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THE
WEST SOMERSET WORD-BOOK.
OF
DIALECTAL AND ARCHAIC WORDS AND PHRASES
USED IN THE
WEST OF SOMERSET AND EAST DEVON.
BY
FREDERICK THOMAS ELWORTHY, MEMBER OF COUNCIL OF THE PHILOLOGICAL SOCIETY.
"In words, as fashions, the same rule will hold; Alike fantastic, if too new, or old: Be not the first by whom the new are
tried, Nor yet the last to lay the old
aside."
POPE, Essay on
Criticism.
LONDON
FOR THE ENGLISH DIALECT SOCIETY
TRÜBNER & CO.,
LUDGATE HILL.
1886.
All rights reserved.
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K. Clay and Sons,
London and Bungay.
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CONTENTS.
PAGE
PKKFACE v
INTRODUCTION ........ xv
KEY TO GLOSSIC AND EXPLANATIONS xlvii
VOCABULARY ......*.. i
LIST OF LITERARY WORDS NOT PRONOUNCED AS IN STANDARD
ENGLISH . . . . . . . . -855
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PREFACE.
ALTHOUGH the work of observing and recording peculiarities of native speakers may fairly be considered as
original research, yet the labours of
those who have before done the same thing in other districts are of immense value to an
observer, and therefore it is fitting
that acknowledgment of the obligation should be placed in the very fore-front of these pages.
The various workers of the Dialect Society are of the greatest use to each other, by reason of their
bringing the folk-speech of different
localities into a sort of focus; and thus they suggest to an observer what he should look for in his
own. The greatest difficulty to be
dealt with is not that of becoming familiar with local speech, but of deciding what is
provincial or dialectal, and what is
standard English for nowadays so many novelists and other writers employ words and forms of
expression they know more or less as
being used in the place they are dealing with. These words, however, are not literary
English, nor are they slang; yet from
frequent use they have become current, although they have not yet found their way into
dictionaries, nor will they until Dr.
Murray's gigantic task is finally completed. These writers are, unconsciously, but steadily, building up a
sort of conventional literary dialect,
containing a little of several, but not confined to any one in particular. Whether this will
tend to the improvement of literature,
or the true knowledge of the English language, is beyond the scope of this Word- Book.
For any particular detail in the following pages I am unconscious of being indebted to any of the Glossarists
who have preceded me, but to all I am
obliged for many suggestions.
Long experience has now convinced me of that which I put forward in my first paper on the subject,
in 1875, that our
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PREFACE.
hereditary pronunciation will survive, together with our grammatical pIculiaritLs, long after board schools and
newspapers have brought English as a
written language to one dead level.
Holding this view, which Dr. Henry Sweet says (on Laws of Sound I Change, FhU. Society,^. |, 1886) is
now general y admitted by
philologists," I have given much attention and space to pronunciation, and to grammatical and
syntactic construction, which I trust
may not be found useless to future students.
A comparison of our present dialectal pronunciation of many literary words with their forms in Early
and Middle English, will prove how
very slow phonetic changes have been m the past, at least in the spoken language of the people.
The same holds good, and will be found
to be fully illustrated in these pages, with respec to many forms of grammar and syntax which
have long become obsolete in literature.
Both these subjects have been dealt with
at some length in former papers published by this Society, and shall therefore only endeavour now to
notice some facts previously
unobserved, or not adequately recorded.
Inasmuch as a great deal of the peculiarity of a dialect is altogether lost if attempted in
conventional literary spelling, or
even in modifications of it, I have continued to use Mr. Ellis's Glossic, which though at first sight
uncouth in appearance to those
accustomed only to conventional spelling, yet is extremely easy
to read after a very little practice.
I have not followed all the extreme
refinements of the system; but to have a definite and distinct method at all is, it seems to me,
of far more importance than either the
use or the merits of this or that system of notation. A full and elaborate key will be found on
p. 24 of my Dialect of West Somerset,
1875, and a concise one, quite sufficient for the understanding of all here written, is on p.
2 of the Grammar of l\\-st Somerset,
1877. This latter is reprinted at the end of the Introduction (p. xlvii).
It seems almost needless to offer anything by way of defence against the criticisms which are certain to
be applied to phonetic spelling; but
unless some definite plan is to be followed, how is a stranger, a foreigner for instance, to be
made aware of the difference in sound
of o in come, gone, bone; of a in tardy, mustard; or of / in mind and wind? Could such a
sentence as that which illustrates
LIMBLESS be contrived in conventional spelling? I shall indeed be satisfied if critics confine
their disapproval of this book to the
Glossic.
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PREFACE.
Vli
I have noticed among the works issued by this Society many attempts to convey the sound of words by
ordinary values of letters, for
instance, I find “Footing pronounced Fuutirf," but no clue is given as to the value of the two us, and
not knowing the dialect I am no wiser.
Hallivvell has “Allous; all of us Somerset," but what stranger to the county, or foreigner, would guess
that this should be pronounced au'l oa
uus?
I have in the following pages endeavoured to give clear definitions of words,
and where they related to anything of a technical character I have tried to describe the
object, so that those who come after
us may be able to know precisely what the article now is. Who can now say with any certainty what
size, shape, or capacity, was a biker
of the i5th century? The beaker of modem
novelists is something very different, even if it be not a
fabulous article. What will people
understand of a Yorkshire “Sfoup, a
wooden drinking vessel "? Halliwell describes “Clevvy, a
species of draft iron for a
plough." What species? He gives “Ledger,
horizontal bar of a scaffold." Which? Forby gives "Spud,
an instrument, a sort of hoe."
What sort? Instances of similar
indefinite definitions might be multiplied to any extent. I trust I have not run into the other extreme of
describing at length that with which
everybody is familiar. Skillett and crock are common names of household utensils, but not many
town-bred people could distinguish
them in an ironmonger's shop.
In deciding whether a word or phrase is literary or not, I have followed no exact rule. Generally words, or
meanings of literary words, if given
in Webster, have not been inserted; but for some words, though literary, there have appeared
reasons, such as pronunciation, or peculiarity of use, why they should
appear. In such cases they are not,
however, allowed much space. I have acted
on the best advice I could obtain to insert doubtful words shortly, rather than omit them.
Ordinary colloquialisms, such as all to smash, cross-patch, crow's feet, crusty, a setting-down, stone-blind,
spick and span, transmogrify, are not
here noted, though I observe that many glossaries contain such words, but space had to be regarded,
or this book would have been unwieldy.
I have in no case considered whether a word was widely known, or peculiar to this district;
so that if in my opinion it was a
dialect word, I have inserted it, though common from John o' Groats to the Land's End. ' On this
point I fully expect
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PREFACE.
to hear exception taken; but if there is any value at all in preserving
current speech, by no means the least is to be able to define how far any particular word or
phrase is known, and in what sense it
is so known. Therefore I offer no excuse to the r from Northumberland who finds here a word
familiar to him, unless it is found in
the dictionaries in the sense in which
I have given it; in that case I acknowledge my faults and
apologize accordingly.
Certain well-known names of common articles have been inserted as a sort of legacy to the future these are
now obsolescent, and probably in a few
years will be quite forgotten e. g. pattens,
gambaders, &c.
Further, I have not taken any word at second-hand except in a few cases, where I have specially given my
informant's initials; but every word
noted has been heard spoken by myself (except as above), and must be accepted, or otherwise, on my
own testimony alone. And here I would
remark that the one point I have kept steadily in view has been truth. So far as I am
conscious I have neither under nor
over'stated, unless it may be in the use of the word (always) which will be found after many of the words
to indicate that among dialect
speakers the expression is that which is the usual and ordinary one, and that any variation
from it would be quite exceptional.
In Halliwell I find many errors. Very numerous words which he gives as "Somerset" or
"West," are either obsolete or quite unknown, while many others described as
peculiar to other districts, are
familiar in this, and probably have been so for ages Cheatery = fraud, “North," is one of
our commonest words.
Again, many words undoubtedly peculiar to us are wrongly defined for
instance, "Clavy-tack. A Key. Exmoor" Except the coincidence of clav there is nothing even
to suggest the idea of key. The
article, a mantel-piece or shelf, is perfectly common.
In the following pages I repeat that I have taken nothing from Halliwell, nor from any other Glossary, but
I have used them merely as reminders
of words which I had omitted; and for this purpose I have found Pulman's Rustic Sketches by far
the most valuable. I have quoted
freely from his verses, and so far as dialect goes, he is by a long way the most accurate, and less
given to eke out his versification
with literaryisms. On this point, however, he does but II other writers of the same class, not
excepting Barnes, have done-humour and
quaintness first, dialect and correct construction
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PREFACE.
IX
of the spoken language second. Moreover, Pulman's district is closely allied to this, as also is that of
Nathan Hogg and Peter Pindar. It will
be understood then that any word given as Somerset by Hallivvell, if not mentioned herein, is
unknown in West Somerset so far as I
can ascertain. A peculiarity of all Western Dialect poets except Pulman, who refers to the point in
his preface, but yet is guilty in his
verses, is that all common English words in /are spelt with v, and all words in s are spelt with
z. No doubt it is very funny; both
Shakspere and Ben Jonson adopted that method to distinguish a clown; a method which has
become conventional, and has lasted
down through Fielding to our own day in Punch. But notwithstanding such authorities it is
incorrect. Ben Jonson never heard
anybody say varrier (Tale of a Tub} who was speaking his own genuine tongue. In many cases,
however, there is uncertainty of pronunciation, and apparent exception to the
rule that words in f or s, if
Teutonic, are sounded with initial v or z 9 while French or other imported words with the
same initials, keep them sharp and
precise (see VETHERVOW). For example, file, for bills, is always fuyul (O. Fr. file), while file,
a rasp, both v. and sb., is always
vuyul, (Dutch, vijl). Indeed it may be taken as a rule that where literary words in /or s have their
counterparts in Dutch, our Western
English dialectal pronunciation of the initial is the same; compare finger, first, fist, fleece,
follow, foot, forth, forward, freeze,
see, seed, seek, self, send, seven, sieve, silver, sinew, sing,
sister, six, &c. In exceptional
cases where the rule does not hold good, it will usually be found that there has been a
confusion of meaning owing to
similarity of sound. For instance, summer, a season, and summer, a beam (Fr. sommier) are both alike
sounded zuum'ur, whereas but for
confusion in consequence of similarity of sound, the latter would probably have been
suum'ur. Sea again is exceptional, and is always sai m with s quite sharp,
while see and say are always according
to rule zee and zai.
How common these confusions of meaning and sound are, and to what results they lead must be within
the experience of most observers. At
this moment upon the wall of the boot and knife house at Foxdown is a grafitto, very well
written in Board School hand,
immediately over a fragment of looking-glass-Things seen is Intempural Things not seen is Inturnel .
Sunday, Aug. 23, 1885.
Another of my servants always says of a kind of artificial manure
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PREFACE.
"that there consecrated manure's double so good's the tother." He has heard it called concentrated.
Imperfect imitation of foreign pronunciation of imported words leads to variety of sound in different
districts, and eventually to apparent
change, when the form of a particular district or a literary appreciation becomes the standard. For
example, gillyflower and manger, about
which there can be no controversy, are now literary names; but how very unlike they are in
sound to their prototypes girojlcc and
man^coire, and how much nearer to what are probably the original O. F. sounds of these words
are our rustic julau'fur and mau-njur.
All these points will be found dealt with in the text.
I have ventured to include many technical words, some of which are peculiar to the district, and others
are common to the trades to which they
apply, but in most cases I think there are some points of divergence from ordinary trade or
hunting terms, sufficient to make them
worth recording here. In some cases it will be found that common terms have in this district
quite a different signification to that current elsewhere e.g. ALE and BEER,
while in others we have our own
distinct names for common things e. g. LINHAY, SPRANKER, &c.
Upon the slippery path of etymology I have been careful not to tread, and whenever any remark upon that
point has been made, it has always
been with much diffidence and merely by way of suggestion, or in a few cases where
received explanations are
unsatisfactory or improbable. Of course I shall be charged with omitting the most interesting part of the
whole matter, but for many reasons I
have confined myself to bare identification with Old or Middle English, or with some foreign
language, where both sense and sound
render such identification obvious. The book
is already over bulky, and etymological speculations would have distended it, and possibly destroyed what
little value it may now possess.
Moreover, an observer and recorder of facts has no business with theories, and be he never so
circumspect in his enunciation, he
cannot escape the suspicion that in his desire to prove his propositions, his facts have
been at least marshalled, and his work
will only be valued accordingly. Even if I had felt tempted at any time to branch off into that
line, I was long ago cured of the
symptom by a gentleman who has established a large for learning of all kinds. Meeting him one
day, he was as usual anxious to
instruct the ignorant, and he inquired if I knew
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PREFACE.
XI
the origin of the word sheriff. I replied that I had always thought it was a shortened form of shire-reeve.
“Nothing of the sort," was the
confident reply, “it is an Arabic word: shereef is the head man." About the same time another
gentleman asked if I knew our word
soce, and what it came from. Previous experience led me to reply cautiously, but I was as
confidently informed as by the first
gentleman, that the speaker's uncle was a great scholar, and that "he always said soce came from the
Greek Zwoe-" A well-known writer
some years ago pointed out to a friend of mine that Yarrow was a common name for river;
“doubtless," he said “from the
Anglo-Saxon earcwe, an arrow, because they run straight and fast. Thus," he continued, “we have the
Yarrow in Scotland, the Yarra in
Africa, and the Yarra-yarra in Australia." In this way it is clear that there must be a close connection
between the Goodwin Sands and
Tenterden Steeple, for of course the termination le is a mere surplusage, and to steep means to
place under water, while to tenter
obviously suggests the idea of drying again, and thus the analogy is complete, if not obvious.
Although these were examples of identification rather than scientific etymology, I trust I learnt the
lesson sufficiently to avoid at least
anything like confident assertion. Indeed, I have arrived at the conviction that speculation as to
the meanings and origins of words, is
a luxury not to be -even aspired to by any but those whose reputation is established, like the
gentleman above referred to, and
therefore, though advised by those whose opinion I deeply respect and value, to “give a good guess as
to the origin of a word whenever you
can," yet I have not done so, because expecting to be done by as I do, I accept with less
reserve the statements of those who
admit in these omniscient days, that there may be something in, on, or under the earth, which
they do not know all about.
How old a habit dabbling in etymology has been, and how deep the pit-falls it leads people into, are
shown in the following
Britones wer' long j clepud Cadwallesme,
After Cadwall >* was hur' kyng; Bot
Saxsous clepud hem 3ey}then Walsheme,
By cause of sherte spekyng.
A. D. 1420. Chronicon Vilodunense^ st. 24.
The Word Lists printed at the end do not profess to be exhaustive of the words in use by the
people of the district, nor even to
give more than a portion of the common ones, inasmuch
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PREFACE.
as different degrees of education involve the use of a larger or smaller vocabulary. They consist entirely
of literary words, which are not
pronounced in the usually received manner, and therefore it may be taken that any word not in the
list would, if used at all, be sounded
approximately as in standard English.
Of myself, it is enough to say that I have lived for more than fifty years in the district, and have had
the best possible opportunities of hearing and of practising my native
tongue, while for over twenty years I
have been a diligent observer and careful
noter of its peculiarities; the result of this observation is contained in the papers already published, and in the
following pages. During the past ten
or twelve years these special observations
have occupied most of my leisure time, while for the past
eighteen months preparing and
correcting for the press has left no time
at all for any other occupation; whether or not the end accomplished
is worth the very great labour bestowed must be left for others to decide. The work has, however,
been a labour of love, and has brought
me into closer contact with my humbler neighbours than any other pursuit
could have done; so that I have become
familiar not only with their forms of speech but with their mode of thought. No doubt in the plan
adopted of giving nearly every word
its setting in its own proper matrix, a great similarity and repetition of phrase will be apparent,
while anything like humour will have
to be hunted for. To this I say that the people we are studying are not specially humorous,
but rather stolid, and that to
represent their speech accurately, including dullness and repetition, is the end I have aimed at.
There is much grim, rustic humour in
the people, and it is hoped that at least some traces of it may be found herein. Of
coarseness also there is and must be a
good deal; and while I have felt that I could not but record it, I trust nothing offensive has
been retained. Advisers have urged me
to suppress nothing, and I have been told that the strongholds of a language are in its
obscenities. I have in this taken
their advice, I have not suppressed any, but yet trie most fastidious will find nothing in this book
approaching to obscenity, nor indeed
greater coarseness of expression than is contained in our expurgated Shaksperes. The reason is
that there is nothing to suppress; the
people are simple, and although there is a superabundance of rough, coarse
language, yet foul-mouthed obscenity
is a growth of cities, and I declare I have never heard it, so it cannot be recorded by me.
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PREFACE.
Xlll
It must be understood that in a book of this kind only generalities of
pronunciation, or rather types, are possible, for in the first place no two individuals sound all words
quite alike, while from village to
village, in some slight peculiarity or other, there is a marked difference to an accustomed ear. A
lengthening of a vowel, a slight
stress in some common word, are quite enough to mark off people from others living not far away; but to
attempt to write these fine shades of
difference would be far beyond the scope of the most elaborate notation, even if the person who
observed and recognized the
peculiarity were able himself to define or imitate it.
I have been frequently struck with the inability of otherwise intelligent people, who would both speak
and write conventional English
correctly, to appreciate dialect; that is of course where they have been always accustomed to it. They
seem to be strangely unconscious that
hosts of words, phrases, and pronunciations which they hear daily are anything out of the
common, or different to what they
would use themselves in speaking to their own class.
Long practice in watchful observation has enabled me to detect variations which to ears equally familiar
with the dialect of the district are
often quite imperceptible. Many curious proofs of this have occurred during the past few years. I
wanted with a friend to look round the
Nothe fort at Weymouth, and on speaking to -the sentry, the man replied in three words,
“that's the door." Being in
Dorsetshire, I of course was struck by the man's pronunciation of door, and said at once to him, "I
see you are a Somerset man."
"Yes." "I think you must know Huish Champflower, do
you not? “" Well, yes, I ought to
I was born and bred to Clatworthy." Huish and Clatworthy are adjoining
parishes, their churches barely a mile
apart. This was a trained artilleryman,
with not the vestige of a clown left in him. On two occasions in London shops: I was a passive listener at
Brandon's while a bonnet was being
discussed, and when making the payment ventured to remark to the young lady,
“You must have been a long time in London."
"Oh, yes, ten years; but why do you ask?" “Only for information," said I; “and
did you come straight from Teignmouth?
“With much surprise at my supposing she came
from Devonshire, she said at length that she was a native of Newton Abbott. I could not pretend to define the
precise quality of her two, but it was
only in that one word that I recognized her locality. Another young lady under like circumstances
I fixed correctly at Exeter. Quite
recently a Spiers and Pond young lady at a railway
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PREFACE.
bar said she came from South Molton, when I asked if she did not come from Barnstaple. It is not my
practice to go about questioning people in this way; indeed, I do not
remember having done so more than a
dozen times in my life, those referred to
included, but certain limited districts are very marked, though I could not attempt to define how.
A real Taunton man I should know in Timbuctoo, and a Bristolian anywhere, even if he were not half so
marked as Mr. Gladstone is by his
native Lancashire.
These remarks are by no means intended as a blowing of my own trumpet; and I desire to apologize for
so much dragging in of my own personal
experience but upon this subject one can
have had no other, except at second hand, which is worthless.
Many inconsistencies, many contradictions will be found by those who search for them, and I neither pretend
to deny or to justify such. My reply
in advance to such criticisms, is that the people are inconsistent and contradictory; that
they have only been taught by rule of
thumb, and have never been accustomed, in talk at least, to be curbed by anything at all like a rein
of law.
Inasmuch as the Introduction here following is but a filling in a gathering up of the fragments of the
pronunciation, grammar, and syntax
dealt with in the previous papers, it cannot but be somewhat disjointed and abrupt.
Listly, I commend this fruit of many years' thought and study, with all its shortcomings, its repetitions
and its mistakes, to the indulgence of
those who in their own persons have tried to record and to define a dialect in any language
whatever.
F. T. E.
FojcJtnun, February 1888.
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INTRODUCTION.
THE following pages are intended to be the fulfilment of the promise contained in the first paragraph of
the Grammar of West Somerset, written
fourteen years ago, and so far as this Society is concerned, the work on this subject in my
hands is completed.
The few remarks I have now to make are but supplemental to that paper, and to the one on the dialect
previously published by this Society,
so that the two together are to be taken as part and parcel of this Introduction. After twelve
years', more or less, constant work on
the subject, it is satisfactory to be able to confirm what has gone before, and to feel that
there is nothing to be unsaid,
although there is somewhat to be filled up, and perhaps now that my observations are mostly noted,
it would be a good time for some other
worker to begin, and to note the many-facts
which I shall have left unrecorded, or imperfectly dealt with.
One peculiarity of our pronunciation not before recorded, as a rule, is that long a after g, sh, or k,
becomes long e, as in gable, again,
cave, scarce, scare, escape, shame, shape, share, shave, pronounced always gee'ubl, ugec'un, kee'uv,
skee'us, skce'ur, skee'up, shee'um,
shee'up, shee'ur, shee'uv, &c.
Usually, in Teutonic words long ay keeps the same sound in the dialect as in literature e. g. day,
say, way, while in French, or imported
words, the sound is much widened, as in pay, play, May (month), ray, pronounced paay, plaay, maay,
raay.
Ea of lit. English pronounced long e, is in the dialect often long a, as sea, tea, deal, heal, meal, seal, read,
lead, v. t meat, wheat, pronounced sai' t tar, dae'ul, li)ae*ul, mae'ul,
sae'ul, rai'd, lai'd, mai't, wai't,
&c., but there are many exceptions e. g. fear, beat, heat, pronounced fee'ur, bee'ut (in Devon bai't\
yi'it, &c.
Ee, on the other hand, is frequently short i, as wik, wil, stil, for week, wheel, steel, &c.
Short / is very often long e in the dialect, as bee'd, ee'f, beech, dee'ch, stee'ch, ee'nj, ee'm, pee'n, seen,
skee'n, for bid, if, bitch, ditch,
stitch, hinge, hymn, pin, sin, skin, and many more.
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xvi
INTRODUCTION.
Readers of Nathan Hogg's poems will perceive that as in East Somerset, so in Devon, long . is much
broader in sound than with us. Our
long oa is scarcely distinguishable from literary speech. IV. Som. Devon. Literary.
broa-kt brau-kt broke
znoa-
droa- drau- throw
stoa-ld stairld stole
koa-1 kaui cold
toal taui told
Like Italian and French we drop the first when two vowels come together, or rather slide the two into one,
much more than in lit.
English, as in
vur ae-upmee = for a halfpenny, geod-
tart = good to eat.
t'aevee vau'ree = too heavy for you.
guup-m zee* = go up and see.
boa-naa-ru = bow and arrow.
O in lit. Eng. is seldom changed or dropped, nor does it influence neighbouring vowels. Compare go
away, go in, go out, go up, with our
goo war, gee'n, g-aewt, g-uup, or g-au'p.
Wuz you to the show last night? No, they widn lat me g*in 'thout I paid shillin', and I could'n vord
it. Nif I be able vor g-out doors next
week, the work shall be a-doo'd. Our Jim shall g-up and put'n to rights.
" In t'ouze” is the invariable form for “in the house." Maister home? Ees, I count a went in tome
by now. The very usual forms of
narration are, So I zess, s-I. Zoa, a zess,
s-ee. You baint gwain, b-ee? i. e. be ye. Mother's in t-'ouze. Home t-our house. Up t-eez place. Down
t-Oun's moor. Come in t-arternoon. You
can git'n in t'Hill's (t-ee'ulz). Mr. Hill t-Upton (t-uup'm) farm.
Abundant examples will be found in the text and in the Word Lists of all these varieties of vowel
pronunciation.
B, and often d, before le are not sounded we say buum'l, buun'l, mitunrl, tuum'l, tnmtrl, an" I, aam'l,
nee'ul, for bumble, bundle, mumble,
tumble, trundle, handle, amble, needle, &c.
\ ct we find a redundant d inserted between r and /, especially
in monosyllables. In Mid. Eng. this was done in world, which
md written wordle by several writers*, g. Langland, Trevisa,
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INTRODUCTION.
xvii
&c., but this is peculiar, and its M. E. form seems to indicate from analogy of similar words in the dialect,
that at that time as now the final d
was dropped, and that the d in wordle is a redundant insertion, precisely similar to our modern
vernacular, guur'dl, maa'rdl, kuurdl,
puurdl, wuurdl, buur'dl, Baa'rdl, kwau'rdl, for girl, marl, curl, purl, whirl, burl, Barle
(river), quarrel, &c.
Words spelt alike in literature, but different in meaning, have often very distinct sounds in the dialect.
Quarrel, v. and sl>., is always kwau'rdl. Quarrel, sb. t a pane of glass, is kwau'ryul.
On the other hand differences of sound in certain literary words do not exist with us. Hear, ear, here,
year, are all alike yuur.
The following words of lit. English ending in y drop this termination in the dialect, notwithstanding
the partiality for the sound shown in
its general use as an infinitive inflection, marking the intransitive and frequentative form;
also as a diminutive of nouns in words
like lovy, deary, sweety, &c., and as a redundant, perhaps euphonic, insertion, in Foxy down,
Dartymoor, &c.
Stud for study, v. t. and /. and sb.; car for carry, v. t.; dirt for dirty, v. t.; emp for empty, v. t.; slipper
for slippery, adj.; store for story,
sb.; ice for icy, adj.
I can't think nor stud what I shall do. In a riglur brown stud. You can't car't all to once. Tommy, mind
you don't dirt your pinny. Your old
Jim '11 emp cloam way one here and there. The
road was that slipper, I thort never should'n ha corned 'ome.
Purty store sure 'nough 'bout th' old
Bob Snook's wive. I sure ee 'tis riglar
ice cold.
The form of the possessive used by a native constantly distinguishes to whom
he refers, when there is nothing in the context to show this.
[Aay yuurd Jiinv zai tu Jaa'k; neef ee ded'n lat loa'un dhai wauyts haun ee wuz daewn een uun'dur ee'd
braek-s ai'd,] I heard Jim say to
Jack, if he did not leave alone the scales while he was underneath, he would break his head.
Nothing here but the form of the
possessive shows who's head would be broken. In the literary version, the implication decidedly is that
of a threat that Jim would under
certain conditions break Jack's head. Not so in the dialect. No ambiguity would arise. The use of the
possessive pronoun his (when so
contracted) is invariably reflective, and shows unerringly that it is Jim's own head that would be
broken. On the other hand, the
opposite meaning would be just as infallibly conveyed by
b
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xviii
INTRODUCTION.
identically the same words, if only the his had but had ever so little stress upon it. "He'd break 'is
aid," would express that there
had been a distinct threat to Jack on the part of Jim. Another and still more emphatic form of
conveying the threat to Jack, would
be, "he'd break th' aid o 1 un," i. e. that Jim would break Jack's head, and not that his own
would be broken. We see then that the
possessive masculine pronoun contracted and
unstressed is reflective, while stressed it is objective. The
feminine possessive being incapable of
such modification would be reflective in meaning whether accentuated or not,
and thus in order to narrate the
threat it would be needful to say, "he'd break th' aid o'er." It should be noted that this
contraction of the possessive his into
a mere sibilant, is not consequent upon any influence of proximate consonants “Bill cut-s vinger”
means his own finger, white “Bill cut
ees vinger," in the absence of all context, implies some one else's finger.
Stress again in the dialect comes in to mark differences in the meaning of homonyms, which in literary
English are marked only by the
context; for instance
" Well nif thick-s to good vor me, he-s to good vor 'ee too." This use of the two forms of too is
invariable. When stress has to be laid
upon the too, in the case of over and above, it is laid not on the adverb, as in literary English, but
upon the adjective, e.g. to good, to
bad, &c., while in the sense of likewise it is always tue* good too, bad too, &c. The aesthetic slang,
quite too too, would therefore be in
violation of dialectal usage, and be unintelligible.
Another expressive difference in stress is that commonly heard in the demonstratives this, these, when
used with nouns signifying time, in
the sense of during ox for the space of.
[Aa*y aa*nt u-zeed'-n z-wik], means, “I have not seen him for a week or more," but [aa-y aa-nt
u-zee'd-n dhee'uz wik], means “I have
not seen him during this current week," dating from Sunday
last. The same applies to future as
well as past construction “Your wagin
'ont be a-do'd-z-vortnight," means, it will not be finished for a fortnight, at least while this fortnight
in literary English would mean, during
these particular two weeks.
On opening a cistern in the garden which needed cleansing, the man said to me, [u doa'n leok s-au-f ee'd
u-biin u-tlarnd aew-t-s ,] he (the
cistern) does not appear to have been cleaned out for many:. Nov. 9. 1883.
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INTRODUCTION. xix
The demonstrative this here is often used as a phrase implying something new, or at least unfamiliar, and
out of the common run. A tenant
farmer, speaking of some repairs to the dairy window, said to me, They do zay how this here preforated
sine 's a sight better 'n lattin. This
implied that the zinc was a new thing which he had heard of, but never proved. So one
often hears sentences like the
following This here mowing o' wheat idn nit a quarter so good 's th' old farshin reapin'.
Have ee a-yeard much about this here ensilage?
This here artificial idn nit a bit like good old ratted dung, about getting of a crop way.
This here Agricultural Holdings Act idn gwain to do no good to we farmers, nif we do keep on having
cold lappery saisons.
This here bringing over o' fresh meat from America's gwain to be the finisher vor we; beef's 'most the
only thing can zil like anything, and
hon that's a-hat down, t'll be all over way farmerin.
In each of these illustrations this here has the meaning of this new-fangled.
In adjectives we have a kind of hyper-superlative used chiefly for great emphasis, in which the
superlative inflection is reduplicated,
with or without most as a kind of make-weight.
I zim yours is the most beautifulestest place ever I zeed. The purtiestest maid in all the parish. The
most ugliestest old fuller, 'sparshly
(especially) hon 'is drunk. The irregular adjectives have the superlative inflections superadded
almost regularly to their ordinary
superlatives. The bestest drink in the town. The wits' tees old thing vor falseness. The mostest ever I
zeed, &c.
Some auxiliary verbs have no inflection in the past tense, in the dialect, e. g. to let (permit); to help;
consequently instead of the principal
verb being as usual in the infinitive mood as, I let him see; I help(d) him do it; I let her have
it; I help(d) mount him, we use the
past tense of the principal verb instead of the infinitive, and so the past construction becomes
unmistakable.
May 28, 1883. A man said to me respecting a new tenant for a cottage he was quitting He come to me and
ax whe'er wadn nother 'ouse to let,
and zo I let'n zeed the house to once. This
man or any other native would say I let her had'n; I help 'in do'd it; I help mounted'n; I help
measured'n for a new suit o' clothes;
you mind you help me cleaned out thick pond. See HUTCH 3.
Inasmuch as [diid-n] did not, is a present conditional form as
b 2
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INTRODUCTION.
follows the
being alike, it seeme needful add ^ ^^ w
It 8 has over and over been gwen of ^ yerbs
exception (* VIII. A. i, P- 4), ^ ari P howeve r not prev.ously formed by the prefix a [u]. A pecuUa y ^ ^
noted *at very frequently tospre g m
to which it belongs by the mserUon ^^ Joe> fl
phrases like the **>*-* the zaddle. I told ee how ' a new
.
fresh sharp the zaw 1 e'd a new ^ ^ was fl oncommon
you was a vrong diiec ed.” daned out .
vexed o- it. I 'sure you th ^ w U w ^ ^ ^ afte the
In these sentences the words u
may suggest something as
In some cases and by some mdmdua ^te P
th before the adverb as above and ag am befo ^
aions and
verb, have ^ injection ^ referred to
in p. 51 of W \ S ' GraM \ ' -, a ii ud ed to by other
but i; construed with all the persons except ****'* to
They zess how they workw to factory. Her [ai tus] to
vast by" half. Our Handy always berto so long's any strangers b about We loota vor the death o' her every
day. They [chee ik ,] chairmak,-(i. e.
work at chairmaking) n,f they can cct
it In all these cases the inflection distinctly conveys a continuance of
action; and in certain districts is a commoner form
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INTRODUCTION.
XXI
than the well-known periphrastic one, so fully illustrated in W. S. Gram. pp. 50 79.
The pronoun it is sometimes emphasized and is then pronounced [ee't], but its use is uncommon, and only
heard in such sentences as I tell ee
it is [ee't arz], where both words are stressed by way of asseveration.
All collective nouns, even if plural in form, take a singular construction
and take // after them. Zo you bought all th' apples, did ee? well I don't know hot you be gwain to
do way //, I 'ant a-got no room.
They zess how he bought a lot o' beast off o' Mr. Bucknell, and V idn a paid vor. I baint gwain to turn
things in to market, nif can't zell
it.
As a neuter pron. it is unknown to us in W. Som., while in Devon it is common. They say, You've
a-braukt /"/ then, to last. Hath
her a-lost it? We say, You've a-tord', Hath her a-loss'?
The possessive form its is quite unknown; his or her in the forms [ee*z, uz, -s; uur, ur,] are invariable.
Indeed, one would like to know with
certainty, when its was first used in literature; but for this we must wait for the new English
Dictionary.
The Chapter of Wells, a presumably educated body, wrote to the Bishop of Winchester in 1505 about the
drainage of their contiguous land
cause the floodgate of o r said myell to be pulled up, so that the water
shall haue his full course. Reynolds,
Wells Cathedral, A pp. iii. p. 217.
The contraction of as to a mere sibilant, sometimes hard, sometimes soft, in
whatever its connection, is not only usual, but without exception, even when it begins a sentence.
'z I was gwain to St. Ives, &c., would be the way it would be pronounced, but of course this would not be
the vernacular idiom. As in the sense
of when, at the time that, or just in the manner that, would all be expressed by ems.
I zeed'n eens (as = when) I was gwain home to dinner.
Her was a-catchd nezactly eens (as == at the moment) her come in the door.
Twad'n nit one bit o' good to sarch no more, eens I told'n tho' (as = just as I told him at the time).
The conjunction as, however, enters very largely indeed into west country speech. For just as scarcely a
remark can be made without a simile,
so in the construction of those similes as is to be found in a full half i. e. in the phrase
same as [sae'um-z]
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xxii
INTRODUCTION.
alternating with its synonym like. I can't zee a pin to choose in em, one's so bad'* tother. Same'* the crow
zaid by the heap o toads, they be all
of a sort.
Again as is used almost as often in connection with though, which we pronounce off or thoff, as shown
in the example to illustrate
contraction of these (ante p. xviii).
Tid'n /off I'd a-do'd ort agin he, nor neet /off anybody was a-beholdin to un, then anybody must put up
way 'is sarce.
As is never used in the south-west, like it is in many districts, for a relative.
" Twas him as done it," could not be said by a native of the Western counties. (See EVANS, Leicester Gloss,
p. 26.) Neither would it be used in
the sense of like, or in the same manner as. We could not say, “He shall reap as he has
sown," our idiom would be a
complete paraphrase" Eens he've a-zowed, zo sh'll er rape."
As, I may venture to say, is never used before if; as if is never heard, but always, in the way before
illustrated, our idiom is s-off, or 's
thoff \. e. as though. Neither is it found in such refined company as for or to.
In phrases like “As for t\\a\. matter," or "As to what you say," our idiom would be “zo var's that
goth," or “consarnin' o' what you
do zay." The expression "as well" in the sense of also, likewise, and "as yet" i.e. up to
this time, have not yet filtered down
to us. We could not bring our tongues to utter such refinements as, “Bring me some tea and a
little milk as well" “I have
never come upon such an instance as yet" but we should say, "a drap o' milk 'long way
it," “sich a instance never avore."
The double use of as i. e. before and after the adjective or adverb, which is now the polite form, is
never heard in the dialect; as well
as, as big as, &c. are invariably so welFs, so big's, &c.
The preposition of is a peculiar instance of change and contraction under
certain fixed conditions, which appear hitherto not to have attracted attention.
1. It invariably drops its consonantal ending when followed by a consonant, and becomes a mere breathing
u.
[Lee*dl beets u dhingz. Dhai bwuuyz du maek aup u suyt u murs-chee.] A bag o' taties. I be that
there maze-headed I can't think o'
nothin'.
2. It drops its consonantal ending, and usually becomes changed to long o sound, when followed by a short
vowel, provided that vowel is the
initial of a syllable.
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INTRODUCTION.
XXlll
He said he'd break th' 'ead o un. He could' n never do it out o* is own head. There was vower or vive o'
us. Trode 'pon the voot o 1 'er. I
'ant a-got none d um (or contracted to <?'m).
3. It drops its consonant and becomes of medial length when standing at the end of a clause.
'Tidn nort vor to be 'shamed o\ Cockney 'Taint nothink to be ashamed on. They chil'ern o' yours be
somethin' vor to be proud o\ What be
actin' o 1? is the ordinary method of saying,
What are you doing? What be a tellin' c?? = What are you saying? What d'ye tell o'! is very common;
indeed it is the usual form of You
don't say so! indeed! oh, brave, &c.
4. Of retains its consonantal ending when followed, by a short vowel standing alone, like the indefinite
a, even though in rapid speech it
sounds like the initial of a syllable.
[Lee'dl beet uv u dhing.J Gurt mumphead of 'a fuller. Bit of a. scad, I count.
5. It retains its consonantal ending when followed by a long vowel.
Nif on'y I'd a-got a little bit of ort vrash like. Her's about of eighty, I count. This would more commonly
be About of a. eighty, and so accord
with Paragraph 4. Comp. 'Boux o' TWENTY.
Her didn want nort of he.
6. Emphatic of is common, and loses its consonant.
[Kaa*n tuul eentaa'y hautiivur faar sheen dhai bee oa'~\ is the usual form of, I really cannot give you a
description of them. See INTY.
I vound these thing 'tis a 'an'l oaf o 1 something, but I can't tell what 'tis o\
Certain verbs in the dialect take Rafter them, which in lit. Eng. have at, or else require no preposition to
follow them. To /aug/i, always is
followed by of.
Hotiver be larfin' o'? is vernacular for What are you laughing at?
Troake 1 What are you laughing at? Plase, sir, I wad'n larfin' o* you. Well, I did'n zee nort to larf o 1
' You no 'casion to larf c> they,
gin you can do it better yourzul.
To touch always takes Rafter it.
I zaid I'd hat down the very fust man that aim to tich o' un.
Tommy, don't you tich o' thick there hot ire, else you'll scald yourzul.
Her thort herzul ter'ble fine, sure 'nough, but nobody wad'n a-tcokt in didn lie in her burches vor to
tich of a, rale lady.
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INTRODUCTION.
i f
In this last, touch has the force of approach, m the sense
imitating or counterfeiting.
// a/stakes *' after the participle.
Who be you watchin' o'? I baint watchin o you (9, is never used for ,/ (as in example No
3); indeed, as a preposition it is
nearly unknown. Its use is almost confined to
adverb as in put on, go on, straight on, &c.-but of this later
Before cardinal numerals the dialect retains the indefinite adjective *, while the literary speech
retains it only before nouns of
number, such as dozen, score, and certain of the numerals which have become such-*^. hundred, thousand,
million, &c. In the dialect,
however, the use is apparently subsiding, as it is now generally confined to those cases where the
number is rendered indefinite by the
expression about or more than.
How many were there? Au! I count there was about of a dree or vower and twenty. Were there really
so many? Well, I'll war'nt was more'n
a twenty o'm. So we should always hear
"about of a ten, of a fifteen," or any number, and the same
with respect to more than.
The same form is found in Luke ix. 28, “And it came to pass about an eight days after these
things," except that in the modern
dialect we drop the euphonious n in the article and insert of after
about.
About in this sense is always followed by of, and very frequently the indefinite a is prefixed to nouns of
time, as I sh'll be back about of a
dinner-time. He said he'd get'n ready
about of a Vriday. Whether these
latter instances may not be contractions of at or on, I am unable to say, but extended to
about of on Friday, about of at
dinner-time, they seem awkward.
Again, the same form is used after about, when “the time of day” is spoken of.
I sh'll be home 'bout of a zix o'clock.
About is a curious word in the dialect. It is very commonly used in the sense of “for the purpose
of." I heard a farmer say,
"This is poor trade, sure 'nough, 'bout growin' o' corn,"
which being interpreted means, “This
is poor stuff of soil for the purpose
of growing corn upon." Here was by no means an unintelligent man; he had not a very marked intonation or
brogue, and he used words to be found
in every dictionary, but out of his own
ict I think his words would have been totally misunderstood,
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INTRODUCTION.
