  be  an  abbreviation  of  tway-child ;  but 
this  etymology  seems  to  be  doubtful.  Twitchil,  in 
Yorkshire,  means  a  narrow  passage  in  a  town : 
Hunter  in  v. 

To  Twitch,  v.  to  touch.  (GL.) 


114  Provincial  Words 

U. 

Un,  pron.  him. 

Un,  used  for  in,  in  composition,  as  improper,  un- 
decent,  unlegal. 

Under  one.  When  one  thing  is  done  on  the  same 
occasion  as  another,  the  two  are  said  to  be  done 
"under  one." 

Unkind,  adj.  the  reverse  of  kind,  which  see. 

Unkit,  or  Unkert,  adj.  1.  awkward,  inconvenient, 
froward.  "  Uncard,"  awkward,  occurs  in  Grose's 
Glossary.  See  also  Westm.  and  Cumb.  Gl.  in  v. 
From  Uncutf,  A.  S.,  uncouth,  strange.  2.  Used 
in  Gloucestershire  with  the  sense  of  lonely,  soli- 
tary, dull,  which  it  also  has  in  Somersetshire: 
Jennings  in  v.  Unkit,  in  the  latter  sense,  is  the 
modern  form  of  uncwyd,  A.  S.,  quiet,  or  solitary, 
from  cwyde,  speech.  See  Bosworth  in  v.,  who  says 
of  the  last,  " hence  the  provincial  word  unhid" 
Skinner  has  "  awkward  ;  solitarius." 

Unsuity,  adj.  See  Suity. 

Untidy,  adj.  dishonest.  See  Tidy. 

Up  in  one's  sitting,  sitting  up  in  one's  bed. 

Uproar,  s.  confusion,  disorder,  without  as  well  as 
with  noise,  as,  "  the  garden  is  all  in  an  uproar  with 
weeds." 

Urchin,  s.  a  hedgehog.     Also  applied  as  a  term  of 


used  in  Herefordshire.  115 

reproach  to  a  little  dirty  child.  It  is  a  north 
country  word,  according  to  Grose ;  and  see  the 
Craven  Glossary  in  v.,  and  Hunter's  App.,  p.  126. 
It  is  likewise  used  in  Gloucestershire.  It  is  an  old 
word,  and  occurs  in  Chaucer  (See  Tyrwhittm  u.J, 
and  in  Shakspeare,  Johnson  in  v.  It  may  be 
derived  from  the  French  our  sin. 


Veering,  s.  Ploughed  land  is  said  to  be  laid  out  into 
broad  veerings,  when  many  furrows  are  turned  up 
on  each  side  against  the  same  ridge.  From  the 
veering  or  turning  of  the  plough. 

Vern,  s.  a  partner  in  a  mine,  in  the  Forest  of  Dean. 
See  the  Fourth  Report  of  the  Forest  of  Dean 
Commission,  p.  8.  Probably  from  fera,  gefera, 
A.  S.,  a  partner.  Hence  Fere  in  old  English ; 
and  "  in  fere,"  in  company.     Chaucer,  C.  T.  4748. 

"  And  when  assembled  was  this  folk  in  fere" 

Fere  or  feer  is  a  Yorkshire  word  for  wife  : 
Thoresby,  in  Hunter's  Appendix,  p.  110.  Fere  is 
used  for  wife,  and  also  for  husband  or  lover,  several 
times  in  the  ballad  of  Sir  Cauline,  in  Percy,  vol.  i. 
It  also  occurs  in  the  ballad  of  Adam  Bell,  Clym 
of  the  C lough,  and  William  of  Cloudesly,  (Percy, 
vol.  i.) 


116  Provincial  Words 

"  Two  of  them  were  single  men, 
The  third  had  a  wedded  fere. 

Part  },st.b. 

and  in  the  ballad  of  the  Tournament  of  Totten- 
ham, (Percy,  vol.  ii.) 

"Therfor  faine  wyt  wold  I, 
Whych  of  all  thys  bachelery 
Were  best  worthye 

To  wed  her  to  hys/ere.'' — St.  3. 


w. 


Wad,  s.  a  burden,  a  thick  piece  or  mass  confusedly 
pressed  together.  As,  "  He  ha  got  a  wad  o'  hay 
upon  his  shoulder."  "  He  be  rubbing  the  table 
with  a  wad  of  cloth." 