XXV
even though his hearer had the benefit of the Society's great Dictionary with Dr. Murray himself at hand
to help him.
The late Rev. "Jack" Russell (see Life, Bentley, 1878, p. 242)
said, "The hounds are as good as
ever they were; but fed on that wishy-washy trade, I'll defy them, or any hounds on earth, to kill
a good fox."
It is usual to say, “Shocking bad weather 'bout zowin' o' whate," “Purty tool this here, 'bout cuttin' o'
timber way."
A boy who is to be thrashed, is to have a stick “about his back."
An old man, who alas! was frozen to death, said to me of some spar-gads which he was making into spars,
“Gurt ugly toads, the fuller that cut
'em ort to a-had 'em a-beat about the gurt head o'un."
In both these last instances about neither means upon, or around, or against, but a compound of all three,
with an implication of violence to
boot. Of course we use about in the ordinary literary meanings.
Another curious preposition is used only in the dialect in the contracted form 'pon, for the on of lit.
English. In many cases upon, which is
first expanded to upon the top of, has become contracted out of sight, or
rather improved off the face of the earth.
We should not tell a person to <c put it down upon the table," but to “put'n down tap the table." “I
saw him swinging upon the gate” would
be, “I zeed'n ridin' tap the gate." This idiom is used throughout the West. Nathan Hogg in
his letter on Gooda Vriday says
An I'll tul thur tha vust thing I'll du ta be zshore Pitch et in tap tha urch za wul as tha
pore.
Again in Bout tha Balune
Poor vellers! they always wis vond uv ort vresh, Wen they liv'd tap tha aith, an like us wis
vlesh.
This word tap is all that remains of the pleonastic form “upon the top of." When upon is used, it
often has up or down before it, just
as under takes down or in to complement it.
You must git a fresh sheep-skin and put-n up 'pon the back o' un. This was said by a farrier as part of the
treatment for a sick cow, which was
lying down unable to stand. (Nov. 1883.)
I don't want no trust, I always pays down 'pon the rail.
Plaisters, poultices and such-like applications have to be "put up” to the part.
I was a-forced to put a blister up to his chest.
I put the lotion up to his knee, eens you ordered me.
The preposition to is frequently omitted before the infinitive
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INTRODUCTION.
mood, especially so before the infinitive of purpose, which, as in French always takes/"" before
it. 7S na g*>- vur due't,] you know
he did not mtend
10 tfatert swain same purpose vor spake to the jistices vor me [Yue noa -\vaa-l vur /ai aew yue zeed
mee',] you (have) no need
to say that you saw me.
[\ay bun aup-m taewn vur bespark tue nue pae'ur u bue'ts, biid dhoa 1 Tum Ee-ul waudu au'm, bdd uur
zaed aew ee shd uurn daewn tue
wairns,] I (have) been up into (the) town to
bespeak two new pairs of boots, but old Jim Hill was not at home, but sht said he should run down at once.
It will here be noticed that in the two last examples the verb hart is omitted, and in similar negative
expressions it is generally
so left out.
[Yue noa- kizlnin,] for you hare no occasion, is very common. So the perfect tense of fc be (omitted from
my Grammar) is, I bin, or I've a-bin.
Thee's a-bin. He bin, or he've a-bin. We bin, or we've a-bin. You bin, or you've a-bin. They
bin, or they've a-bin. The preposition
to, if sometimes omitted in the dialect, is more often used redundantly. Certain adverbs of
place seem to require it as a
complement, and in these cases it comes always at the end of a sentence or clause.
I can't tell wherever her's a-go to. Where's a-bin and put the gimlet to! I can't think wherever they be
to.
Again, to not only is always used for af, as fully explained in JJ". Gram. p. 89, but the same
preposition has to do duty for in. Her
do live A? Wilscombe, to service, and we zend vor her, vor come home to once.
Mr. Burge to Ford zaid to me to zebm o' dock last night, eens Mrs, Jones to shop was dead to last, and
they zess how her keept on to work to
her lace-making up home to her death, to the very least dree hours a day. Jones, he was to
skittles in to Half Moon hon her died;
he don't care nort 't-all about it; he's so good hand to emptin' o' cloam 's you'll vind here and
there. Her's gwain to be a-buried to
cemetery to dree o'clock marra /'arternoon.
So also to is used in some cases before the gerund. I've a-tookt all Mr. Jones's grass to cutting. They was
a-tookt purty well to doing, 'bout
thick there job.
To is frequently heard where in would be used in standard English. I bide to Lon'on gin I was that
bad I could'n bide no longer.
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: - . 7 1 - Y: .::
and solely for die very pm
'. ~. ~ .~7 ':'. 2
is by *r tbe
I com'd in *. I
"On
A I* IT EIT - I IT
accidental, would say, under die do it
^ pnrposs” <L intentiooally . the
analogy of the literary asleep.
The preposition in. often has die meaning of / or >&r in
nection with money or price.
They ax me TOT to gee /* TOT the job, zo I gid im TOT pottin' npo* die wall, bnt Lor! I conkf n *ord TOT
do' t no he've a4ookt it wr.
To "grew" means "to tender"; to give
In speaking of particular seasons, it is Tery nsoal to duplicate day when it is desired to emphasize
Twas Lady-day day beyond aU die days in the wonfl. Herll be Tifteen year old come Mechehnas-day day.
I mind your poor father died 'pon
Kirsmas-day day. They zess you can hare
possession 'pon >idsnmmer-day day.
Again at Whitsuntide it is usual to speak of Wkiiism -Sanvfef, White* Monday, Whiten Tuesday ^ &c,
In constructing oar sentences, die subject is very often placed at the end of the clause, or at least after
the predicate.
Idn never gwain to get no better, my poor old urn man, I be afeard. Do go terr"ble catchin', I
zim, thick 'oss. Also set PLATTY.
So also the construction, whether plural or singular, depends on the idea, and not upon the form of die
noun. For example sub (soap suds) are
plural in lit Eng., but in the dialect precede a verb in the singular, while broth on the
other hand is always plural.
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xxv iii
INTRODUCTION.
Things, meaning cattle or vermin, pinchers, tongs, stairs, all take verbs in the singular.
By way of bringing the peculiarities of our dialect into direct contrast with the Midland, the basis of
modern literary English, I have taken
Dr. Evans's Leicester Glossary, and have distinctly set out below many forms therein given which
are not known to us, for the reason
that it is often as important for a student to know what is not done in a district, as to be
informed on points which many
localities have in common. I have also noted others common to both localities.
1. Nor, meaning than, common elsewhere, is not heard in the West. “Yourn is better nor mine” could not
be said by a Somerset or Devon native.
2. The uninflective genitive (see Evans's Leicester Gloss, p. 22), “The Queen Cousin," is unknown.
3. The redundant article used in Leicestershire (Ib. p. 23), with such (e.g. It is a such a handsome cat), is
never heard.
4. The (Ib. p. 23) is not omitted where used in literary English. On the contrary, it is often used when not
needed in literary construction. With all diseases it is used
The cheel 've a got the measles the scarlet fever, &c. I've a-got the rheumatic ter'ble bad. Her's bad a-bed
wi' th? infermation o' the lungs.
Also before trades, as
He do work to the taildering. My boy 've a-larned the calenderin. We Ve a-boun' un purtice to the shoemakerin.
In these latter cases the form is that which would be used in speaking to a superior, and its use implies
that the person addressed is not
familiar with the trade. Indeed, the has a force analogous to this here, as before explained in the sense
of unfamiliar^ new-fangled, or
supposed to be so by the person addressed.
Again, in speaking of any person, whenever the description old or young is prefixed, it is always the old,
the young.
I yeard th' old butcher Davy zay how the young farmer Hawkins had a-tookt a farm.
This form is invariable in the Exmoor Scolding.
The (Ib. p. 23) is never omitted in the West before a thing to which attention is called. We should not
say" Look at fire," as in
Leicester, but “Look to the vire."
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INTRODUCTION.
xxix
5. Better seems to stand for more everywhere. We say I'd a-got better'n a dizen one time.
6. The inflections of comparison can be added to all participles as well as adjectives proper. (Ib. p. 25.)
There idn no more gurt vorheadeder holler-mouth in all the country.
'Tis the most pickpocketins (/". e. pickpocketingest) concarn iver you meet way in all your born days.
7. Them (Ib. p. 26) is never used as a nominative, except in the interrogative forms, Did 'em? have 'em? be
'em?
We could not say "them books" either as a nominative or accusative our corresponding demonstrative
is they.
8. We is not heard as a possessive (Ib. p. 26). Occasionally, to children, you and he are used as
possessives Tommy, gi* me you 'an.
Where's he purty book?
Hisn, hern, ourn, yourn, theirn, are not heard.
We is not used reflectively. We should say, We'll go and warsh urzuls, and get ur teas; never warsh we.
Its does not exist in the dialects of the West. If the need arises for a neuter possessive pronoun, which can
be only in respect of abstract or
indefinite nouns (see W. S. Gram. p. 29), the form is o' it It must never be forgotten that all nouns
capable of taking a before them are
masculine or feminine (very few of the latter). “It was not a bad sermon, though its drift was
uncertain," would have to be
paraphrased, “The sarment wadn so bad, but the manin o' un wadn very clear."
9. What is with us, as in Leicester, used as a relative redundantly (Ib. p. 26). 'Tis the very same 's'w/iaf I
told 'ee. They baint nit quarter so
good as they, what I had last.
10. T/iis-r\, that-K, &c. (Ib. p. 27), are never heard, but we often add a genitive inflection on to the
demonstratives this, thick.
[Dhee'uzez bruVtez bee deep'ur-n dhiks, bee u brae'uv suyt,] this-^ breasts be deeper than thick's, by a
brave sight.
11. That (p. 27) is not used in such phrases as / do that, I can that, &c. We should in such cases say /
do zo, but the expression would sound
pedantic or affected in native ears, and savour too much of the board school.
12. Sen (p. 27) or sens are unknown with us. Self, whether alone or in combination, is always zul.
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XXX
INTRODUCTION.
13. We know nothing of the en (p. 27) added to monosyllabic verbs we even drop it where found in lit.
Eng. e. g. to hark, to wide, to hard,
to fresh, to thick, to quick, to ripe, to hap, &c.; but in words where the en is part of its
original form, as in token, nasten, we
retain it So also we drop the er in to lower.
I heard a man speaking of rats, say, “I reckon I've &-l(ru?d they a bit." And another man who was
levelling for me a short time ago,
said, “Must low thick there 'ump ever so much."
It will be noted that we in the West do not make any use of the past participial inflection en, as in
beaten, drawn, flown, so common
elsewhere. A-knowed, a-zeed, a-gid, a-do'd (sometimes a-doned), a-tookt, a-forsookt, a-beat, a- vailed, a
stoled are our forms. I am inclined to
think a-dorid is quite a recent development, yet adjectivally we constantly
use the form, bought^ bread. (See p. 232.)
14. We should not comprehend can or could in the infinitive, to can, to could (Ib. p. 31). We should simply
leave out the relative “He's the man
can do it;” and in the other sentence 4 ' I used to be able vor do it in half the time."
15. What Dr. Evans calls the redundant "have" (p. 31) in the pluperf. conditional, is nothing but the
old past participial prefix. "Nif
I'd a-zeed 'n” would be our form.
I agree with Dr. Evans that such forms as Where bin I? How bin you? are spurious creations of dialect
writers (see Preface, p. v), who have
perhaps learnt a little German, but do not know other than literary English.
1 6. No such negative form of verb as havena (p. 31), or hanna, wasna, worna, &c., are known in the
West.
I am astonished at the existence of fourteen forms of “I am not," as given by Dr. Evans (p. 31).
The W. S. is as copious s any dialect,
and it knows but two forms, I baint, and the
emphatic / be not. Of course “I ain't” is heard, but only among those who talk fine, and speak the Cockney
dialect learnt at board schools.
17- We never use on instead of from or of (p. 32). We say a >t <tm, not a lot on em; had'n vrom
me, not had it on me We the word
Rafter buy. \ bought thick oafti Jim Smith '
:ore mentioned, before nouns denoting points of time we
use on, though contracted to a mere breathing. Your
1 be a-dood a Zadurday night, would be our regular form -
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INTRODUCTION.
XXxi
but occasionally such an expression might be heard as “trying to mend the pump Zunday."
1 8. I think Dr. Evans' instance (Ib. p. 32), "the Quane to yer aunt," not to be a substitution of to
for for, but to be precisely similar
to the ordinary phrases “without a coat to his back," “no key to the lock," or to the Scriptural
language, "We have Abraham to our
father."
In preparing this work for the press, I had made some considerable progress
before it occurred to me that the number of words and syllables dropped or omitted, and of
others inserted, was very considerable
as compared with standard English, and the recurrence of the same form in a variety of the
illustrative sentences under revision,
decided me to begin to note these systematically, with the view of bringing them together in such a
shape that fresh rules of syntactic
construction, as well as of pronunciation, might be induced. No attempt is here made to show whether
these peculiarities are right or wrong
abstractedly, but merely to contrast them as they are with their counterparts in lit.
English. However imperfect the result
of these notes, it may not be considered waste of space to insert them here. In some cases the
omission is confined to that of a
single word in some particular phrase; but when so noted it will be understood, unless otherwise
stated, that the form noted is that in
such common use as to deserve the term always.
I first take connective words or parts of speech, and then go on to special idioms, and finally to omissions
of initial or final syllables and
sounds.
Beginning with distinguishing adjectives, it is very common to find both a and the omitted. It must be
borne in rnind that an even before a
vowel is unknown. (See W. S. Gram. p. 29.)
1. A is dropped very frequently but not always before the adjective or adverb in descriptive
sentences such as
'Twas terr'ble close sort o' place, I zim. Mr. Jones is mortal viery man. See lllust. QUICK-STICK, KIN.
2. A is omitted before bit or quarter when used as a fraction. Thick there idn quarter zo goods 'tother.
Wants quarter to
one, an' there idn no sign o' no dinner not eet. See also PLATTY, SNOUT, RUNABOUT.
3. A is dropped after/i?/-.
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INTRODUCTION.
Nobody ont do
I've a-keep the market vor number o' years,
nort vor man like he. See PINCHFART, SPAT.
4. A is dropped after such, nearly always.
Jis fools' he off to be a-starve to death! You ant a-zeed no jis noise 'bout nort in all your born days. See
GRUBBER 2, JITCH, PANTILE, RUMPUS,
RUSE, WORD o' MOUTH.
5. A is dropped after so good in comparative sentences.
I zay 'tis zo good lot o' beas' as I've a-zeed's longful time. See LIKE i.
6. The is often omitted before same as, a phrase which has become the regular idiom for like or just as.
I've a-do'd same's father do'd avore me. See JOGGY 2, OUT 3, RUNABOUT, OFF 2, SPUDDLY.
7. The is always omitted before words which, though proper names or com. nouns, serve to point out
position or occupation, precisely like
the literary I am goin' in to town as we say, not of London only, but of everywhere.
I be gwain vor zend to station to-marra.
He's that a-crippl'd, can't put his voot to ground.
I zeed'n in to Board (Guardians), but I could'n come to spake to un.
We always say send “to mill," “to lime” (kiln), “to shop," “to farrier," "to smith,"
&c. for anything wanted.
The cows be down to river. I be gwain down to sea.
To drive a dog out, we always say Go to doors! A publican would say, Nif you don't keep order, you'll
be a-put to doors. This phrase implies
more than omission of the; it stands for out of the. See To 2.
Illustrations of various uses will be found as follows under HOME TO, MEET WITH, HAPSE, POST OPE, RUSE
2, RAKE ARTER, SIDELING, TIMES i,
HARREST DRINK, IN HOUSE, WAD.
Before the names of public-houses the is always omitted, and also in the com. phrases, to back door, to
door, to hill, to load, to rick, to
road, to vore door, to lower zide, in house, up in tallet, &c.
I zeed'n in to King's Arms. See PEDIGREE, POOR 3, RUSE 2, STEAD.
The phrase tap is peculiar, being a contraction of upon the top of, and hence tap in the dialect has become
a regular preposition. Ste TOP, RUSF
i.
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INTRODUCTION.
XXXlll
Where's the pen an' ink a-put to? I left it tap the table nit quarter nower agone!
8. A pronoun, when it is a nominative case, is often omitted; also both nom. case and verb as well are omitted
at the beginning of a sentence. (He is
a) riglar good strong 'oss, (he) idn none o' your jibbers mind! The words in brackets would
be omitted without any context
precedent or otherwise to lead up to the omission.
(Thou) couldst do it well enough nif (thou) wouldst. [Kuds due' ut wuul nuuf 1 neef wilts.]
(He) mid a- went very well neef (he) was a mind to.
Baint gwain to part way all Ve a-got /. e. we are not, &c.
See for omissions of (I) CATCH HEAT, JOGGLY 2, LETTING, LENT CORN, MID, NEET A MOST, NOTHER NOTHER.
(You) HOVE, JAR, MAKEWEIGHT, NACKLE-ASS, PANSHORD, PUT OUT, RIDE 5.
(He) GAMMIKIN, MUMP, NESAKTLY, RUSTY.
(It) KEEPING, HELE, JARGLE, LAMENESS, NECK-OF-THE-FOOT, NICK 6, ONE BIT, ONT BE A ZAID, PEAR,
PINDY.
(One) Low v. t KITCH, MAKE SHIFT, ONE-WAY-SULL, SKIT.
(We) GANTERING, IRE STUFF, IN HOUSE > LATTY WEATHER, MOOR i, MOMMIT.
(They) HAND OVER HEAD, PLIM, PURTENANCE.
Nom. case and verb omitted. For illust. see
(I am) LAPPERY. (I was) HANCHING. (I have) HEEL o' THE HAND. (He is) GAMMIKIN, ITEMS, JACK UP. (It
is) PRICKED, SCALD i. (Let it) OTHER.
(You are) KICKING ABOUT, RIDE 4. (You
have) CASION, MUXY. (They were) RUMPUS 2. (It was)
SCUMMER 2, JOB, GOOD TURN.
9. Auxiliary verbs are constantly omitted, while the nom. case is expressed. For illust. see as follows
(Have) KITTLE-PINS, LIVIER, MALEMAS, OUT OF SORTS, OCEANS, PLAY 3, RUMPUS 3, RUVVLE, RENE,
SEEMLY, SPLIT i, STAND UP FOR. (Has)
KNOCKING ABOUT, ON 3, PLAY 3, LET 2,
LUCK, MAKE-MOWS, MIND i, OVER, ONE TIME, SING SMALL, SENSE, SNUFFLES, SQUINGES. (Had) OFF 2.
10. Be in the infin. mood is often dropped, nearly always before forced, safe, sure, when following shall or
will, and after used to, ought to.
We shall fo'ced to stap work. Jim'll saafe to tell maister o' it.
c
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xxxiv
INTRODUCTION.
Thick 'oss'll sure to kick. Things baint a bit same's they used to.
See TIME i.
Bet es won't drenk, nether, except ya vurst kiss and friends. Ex. Court. 1.
534-
(After shall] STAND-TACK. (After wilt) TOP-SIDED. (After ought to) MISTRUST.
(Before sure) GIFTS, HEFT sb. t HORCH, LAB, JAKES, PEASE ERRISH, QUAINT, SORE FINGER, TACKLING,
SHOD.
(After used to) GRIP sb. t JUMBLE, SHAKE 2, LIE ABED, LONG-DOG,
OUT-DOOR-WORK, PITCH 4.
11. Relative pronouns are very often omitted. See W. S. Gram. pp. 32, 41.
There's a plenty o' vokes can 'vord it better'n I can. Tidn he can make me do it, and that I'll
zoon show un. I know very well tvvad'n
my boy do'd it.
Was there no other place might serve to worship in.
1642. Rogers, Naaman, p. 535.
See GENITIVE, LOOBY, POKE 5, SHARPS, SNAP, UNDECENTNESS.
12. Webster says, "There, is used to begin sentences, or before a verb, without adding essentially to the
meaning." So much do we feel
this, that we very often leave it out when it would always appear in literary English. In negative
sentences this is nearly always the
case. Idn nit a mossle bit a-lef. That there's the very wistest sort is. On't be no cherries de
year. Wad'n but zix to church 'zides
the pa'son. Was more pigs to market' n ever I zeed avore. They holm-screeches be the
mirscheeviusest birds is. See
COWHEARTED. The same may be said of the adverb when.
I can mind the time very well, could'n get none vor love nor money /. e. when /could'n.
The day'll sure to come, you'll be zorry o' it.
See POPPLE, HEART 2, JOBBER, MANSHIP, MOLLY CAUDLE, MUNCH, MATH, ONE WITH TOTHER, PECK, PROOF,
TIMBER DISH, GETTING, PROACH, GLARE,
LEW, QUADDLY, Loss, MILL, MOGVURD,
RUBBY, RlGHTSHIP, REVEAL, RlNE, THROW 3.
T 3. In sentences or clauses, with so or as qualifying another adverb, we very commonly omit the first of these
connective words Vast as I can drow
the stuff out, 'tis in 'pon me again. Quick's ever her could, her brought the spirit, but twadn no
good, he wadn able vor tich o' it. See
LEGGY, MAKE HOME, MANNY, LONG-DOG 2,
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INTRODUCTION. XXXV
MUTTERY, MASH, PAY, RISE v. /., SACK i, STIVER. These examples seem to be all uses of soon, but
the same form is common with many
other adverbs.
I tell ee tis vright's ninepence. Thick there cask is zweet's a nif See SCAMBLE i. So as, i. e. in such a
manner as, is often omitted; for
example see PAPERN.
14. In phrases denoting the same time or position, the connecting prepositions and adverbs are often omitted
before and after same.
I never didn think to meet ee, same place I zeed ee to, last time I was yer-long /. e. at the same place as.
Her zaid her never widn have no more to zay to un, same time, nif I was he, I widn bethink to try again.
See RAMSHACKLE.
Where in lit. English we should draw a comparison by using like, or in the same manner as, in the
dialect we constantly use the phrase
same as, omitting the words just the, or exactly the.
Thick old fuller! why he's same's a old hen avore day. That there's same's the young farmer White do'd.
See MAZE i, REAM 2.
15. After just upon, we omit the connective words, the point of, the act of, and the sense must be inferred
from the context.
The doctor was jis 'pon gvvain, /. e. just upon the point <?/" going. The tree was jis 'pon vallin, hon a puff o'
wind come and car'd'n right back
tother way. Nif her wadn jis 'pon lettin go the bird, hon I clap my 'and 'pon the cage. See LEB'M
O'CLOCKS.
1 6. All, is regularly omitted in that commonest of phrases "But everything" (q. v.).
I baint gwain gatherin (/. e. collecting subscriptions) there no more. I 'ad 'n hardly a-told'n my arrant
vore he begin nif he didn call me but
everything; and I hadn a-gid he no slack whatsomedever.
17. The words in comparison with, or compared to, as used in a literary sentence, would be omitted by us.
Mr. Piper's proper near now, sure 'nough, what he was, cant git a varden out o' un /. e. compared to what
he was. Our roads be shocking bad,
what yours be in your parish i. e. in comparison with what yours are. This is not a mere
looseness of speech, but the common
idiom. See TAFFETY, SLACK 4.
1 8. After numerals it is very common to omit the description of price, weight, or quantity of the articles
referred to, as in the literary
hundredweight, leaving it to be inferred by the context or custom
of the market what integer is spoken
of.
c 2
XX XVI
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INTRODUCTION.
You cant buy very much of a 'oss less'n forty/, e. forty pounds. I gid fifty-vive apiece for they there
couples dree mon's agone, and now they
baint a wo'th 'boo forty-eight/, e. shillings. They yoes to fat, be 'em! why they baint not no more'n eighty
apiece else they be vive hundid!/. e.
80 Ibs. in weight. You can buy good two-year-old steers vor zixteen a pair/,
e. 16. I call's thick yeffer thirty
and no more/, e. thirty score in weight when dead and dressed by the butcher.
How be taties zillin? Au! you can buy so many's you mind to vor vive /". e. five shillings per bag
of 8 score, or 160 Ibs. Whate do
yieldy well about; Mr. Slape 'ad a-got more'n forty out o' thick there ten acres L e. 40 bushels per acre.
To the uninitiated it must be most
perplexing to follow the chaffering of the markets, and the ordinary business talk of farmers
and those with whom they deal.
19. Of prepositions, the omissions are numerous and regular in the construction of sentences.
(a) At is left out in such phrases as He do always do thick there job breakfast times. See INTO 2, RISE.
(b) By is dropped in such sentences as Maister off (ought) to a-zen more 'ands. I know'd we wadn able
vor do it urzuls /'. e. by ourselves.
See HIS-SELF.
(c) For is omitted before fear, less, and other words Mother widn come to church s'mornin fear her mid
catch a cold. See paragraph 18, p.
xxxv, HELE, HULK, PACK UP.
I widn put up way it for no money, nor neet no man livin'. See I-MAKED. Joe idn comin' long o' we more'n a
wik or two /. e. for more than. See
TWELVE, TWENTY.
(d) From is omitted in speaking of time or position. There ont be no grass hardly now gin out in May /'.
e. from now. I wadn no vurder away 'an
our door to yours /*. e. from our door. See
VURNESS.
(e) In is often dropped. The roof takes wet many different places /*. e. in many. See LISSOM,
NORATION, SCRAN (/'. e. in or while
going on), TIME TO COME.
All relationships expressed by /-law, lose the in. Father-law, mother-law, zister-law, brither-law,
&c.
(/) Of is omitted before clock in speaking of the hour.
What's the clock, Joe? Two clock, just [tiie- klairk, jis-]. See NOMMIT. Also after quarter when used as a
measure of time or
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INTRODUCTION.
XXXVll
quantity. Plase to let me lost a quarter day? /'. e. quarter of a day. Missus zend me arter quarter yard more
o' this here cloth. There idn no
more'n quarter bag o' taties a-lef /. e. quarter of a bag. I zeed'n g'in t'ouse nit boo quarter
nower agone. This last phrase is
constantly varied to quarter's hour. Your 'oss 'ont be ready this quarter's hour [rad'ee uz
kwau'rturz aawur]. They bin a-started
'is quarter's hour. See POOCH, v., RAKE OUT, ROUTY, SNOUT, SPARE i.
(g) To is very commonly dropped before the infinitive of purpose, wheny#;' is used.
My man's ago up'm town vor take out a summons agin un. See LACK, MAISTER 2, MORE AND so, NEGLECTFUL,
No CALL, SPARE 2,
TlTTERY, TO 20.
In the phr. to be sure, to is generally left out.
You ant a-zold yer old mare, be sure! See JACK-A-DANDY, JAR, POOK i. Also in /0-morrow, /0-day. I can't
do it gin marra mornin'. Maister wadn
'ome day mcrnin', but p'r'aps is come
back. See DAY MORNING.
In rapid speech to is often left out before proper names.
Take'n car they rabbits op Farm' Perry's. Dec. 12, 1887. Her zaid how her'd a-bin op Wrangway. I be
gwain down station arter some coal.
(/t) Upon is omitted very frequently; the prep, on is first expanded into upon the top of, and then contracted
into top.
Who've a-had the drenchin' horn? I put'n tap the clock my own zull a Zinday mornin'. See PURDLY,
RAUGHT, RUSE i, SOFT i, TOP 4,
TABLEBOARD.
20. Conjunctions, (a) And is often dropped in such sentences as Why's'n look sharp, neet bide there
gappin'? I'd make haste 'ome, neet
stap here no longer, nif I was thee neet make a fool o' thyzul. See JIG TO JOG, NACKLE-ASS.
(b) If is omitted frequently along with the entire conditional clause. Let thee alone, wit'n sar tuppence
a day /. e. if one were to let thee
alone. Wid'n be much water vor to grindy way, did'n look arter the mill-head and the fenders
*'. e. if I did not look after. See
KADDLE, PLATTY, SHIVE.
(f) It is quite usual to omit that.
I never did'n thought ever he'd sar me zo. We was that busy, I could'n come no how. See Low, NAIL, SCRAG
3, SCRAWL, SNAFFLE. Also very often
the conjunction and nom. case following it are
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XXXV1U
left out together. Her was in jish tear vor start, wad'n able vor get it ready/, e. that \vc were not able.
See JACKETTING, LAMENESS, LENT CORN, NAIL.
Frequently the two words that there are dropped.
I told'n to take care wadn no stones long way the zand. Her zeed very well could'n be no things a-lef
behind, else must a-zeed it/. c . that
there could not. See Loss, SAME PURPOSE.
21. Several words ending in y or ee in lit. Eng. drop their terminations in the dialect. To carry is
alway kaar. See LINCH, MAKE HOME,
MANNERLY, MAT, MUN, NIP UP. To DIRTY, QUARRY,
v. and sb. t STUDY are always duurt, kwau-r, stud. Story also,
and slippery are stoa'r and slup'ur.
The termination er is frequently dropped in rapid speech. To lower is loa'; master, maa's; farmer,
faa'rm; butcher, blo'ch, &c. Car
up they rabbits op Farm' Perry's way Master's compliments. Dec. 1887. See PUSKY.
Final d is dropped after n or /, whether followed by a vowel or not. See FIND, MAUND, MILD, WILD, RIND,
SEND, and also Word Lists.
22. Initial letters and syllables are often omitted, such as a in abate, abide, abuse, ad in adjoin, adjust,
advance, be in beholdin', besides,
begin, &c. See ZOONDER, and Word Lists.
23. Syllables are often omitted in polysyllabic words, as in NONSICAL, VEGEBLE, VEGETLES, &c.
If there are many omissions in our syntax, so also there are many redundancies as compared with the same
standard, but they appear to be of a
more exceptional character, and to lend themselves less easily to
classification. It may, however, be as well
to group them together so far as noted by me. And first it will not fail to be remarked by all who look
into it, that in our dialect we have a
very remarkable piling up of negatives, particularly when the word never is used; indeed, never seems
to require another negative to
complete it. No amount of negative has any effect upon the sense; however many there may be
they do not destroy but rather confirm
each other.
No, I never did'n zee no jis bwoys, not vor mirschy, not in all my born days. You never wid'n be no jis
fool, wid'n ee?
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INTRODUCTION.
XXXIX
See IRONEN, ITEMS, JERRY SHOP, Jis, JOCK 2, LIE BY, LIKES, LIMB 2, LIPPETS, No ZINO, Fix, RECKON UP,
RIGGLETING, SHAKED 2, SCAMP, STAGNATED,
WED WAY.
The following adverbs are often used redundantly
As. See As, p. 31 text.
Here after this or these. See GWAINS ON.
Very often a second here is added, but both are purely redundant.
This here here tap dressin' don't do no good, not to the land. See THIS HERE 2.
Like is one of the commonest of words, and may be tacked on to any clause whatever, sometimes carrying
a very fine shade of meaning, such as,
so to speak, as one may say, but very often it is wholly redundant. For examples
See LIKE 5, KNICK-KNACKING, LICK AND A PROMISE, LIE VORE, LINHAY, LAPPERY, MAKE BOLD, MANNER, MENDS,
MIDDLING, MIDDLINISH, NATURAL, NECK OF
THE FOOT, NORTH EYE, SCRAMBED.
There in the phrases he, or they there, and he, or they there there, is used much in the same way as here. See
THERE 3.
Out is often used after superlative clauses. I calls thick there there the wistest job out. See OUT,
LEASTEST BIT.
It is very common to add a redundant day after: the name of any festival, as Midsummer-day day.
I can swear I zeed'n Can'lmas-day day beyond all the days in the wordle. See LOOK 2, TURN OUT.
One old man used always to complain of his “bad luck” because he was born on quarter-day. Which quarter?
Why Lady-day day, be sure, wis luck! The
rent wad'n ready!
To is very commonly inserted after where or wherever. The keeper's boy asked, Jan. 30, 1888
[Sh-1 ur laef* dhu dhing'z sae'um plae'us wur dhai bee tue'?], shall I leave the things (at the) same
place where they be to? See INDOOR
SERVANT, MORTAL, To n.
To is also inserted before afternoon in a future construction, as in to-day, to-night; but with afternoon in
a past sentence we use this, or rather
's. Hence we should say I went to zee un
'j-arternoon, and I'll call in again to-marra /'arternoon. The butcher's comin' to kill the pig a Vriday
^'arternoon /'. e. Friday afternoon.
See LOVIER, QUEST, S'AFTERNOON, S 2.
The is used redundantly before names of persons whenever they are described by any preceding adjective.
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The poor
old Jan Baker, that's th' old Bob's father, you know. Ste Ki.\v, KIN, POOR 2, THE 2.
By is redundant after know in negative sentences, when the verb is intransitive.
Be em gwain to drap the bread? Not's I know by, they'll rise it vast enough, but they don't care nort
't-all 'bout drappin' o' it-See KEEP COMPANY, KNOW BY.
For is used after whyi. e. instead of saying simply, why? we say why vor? See WHY VOR.
/// is used redundantly before under, and as a prefix before detriment, durable, c.
Will, you can put down the basket in under the table. See Ix UNDER, INDETERMENT, INDURABLE.
Of is commonly used after some verbs, as ask, touch, help, and after the present participle and gerundive
of all verbs.
Missus zaid I was vor ax d 1 ee nif you could plase to be so kind's to lend her your girt spit.
Twadn me, I never didn tich <?'ee, an' if I 'ad I couldn help o 1 it.
Hot be you bwoys actin' o 1?
They be zillin' o 1 things winderful cheap, sure 'nough.
There idn no good in keepin' o' it about no longer. See JUMP 2, KEEP v. t. 2, KNACK i, LATTY WEATHER,
LIKING i , MANG, OF, SPAT.
After about, when used to express inexactness of quantity, of is always inserted. I should think was
about of a score. About of a forty.
About o' thirty, I count.
Come and was are very often inserted quite redundantly in speaking of time,
in future and past sentences respectively.
To-marra come wik I be gwain home to zee mother! /. e. tomorrow week. I ant
a-spokt to un sinze last Zaturday was week,
in to Taan'un. Last Tuesday was mornin' her was a-tookt bad, an' her ant a-bin out o' bed not sinze. See
LUCK, WEEK.
Do is frequently duplicated when used as a principal verb.
Well there, we do do so well's we can. Her can't help o' it, poor thing, her do do all's her able vor
to. See NONSICAL.
Bit is always added to morsel.
Mr. Gregory zess you can't 'ave no more, 'cause idn a mossle-^// a-lef! See MORSEL-BIT.
More and most are still as in Mid. Eng. very commonly prefixed to the comparative and superlative of
adjectives without adding anything to
the meaning.
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INTRODUCTION.
xli
Idn a more gapmoutheder gurt doke in all the parish.
Jim, nif thee artn the most vorgetfulest fuller ever I'd a-got ort to doin way in all my born days! See MORE,
MOST.
Not is regularly placed before yet in negative sentences.
I baint gwain not eet, is the usual form of / am not going yet. See SLEWED.
There are many phrases in use which are mere redundancies, and merely serve to fill up the sentences
of those whose ideas run short. Such
as in a manner o 1 spakiri. See MANNER. Eens
mid zay /. e. so to say. TINO! ZINO! c.
In suffixes we have -ish, which can be applied to any adjective or adverb without adding one iota to its
meaning.
That there's a goodis/i lot o' sheep. Plaint sort o' groun' 'pon thick farm, &c.
Sometimes, however, this termination has the force of rather, or inclined to be, but there is nothing to
show this except intonation or
context. See -!SH.
Er is also a very common addition, as in LEDGER, LEGGER, LARK'S LEERS, TOERS, &c.
It is usual to hear a man who is going to throw down anything from a scaffold call out, “Mind yer headm 1
/” Summerleys is often pronounced
zummerlee-urs.
Est is constantly added to the superlative, particularly of the irregular adjectives. The least*?/ bit out,
is the commonest of phrases. That'j
the bestej/ ever I zeed. See Wis. Our few plurals in en are very usually
duplicated by the addition of s. Oxen
is rather a fine word, and seldom used, but when it is, we say oxens.
There was a fine lot o' fat bullicks there, and most o'm was oxais too. Rexens is now the common plural
of REX. See S 10.
A curious feature is the redundant d inserted in or at the end of most words, after a liquid when followed
by a short vowel; also between r and
/, as smaller, talL/er, tail</er, pa'al^/er (parlour), firm^/er, SCRAMDER, fine^/er, cornier, zoon^er,
vaiv/er, vun/er, lickerish
(liquorice), and in gin/1, man/1. MERDLY, QUARDLE, Barbie = river Bade, surely, &c.
Final d is also redundant in mild? = mile, miller*/, liar*/, scholar^/, &c.
A redundant r is always sounded in words ending in ation; the
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INTRODUCTION.
long a being invariably fractured and r added = ae-urshun. Also in all words having ash in them, r is
inserted. As arshen-tree, arshes,
warsh, larsh, splarsh, marsh, c., while on the other hand from those words, which in lit. Eng. have
the r, we eliminate it as in haash)
via 'ash , for harsh, marsh, &c.
Final d or /, being the past weak inflection, are added redundantly to the strong forms of a great many verbs;
as in bornd, tor'd, wor'd = wore, tookf,
brokt, &c., but these will be found to be dealt with more at length later on. For ill. see
MINNIKIN, NATTLED 2,
MIRSCHY, NECK OF THE FCOT, PIECEN, SCRAG i.
A possessive s is inserted between two nouns, when the first is used to qualify the second, as though we
said cannon'^ ball. I believe a rustic
would give that form if the object were familiar enough to be spoken of commonly with his
fellows; but I cannot say I have heard
it. It is however quite usual to speak of dayV light for daylight, the barn'j door,
barn'.? floor planch, the hill's tap,
the millV tail, &c. See SAFE.
Initial ^ is prefixed to many words, and for them has become the regular form, as in scrawl crawl,
^crumpling, .motch, 5-plat /. e. plot,
.rprong, ^quinsy, &c. See S 2.
-A 7” is a redundant initial to?zaunt, ^(h)our,?mncle, and can hardly be held to be owing to the M. E. confusion
of the terminal of the adjective an
with the initial vowel of the following word, because in the dialect we do net recognize an at
all. It may be, however, that the few
words to which this refers, have come down from M. E. times; they are of course analogous
to the rcyen of the Boke of Curtasye
(11. 25, 116, 324), and others of about the same date. We always place a redundant a before plenty
and worth; this use
is without exception among dialect speakers. See I. A. 4.
I can't think where all the parsley's a-go to, we'd a-got a plenty
avore Kirsmas, and now idn a mossle-bit. See PLENTY, Z 3, SPOT.
This a is an undoubted adjective, and its use idiomatic, but the
constant a before worth is not so certain.
Thick idn a wo'th tuppence. Hon I come t' onheal the taty-
cave, they was all a-vrosted eens they wadn a wo'th a cobbler's
cuss. There seems an implication in this use, that worth is the
p. part, of some verb. Whether this is a survival of the Ang.-Sax.
weorKan, to become, to be, so long obsolete in literature, I will not
pretend to decide. See WORTH, LISSOM, LEARINESS, NEAR 2,
1'iiCEN, RAP 4.
The redundant use of the participial prefix a [u] before both
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INTRODUCTION.
xliii
adverb and past part, has been already dealt with in this Introduction (p.
xx), and also under VIII. A. i, p. 5.
Another superfluous a, which is probably a contraction of on or tn t but is none the less redundant, is
placed before certain adverbs or
adverbial phrases, denoting situation. I baint gwain vor t'ave it a-do'd a thick there farshin. See IV. A.
i (t) t p. 3.
As regards the changes which occur in the folk-speech, they are naturally too minute and gradual to attract
attention, if measured only by the
observation of single observers, even if those should happen to spread over a lifetime, because
in the first place no exact standard
was in existence by which to start from, and secondly, because in the experience of one
individual, the changes will generally
only have taken place so slowly, and he will have become so unconsciously accustomed to them, that
even a good memory and minute
observation will fail to recognize them. The present epoch of our history is however in this
respect exceptional. The Education Act
has forced the knowledge of the three 's upon the population, and thereby an acquaintance in
all parts of the country with the same
literary form of English, which it has been the aim and object of all elementary teachers to make
their pupils consider to be the only
correct one. The result is already becoming
manifest, and though less in degree, is analogous to that which
we are told exists in China. There is
one written language understood by all, while the inhabitants of distant
parts may be quite unintelligible to
each other viva voce.
Apart from this, it is to be expected that universal instruction in reading and writing would certainly have
a more marked effect on, and cause
more perceptible change in, the spoken words,
than would have been the case in the same period of time not under the same powerful influence, and it
is, and will be, both interesting and
instructive to watch these developments in all parts of the country.
Not the least valuable result of the labours of the Dialect Society will have been in the provision, more or
less minute and exact, of a standard
at a certain date by which these changes may in future be tested. The present writer is of opinion
that they will be found greater than
is generally supposed; and yet that those changes will not in all, or in most cases, be found
to take the precise direction of
levelling or uniformity, which at first sight would appear to be most probable.
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xliv
INTRODUCTION.
Twelve or fourteen years ago, when the dialect of West Somerset was first brought into notice, and its
pronunciation carefully recorded by
the aid of some of the most accomplished and painstaking of living
phonologists, a carefully prepared list was made (see W. S. Gram. p. 48) of verbs which,
originally strong, have the weak
termination superadded to the past participle, and also in the past tense when a vowel follows, or
when the verb ends in r. At that time,
as stated (Ib. p. 49), this list was exhaustive, and probably elementary teaching had not
then had very much time to influence
and work changes. Now, however, the children
have all learnt to read, and have been taught the “correct” form of all the verbs they use. The girl would
come home, and her mother would say,
“Lize! you didn ought to a-wear'd your best
shoes to school." Eliza would say, “Well, mother, I wore my tothers all last year, and they be a-wore
out." In this way parents become
familiar with the strong forms of literary verbs, but they have no notion of dropping the past inflection
to which they have always been
accustomed, while at the same time they wish
to profit by their children's "schoolin." Consequently the
next time the occasion arrives, Eliza
is told she should have a-wo^d her
tother hat, &c., and thus wor'd and a-wor'd, woa'urd, uwoa'urd, soon become household words with the
parents; and the same or a like
process is repeated by them with respect to* other words all through their vocabulary. All children
naturally copy their parents' accent,
tone, and sayings; indeed I have often recognized childrens' parentage by some family
peculiarity of speech quite as much as
by physical resemblance. Consequently the schoolteaching sets the model for
written language, and home influence
that for every-day talk. The result is that at the present moment our people are learning two distinct
tongues distinct in pronunciation, in grammar and in syntax. A child, who in
class or even at home can read
correctly, giving accent, aspirates (painfully), intonation, and all the rest of it,
according to rule, will at home, and
amongst his fellows, go back to his vernacular, and never even deviate into the right path he has
been taught at school. By way of
illustration to these remarks, attention is asked to the list of strong verbs now used with the weak
inflection superadded, which is not
now given as exhaustive, but as only containing words actually heard.
Let this list here set down in the same order as noted, containing thirty-two fresh words, be compared with
the former one above
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INTRODUCTION.
xlv
referred to containing ten, and it will be conceded that Board School teaching is scarcely tending to the
destruction of peculiarities of spoken
English.
beespai'k spring dhing'k
taak-
beespoa-kt spruung'd
dhau'tud taaktud
vursae'uk
vurseo'kt
dig
ping ruyz struyk
strik
duug'd
puung'd roa'uzd streo-kt
struuk't
ang
shee'uk
uung'd
sheo-kt
struyv
due*
stroa'vd duun'd
ai'v
oavd
wai'v
woa'vd
wai'vee
woa'vud
wae'uk
woa'kt
beegee-n wae - ur
buguun'd woa'urd
dring'k ring
spee*n sting zwing
zee
druung'kt ruung'd
spuun'd stuung-d zwuung'd
zau'd
shee'ur
shoa'urd
string
zing'k zwae*ur
struung'd zuung'kt
zwoa'urd
zwum
zwaam'd
zik
zau - tud
u-beespoa'kt
u-spruung'd
u-dhaut'ud
u-taak -tud
u-vurseo'kt
u-duug-d
u-puung'd
u-roa'uzd
u-streo'kt
u-struuk't
u-uung'd
u-sheo'kt
u-stroa'vd
irdutin'd
u-oa'vd
u-woa*vd
u-woa'vud
u-woa'kt
u-beeguun'd
u-woa'urd
u-druung'kt
u-ruung'd
u-spuun'd
u-stuung'd
u-zwuung'd
u-zau'd
u-shoa'urd
u-struung'd
u-zuung'kt
u-zwoa'urd
u-zwaam'd
u-zau'tud
to bespeak
to spring
to think
to attack
to forsake
to dig
to push
to rise
to anoint
to strike (hit)
to hang
to shake
to strive
to do
to heave
to weave (trans.)
to weave (in trans.)
to wake
to begin
to wear
to drink
to ring
to spin
to sting
to swing
to see
to shear
to string
to sink
to swear
to swim
to seek
In the foregoing list it will be noted that the verb to strike has two very distinct meanings, and that the
difference is well marked by the
pronunciation, although in both the double inflection is used. Another curious distinction is, the two
compounds of think in the past tense
xlvi
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INTRODUCTION.
He bethink't her the very malt her made use o', means he begrudged it; while I never bethoug/ited
nort 't-all 'bout it, means never
^recollected. [Beedhing-kt, beedhairtud.]
Whether this latter should be classed as a development, there is some doubt.
Another advance apparently connected with increasing instruction is the more
common use of the inflection us in the intransitive and frequentative form of verbs instead of
the periphrastic do with the inflected
pres. infin.
" I workus to factory," is now the usual form, whereas up to a recent period the same person would have
said, “I do worky to factory." An
old under-gardener, speaking of different qualities of fuel for his use, said, "The stone
coal lee'ustus (lasts) zo much longer,
and gees out morey it too” /. e. does not burn so quickly. Feb. 2, 1888. He certainly would have said
a few years ago "The stone coal
du lee'ustee (do lasty) zo much longer." This form is also superseding the older form et/i,
which latter is now becoming rare in
the Vale of West Somerset. (See W. S. Gram. p. 52.)
Board schools are certainly to be credited with a new word for steel-pens. These are now known and spoken
of as singles, meaning the pens alone, without the holder. “Plase, sir, I
wants a new single" In the shops
boys and girls ask for "a pen'oth o' singles;" but how the word has got into use, or
whence it came, is unknown to the
writer.
Another change has lately become noticeable. In p. 21, W. S. Di.ilect, 1875, is the statement that no
case was then known “where either an s
or z sound is dropped."
On Jan. 24, 1888, a labourer living all his life in Culmstock said very distinctly twice over, Muun'ees? for
must I not? [Mus draa aewt dhu duung'
fuus', muun'ees T\ must draw out the dung first, must I not? There can be no doubt that this
form is now becoming the common one,
whereas it used to be muus'nees.
These minute alterations are doubtless numerous, but are certain to escape the notice of all but watchful
observers; while many of them may have
been long in use before they may be used in the hearing of the most careful listener. They
are here inserted net only as records,
but as finger-posts to any who may take the pains to read these pages, to point out one very
interesting path of observation which
they may profitably pursue.
xlvii
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KEY TO
GLOSSIC SPELLING AND EXPLANATIONS.
To those who have not the Table of Glosslc Letters drawn up by Alexander J. Ellis, Esq., F.R.S., in p. 24,
W. S. Dialect, the following brief
abstract of the system will be found convenient. The Consonants b, d,f,j, k, I, m, n, p, /,
v, w,y, z, and the digraphs ch, sh,
t/i, have their usual values; g is always hard, as in gig; h initial as in ho \ (only used for
emphasis in this dialect); s as in so,
never as in his; r is reversed or cerebral, not dental or alveolar, and ought properly to be written { r, but
for convenience simple r is printed;
ng as in sing, think = thingk; nggas in anger = ang.gur zh is used for French /, the English sound
in vLf/on = viz/fun.; and dh for the
voiced form of ///, as in Mat =.^at. The Vowels, found also in English, are a as in man; aa'
in bazaar; aa short, the same in
quality, but quantity short; ai' in aid; ao', like o in b^re; au' as in laud; au the same short as
a in wfltch; ee in see; ee, the same
short, as in French fini; i as in finny; oa as in moan; oa, the same short (not found in English);
oo' in. clwse; u in up, carrot; uo, u
in ball. Dialectal vowels are ae, opener than e in n^t, French e in n<?tte; <?<?,
French eu in jeune, or nearly; to* the
same long as in j0ne;?^, French w in d^c or nearly; tic the same long, as in du; uu, a deeper sound of u in
z/p than the London one, but common in
England generally; ua, a still lower and deeper sound; 6 (now used for Mr. Ellis's oe No.
28, and },?<?,?<?, No. 30 see
Dr. Murray's note, p. 112, W. S. Gram.) is the natural vowel heard with /in kind-/^ = kind'u/. It lies
between m and un, and etymologically
is a lowered and retracted /, as tum'ur, zul = timber, sill. The diphthongs aa'w as in Germ, haus;
aay long aa, finishing with i, as in Ital. mai\ aay the same with shorter
quantity (a frequent form of English
/); aew, ae finishing in oo, sometimes
heard in vulgar London pronunciation as kaew = cow; any as in \>oy (nearly); any with the first
element longer or drawled; uw = ow in
\\oiv; uy t as in buy = /, y in b/te, by-; uuy, the same a little wider, under influence of a
preceding a, as pwuuyzn poison. Imperfect
diphthongs, and triphthongs, or fractures formed by a long vowel or diphthong finishing off with the
sound of u, or the natural
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xlviii
KEY TO GLOSSIC SPELLING AND EXPLANATIONS.
vowel, are numerous; thus ac'ii (nearly as in fe/> = fae'u); a<ru (as in more = mao'u): (as in idea, near)
oa'u (barely distinct from ao'ii, say
as in grower = groa'u); 00'ii (as in vroo'er = woo'u); aawu (as in our broadly; aayu; aewu; uwu
(as fl<?7<w=fluwu); uyu (as in
ire = uyu). Of the imperfect diphthongs ee-u and oo'ii, from the distinctness of their initial and
terminal sounds, are most distinctly
diphthongal to the ear, the stress being also pretty equal on the two elements. The turned period
after a vowel, as oo', indicates
length and position of accent; after a consonant it indicates shortness of
the vowel in the accented syllable, as vadh'ur = vadh'fir. As a caution, the mark of short
quantity is written over ee, da, when
short, as these are never short in English; and it is used with u when this has the obscure
unaccented value found in df-bove,
manna, nat/on, etc.* The peculiar South-western r must be specially attended to, as it powerfully affects
the character of the pronunciation. It
is added in its full strength to numerous words originally ending in a vowel, and whenever
written it is to be pronounced, not used as a mere vowel symbol as in Cockney
winder, tomorrer, etc. That sound is
here expressed by u, as win- die,
maar'u.
A reference to the table above named and to the classified word lists following it, will be found useful.
Glossic words are usually enclosed within square brackets [ ] the pronunciation of the "catch"
word being always so given.
Occasionally, however, glossic words inserted in conventionally spelt sentences are in italics.
The use of hyphens in no way affects the pronunciation. They are merely used, as in connecting the
prefix to the past participle, to show
that the inflection is a part of the word, or in other cases to mark division of syllables.
The mark ) following h shows that the initial aspirate is only sounded when the word is used emphatically.
Similarly the mark ( before final d or t shows these letters to be sounded only when followed by a vowel.
In the following pages this caution does not apply, a modified system
having been adopted, as compared to
that used in the grammar for which this key
was prepared.
All vowels, therefore, whether single or in combination, are to be
pronounced as short, unless followed
by the turned period.
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WEST
SOMERSET WORDS.
A. This word-letter has been so exhaustively dealt with in the New English Dictionary, that it becomes
difficult to treat of its dialectal
peculiarities without in some measure travelling over the ground which Dr. Murray has already
explored. The following uses of it
will be found outside his remarks except in those cases where he has specially given them as
dialectal, or as obsolete in modern
literature.
1. A. i. The printed capital A [ae'u], commonly called [gunrt ae'u,] great A, to distinguish it from the
small a, called [lee'dl ae'u,] little
a.
Before the Board schools, children always spelt Aaron [guurt ae'u, lee'dl ae'u, aar oa ain].
2. [u] adj. or indef. art. Used before vowels and consonarts alike. In the dialect an is not heard in
this sense. The use of a very commonly
causes an aspirate to follow; as \ - u heks] for an axe, [u haa'pl,] an apple, &c. [Ee-d
u-gaut u huunrun laung wai un,] he had
a woman with him. [Plaiz tu spae'ur mae'ustur u auk'seed // sai'dur,] please to spare
master a (h)ogshead of cider.
For opynlyche in story fynd y not writon,
pat hit a evel spirite was. 1450, Chron. Vil. st. 386.
A Emperour was in J?es toun A riche
man, of gret renoun Octouien was his
name.
WebeSs Met. Roman. Seuyn Sages, 1. 1229.
Therfor hit is a unhonest thyng. Boke of Curta sye, 1. 265.
3. [ae-u] adj. Used emphatically to denote one, or, a certain definitely.
[Aay bee saaf dhur wuz ae'u beok taap dhu tae'ubl,] I am certain there was
one book upon the table. This means as distinctly that it was a book and nothing else, as
that there was only one.
4. [ii] adj. Very frequently used before nouns of multitude or numerals; after about or any adverb
expressing indefiniteness
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always: as a many, a few, a plenty. We shall have * plenty o gooseberries. There was about of a forty. I
should think twas purty near a fifty.
Bot que Kyng Alured had regnyd Jws her'
A boujte a thretty long wynter.
1450, Chron. Vilod. st. 160.
Thonetoun alias Tavvntoun is a 5 miles by south-west from Atheliiey. m. vol. ii. p. 66. A four miles or more.
(So used very frequently
by Leland.)
c [u] adj. One and the same as in the common phrases, all of a sort, all of a piece, /. e. all
alike. Same's the crow zaid by the
heap o' toads, They be all of a sort.
II. A [u], v. Have, when followed by a consonant: sometimes written ha, but seldom aspirated. This is
the commonest of all the forms, and it
is occasionally heard even before a vowel.
[Dhai-d u bun kaap'ikl neef dhai-d u buyd u beet,] they would have been capital if they had waited a
little. [BuTee wiidn u ait dhai zaawur
aa-plz bee liz zuul,] Billy would not have eaten those sour apples by himself/, e. of his own
accord, or unless tempted by others. 1
A common emphatic form is [ae'u], as when two friends meet, the second sentence is usually, [Haut-1-ee
ae'u? ], what will you have? (to
drink).
He stynte and J?ojte nojt remuye hem i Jere til he ha fojt is fille.
1380. Sir Ferumbras, 1. 77. (See also \. 954.)
III. A. i. [u] pron. I, ego. [Neef u waudn tu keep mi uyz oap, sheod zuen laust ut aul,. bleev,] if I
were not to keep my eyes open, (I)
should soon lose it all, I believe. (Very com.)
2. [u] pron. He. Often written a and ha. [Dhae'ur z/goo'uth, diisn zee un?], there he goes, dost not see
him? [/zaecl zoa, diidn u? ], he said
so, did he not?
Nixt |>an: ha zette streng]>e.
1340. Dan Michel^ Ayenbite of Inwyt (Morris and Skeat), p. 99, 1. 24.
Wan he was armed on horses bak ' a fair knyjt a was to see.
Sir Fei-umbras y 1. 250.
A lefte ys sper and drow ys swerd iJbid. 1. 570. So used in this poem at least thirty-one
times.
And a scholle passe f>e se, and trauayle in strange londes.
1387. John of 7'rez'isa, Norman Invasion, 1. 1 88.
Ha bed tha zet down, &c. Ex. Scold. 1. 167, et alia.
1 In this example, as very frequently happens, two #'s would come
together, i. e. a [u] = have, and a
[u] the prefix to the past part. (See below.) Thus expanded the sentence
would be, [Bul'ee wudn u ait]: in these cases one of these identical sounds is dropped as above.
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Zo I moov'd auff vrim thare, za vast as I kude, Vur ha tride ta kum out, \vich I thort
ha& a dude.
Nathan Hogg, Tha IVilc Baists.
3. [ii] pron. She. As used thus, it is probable that this really stands for the fern, he, (O.E. heo m; M.E.
heo, hee, he= 'she',) that being the
alternative of her in the nom. case. [Hur nuvur kaan due ut, kan u? ], she never cannot do it,
can she (he)? (See W. S. Gram. pp. 32,
33.) [Uurdh u droad aup ur wuurk aath-n?], she has thrown up her work, hath
she not? July 28, 1880. See HE.
4- [u] pron. It. Commonly applied to inanimate objects, but most probably [u] stands for he, as in 3.
[Aay bun aa'dr dhu wag'een, bud u waudn u-dued,] I (have) been after the wagon, but it was not done. [Dhu
wee'ul-z u toa'urd ubroa'ud lidn z/?
], the wheel is broken to pieces, is it not? In this latter form iidn ur is commoner.
5. [u] pron. impers. One (constant use). [7miid zu wuul bee u-traanspoo'urtud-z buyd wai un,] one might
as well be transported as stay with
him. See ANYBODY.
IV. A. i. (a.) [u] prep. On. Before a verbal noun (nearly always). I be gwain a pixy-wordin a beggin
a sweepin, &c. (Compare John xxi.
3.) Also as prefix in abed (see BAD-ABED), abier, acock, [uveot,] afoot, alie, &c.
(.) Before the name of a day: [aay zeed-n u Vruydee,] I saw him on Friday. School-children are fond of
singing:
[Wee muus-n plaay u Zuirdee, Bekae'uz
eet uz u seen;
Bud wee kn plaay u wik'ud daiz (week days)
Gun Zuirdee kaumth ugee'un.]
A Tuesdy nex (tha auder's com) /. e. the order is come Us laives. Nathan Hogg, ser. i. p. 35.
(f.) Before certain adverbs of place or position. Billy, come and ride a picky-back. Tommy, your pinny-s
a put on a back-n-vore. Let-n vail out a thick zide.
A }>es half Mantrible, J?e grete Citee '. ys f?e brigge y-set?
1380. Sir fernnibras, 1. 1 680.
And a thys syde Egrymoygne a iornee )^ar is a brigge of gret fertee.
Ibid. 1. 4307.
A Jjys syde ^e toun }:at ryuer rend. Ibid. 1. 4315.
2. [u] prep. Of. As in the common phrase, What marner a man. The tap a the hill. This form is
usually written o\ and before a vowel
it becomes [oa]. See OF.
B 2
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l [u] prep. To. I be gvvain in a town, i. jr. in to town (ilw'ays) [Aay shl zee ee een maarkut,] I
shall see you in to market I bin down
a Minehead's vortmght Tfc is also always
sounded [u] when following a word ending m JOT -f. [Uur dud-n au-t u due ut,] she did not ought to do it.
[Dhik wuz irzoald u muVtur Buurd,]
that one was sold to Mr. Bird.
4. fu] prep At. Before nouns denoting points of time always; before place names frequently; in the
latter case it may be same as 3 -to.
[Aa-1 due ut u brak'sustuym,] I will do it at breakfast-time. I meet-n in u
Wilscombe. See To.
And blesce*: & a last siggefc adjutorium nostrum, &c.
Ancren Riwle, p. 44.
5. [ii] prep. By, or for the sake of. [Leok shaarp, soa'us, u Gaudz nae'um, ur dhu raayn-1 kaech us,] look
sharp, mates, in God's name, or the
rain will overtake us \
6. [u] prep. In. Plase sir, Mr. Pike zes can't do nort way they boots, they be all a pieces.
And eke an ax to smite the corde -two.
Chaucer, Miller's Tale, 382.
And a file to file )>is nayle a two;
pat nayle a p'st toke J?o in bond.
1420. Chron. Vilod. st. 354.
V. A. i. [ii] adv. There.
[Aay bee saaf u waudn zu miin'ee-z dhee-s maek aewt. Ees u wauz, u moo'ur tue!] I am certain there
were not so many as you make out. Yes,
there were, and more too!
2. [u] adv. How (in rapid conversation).
[Snoa u minree twauz? Noa tuynoa!], dost know how many it was? No 't I know!
VI. A [u], conj. And (in rapid speech). [Wuur-s u-biin ii gaut dhik dhae'ur puurtee uy?] where hast (thou)
been and got that pretty eye? (See
note, II. A. v. p. 2.) In the well-known phr.
well-a-fine (see Ex. Scold. 11. 81, 269), this a must be shortened and.
As holy wryjt says us well and fyne. Boke of Cnrtayse, 1. 182. Now y know wel-rt-ffyn: ]>y message
schende]) me. Sir Ferumbras, 1. 2752.
VII. A. i. [u] Interrogative = eh? what?
[Wuurs u bun tue? u? U? waut-s dhaat tu dhee? u9~\ Where (thou) been? A? (or Eh?) A? what is that to
thee? A?
2. [ai] Interrogative, aye? = what? what do you say? This is rather more polite than [u?]
( [ai] = aye! is not used as an exclamation like it is in Lancashire. We never hear in W. S. Aye! my word! )
VIII. A. i. [u]. Prefix to past participle, forming the regular and
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nearly invariable inflection, unless where dropped in consequence of being immediately preceded by a similar
sound signifying have (see II. A, v.\
or by another short vowel; in these cases the two sounds become one. (See W. S. Gram. p. 53.)
[Aay meet Jum z-maurnin u-gwaayn u
wuurk, un u zaed,*s-ee, Jaak, wuur-s?/-biin?]
I met Jim this morning going to work, and he said, said he, Jack, where hast been? [Zoa aay zaed, s-aay, aay
aant u-bun noa plae'us, nur eet #-ad
noa'urt, un aay keod-n -dringkt ut, neef aay kiid &-kaum tue ut,] so I said, said I, I
have been nowhere, nor yet had
anything, and I could not have drank it, if I could have come to it.
Uncontracted this speaker would have said; [Keod-n u u~ dringkt ut, neef aay kiid u &-kaum tue
ut.]
It will be noticed by the above examples, that the prefix is used before vowels as well as consonants. This
is no modern corruption.
fforj> ]>an rod he stoutely well /-armed oppon his stede.
Sir Ferumbras, 1. 254. (See also 1. 875.)
Although this prefix has usually been written with / or y, yet sometimes a is found.
In pauylons rich and well abuld. Sir Fenimbras, 1. 74. And 3ut i holde me well a paid. Ibid. \.
271.
Bot Jns lady was a angryd and a grevyd full sore, pat he myjt not of hurr herude no sauner
spede.
1420, Chron. Vilod. st. 12 16.
And now I zet me down to write,
To tell thee ev'ry thing outright,
The whole that I've azeed.Pc'ter Pindar, The Royal Visit, st. I.
Very frequently in sentences where an adverb immediately precedes the verb,
this prefix is apparently duplicated, /". e. placed before both adverb and verb, but in these
cases the prefix to the adverb may be
taken as representing have (II. A, #.), a form of speech as common to Cockneydom as to West
Somerset.
[Ee-d z/-prau'pur ^-teokt mee een, wauns luyk,] he had (have) completely taken me in once (like). [Uur-d
u just ^-staartud haun aay kaum,] she
had (have) just started when I came.
2. [u]. Prefix to certain adverbs and adjectives, as unee'tts, aneast = near; unuy, anigh; uvoar, avore = before;
urad'ee = aready = ready; a-cold,
&c. I was most aready to drop gin I come tap the hill. I be a-cold sure 'nough z-mornin.
Tom's a-cold. King Lear, III. 4; IV. 7.
Who lies here? Who do 'e think,
Why, old Clapper Watts, if you'll give him some drink;
Give a dead man drink? for why?
Why; when he was alive he was always a-dry.
Epitaph at Leigh Delamere> Wilts,
Halliwell has a number of participial adjectives formed in this way, as a-choked, a-coathed, a-paid, apast,
aprilled, ascat; but inasmuch
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as the dialect, as a rule (see above), uses this prefix with all past participles, it is not thought desirable to
encumber these pages with a repetition
of every verb in the vocabulary of the district.
3. [u]. Prefix before worth. [Plaiz-r, muVtur Joa-unz zaes aew dim' sprang'kur ild-n u waeth mahvdeen,]
please, sir, Mr. Jones says (how) the
watering-pot is not worth mending. They do
zay how th' old man's a worth thousands. They was all a ate and a brokt, eens they wadn a wo'th nort
Jan. 28, 1882.
4. [u]. Suffix, redundant. Used by many individuals by way of emphasis, or at the end of a clause: You
never ded-n ought to a went-0. It is
very commonly heard after proper names when
shouted: Bee'ul-u! Taum-u! Uurch-u! Bill, Tom, Dick. Many carU-rs and plough-boys invariably use it
when calling out to urge on their
horses or oxen by their names: Blau'sm-u! Kap'teen-u! 1-anrtccn-u! Chuuree-u! Blossom, Captain,
Fortune, Cherry.
ABB [aub], sb. Weaver's weft, /. e. the yarn woven across the warp. In W. S. the yarns composing any
piece of cloth are called the chain
(q. v.\ and abb corresponding to the warp and weft of the northern counties. The abb is nearly
always spun from carded wool, and
hence a carded warp, such as that used in weaving blankets, flannels, or soft woollens, is
called [u aub charn,] an abb-chain, in distinction to one spun from combed
wool, such as that used in weaving
serge, which is a [wus'turd,] worsted chain. Halliwell is inaccurate in
defining abb as "the yarn of a weaver's warp." A weaver's art consists partly in so
adjusting the stroke of his loom as to
make a certain required number of threads, or in other words, a certain weight of abb
produce the required length of cloth.
ABB [aub], sb. Tech. The name of a particular sort or quality of short-stapled wool, as sorted,
usually from the belly part of the
fleece.
ABC [ae'u, bee, see]. The alphabet. [Dhee urt u puurtee skau'lurd, shoa'ur nuuf! wuy kas-n zai dhee
ae~u, bee, see,~\ thou art a pretty
scholar sure enough, why (thou) canst not say thy ABC.
ABC BOOK. The book from which infants are first taught.
ABC FASHION [ae'u, bee, see faarsheen]. Perfectly; applied to things known, as a trade, a lesson,
&c. A man would be said to know
his business or profession a b c faarsheen i. e. as perfectly as his alphabet.
AP.F.AR [ubae-ur], T. t. and *. To tolerate, to endure. I can to see a riglur fair stand-up fight, but I
can't never abear to /cc boys always a
naggin and a quardlin. [Uur keod-n ubae-ur vur tu paj'urt wai ur bwuuy,] she could not
bear to part with her boy.
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ABHOR [ubaur], v. t. To endure. Used always with a negative construction, probably from confusion with
abear. One of the commonest of phrases
is, I can't abhor it, [uur kaant ubaur-ri\
/". e. she cannot endure him.
Abhorrence and abhorrent are unknown.
ABIDE [ubuyd], v. t. To tolerate, to endure, to put up with; used only with a negative. I never can't
abide they there fine stickt-up
hussies.
For the day of the Lord is great and very terrible; who can abide it?
Joel\\. 2.
ABIER [ubee-ur], a. Dead, but unburied.
[Poo-ur saul! uur mae'un duyd uun'ee but tuudrrur dai, un naew uur luyth ubee"ur,~\ poor soul! her
man (husband) died only the other day,
and now she lies dead (but unburied). (Very com.)
ABLEMENT [ae'ubl-munt], sb. i. Ability, mental faculty; in the plur. it means tools or gear for any
work.
[A plain -tee u ae'ublmunt baewt ee,] a plenty of ability about him. 1 We should ha finished avore we corned away,
on'y we 'ad-n a-got no abkments 'long
way us.
2. Strength, power. I 'sure ee, mum, I bin that bad, I hant no more [aeublmunt-n. u cheenl], i. e.
strength than a child.
ABLENESS [ae-ublnees], strength, agility.
[Saunrfeen luyk u fuul-ur, sm-ae'ubl-nees baewt ee',] something like a fellow, some strength in him,
ABLISH [ae'ubleesh], adj. Strong, active; inclined to work. [U ae'ubleesh soa'urt u yuung chaap,] an
active, industrious kind of young
fellow.
ABLOW [ubloa-], adv. Blooming; full of flower. The primroses be all ablow up our way.
ABNER [ab'mur]. Ch. name. The pronunciation of this common name follows the rule given in p.
17, W. S. Dialect, whereby the n is
changed to m after b.
ABOMINATION [bauminae'urshun], adj. Very com. [Tiiz u baunrinae'urshun shee'um vur tu saar dhu
poar dhing zu bae'ud,] it is an
abominable shame to serve the poor thing so badly. It is quite evident that dialect speakers take
the initial a to be the indef. demon,
adj. in this and many other words. (See list of A. words.)
ABOO [ubeo-], adv. Above, more than, before nouns of number or quantity. [Twaud-n ubeo' u dizen,] it
was not more than a-
1 Observe plenty always takes an article before it [dhaat-s u plain 'tee:
dhur wuz u plain 'tee u voaksj.
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dozen [Ee gid ut tiie un ubh' u beet,] he gave it him (abused or thrashed) above a bit/, e. very
completely. Not used as the opposite
of below, to express situation;, in this sense it is ubuuv'. [Taed-n uter u muunth ugau'n, aay zeed-n
aup-m dhu aurchut ubuuv dhu aewz,] it
is not above a month ago I saw it up in
the orchard above the house.
ABOUT [ubaewt]. i. adv. For the purpose of.
[Dhiish yiuir haarti-feesh'ul, lid'n neet u beet hk geo'd oal raafud duung, //Awa'/git-een voa-r uv u kraap
wai,] this new-fangled artificial
(manure) is not nearly as effectual as good old rotten dung, for the purpose of procuring a crop. That
there's a capical sort of a maunger
'bout savin o' corn and chaff.
2. [ubaewt baewt], adv. Engaged upon; at work upon. The common question, What are you doing? is,
Haut Vee baewt 1 [Aa-y bun ubaewt dhu
suydur chee'z aul-z maurneen,] I've been
working at the cider cheese all the morning.
Wist ye not that I must be about my father's business. Luke ii. 49.
3. adv. In different places. I've a got a sight o' work about, and I can't come no how, vor I be fo'ced to
keep gwain, vor to look arter so much
o' it
4. adv. On hand, unfinished. While the harvest is about. Shockin hand vor to keep work about.
ABOUT, adv. Idly sauntering. [Lae'uzee fuul'ur, ee-z au'vees ubaewt j\ lazy fellow, he is always idly
strolling.
A man who had hurt his hand said to me, [Neef uuivee aay kud yuez mee an*, aay sheod-n bee ubaewt^} if
only I could use my hand, I should not
be walking about idly.
[Luy-ubaewt], lie-about, adj. Drunken. [Dhai du zai aew ee-z u tuurubl luy-ubaewt fuul'ur,] they say how
he is a terribly drunken fellow.
[Urn-ubaewt], run about, (a.) adj. Wandering, restless, gad-about: djcidedly a term of depreciation. [Aay-v
u-yuurd aew ee-z u tuurubl urn-ubaewt
fuul'ur,] I have heard that he is a very roving fellow. This would be said of a man who often
changes employment.
(b.) sb. A pedlar. [Aay nuVur doa'im dae'ul wai' noa urnubaewts^ I never deal
with pedlars.
(c.} Any itinerant, such as a beggar, a tinker, scissor-grinder, rag-and-bone collector. We be ter'ble
a-pestered way urn-abouts.
('/.) A gossip. [Uur-z u rig'lur urn-ubaewt^ she is a thorough gossip or news-carrier.
(f.) v. i. To go about gossiping. Her do urn-about most all her time.
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[Buyd ubaewt], (a.) v. i. To loiter. [Leok shaarp-n neet buyd ubaewt /] make haste, and do not loiter.
(b.) To be given to drinking /. e. to staying long in public-houses. [Ee du
buyd ubaewt maus aul dhu wik laung,] he stays
drinking in public-houses nearly all the week long (instead of attending to his work understood].
ABOUT [ubaewt], prep. Upon; in the sense of upon the person. [Aay aa'n u-gaut u vaardn ubaewt mee,] I
have not a farthing about me. [Dhee-s
au'rt u ae*u dhu stik ubaewt dhu baak u dhee,] thou oughtest to have the stick (beaten)
upon thy back or \ubaewt dhee guurt
ai'd,] upon thy great head. The meaning is something more than around or
upon; force and very close contact are
implied. Compare the phrase, wrapped my cloak about me.
ABOVE A BIT [buuv-u-beet], adv. A good deal; entirely. Maister let-n 'ave it s-morning 'bore a
bit, but I widn bide to hear it; I
baint no ways fond o' the vulgar tongue.
ABOVE-BOARD [ubeo'boar], adv. Straightforward, open, unconcealed. [Kau'm naew! lat-s ae*-ut au'l
fae'ur-n ubeo'boar^ come now! let us
have it all fair and above-board.
ABRED [ubree'd]. Reared; brought up; pp. of breed.
The writer heard the following piece of Billingsgate;
[Mairurz! wuy vvus u-baurnd een u deesh kiti un u-bree'd aup een u tuuru eep!] manners! why (thou) wast
born in a dish-kettle 1 and brought up
in a turf-heap. 2
ABRICOCK [ae'ubrikauk]. Apricot (nearly always so). Our abricocks 'ont be fit to pick vor
another vortnight.
Some englishe me cal the fruite an Abricok.
Turner, Names of Herbes, 1568: ed. Britten, p. 52.
Gerard says:
The fruit is named ... in English, Abrecoke, Aprecock, and Aprecox.
Ed. 1636, p. 1449.
ABROAD [ubroa-ud], adv. T. Scattered (semi-Tech.).
[Dee'ur, dee'ur! dhu raayn-z u kaunveen, un aul dh-aay-z ubroa'ud~\ dear, dear! the rain is coming
and all the hay is lying loose and scattered.
After being mown, hay is always [droad ubroa'ud,'] thrown abroad, /. e. shaken out from the
rows left in cutting.
2. adv. In pieces, or separate parts.
[V-uur u-teokt dhu klauk ubroa'iid?~\, has he taken the clock to pieces? [Ees! keodn due noart tue un, voar
u wuz u-teokt aul
1 The dish-kettle is a very large pot hung over the fire.
3 A turf-heap here means a shanty or hut such as squatters build on a moor.
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ttbroa-udA yes, (he) could not do anything to it, until it was taken all to pieces. [Shauk-een bwuuy vur braik
ubroa'ud-z kloa'uz,] shocking boy for
tearing his clothes to pieces.
3 adv. Unfastened, undone, open. [Laur Jiin! dhee frauk-s aul 'ubroa-ud^ law Jane! thy frock is all
unfastened.
4. Quite flat; in a mash. [Skwaut ubroa'ud dhu ving-ur oa un,] squeezed his finger quite flat. [Dhai bee
fae-umus tae-udees, dhai-ul bwuuyul
tibroa-ud sae'um-z u dust u flaawur,] those are splendid potatoes, they will boil to a mash like a
dust of flour.
5. [ubroa-ud], adv. Open, asunder (very com.). My head's splittin abroad.
ABROOD [ubreo-d], adj. In the act of incubating.
[Uur zaut ubrko'd uur veol tuym,] she sat on her eggs her full time. [Dh-oa-1 ain-z ubrko'd tu laas,] the
old hen is sitting at last. Marked
obs. by Web. and no quotation later than 1694 in Murray; still the common and only word used
daily by everybody who has to do with
poultry. See BROODY.
ABUSY [bue-zee]. Abusive, insolent. Most commonly used in connexion with drunk. Upon the subject of
Temperance a man thus delivered
himself to the writer: [Aay doa'un oa'l wai dhai dhae'ur tai'toa'utlurz aay bee vur u draap
u suydur een mee wuurk un aay doa'un
oa*l wai dhai' dhiit-s druungk-n bue'zee, dhai I ae-un-oa geo'd tu noa'bau'dee,] I don't
hold with those teetotalers; I am for a drop of cider in my work; and I don't
hold with those who are drunk and
abusive, they are no good to anybody.
ACCORDING [koa'rdeen], adv. Dependent upon: contingent. [D-ee dhingk ee-ul bee ae'ubl vur kau'm?
Wuul, kaa'n tuul ee nuzaa'klee, t-aez
kca'rdeen wuur aayv u-fun'eesh ur noa,]
Do you think you will be able to come? Well, (I) cannot tell you exactly; it is dependent upon
whether I have finished or not.
ACCOUNT [kaewnt], sb. Consideration, worthy of respect. [Ee id-n noa kaewnt,] is a very common
expression, to signify that the person
is of no social position or consideration.
ACCUSE [ukeb'z], v. To invite, to inform, to appoint.
[Uvoar uur duyd uur uklo'z dhai uur weesh vur tu kaar ur,] before she died she appointed those she wished to
carry her *". e. her corpse at
the funeral. [Ee wuz maa'yn juTees kuz ee waud-n ukeo'z tu dhu suup'ur,] he was very jealous because he
was not invited to the supper. [Dhai
wuz ukeo'z uvoar an-, un zoa dhai wnz u-prai-pae'ur,] they were informed beforehand, and so they
were prepared.
ACKLY [aa'klee emphatic, haa-klee], adv. Actually, unquestionably. [Aay
aa'klee kaech-n wai um een liz an',] I actually
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caught him with them in his hand. .[Dhu Uulifuns bee gwain tu juump oa-vur dh-uurdl, dhai aa'klee bee,]
the elephants are going to jump over
the hurdle, they are actually; said in describing a flaming circus placard.
ACT [aa-k(t)], v. r. To do.
[Haut bee aa'kteen oa?], is the common way of asking What are you doing? or, W T hat are you up to?
2. To pretend, to simulate, to sham.
[Ee aa'k bae'iid un zoa dhai lat un goo,] he pretended to be ill, and so they let him go. [Kraa'ftee oal
kauk, ee kn aa'k dh-oa'l soa'jur su
wuul-z waun yuur-n dhae'ur,] crafty old cock;
he can act the old soldier as well as one here and there; /'. e.
perform the tricks usually credited to
old soldiers.
Speaking of an old dog which was going along limping, a keeper said: He idn on'y acting lame; he always
do, hon he reckonth heVe ado'd enough
/. e. pretending lameness. Dec. 24, 1883.
AD! [ad]. A quasi oath. One of those half-apologetic words like Gor! Gad! Gar! which vulgar people use
thoughtlessly, but who would be
shocked to be told they swore. Ad zooks! ad zounds! are very common. See Exmoor Scold. 11. 17,
72, 85, 93.
ADAM AND EVE [Ad'um-un-eev]. i. The plant wild orchis Orchis mascula (very com.).
2. Wild arum Arum maculatum. ADAM'S
APPLE. See EVE'S APPLE.
ADAM'S WINE [Ad'umz wuyn]. Water; never called Adam's Ale.
ADDER'S TONGUE [ad'urz tuung]. W 7 ild arum Arum maculatum.
ADDICK [ad'ik]. Whether this means adder or haddock, or what besides, I do not know, but it is the
deafest creature known.
[Su dee'f-s u ad'ik^\ is the commonest superlative of deaf, and is heard more frequently than [dee'f-s u paus]
(post).
Thart so deeve as a Haddick in chongy weather.
Ex. Scold. 1. 123.
ADDLE [ad'l], sb. A tumour or abscess.
[Ee-v u-gaut u guurt ad'l pun uz nak, su beg-z u ain ag-,] he has a great tumour on his neck as large as a
hen's egg.
v. To render putrid. Hens which sit badly are said to addle their eggs. [Nauyz unuuf' vur \.-ad'l
uneebau'deez braa'ynz,] noise enough
to addle one's brains.
ADDLED EGGS [ad'l igz, ad'l agz], are those which have been sat upon without producing chickens.
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ADDLE-HEAD [adi ai'd]. Epithet implying stupidity.
ADDLE HEADED [ad'l ardudj. Confused, thoughtless, stupid.
ADOOD [u-diie-d]. Done; /. prt. of do. There is another /. part, [u-duund,] but they are not used
indiscriminately; the first is
transitive, the second intrans. To an inquiry when^ some repair will be completed, would be said:
[T-l au'l bee u-dued gin maa-ru nait,]
it will all be done by to-morrow night. On the other hand it would be said: [Dhai ad-n u-duund
haun aay kaum,] they had not done, /'.
e. finished, when I arrived.
ADVANCE [udvaa'ns], reflective v. Used in the sense of putting oneself forward in an intrusive manner.
[Want shud ee' udvaa'ns ee'z-zuul vaur?] what should he push himself forward for? A good singing-bird
was thus described to the writer: [Ee
due udvaa'ns uz'zuul su boal-z u luyunt,] he does come forward (in the cage) as boldly as a
lion.
AFEARD [ufee'urd], /#/-/. adj. Afraid, frightened. [Waut bee ufce'urd oa?~\ what are you afraid of?
(Very com.) This old word, so long
obsolete, is creeping back into modern literature.