Waiter,  s.  water.  Similarly  pronounced  in  Cheshire: 
Wilbraham  in  v. 

Walker's  Earth,  or  Soap,  s.  fuller's  earth.  See 
Murchison's  Silurian  System,  p.  204.  Compare 
Grose  in  v.  From  ivealcere,  A.  S.,  BosworthzVi  v. 
See  also  Adelung  in  Walker. 

Wallow y,  Wallowish,  adj.  nauseous,  faint  or 
sickly  tasted.  Compare  Crav.  Gl.  in  v.  From  to 
wall,  that  which  makes  the  stomach  or  gorge  rise. 

Wankling,  adj.  weakly ;  as,  "  a  little  wankling 
child."  W ankle,  according  to  Grose,  is  a  north 
country  word  for  weak,  limber,  flaccid,   ticklish, 


used  in  Herefordshire.  117 

fickle,  wavering.  See  also  Crav.  Gl.  and  Westm. 
and  Cumb.  Gl.  in  v.  In  Scotch,  wankill  means 
unstable :  Jamieson  in  v.  Wankle  or  Wanky  is 
weak,  pliant,  in  Norfolk:  Forby  in  v.  Wankel  is 
old  high  German  for  tottering,  unsteady :  Adelung 
in  v. 

Warm,  adj.  having  a  higher  degree  of  heat  than  hot. 
(GL.)    ' 

Warmship,  s.  warmth. 

Warth,  s.  On  the  banks  of  the  Severn,  a  flat  meadow 
close  to  the  stream  is  so  called;  e.  g.,  the  Warth 
opposite  Blakeney.  Warod,  warad,  werod,  or 
weard  in  A.  S.  is  shore  or  coast:  Bos  worth  in  v. 
Werder,  Werd,  Waerder,  or  Worth,  in  German,  is 
explained  in  the  Conversations  Lexicon  to  be 
"  properly  an  island  in  a  river ;  and  secondarily, 
a  cultivated  and  inhabited  marsh  district.  In  the 
latter  sense,  the  large  werders  situated  in  western 
Prussia,  viz.,  those  of  Danzig,  Marienburg,  and 
Elbing,  are  well  known.  They  are  strips  of  land 
between  rivers  and  standing  waters,  without  hills, 
and  very  fertile  in  corn  and  grass."  See  also 
Adelung  in  Werder,  and  Grimm  D.  R.  A.,  p.  184. 
Many  names  of  places  near  rivers  in  England,  as 
well  as  in  Germany,  end  in  worthy  as  Warkworth, 
Chatsworth,  Tamworth,  Isleworth,  Wandsworth: 
See  Crav.  Gl.,  and  Grose  in  Warth,  where  it  is 


118  Provincial  Words 

explained  to  mean  a  ford  in  Yorkshire,  but  is  in- 
correctly derived  from  to  wade.  The  Scotch 
haugk  seems  to  be  nearly  synonymous  with  warth 
or  worth. 

To  Wastle,  v.  n.  to  wander. 

Watchard,  adj.  wet  shod.  (GL.) 

To  Wauve  over,  v.  to  cover  over,  as  dishes  are 
covered  at  table. 

Wenchen,  s.  pi.  wenches.  (GL.) 

Whatsomever,  or  Whatsomdever,  whatever.  Also 
used  in  Yorkshire  :  Hunter  in  v. 

Which  is  used  in  Gloucestershire  with  a  sense 
between  a  conjunction  and  a  relative.  Thus,  "  He 
told  the  landlord  to  bring  him  some  beer;  which 
he  drawed  it  and  brought  it  to  him."  "  He  said, 
I  went  to  Gloucester  yesterday,  which  I  did  no  such 
thing."  "I  gave  him  two  shillings  yesterday; 
which  I  have  given  him  five  shillings  a-week  ever 
since  our  last  vestry  meeting." 

Whinders,  s.  Only  used  in  the  expression  "to 
break  to  whinders,"  to  break  to  pieces.  Flinders 
has  the  same  meaning  in  Scotch  and  in  the  West 
Riding  dialect:  Jamieson  and  Willan,  in  v. 

Whitty-tree,  s.  the  mountain  ash.  Called  wiggen 
in  Yorkshire:  Hunter  in  v. 