Aferde (or trobelid, K. H. P.). Territus, perterritus (turbatus, perturbatus,
K. P.). Promp. Parv.
Wat wendest )>ou now so me a-fere: ]>ov art an hastif man.
Sir Feruinbras, 1. 387.
Ich was aferd of hure face, thauh hue faire were.
Piers Plowman, ii. 1. 10.
It seme]) ]>at syche pre'atis & newe religious ben a-feni of cristis
gospel.
Wydif, Works, p. 59. Be Je not a-ferd
of hem that sleen the bodi. Luke xii. 4. (Wyclif vers.)
AFFORD [uvoo'urd]. Used in selling. [Aay kaa'n uvoo urd-\\ t-ee vur dhaat dhaeur,] I cannot afford it
to you for that (price).
AFFURNT [fuurnt] v. a. To offend, to affront.
[VVautiivur ee du due, doan'ee fuurnt-^~\ whatever you do, do not affront him, is very common advice
given by a father to a son going to a
new master.
AFTER [aa'dr], adv. Even with, alongside of. I heard a man say, in speaking of thrashing corn by
steam-power:
[Dhu ee-njiin wain zu vaa's, wuz foo'us vur t-ae'u tue- vurt-an-dhu shee-z
watrn keod-n nuutrreen nee'ur keep aup aa'dr,~] the engine went so fast, (we) were obliged to
have two (men) to hand the sheaves one
could not nearly keep up after/, e. the supply even with the demand. With any verb of
motion it means to fetch -[zam aa-dr,
goo aa'dr, uurn aa'dr,] send, go, runto fetch.
AFTER A BIT [aa-dr u beet, aa'dr beet], adv. phr. In a little
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whilj; after a time. [Dhik'ee plae'us-1 bee tu bee zoa'uld aa'dr beef,'] that place will be for sale before
very long. [Aa'dr u beef, shl-ae'u
sairm,] in a short time (I) shall have some. There are various fine shades of meaning to this
phrase, which are by no means fully
conveyed by the above definitions. In the first case an interval of years might be meant
and so understood; in the second a
waiting for the season of the year is implied.
AFTERCLAP [aa'dr-klaap]. Arriere pensee; non-adherence to a bargain, or a shuffling interpretation of
it. [Au'nur bruyt un noa aa'dr-
klaaps,~] honour bright and no afterclaps, is a constant expression in contracting bargains or
agreements.
These toppingly gests be in number but ten,
As welcome in dairie as Beares among men.
Which being descried, take heede of you shall,
For clanger of after claps, after that fall. 7usser, 49 d.
AFTERDAVY [aafturdae'uvee, aa'dr-dae'uvee]. Affidavit. This is a word, which though common enough, has
a kind of importance as being known to
be connected with the law, and it is therefore generally pronounced with deliberation as
above; gradually the sound slides into
the second mode if the word is repeated several times. I'll take my bible [aa'dr-dae'uvee]
o' it, is a very common asseveration.
AFTER GRASS [aa'dr graas], sb. In other districts called aftermath or
latter-math, but seldom in this. The grass which grows after the hay is gone. It is not a second
crop to be mown, but to be fed. The
term is applied to old pasture or meadow which has been mown, and not often to clovers and annual
grasses. See SECOND-GRASS.
AFTERNOON FARMER [aardrneon faarmur], sb. (Very com.) One who is always behind /'. e. late
in preparing his land, in sowing or
harvesting his crops. See ARRISH.
AG [ag], v. t. To nag, to provoke, to keep on scolding. Her'li ag anybody out o' their life, her
will.
Thy skin all vlagged, with nort bet Agging, and Veaking, and Tiltishness.
Exnwor Scold. 1. 75.
AGAIN [ugee-un]. Twice, double.
[Dhik dhae'ur dhae'ur-z-u aa'rd ugee'un-z tuudrrur], that there one there is twice as hard as the other.
[S-avee ugee-un] = twice as heavy:
[z-oa'uld ugee-un], twice as old, &c. In all senses pronounced as above. See COME AGAIN.
AGAINST [ugins 1 ], adv. Towards; in the direction of. A young man speaking of a young woman said:
[Aay waint ugins ur,] I went to meet
her. Aug. 25, 1883.
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ben wey lie nom to Londone he & alle his,
As king \ prince of londe wib nobleye ynou; Ayn him wib uair procession bat folc of
toune drou, & vnderueng him vaire
inou ' as king of bis lond.
AV/. of Gloucester, Will, the Conqueror, 1. 210.
And preyeth hir for to riden ayin the queene,
The honour of his regne to susteene.
Chaucer, Man of Lawe s Tale, 1. 4811.
Bot when Seynt Wultrud vvyst bat ]>use relekes weron comyng,
W 1 . pcession ctyynes hem, fulle holylyche he went bo,
And broujt hem to be aut', be laclyes syngyng,
And set bat ly tulle shryne upon Seynt. Edes auter also.
Chron. Vil. A.D. 1420, st. 748.
What man is this that commeth agaymt us in the felde?
Cover da It's Vers. (Genesis xxiv. 65.)
Against whom came queen Guenever, and met with him, And made great joy of his coming.
Malory, Morte <? Arthur, vol. i. p. 179.
AGAST [ugaas-], ad. Afraid, fearful. I be agast 'bout they there mangle; I ver'ly bleive the grub'l
ate every one o'm.
And he hem told tijtly ' whiche tvo white beres Hadde gon in be gardyn 'and him a^asl
maked.
Will, of Palerme, 1. 1773.
I sei to $ow, my frendis, bat }e ben not agast of hem bat sleen be body.
Wyclif, Works, p. 20 (quoting Luke xii. 4).
And ban let bow byn hornys blowe: a bousant at o blaste,
And wanne be frensche men it knowe: bay wolleb beo sore agaste.
Sir Fertimbras, 1. 3177-
See also Ibid. 11. 1766, 3316, 3603, 4238, 4413, 4687, 4710. See Ex. Scold. 1. 229.
AGE [ae'uj]. In speaking of an absent person or animal the commonest form of inquiry, among even
educated people, is What age man is
er? What age oss is er? The direct address
would be, [Uw oal bee yue?], how old be you?
AGENTSHIP [ae-ujun-shdp], sb. Agency.
He've a tookt th' agentship vor the Industrial Insurance; but who's gwain vor t'insure he?
AGGERMONY [ag'urmunee], sb. The plant Agrimonia Eupatoria.
AGGRAVATE [ag-urvae'ut], v. To tease, to exasperate. ;Uur-z dim moo'ees
ag-unwuteens oal buunl uvur aay kumd
u'crau-st uur-z unuuf- t-ag-unwut dhu vuuree oal fuul'ur,] she is the most aggravatingest old bundle ever I
came across she is enough to aggravate
the very Old fellow.
AGIN [ugiin-, giin]. i. In preparation for, until.
[Mus sae-uv dhai gee'z gun Kuursmus,] (I) must keep those
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geese in preparation for Christmas. [Aay kaa'n paay ut gun Zad'urdee nait,] I cannot pay it until
Saturday night.
2. Against, in violent contact with. [Ee droa'vd au-p ugi'm dhu gee-ut,] he drove against the gate. See
GIN.
AGO [ugeo 1 , ugoo'], past part, of /<?<? = gone. It is strange
the dialect should have so completely
kept apart from the literary usage, as
to have exactly reversed the meanings of ago and agone as given in the Dictionaries. Inasmuch as
both forms, in both senses, seem to be
archaic, or at least Mid. Eng., it is difficult to trace how in modern literature ago has come
to be confined to time gone while gone
and agone have become applicable to motion
only. Equally difficult is it to ascertain by what process the precise opposite has come to pass in the
spoken English of the West.
It appears (see Murray] only to have changed from the older form a^an about the thirteenth century, and
to have ceased in literature, in this
sense, before A.D. 1700. Since the last century it has only remained in polite English as an
adjective of time "an hour
ago."
[Wuur-s u-bun tue? dhee-urt lae'ut-s yue'zhl, dhai bee aul ugeo-z aaf aa'wur,] where hast thou been? thou art
late as usual; they are all ago this
half-hour. [Dhur yuez tu bee u sait u rab'uts yuur, biid nuw dhai bee aul ugeo',~\ there used
to be a sight of rabbits here, but now
they are all ago.
I'd agot a capical lot one time, but they be ago, and I an't a-had none vor a brave while.
And so it ffell on hem, in ffeith ffor ffaute's Jrat f?ey vsid, pat her grace was agoo ' ffor grucchinge
chere, ffor J>e wronge ]>at
|>ey wrou3te ' to wisdom affore.
Piers Plowman, Rich. Red. iii. 245.
po} I tett Jns sijth whenne I am ago hens, no man wolle trowe me.
Gesta Roman, p. 8.
Alas ( . heo saide, and welawo ' to longe y lyue in londe Now is he fram me ago ' )>at schold be
myn hosbonde.
Sir Ferumbras, 1. 2793.
(See also Ibid. 11. 290, 1215, 1648, 1764, 2351, 2794, 2958, 2986, 4013, 4009.)
Bot when Edwyge was Jnis a go, Edgar
his brother was made j>o kyng.
Chron. Vilod. st. 195. (See also Ibid. st. 128, &c.)
Dost think I euer c'had the art
To plou my ground up with my cart
My beast are all I goe.
Somerset Man's Compla'nt (xvii. cent.). Ex. Scold, p. 7. See also W. S. Gram . p. 48.
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AGONE [ugairn], adv. Ago. This form is nearly invariable. (Ste AGO.) Twos ever so long agone. I
'count must be up a twenty year agone.
[Zabm yuur ugau'n kaum Kairlmus,] seven
years ago next Candlemas.
Dr. Murray says: “The full form agone has been contracted to a$o in some dialects. ... In the end of the
fourteenth century ago became the
ordinary prose form from Caxton; but agons has remained dialectally, and as an archaic and
poetic variant to the present
day."
Such phrases as long agone, forty year agone, ever so long agpne, &c., are quite familiar to all
West-country folk. ^ And some also ben
of Jje route "^
That comen hot a while agon *>,
And ]>ei auanced were anon. / /
Cower, Tale of the Co/.rs, 1. 9.
For long agone I have forgot to court;
Besides, trie fashion of the time is changed.
7 wo Gent, of Verona, III. i.
Oil, he's drunk, Sir Toby, an hour agone; his eyes were set at eight i'
the morning \-Tiveljth Night, V. i.
And my master left me, because three days agone I fell sick.
I Sam. xxx. 13.
AGREEABLE [ugrai'ubl], adj. In accord with; consenting to; willing to agree with. [Wau*d-ee zai tue u
kwairrt? Aay bee ugrai'ubl], what do
you say to a quart? I am willing to join you.
AGREED [ugree'd], adj. Planned; arranged, as by conspiracy; in league. [Twuz u-gree'd dhing, uvoa'r
dhai droad een,] it was a planned
conspiracy, before they threw in /. e. their hats for a wrestling bout.
Pass'l o' rogues, they be all agreed /. e. in league together.
AGY [ae-ujee], v. i. To show signs of age; to become old. [Uur ae'ujus vaa*s,] she ages fast. [Siinz
uz wuyv duyd, ee du ae'ujee
maa*ynlee,] since his wife died he ages mainly.
I ant a-zeed th' old man sinze dree wiks avore Make'lmus (Michaelmas), gin I meet n s'mornin, and I
was a frightened to zee how the old
man Sagy.
AH \ (a.) (voice raising), [aa-u], interj. Ah! Interrogative exclamation of
surprise = indeed! you don't say so!
(/>.) (voice falling). Exclamation of disgust or disappointment [Aa-u I wuy-s-n muyn? dhae'ur dhee-s
u-toa'urd-n!], ah! why dost not take
care? there! thou hast broken it.
(f.) Simple Oh! Ah! my dear, I be very glad you be come.
f chari p. 171
blynde fooles, drede }e to lese a morsel of mete ]>an o poynt of
charite? llyclif, Eng. Works, E. E. T.
S. p.
A, |>enke }e, e;rete men, J>at ]>is, &c. Ibid. p. 179.
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AH! [aa-u]. Yes. [Bee'ul-s u-ad dhi naivugee*un? Aa'u!], Bill, hast had thy knife again? Yes.
AICH [ae'uch]. The name of the aspirate h (always). AILER. See HEALER.
AILING IRON [aa-yuleen uyur], sb. An implement for breaking off the spear from barley. See
BARLEY STAMP.
AILS [aa-yulz], sb. Usually applied to the beard of barley when broken off from the grain. These little
spears are always called [baar'lee
aayulz]. The individual husks of any corn are also called [aayulz]. The term is only applied to the
separated spear or husk never when
still attached to the grain. The singular is not often used, but I heard it said: [Ee-v u-gau - t
u aayul u daewst een dh-uy oa un,] he
has an ail of dust /. e. a husk in his eye. See DOWST.
AIM [aim], v. i. To intend, to desire, to purpose.
[Niivur muyn dhur-z u dee-'ur, ee daed-n aim t-aa't ee,] never mind, there's a dear, he did not intend to
hit you. [Ee du aim tu bee mae-ustur,
doa'un ur?], he intends to be master, does he not?
2. To attempt. Be ure nobody widn never aim vor to break in and car away your flowers. “Carry
away” is a common euphemism for steal.
Olyuer egerlich J>o gan to lok: and smot til him wij> ire, And eymede ful euene to 3yue j)e strok;
J>e sarsyn on is svvyre.
Sir FerumbraS) 1. 734-
AIN [arn ai*n(d u-arn(d], v. t. To throw (usual word). [Dhu bwuuyz bee ai'neen stoa'unz tu dhu duuks,]
the boys are throwing stones at the
ducks. [Aa*l aup wai u tuurmut un ai'n un tu dhu guurt ai'd u dhee,] I will take up a turnip
and throw it at the great head of
thee. This was said in the writer's presence by a man to an offending boy. A.S. h&nan, to stone.
AIR [ae-ur], sb. and v. t. Always pronounced as a distinct dissyllable.
Somme in er]?e, somme in aier, somme in helle deep. Piers Plow, ii. 127.
Place hiue in good ayer, set southly and warme
And take in due season wax, honie and s warme. Tusser, 16/20.
AISLE [uyul, aa-yul], sb. The passage between the pews in a church or chapel. We know nothing of any
distinction between nave and aisles;
but there is [' aayut] to every church. See
ALLEY.
AITHERWAYS [ai'dhurwaiz], conj. Either (constant use); quite distinct from the adj. or pron.^ which is
always \iiudhur ^\ other.
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Aithenvays you must go to once, or else tidn no good vor to go 't all.
AIVER. See EAVER.
ALACK-A-DAY! [ulaa-k u dai]. An exclamation of sorrow or regret. Alas-a-day! or alas! are not heard.
ALE [ae-ul]. In West Somerset, unlike the Midland Counties, ale is^the weaker beverage; brewed from the
malt after the beer has been extracted
from it. Ale is usually sold in the public-houses at half the price of beer. At Burton, the
Beeropolis, this is precisely
reversed.
ALE-TASTER [ae-ul tae'ustur], sb. An officer still annually appointed by ancient court leet; at
Wellington his duties, however, have
entirely fallen into disuse.
ALEEK [uleek-, ulik-], adv. Alike (always).
One of our oldest saws is:
Vruydee'n dhu wik or week, Zul'dum
ulik* or aleek.
This perpetuates the old belief that a change of weather always comes on Friday.
ALIE [uluy], adv. In a recumbent position; lying flat.
The grass is shockin bad to cut, tis all alie. Zend out and zit up the stitches, half o'm be alie way
this here rough wind. See GO-LIE.
ALL [airl], sb. The completion; the last of anything.
Plaise, sir, all the coal's a finished i. e. the last of it. [Aay shl dig au'l mee tae'udeez tumaaru,] I shall
dig all my potatoes tomorrow /. e. I shall complete the digging. This would
be perfectly intelligible, even if the
speaker had been digging continuously
for weeks previously. So, “I zeed em all out," means not that
I saw the whole number depart, but the
last of them.
ALL [au'l], adv. Quite, entirely.
Her gid'n all so good's he brought. Thy taties be all so bad's the tothers. Her and he be all o' one mind
about it. This is one of those
expletive and yet expressive words which is constantly used to complement phrases, but which can
only be defined by many examples:
[Au'l tue smaa-rsh. Au'l tue un au'npaa'wur.
Au-l tue slaa-tur. Au'l tue u sluuree. Au'l tue u dring'ut. Au'l tiie u ee-p. ^w/tue u smuufr. Au'l tu
noa'urt,] all to an unpower all to
slatter all to a slurry all to a dringet all to a heep all to a smutter all to nort (q. v.). See
FOUR-ALLS.
ALL-ABOUT [au'l ubaewt]. Scattered, in disorder.
[Dhai bee ugoo* un laf- dhur dhingz au'l ubaewt^ they are gone
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and (have) left their things (/. e. tools) scattered about. [Dhaat-s au'l ubaewt ut,] that's the whole matter.
ALL-ABROAD. Unfastened, scattered. See ABROAD.
And whan thou takeste vp thy ryghte foote, than
Caste thy pees fro the all abrode. Fitzherbert, Husbandry, 10/30.
ALL ALONG [airl ulairng], adv. i. Throughout, from the beginning, without interruption.
[Aay toa'uld ee zoa au'l ulau'ng,~] I told you so throughout. [T-u biin shau'keen aarus wadh'ur awl ulau'ng,~\
it has been shocking harvest weather
without change from the commencement.
2. Lying flat; at full length.
[Ee aup wai uz vuys un aat-n au'l ulau'ng^\ he up with his fist and hit him down flat. [Aay eech mee veot
un vaald au'l ulau'ng,~\ I caught my
foot and fell at full length.
Zo got behind, and wey a frown
He pulled near twenty o' mun down
And twenty droad along. Peter Pindar, Royal Visit, p. ii.
ALL OF A UGH [airl uv u uulr], adv. One-sided, bent, out of truth, aslant. [Dhik'ee pau's uz
airl uv u uuh,~\ that post is quite
one-sided. Poor pld fellow, he is come to go all of a ugh.
ALL ONE [au'l waun], adv. Just the same.
[Wur aay goo'us, ur wur aay doa'un, t-aez au'l ivaun tu mee,] whether I go, or whether I do not, it is
just the same to me.
ALL ON END [au'l un ee'n]. On the qui vive; on the tiptoe of expectation; with ears on end. The
writer heard in reference to an
exciting local trial: [We wuz airl wi ee'n tu yuur ue'd u-kaa'rd dhu dai,] we
were eagerly anxious to hear who had carried
the day /. e. won the trial.
ALL OUT [au'l aewt], a. Finished, used up.
[Plai'z-r dhu. suydur-z au'l acwt^\ please, sir, the cider is a'l finished i.e. the cask is empty. [Dhu woets
bee au'l aewt,~] the oats are all
finished. Compare "out of print," "out of stock."
ALL-OVERISH [au 1 oa'vureesh]. Out of sorts; rather poorly, generally, but without any particular local
ailment.
ALL SAME [airl sae'um.] Just the same, of no consequence. [Taez au'l sae'um tu mee, aay tuul ee, wuur
yue du buy un ur noa,] it is of no
consequence to me, I tell you, whether you buy it or not.
ALL SAME TIME [airl sae'um tuym], adv. Notwithstanding, nevertheless, yet.
[Aay zaed aay wiid-n, airl sae'um tuym, neef yue-1 prau'mus, &c.,] I said I would not (do it), nevertheless,
if you will promise, &c.
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ALL TO. Where in other dialects they say all of or all in, we in W. S say all to. [Aay wuz u streokt au'l
tue u eep,] I was struck all of a
heap. So All to a muck, All to a sweat, All to a shake, All to a miz-maze, All to a slatter. See
ALL, adv.
ALL TO A MUGGLE faul tue u muug'1]. In a muddle, confusion. [Uur ziimd au'l
tue u muug'l, poo'ur soal, aa'dr ee duyd,]
she seemed all to a muggle, poor soul, after he died.
[Dhu aewz wuz au'l tue u muug'l,~\ the house was all to a muggle.
ALL TO BITS [airl tue beets]. ) Completely smashed in
ALL TO PIECES [au'l tue pees'ez]. j pieces; quite done up.
ALL TO PIECES [airl tue pees'ez]. Infirm; said of a man or a horse. [Poo-ur oa'l blid, ee-z au'l
tue pees'ez wai dhu rue-maafiks,] poor
old blood, he is quite done up with the rheumatism. [Aew-z dh-oa-lau-s? Oa!
au'l tue pees'ez^ how is the old
horse? Oh! quite knocked up. [Dhu ween buust oa'p dhu ween'dur un toa'urd-n au'l tue pees'ez,']
the wind burst open the window and tore
it in pieces.
ALL-UNDER-ONE [au'l uuirdur waun], phr. At the same time. (Very com.) Tidn worth while to go o'
purpose vor that there hon I comes up
about the plump, can do it all under one.
FOR ALL [vur au'l], adv. Notwithstanding, in spite of. [ Vur au'l yue bee su kluvur, yue kaa'n
kau'm ut,] notwithstanding that you
are so clever, you cannot accomplish it.
FOR ALL THAT [vur airl dhaat]. Nevertheless.
[Aa'y du yuur waut yue du zai, bud vur au'l dhaa't, aay ziim t-oa*n due*,] I hear what you say, but
nevertheless, I seem (am convinced) it
will not do.
FOR GOOD AND ALL [vur geod-n au'l], adv. phr. Finally, for ever, for once and for all.
[Ees, shoa-ur! uur-v u-laf-m naew vur geod-n air!,'] yes, sure! she has left him now for ever said of a
woman who had often previously
condoned her husband's offences.
ALLER [aul'ur]. Alder tree (always); alder wood. Gerard says:
This Shrub is called Alnus Nigra . . . and by others Frangula ... in English, blacke Alter tree. Herbal, Ed.
1636, p. 1469.
Alnus is called in greke, Clethra; in Englishe au alder tree or an aller
tree. Turner, Herbal, p. 10.
ALLER, BLACK [blaak aul'ur], sb. The usual name for Buckthorn Rhammis
Frangitla. Buckthorn is never used. This plant is frequently confounded with the dogwood
Cornus Sanguineum both of which are
very common in our hedges. The common
alder is also occasionally called the Black Aller.
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ALLER-GROVE [aul'ur groav]. A marshy place where alders grow; an alder thicket. The term always
implies marsh, or wet land; [u rig'lur
aul'iir groav] would mean a place too boggy to ride through.
ALLERN [aul'urn], adj. Made of alder.
[U aid-urn an'l,] a handle made of alderwood.
ALLERNBATCH [aal-urnbaach], sb. A boil or carbuncle. Pinswill is the commoner term. See Ex. Scold.
11. 24, 557.
ALLEY [aal'ee], sb. i. A long narrow place prepared for playing skittles, usually with a long sloping
trough down which the balls run back
to the players. [Wee'ul! dhee goo daewn een dh-aal'ee un ziit aup dhu peenz,] Will! go down in the
alley and set up the pins. This order
means, that Will is to set up the skittles as the players from the other end knock them down,
and to send back the balls by the
inclined trough. These places are also spoken of as the \ - Bnwleen aal'ee] or \ - Skit ' I
aal'ee~\.
2. Passage in a church. Miss F , farmer's sister, said her
seat (in church) was on the left side of the middle alley. April 1885. W. H. M.
Miss F - was quite right, and those clever people who talk of the passage between the pews, in the centre
of the church, as the aisle are quite
wrong. The latter is .from French aile, a wing (sometimes but improperly
spelt aisle in old French, see Cotgr.}, and can only apply to a part of the building lying
at the side of the body or nave. The
alley is from alee or allee.
An alley, gallerie, walke, walking-place, path or passage. Allee. Cotgr. So long about the aleys is he goon Till he was come ajen to Jrilke pery.
Chaucer, Merchant's Tale, 1. 10198.
Aley yn garJeyne. Peribohis, perambulatorium, el periobolum.
Promp. Paw.
An aly; deambulatorium, ambtilatorium. Cath. Aug. Sawne slab let lie, for stable and
stie, Sawe dust, spred thick, makes
alley trick. Tusser, 15/35.
3. A boy's marble made of alabaster, generally valued at from five to ten common marbles, according to
its quality. Sometimes, though not
often, called {aal'ee tau,] alley taw.
ALL-FOURS [airl vaa'wurz], sb. i. A common game of cards. [Steed u gwarn tu chuurch, dhae'ur dhai
wauz \.-aul vaa"wurz,~\ instead
of going to church, there they were (playing) at all-fours.
2. adv. fhr. Equal to, a match for, in agreement with. [Vur aul u wuz su kluvur luyk, uur wuz au /
vaa'wurz wai un,] notwithstanding that
he was so clever she was quite his match.
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r ,
vuru zeok uz dhuum-wuy doa-un ee puut sm bufur baewd-n?], lor! there is a great boy to
suck his thumb-why don t you put some
bitter aloes about it? This is the usual remedy for biting nails and sucking thumbs.
ALLITERATIONS. See SHILLY SHALLY.
ALL MY TIME [aul me tuym]. My best or utmost exertions. I can zee very well t'll take me all my
time vor to get over thick job. (Very
com.)
ALLOW [uluw, luw, ulaew], v. t i. To advise, to recommend.
I d' a'. low ee vor to put thick there field in to rape, arter you've a-clain un, and then zeed-n out/, e. I
advise you.
Calfe lickt take away, and howse it ye may.
This point I allow for seruant and cow. Tusser, 33/30.
2. r. i. To consider, to be of opinion. (Very com.)
1 do 'low eens there's dree score o' taties in thick there splat. [Uw muuch d-ee-/#/# dhik dhae'ur rik u
haay?], how much do you consider that
rick of hay? /. e. how much it contains. [Aay du luw t-1 raayn uvoar nait], I think it will
rain before night.
3. To allot, to deem sufficient.
[Aay &-tdaew un baewd u twuul muunth,] I allot him about twelve months. This was said of a man who
was living very fast, and meant that
the speaker only allotted him a year of his present course before he must come to grief.
ALLOWED [ulaewd]. Licensed.
[Dhik'ee aewz waud-n mivur ulaewd^ that house was never licensed.
ALL VORE [aul voar], sb. The wide open or hollow furrow left between each patch of ground, ploughed
by the same team, at the spot where
the work was begun and finished. In some lands these airl voarz are made to come at
regular intervals, and hence the field
assumes the ridge and furrow appearance. See VORE.
ALONG [ulau'ng, lau*ng], adv. i. On, in the direction of, away. [Kau'm ulau'tig /], come with me. [Bee'ul!
wut goo ulau'ng, su vur-z dhu Dhree
Kuups?], Bill! wilt go on with me as far as
the Three Cups? (public-house). [Aay zeed ur beenaew, gwain oa*m ulau'ng^ I saw her just now, going in
the direction of home. [Goo lau'ng!
aay tuul ee,] go away! Be off! I tell
you.
2. Constantly used as a suffix to adverbs. Its force is some-
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thing the same as wards as home-along, in-along, up-along, down-along, \y\*\x-laung t ~\ here-along,
there-along, [yaen-z//tf/r;/,] along
yonder, out-along, back-along i.e. homewards. A man said I be gwain zo vur-s Holy Well Lake, and I
can't stap now, but I'll call in
back-along July i, 1886 meaning, on my way back.
3. adv. Hitherto, so far, during the past.
We've had middlin luck along^ like.
4. Used redundantly. I zeed'n gwain down 'long; 'long way Bob Milton, just avore you com'd up.
ALONGST [ulangs, ulaungs(t)], adv. Lengthwise, in the direction of the
longest dimension. Used very commonly in contrast to athwart or across.
You 'ont make no hand o' thick there field o' ground, nif he idn a guttered both ways, [ukraa's-n ulangs^]
across and alongst.
ALOUD [ulaewd], adv.- As in polite society we hear of "loud colours," so in our lower walk we talk
of "loud stinks."
[Dhik rab'ut fraa'sh! ee stingks ulaewd,'] that rabbit fresh! he stinks aloud.
ALTER [au'ltur], v. To improve in condition, to gain in flesh; spoken of all kinds of live stock. [Dhai
stee'urz-1 au'ltur, muyn, een yoa*ur
keep,] those steers will alter, mind, in your keep. See KEEP. [Dhai au'gz bee au'lturd shoa*ur
nuuf,] those hogs (see HOG) are
altered sure enough! /. e. improved in condition.
ALTERING [airltureen], adj. . Likely to improve, &c. Auctioneers
constantly wind up their advertisements of cattle sales in the local press, with The whole of the
stock is of the most altering
description.
ALTER THE HAND [airltur dhu xti\, phr. To change the course; usually for the better implied.
(For the worse, see BAD-WAY, 2.)
ALTOGETHER SO [airltugaedh'ur zoa], adv. Just to the same degree.
Bill's all thumbs, and Jack's altogether so vitty handed.
AMAUS [umau's], adv. Almost. The / is never sounded; nor is the above so com. as [maus, moo'ees,]
most (q. v.}.
[Dhik-s umau-s u-dued wai, ee oan paay vur manreen,] that (thing) is almost done with (i. e. worn out); he
will not pay for mending [Aay-v
u-ae'ud jush bau'dhur, aay bee maus mae*uz,] I have had such a bother, I am almost driven wild.
[Uur kyaa'ld-n bud livureedhing
umau'sj] she called him but everything almost /. e. almost all the names she could think of.
This is one of the very commonest
descriptions of violent abuse.
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AMBY [um-baay, m-baa-y], adv. Contr. of by-and-by; in a little while; later in the day. Very often
used before night. When be gwain? Oh
amby, can't go avore. [Aa-1 kaul een.
um-baay nait,] I will call in this evening or to night.
AMEN. A very common saying is:
[Aa'main, paa'sn Pain, Moo'ur roagz-n
aun'ees main,]
Amen! Parson Penn,
More rogues than honest men.
AMINDED [umuy-ndud], //-/. adj. Disposed, inclined, minded-(Very com.)
I be gwain to vote eens I be aminded, and I baint gwain vor t'ax nobody; zo tidn no good vor they to
come palaverin o' me.
AM PER [aanrpur], sb. A red pimple, a blotch on the face.
AMPERY [aanrpuree], adj. Blotchy skinned.
[Aanvpuree fae'usud,] blotchy faced. This is a very common description of persons, but it would not be
spoken of animals.
AN [an, un, f n], conj. Than. The th is never heard in the dialect as in lit. Engl. even when
emphatic.
[Doa-noa nu moo l ur- dhu daid,] (I) do not know any more than the dead. [Noa uudh'ur waiz-
u.naat'urul,] no other than a natural
(fool).
It is strange this th should have so completely disappeared; no combination of consonants has the slightest
effect in recalling it. [Aayd zeondur
Taunree ad-n un Jiinvee,] I would rather Tommy had it than Jimmy. [Yue-d bad'r git laung
aum un buyd abaewt yuur,] you had
better get along home, than stay about here.
Can it be that this is not from the A.S. thanne, but from Old Norse an, Sw. an, which Atkinson gives (p.
xxvi) for than?
AN-ALL [un airl], adv. Likewise, also: used chiefly redundantly at the end of
a clause. (Very com.)
I 'sure you, sir, I've a beat-n and a- told to un, and a-tookt away 'is supper an all, and zo have his father
too, but tidn no good, we can't do
nort way un. Answer of a woman to chairman of School Board, why she did not make her boy go to
school.
ANATOMY. See NOTTAMY.
ANCIENT [airshunt], sb. The ensign or national colours; Union Jack of a British vessel. In the
Bristol Channel this is the usual term
among the fisher folk.
How can anybody tell what her is, nif her ont show her ancient!
^ AND [an], conj. If. (Very com.) Some people always say, [An yue plaiz,] for If you please. This form
remains in the much :ommoner nif, which is the contracted form of and if.
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ffor, and he be blessed: J?e better J?e be-tydyth.
Piers Plowman, JKich. the Red. ii. 75.
Out-take hys felawe Olyuere f and he were hoi and sounde; Ac he lyj> hert now with a spere: and
berej) a gryslich wounde.
Sit- Ferumbras, 1. 20O.
But #</ he be put in a good pasture. Fitzherbert, Husbandry, 6/12.
For and it sweate not in the hey-cockes, it wyll sweate in the mowe.
Ibid. 25/16.
See also 68/62, 70/34, 142/7. .&<? F. *S*. Gram. p. 93.
Puppy. Why all's but writing and reading, is it Scriben? ^4 it be any more it is mere cheating zure.
Med. Why my friend Scriben, an it please your worship. Ben Jonson, Tale of a Tub, I. 2.
AN-DOG [an 'dung, arrdaug]. And-iron; always so called. They are still very commonly used in
farm-houses, and others where wood is
burnt. Several pairs are in constant use in the writer's own house. They are well described
in the old-fashioned riddle:
Head like an apple,
Neck like a swan,
Back like a long-dog
And dree legs to stan.
ANDSELL WEIGHT. See HANDSALE WEIGHT.
AND THAT [un dhaat: -n dhaat]. A very common pleonastic phrase, giving no force to the sentence.
[Aay-v u-saard au'l dhu dhingz- dhaat^ I have fed all the cattle and that. [Uur toa'ld-n au'l ubaewt ut-u
d/iaat,~] she told him all about it,
and that. [Mae'ustur aaks mee haut aay zad-;/ dhaat,'] master asked me what I said, and that.
ANEAST [unee'us], adv. Near. (Very com.)
[Twaud-n ee' ee niivu'r waud-n unee'tis-n,~] it was not he, he never was near him. Used only with verbs
implying motion. It would never be
said, The house is aneast the road: “handy” or “home beside o'“ would in that case be
used. In the example above, “never was
near” implies never went near. See ANIGH.
AN END [un ee'n], adv. On end.
[Stan-un-ee'n,] to stand an end = to stand on the head, with heels in the air (always). Bob waudn proper
drunk tho nif he's riglur drunk, he
d'always stan' un ee'n.
ANES (Hal.). Aines. See EENS.
ANGLE [ang-1: not as in Eng. ang-gl], sb. An earthworm. (Very com.)
[U buunch u ang'lz wai wuVturd drue um-z dhu bas bauyt vur ee'ulz,] a bunch of worms with worsted
through them is the best
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bait for eels. An old bird-fancier of my acquaintance always speaks of feeding larks and thrushes, “You
be bound vor to gie em a angle now and
then." A dung-heap's the place to find
angles.
Cf. angle-twitch of other districts not known here.
ANGLE [ang'l], v. i. To intrigue; to “beat about the bush;" to loiter about or frequent a place for
some purpose.
[Waird-ur kau-m ang'leen baewt yuur vaur?] what does he come loitering about here for? [Aay au-vees
kunsud'urd eens ee wuz ang'leen aa'dr
Mils Jee'un,] I always thought he was angling after Miss Jane. [Aay kaa-n ubae'ur-n, liz
au-vees pun dhu ang'l^ I cannot endure
him, he is always upon the angle/, e. intriguing.
ANGLE-BOW [angl boa], sb. A running noose, a slip-knot, especially a wire on a long stick for
catching fish; also a springle for
catching birds. The poacher's wire is always a angle-bow.
ANGLE-BOWING [ang'l boa-een], sb. Tech. A method of fencing. See Ex. Scold, pp. 46, 118.
ANGRY [ang-gree], adj. Inflamed; applied to wounds or sores (the usual term). He was getting on very
well till s'mornin, but now the leg
looks angry.
AN IF [un eef- neef]. The regular form of if. This seems very like a reduplication, because an (q.
v.} alone is often used for if; but in
rapid common speech it is nearly always contracted into nif [neef].
[Neef aay wuz yue, aay-d zee un daam fuus], if I were you I
\vo"ld see him d d first. Hundreds of examples of the use
of this word are to be found throughout these pages.
ANIGH [unuy, unaa-y], pnp. Used with verbs implying motion only. Near; same as aneast (q. v.}.
In both these words the prefix seems
to imply motion. The sound of nigh and neigh
in neighbour is usually identical in the dialect.
[Dhur aewz liz nuy dhu roa'ud, bud aay niivur diidn goo unuy urn,] their house is near the road, but I
never went near them.
ANIGHT [unuyt], adv. To-night, at night.
You can't never do it by day, but you can zometimes anight.
To consaile sche him clepud , and ]>e cas him told, So])liche al ]>e sweuen >at hire anty
mette.
Will, of Paler me ^ 1. 2919.
Take ]>ere the hert of him, for vvhos song )>ou ros vp so anyjt fro me.
Gesta Roman, p. 61.
ANOINTED. See NOINTED.
AXPASSY [an-paa-see]. The name of the sign'" &." This is
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the last letter of our alphabet, which always ends with aek's, wuy, zad, an' pact' see. See p. 75, W. S.
Dialect; also Ampersand and Amp assy
in New -JEng. Dictionary.
ANSWER [aan-sur], v. i. To endure, to last.
That there poplar 'ont never answer out o' doors, t'll be a ratted in no time. The word is in constant use by
country folk, in nearly as many senses
as given by Dr. Murray. The above is as
common as any.
ANSWERABLE [aarrsurubl], adj. Durable, lasting.
A man said to me of a draining tool (January 1879): [Dhik'ee soa'urt bee dee'urur, but dhai bee moo'ur
aan'surublur^ that sort are dearer,
but they are more answerable i. e. cheaper in the end. A thatcher living and bred at Burlescombe
said to me twice, Twas good answerable
seed. March 25, 1884.
ANT [aan, aant], v. Have not, has not (always). See W. S. Gram. p. 58, et seq.
ANTHONY'S FIRE. See TAXTONY'S FIRE.
ANTLER [ant'lur], sb. Hunting. A branch or point growing out of the beam of a stag's horn. Bow (q.
v.), bay, and tray are each of them an
antler. We talk of a fine head, or fine pair of horns; but never of fine antlers.
A warrantable stag has bow, bay, and tray antlers, and two on top of
each horn. A male calf has no horn, a
brocket only knobblers, and small brow
antlers. Records of North Devon Staghounds, 1812-18, p. 9.
I remember seeing a deer, when set up by hounds, thrust his brow-antler through the hand of a man who attempted to
secure him. Collyns, Chase of the Wild
Red Deer, p. 67.
ANY-BODY[mreebau'dee], imp.pron. One. See W. Somerset Grammar, pp. 38, 39.
\ - Un-ee bau'dee keod-n voo'urd-u due ut, neef dhai diid-n due ut nai'tuymz, keod ur?], one could not afford
to do it, if one did not do it night
times (q. z>.), could they? The construction is nearly always plural.
APERN [uup'urn], sb. i. Apron; always so pronounced.
A buttrice and pincers, a hammer and naile,
An aperne and sitzers for head and for taile. Tusser, 17/4.
2. The skin between the breast-bone and the tail of a duck or goose when sent to table, is called the
apern. This apron is cut by carvers to
get at the seasoning.
APPLE-DRANE [aa-pl drae'im], sb. A wasp. Common, but not so much used as wapsy.
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APPLE-PUMMY [aa-pl puum-ee], sb. (Always.) The residuum of ground apples after all the cider has
been extracted While full of juice and
in process of cider making, the ground apples are simply dummy (pomme).
I've a-drawd a load o' apple-pummy up in the copse, I reckon they (the pheasants) '11 zoon vind it out.
See CIDER-MUCK.
APPLE-SHRUB [aa-pl-shruub], sb. The Weigdia Rosea, no doubt so called from the likeness of its
flowers to apple-blossom. The plant
has soon become naturalized, for Dr. Prior says it was only introduced from China in 1855. It is
now one of our commonest flowering
shrubs.
APROPOS [aa-breepoa-z, haa'breepoa'z], v. defective. Resembles, matches.
[Dhik-ee dhae'ur aa'breepoa'x muyn nuzaak'lee,] that one resembles, or matches, mine exactly. I
heard this spoken of a canary. By no
means uncommon.
APSE [aaps], sb. Abscess, tumour.
Her Ve a got a apse 'pon her neck. This no doubt is an ignorant way of pronouncing abscess, which
sounds so very like aapsez, and we all
know that to be plural of apse. Inasmuch then
as only one thing is referred to, we country-folks naturally drop the plural inflection.
APSE TREE [aaps tree]. Aspen tree. (Populus tremttla.) The wind Ve a Slowed down a girt limb o'
thick apse tree. Oct. 1 88 1. Here is
a good example of corruption by the literary
dialect, while the much-abused Hodge has retained the true form.
Ang. Sax. ALpse^ adj. Tremulous. Apse, m. An aspen tree, a species of poplar. Boswortk.
APURT [upuurt], adv. In a sulky, disagreeable manner; frowningly. Her tookt
her zel off proper apurt, and no mistake.