Wisket,  s.  a  round  open  basket,  made  of  flat  bands 
of  wood.     This  word  appears  to  be  also  used  in 


used  in  Herefordshire.  119 

Suffolk :  Moor  in  v.  In  Yorkshire  it  signifies  a 
small  clothes-basket :  Craven  Glossary,  vol.  ii. 
p.  256.  Grose  calls  it  "  a  basket,  skuttle,  or  shallow 
pan." 

Wicked,  adj.  fierce,  savage.  As,  "  a  wicked  bull 
or  dog."  Wicked  is  used  in  the  same  manner  in 
Norfolk,  and  probably  other  parts  of  England. 
The  usage  is  analogous  to  that  of  vicious,  as 
applied  to  a  horse. 

Wig,  s.  a  small  cake.  Jamieson  explains  wyg,  weig, 
or  whig,  to  be  a  small  oblong  roll,  baked  with  butter 
and  currants.  This  word  appears  to  be  different 
from  the  Scotch  and  north  country  word  whig, 
meaning  whey. 

With,  s.  (pronounced  weeth)  a  twisted  band  of  wood. 
Also  used  in  Suffolk :  Moor  in  v.  Called  widdy 
in  Yorkshire :  Craven  Glossary  in  v.  The  word 
with  is  used  in  this  sense  by  Lord  Bacon  in  his 
Essay  on  Custom  and  Education.  It  also  occurs 
in  the  authorized  version  of  Judges  xvi.  7,  8,  9. 
See  Johnson  in  Withe.  Mr.  Frere  has  recently 
introduced  the  word  into  poetry,  in  his  translation 
of  the  Birds  of  Aristophanes  : 

"  But  the  strangest  sight  to  see 
Was  a  huge  exotic  tree 
Growing,  without  heart  or  pith, 
Weak  and  sappy,  like  a  with." — p.  84. 
Compare  Sole. 


120  Provincial  Words 

Withy-tree,  s.  a  sort  of  osier.  Also  used  in  Glou- 
cestershire, according  to  Grose,  and  in  Devonshire, 
according  to  Palmer.  The  word  occurs  in  Johnson. 
From  wifrig,  A.  S. 

Wizzened,  'part,  withered,  shrivelled.  A  word  used 
in  other  parts  of  England  :  Grose,  Hunter,  and 
Forby  in  v. 

Wont,  s.  (pronounced  oont)  a  mole.  This  old 
word  (Bosworth  in  Wand,  Nares  in  Want)  is  also 
used  in  Suffolk,  Somersetshire,  and  Devonshire  : 
Moor  and  Palmer  in  Want,  Jennings  in  Wont. 
It  is  likewise  used  in  Gloucestershire. 

Wonty-tump,  s.  (pronounced  oonty  tump)  a  mole- 
hill. Called  a  wont-heave  in  Somersetshire :  Jen- 
nings in  v.     Compare  Anty-tump. 

World.  "  If  the  world  was  on  it,"  means  utter  im- 
possibility . 

To  Worsen,  v.  to  grow  worse. 

Woundy,  adj.  very,  exceedingly.  Also  used  in  the 
southern  counties  :  Grose  in  v. 

To  Wrobble,  v.  a.  to  wrap  up.  A  frequentative, 
from  to  wrap. 


Yaffil,  s.  the  same  as  hickoL 
Yarbs,  s.  herbs. 


used  in  Herefordshire.  121 

Yat,  s.  a  gate.  Also  used  in  the  north :  Westm. 
and  Cumb.  Gloss.  Will  an  and  Craven  Glossary, 
in  v.     Compare  Nares  in  Yate. 

Yead,  s.  head. 

Yellot,  s.  the  jaundice. 

Yourn,  pron.  yours. 

To  Yowp,  or  Yap,  v.  to  yelp,  as  a  dog.  In  the  Ex- 
moor  dialect,  uto  yeppy"  is  to  make  a  chirping 
noise,  like  chickens  or  birds;  Exm.  Gl.  in  v. 


Several  ancient  preterits  (of  the  form  called  by 
Grimm  strong)  are  still  current  in  Herefordshire. 
The  following  are  the  most  common  : — 


Climb 

clomb. 

Heave     . 

hove. 

Pick 

puck. 

Shake 

shuck. 

Squeeze 

squoze 

Many  similar  forms  occur  in  other  provincial  dia- 
lects ;  see,  for  example,  Moor's  Suffolk  Words,  p.  59. 


All  the  words  contained  in  the  foregoing  Glossary 
have  been  collected  from  actual  usage.  A  few  words 
inserted   in  the  list  in   Duncumb's  Topography  of 


122  Provincial  Words. 

Herefordshire  have  been  omitted,  as  not  being  known 
to  be  now  current.  For  the  same  reason,  the  word 
"  Shackle,"  which  is  said  by  Grose  to  mean  stubble  in 
Herefordshire,  and  the  word  Songal,or  Songle,  which 
is  explained  in  Bailey's  Dictionary  (1735)  to  mean  a 
handful  of  gleaned  corn  in  Herefordshire  (see  Wil- 
braham  in  Songow),  have  been  omitted.  Boucher 
in  v.  states  that  the  word  ammat  is  used  in  Hereford- 
shire, where  it  denotes  a  sort  of  pancake,  and  that  it 
is  there  pronounced  oamat  or  auma.  This  word  ap- 
pears also  to  be  no  longer  known. 


The  following  are  old  sayings  current  in  Hereford- 
shire : — 

"  If  the  sun  shines  on  Christmas-day,  there  will  be 
accidents  by  fire  all  the  year  after/' 

"  If  the  fire  blows  (i.  e.  makes  a  flaring  noise  from 
the  escape  of  gas),  wind  will  soon  follow." 

"  When  the  wind  blows  on  Candlemas-eve,  it  will 
continue  till  May-eve." 

The  superstition  respecting  the  cure  of  rupture, 
referred  to  by  Grimm,  D.  Mythol.,  p.  676,  and  sup- 
ported by  a  quotation  from  White's  Selborne,  exists  in 
Herefordshire. 


ADDEND  A. 


[Note. — The  articles  to  which  an  obelus  is  prefixed  contain 
additional  illustrations  of  words  explained  in  the  Glossary.] 

Babby,  s.  baby.  Also  used  in  Yorkshire :  Crav.  Gl. 
and  Hunter  in  v. 

Backer  and  Backy,  s.  tobacco. 

Bay,  s.  a  division  or  compartment  of  a  barn  or  loft. 
Used  in  a  nearly  similar  sense  in  Norfolk:  Forby 
in  v. 

I-Bash,  s.  The  Crav.  Gl.  explains  a  mad-pash  to  be  a 
deranged  person,  stalking  or  pashing  idly  about  the 
country. 

t  To  Bett,  v.  Two  distinct  words  appear  to  be  con- 
founded in  the  explanation  given  in  the  text.  To 
bett,  in  the  sense  of  paring  turf,  appears  to  be 
derived  from  peat.  In  the  Exmoor  Glossary,  beat 
or  peat  is  explained  to  be  turf  burnt  for  the  im- 
provement of  cold  land,  commonly  called  burn- 
beating.  The  paring  of  the  turf  was  called  peating 
or  beating;  the  operation  of  burning  the  turf  so 
pared  was  called  beat-burning;  the  heaps  of  turf 
were  called  beatings  or  beat-barrows,  and  the  instru- 

g2 


124  Provincial  Words 

ment  used  in  paring  the  turf  was  called  a  beating- 
axe  or  iron.  See  the  copious  explanation  and 
illustrations  in  Boucher  in  Beate- burning,  and  Pal- 
mer in  Beat.  Mr.  Stevenson,  in  Boucher,  seems  to 
think  that  the  expression  was  derived  from  the 
custom  of  burning  the  heath  and  then  beating  the 
ashes  into  the  ground;  but  the  word  beating  or 
betting  is  applied  to  the  operation  previous  to  the 
burning;  nor  does  this  derivation  explain  the 
expressions  beat-burning  and  beat-barrows. 
The  Anglo-Saxon  verb  betan,  and  the  modern  verb 
bete,  means  to  make  better,  to  mend,  to  repair ;  and 
it  was  frequently  used  with  fyr  or  fire,  in  the  sense 
of  mending  or  making  a  fire.  See  Bosworth  in 
betan,  and  Chaucer  as  quoted  in  the  Glossary.  To 
"  beet  the  fire  "  is  still  used  for  to  mend  the  fire  in 
Yorkshire :  Crav.  Gl.  in  v.  The  expression  is  also 
Scotch :  see  Jamieson  in  beit ;  it  is  used  by  Burns — 

"  'Tis  plenty  beets  the  lover's  fire." 