ARBALE [aa'rbae'ul]. Populus alba. The only name. This tree, by no means rare in parks, &c.,
is often galled by more educated
people Abelia poplar. The wood is well known, and always called arbale by the country joiners.
ARBOR [aa-rbur], . The shaft, spindle, or axle of a wheel or pulley. The word is not applied to a
"pin" on which a pulley or
wheel runs loosely, but an arbor is always fixed to it, so as to revolve with the wheel, and is of one solid
piece. See GUDGEON.
ARBOURAGE. See HARBOURAGE.
ARB-RABBITS [aarb rab'uts], sb. Wild geranium.
We calls em sparrow birds, but the proper name's arb rabbits.
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May 26, 1884. S. R. This of course is arb-rabert Herb-Robert (Geranium Robcrtianuni).
ARBS [aarbz], sb. The general term for all kinds of "simples" or medicinal herbs.
Her's ter'ble bad in her inside; her can't make no use o' nothin'; I've a-bvvoiled down some arbs and
a-gid her, and I've
a-bin to Dr. vor her, but her idn no better, and her can't sar
(earn) nort, and however we be gvvain vor to maaintain her, I can't think nor stid.
This herb is under the dominion of Venus. It is esteemed an excellent remedy for the stone. Culpeper, Herbal, p.
204.
ARCHANGEL [aarkanjee'ul], sb. The yellow nettle, often called weazel snout. Gerard (Herbal, p.
702) calls the "yellow
archangel," lamium luteum.
Our English archangels and a few others are yellow.
Comhill Mag., Jan. 1882.
ARCH [aarch], v. t. To make or cause to be convex. Thick there road must be ^.-arched a good
bit more eet, vore the water'll urn
off vitty like. Hence
ARCHING [aarcheen], adj. Convex. He
idn archin enough by ever so much.
ARG [aarg], v. i. To argue, to contend in words. Not so common as downarg (q. v.}.
He wanted vor t'arg how I'adn agot no right vor to go there, but I wadn gwain vor to be a downarg by he.
ARGIFY [aa-rgifuy], v. i. To argue, to dispute.
[Tuurubl fuul'ur t-aa'rgifity, ee oa'n nuvur gee ee n,] terrible fellow for arguing, he will never give in.
More frequentative than arg.
ARM [aarm], v. t. To conduct another by walking arm-in-arm. “Zo your Jim's gwain to have th' old Ropy's
maid arter all." “No, he
idn." "Oh, idn er? well, I zeed-n a-armin o' her about, once, my own zul, last Zunday night as ever
was."
ARM [aa-rm], sb. i. Axle. The iron upon which the wheel of any carriage actually turns.
[Dhu weel km oa'f, un dh-aa-rm oa un wuz u-broa'kt rait oa'f,] the wheel came off, and its axle was broken
right off. See AXLE-CASE.
2. The spoke or radius of any large wheel, such as a water-wheel, or the fly-wheel of a steam-engine. Also
the beam of a windmill to which the
sail is fixed. The entire motive power of a windmill
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i. e. each of its four great beams, with all the apparatus fixed to it-is
called the arm.
ARM-WRIST [aarm-nis], sb. Wrist. He tookt hoM o' my arm-wrist. Wrist is scarcely ever heard
alone; it seems only to be considered
as a part of the arm or hand, and is spoken of always in combination with one or the other
hand-wrist (q. v.) being the most
common.
The leaves and roots .... tied to the wrcstes of the arnies, take away fits.
Gerard, Herbal, p. 428.
ARRANT [aa-runt], sb. Errand. In the plural it is often applied to the articles bought at market. I
heard a woman complain of some boys:
[Tu au'lur aa'dr un'ee bau'dee ee'ns dhai bee gwai'n au'm wai dhur aa-runs, taez shee'umfeol!] to hollow
after (i.e. to mock) one, as one is
going home, with one's marketing, 'tis shameful!
ARREST [aarus], sb. Harvest (always).
[Aay shaan ae'u noa-un vur pae'urt wai voar aadr aarus,'] I shall not have any to part with until after
harvest.
How dedst thee stertlee upon the zess last harest wey the younjr Dick
Vrogwill.
Ex. Scold. 1. 32.
ARRISH [uureesh], sb. A stubble of any kind after the crop is gone. Farley-jrnV^, wheat-am!^,
clovet-arrtsA.
Purty arternoon farmer, sure 'nough why, he 'ant a ploughed his arrishes not eet. The term is
understood as applying to the field or
enclosure having the stubble in it not to the stubble itself. Auctioneers and other genteel people
usually write this eddish.
ARRISH-MOW [aareesh, uureesh muw], sb. A small rick of corn set up on the field where the crop
grew. In a showery harvest the plan is
often adopted of making a number of small stacks on the spot, so that the imperfectly dried
corn may not be in sufficient bulk to
cause heating, while at the same time the air may circulate and improve the condition of the grain.
Called also wind-mow.
ARRISH-RAKE [uureesh rae'uk], sb. A large rake used for gathering up the loose stalks of corn after
the sheaves are carried off.
ARS. See Ass.
ARSY-VARSY [aa-rsee-vaa*rsee], adj. Upside down, bottom upwards. Hon I com'd along, there was th'
old cart a-turned arsy-varsy right
into the ditch, an' the poor old mare right 'pon her back way her legs up'n in/, e. up on end.
Turfe. Passion of me, was ever a man thus crossed? all things run arsie varsie, upside down. Ben Jonson, Tale of a
Tub, III. i.
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Stand to 't, quoth she, or yield to mercy,
It is not fighting arsie-versic
Shall serve thy turn.
Hudibras, I. cant. iii. 1. 827.
ARTER-MATH [aartur-maath, aa'dr-maath], sb. See AFTER GRASS.
ARTICLE \emph. haartikul], sb. Term of contempt for an inferior or worthless person or thing more
commonly the latter. Of a bad tool a
man would say: [Dhiish yuurz u pur tee haartikul shoa'ur nuufj this is a pretty article sure
enough.
ARTIFICIAL [haartifee'shl], sb. Chemical or prepared manures of all kinds. Tidn a bit same's use to, way
farmerin, they be come now vor to use
such a sight o' this here hartifidal. Darn'd if I don't think the ground's a-pwoisoned way
ut. We never didn hear nort about no
cattle [plaayg] plague nor neet no “voot-an-mouth” avore they brought over such a lot o' this
here hartifidal, [Goa'an'ur] Guano or
hot ee caal ut.
AS [z-, s-], conj. Constantly employed in connection with though. [S-au'f] = as though (not as if.) See OFF.
Also frequently after same in the
construction of similes, beginning with same as.
He dont look s'off he bin a-cleaned out's years. Nov. 9, 1883. Same's the crow zaid by the heap o' toads,
All of a sort. Same's the fuller zaid.
As is often redundant. He promised to do un as to-morrow. Sometimes, however, this use is but a
contraction for “as may be” it is thus
very common in narration. More-n a month agone her zaid her'd sure to come as a Friday.
Calling to see two very old servants,
and a woman living with them, who has been bed-ridden for many years, the
wife said to me: You zee, sir, tis like
as this here, her idn able vor to do nothin vor herzel, and her 'ant a-got a varden comin in like, no
more-n what the parish 'lowth her, and
any little thing like do come very septable like, I sure 'ee, sir. July i, 1886.
As is never used twice, in the way it has become usual in the literary dialect e.g. as much as, as wide
as, &c., we always say so much as,
so wide as, &c. Even in the sentence, “As he fell, so he lied," we should say, [Eens u
vaald, zoa u luyd]. “Quite as
well," "as well" (=also), "as yet," would be
\jus su wuulsii wuul zoa vaar
voo'uth,~\ so far forth (/. e. as yet).
ASHEN [aa-rshn], adj. Made of ash. [Su geod u aa'rs\n tae'ubl z livur yue zeed,] as good an ash
table as you ever saw.
So wadly, that lik was he to byholde .
The boxtre, or the asschen deed and colde.
Chaucer, Knightcs Tale, 1. 1303.
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ASHEN-FAGGOT [aa-rshn faak'ut], sb. The large faggot which is always made of ash to burn at the
merry-making on Christmas Eve both Old
and New. We know nothing of a yule-log in the
West. It is from the carouse over the ashen-faggot that farmers with 'their men and guests go out to
wassail (q. v.} the apple trees on Old
Christmas Eve (Jan. 5). Why ash is de ngueur ] have never been able to find out, but the custom
of burning that wood is probably as
old as Saxon times. The faggot is always specially made with a number of the ordinary halse
binds, or hazel withes, and in many
cases, if large, it is bound with chains as well, to prevent its foiling to pieces when the
binds are burnt through. It is usual
to call for fresh drink at the bursting of each of the withes.
ASHWEED. See WHITE ASH.
ASKER [aas-kur, vulgarly aak-sur], sb. A refined term for a beggar. A respectable servant-girl in reply
to her mistress, who had inquired what
the girl's young man did for his living, said: Please-m he's masker, and tis a very good
trade indeed-m.
ASLEN [uslaen-, uslmr], adv. Aslant, athwart; usually slanting across in a horizontal or diagonal
direction.
[Au'kurd vee'ul vur tu pluwee een, aay shud wuurk-n rai't itslii>r,~] awkward field to plough in;
I should work it right across
diagonally. This word would not often be used to express a slant from the perpendicular, though occasionally
it is heard in this sense. Thick post
is all aslen /. e. not upright. This expression might also mean not fixed square.
ASS [aa-s], sb. The seat, the buttocks, the back part of the person; hence the hinder-part of anything.
[Puufn uup pun dh-aas u dhu wageen,] put it up on the back part of the wagon. The ass of the sull. The
ass of the water-wheel. The ass of the barn's doer. Occasionally the anus is
so called, but in such cases either
the context or some qualifying word
points the meaning.
This word is usually written arse (A.S. sers), but no sound of r is ever heard except in arsy-varsy, which is a
mere alliteration. There are many
combinations, especially used as expletive terms of abuse. These again are turned into adjectives by
the addition of ed [ud]: nackle-ass,
nackle-assed; dugged ass, dugged assed; heavy ass, heavy -assed.
Ars, or arce (aars H.) anus, cnhis, podex. Promp. Pam.
Jut am ich chalenged in chapitele hous * as ich a childe were, And baleysed on >e bar ers ' and no
breche bytwyne.
Piers Plowman, vii. 1. 156.
Here is William Geffery, evidently a lunatic,
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whypped at a cart's arsse from the Marshallse in Suthewarke to Bethelem with out Bishoppys gatte of London, for
that he belevyd one John More to be
Christ, the Savyour of the worlde. "Three fifteenth century Chronicles,
by John Stowe, the Antiquary. Edited
by James Gardner, Camden Society, 1880."
From Athenautn, Ap. 16, 1881, p. 519.
If sheepe or thy lambe fall a wrigling with taile,
Go by and by search it, whiles helpe may preuaile:
That barberlie handled I dare thee assure,
Cast dust in his arse, thou hast finisht thy cure. Tusser, 51/4.
ASS OVER HEAD [aa's oa-vur ai'd], phr. Head over heels, topsy-turvy. This is the usual expression
used to describe a headlong fall. A
timid old workman said of a rickety scaffold:
I baint gwain up pon thick there till-trap vor to tread pon nothin, and vail down ass over head.
" What's the matter William?” “Brokt my arm, sir. Up loadin hay, and the darned old mare, that ever I
should zay so, muv'd on, and down I
vails ass over head."
ASS-SMART [aa -smart], sb. Water-pepper Polygonum Hydropiper:
the herbe which the herbaries name Parsicarium, englishe men cal Arssmerte.
Turner, p. 31.
ASTRADDLE [astrad-1, or ustrad'l], a. Astride.
[Neef aay diid-n zee ur ruydeen dh-oal airs aup ustrad'l, sae'um-z u guurt bwuuy,] if I did not see her riding
the old horse up astride, like a great
boy.
AT [aa't]. [Yuur-z aa't tit,] here's at it; a very common expression on
beginning or resuming work. [Aa-1 bee aa't ut, fuus dhing maa-ru mau-rneen], I will be at it, first
thing to-morrow morning.
ATE [ait], v. Eat (always); p. t. [ait,]./. /. [u-ait].
[Taunree, doa'unt yue ait dhai buureez!], Tommy, don't you eat those berries! There now! he have
[u-aff] em arter all! They was all a
ate an a brokt, eens they wadn a wo'th nort.
Jan. 28, 1882.
ATH [aeth], sb. Earth, soil, the earth.
[Droa u lee'dl aeth' oa'vur-t,] throw a little soil upon it. [Noa soa'l pun aeth' keod-n due ut], no soul
upon earth could do it.
ATHIN [udhee-n], prep. Within. I zeed where the shots went to: they wadn athin dree voot o' the hare.
Not used as an adverb.
ATHOUT [udhaewt], conj. Without, unless. Not used as an adverb. I on't come, athout you'll come
too.
ATHURT [udhuurt], adv. Across, athwart.
[Ee vaa'lud rai't udhuurt dhu aj - ,] he (the tree) fell right across
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the hedge. [Dhu pees u klaa-th wuz u-kuut rai't udhuur t-n ukraa-s,] the piece of cloth was cut right
athurt and across. The pleonasm here
used, which is perhaps the commonest form, adds no strength to the expression.
Ad; nif es come athert en, chell gee en a lick. Ex. Scold. 1. 512.
ATOMIES [aafumeez], sb. Old hacks, worn-out, wretched creatures. A native of Torcross spoke
derisively of the caravan-folk who came to the regatta “as a passel of old
atomies" bug. 1882. I. F. C. Sea
Trans. Devon Association 1883, p. 80.
Hostess. Thou atomy thou! //. Henry IV. V. iv.
That eyes that are the frail'st and softest things,
Who shut their coward gates on atomies. As You Like It, III. v.
ATTACTKED [utaak'tud], /. t. and /. fart, of attack. (Very com.) Used by the uneducated above the
lowest class, such as small
tradespeople.
If you plaise, sir, I must ax you vor to keep thick dog a tied up; he attackted me wilful, gwain on the road
/. e. in a savage manner as I was
going along the road (past your house).
ATWIST [uteos*, utwuV], adv. Crooked, awry, out of place; also of threads, tangled, confused. Thick
there bisgy stick's a put in all
atwist id'n no form nor farshin in un.
ATWIXT [utwik-s], prep. Between. Didn Jimmy Zalter look purty then, way the darbies on, atwixt two
policemen?
Fro thennes shall not oon on lyve come,
For al the gold atwixen sonne and see.
Chaucer, Troylus and Cryseyde, 1. 885. See 16. Rom. of Rose, 1. 854.
AUDACIOUS. See OUDACIOUS.
AUF [au-f, oa-f], v. def. Ought.
[Uur mivur diid-n au-f tue u-wai'nt,] she never ought to have gone. [Bee-ul! dhee-s au'/t-u noa'ud
bad'r,] Bill! thou oughtest to have
known better. (Lit. Thee didst ought.)
A UGH [u uu-], adv. Crooked, awry, out of place. (Very com.) Why, thee's a got the rick all a-ugh; he'll
turn over nif dus-n put a paust to un.
AUNT [aant], sb. Used in speaking of any elderly woman, without implying any relationship, or other
quality, just as "mother" is
used in London and elsewhere. See UNCLE.
Poor old aunt Jenny Baker's a tookt bad; they zess her ont never get up no more.
And, for an old aunt whom the Greeks held captive, He brought a Grecian queen, whose youth and
freshness Wrinkles Apollo. Tioilusami
Ciessida, II. ii.
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Vor than aunt Annis Moreman could ha blessed vore. Ex. Scold. \. 25.
AUVER [airvur]. Var. pron. of over; heard sometimes, but commoner, in E. Som. See OVER, and
compounds.
AUVIS [au'vees], adv. Always. (Very com.)
1 auvis zay so, and I auvis shall.
AVER. See EAVER.
AVORD [uvoa'urd], v. To afford (always thus). An old gentleman reputed to be wealthy and
miserly, on a bitterly cold day, in
answer to an inquiry why he had no great-coat, said to me: [Kaan uvoa'urd u wae'ur tue koa'uts tu
wauns,] (I) cannot afford to wear two
coats at once.
AVORE [uvoa-ur]. i. prep. In front of; before. Billy, don't you go avore the osses. A little knot of
flowers avore the house.
2. adv. Before; in respect of inclination, rather than. Avore I'd be beholdin to he, I'd work my vingers
to bones, and that I wid. Used also as
in literature for before. (See Ex. Scold. 11. 14, 29, 73, 108, 122, 291.)
3. conj. and prep. Until. Us can wait avore you be ready, sir. Feb. 12, 1879. [Uur oan lat-n uloa'un
uvoa'ur ee-z u-broakt], she will not
leave it alone until it is broken.
Th'art always a vustled up avore zich times as Neekle Halse
comath about. E\: Scold. 1. 108. (See also Ib. 1. 261.)
4. adv. In the front place. Captain's the best oss to go avore.
AVORE-HAND [uvoa-rarr]. adv. Beforehand. Mind you get ern in readiness avore-hand. To be
uvoa'ran'z, avore-hands, pi. to
out-wit. [Aay wuz uvoa'ran'z wai un, vur au'l u wuz zu kliivur,] I out-witted him (or got the better of
him), notwithstanding that he was so
clever.
AWKARD [airkurd], adj. (Very com.) Difficult; not easily overcome. A awkard cornder. I sure you,
mum, 'twas a terble awkard job, and I
widn do it ageean vor no such money.
Gwain to leather our Jim, is er? well, let-n look sharp and begin; nif he don't vind Jim a awkard
customer vor to 'an'le (handle), you
tell me, that's all.
AX [aa*ks], v. To ask; to publish banns. Pret. aa'ks, p.p. u-aa'ks. We always say, [Aay aa-'ks yur
paardn] never, I beg your pardon.
Her's gwain to be a-ax next Zunday i. e. her banns will be published.
and here fore we axen oure owen dampnacion in J>is priere.
Wyclif, Eng. Works, E. E. T. S. p. 170.
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and here-bi J>ei axen here owen dampnacion. Ibid. p. 176.
And schewed her signes ffor men shulde drede,
To axe ony mendis ' ffor her mys-dedis.
Langland, Rich, the Red. ii. 3J.
AX OUT, or OUT-AX [aewt-aa-ks], v. To completely publish the banns. [Dhai wuz aakst aewt laa's
Zun'dee,] their banns were published
for the third time last Sunday. See OUT-AX.
AXEN [aak'sn]. Ashes. I have found one old man in the parish of Clayhidon who still uses this
word, but it is very nearly obsolete. Aug.
1880. See ASH, New Eng. Diet.
AYE [aa-y]. Yes (affirmatively); indeed? (interrogatively).
AYERLY [ae-urlee], adv. Early (always).
How be off vor aycrly taties? \Ae m urlee\ birds catch the worms.
AYTHER, or AITHER [ai'dhur], adj. and conj. Either. Quite distinct from either, in the phr.
either one ~ ever-a-one [udhu'ur
waun]. The commonest form of conj. is aitherways (q. v.).
Aither you was there, or you wad-n. I be safe 'twas aither her or her zister.
Within the halle, sette on ayther side,
Sitten other gentylmen, as falle that tyde.
Boke of Curtasye, 1. 21.
AZUE [uzeo 1 ), adv. A cow before calving, when her milk is dried off, is said to be azue, or to have
gone zue.
Th f old Daisy's a go zue, but her ont calvy eet's zix wicks.
Thee hast let the kee go zoo vor want o' strocking. Ex. Scold. 1. 1 10.
B
B. [bee]. The common description of a dolt or ignoramus is, [Ee^doa-noa B vrum u Beolz veot,] he does
not know from a bull's foot. The
expression "B from a battledore," as given in Nares and Halliwell, is a literary
colloquialism not known to us in the
West.
I know not an] a. from the wynde-mylne, ne a b. from a bole-foot
Political Poenis, vol. u. p. 57. A.D.
1401.
BACK [baak-], v. T o bet.
They on't never do it for the money, I'll back. [Aa-1 baak dhai e-un atim vore twuulv u-klauk u nait,] I'll
bet they will not be at home before
twelve o'clock at ni 'ht.
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BACK [baak], v. t. and /. Hunting. When the deer or other quarry turns and runs back over the same
track he has gone over.
If a deer has gone to water shortly after passing through a wood, it not unfrequently happens that the cunning
animal has merely soiled when he entered
the stream, and then backed it on his foil, and laid fast in the
covert. Collyns, Chase of the Wild Red
Deer, p. 137.
BACK ALONG [baa'k lairng], adv. Homewards.
[Kum au-n, Jiim! lat-s zee baewt gwarn baa'k lau'tig,~\ come on, Jim! let us see about going homewards.
[Aew laung uvoa'r yue bee gwarn baa'k
ulau'ng?], how long before you are going
homewards? See ALONG 2.
BACK AND FORE [baak'-n voa'ur], adv. Backwards, hind-part foremost.
[Waut bee baewt? Kas-n puut aun dhee jaa*kut baak'-n voa'ur,~\ what are you about? (Thou) canst not put on
thy jacket backwards. [Foo'us tu shuut-n een baak'-n voa'ur,~\ obliged to
put him (the horse) in (to the railway
truck) hind-part foremost. See SHUT;
also Trans. Dev. Association, 1886, p. 91.
BACK AND FORE SULL [baak-n voa-r zoo-ul], sb. A plough made to turn a furrow at will either to the
right or left; same as a two-way sull
(q. v.}, called also a vore and back sull.
BACK-CHAIN [baak-chai'n, or chaa-yn], sb. A short chain, of which the middle part is made of flat
twisted links, used to bear on the
back of a horse to support the shafts of a cart. The back-chain is no part of
the harness, but is always fixed at one end, to the off or right shaft. See CART-SADDLE.
BACK-CROOK [baak-krbok], sb. A crook sliding upon a rod of iron, fixed to the near, or left, shaft
of a cart. It is to this crook that the
back-chain is hooked on, when it has been passed across the cart-saddle.
BACK-DOOR TROT [baak-doo-ur-traat]. Diarrhoea. I be saafe, nif I was vor ate very many o'
they there, twid zoon gie me the
back-door trot.
BACKER [baak'ur], adj. Rear. Not used as a comparative any more than hinder, but cf. Lit. inner,
outer, utter, former, under, over, all
comparatives in origin. Back-part of Lit. Eng. is identical in meaning with backer-part of the dialect.
Never used as an adv. I know I zeed-n
down in under the jib, there in the backer-zi&e o' the cellar, s'now (dost thou know). The
backer end o' thick there field's
mortal rough, sure 'nough. Tord the backer part o'the wagin limbless.
BACKLET [baak -hit], sb. The back premises of a house; the backdoor exit. [Dhai-v u-roa'uzd mee rarnt
tu vaa'wur paewn a
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yuur, vur dhee'uz yuur aewz, un dhur ed-n noa gyurdn nur neet u beet uv u baak-lnt,~\ they have raised my
rent to four pounds a year for this
house, and there is no garden, and not any back-door, or back premises. Good backlet, is often seen
in advertisements of houses to let.
BACK-STREAM [baak-streem], sb. Tech. To every water-mill there is necessarily
a back-stream, which is the channel leading
from the weir, to carry off the surplus water. The leat and the back stream are as indispenable as the
waterwheel itself.
BACK-SUNDED [baak'zundud], adj. Facing the north; land sloping towards the north is said to be
baak-zundud. Cold back-zunded field o' ground, is a very common description.
Thick 'ouse is back-zunded, he ont
suit me in no price.
BACON-PIG [bae-ukn-paig]. A fat pig of a size fit to make bacon, as distinguished from a porker. In
chaffering for a pig, it is common to
say, [wai, u zaak u baa'rlee-mae'ul ul mak u bae'ukn-paig oa un,] why, a sack
of barley meal will make a bacon-pig of
him.
Trade in mutton and lamb was slow at *]\d to &/ per Ib. Pigs in
moderate supply, bacon-pigs, gs. 6d.
to 9-r. gd. per score; porkers, ioj. to los. 6d. Wellington Weekly News, Aug. 19, 1886.
BACON-RACK [bae-ukn raak], sb. A large frame suspended horizontally, under the beams in most farm
house kitchens, and in a great many
cottages, upon which is placed the sides of bacon as soon as they are taken from the salt;
here the bacon dries, and is kept
safely from rats and cats.
BACON-SETTLE [bae-ukn safl]. See SETTLE.
BAD [bae-ud], adj. This term as applied to a man (it is scarcely ever applied to a woman), is
generally understood to be limited to
one who ill-uses his wife, and includes idleness and profligacy, but it would not be used to
designate a foul-mouthed man. See
WICKEDNESS. [Ee z u bae'ud luy u-baewt fuul-ur ee doa-n aa-rlee kaar uur au'm noa-urt,] he is
a profligate, drunken fellow, he
scarcely carries her (his wife) home anything/, e. of his wages. A shocking bad fellow would mean
always, a drunken profligate.
2. Sick, ill. I bin that bad, I 'ant a-sard zixpence, is dree weeks.
BAD-ABED [bae-ud ubard]. i. phr. So ill as to be confined to bed, Plaise mum, father's bad-abed, and
mother zen n:e up vor t ax o ee, vor
to be so kind's to gee un a drap o' spurit.
BAD DISORDER [bae-ud deezau-rdur]. Lues venerea; always spoken of by this name, unless by a coarser
one.
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BAD-OFF-LIKE [bae'ud oa-f luyk], a. Badly off, needy. [Poo-ur dhing, uurz u-laf- tuurubl bae'ud
oaf luyk,'] poor thing, she is left
very badly off.
BAD-PLACE [bae-ud plae'us]. Hell. Mothers tell their children, [Neef yue bae'un u geo'd maa'yd-n
zai yur praa'yurz-n keep yur chuurch,
yue ul geo tu dhu bae'ud plae'us,~\ if you are not a good girl, and say your prayers and
keep your church, you will go to the
bad-place.
BAD WAY [bae-ud wai], phr. i. Ill; past recovery.
Thank ee, sir, her idn a bit better; I be ter'ble afeard her's in a bad ivay /. e. that she will die.
2. Going to the bad in several senses.
[Neef ee- doan au-ltur liz an, ee ul zeon bee een u bae'ud wai, un liz trae'ud can bee u waeth u vaardn,] if he
does not change his course (alter his
hand), he will soon go to the bad altogether, and his trade will not be worth a farthing.
BAG [baig], sb. i. A customary measure of both quantity and weight. Ordinarily, a bag is a sack made to
hold three bushels; but potatoes,
apples, turnips, and, in some local markets, corn, are always sold by the bag; and for each
article, not otherwise specially
contracted for, the bag is by local usage understood to be a
certain fixed weight: thus, a bag of
apples or turnips is always six score =
120 Ibs., while of potatoes it is always eight score = 160 Ibs.
Hence various-sized baskets, made to hold certain quantities, are called "half-bag maun,"
"quarter-bag-basket," "40 or 5olb. basket” = about one bushel; “2olb.
basket" = ^ of a bag. The bag of
corn of different kinds varies in different markets, and as a grain measure is obsolescent in most
places. The bushel of 64lbs. wheat,
481bs. barley, 4olbs. oats, is now the usual integer. See SACK.
2. The scrotum of any domestic animal.
3. The womb; also very commonly the udder.
4. The bucolic rendering of the slang figurative sack.
[Zoa ee-v u gaut dhu baig, aa - n ur?], so he has got the sack, has he not? /. e. been discharged from his
situation or work.
BAG [bag], v. To crib, to cabbage, to seize, to claim. Used rather in a jocular sense, and not intended
to convey the full force of to steal.
[Ee bagd aul dhur dhingz-n uyd um uwai',] he cribbed all their things and hid them away. In
games it is usual to cry out: Bags I
fust go! Bags I thick, &c. See BOARD.
BAGONET [bag-unut], sb. A bayonet.
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[A-J-1 dhu soa-ujurz-d u-gaut dhur muus-kuts wai dhu bag'unuts u-fik-s,] all the soldiers had their
muskets with their bayonets fixed.
Tha saujers wis all awmin cal'd up be night,
Way thare bagganit guns, vur ta zee aul wis rite.
Nathan Hogg, 'Bout the Rieting, P. i.
BAILIE [bae-ulee], sb. Bailiff (always).
Who's the bailie to the County Court, now th' old 's dead?
The sheriffs officer is always the bum-bailie. So we have market-bailies,
water-bailies, c. (See Ex. Scold. 1. 170.)
for a bayli, stiward & riche men of lawe schullen haue festis and robis and mynystralis, rich cloj>is
and huge ^iftis. Wydif, Eng. Works, E.
E. T. S. p. 129. (See Promp. Parv. p. 22.)
' De par dieux,' quod this yeoman, leve broker, Thou art a baili, and I am another.
Chaucer, Frere's Tale, 1. 131.
Bayly, an officer baillif, s. m. Palsgrave.
Bailli, m. A Bayliff (but of much more authority than ours), a
magistrate appointed within a
province. Cotgrave.
BAIT [bauyt], v. To feed on a journey.
[Dhee kns staa'p-m bauyt s-noa tu Raas-n bee Dhangk'feol,] thou canst stop and ba: t, thou dost know,
at (the) Rest and be Thankful (name of
a well-known public-house).
BAIT [bauyt], sb. A lure, a meal or refreshment; also any business a job.
[Aay-v u-gut u puurdee bauyt yuur, aa - n ees?] I have a pretty job hrre, have I not? This word is
invariably pronounced as here given,
and so it was in the fifteenth century bait would not be understood by many; so weight is always
wauyt.
Ees, fyschys mete on a hoke (or boyght for fisshes, P.). Esca, escarium.
Promp. Parv. p. 143.
BAKING [bae-ukeen], sb. i. The quantity of dough kneaded and baked at one time; the batch.
So good a bakin as ever I put in the oven.
Bakynge (or bahche, K.). Pistura. Promp. Parv.
2. A family dinner sent to the bakehouse.
[Aay-d u-guut u oa-vm-veol u bae-ukeenz tue, hatin dhu kraewn oa un vaa-ld een,] I had an oven full of
family dinners, too, when the crown of
it fell in.
BALD-FACED [baal fae-usud, baul fae-usud], adj. Description of a man without beard or whiskers like the
Chinese.
You know un well 'nough, but I can't mind hot's a-called; baald-faced,
pock-vurden old feller.
BALD-HEADED [baul-ardud], adj. Bald.
Poo-ur oa-1 blid! ee-z su baul ai'dud-z u blad'ur u laud,] poor
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old blood! he is as bald as a bladder of lard. A person is never described as bald; always bald-headed.
BALK [bairk], i. sb. Tech. A squared, unsawn log of yellow, pine timber of a particular kind.
Constantly applied to an imported log
of any kind of fir-wood, but not alone or without qualification such as a balk of Memel, balk of Dantzic,
balk of timber (the latter meaning fir
of any kind); but “a piece of balk” is understood as above. A carpenter said to me of a piece
of board I gave him for a purpose:
'Tis murder to use such stuff as that; this here balk is gettin ter'ble scarce, tis 'most so
dear's mahogany.
2. Joists, beams of a house.
To climben by the ranges and the stalkes;
Unto the tubbes, hanging in the balkes.
Chaucer, Miller s Tale, 1. 439.
Balke in a howse. Trabs. Pro nip. Parv.
Balke of an house, pouste. Palsgrave.
BALL [bairl], sb. A knoll, a rounded hill; as “Cloutsham ball" I know 'many fields in different parishes
called "the ball" all are
hilly and rounded.
Up to Thunder Ball over N. Molton Common to Twitching Ball Corner crossed over into Ball Ni - ck. Rec. N.
Dev. Staghounds, p. 69.
Met at Bray BallIb. p. 72.
BALL [bairl], v. and sb. To track a footprint; spoken only of a fox. [Aay bau'ld u fauks dai-maurneen
aup-m Naa'pee-Kloaz,] I saw the track
of a fox this morning up in Knappy Close. See
SLOT, PRICK.
BALL [bairl]. A favourite sign for public-houses; hence in the immediate neighbourhood of Wellington we
have several hamlets taking their names
from the public-house, while in one case the inn has long ceased to exits as White-^//,
Blue-fo// (2), Red-&7// (2). The
White-^z// Tunnel is well known on the G. W. Railway.
BALLARD [baalnird], sb. A castrate ram. See STAG.
BALLET [baal-ut], sb. Ballad (always). Song such as are sung at fairs generally comic, sometimes
obscene. “The true old form,
nearly." Skeat.
" They . . . took a slight occasion to chase Archilochus out of their
city, perhaps for composing in a
higher straine then their owne souldierly ballats and roundels could reach to. Milton,
Areopagitica, ed. Hales, p. 8.
BALLOT [baa-lut or buTut], sb. Bundle, package.
BALLYRAG [baaKrag-], v. To scold, to abuse.
[Uur baal'irag-r\. lig u pik'pairgut,] she abused him like a pickpocket. (Very common expression.)
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BAME [bae-um]. Balm. Melissa officinalis (always).
be o*er reisun is >et hwo >et here a deorewurfce licur, oer a
deorewurfce wete, as is bamc, in a
feble uetles. Ancren Riwle, p. 164.
Ac by mydclel J>er honge> her: a costrel as bou mijt se hwych ys ful of >at bame cler: >at
precious ys and fre.
Sir Ferumbras, 1. 511.
Gerard spells it bawms.
Bourne, an herbe, bauslme. Palsgrave.
BAME-TEA [bae'um tai']. The infusion of balm; it is thought to be a [fuyn dhing vur dh
ee'nfurmae'urshn,] fine thing for
inflammation.
BAM FOOZLE [baanrfeo'zl], v. To bamboozle, to play tricks upon, to deceive.
[Doa'n yiie lat-n baanrfio'zl zz,'\ dont you let him take you in.
BAN [ban; often bae-un], v. To forbid, to prohibit. [Ee ban un vrum gwai'n ee'n pun ee'z
graewn,] he forbid him from going in
up his land. October 1876. See FEND.
B ANBURY. The fame of Banbury, of which Halliwell gives several instances, is preserved in the old
nursery rhyme:
Ride a cock horse To Banbury
cross, To see a fine lady Ride on a white horse.
BANDOG [ban'daug], sb. A yard-dog, a house-dog, whether chained or not.
BANDY [ban-dee], adj. Having one or both legs bent inwards at the knee, knock-kneed: the opposite of
bow-legged. Used alone; not in
conjunction with leg.
A bandy old fellow. See BOW-LEGGED, KNEE-NAPPED.
BANES [bae-uns]. i. sb. Ridges in land. See BENDS.
2. Banns of matrimony; always pronounced as above; apparently a preservation
of Mid. Eng. (See BANE in Promp. Parv.
and Cat. Ang.; also under BANN in New Eng. Diet.)
Bane. . . also the banes of matrimony. Cotgrave. Es verly believe tha Banes will g'in next
Zindey. Ex. Scold. 1. 455. BANG
[bang], i. sb. A cuff, a clout, a blow.
[Aa-1 gi dhee u bang uun'dur dhu yuur,] I will give thee a cuff under the ear. The usual word used in
threats like the above. 2. A fib, a
lie.
[Naew dhee-s u-toa-ld u bang, aay noa*,] now thou hast told a lie, I know.
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BANGING [bang-een]. A very common expletive expressive of size; always used with gnurt.
[U guurt bang'een raat,] a great banging (I. e. very large) rat.
BANKER [bang-kur]. i. sb. A kind of rough erection of stones, or a bench upon which the stones for
building are dressed or nobbled. Is it
possible that the term for a covering for a bench may have been applied to the bench itself?
Or can this be the O. F. bane, a
bench, with our West Country redundant er added? Cf. legger, toe-er, &c.
curiouste stonclij) in hallis, boj>e in making of J>e housis, in
doseris, bancurs, and cujshens, and mo
veyn Jnngis ]>an we kunnen rikene. Wydif, Works, P- 434-
Banker. Sammarium, amphitaba. Prom p. Parv.
See also Way's n.'te, Ib. p. 23.
Banquier; m. . . . also a bench cloath, or a carpet for a form or bench.
Cotgrave.
2. A man whose business it is to hew rough stones into shape fit for walling.
Tom 's the best banker ever I zeed in my life. January 1876.
3. Rough boards nailed together like a small door; used by masons on a scaffold to hold their mortar,
called elsewhere a mortar-spot.
BANNIN [bae'uneen], sb. Anything to form a barrier, or temporary fence. When a footpath crosses a
field it is very common to crook down
branches of thorn, at intervals, on each
side of the path, to prevent people from straying from the track. This is frequently called [puufeen daewn sm
bae'uneen,~\ putting down some bannin.
BAN T [bae'un(t]. Am not, are not. The invariable negative of the verb to be, pres. tense, in the ist
person sing., and ist, 2nd, and 3rd
pers. plur. See Grammar of W. Somerset, pp. 55, 56.
BAN-TWIVY TWIST [ban twiivee twiis], adv. phr. (Very com.) Askew, awry, out of truth. Same in meaning
as scurry whiff. [Kyaalth liz-zuul u
weelruyt! neef ee aan u-ang dim wee'ul u dhu
wag'een aul Ian twuvet twus, jis dhu vuree sae'um-z u fiid'lurz uul'boa,] calls himself a wheelwright! and
if he has not hung the wheel of the
wagon all out of truth, just the very same as a fiddler's elbow.
BAR [baa-r], v. i. Used only in the passive voice. To be debarred, prevented.
[Ee wuz \i-baa'rd vrum gwai'n, kuz uv uz wuyv uur wuz u-teokt bae-ud jis dhoa-,] he was prevented from
going, on account of his wife she was
taken ill just then.
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BARE [bae-ur]. i. adj. Thin, lean, in low condition; applied to animals Atff*-boned.
[Dhai bee-us bee tuurbl boe-ur^ those beasts are very thin.
2. Plain, unadorned, meagrely furnished.
[Airnkaunvun bae'ur kunsaa'rn,] uncommonly bare concern said of a shabby performance at a
travelling circus.
BARE RIDGED [bae'ur-iij'ud]. Applied to riding on horseback without saddle or
covering to the horse's back.
Thee't never be able to ride vitty, avore canst stick on bare-ridged.
BAR-IRE [baar uyur], sb. Quite distinct from ire-bar. The former is merchantable iron for smiths'
use; the latter is a crow-bar.
Sometimes one hears, Where's the bar-ire? i.e. crow-bar; but the demonstrative makes all the difference.
In reply to a remonstrance about his charges, a blacksmith said: Well, sir,
'tis a little bit better now; but I
didn't charge no more vor shoein o'm when
bar-ire was more-n so dear again.
BARM [baa-rm], sb. The only name for yeast. A. S. beorma. BARNACLES [baa'rniklz], sb. Spectacles.
BARNEY-GUN [baarni-guun], sb. Shingles. Herpes.
[They zes how tis the barney-gun, but I sure you I 'ant got no paice way un (/. e. my husband) day nor
night, he's proper rampin like. July
1876. Mrs. R. .
Tho come to a Heartgun. Vorewey struck out and come to a Barngun.
Ex. Scold. 1. 557.
BARN-SIEVE [baarn zee'v], sb. Tech. A sieve of which the bottom is made of plaited cane used in winnowing.
BARN'S-DOOR [baa-rnz-doo'ur, or doa'ur], sb. (In the Hill district the first form, oo'ur, in floor
and door are heard; in the Vale the
second, oa'ur). The door of the barn, generally made in two parts, meeting and fastening in the middle,
while one, and sometimes both of these parts are again divided, so that the
upper half may be opened while the
under is kept shut. The only light in
a barn is usually that from the doors when open.
The possessive inflection is always retained barn-door is never heard.
The same occurs in many cases e. g. pig's meat = hogwash; cart's tail, &c. A farmer's wife said
to me: We never don't drink the pump's
water. July Qth, 1886.
A very common saying expressive of inconsistency is:
[Mud su wuul puut u braas nauk'ur pun a baarn-z-doo'ur,~\ (you)
may as well put a brass knocker on a barn-door. So we always say
barrfs-door fowls.
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BARN'S-FLOOR [baa'rnz vlocrur], sb. The only name given to the thrashing-floor. It is generally in
the centre of the barn, and on the
same level as the sill of the barri s-door, of which there are always two, one at each end of the
floor, /. e. back and front of the
building. It is never made to cover the entire space within the barn, but is only about ten feet in
width, its length being the width of
the building. It is generally raised above the bays on each side, and has a low wooden partition called
the spirting-board, on either side, to
keep the corn upon the floor. It is made of elm planks, two inches thick, while the rest of
the barn is usually floored with
concrete, or beaten earth. The best barns are constructed so as to drive a wagon loaded with corn in at
one door along upon the floor, and
when unloaded it passes out at the opposite door. Sec ZESS, POOL.