(Cited  in  the  Crav.  Gl.) 
The  term  bote  in  our  law  appears  to  be  derived  from 
To  Bete  in  the  sense  of  improving  or  repairing  gene- 
rally, and  especially  of  kindling  a  fire.  "  Common 
of  estovers  or  estouviers,  that  is,  necessaries,  (from 
estoffer,  to  furnish,)  is  a  liberty  of  taking  necessary 
wood  for  the  use  or  furniture  of  a  house  or  farm, 
from  off  another's  estate.  The  Saxon  word  bote  is 
used  as  synonymous  to  the  French  estovers;  and 
therefore    house-bote  is  a  sufficient    allowance  of 


used  in  Herefordshire.  125 

wood  to  repair,  or  to  burn  in,  the  house,  which 
latter  is  sometimes  called  fire-bote :  plough-bote  and 
cart-bote  are  wood  to  be  employed  in  making  and 
repairing  all  instruments  of  husbandry;  and  hay- 
bote,  or  hedge-bote,  is  wood  for  repairing  of  hays, 
hedges,  or  fences." — Blackstone's  Commentaries, 
vol.  ii.  p.  35.  Compare  Spelman's  Glossary  in  Bota, 
p.  86. 
t  To  Bewray.  "  Beray,  conforire.  Berayed  with 
blood,  dirt,  fyc.  Pollutus  sanguine,  luto,  &c."?  Junius 
in  v.  The  word  is  used  by  Pope  in  the  sense  of 
defiling  with  ordure : — 

"  Full  in  the  middle  way  there  stood  a  lake, 
Which  CurlFs  Corinna  chanced  that  morn  to  make  .   .  . 
Here  fortuned  Curll  to  slide  ;  loud  shout  the  band, 
And  Bernard !  Bernard !  rings  through  all  the  Strand. 
Obscene  with  filth  the  miscreant  lies  bewrayed, 
Fall'n  in  the  plash  his  wickedness  has  laid." 

Dunciad,  book  2. 

In  Cotgrave's  French  Dictionary,  to  beray  is  ex- 
plained salir,  souiller;  beray edy  sali,  souille,  mer- 
deux ;  and  a  beraying,  souillure,  salissure.  To 
bewray,  or  beray,  in  the  sense  of  "  to  defile,''  appears 
to  be  derived  from  the  French  rater,  or  rayer 
(from  rigor  e),  which  Roquefort  explains  to  mean 
"  couler,"  "  fluer."     Compare  Cotgrave  in  rayer. 

Blow,  s.  blossom.  As,  "  the  trees  are  in  blow."  Com- 
pare Forby  in  v. 

t  Bolting.  Pease-bolt,  as  used  in  Essex,  is  derived 
from  to  bolt,   to  separate   (the  word  employed  by 

g3 


126  Provincial  Words 

millers) ;  i.  e.  straw  which  has  been  separated  from 
the  peas. 

***  Brouse.     Compare  the  French  bourrte,  brushwood. 

Btjmble,  s.  a  large  waterworn  stone,  found  among 
gravel.  As,  "  Have  you  got  enough  stone  to  finish 
that  wall  ?  "  "  No,  but  I  can  make  him  out  with  a 
few  of  these  bumbles." 

t  Bur.  Ray  has  "  bore  tree,"  an  elder  tree,  from  the 
great  pith  in  the  younger  branches,  which  children 
commonly  bore  out  to  make  pop-guns  of  them. 

t  Caddling  is  probably  corrupted  from  cajoling,  and 
has  no  connexion  with  the  word  scaddle,  which,  as 
Ray  in  v.  remarks,  is  derived  from  scade,  or  scathe, 
mischief.  In  Yorkshire,  scaddle  means  wiLd,  skit- 
tish ;  Crav.  Gl.  in  v. 

f  Candle  of  the  Eye.  Compare  the  French  prunelle 
from  pruna,  a  burning  coal. 

t Chats.  "Love  of  lads  and  fire  of  chats  is  soon  in 
and  soon  out." — Derbyshire  proverb  in  Ray. 

To  Chevy,  v.  a.  to  chase  ;  as  "  to  chevy  sheep/'  Com- 
pare Forby  in  v. 

f  To  Clam.  A  Herefordshire  version  of  "  care  killed 
the  cat,"  is,  "  care  clammed  the  cat." 

Clinker,  s.  a  hard  burnt  brick.     Compare  Forby  in  v. 

Clip,  s.  A  "  clip  of  wool "  is  the  produce  of  the  year's 
shearing. 

To  Clip,  v.  to  shear  wool.  Compare  Forby  and  Crav. 
Gl.  in  v. 

Desperate,  adv.  very.  As,  "  the  smoke  do  come 
down  the  chimbley  desperate  bad." 


used  in  Herefordshire.  127 

Eye. 

tl  Blessed  is  the  eye, 
That's  between  Severn  and  Wye." 

"  Not  only  (says  Ray)  because  of  the  pleasant  pro- 
spect ;  but  it  seems  this  is  a  prophetical  promise  of 
safety  to  such  as  live  secured  within  those  great 
rivers,  as  if  privileged  from  martial  impressions." — 
Ray's  Proverbs.  The  word  eye  in  this  proverbial 
distich  appears  to  have  no  connexion  with  a  pro- 
spect, but  to  be  the  same  as  the  first  syllable  of  Hand 
{eiland,  German),  whence  is  derived  eyot,  an  islet. 

t  Fitchuck.  Fiskatte  is  the  name  given  by  the  Swedes 
to  the  American  skunk  :  Penny  Mag.  lxvi.  p.  358. 

tFlannen.  This  form  betrays  its  origin  from  the 
Welsh  gwlanen,  derived  from  gwlan,  wool.  Gwla- 
nen  signifies  flannel  in  Welsh. 

Fresh.  1.  Beginning  to  show  the  effects  of  better 
keep.  Applied  to  cattle  improving  in  condition. 
It  denotes  a  less  advanced  stage  of  fattening  than 
meaty  (which  see).  An  ox  may  be  fresh  which  is 
not  yet  meaty.  2.  Excited  by  drinking,  but  not 
intoxicated. 

Frosted,  adj.  frozen.  As,  "the  turnips  be  all  frosted'' 

Fruit,  s.  apples. 

f  Frum.  Fram  or  frim  likewise  means  tender  or 
brittle  in  Yorkshire :  Crav.  Gl.  in  v. 

t  To  Graff.  In  Yorkshire,  a  graft  is  the  depth  of 
earth  pierced  by  one  insertion  of  the  spade,  called  a 
spade-graft :  Crav.  Gl.  in  v. 

Graves,  s.  The  refuse  which  remains  at  the  bottom  of 
the  melting  pot  used  in  making  tallow  candles,  is 


128  Provincial  Words 

collected  and  pressed  into  oblong  cakes.  This 
refuse  is  called  graves.  It  is  generally  boiled  with 
water  as  food  for  dogs. 

Ham,  s.  a  flat  meadow  by  the  side  of  a  river,  as 
"Tewkesbury  Ham."  (GL.)  Ham  in  this  sense 
appears  to  have  no  connexion  with  ham  for  hamlet 
(the  German  heim\  but  to  be  a  corrupt  form  of 
holm,  A.S.,  which  means  a  great  plot  of  ground 
environed  by  water,  and  just  rising  above  it:  Bos- 
worth  in  v.  Holm,  horn,  &c,  are  common  in  names 
of  places  in  Herefordshire.  The  word  is  nearly 
equivalent  to  warth  (which  see),  and  the  Scotch 
haugh. 

To  Hog,  v.  To  "  hog  a  hedge  "  is  to  trim  it  up  closely, 
so  as  to  make  it  narrow  at  the  top ;  like  hogging  a 
horse's  mane. 

Lattage,  s.  "To  have  lattage  in  his  speech"  means 
to  have  an  impediment  in  his  speech.  From  to  let, 
in  the  old  sense  of  to  hinder. 

tLEAR.  In  the  Exmoor  dialect,  the  "leer,"  or  "  the 
leer-ribs,"  means  the  hollow  under  the  ribs :  Exm. 
Gl.  in  v 

Lea  sow,  s.  a  pasture-ground,  generallv  containing 
trees  or  bushes.  In  many  places  it  has  become  a 
proper  name.     From  laes  or  laesuw,  A.  S. 