BARN'S-FLOOR PLANK, or PLANCH [baa-rnz-vloo-ur plansh], sb. A particular size of plank,
which is usually two inches thick and
eleven inches wide; it is of elm, on account of its toughness.
The above is applied to the boards or planks severally; when spoken of collectively as material they are
called planchin.
Thick there butt'll cut out some rare barrfs-floor planchin; i. e. flooring.
The same term is used for the wood-work of the floor: Plaise, sir, the barrt s-vloor* s a-come to doin
shocking bad; the planchin o' un 's
all a-ratted to [tich-eod,] touch-wood.
BARNY [baarnee], sb. An altercation, dispute, quarrel.
Of some quarrelsome neighbours, a man said: Twas a purty barney way 'em sure 'nough; and later on
the same day of another matter: I'll
warnt there'll be a barney over thick job.
Dec. 22, 1885.
BARREL [baa-ree-ul], sb. Applied to that part of the body of a horse which is between the fore and hind
legs; the belly.
[Ee du mizh'ur wuul een dhu baa'ree-ul, ee kn kaa-r-z dun'ur lau-ng wai un, ee' kan,] he measures well
round the body, he can carry his
dinner along with him, he can. Very often I have heard the above (verbatim) praise of a
stout-bodied horse.
BARREN [baa'reen], adj. Of any animal not pregnant. It is important to the grazier who buys the cow
or heifer to be assured as to her
state. One invariable question put by the buyer of a cow for grazing, before he completes the
bargain, is:
[Wuol yue wau'rn ur baa'reenY], will you warrant her barren? A barren animal may have had any number of
offspring.
BARRENER [baarinur], sb. A cow which has borne one or
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more calves, but is not now in calf. The regular Tech. word. Frcsh-barreners are constantly advertised
for sale. See FRESH.
PRESENT ENTRIES:
I barretter, 2 prime fat heifers, 3 fat heifers, 8 very superior fat Devon
heifers, 5 fat horn ewes, 10 fat hogs,
2 fat steers, 2 young barretters, Devon bull, Devon barretter, three-years-old heifer, in calf;
fresh barretter, cow and calf, Devon
yearling bull, 10 fat lambs, 10 fat horn ewes, I excellent shorthorn
barretter. Som. Co. Gaz. Ap. I, 1882.
Four good young dairy cows in milk and in calf, I barretter in milk.
Advert. in Wellington Weekly News,
Oct. 15, 1885.
BARREN-SPRING [baareen spring], sb. Water unfit for irrigation /. e. non-feitilizing.
[Ted-n geod wau'dr, tez u baareen spring,~\ was said to me by a tenant of a stream of water running near a
farmyard. Though clear and tasteless,
cattle will not readily drink it; they prefer the foulest ditch water. Probably it is too
cold for them.
BARRING [baa Teen], pres. part. Excepting, excluding.
[Aa'l bee dhae*er, baa-reen miisaa'ps,] I will be there, if not prevented by accidents.
[Baa'reen lats yue shl shoa'ur t-ab-m,] excepting unavoidable hindrances occur, you shall (be) sure to
have it. See LET.
BARROW-PIG [baa-ru paig]. A gelt pig (always). Never henrd alone, or otherwise than with pig. It
could not be said, “the pig is barrow”
it is always, “'tis a barrow-pig."
BARTLE [Baartl], sb. St. Bartholomew. Bartlemas fair held August 24tb, called a'so Bathemy fair
[baa'thumee].
BARTON [baa-rteen], sb. That part of the farm premises which is specially enclosed for cattle;
very frequently called the stroa
baa-rteen, because it is here that large quantities of straw are strewed about to be eaten and trodden into
manure. See COURT.
In this sense it is very common to reserve in leases the use of bartons, linhays, &c., for certain
periods after the expiration of the
term, for the consumption of the fodder which must not be sold for lemoval.
And also at any time after the first day of September to enter the bartons
and stalls, and haul and carry away
the dung, &c. Lease from Author to a farmer, dated Sept. 27, 1884.
The enclosure for corn and hay-stacks is called the maew-baarteen. See Mow.
The term barton is also applied to the entire farm and homestead, but in this case it is only to the more
important farms; very often it is the
manor farm, or the principal holding in the parish, whether occupied by the owner or not generally not.
In the~e cases the farm, including the
homestead, generally takes the name of the
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parish pr:ced'ng the barton, as Sampford Barton, Kittisford Barton, Leigh Barton, Chevithorne Barton, &c.
BASE [bae'us, bee'us, bae'us miilk, becrus miilk], sb. The first milk from a cow immediately after calving.
It is never used for dairy purposes,
but generally given to pigs. The word is used as often without mulk as with it. "I've a
stroked her down, for to take off the base"
See BiSKY-MiLK.
BASE CHILD [bae'us chee'ul]. A bastard.
BASTARD KILLER [baas'turd kee'ulur], sb. Tne plant savin -Juniperus sabina.
BAT [baat]. i. sb. A heavy laced boot, thickly hob-nailed; c illed also aa'f baats.
[Aay-d u-bun een tu beespai'k u pae'ur u baats,~\ I had been in to bespeak a pair of boots.
2. Bricks when not whole are called half or three-quarter bats, according to size, as compared with the
perfect brick.
3. In ploughing a field there are always some corners and gen jra'ly other small places which cannot
be got at with the plough, and must be
dug by hand these are called \baats\.
4. A round stick used to strike the ball in the game of rounders. This stick is oftener called a timmy.
As to a thef ye come oute, with swerdes and battes to take me.
Story of the - Three Cocks. Gesta Roman, p. 79.
BATCH [baach], sb. A baker's oven-full of bread. The quantity baked at one time.
The barm stinkt, and spwoiled all the batch o' bread.
Batche of bread, fournee de pain. Palsgrave.
See BAKING.
BATE [bae'ut], v. To reduce in price; to take less than demanded.
[Bae'ut mee zik'spuns-n aa'l ab-m,] come down sixpence, and I will have it.
[Aay oa'n bae'ut u vaardn,] I will not abate a farthing. The above is about the only meaning known in
the dialect.
BATER [bae'utur], sb. Hunting. An abater, or stag, which either from old age or hard living has
becomj "scanty in his head"
/. e. has not the rights (q. v.) which he should have in accordance
with his age. See Records N. Devon Staghounds, 1812-18, p. 9.
A heavy bodied stag with a large slot, having a head that might equally well
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indicate a baterov deer going back or a youngish one. Account of a
Stag-hunt on Aug. ^19, 1886, in
Wellington Weekly News, Aug. 26, 1886.
BATH [baath], v. t. To bathe.
[Wee baath uz ai'd uvuree dai wai chul wairdr eens mud waursh aewt airl dhu kuruup'shn,] we bathe his
head every day with chilled water, so
as to wash out all the matter (from the wound).
BATTENS [baafnz], sb. Tech. The strips of wood fixed longitudinally upon the rafters, to which
are fastened the slates, tiles, or
thatch, as the case may be.
BATTER [baafur], v. i. and sb. When a wall is made to slope inwards towards the building or bank, it is
said to baiter. The amount of slope is
called the batter. This word is the converse of over-hang.
BATTERY [baafuree]. Buttress (always).
Speaking of a wall which was leaning, a man said to me: I think he'd stan nif was vor to put up a bit
of a battery agin un. 1 4th Feb. 1881.
BATTLE [baat'l], sb. A heavy wooden mallet bound with two iron rings, used for cleaving wood. In this
sense we generally hear it coupled
with the wedges. Where be the battle- n wadges? See WEDGES. Pronounced also, but not so
commonly, beet'l, but-l^ buytl; the
last form is more frequently heard than the other two. See STANDING-BATTLES.
Still let them graze, eat sallads, chew the cud: All the town music will not move a log.
Hugh. The beetle and wedges will where you will have them. Benjonson, Tale of a Tiib, I. 3.
BATTLE-HEAD [baafl ard]. thumb fish.
i. (Always.) The miller's
2. A stupid, thick-headed fellow.
[Yu guurt baat-l ai'd! Aay niivur ded-n zee dhu fuuHir u dhee!], you great battle-head! I never saw
the fellow of thee!
BATTLE-HEADED [baafl-ardud], adj. Stupid.
[Ee-z dhu baa- tl-ai- duds guurt dung'ee'ul uvur yue zeed-n yur luyv,] he is the battle-headedest great
dunghill you ever saw in your life.
BATTLE-STICK [baafl-stik], sb. The handle of the battle, or beetle, as most glossaries call it.
[Dhu bas dhing vur u baat'l'stik-s u graewnd uul'um,] the best thing for a battle-stick is a ground elm.
BATTLE-STOCK [baafl-stauk], sb. The round head of the battle or beetle. It is generally made of a
junk of an apple-tree.
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[Mus airvees pik aewt u zaawur aa'pl vur baat'l-stauks zvveet aa-plz bee sairf eo'dud,] one must always
pick out a sour apple (tree) for
battle-stocks sweet apples are soft wooded.
BAUDERY [bairduree], sb. Obscene, filthy language. [Nuvur ded-n yuur noa jis bau'durec uvoa'r]
I never heard such obscenity before.
BAWL [baa-1], sb. Chatter, impertinence, talk.
[Oald dhee baa'l, uls aa'l maek dhee!], stop thy chatter, or I will make thee! [Kaa*n spark bud uur mus puut
een uur baa'l /], one cannot speak (in
reproof) but she must put in her impertinence. [Kau'm soa'us! yuur-z moo'ur baa'l-n.
wuurk, u puurdee suyt! ], come mates!
here is more talk than work, a pretty sight.
BAY [bar, rarely baa*y]. i. sb. A dam or bank for the purpose of retaining or turning water aside; never
applied to the water itself. In mixing
mortar, it is usual to make a circular bay of
sand to retain the water poured on the lime.
A very common method of fish poaching is to make a bay, at a dry season, so as to divert the stream from
a pool or hole, and then to dip out
all the water in the pool, of course catching all the fish. See STANK.
Moile, f., an arch, damme, or bay of planks, whereby the force of water
is broken . Cotgrave.
Bay (mech.) or pen, a pond head made very high to keep in water for the supply of a mill. Slat. 27 Elizabeth.
Cfabb.
2. The space on a roof between two principals extending from the eaves to the ridge. If an old roof
required new covering in uncertain
weather, it would be usual to give orders only to strip one bay at a time. It would generally be
about ten feet wide, but depending
upon the construction of the roof.
[Wee aa*n u-guut uun'ee bud waun bar u raeflurz vur tu fiin'eesh,] we have only got one bay of
rafters to finish.
3. That part of a barn which is generally on each side of the thrashing-floor; in this sense, no doubt,
the space partitioned off by the floor
partakes of the nature of a recess. The word is used to express the entire space on either side
of the floor. See BARN'S FLOOR, ZESS;
also POOL.
Ile^e houses with-inne J>e halle to hit med,
So brod bilde in a bay, fat blonkkes my^t renne.
E. E. Alliterative Poems. Cleanness, 1. 1391. E. E. T. S.
4. The second from the head of the points or antlers (q.?.) growing out of the horns of a red-deer, by
which the age of the stag is judged.
See Bow, POINTS, RIGHTS.
E
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BAY [bai], v. t. To pond or obstruct the flow of water. To bay back the water, is one of the commonest
of phrases.
The wind bayed back the tide. Mr. Baker 've a bayed back the water eens all o' it urnth down his ditch,
and we 'ant a got a drop vor the stock
to drink.
The water rose three feet in half an hour, and now you would have to bay back the stream to get a bucket full. -P.
Q. K., Jan. 10, 1880.
BAY [bai]. i. v. and sb. To give out the deep- voiced sound of a stag, or bloodhound, or other large dog.
Ordinary dogs are said to bark, while
to bay is to utter a long, deep howl. Of staghounds a man would say:
[Aay yuurd dhu bar oa-m,] I heard their bay. Of foxhounds, harriers, or small sporting dogs: [Aay
yuurd um gee'een tuung,] giving
tongue.
Bay of houndes, aboyement de chiens, aboy, sm. Palsgrave.
2. T. t. and sb. Hunting. Hounds are said to bay a deer when they surround him in some spot where they
cannot get at him, but keep baying at
him.
Here the pack bayed him on a rock for an hour, and in attempting to turn round he fell, and the hounds closed on
him.
Records North Dev. Staghounds; p. 41.
We see below us our quarry, dripping from his recent bath, standing
proudly on a rock surrounded by the
flowing tide. . . . . The hounds bay him from the land. Collyns, p. 143.
\Vhen this occurs the stag is said to be at bay.
]>e couherdes hound J>at time ....
he gan to berke on )>at barn, and to bale it hold,
>at it wax nei} of his witt. William of Palerme, 1. 32.
Favourite was stabbed in the flank by the stag when at bay, and died two
days after. Records North Dev.
Staghounds, p. 43.
BE- [bi-, bee-]. A common prefix to verbs, generally having a strengthening force, as in bek/iown,
beneaped; but sometimes having the
force of the prefix mis in misbehave, as in becall, &c. The examples in these pages will show it to
have as many significations as it
possesses in Mod. German. See BEHOPE.
BE [bee], /. part, of to be = been. Very common in the Hill district.
[Uur aath-n \i-bte tu chuurch ziinz Kuursmus,] she has not been to church since Christmas.
In Gernade atte siege hackle he be At
many a noble arive haclde he be.
Chaucer, Prologue, 11. 56, 60. We
l.abbe): be felawes gode and trewe: in body and eke on herte.
Sir Ferumbras, 1. 277.
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For euere my bred had be bake: myn lyf dawes had be tynt:
Ibid. 1. 577.
And snyde, Lord God, Jyfif hit be J)i wytt
Stawnche )>is feyr' lord Jhu, y prey nowe J?e, At ]>yn o\vne lust, for |>at is skytt, j?at ati )>yng ever ydo be, Chron.
Vilod, st. 327.
Vor es olweys thort her to ha be bare Buckle and Thongs.
x. Scold, 1. 545.
BEAK-IRON [bik-uyur]. The iron T used by coopers, on \vhich they hammer and rivet their hoops.
It answers the purpose of a small
anvil. The pointed end of a common anvil is called the \bik u dhu an'vee'u',~\ beak of the
anvil. Halliwell is wrong in describing
this as a blacksmith's tool.
BEAM [bee-m]. i. sb. Of a sull, or plough. The back or main support, now wholly of iron, but till
recently always of wood, to which all
the other parts are attached. Beneath the beam is fixed the breast or foundation of the
working part of the implement, and
from its latter end springs the tail or handle. See WANG.
2. Of a loom. In every common loom there are two beams or rollers, one called the [chai'n bee'm^\
chain beam, on which is wound the
warp, and from which it is unwound as the cloth is woven; the other called the \klau 'th bee'in^\
cloth beam, upon which the fabric is
rolled up as woven.
3. The balanced part of a weighing-machine, to each end of which a scale is hung. The whole apparatus is the
“Beam and Scales." See WEIGHTS.
BEAM [bee'm], v. /. To wind the warp upon the chain beam. This is a matter of some nicety, as all the
threads have to be kept even and
parallel, or it will not make a good bosom (g. v.}.
BEAMER [bee'mur], sb. A person whose work it is to beam chains /'. e. to wind the warp upon the
roller or beant^ ready for the weaver
to place in his loom.
f BEAM-FEATHERS [bee-m vadh'urz], sb. The stiff quill feathers in a bird's wing.
BEAMING-FRAME [bee-meen frae'um], sb. The machine in which the above operations preparatory to
weaving are performed.
BEAN-HAULM [bee-un-uul-um], sb. The stalks of the bean after thrashing. See PEASE-HAULM.
BEANS [bee'unz]. [Ee du nau' (or ee nairth) aew miin'ee bee'unz maek vai'v,] he knows how many
beans make five, is a very common
description of a cute, clever fellow rquivalent to t e ordinary phrase, He knows what he is about.
See B.
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BEARERS [bae-ururz]. At funerals there are two classes of bearers. The wider-bearers, who actually
carry the corpse on their shoulders,
and the pall-bearers, generally friends not related to the deceased person, who walk by the side and
hold a corner of the pall in their
hands the pall [pairl] being thrown over the coffin and the heads of those carrying it. All
this used, until lately, to be de
rigueur, but now it is becoming obsolete. The same custom may still be seen in some foreign
countries, where friends walk on each
side of the hearse, each holding the end of a band or ribband attached to the coffin.
BEARING [bae-ureen]. i. The block or eye in which any spindle or shaft revolves; the journal-box.
2. Any part of the spindle itself which touches a support, or on which it turns. A long shaft may have many
bearings in it, as well as under it.
3. The journals or gudgeons are likewise called bearings.
BEARING-PAINS [bae'ereen paaynz], sb. The pains immediately preceding
child-birth.
BEAST [bee-us], sb. Oxen. Collective noun, very seldom used as a singular.
[Wuur bee gwaa'yn wai dhai bee'us?^ where are you going with those “beast "? When used severally,
which is not very often, this word
becomes bee'ustez, and more rarely beerustezet. [D-ee meet dree bee'ustez kau'meen airn?], did
you meet three oxen as you came
onwards? See BULLOCKS.
Weary and wet, as bestys in the rain
Comes silly John, and with him comes Alein.
Chaucer, Reeve s Tale, 1. 187.
A farmer told me: [Aay-vu-gid aewt tu wuurkeen u bee'us doan paa-y; dhai doan kaum tu beef zu zeo-n bee
u yuur,] I have given up working
“beast," (it) does not pay; they do not become beef so soon by a year (as those not used for
ploughing, &c.).
BEASTLE [bee-usl], i\ t. To soil, to befoul, to make filthy. [Muyn un neet bee-usl ytir kloa'uz,] mind
and not soil your clothes. [Draat dhu
chee'ul! neef ee aa'n u-bet'usl liz-zuul aui oa-vur!], drat the child! if he has not befouled himself
all over!
How thick pony do drow the mux; he'll beastle anybody all over nif they baint awake to un!
BEAT [bah], v. t. and sb. A process in husbandry. To dig
Iff the "spine" or turf, and then to burn it and scatter the ashes
efore ploughing. Tlvs is a very common practice when Hill
ture has become overrun with objectionable growths, such as
se, brambles, or ferns; or when moorland is first tilled.
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[Dhik dhae'ur klee'v-zu veol u vuuz moa'rz, aay shl-ae'un u-for/ 1 ,] that cleeve is so full of furze roots, I
shall have it beaten. In other
districts this process is called Denshiring; i. e.
Devonshire-ing. There is some land
adjoining a moor in the parish of Culmstock
called "Old beat" [oa'l bait].
In \\\z Ex. Scold, this is treated as a substantive, 1. 197, and there is soma doubt whether the word originates
in a noun or a verb, because the same
word is used for the operation and for the thing operated on. "Pare and burn the
beat" is a very common expression, equivalent to simp-y beat. We hear
constantly of burn-beating, which does not help us, because it might mean
either burning the beat, or burning
and beating. On the whole I incline to
the verbal meaning, and the passage in the Ex. Scolding, 1. 197. Shooling o 1 beat, hand-beating, &c.,
seems to support this view. At the
same time, the past tense and past part, are very seldom used; but I believe I have heard both beated
[baitud,] and beaten [bai-tn]. The
latter, however, is a made-up word by somewhat educated people, and cannot be taken as
throwing any light on the question.
Beated would be said by the common labourer; but then it may be only a verbalised noun like
leaded, or salted.
BEAT-AXE [bee-ut-eks, bart-eks, biifeks], sb. A kind of broad mattock almost like an adze, used for
beating, as above,
BEATER [bee'utur, or bai'tur], sb. The drum in a thrashing-machine which
actually beats out the corn from the ear.
BEAT OUT [bee-iit, or bait aewt], v. To thrash. Birds are said to beat out the corn when they attack
it while still uncut.
BEAUTIFUL [bue'tipeol, bue'tifeol], adj. Delicious to the taste.
[Dhai brau'th yiie gid mee, wauz bue'tipeol^ they broth you gave me were delicious.
BECALL [beekyaa-1], v. To nickname, to abuse; to call by opprobrious epithets.
[Tu yuur ee*ns ee beekyaa'lud ur, t wauz shee'umfeol,] to hear how he villified and abused her, it was
shameful. [Uur beekyaa'ld-n. au'l dhut
uvur uur kud laay ur tuung tue,] she called him all the names she could lay her tongue to.
BECAUSE-WHY. See CAUSE WHY.
BED [bai-d]. i. sb. Called also [bai-d pees,] bed-piece. The piece of wood bearing on the springs or
axle of a waggon upon which rests the
body.
2. The under side of the stratum in a rock. It is a condition in most contracts for walling that the
stones shall be “well bedded
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in good mortar and laid upon their own proper beds" /. e. that the stones shall be placed in the wall in the
line of their stratification. A good
mason can tell which is the bed or under side of a stone, from that which was uppermost while yet in
the rock.
3. Of a sull. The part which slides along the bottom and side of the furrow, and has to endure the grind
and wear more than any part except the
share. It forms a kind of runner or wearing
part, and is bolted to the breast. In old wooden ploughs or Nanny-sulls it was an iron plate nailed on
to the breast. Called also, and very
commonly, the landside.
BED [bard], v. t. i. In building to lay a stone evenly and horizontally in its proper position. See
BED 2, supra.
2. To lodge.
[Uur teok-n een tu bard-\\ boa-urd,] she took him in to lodge and board.
Nobody can't never 'vord to bed-n. and board-n vor dree shillins a week, a gurt hard bwoy like he.
He sholen hire cloj>en, wash en, and wringen, And to hondes water bringen; He sholen bedden hire and J>e, For leuedi wile we J>at she be.
1280. Havdok the Dane, 1. 1233.
BED-ALE [baid ae-ul], sb. A feast in celebration of a birth. Halliwell is quite wrong; the liquor
usually prepared for these occasions
is never bed-ale, but Groaning-drink. The mistake arose from the last century glossarist of the Ex.
Scold., who glosses it (p. 120),
"Bed-ale, Groaning-ale, that which is brewed for a Gossiping or Christening feast." The
very passage (below) in which the word
occurs shows by the context that he did not
understand it, and fa& festival, not liquor, is meant.
Chawr a told that ye simmered upon wone tether, up to Grace Vrogwell's bfd-ale.Ex. Scold. 1. 564.
Feyneden hem for heore foode fouzten atte ale.
Piers Ploictnan, A. Prol. 1. 42.
Bride-ales, Church-ales, Clerk-ales, Give-ales, Lamb-ales, Leet-ales,
Mid-summer-ales, Scot-ales, Whitsun-ales; and several more.
Brand's Pop. Antiq. (410 ed.) V. i. p. 229.
Lancelot. Because thou hast not so much charity in thee as go to the ale
with a Christian. Two Gent, of Vtrona,
II. 5.
BEDANGD [beedang-d]. An expletive; quasi oath. {.Beedang'd eef aay due!], bedangd if I do!
BEDFLY [bard vluy], sb. Common flea.
BEDLIER [baidluyur], sb. A bedridden person. (Very com ) d woman in the almshouse at Wellington said
to me of an
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old man who had broken his thigh: He on't never walk no more; he'll be a bedlier so long's he do
live. May 31, 1885. In Devonshire they
say bcdlayer.
Promp. Parv. Bedlawyr. Bederecl man or woman Decumbens. Way in Promp. Parv. p. 28, quotes a will of
1419, in which bcdlawennen are left
fourpence each.
BED-MATE [bard mae'ut], sb. Bed-fellow.
BED-PAY [bard paay], sb. The allowance paid by a sick club to a member confined to his bed; this is
reduced to walking-pay so soon as he
can get up.
BED-TIE [bard tuy]. i. sb. The ticking or case enclosing the feathers or materials of the bed.
[Dhai vaewn dhu wauch u-puut een*suyd dhu bard tuyj\ they found the watch put inside the ticking of
the bed.
Taye: f. Any film, or thin skin. Une taye d'oreiller, a pillow-beer.
Cot grave. Mod. Fr. Taie d'oreiller, a
pillow-case.
2. The bed, including both feathers and case.
BEE-BIRD [bee-buurd], sb. The flycatcher or white-throat.
BEE-BREAD [bee'-buurd], sb. A kind of food gathered for the larvae, neither honey nor wax. A.S.
bio-bread. (See Boethius, sect. 23.)
BEE-BUTT [bee-bunt], sb. Bee-hive/, e. the common straw hive. See BUTT.
The belief is almost universal, that should a death occur in the house to which the bees belong, each butt
ought “to be told of it,"
otherwise they will all die. The coincidence of a death in my own family and the immediate and
unaccountable death of several hives
(all I had) of previously healthy bees, has occurred to myself twice within the last few years, and I have
been asked by several people, to whom
I have mentioned the fact, if I had “told the bees about it"? See W. S. Gram. pp. 99,
100.
It is considered very unlucky if in swarming the bees alight on a dead tree; it portends that there will be
a death in the family very soon.
BEECHEN [bucrrn], adj. Made of beech.
[Lau't u buch'n plangk,] lot of beech plank.
BEEN TO, phr. In speaking of meals, the usual mode of inquiry, if the repast has been taken, is,
[V-ee bun tu diurur?] /. e. have you
had your dinner? I've been to breakfast, simply means I have eaten it, and implies no movement
whatever, from or to
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any place in the process. So, "we went to supper avore we started," merely means that we had
supper.
Es wait to dinner jest avore. Ex. Court. 1. 486.
BEER [bee-ur], sb. Strong malt liquor; that brewed with the first mashing of the malt. See ALE.
BEER [bee*ur]. Tech. In weaving, the width of a piece of cloth is determined not only by the
fineness of the reeds or sldh, but by
the number of beer of 40 threads each in the warp. Hence warps are known as 20, 30, 40
beer-chains, and thus the latter would
be a warp containing 40 x 40 = 1600 threads. Used throughout the Western counties, but I
believe unknown elsewhere.
BEGAGED [beegae'ujd], adj. part. Bewitched, hag-ridden, over-looked.
Poor soul, her never 'ant a got no luck like nobody else; I ont never bleive eens her idn a begaged by
zomebody or nother.
What a Vengeance! wart betoatled, or wart tlia baggaged? Ex. Scold. 1. 4.
BEGET [beegif], v. t. and /. To forget. (Very com.) P. t. bee^au't; p. p. u-beegau't. I beget whe'er
I have or no.
Es don't know \vhot Queeson ye mean;
es begit whot Quesson twos.
Ex. Scold. \. 493.
BEGIN [beegee-n], v. i. i. To scold.
Maister'll begin, hon a comth to vind eens you an't a-finish.
2. To interfere; to molest.
What d'ye begin way me vor then? I did'n tich o' you, 'vore you begin 'd way me.
BEGOR [beegairr, beegau'rz, beeguunv, beeguunvurz]. All quasi oaths; asseverations.
BEGURGE [beeguurj-], v. t. To grudge.
He never didn bcgurge her nort; her'd on'y vor t' ax and to have, way he; nif on'y he'd a got it. The
still commoner word is bethink.
BEHAP [bee-aap-], adv. Perhaps, peradventure.
Behap you mid-n be there, and then what be I to do? [Dhai oan lee-ust aewt bee-aap',~\ i. e. perhaps
they will not last out.
By happe. Par aventure. Cot grave.
BEHOLD [bee-oa-1], v. To experience. [Nuvurdaed-n^-^7 noa jish stingk,] (I) never experienced
such a stench. Of all the rows I ever
[bee-oal] behold, that was the very wust.
BEHOLDING [bee-oa-ldeen]. Under obligation.
[Aa-1 ae-u waun u mee oa'un, un neet bee bee-oa'ldeen tu
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noa'baudee,] I'll have one of my own, and not be under obligation to anybody.
BEHOLDINGNESS [beeoa-ldeenees], sb. Obligation. (Com.) [Dhur id-n noa bee-oa'ldcenees een ut, uuls
wee eod-n ae'u-n,] there is no
obligation in it, or we would not have it or him.
BEHOPE [bee-oa-p], v. To hope.
I do behope, that by the blessing o' th' Almighty, I shall be able to get about a bit, and sar a little, nif
tis but ever so little, I do behope I
shall. Feb. 1882.
BEHOPES [bee-oa-ps], sb. pi Hope; confidence.
An old "Cap'n" at Watchet speaking of the diminished trade of the place said: “I bs in good behopes that
we mid zee it a little better arter a
bit." Dec. 17, 1886.
BEKNOW [beenoa*], v. To understand, to acknowledge. [Twuz wuul beenoa'd t-au'l dhu paa'reesh,]
it was well understood by all the
parish.
BELFRY [buul -free], sb. The room or basement in the tower, from which the bells are rung. The name is
not applied to the tower, nor to the
room in which the bells are hung. I know
several instances in which the ropes pass through the ceilings of
the belfry and the clock-chamber above
it, to the bells hung in the upper
story of the tower. See BELL-CHAMBER.
Bel Iff ay } Campanarium. Promp. Parv.
BELIKE [beeluykj, ad. Probably, perhaps.
[Geod nai't-ee; beeluyk yue'ul km daewn dhan,] good night to you; probably you will come down then.
Though found in Sir W. Scott, this
word is rare in Lit. English, yet in the dialect it is the commonest form.
Jealous he'was, and held her narrow in cage,
For she was wild and young, and he was old, And deemed himself belike a cuckold.
Chaucer, Millers Tale, 1. 38.
BELK [buulk, buul-kee], v~ To belch.
BELL [buul], sb. Of a stag. The bellow or roar of the stag at rutting time; said to be a very loud,
unearthly kind of noise; different to
that of any other animal.
Before the lapse of an hour I satisfied myself that what I had heard, was
the bell of the stag, roaming in the
distance. Collyns, p. 60.
BELL-CHAMBER [buul chunrur]. The upper story of the church tower in which the bells are hung.
In this district spires and steeples
are almost unknown; the \taawur\ or \chuurch
taawur^\, tower is invariable, even though it be a spire.
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(delwedd B8918) (tudalen 058)
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5 3 WEST
SOMERSET WORDS.
BELL-HORSE [buul airs]. The leader of a team. Formerly it was common, and even now it is sometimes
seen, that the leader carries a board
with four or five bells hung under it, attached to his collar by two irons: these irons hold
the bells high above the horse's
shoulders. The bells, which are good-sized and loud-sounding, are hidden from
sight by a fringe of very bright red,
yellow, and green woollen tassels; as the horse moves the jangle is almost deafening.
In setting children to run a race the start is given thus:
Bell-horses! bell-horses, what time o' day?
One o'clock, two o'clock, three and away!
BELLIS [buTees, buul'ees, buTeesez], sb. Bellows. A blacksmith of my
acquaintance always speaks of his [bul-eesez,] bellises. This form is quite common. In farm-houses,
where wood is still the principal
fuel, the bellows is in constant use. It is thought very unlucky to put the bellows on the
table; many a housewife would be
horrified at the sight.
A few years ago might be seen in Exeter, on a signboard:
Here lives a man what dont refuse
To mend umbrellases, bellowses, boots and shoes.
BELL-ROSE [buul roa'uz], sb. Commonest name for the daffodil Narcissus Pseudo-narcissus.
I knows a orchet a covered wi they there bell-roses. Feb. 21, 1881.
BELLY [buul'ee], sb. Womb. A very common bucolic saying, precisely expressive of what is called
“discounting” in commercial talk, is
[Ai'teen dhu kyaa-v een dhu kaewz buul'ee,] eating the calf in the cow's belly.
Bely. Venter, ak'tts, uterus. Promp. Parv.
BELLY-GOD [buul'ee gaud]. A glutton.
I calls he a proper belly-god; all he do look arter is stuffin his ugly guts.
BELLY-PART [buul'ee paart], sb. The thin bacon which comes from the abdomen of the pig.
BELLY-TIE [buul'ee-tuy], sb. The strap belonging to the harness which passes under the horse's
belly. There are always two; one to
fasten on the saddle, and the other to prevent the shafts from rising. Called elsewhere wanty
/. e. womb-tie.
BELLY-TIMBER [buul-ee timrur], sb. Victuals and drink; food in general.
[Kau'm soa-us! ed-n ut tuym vur t-ae'u sum buul-ee-tuwurf], come mates 1 is it not time to have some
victuals? Well, I calls it very purty
belly tim'er; I wish I midn never meet way no wisser.
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(delwedd B8919) (tudalen 059)
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WEST
SOMERSET WORDS. 59
BELONG [beelairng], v. To appertain. Used peculiarly in the dialect so as to make the person appertain
to the thing, instead of the converse.
For the question: “To whom do these houses
belong?" we should say: [Ue du beelau'ng tu dharzh-uur
aevvzez?] /. e. who belongs to these
houses?
A “forreigner” from Halse (about six miles off), seeking work, said to me: Be you the ginlmun, make so
bold, that do belong to this here
house?
At any fair or market it is very common to hear: Who do belong to these here bullicks?
The following shows this construction to be no modern corruption on the part of dialect speakers.
And whanne |>e dame hath ydo: J>at to ]>a dede longiih, And hopith for to hacche: or heruest
begynne, Thaune cometh )>er a
congioun, &c.
Langland, Rich, the Red. III. I. 43.
BELVY [buul-vee], v. i. To bellow, as a cow; to roar (always). [Dlvoal Jiip'see doan taek u beet u
noa'tees oa ur kyaav; ur aan u
buul'vud nuudhur wauns neet-s aay-v u yuurd,] the old Gypsy does not take any notice of (the loss of) her
calf; she has not once bellowed not
that I have heard. September 1884.
BEMEAN [beemai-n], ref. v. To disgrace, to stoop, to lose caste. [Aay kaa*n dhingk aewuVur uur'keod
beemai'n urzuul* vur tae'u jish
fuul'ur-z ee*,] I cannot think how she could have stooped to have such a fellow as he.
BEN [barn], sb. Part of the frame of a carding-engine. It is probably bend, as its shape is semicircular;
it serves to carry the various rollers
parallel to the main drum or cylinder.
BENDS [bai'nz], sb. The ridges in land which has been thrown up into "ridge and furrow" (q.
v.).
BENOW. See BY-NOW. BENT. See BONNET.
BEPITV [beepiit-ee], v. To commiserate.
[Aay sheod u bteput'ccd uur moo'ur, neef t-ad-n u-biin ur oa'n fau'ut,] I should have pitied her more, if
it had not been her own fault.
BERK [buurk], sb. Bark of a dog.
BERKY [buurkee], v. i. To bark (always).
I yeard-n (a fox) berkin, and gee-in tongue jist the very same's a hound. Our Tip on't never berky 'thout he
yearth a stranger. See GIVE TONGUE.
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(delwedd B8920) (tudalen 060)
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6o \VEST
SOMERSET WORDS.
Our dialectal pronunciation seems to be the archaic, and in this case again the literary form is the
corruption.
Gif tm berkest a3ein . Jm ert hundes kunnes.
Ancren Riwh, p. 122, 1. 3.
he k cured lovve to bi-hold in at
)>e hole: win his hound berkyd.
William of Palerme, 1. 47. (Sec also \. 55.)
Berkar, as a dogge. Latrator.
Berkyn. Laf.ro, baffo, banlo.
Wappon, or bcrkyn, idem quod, Berkyn, supra. Promp. Parv.
Berkyng of a dogge, aboyement. Palsgrave.
And J) 1 J>e whelpus w 1 in hur' body I J>e tyde/ Burke fast at e kyng and hur' also.
Chroii. Vilod. st. 222. (See also Ib. st. 227.)
BERRIN. See BURIN.
BERRY [buuree], sb. A group of rabbit-holes having internal communication. Called also [u buuree u
oa'lz,] a berry of holes. Hal. is
wrong. The word does not mean a "herd of conies," but applies to the burrows; for it is applied
equally to the “earths” or holes of
foxes or badgers; never applied to a single hole.
[Dhu buuree wuz dhaat baeg, dhu fuuruts keod-n git um aewt,] the berry was so big the ferrets could not
get them (the rabbits) out. A single
hole might be called a burrow, though rarely, but never a buuree.
A Holt (or berry] made by a Conny. Tute. Cotgrave, Sherwood.
BERRY [buuree], v. i. To dig a hole with the feet; to burrow: applied to any animal. Of a badger I have
often heard it said: Tidn a bit o'
good to dig arter-n; he can berry vaster-n you can. A dog is said to berry, when he marks and
digs at a rabbit-hole.
BESCUMMER [beeskiinrur, beeskuunrur], v. To besmear, either with filth or (fg.) with abusive
language.
[Ee beeskuunrurd-n oa'vur wuul',] he abused him thoroughly; but [Ee beeskuum'urd-n au*l oa'vur,] means
he besmear' d him all over with filth.
Minute changes of this kind often make vast
changes in the meaning.
BESOM [buVum], sb. The broom plant, often called [gree'n \>\LL'un\]sarothamnus scoparius. An
infusion of the leaves of this plant
is held to be the great specific in dropsical cases; but this infusion I have never heard called anything
but [breo'm tar,] broom-tea.
Bwoil down some green besom, 'tis the fmedest thing in the wordle, when anybody Ve a catched a chill
or ort.
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(delwedd B8921) (tudalen 061)
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WEST
SOMERSET WORDS. 6 1
BESTEST [bas-tees], adj. (Very com.) Double superlative of good; the very best.
[Dhaat dhae'ur-z dhu bas'tces livur aay-d u-gauf,] that is the very best I ever had. See INTRODUCTION.
BEST-PART [bas pae'urt]. The greater part; very nearly the whole.
[Dhu bas pae'urt u dhu war,] nearly the whole way.
[Dhai bun u-geo- bas parurt-\\v u aawur,] they have been gone nearly a whole hour.
BE SURE [bee slioa'ur]. To be sure; certainly.
[Bee-shoa'ur ted-n dun'ur-tuym urad'ee,] to be sure it is not dinner-time already. [B-ee gwarn t-ab-m?
Bee shoa'ur aay bee',] are you going
to have it? Certainly I am.
BETHINK [beedhing-k,/. f.; beedhairt, /. /. / u-beedhau -t, u-beedhau'tud: often beedhing-kt,
u-beedhing'kt], v. To begrudge, to
abstain from.
[Ee wiid-n niivur beedhing'k dhu muun'ee,] he would never begrudge the money. [Ee ded-n beedhing'k tu
airlur, vur au'l ee ded-n aa'rlee tich
oa un,] he did not at stain from (or begrudge
himself the satisfaction of) crying out (to halloo), though he
scarcely touched him. This phrase
means more than this; it implies that
he bellowed very loudly for a very slight blow.
When used in the above senses the past tense is always formed, either by the periphrastic did, as in the
example above given, or by the weak
forms of the perf. and past part, and the construction is generally negative as above. But on the
other hand, the use of the strong
forms of the perfect and p. p. bethought, or frequently bethoughted [beedhair-tud], completely
changes the meaning to the literary
sense of remembered, recollected. Unlike the literary usage, however, it does not necessarily
require the reflective form (bethought
me, or myself, &c.). We should say: Hon I come to think it over, I bethoughted all about
it /. e. I remembered all the
circumstances. The present tense, bethink, is not used, except as above /'. e. to begrudge: never to
express recollection.
BETIME [beetuym], adv. Early; not simply in good time.
[Muyn un bee dhae'ur beeluymj~\ mind and be there early. I shall be up betime to-morrow morning /. e.
early. Betimes is never used.
BETTER [bad'r], adj. comp. More in quantity or time; later in time.
[Dhur wuz bad'r-n. u diz'n oa-m,] there were more than a dozen of them. \Bad'r-n. u naawur u-gairn,] more
than an hour ago. [Twuz bad'r-i\ dree
u klairk,] it was past three o'clock.
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(delwedd B8922) (tudalen 062)
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62 WEST
SOMERSET WORDS.
BETTER-FIT [bad'r flit], phr. (Very com.) It wouM be better if.
\ - Bad-r fut dhai-d muyn dhur oa-n buVnees,] it would be better if they would mind their own business.
[Bad'r fut ee ad'n u-wai'nt u nee -us
dhu plae'us,] it would be better if he had not gone aneast the place.
BETTERMENT [bad'rmunt]. Same as BETTERNESS.
BETTER MOST [bad'rmaus, bad'rmoo'ees], adj. Almost the best not quite.
[Dhai wuz aui bad'rmaus soa'urt u voaks luyk,] they were all very respectable people, but not quite the
highest class.
I 'spose 'tis the [bad'rmoo'ees,] bettermost way vor to wrop-m up (/. e. a burst pipe); but the bestest
wid be vor to cut-n out and put in a
new one, nif could let out all the water. Jan. 10, 1887.