Maister,  s.  master.  The  same  pronunciation  prevails 
in  Yorkshire  :  Crav.  Gl.  in  v. 

t  Muncorn.  A  "  muncorn  team "  means  a  team  of 
horses  and  oxen  mixed.  Mengkorn  in  High  Ger- 
man, mankkorn  in  Dutch,  and  mischkorn  in  Swabian, 
likewise  mean  mixed  corn  :  Adelung  in  Mengen. 


used  in  Herefordshire.  1^9 

f  Nor  seems  to  be  stronger  than  "than."  The  latter 
is  merely  "  then,"  and  thus  asserts  that  the  quality 
predicated  by  the  adjective  exists  in  a  weaker 
degree  in  the  one  object  than  in  the  other ;  while 
"nor"  denies  its  presence  altogether  in  the  second 
of  the  two.  The  use  of  ^Sxxov  j>  oh,  where  one  would 
expect  pZxkov  %,  is  probably  to  be  explained  in 
the  same  way.  The  former  would  be  "  rather  nor? 
the  latter  "  rather  than."  See  Thucyd.  ii.  62.,  iii.  36, 
and  Arnold's  note  to  the  first  passage  ;  also  Herod, 
vii.  16.  v.  94.  The  French  use  of  "  ne  "  after  com- 
paratives is  based  on  the  same  principle.  "  Vous 
ecrivez  mieux  que  vous  ne  parlez."  It  is  quite 
consistent  with  this  view  that  when  "  que  "  follows 
"  tant,"  "  autant,"  or  "  aussi,"  the  negative  must 
not  be  added.  The  same  idiom  exists  in  Italian 
(see  Lewis  on  the  Romance  Languages,  p.  267),  and 
in  Spanish ;  as 

"Blanca  sois  Senora  mia  mas  que  no  el  rayo  del  sol." 

Romancero  Duran.    1.13. 

Out   of  Hand.      Immediately,  off-hand.      Like    the 

German  aus  der  hand. 
t  Pane,  in  the  sense  of  a  skirt,  may  be  derived  from 

pannus. 
To  Pitch,  v.  to  raise  hay  or  corn  with  a  fork.     Hence 

a  pitcher,  for  the  labourer  who  pitches.     Likewise 

used  in  Norfolk :  Forby  in  v. 
Plant,  s.  a  cabbage.     Plant  leaves,  cabbage  leaves. 

Compare  Fruit. 
t  Ridiculous.     See  the  letter  cited  (p.  132)  in  Which. 
To  Sag,  v.  to  hang  down,  as  a  beam.    The  word  is  old, 


130  Provincial  Words 

and  is  also  used  in  Yorkshire  and  Norfolk :  Crav. 
Gl.  and  Forby  in  v.  Johnson  inserts  the  word,  and 
explains  it,  1.  To  load,  to  burthen.  2.  To  hang  heavy, 
referring  for  the  latter  sense  to  Macbeth. 

"  The  mind  I  sway  by,  and  the  heart  I  bear, 
Shall  never  sag  with  doubt,  nor  shake  with  fear." 

Act  v.  sc.  3. 

Where  Mr.  Toilet  remarks  that  it  was  common  in 
Staffordshire  to  say,  "  a  beam  in  a  building  sags,  or 
has  sagged"  In  the  Promtuarium  Parvulorum 
"saggynge,  or  satlynge,"  is  explained  bassatura, 
bassatio.  Junius  has  "  sagge :  gravitare,  oneribus 
deprimere."  See  also  Nares  in  Sagg.  The  Scotch 
dialect  likewise  has  this  verb  both  in  an  active  and 
a  neuter  sense  :  Jamieson  explains  "  to  sag  "  by  to 
press  down,  and  "  to  seg  *  by  to  fall  down.  The 
Low  Latin  assagium  (see  Ducange  in  v.),  and  its 
Romance  derivatives  saggio,  assaggiare,  essai, 
essayer,  are  doubtless  derived  from  to  sag  in  the 
sense  of  weighing.  "  Saggio  dicesi  anclie  a  quelle 
bilancette  con  cui  si  pesano  le  monete."  Dizion.  di 
Lingua  Ital.  (Bologna,  1824)  in  v. 

Scowles,  s.  excavations  caused  by  the  workings  of  old 
mines,  now  generally  overgrown  with  wood.  (Forest 
of  Dean.)  In  the  Fourth  Report  of  Dean  Forest 
Commissioners,  p.  3,  this  word  is  said  to  be  de- 
rived from  the  British  ceawll,  caves. 

Sideland,  adj.  A  farm  on  the  slope  of  a  hill  is  called 
a  sideland  farm.  E.  g.  "  A  troublesome  sideland 
place." 


used  in  Herefordshire.  131 

f  Sludge,  or  Slush.  In  Norfolk,  slush  means  loose 
mud,  and  figuratively  loose  talk;  slushy  means 
miry,  and  also  foul-mouthed  :  Forby  in  v.  In  York- 
shire slosh  means  snow  in  a  melting  state,  like  pulp, 
and  sloshy,  in  a  state  of  slosh:  Crav.  Gl.  in  v. 
Slush,  or  slosh,  appears  to  be  formed  from  lush,  or 
losh;  from  which  (in  the  sense  of  clammy  and 
cloying)  is  probably  derived  the  adjective  luscious. 
(Compare  Scrawl.) 

f  Sole.  In  Yorkshire,  to  seal,  or  sele,  is  to  bind  or 
fasten  cattle  in  their  stalls :  Crav.  Gl.  in  v. 

Spit,  s.  the  depth  of  a  spade  in  digging ;  thus,  fresh 
garden  ground  may  be  dug  "two  spit  deep." 

t  Stank.  "  Stanca :  agger  aquis  oppositus,  vel  id  quo 
aqua  continetur."  Ducangemi?.;  and  stancare  is  to 
staunch,  which  is  the  same  word  as  to  stank.  The 
Spanish  estanco  means  a  dam,  and  also  (most  appro- 
priately) the  shop  where  tobacco,  salt,  and  other 
commodities  monopolized  by  government  are  sold. 
Stancare  is  probably  altered  from  stagnare,  and 
stanca  has  been  formed  from  the  altered  verb. 
"Stank"  in  Yorkshire  means  a  boggy  piece  of 
ground :  Crav.  Gl.  in  v. 

t Stick,  hi  Yorkshire,  a  "comical  stick"  means  a 
queer,  sly,  sarcastic  fellow  :  Crav.  G.  in  v. 

Swag-bellied,  adj.  having  a  loose  prominent  belly. 
See  Johnson  in  swag. 

tTAiL.  "  Tail  end"  corn  was  so  called  from  its  being 
the  lightest  part  of  the  corn,  which  was  driven 
furthest  from  the  fan. 

t  To  Tap  Shoes.     A  heel-tap  was  a  small  piece  of 


132  Provincial  Words. 

leather  fixed  by  pegs  to  the  end  of  a  high  heeled 
shoe.     Hence  the  figurative  expression   "  to  clear 
away    heel-taps,''   applied    to    drinking    the   wine 
remaining  in  a  glass,  as  being   the  small  layer  at 
the  bottom, 
t  Tilled  up.     The  sense  of  raising  or  setting  up  is 
seen  in  tilt,  the  covering  of  a  wagon.    See  Home 
Tooke,  vol.  ii.  p.  73. 
Year,  s.     Used  for  the  plural  as  well  as  the  singular ; 
as,  "  I  hanna  seen  him  this  twenty  year."    This  old 
usage  also  exists  in  Yorkshire  :  Crav.  Gl.  in  v. 
t  Which.     The  use  of  which,  explained  in  the  Glossary, 
is  further  illustrated    by  the  following  authentic 
letter,  lately  written  in  Gloucestershire  :  — 

rt  Mr. and  Gentlemen  Present. 

ft  I  have  Taken  the  Oppertunity  of  writeing  Those  few 
Lines  to  your  worships  to  inform  you  that  I  have  been  served 
most  Rediculous  By  the  Managers  of  the  Parish  of  North 
Nibley.  The  Occurrence  is  this :  that  I  Rents  a  house  at  Three 
Pounds  Per  year,  and  they  Charges  2  Shillings  per  Rate ; 
which  at  the  same  time  my  Neighbours  that  Rents  Six  or  7 
Pounds  Per  year  is  only  18  Pence  per  rate.  This,  gentle- 
men, is  my  Refuse  for  not  Paying  the  Poor  Rates,  because  i 
think  it  is  very  unlawful,  as  i  have  been  informed  by  other 
Magistrates  that  is  very  impropper  and  Impossible  for  me  to 
Do  it,  and  Because  i  was  Persuaded  not  Do  it ;  &  they  Said 
that  i  must  &  Should  Support  my  Father  and  have  Done  it  for 
a  month ;  which  i  am  Sure  i  cannot  Do  it,  and  that  people 
knows  very  well." 


London:  Printed  by  W.  Clowes  and  Sons,  Stamford  Street.