BETTERNESS [bad'rnees], sb. Improvement.
[Lat-s zee u lee'dl bad'rnees een dhiish yuur wuurk, uuls yue* un aay shl vaa'l aewt,] let us see a little
improvement in this work, otherwise
(else) you and I shall fall out.
BETTER-WORTH [bad'r waeth]. Higher in price, worth more. (Very com.)
The sheep were rather better worth, especially breeding ewes, which were
soM at from 35^. to 42,5-. each.
Market Report in Wellington Weekly News, Aug. 19, 1886.
BETWEEN-WHILES [twee-n wuyulz]. At odd times, at leisure intervals.
[Yiie kn due ut vuuree wuul twee'n wuyulz,~\ you can do it very well at spare moments.
BETWIXT [beetwiik-s], adv. Between. Usual form. Final t never sounded. To go “betwix th' oak and
the rind," is a very com. phrase
to express trimming, want of decided, manly, straightforwardness.
Tidn no good to reckon 'pon he; he do like to go betwix th' oak and the rind. He'll promise very fair
like, but tidn in un vor to zay Ees,
or No.
Ther com a kyte, while that they were wrothe,
And bar awey the boon bitivixe hem bothe.
Chaucer, Knightes Tale, 1. 321.
BETWIXT-AND-BETWEEN [beetwiiks-n-beetwee'n], adv. Neither one thing nor the other;
half-and-half; undecided.
^ I likes vor vokes to zay hot they do mane; but he's like zome o' the rest o-m, all betu<ix-n-belween,
nother one way nor tother; ) ou can't
never make sure which way he'll go arterwards.
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(delwedd B8923) (tudalen 063)
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WEST
SOMERSET WORDS. 63
Thy wyf and them most h an gen fer a-twynne,
For that betiuixe you schal be no synne, No more in lokyng than ther schal in dede.
Chaucer, Miller s Tale, 1. 403.
BEYOND [bee-yun-]. Over and above; in excess of.
I consider that beyond fair/, e. in excess of what justice demands. Said in reference to the terms of
an agreement by a farmer. This us 3 of
the word is common.
BIAS [buyus], sb. Said of birds or animals frightened out of th^ir accustomed locality as of partridges,
which do not seem to know where they
are flying. Ah! they be out o' their bias.
BIBBLE [biib-1], v. i. To tipple, to booze.
2. sb. Tipple, drink, beverage.
[Puurdee geod bub'l^ pretty good tipple.
BIBLE-OATH [buybl oa'uth]. A very strong asseveration. [Aa'l taek mee buybl oa'uth oa ut,] I'll
take my solemn oath on the Bible of
it.
BICKER [bik'ur], sb. Beaker: applied only to a wooden vessel of a certain kind and shape, used for
carrying water. It is deep and narrow,
made of staves and hoops, with an iron handle en one side; the general form that of a
pitcher. It holds about two gallons.
It is very frequently seen at farm-houses and cottages in the Hill districts of West Somerset and North
Devon. It is not used as a
drinking-vessel. There seems to be no certainty as to what the vessel was origiially. It seems
now to be taken for granted that it
was a drinking-vessel, but there is no authority for this; neither can it be said confidently
whence, or how, the word comes to us,
as we find Mod. Germ, becher, Mod. Icelandic bikarr, and Mod. Italian bicchiere. Its
pronunciation in the middle ages was
that preserved by us in the dialect, and by the Scotch. (See Murray, N. E. D.) It is as unlike modern
Eng. beaker as the modern conventional
ideal of the article is in all probability unlike the reality.
Byker, cuppe (bikyr, P.). Cimbium. Promp. Parv.
The following seems to prove it to have been a large vessel, but from its having a cover, it may not have
been a drinking-cup at all, most
probably a flagon. See BOWL-DISH.
I Jewe to John Forster my godsonne a becure of seiner y-keueryd, ]>at
vveyyth xxv ounsus i quarter. Will of
Thomas Bathe, 1420.
Fifty Earliest Wills, p. 45, 1. 7. (See also Ibid. 1. 17.)
BICKERMENT [bik-urmunt]. Discord, wrangling, contention. (Very com.)
[Yuur! draap* ut, wuol ee? lat-s ae'u las bik'urmunQ here! cease, will you? let us have less quarrelling.
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(delwedd B8924) (tudalen 064)
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64 WEST
SOMERSET WORDS.
Welsh. Bicre, sub., a conflict, skirmish, or bickering. Hence the
English bicker. Bwau crwys yn biccra
oedd. Richards.
Bikyr of fytynge (bykere or feightinge, P.) Pugna. Promp. Paiv. They bykered togyther halfe an houre and
more. Palsgrave.
DICKY [bik-ee], sb. and v. The game of hide-and-seek. To bik-ee is for the seekers to go and lean
their heads against a wall so as not
to see where th3 others go to hide. This is also called to [bik-ee daewn,] bicky down.
One often hears: [Bee'iil! dbee diis-n bik'es fae'ur, dhee-s zee 1 ,] Bill! thou dost not keep thy eyes closed,
thou dost see.
[Km airn, lat-s plaay tu bik'ee^\ come on, let us play at hide-and-seek.
BIDDYS-EYES [biid'eez uyz], sb. The heartsease; pansy. Viola tricolor.
BIDE [buyd; /. /. buyd; p.p. u-buyd] (the strong form lode is unknown in the West), v. To remain, to
stay, to lodge.
[Aay buyd stee'ul gin dhai wuz u-goo',] I remained quiet until they were gone.
The day is come, I may no lenger byde. Chaucer, Reeve's Tale, 1. 317.
Wi they last fellers I shan't bide Ta
ha no moore ta zay; Zo they mid put my
book azide, Er look zum other way.
Pnlman, Rustic Sketches, p. 74.
[Ee buydz laung wai dh-oal Maal'ee Joa'unz,] he lodges (along) with old Mary Jones.
This joly prentys with his maystir bood,
Til he was oute neygh of his prentyshood.
Chaucer, Coke's Tale, 1. 35.
BIDE [buyd], v. /'. To become pregnant, said of all animals. Her (a mare) 've a-bin dree times to
"Varmint," but her 'ont b:de
by un.
BIDE BY [buyd buy], v. t. To maintain; to insist upon; to stick to. (Very com.)
I've a-zaid it, and I'll bide by it.
Did he gie you a price in the place? Ees. Well, then, I'll warn un he'll bide by it, and tidn nat a
bit o' good vor to bid-n no less.
BIDIN, BIDIN-PLACE [buydeen], sb. Lodging; p^ace of abode. (Very com.) For illust. see PuL
Rustic Sketches, p. 21.
BIDIX [bdd-iks], sb. See BEAT-AXE.
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(delwedd B8925) (tudalen 065)
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WEST
SOMERSET WORDS. 6$
BIG [baeg,] adj. i. Bumptious, conceited, grand, consequential. [U suyt tu baeg' vur-z kloa'uz,] a deal too
big for his clothes.
Costard. I Pompey am, Pompey, surnam'cl the big.
Lovers Labour Lost, v. 2.
2. Applied to a river swollen with rain.
[Dhu wairdr wuz tu baeg' keod-n goo lairng,] the water was too much swollen I could not go along /. e.
ford it.
BIGETY [beg'utee], adj. Bumptious, pompous, haughty. Nothing suggestive of religious intolerance
.is implied.
[Maayn beg'utee luyk, id-n ur?] very bumptious (like), is he not?
BIGNESS [baeg-nees], sb. Size. (Very com.)
Hon I zeed it fust, twadn on'y the bigness of a pin's 'ead.
Bout the bigness of a good big turmut.
This pendent world, in bigness as a star
Of smallest magnitude close by the moon.
Milton, Paradise Lost, ii. 1052.
They (some insects) are much of the bigness of the common black beetle. Dr. T. Molyneux. Transactions of the Royal
Society, Oct. 1697, p. 751.
W T hite Specks . . . have since been observed to increase very much both
in Number and Bigness.
Account of a Negro-Boy that is dappel'd in several Places of his Body
with white Spots. Ibid. p. 781.
Used much by other writers about this time.
The Plum or Damson tree is of a mean bignesse. Gerard, Herbal, p. 1496.
BILLED [buTud], adj. Wild, confused, half-mad. [Doa'n ee keep aup jiish raa-tl, yue-ul
drarv mee bul'ud^ do not keep up such
noise (rattle), you will drive me wild.
BILLET [bill-lit], sb. A mess, a scrape, a "kettle of fish," a job.
[Yuur-z u puurdee bulut, shoa'ur nuuf!] here is a pretty concern, sure enough! [U fuyn bul'ut ee-d
u-gaut, vur tu git-n' tu geo',] a fine
job he had to get him to go. [Twaud-n u bae'ud bul'ut,~\ a man said to me of a situation
he had just left. This use is probably
derived from the soldier's billet, in the sense of the house, where he is lodged or billetled.
Hence any situation or position
becomes a billet.
BILLY [buTee], sb. i. When making Reed, the sheaves of corn are held firmly and only allowed to pass
into the thrashing-machine
sufficiently to beat out the com from the ears; they are then
drawn out again and laid aside to be
thrashed, combed, and finished by
hand; these partially-thrashed sheaves are called billies. Three
or four of these are usually bound up
together, and the bundle so made is
also called a billy. See REED.
F
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(delwedd B8926) (tudalen 066)
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66 WEST
SOMERSET WORDS.
2. A machine for spinning c.irded wool into a soft yarn called stubbing (see SLUBBING), which is again
spun into a smaller and closer thread
by the Jenny; both thsse machines have now been genera 1 ly superseded by modern appliances
though for some purposes they are
still in use. The Billy-roller (see Murray, N. E. /?.), referred to by Ure, is a straight
wooden rod of some eight feet in
length, round, and about the siz3 of a pike-staff each end is shod with iron, so that it naturally became
a formidable weapon for rioters. See
JENNY, WILLY.
BILLY [buTee]. A very favourite subject of simile or comparison. [Luyk bul'ee
oa!] is used in speaking of all manner of
subjects.
[Neet prai'ch! ees u kan', luyk b&l'ee oa!] not preach! yes he can, like Billy oh f
Nif 'twas on'y to catch a-vire, aa'l warn 'twid burn like Billy oh! Jan. 10, 1887.
BIM-BOMS [beem baunrz]. Church bells. Used to children. [Aa-rkee, Tairmee, tu dhu puu-rdee beem
baum'z^ listen, Tommy, to the pretty
bells.
Bim, bone. . . Ding, dong. . . Hark
the merry bells are ringing. . - .
W. Hills, Rounds and Can. 4. Now by
Day's retiring Lamp, He hears the
convent's matin bell, Bim borne bell.
Glee.
BIME-BYE [buym buy, baam-buy, buum buy]. By and by. See UM-BYE.
Bum bye, the squier com'd and zat (Es
collar windid roun' es hat) Upon the
grass, an' did begin Es vurrul'd rod
ta vaas'n in.
Pulman, Rustic Sketches, p. 18.
BIND [buyn], sb. i. A band either of twisted hay or straw, or of a green rod of willow, hazel, or
other tough wood, such as can be
twisted so as to become fit for a ligature for faggots sheaves, c.
^ [Due- ee uunv un kuut tue ur dree buynz*, un tuy aup dhaat cmae-ur eo'd,] do run and cut two or three
binds, and tie up that (faggot) wood.
No other term used.
2. The stalk of any creeping plant, as of hop, withy-wind,' traveller's joy, &c.
there again
When burr and bint were gathered; lastly there At Christmas; ever welcome at the Hall.
Tennyson, Ay liner's Field, 1. in.
IND [buyn], v t. Applied to wheels. To put on the tyre, to shrink a band of hot iron upon any
article. See BOND.
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SOMERSET WORDS. 6/
We've been so busy a-binin o' wheels, we haven't been able to begin. July 14, 1886.
BIRCHEN [buurchn], adj. Made of birch, as [u buurchn breom], a birch broom.
BIRD [buurd]. The partridge.
[Aay zeed u fuyn kuub'ee u buurdz uz mau'rneen,] I saw a fine covey of partridges this morning. Sportsmen
inquiring of labourers in the fields,
always ask if they have seen any birds, and are always understood to mean partridges.
BIRD-BATTING [buurd bae-uteen]. The only term used. The net is always Bird-battin-net.
Bat-fowling would not be understood.
Catching birds at night by means of a strong light held behind a net. The birds are driven
fiom their roosts, and fly towards the
light into the net. This latter is attached to two long sticks bent together at the ends, so as to
form an arch with a joint in the
centre, where the sticks meet. The fowler holds one of the sticks in each hand, which, when the
net is open, are far apart, and the
whole perpendicular. As soon as a bird flies
against the net he instantly folds it, so that the bird is enclosed. The net is then thrown down on the ground,
by which means the bird is more
effectually entangled. Large numbers of birds are caught in this way on winter nights, when
they roost in ivy or under the eaves
of corn-stacks. See BAT-FOWLING, Murray, N. E. D.
BIRD'S EYE. i. Germander Speedwell. The usual name. Veronica chanuzdrys.
2. The flower of the Evergreen Alkanet, a very common weed. Anchusa sempervirens.
BIRD'S MEAT [buurdz mart]. Berries either of thorn, holly, or ivy.
[D-ee livur zee buurdz mart su plarntee uvoa'r?] did you ever see berries so plentiful before? Also
bird-seeds of all kinds.
See MEAT.
BISGY [burgee], sb. A tool for rooting. It is a combination of heavy mattock and small axe. (Very com.)
Bes-ague, f. A (double-tongued) mattock. Cotgrave.
French, bes-aigue, double axe or bill, from Old Fr. bes, twice; aigu, sharp.
Murray, N. E. Diet. Thereon sette were
besaguys also.
ab. 1430. Lydgate, Chronicles of Troy, iii. 22.
On ech shulder of steele a besagew. ab. 1440. Partonope,\. 1936.
BISHOP [beesh-up]. i. v. To burn horses' teeth with a hot iron so as to destroy the marks of age.
(Very com.)
F 2
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This way of making a Horse look young is called Bishoping.
Bradley, Family Diet. s. v. Horse.
2. To trim or furbish up any article so as to make it look better than it really is.
3. To confirm.
Our Jim never wadn &-bishoped.
and by-cam a man of a mayde: and metropolitanus,
and baptisede, and busshoppede: with ]>e blode of hus herte.
Piers Ploivman, XVIII. 267.
Thoughe your chylde be christened, I wene he be nat bysshoped yet.
Palsgrave,
4. sb. A drink, compounded of various sweet ingredients.
A bowl of that liquor called bishop, which Johnson had always liked.
Bos-well, Life of Johnson, ed. 1831. I. p. 235.
BISHOP'S THUMB [beesh-ups dhuunr]. A well-known variety of pear.
BISKY [buVkee], sb. Biscuit.
[Wuol ee av u bus'kee, muy deenir?] will you have a biscuit, my dear?
Fourteen hundred tones off corn too be bakyd ynto bysky. 1595. Sir I. Gilbert in N. and Q. Ser. iii.
1864. Feb. 109/1 (Murray).
BISKY-MILK [buVkee miilk], sb. The first milk after calving. This is the commonest term in the district.
See BASE.
BIT [beet], sb. A short time, a little while. (Very com.) I on'y yeard o' it a bit agone /". e.
a short time ago.
BIT [beet], i. The tool used by tinmen and others for soldering.
2. A piece of money; coin.
[U faawurp-mee beet, u driip-mee beet,~] fourpenny piece, threepenny piece,
[u zik'spiinee beet,] a sixpence.
BIT AND CRUMB [beet-n kreo'm], ad. phr. Every morsel; entirely, altogether.
[Wee pikt aup uvuree beet-n kreo'm,~\ we gathered up every morsel. This is a very common expression,
and would be applied to any substance,
as hay, manure, seed, soil. The phrase is also used in the abstract I'd just zo zoon,
every bit and crumb.
Why 'tis eveiy bit and croom za bad as shutting a unvledged paadridge,
er >smg a hare avore he's old
enough to open ez young eyes ver the fust time!
Pulman, Rustic Sketches, p. 12.
BITCH-FOX [buch-fauk-s]. A vixen. Vixen is a literary word -we always say dog-fox and bitch-fox.
A Bitch Fox, Regnarde. Cotgrave (Sherwood).
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BITE [buyt], sb. Applied to grass when growing.
[Dhur-ul zeo'n bee u geod buyt u graas een dhu guurt mee'ud,] there will soon be a good bite of grass in
the great meadow /'. e. the cattle
will get a mouthful.
BITS ING [beet -seen]. Used with little, merely to intensify.
[Dhai" bee uun'ee lee'dl bjet'seen dhingz,] they be only little bitsin things. This in* termination often
has an adjectival force. Compare
"Great topping horse," "Fine slapping mare."
BITTER-SWEET [biirur zweet]. A very common and prolific apple; uneatable, but excellent for cyder.
A Bitty rswzte; amxrimellum. Cath. Anglicum.
Amer-doux, a bitter-sweet apple. Cotgraz'e.
The best sort of Cyder made of the Bitter-sweet.
Bradley, Fanning Dictionary (Murray).
BITTING-YARN [beet'een yaarn], sb. A small quantity of yarn of the same kind as the warp, which is
given to a weaver to enable him to bit
or piece any threads of his warp which may break while weaving the cloth. It is evident that if a
thread breaks, it is too short to tie;
the weaver must then insert a short length with two knots; these short ends he keeps ready, and
calls them bitting-yarn.
BIVVER [biivur], v. and sb. To shiver, to shake with cold. [Poo'ur dhing, aew ee due buvuree!~\ poor
thing, how he shivers! [Muy an-z bee
aul tue u buvur,~\ my hands are all of a shake.
and they were so couragyous that many knyghtes slioke and bettered for egrenes. 'Mallory, Morte d 'Arthur, I. xv.
(Murray).
BLACK, BLACK-LOOKING [blaa-k, blaa-k-lfeok-een]. Sullen, ill-tempered, frowning.
[Wuul! aay zumd u leok'ud maayn blaa'k,~\ well! I fancied he looked very cross. [Dhu blaa'k-tkok'eens
krai'tur uvur yue zeed,] the most
sulky-looking woman that ever you saw (lit. black-lookingesf).
BLACK-ALLER [blaak aal'ur]. Rhamnus frangula, or Buckthorn. Often so called
to distinguish it from the whit-aller or
elder.
Alnus nigra sive frangnla. The Black A Her tree.
The inner barke of the blacke Alter tree is of a purging and dry qualitie.
Gerarde, Herbal, p. 1470.
BLACK-A-MOOR'S BEAUTY [blaak-ee moa-rz bue'tee]. The flower scabiosa succisa.
BLACK-DOG [blaak duug]. A gun. To let go the black dog at, is to shoot at.
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[Ee wid-n staa'p, zoa aay puut dhu blaak duug aa'dr-n,] he would not stop, so I put the black dog after him
/. e. shot at him. I never heard a gun
called a black bitch, but it is often called
Black Bess.
BLACK-FROST [blaak vrairs]. A dry frost such as comes with an easterly wind.
BLACKHEAD [blaak-aid], sb. A boil, a gathering. See PINSWILL.
BLACK-HEART [blaak-aart], sb. An epithet; black-guard. The Cockney term bla*uard is never heard,
though blaak'aarf, with the same
meaning, is very common.
BLACK-MAN [hlaak'-mae-un], sb. A terrible object; a bogy (g. v.); a nursery terror. (Very com.)
Lizzy, you be quiet toreckly, else I'll put you in the cubid (cupboard) 'long way the black-man!
Now you be good chillern, else the black-man 'il come down the chimley arter ee.
BLACK POPLAR [blaak paup'lur, piip-lur]. Populus nigm, also called water-poplar.
BLACK-POT [blaak paut], sb. Sausage made of blood and fat. See POTS AND PUDDINGS.
BLACK-PUDDING [blaak puud'n], sb. Blood and fat sausage same as BLACK-POT.
In lyric numbers write an ode on His
mistress, eating a black-pudden.
Hudibras, II. Cant. iii. 1. 379. Some
for abolishing black- pudding And
eating nothing with the blood in.
Hudibras, III. Cant. ii. 1. 320.
BLACKSMITHY [blaak'smiithee], v. i. To practise the trade of smith. See FARMERY. He 've a gid up his place 'is zix months
now he do blacksmithy.
BLACK WINE [blaak- wuyn]. Port wine. A few years ago, when port and sherry were the only wines
seen in ordinary households, it was common to ask visitors whether they
preferred white or black wine. The
term is now nearly obsolete.
BLADDER [bhd'ur], sb. Talk, jaw, gabble.
[Oa-1 dhee bhd-ur! ] hold thy jaw! (Very com.) This is, no doubt, our Western form of the
North country blether or blather. See
BLETHER, &c., Murray, N. E. Diet.
BLADDER-HEAD [blad'ur ai'd]. A stupid and tiresome talker; to be put down; who will keep on arguing,
and will have the last word; a
wind-bag. Also a rough, coarse, brutal bully.
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- [Wur-z dhee man'urz? yu guurt blad'ur ai'd /] where are thy manners? you great bladder-head!
Sar-n jis but right! and I wish every gurt bladder-head like ee, mid meet way his hidins, same farshin.
Cf. Bletherskate, blatherskite. Murray, N. E. Diet.
BLADDERMENT [blad'urmunt], sb. Noisy talk; blustering. [Twuz noa'urt bud a blad'ur munt^ it was
nothing but a windy harangue.
BLADDER .MOUTH [blad'ur maewdh]. Epithet applied to a coarse, noisy talker, devoid of sense;
usually [guurt blad'ur maewdh}. The
consequent adj. {bladur maewdhud,~\ bladder-mouthed, is also very frequently
heard. Same as BLADDER-HEAD.
BLADE [blae'ud]. i. The upright part of a door or window frame. All such frames have two blades,
besides the sill and the lintel. See
DURNS; also W. S. Grammar, p. 14.
2. A term for a character; an individual.
[Puurdee oa'l blae'iid, shoa'ur nuuf!] pretty old fellow, sure enough!
BLAKE [blae-uk, blae-ukee], v. To bleat.
[Dhu sheep doan luyk dhik'ee vee-ul, dhai d-au'vees begee'n tu blae'ukee een un turaak'lee,] the sheep do
not like that field, they (do) always
begin to bleat in it, directly.
The sheep da blake-, the bullicks blare,
An the birds be gaily zinging.
Pulman, Rustic Sketches, p. 23.
BLAMED [blae-umd], /. p. Very common exclamation, amounting to a quasi-oath with quite as
much force.
[Neef aay due aa*l bee blae'umd!~\ I will be blamed if I do. [Blae'umd cef aay doa-n!] (I'll be) 1 lamed
if I don't. \Blae'um mee-, neef dhee
shaet-n ae' ut,] blame me! if thou shalt not have it /. e. a thrashing.
BLANCH [blansh], v. t. Hunting. To head back a deer, or turn him from his course.
Onwards to Westgate, when the deer was blanched. '
Records North Dev. Staghounds, p. 30.
He pointed for the decoy in the centre of the marshes running down to
the bay, but, being blanched, went up
into the coverts above West Porlock.
Wellington Weekly News, Aug. 19, 1886.
Thenne shalt )>ou blenche at a - bergh ' ber no fals wytnesse.
Piers Plowman, v;ir. 1. 227.
BLANKS [blangks], sb. Sparks of fire.
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At a recent fire at a farm a man said to me: [Luuk'ee dhu ween wuz tuudh-ur wai, uuls t-wid u bloa'd dhu
blangks rait daewn een taap oa dhu aay
rik,] lucky the wind was the other way, else it would have blown the sparks right down upon
the hay-rick.
See VLANKS.
BLARE [blae-ur], v. i. To bellow applied to cattle. [Want ae-ulth dhu kaewz? dhai bun blae'unen
airl z-mau'rneen,] what ails the cows?
they have been bellowing all the morning.
See BLAKE.
Bloryyrf or wepyn (bleren P.). Ploro,fleo.
Bloryynge or wepynge (bloringe P.). Ploraius, flctus. Promp. Farv.
2. To rave, to storm, to scold noisily.
[Dhae-ur u wauz, blae'ureen lig u guurt beol,] there he was, raving like a great bull.
The worthies also of Moab bleared and cried for very sorrow.
Isaiah xv. 4. Coverdalc vers.
BLAST [blaa-s(t], v. (Very com.) To inflate; to swell in the stomach (said of cattle).
In the spring, when green food is very plentiful, it often happens that cattle eat too greedily, and gas seems
to accumulate in the stomach, so that
they begin to swell, frequently to an enormous size. When in this state they are said to
be u-blaa'stud. The remedy is to drive
them about so as to give plenty of exercise; if this fails, a stab in the flank, when the
gas instantly escapes, and the wound
is covered by a pitch-plaster.
[Huurn! dhu kaewz v-u-broakt een'tu dhu yuung' graas, dhai ul zeo'n blaas dhurzuul'z neef dhai buydz
dhae'ur,] run! the cows have broken
into the young grass (clover), they will soon blast themselves if they stay there.
The same herbe slaketh the bowels whan they are blasted up and swollen.
Lyte, Dodoens (1578), I. xcv. 137.
BLAST [blaa-s(t], sb. and v. i. A faggot or even a branch of dry furze. In our Hill country, ovens are
heated with wood fires, and to cause
the fuel in the oven to blaze well is “to blast out the oven." The best material is dried
gorse; and a branch of this, which is
also constantly used to “catch up” the fire on the hearth, is always called a blast of furze, [u
blaa'st u vuuz].
2. v. To misfire; to flash in the pan. Closely connected with the a';ove, which implies blaze. No doubt
the phrase comes from the days of
flint locks and priming.
The darn'd old gun blasted, else I should a-had a fine shot.
BLEED [blid], v. t. This and the intrans. form, to bleedy [bhd'-ee], are very com. It and the sb.
blood are invariably pro-
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nounced alike. A man told me that in breaking stones "a sprawl cut my face and made-'n blidy jis the very
same's a pig."
BLEEDING-STICK [blid-een stik]. The round short staff with which farriers strike the fleam in
bleeding cattle.
BLESS [bias], v. To charm or cure by incantation. (Very com.)
[Aay wiid-n keep dhai dhae'ur wau'rts, neef aay wuz yiie* wuy! dh-oai dae'um Sneok-1 bias um uwai* vaur ee
turaak'lee,] I would not keep those
warts, if I were you why! the old dame Snook will charm them away for you directly.
In Mid. Eng. to bless meant to make the sign of the Cross, and thereby to consecrate, so that it is quite
easy to see how the word has come down
to us along with hokus pokus, &c.
Also kneolinde to eurichon, and blesce^S, ase hit sei$ $er. Ancren Riivle, p.
34.
Eftenvard huanne me stel)> yl>lissed<:
fringes oj>er onblissede huet J>et hit by. Ayenbite of Inwyt, p.
41. ffor, and he be blessid\ J?e
better ]>e be-tydyth.
Piers Plowman, Rich, the Red. ii. 75.
She blesseth hir, and with ful pitous voys.
Chaucer, Alan of L'awes Tale, 1. 351.
(See also Will, of Palerme, 1. 196.)
This carpenter to blessen him bygan. Ib. Miller's Tale, \. 262.
he lifte vp ys hond and blessed him ]>an: and recomancledem to god
almi^te.
Sir Ferntnbras, 1. 256.
(See also Ibid. 11. 340, 2963, 3623, 5705. See also Spenser, Faerie Queene,
B i, C6.)
than Ount Annis Moreman could ha bL-sstd vore, and net ha pomster'd
about et, as moather ded. Ex. Scold.
1. 25.
BLIND-BUCKY-DAVY [bluyn - buuk - ee - dae'uvee]. Blind-man's-buff. (Very
com.) Pulman says this means Blind- buck-and-h .vc-ye.
Pipes an' baccy, dree kird loo,
Bline-bucky-Davey, hunt the shoe
The wold plays one, the youngsters t'other, All mighty pleyz'd wi one another.
Pulman, Rustic Sketches, p. 64.
BLIND EARS [bluyn yuurz], sb. Ears of corn with no seed in them.
[Niivur ded-n zee zu mun'ee bluyn yuurz uz ez dhee'uz yuur,] (I) never saw so many blind ears as there
are this year.
should such flowers fail to be crossed, no fruit is borne, and the flowers
are then blind. Taylor, Sagacity and
Morality of Plants, p. 70.
BLIND-HALTER [bluyn-au'ltur], sb. The ordinary bridle belonging to cart harness, having two
blinkers, is always thus named, in
distinction to the night-halter, or “head-stall," by which the horse is tied up in the stable.
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BLIND-MAN'S HOLIDAY [bluyn blain mae'unz airlidai]. (Very com.) When it is too dark to see to
work not often applied to complete
darkness.
Come on soce! 'tis blind-man 1 s holiday; can't zee no longer, let's pick up our things.
What will not blind Cupid doe in the night, which is his blind-man's
holiday. Nashe (1599), Lenten Stiiffe
in Harl. Misc. vi. 167. (Murray.)
BLIND-MOBBED [blain maub'ud], adv. Blindfold (always). A farmer complaining of some bad work said:
Nif I didn do it better-n that
blind-mobbed I'd have my arms cut off. Jan. 20, 1885.
BLOOD [blid], sb. i. Body: person. The pronunciation is the same in all senses. (Very com.)
[Pocrur oal blid, uurs u-kairm maa'yn fraa'yul,] poor old body, she is come (to be) very frail.
Her auvis was a whisht poor
For blod may seo blod ' bothe a-Jmrst and a-cale, Ac blod may nat seo blod ' blede, bote hym
rewe.
Piers Floivman, xxi. 439.
2. v. t. and /". To bleed.
[Ee-s, u blid lig u pai'g, un u wuz blid au'l oa'vur,] yes, he bled like a pig, and he was blood all over.
BLOOD AND EYES [blid-n uy z]. A very common intensitive phrase.
[Aay uurn vur mee vuuree blid-n uyz>~\ simply means that I ran as fast as I could. [Wee wuurk vur ur
blid-n uyz,~\ we worked as fast as we
could.
BLOOD-SUCKER [blid zfeok-ur], sb. The horse-leech, in appearance like a young eel, which appears
in shoals in our brooks in spring.
They have the power of attaching themselves like a surgical leech, but I doubt much if they
would draw any blood.
BLOODY-BONES [blid-ee boa-unz], A goblin, a bogy used to frighten children. Mothers constantly
say to their children: [Neef yiie
bae'un u geod maayd, aa'l puut ee een dhu daa-rkee oa-1 lairng wai dhu blid-ee boa-unz^ if you
are not a good girl, I will put you in
the dark hole, along with the bLody-bones.
To terrify those mighty champions,
As we do children now with bloody-bones.
Butler (1680), Remains, ed. 1759, I. p. 77.
BLOODY-DOCK [blid-ee dauk], sb. Rumex Sanguineus.
BLOODY-FINGERS [blid-ee ving-urz], sb. The Foxglove. (Com.)
BLOODY WARRIORS [blid-ee wauryurz]. The usual name for wall-flowers of all KavteChtiranthus
Cheiri.
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BLOOMY-DOWN [bleo-mee daewn], sb. The Sweet-William. (Com.) Dianthus barbatus.
BLOSSOM [blairsum]. The flower of the hawthorn a very usual name.
School Inspector "What do you mean by May?" (several hands up) "Blossom." May 23rd,
1883.
BLOW [bloa-], v. i. To play, used in speaking of wind instruments. Fiddles and drums are played,
but flutes, trombones, serpents,
&c., are always bloa'd.
A man told me his [bridlrur Bee'ul kn bloa' dhu fliiet kaap'ikul,] brother Bill can play the flute capitally.
A baggepipe covvde he blmve and sowne,
And therewithal he brought us out of towne.
Chaucer, Prologue (Mellere), 1. 565.
2. To blossom.
3. sb. Bloom flowers in full blow.
BLOWTH [bloa-udh], sb. Bloom, blossom. (Very com.) [Dh-aa'pl trees bee veo'l u bfaa'udh dee
yuur,] the apple trees
are full of bloom this year.
Compare gretnth Daniel Deronda, B. IV. p. 246; also lewtJi,
varth, math.
the seeds and effects whereof were as yet but potential, and in the blowth
and bud. Sir Wai er Raleigh, Hist, of
World, p. 107. (Ed. 1677.)
his form and beauty though but yet in the bloivth. Ibid. p. 148.
BLOW UP [bloa f aup], v. i. Applied to the wind; to increase in force.
[T-l bloa' aup umbaay aay rak-n,] it will blow up (/. e. the wind will rise] by and by, I think.
2. To rate, to scold.
[Mae'ustur v \\-bloa~ud mee aup shoa'ur nuuf, un twuz yoa'ur fairt, au-1 oa ut,] master has scolded me
severely, and it was your fault, all
of it.
BLUE MILK [blue- miilk]. Milk which has been scalded and then had all the cream taken from it.
Hot d'em zend zich stuff-s this here vor? Why, tidn no other-way s-n
blue-milk.
BLUE MILK CHEESE [blue- mulk chee'-z]. Poor cheese made of blue milk. See SKIMMED MILK.
BLUE-VINNED [blue viin'ud]. Said of cheese when in the state of blue-mould also of any article
covered with mildew. See VINNED.
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BOARD [boa-urd], def. v. Used much in games.
[Boa'urdz aay dhu boa'urdf\ I claim the board. I never heard this word applied to stealing. See BAG,
BONE. ,
BOARD [boo-urd], sb. Table. Usually applied to the table-top, and not to the
entire piece of furniture. Very frequently called "table-&wd?" (q. v.) when the
entire table is referred to.
Hon I sar'd my parish purntice 'long way Mr. Tapp to Newhouse, they always used to put up the girt
frying-pan vull o' taties, tap the
board vor breakfast, and maister, missus, and all o' us used to
help ourzels.
A long \.zb\z-board and two furms, all one zide o' the house.
Survives in "bed and board," "board and lodging," “board
ing-school."
Yet eft hi sso'le by more clene, and more holy uor bet hi serueb at gocbs
lord of his coupe, of his breade and
of his wyne. Ayenbite of Inwyt (1340), p. 235.
At noon, ne at no time: and nameliche at soper Let nat syre sorfait: sitten at by borde.
( I 393-) -Pier* Plowman, P. ix. 1. 276.
Boorde Tabula, mensa, asser. Promp. Paru.
and sche seide, jhis lord, for whelpis eten of the crommys that fallen
doun fro the lord of her lord is.
Mattheiv xv. 27. Wydifvers.
and whanne men 3euen vs noujt renne we to be borde of be lord, axynge
almes fro dore to fo^. Wydif, Eng.
Works, E. E. T. S. p. 46.
BOARD-CLOTH [boo-urd klaa'th], sb. Table-cloth. By far the commonest name in the Hill country.
[Kau-m soa-us! lat-s ae'u sum brak'sus, navur muyn dhu boo'urd-klaa-th,~\
come soce! (q. v.) let us have some breakfast, never mind the table-cloth.
Bordedothe. Mappa, gaitsape. Promp. Parv.
a Burdedoth: discus, gausipe, mappa. Cath. Ang. Borde dothe, Nappe. Palsgrave.
Also to Elyzabeth, wyfe of be forseyd Robert, a boordi do^e with ij.
towelles of deuaunt of oo sute.
Will of Sir W. Langeford, 1411. Fifty Earliest Wills, p. 19.
a good bord doth with crosse werk, and another bord doth with mylyn<ns
at the tone ende.
Will of Roger Elmcsley, 1434. Ibid, p. 101. See also p. 56, 1. 22.
Also eschewe, withouten stiyfe
To foule the borde- dothe with thy knyfe.
Boke of Curt ay se, 1. no.
BOARDEN [boo-urdn], adj. Made of board. (Always.) As [u boo-urdn purtee'shn,] a partition made
of board.
The roome wheare the wooll lyeth shoulde allwayes bee bordened under
foote. Best Farming Books (1641), p.
24. (Murray.)
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BOAR-DISTLE [bocrur dus'l, duysl, daasrrl]. Carduus Lanceolatus. Probably
this is a corruption of Bur-thistle, induced by the coarse rank growth of this variety hence no
doubt having become boar, it has
developed into bull-thistle.
BOAR-STAG [boa'ur stag]. A castrated boar. See STAG.
BOB [baub], sb. In warping “chains” by hand, a round piece of wood is held, over which the “beer” or
half “beer” of “ends” runs, and thus
the hand of the warper is preserved from the severe friction of the constant running out of the
threads composing the warp. This
little piece of wood, generally of apple-tree, is called a bob, or sometimes a hand-bob.
BOBBERY [bairburee], sb. Row, contention, tumult, squabble. There was a purty bobbery way em, sure
'nough. (Very com.)
Bobbery, a disturbance, vow, or squabble; a term much used in the East
Indies and China. Smyth, Sailor's Word
Book, 1867. (Murray.)
BOBBIN [baub-een], sb. A kind of white string used to strengthen the hem in many garments. The
string, most commonly a leather
boot-lace with a knot at the end, by which the latch of many a cottage-door is lifted from the
outside, is always the bobbin. In the
story of little Red Riding-Hood, the wolf is told to pull the bobbin and the latch will go up. Except in
the sense of reel or spool (see
QUILL), which is not dialectal or provincial, bobbin in this district means string only. A running
tape in a pinafore is a bobbin. The
string of a baby's cap is a bobbin.
BOBS [baubz], sb.pl. Steelyards.
[Uurn daewn tu Beocrrur Eo'dz, im aa's-n plai'z tu larn mee liz baubz,'] run down to Butcher Wood's and
ask him (to) please to lend me his
bobs.
BODKIN, or BATKIN [baud-kin, baafkin], sb. The bar or whipple-tree used in ploughing or
harrowing, to the centre of which, by
means of the cops or clevis, is attached the foot-chain for dragging the implement. To each end of the
bodkin a horse 'is hooked on. In
working with oxen no bodkin is needed, because the leading-chain passes direct from the sull
to the centre of the yoke. See DRAFT.
Iron drags and harrows, with bodkins and chains, chain harrows, 2
mowing-machines. Adv. of Auction Sale. Wellington Weekly News, Oct. 15, 1885.
BODY [baudee], sb. Person. Used very commonly, as in the Scotch "Gin a body meet a body. 11
Although the usual impers. pron. is
anybody, yet very frequently a body is used for the lit. cue. Like anybody, this form is also followed by
a plural construction.
A body widn never think they was gwain to be zo a-tookt in.
Don't you tell a body no lies, and then they'll harky to ee again.
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B'JDY [bairdee], sb. The abdomen.
[Shd punt u flan'een raewn dhu baa' dee oa un,] (you) should put a flannel round his body /". e.
stomach.
BODY HORSE [baud'ee airs]. In a team of three, when driven one before the other, the middle
horse is called th2 baud'ee airs. When
breaking a colt to harness, it is usual to put him in this way between two steady horses. This is
called putting the colt in the body in
distinction to in the shafts.
BOGGLE [baug'l], sb. and v. i. To do anything in a slovenly, blundering way; to bungle.
[Wuul! dhiis uz u puurdee oa'l baug'l, shoarluy!] well, this is a pretty old bungle, surely! said of a bad
piece of tailoring.
BOGGLE [baug'l], sb. and v. A stumble not amounting to a fall said of a horse.
" How did the horse go?” “Middlin like, sir; he made a bit of a boggle two different times, but I'd
a-got-n well in hand: but I zee I must
watch-n, he do boggly 'pon level ground."
BOGGLER [baug'lur]. A horse given to stumbling, but not actually to falling.
BOGY [boa -gee], sb. A spectre, a black demon, a common nursery terror. Bogle and Boggle quite
unknown.
Th' 'oss jump'd a one zide, darn'd if I wadn jist a-turned over, jist the very same's 'off he'd a-zeed a
bogy; and 'twas nort but a newspaper.
Fear'd o' the dark! hot b'ee feard o'? D'ee think you'll zee a bogy? There idn none o' they about
now-a-days. See BLACK-MAN.
BOILING OF THEM [bwuuyleen oa-m]. Every one, the entire lot, all put together.
[Tuul eehaut t-aiz Bee'ul-z u waetrr dhu woa'l bwuuyleen oa-m puut um een u bai'g-n shee*uk um au'l aup
tugadrrur,] I tell you what it is Bill
is worth all the rest, (if you) put them in a bag and shake them all up together. This is a very
common way of expressing preference for one in a family.
BOIT [bauyt], sb. and v. t. Bait (always). Sometimes used peculiarly for a. job.
Nif that there idn a darn'd purty boit vor anybody to start way a Monday mornin. 1 shall go home to th' old
umman bum bye night, way my c'ane
shirt so black's a cMmley-zweep, and stink so
bad's a fitch. January loth, 1887. See BAIT.
O he not we, like foolish vish,
Wi' glitt'riiig things deceyv'd; We snatch
the boit an' veal the sting
To late to be releyv'd. Pulman, Rustic Sketches, p. 7.
Ez hook now 'e 've boiUd, an' at et he goos. Ibid. p. 21.
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BOLD MAKING [boa'l mak-een]. Making bold; using freedom; taking a liberty; presuming used
in accepting an invitation to take
refreshment.
[Dhangk ee, neef tud-n tu boa'l mak'een,"] thank yon, if it is not too bold making. On going away after a
repast, I have very often heard:
[Dhangk ee vur muy boa'l mak- een^\ thank you for my bold mak'ng /'. e. my intrusion, the
freedom I have used.
BOLSTER [boal-stur], sb. In a timber-carriage of the kind ca'led a [taap kaareej,] top-carriage /. e.
one on which the log is borne upon the
axles and nots wung up under them there is a
loose piece of wood on the fore-carriage, through the centre of which passes the main-pin. Upon this piece
rests the end of th^ log, and it is
firmly bound to it by a chain passing through holes made for the purpose. This is called the
bolster, and its use is to permit the
fore-wheels to “lock” without disturbing the burden fixed to it. There is a similar bolster
underneath the body of a wagon for the
same purpose. See PILLAR-PIECE.
BOLSTER-CHAIN [boal-stur crnayn], sb. A short, strong chain, one end of which slides freely on a
strong bar fixed to the fiitchels of a
timber-carriage. The other end is firmly fastened with “dogs” to the end of the tree, when
fixed upon the bolster. The use of the
bolster-chain is to hold up and keep steady the front of the fore-carriage, to which the shafts
are hinged. See BUSSEL.
BOLSTER-PIECE [boal-stur pees], sb. Used by sawyers. See PIT-ROLLER.
BOLSTER UP [boal-stur aup], v. t. To set up the fore-carriage in its proper
position, when the tree is loaded, and to fix
it with the bolster-chain. This operation is of great importance in loading timber upon a “top-carriage."
If not done skilfully the load will
not "ride" well.
BOLT [boa 'It], v. f. and /. i. To drive out of its burrow either a rabbit or fox, or a rat from its lair.
[Fae'umus lee'dl .biich tu boa' It u fauks,] famous little bitch to bolt a fox. Bolt is said of any animal
driven from its hold by ferret or
otherwise. [Rab'uts d-airvees boa'ltee bas een vrau'stee wadh'ur,] rabbits do always bolt best in
frosty weather.
2. v. i. To run away; to overpower his rider said of a horse. Also in a race or steeplechase, if a horse
swerves from the fence he ought to
jump, and goes on the wrong side of the flag, he is said to bolt.
BOLTING-HOLE [boa-lteen oal]. In rabbit-berries (q.v.) there are some holes which seem almost too
small for a rabbit to
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pass through; but from one of these, when pressed by a ferret, he is most likely to bolt. These are called
\boa-ltccn oa'lz].
BOMAN TEG [boa-mun tag'], sb. (Com.) Putty, when used by carpenters to fill up bad joints or
defective wood.
That's what we calls boman-teg, so hard's any 'ood or ire.
BONCE [bau-ns]. A large marble for playing.
BOND [baun], v. and sb. To put an iron ring while hot upon a wheel, or upon anything upon which it is
desired to make the iron fit very
tightly by the process of cooling in situ. To bond a wheel is to put the tyre upon it. Same as to bind
(q. v.). The bond is the tyre or ring.
A band or hoop of any metal is a bond, but unless of some metal it is a bind. Sheaves and
faggots have binds, not bonds. A mere
fastening, however strong, as a chain, is not a bond.
[Plai-zr kn ur ae' u baun puut pun dhu pluump? dhu vrau-s-v u-kraa'k-n,] please, sir, can we have a
bond put on the pump? the frost has
cracked it.
Also I bord mausure with a bond of seluer, & ouerguld, wyth a prent in
J)e myddylle, and a grypp amide.
Will of Thomas Bathe, 1420. Fifty Earliest Wills, p. 46.
BONE [boa'un], v. t. i. To squint along any article to see if it is straight, as joiners constantly do in
planing. Used commonly in all trades
needing straight lines.
[Yue boa'un un yuur-zuul, yue-ul zeon zee wur liz true' ur noa,] you bone it yourself, you will soon see
whether it is true (straight) or not.
Twenty four boningvofe had been originally provided.
Royal Survey in Philos. Trans. 1785, vol. Ixxv. p. 411.
2. Used in games; to claim, to crib, to seize.
\Boa unz aay dhik zuyd!] I claim that side! [Any vaewn zab-m oa-m, un aay boa'un dhu laut,] I found
seven of them, and I cribbed the lot.
Same as BOARD.
3. To steal.
I'm darn'd if zomebody 'ant a-bone my dinner, angkecher an' all. I zeed it to 'lebm o'clock, 'long way my
jacket!
BONESHAVE [booim shee'uv], sb. Sciatica (still used, but obsolescent).
Bonscha-we, sekenesse (bonshawe, P.) Tessedo, sciasis. Promp. Parv. >e Bane shaive (Baynshawe,
h.\Ossedo.Catholicum Anglicum.
a goode medicyn for boonshawe. Take bawme and fe>erfoie, >e oon
deel bawme, and >e J>ridde parte
fe)>erfoie, and staumpe hem, and tempere hem with stale ale, and lete l>e sike drinke
>ereof. Sloan MS. 100, f. 7.
ad guttam in osse que dicitur bonshawe. multum valet oleum de vitellis ovorum, si inde ungatur.
J'.'hn Anderne, Chirurgica, Sloan MS. 56, f. l8b. (Way).
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Es dedn't mean the Bonfshave, ner tha Barngun, ner the Heartgun, ner the Allernbatch that tha had'st in thy Niddick.
Exmoor Scold. 1. 22.
In a note to the above, dated 1778, is given the following charm, to be said with the patient lying on his
back on the bank of a stream with a
staff by his side.
Bone-shave right;
Bone-shave straight; As the water runs
by stave
Good for Bone-shave.
BONNET [bairnut], sb. The long grass which always appears in pasture fields when not mown for hay.
The cattle do not eat it unless it is
mown. The seed-stems of the blade grasses, which the cattle will not eat. (Called bent,
bennet in other places.)
There idn nort a wo'th cuttin, 'tis on'y a passle o' bonnet.
BONNET-STRINGS [bauirut-stringz]. Bents. From bonnet (q. v.) the transition is very easy to
bonnet-strings, which latter is really
a very suggestive name quite common.
BONNETY [bairnutee], adj.
[Dhik-ee vee'ul-z tuurubl bairnutee^ that field is very much coyered with long grass, or bents.
BOO [beo-], adv. i. Above; more than.
[Dhur waud-n beo- zab'm u-laf',] there were not above seven left.
2. aJj. Both.
[Aa-1 tak dhu beo' oa-m,] I'll take them both.
BOOBY-HUTCH [beo'bee uuch]. A very common name for any quaint, uncomfortable vehicle; it
implies a carriage of sonu sort, but I
never heard it used for a mere seat. I heard a man say of an old-fashioned chaise: “Where in
the wordle d'ye pick-up thick there old booby 'utch?”
BOOK [beok], sb. The clothes sent to the washerwoman by one family at one time.
[Aay wuz dhaat dhae'ur wai'k aay keod-n uulp kaar oa'm dhu bejk u kloa'uz,] I was so weak I could not
help carry home the wash of clothes.
The old word is buck, pronounced book. Skeat.
A Buck of Clothes. Buec. To Buck linnen. Faire la buee. To wash a Buck. Biter. A Buck- washer. Buandiere. A place
to wash Bucks in. Bnanderie. Cotgrave
(Sherwood). See Palsgrave, p. 472.
And laue]> hem in }>e lauandrie
And bouke]> hem at hus brest * and betej) hit ofte.
Piers Plow. P. xvn. 1. 330. See Skeafs note to P. P. p. 321.
Mrs. Ford. . . . You were best meddle with buck- washing
Merry Wives of Windsor, Act III. Scene iv.
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Falstaff. . . . they conveyed me into a w<:/-basket. Ford. A fl&-basket!
T^z/. By the Lord, a <5<r-basket: rammed me in with foul shirts and
smocks, socks, foul stockings and
greasy napkins. Ibid. Act III. Scene v.
BOOSTERING [beo'stureen], adj. Bustling, stirring, active. Her's a maain boosterin sort of a umman.
Wone mussent olvveys be a boostering, must a? Ex. Scold. 1. 295.
BOOT [tu beot]. In the phr. A? boot. Over and above, in addition, as a make-weight. Something into
the bargain.
[Wuul dhae'ur! gi mee vaawur paewn, vur dhu buut oa un, tin yiie shl ae-u dhu ai'd tu beot^~\ well
there! give me four pounds for the
butt and you shall have the head to boot (of a fallen tree). This is the only form of this word now
current in the dialect. Obs. as a
verb. See IN 2.
Botynge, or encrese yn by ynge. Licitamentum. Promp. Parv.
To give Boote or booty (for a thing exchanged). Retourner.
Cotgrave (Sherwood).
I boote in corsyng, or chaungyng one thyng for another, I give money or
some other thynge above the
thyng. What will you boote bytwene my
horse and yours? Palsgrave, p. 461.
Paris? Paris is dirt to him; and I warrant, Helen to change would give
an eye to boot. Troilus and Cressida,
I. ii.
BORE, BORER [boaT, boa'rur], v. and sb. A horse which holds down his head, and gets the bit in
his teeth, at the same time rushing
forward, is said to bore, or to be a borer. It is an aggravation of hard-mouthed.
BORIER [boaryuur boa f ree-ur]. The invariable name for an augur.
[Plai'z tu lai*n Tau'mus, u dree-kwaurtur boa'ree-ur^\ please to lend Thomas a three-quarter (inch) augur.
BORN DAYS [baurn daiz], phr. Lifetime.
Never in all my born days.
BORN-FOOL [bau-rn feol]. An idiot, a stupid ass. Epithet conveying no idea of congenital weakness of
intellect.
BOSOM [buuz'um]. In weaving, at every passage of the shuttle, a portion of the threads of the warp is
raised, and another part lowered, thus
forming an opening through which darts the shuttle. This opening, or rather division, is called
the bosom, and it is upon this that the
weaver has constantly to keep his eye, to see
that no ends are down i. e. no threads are broken, and that the abb or weft runs properly from the
shuttle. It is important to keep [u
ai'vm buuz'um^ an even bosom, that is, to have the
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rows of threads quite even in line, otherwise the shuttle strikes them in passing, and is either diverted
from its course or the threads are
broken. An old weaver's advice is: “Always keep your eye pon the bosom" See SLEIGH, LAY, RACE.
BOTE [boa'ut],/. /. of to buy. Bought; always so pronounced.
He [boa'ut] a ter'ble sight o' stock to fair and I auvis vinds-n a very fair man, he've [u-boa'ut] bought my
[bee'us lu yuurz] beast these years
(past).
Nere ]>e vorewarde no so strong: me &?3te is out wi]? wou, So )>at j>e king in such manere:
suluer wan ynou.
1298. Robert of Gloucester, Will, the Conqueror, 1. 455.
Wei he hit louede ine herte J>o he hit zuo dyere bofyte.
Ayenbite of ' Inwyt, p. 133.
Olyuer saide, "help, iesus ' ]>at bo^test us wij> J>y blode!
Sir Fer umbras, 1. 1153.
But fust to mek us caum'ferble,
We bate a lot o' stuff Ta haa a
pick-nit under heyde,
When we'd got vish enough.
Pulman, Rustic Sketches, p. 28.
BOTHERMENT [bairdhurmunt]. (Very com. old word, both in Devon and Somerset.) Trouble,
perplexity, difficulty. We've a-had a
sight o' bother ment way thick job.
BOTTLE [bairtl]. Bundle, or heap. Only used in the common saying; [Miid su wuul leok vur u nee'el een
u bairtl u stroa/] one may as well
search for a needle in a bottle of straw.
Botelle of hey. Ftnifascis. Promp. Parv.
I make botels of hay. Jt brttelle. Aske for the hosteller, he is above in
the hay-lofte makyage bjtelles.
Palsgrave, p. 620.
BOTTLE [bairtl, bairdl], v. and sb. To blister; to form bubbles or bladders.
[Aew dhu paaynt-s \i-bau' tld /"] how the paint is blistered.
[Dhu skee'n oa un wuz airl oa'vur bau'dlz, jis dhu vuuree sae'um-z au'f ee-d u-ae'ud u bliis'tur
au'n,] his skin was all over bladders,
just as if he had been blistered.
BOTTOM [bau'tum], sb. i. A small quantity of wine or spirit in a tumbler ready to have water addjd to
it. Common at all inns. “A bottom o'
gin and a bottom o' brandy for Mr. Jones."
2. The seat; anus.
Tommy, if you don't come in turakly, I'll whip your bottom.
3. v. t. To reach the bottom.
Boys bathing in deep water, say: 'Tis too deep vor me, I can't bottom it, and I baint able vor zwim.
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BOTTOM-GPvASS [bairdm graas]. The dwarf fine grasses which grow thickly, and come up later than
the taller varieties, such as all the
finer clovers. The term has nothing to do with
We shan't have much hay to year, if we don't get a good ground rain to bring up the bottom-grass.
BOUGH [buw], sb. This name is only given to a smaller branch of a tree whether still growing or
detached, but it implies the end of
the branch terminating in twigs. That part would always be called a bough which would be
tied up for faggot-wood.
Zee whe'er you can't pick a bough i. e. a sprig or two o' laur-yel and holm vor a bit o' kirsmasin.
See LIMB, RAMBLE.
BOUGHTEN [bairtn, bau'dn], part. adj. Bought, in distinction to home-made.
[Kau'm, muVus! wuy doa*n ee bae'uk? Aay kaa'n u-bae'ur dhiish yur bau'tn brai'd,] come, mistress!
(wife) why don't you bake? I cannot
bear this boughten bread.
Boughten stockings baint like home-made ones.
BOW [buw], sb. The name of the point or antler which grows from the front of a stag's horn, nearest to
the head. For the following account, I
am indebted to Mr. Chorley of Quarme:
" A male deer of one year old has in general one straight horn each side only, which we term his *
upright.' At two years old, he would
probab'y have bow and uprights above this point; at three years old he should have bow, bay,
and uprights; and at four years old,
bow, bay, tray, and uprights; while at five years, he should carry bow, bay, tray, with two
points on top, each side (/. e. on
each horn); he would then be what we call a warrantable stag, fit to hunt with hounds (a deer of ten
points), and perhaps he may go on for
a year or two with these points only, or increase them on top, on one side, or on both, as the
case may be, and in doing this may
possibly lose a bow, a bay, or a tray on one side or other. I think a stag is at his best at six years
old, or seven at latest, and then goes
back in the size and length of horn, though possibly he may increase the number of points on top to
as many as four on one side and three
on the other, or four on both. We seldom
find a pure forest (Exmoor) stag with more than this, which would make him (supposing of course he has all
his points or rights as we call them,
under) a stag of thirteen or fourteen points that is, ' bow, bay, tray, with three ' or * four on
top ' one side, and * bow, bay, tray,
with four on top,' the other. I have seen them with many more than this number of points, but in
that case the head is 1 palmated,' and
I do not consider the deer to be perfectly pure in breed, perhaps crossed with some other
kind of Red-deer. It is rare to find a
deer go on quite regularly in the increase of horn,
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as I say he should do, and does do sometimes; but he is very uncertain from various causes scarcity of
food, accidents, strength of
constitution, &c. I once knew one shed his horns twice in one year; but he was kept by a farmer near me,
and lived riotously and
unnaturally."
Bow must not be confounded with brow. Bow is the name of the Brow-antler (q. v.).
A warrantable stag has bow, bay, and tray antlers, and two on top of
each horn. A male calf has no horn, a
brocket only knobblers, and small brow
antlers. Records of N. Dev. Staghounds, p. 9.
BOW [buw], v. t. and /. To bend.
[Muyn yiie doan buw dhu zuyv,] take care you do not bend the scythe. The word bend is unknown. See ANGLE
BOW.
BOWERLY [baawurlee], adj. Burly, portly, stout; distinctly a word of praise, and not conveying the
idea of coarseness or roughness of the
lit. burly. Relates to appearance only.
[Ee-z u baawurUe soa'urt uv u mae'un,] he is a large, portly sort of a man. See Trans. Devon
Association, vol. xiu. p. 92.
BOWL [baewul], v. and sb. This word, whether signifying a skittle-ball, or to bowl, has invariably
the vowel-sound of aew or uw, as in
kaew or kuw = cow.
[Aa'l baewnl dhee vur zik'spuns,] I will bowl thee for sixpence. This is the ordinary challenge to play at
skittles for sixpence a side.
Bowling-alley, bowling-green are always [baewleen aal'ee gree-n]. It is interesting to observe how
distinctly the dialect has preserved,
in its pronunciation, the difference between bowl [baewul] a ball, and bowl [boa'ul] a basin while the
literary speech has, like the French,
confused them into the same sound.
Bolle, vesselle. Concha, luter.
Bo^vle. Bolus.
Bowlyn, or pley wythe bowlys. Bolo. Promp. Parv.
Boule: f. A bowl (to play with or to drink in).
Boule veue. A certain play at Bowie- en sting, wherein if the Bowie be at
any time out of sight, the caster
looses; whence,
Jouer a bottle veue. To deal suddenly, to act upon hazard, to work upon
no sure grounds. Cotgrave.
I bowle, I play at the bottles.
Wyll you bottle for a quarte of wyne. Palsgrave.
BOWL-DISH [boa-1 deesh]. A round bowl either of wood or metal, with a short, straight handle. Also
applied to a very coarse earthen
wash-hand basin. The word is very definite in its meaning as to these two kinds of vessel; one is for
washing, the other for dipping, but
neither for drinking.
a bolle and a bagge ' he bar by hus syde. Piers Plowman, P. vm. 164. Skeat remarks (Notes to P. P. p. 132),
“Bolle signified not only
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a bowl, but a capacious cup. . . . Hence the term boiler (bowler) for a deep drinker." We constantly
find bolle-cuppe, which seems to mean
a large drinking-cup.
Also I;eue to Kateryne Lewis my seruaunt, .x li. sterlings, and a bolle
aippe I-keueryd of syluer J>at
weyyth xvi ounsus iij quarter. Aiso I 3eue to >e sam Kateiinea^vw>rof seiner I-keueryd.
Will of Thomas Bathe, 1420. Fifty Earliest Wills, p. 45.
In this same Will the word becure occurs twice (one of these weyyth xxv ounsus I quarter "), and
bolle twice. He also gives "a
stondynge cuppe of seluer y-clepped a chales cuppe . . . . )>at weyyth xvij ounsus & halfe
quarter." From this, judging by
the weight, and that both were “i-keueryd” i.e. had covers, it appears that the becure was by far the
largest of all, and was what we should
now call * flagon. If this is so, the beaker (see BICKER) never was used as a drinking-vessel. but to
hold the liquor, from which it was
poured into bolles or cups of various kinds for drinking.
BOX [bauks], sb. Tech. The iron tube in the centre of a carriage-wheel into which the arm (q. v.)
fits, and upon which the wheel
revolves. To “box a wheel” is to fit and wedge this iron accurately so that the wheel may run truly.
Sometimes called axle-box.
BOXEN [bauk-sn] adj. Made of box.
[Dhur wuz u bauk'sn aj au'l raewri dhu gyuurdn,] there was a hedge of box all round the garden. A farm
in the neighbourhood is called
J?0xen-hedge.
BOX-HAT [bauks-aa't]. The name of the ordinary chimney-pot hat. To wear one in a country village is
thought to imply, or to ape,
gentility.
[Aay zeed Jee'unz yuung mae'un tu chuurch geod leokeen fuul'ur nuuf, un ee-d u-gaut au'n u bauks
aa't tiie*!] I saw Jane's young man at
church, good-looking fellow enough, and he had on a box-hat too 1 “A box-hat and a
walking-stick” are the climax of a
get-up.
BOY'S LOVE [bwuuyz luuv], sb. Southernwood artemisia abrotanum. A very great favourite with the
village belles. In the summer, nearly
all carry a spray of it half wrapped in the white handkerchief, in their hand to church. In
fact, a village church en a hot Sunday
afternoon quite reeks with it.
BRACK [braak], sb. The fat covering the intestines of edible animals. Of a pig when melted the brack
becomes lard, of other animal?,
tallow. See KIRCHER, FLICK, CAUL.
BRACKSUS [brak-sus, braek'sus]. Breakfast.
[Shaa-rp soa'us-n kaech yur brak'sus-n km airn,] (look) sharp, mates, and catch your breakfast (/'. e. eat
it quickly) and come on.
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BRAGS [bragz], sb. Boast. (Plur. only.)
[Ee maeiid-z bragz aew-u dued ut,] he made his boast how he did it.
I yeard'n make his brags eens he'd a-got vower hundred pound, hon th' old man died. Sept. 21, 1883. The
verb to brag is very seldom heard.
BRAKE [brae-uk], sb. A piece of land covered with high gorse or furze; also often called [u vuuz
brae'iik~\, a furze brake. Most Hill
country farms have their brake; many are well known “sure finds “for a fox as Tripp-bra&e,
Upcott-ltra&e, &c. Not applied
to a mere thicket.
The stag during this interval came Lack and lay down in Sweetery Brake . .
. then . . . down through the Brake to
the Sea.
Records, North Dev. Staghounds, p. 40.
BRAND [bran], sb. A log of firewood. It is generally understood to be split
into a convenient size for a hearth fire, and cut three feet in length. Cleftin brans is
favourite work in frosty weather.
[Haut ee aaks vur dhai branz?] what (do) you ask for those brands? See CORD.
The word certainly does not mean “a burning piece of wood; or a stick of wood partly burnt," as
defined by Webster. If it does, what
is a firebrand?
BRAND-RICK [bran'-rik] sb. A stack of fire- we od cut and split into brands. See WOOD-RICK.
BRANDIS [brairdees, bran'deez], sb. An iron tripod used to stand over a hearth fire, on which milk is
placed to be scalded, or any cooking
utensil. It consists of a fiat iron ring of about seven inches diameter, into which are welded
three straight legs so as to support
the ring horizontally at about a foot from the ground. (No other name.) Brandreth is unknown.
It'm one paire of andirons, one pa ire of dogges, one iron to sett
before the dripping panne and ij brandlzes x s .
Inventory of the goods of Henry Candy, Exeter, 1609.
BRANDIS-FASHION [brarrdees-faarsheen], adv. Three poles set apart at the bottom, but inclining so
as to meet at the top, would be
described as set up brandis-fashion. Any triangular arrangement of pegs or sticks set on end
would also be thus described.
BRASS [braa's], sb. Money; impudence.
[Kaa*n due ut, t-1 kau's tu muuch braa's,] I cannot do it, it will cost too much money.
[Mocrur braa's een dhee fae'us-n dhee-s u-gairt een dhee pairgut,] more brass in thy face than thou hast in
thy pocket.
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BRAVE [brae-uv], adj. In good health.
[Aew bee-ee z-mairrneen? Brae'uv, dhangk ee,] how do you do this morning? Very well, I thank you.
Oa brae'uv! a very common exclamation amounting to no more than “indeed!”
BRAVE AND, adv. phr. Very; extremely.
Missus is brave and angry, sure 'nough, 'cause you come home so late.
BREACH [braich], sb. Farming; land prepared for a seed-bed. If thoroughly
broken up and pulverized it is said to be a
good breach. If this is not done from any cause, a bad breach. See BREATHE.
BREAK [braik;/. /. broakt;/./. u-broakt], v. t. Farming; to plough up lea or pasture land.
Thick there field would stand well, 'tis murder to break-n. Hence Breach (q. v.).
He've a-brokt the Little Ten Acres and a-put-n to wheat.
BREAK-ABOUT [brai'kubaewt],?'./. i. Of cattle. To be accustomed to break
fence, or escape from enclosures. Meeting a girl driving cows, one of which was blindfolded,
I inquired the reason. [Au! ee du
brai'k ubaew't kaan kip-m noa plae'us,] oh, he (the cow) do break-about can't keep him no
place.
2. adj. The same girl added: [Uur-z u proper brai'k ubaew't oal dhing uur aez',] her's a proper
break-about old thing her is. October
1885.
[Dhai bee dhu brai'k ubaewts laut u sheep livur aay-d u-gaut,] they are the break-aboutest lot of sheep
(that) I ever had; /'. e. they get out
of every field they are put into.
BREAK ABROAD [brai'k ubroa'ud], v. To tear, to destroy.
[Shairkeen bwuuy vur braik ubroa'ud-z kloa'uz,] shocking boy for tearing his clothes.
[Dhiis ez dree tuymz uur-v u-broa'kt ubroa'ud ur dhingz,] this is three times she has torn up her clothes. A
very common act of tramps when
admitted to the workhouse.
BREAK DEAL [brai'k dae-ul], v. To misdeal at cards. (Always.)
BREAK IN [brai-k ee'n], v. t. To tame or subdue: generally applied to colts (not to horses), but very
commonly to dogs or other animals
usually trained. We never speak of a man or woman as a horse-breakeralways as a colt-breaker;
neither do we talk of breaking colts,
but always of breaking in colts, dogs, &c.
I'll warn un (horse) quiet to ride, but he never wadn v,-brokt in to harness.
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He's gvvain to make so good a pointer's ever I brokt in in my live.
BREAK OUT [braik aewt-], v. i. Applied to cattle. To jump or climb over the fence, or to escape from
a certain enclosure.
[Faa'dhur, dhu kaew-z -u-broakt aewt' ugee'un,] father, the cow has broken out again; /. <?. escaped
from the field in which she was
placed. Nov. 24, 1885.
Break-about is a frequentative verb, while break out refers to a specific action.
BREAK OUT [braik aewt-], v. L To have a regular drunken bout. To get drunk.
[Ee's! uz livur su muuch bad'r-n u yue'z tue, ee aa*n M-broakt aewt'-s muuns,] yes! (he) is ever so much
better than he used to (be); he has
not broken out these months (past).
[Ee ul due vuuree wuul zu lau-ng-z u doa'n braik aewt',~] he will do very well, so long as he does not break
out /. e. keeps sober.
Of one who has signed the pledge it is common to hear, “He've &-brokt out again, worse than
ever” /. e. taken again to
drunkenness.
BREAK THE HEART [braik dhu aa-rt]. When any phce of work is well in hand, and the first
difficulties are overcome, it is very
common to say, [Ee ul zeon braik dim aa-rt oa ut], or \Dhu aa-rt oa ut-s M-broa'kt^ the heart of
it is broken.
Compare Mr. Peacock's Lincolnshire “break the neck." This latter phrase we never use in this sense.
BREAST [bruY, braes'], sb. i. Of a sull or plough. The front part of the implement proper, which rises
nearly vertically immediately behind the share, and makes the first real
impact upon the soil. It is, in fact,
the front meeting-place, the ridge or apex, of the Broadside or Turnvore with the
Landside, and continued back beneath
the beam is the foundation of the other parts of the implement.
. . . that by a self-acting chain-and-rack motion the axle is always
shifted nearest to the forward end of
the implement, leaving the greatest proportion of weight resting upon the shares and breasts
which are in work.
Account of neiv Steam-plough. Times, July 17, 1886.
2. That part of the circumference of a water-wheel which is near the level of its axis. When the water
is conveyed to the side of the wheel,
and not over the top, it is said to be carried in upon the breast. Hence a ^/mtf-wheel in
distinction from an overshot or
undershot.
BREAST-ILL [briis't ee'ul], sb. Breast-evil; a gathering of the breast very common to mothers.
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BREAST-WORK [briis'wuurk]. Tech. Masonry built in a curve to suit the shape of a water-wheel;
also the sloping masonry of a weir,
down which the surplus water rushes from the weir-head.
BREATH [brath], sb. Bad smell; foul odour; stench (stink is the verb; not so often used as a subs, as
breath}.
[Neef ded-n mak um u lee'dl beet aa'dr dhu rae'ut, dhur-d bee jis brath- noa-baudee keod-n kaa'r um,] if
one did not make them (parish coffins)
a little after the rate, there would be such an odour, nobody could carry them (verbatim
sentence).
A.S. fti'(?%, es. m., an odour, scent. Bos-worth.
BREATHE [brai'dh, brai'v], adj. Farming. Open: said of ground when thoroughly dug and pulverized
for a seed-bed.
[Kaa-pikul vee'ul u graewn dhik dree ae'ukurz yue uun'ee gut-u plaew un drag-n wauns-n ez zu brai'dh-z u
aa'rsh eep,] capital field that
three-acre you (have) only to plough and harrow it once and (it) is as breathe as an ash-heap.
BREECHING [buurcheen], sb. i. The harness worn by the horse in the shafts, or [shaarp au's], in
distinction to the Clipping worn by a
leader or [voa*r airs]. See GRIPPING. Confined sometimes to the part
consisting of saddle, crupper, and breech-piece.
2. The part of the harness which goes behind the breech of the wheeler the breech-piece.
"Please to lend maister your burchin." June 28th, 1886.
BREED-IN-AND-IN [breed-ee-n-un-ee-n]. To breed with parents of the same stock, or too closely related
by blood (always); precisely the opposite of Halliwell's definition
"crossing the breed." See
Glossary B 5, Marshall's Rural Economy, E. D. S.
BRICK-KIL [brik kee'ul] (always). Brick kiln so also lime kit, malt kil. The n is never sounded.
Kylne for malte dryynge (Kyll, P.). Ustrina. Promp. Parv.
BRICKLE [brikl], adj. Brittle.
'Tis so brickie's glass. (Very com.) See BURTLE.
and the lioue (hoof) before wyll be thycker, and more bryckle than and he
has not benne morfounde. Fitzherbert 1
s Husbandry, 100/8.
BRIDAL WREATH. Plant, bearing long racemes of small white flowers. Francoa ramosa.
BRIDE- ALE [bruyd ae-ul], sb. A wedding-feast. Still in use, but obsolescent.
Jli-ydale. Nupciiz. Promp. Parv. A
Bridal. Nopccs. Voycz a Wedding. Cotgrave (Sherwood).
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and by that means the bride ale is deferred.
Benjonson, Tale of a Tub, Act III. Scene i. See also Ibid. Act II.
Scene i.
BRIEF [bree'f], sb. A begging petition.
[Tez u suyt arziur vur t-uurn ubaewt wai u bree'f-n. tez tu-wimrk,] it is much easier to run about with a
begging petition than it is to work.
If a pig or donkey dies, or other like calamity happens, it is usual to go to some [skauiurd tu drae
aewt u bree'j ], scholar to draw out a
brief, appealing for help to replace the loss. The loss is very often great gain.
BRIM [bnim], sb. A bank or hedge-side covered with brambles or other wild undergrowth. A rather common
name of fields is JSrivi-closQ. In
such a field one would expect a waste slope
covered with brambles, &c.
BRIMMLE [briim-1, fine talk, briinrbl], sb. Bramble. The word bramble is never heard; those who have
been to school, and so have been
taught the modern spelling, always say \brunrbl~}. Here again the despised dialect remains
true, while the literary dialect is
the corrupt. See EWE BRIMMLE.
A.S. Brunei, a brier, blackberry bush, bramble. Bosworlh.
Brere, or brynnneylle (brei)iniyll or brymbyll, P.) Tribulus vepris.
Pro nip. Parv.
Gurt plums an' pears, all ripe an' good,
Be thick agin the wall, An'
blackberries 'pon brini'les hangs,
An' nuts da slip brown shawl.
Pulman, Rustic Sketches, p. 42.
BRINDLED [buunvdld], adj. Striped: applied only to cattle. In this district the term does not mean
either spotted, or variously coloured;
but has a definite technical signification, implying nearly similar markings on a cow to those on a
tabby cat viz., black stripes on the
side and back, more or less defined, upon a brownish ground. Brindled cows are very frequently
the result of the cross between Devon
and Black cattle.
BRING-GOING [bring-gwarn, or gwaa-yn, p. t. braa't, p.p. u-braat], v. t. i. To spend recklessly.
[Dhai du zaiaewdhu yuung Mae'ustur Luuk'ees-v M-braa't gwai'n au'l-v u-gaut,] they say that young Mr.
Lucas has spent all he has.
2. To point out the way; to conduct.
[Wee ul bring ee gwarn su vaaT-z dhu vaawur krau'S wai,] we will show you the road as far as the four
cross way.
BRING ON [bring airn]. To teach, to train.
[Aay shl bring un au'n tu roa'pee, aa'dr u beet,] I shall train him to the trade of a ropemaker, after a
while.
He've ^.-brought on thick there young dog vor to retraive very well.
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BRISS [bris-], sb. The dusty fluff of cobweb, fibre, and dust, which accumulates under beds, behind
pictures or furniture not often moved.
Mary, do bring a duster and clean up all this briss behind the picture.
Thy Aead-Clothing oil a 'foust; thy Waitcoat oil horry, and thy Pancrock
a kiver'd wi Briss and Buttons. Exmoor
Scolding, 1. 155. See also p. 122.
BR1THER [bridh-ur], sb. Brother: the invariable form; bruudh*ur is unknown. Comp. Lit. Brethren.
ac bre\er were J>ei boj>e: as bi on fader. Will, of Palerme, 1. 2641.
Now by that feith, and that leaute
That I owe to alle my britheren fre.
Chaucer, Rom. of the Rose, I. 59^2.
BROACH [broa-uch], sb. i. The tooth of a wool-comb (always). See COMB-BROACH.
2. A meat-skewer or spit (rare, but I have heard it used). A broach out of a wool-comb makes the very
best skewer. Fr. brochc and brochette.
Broche or spete whan mete is vpon it. Verutum. Promp. Parv.
Whan you have broched the meate, lette the boy tourne, and come you to churche. Palsgrave, p. 471.
BROAD [broa'ud brairud], adj. Applied to salt the kind used for manure. At Taunton is a large
sign-board on which is painted,
"Rock, Broad, and Fine Salt." Dec. 1882. Broad-sdk is the common term.
BROADSIDE [broa-ud zuyd], sb. Of a sull the same as the Turnvore. When ploughs were all wood,
Broadside was the commoner term; now
that a peculiarly bent iron plate has superseded it, tnrnvore is the word
most used.
BROCK [brauk]. A badger. (Rare, but still in use in the Hill district.) Ang. Sax. Broc*. brock, gray or
badger. Irish. Broc a badger.
Brockeo. beest. Taxe. Palsgrave.
BROCK-HOLES [brauk-oa'lz]. Badgers' holes.
BROCKET [braukut], sb. Hunting. A young male deer over one but under three years old. See Bow.
The pack here divided, and part of them were stopped by Toe Faulkner
from a brocket, which went into Span
Wood.
Records, North Devon Staghounds, p. 49.
They had changed on a brocket in Raleigh Wood. Ib. p. 75.
BROKED [broa-kt], /. /. and /./. of to break (always). See W. S. Gram. p. 48.
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The coords o' wenter rude be broked,
Ver vreez'd-up growth's once more awoked.
Pulnian, Rustic Sketches , p. I.
Then aaderwards we vish'd agen,
An' putt on smallder vlies,
As daylight brotid.Ibid. p. 29.
BROKE-BACKED [broa-k-baak-ud], adj. Loose-jointed; flimsy; unstable. Applied to a gate, a
cart, or to any article or contrivance
which ought to be rigid and firm, but which is rickety. I heard an old, shabby carriage called a
\broa'k-baakud oal shair-dreedan*,] a broke-backed old shandrydan.
God save you alle, lordynges, that now here be! Bot brok-bak sherreve, evel mot thou be!
Chaucer, Cokes Tale of Gamely n^ 1. 7*9-
Broken-backed arne. Palsgrave.
BROKE VICTUALS [broa'k viiflz]. Leavings of food; remnants of meals.
Poor people who come to a house to beg, usually say: [Aay bee kau-m tu zee wur yue kn plaiz tu
gi mee u beet u broa'k vtit'lz, uur u
oa*l pae - ur u beotz u-laf oa*f,] I am come to see whether you can please to give me a bit of
broken victuals, or an old left-off
pair of boots.
BROODY [breo-dee], adj. (Very com.). Said of any hen bird inclined to incubate. Hen turkeys often
possess this instinct so strongly that
they will sit and sit even if all the eggs be taken away.
The spickety hen's gettin broody, I shall zit her 'pon duck-eggs. See ABROOD, Broody^\s.\\& are often in
demand in May for pheasant hatching.
BROOM-SQUIRE [breo'm-skwuyur], sb. One who makes brooms. He is generally a half outlaw, living
on or near a heathy moor, whence he
steals the material for his brooms. (Com.)
See EWE-BRIMBLE.
They there broom-squires be the ones that do's it (steal eggs); can't keep nothin vor em! July 13, 1886.
BROTH [bran -th]. A plural noun, and always construed as such. (See p. 12, Gram, of W. Som.) I have
never heard broths, as given by Mr.
Peacock in his Lincolnshire Glossary.
" They broth” “a few broth wi leeks in 'em."
An old doctor of my acquaintance always used to say: “Give him a few broth."
BROTHER- LAW [bridh'ur-lau]. Brother-in-law the /;/ always omitted; so also in all the similar
relationships.
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WKST SOMERSET WORDS.
BROW [bruw, braew], sb. A hill, an eminence, as well as the edge of the declivity.
[Dhu aewz du stan- pun u bruw luyk,] the house stands on a hill, as it were.
BROWN-STUD [braewn-stid-], sb. Brown-study; abstracted
state.
What's the matter, Liz? you be all to a brown stid.
BROWN-TITUS [braewn-tuytees, buurn-tuytees]. Bronchitis. (Very com.)
BROWSE [bruws], v. and sb. To trim the hedges/, e. to cut the brambles and other small
undergrowth which so rapidly
accumulates upon the sides of our West Somerset bank hedges. The browse is the brambles, &c. when
cut; also brushwood when cut. See
WALLET, NICKY.
BRUSH [brush, brish], sb. i. A tussle, a row: used precisely like the slang “go."
[Wee ad u miid'leen brush wai un, uvoa*r keod kaetch-n,] we had a fine go with him before we could
catch him. Note that we pronounce
(sweeping) brush [buursh].
2. [buursh], sb. and v. t. A kind of harrow, made by weaving branches of thorn into a gate or hurdle
used for harrowing pasture in the
spring. To brush a pasture is to draw this implement all over it. Very commonly done after
“dressing” grass-land before letting
up for hay.
3. To beat; to thrash.
I'll bursh thy jacket vor thee, s* hear me, ya darn'd young osebird.
Zey wone Word more, and chill brish tha, chill tan tha, chill make thy Boddize pilmee. Ex. Scolding, 1. 82.
BRUSHET [buurshut], sb. A thicket; a cluster of bush. [Dhik-eeaj- ez u-groa'd au'l tue u
buurshut^ that hedge is grown all to a
thicket.
In >e wode )>at Bonder stent: ten >oussant al by tale; And in )>at ilke bmsschet by f V.
J>ousant of o)>re and mo,
y-horced and y-armed ful sykerly: fro \>e top in-to J?e to.
Sir Fentmbras, \. 799.
BRUSHETY [buurshiitee], adj. Rough, shaggy; with all the branchlets left on: applied to sticks or
underwood.
You never can't make no hand o' stoppin o' gaps nif you 'ant a-got some good burshety thorns to do it
way.
A quick-set hedge when grown thickly is said to be [buurshiitee']. In stopping gaps in hedges, it is customary
to lay in branches of
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the White Thorn, in doing which it is a good hedger's part to make the thorns stand oat \buur shiitee~\ /. e.
bristling.
BUCK [buuk], sb. i. The male rabbit only is so called. Never now applied to a deer. See JACK.
Buck-rat is heard, but not often.
2. A young man who is smart, or particular as to dress. [Waud-n ee* u beet uv u buuk faurmr.rlee?
Wuul! lin'eebairdee
wdd-n dhingk ut, tu zee un naew,] was not he a smart young fellow formerly? Well! one would not think so, to
see him now.
3. v. t. Copulare said of a rabbit or hare, but never of a ferret. The sexes of the latter are always
distinguished by dog and bitch.
I bucke, as a kony or feret or such lyke. Je bouquette. Konyes buck
every month. Palsgrave, p. 472.
BUCKED [buukt], adj. i. Applied to a saw when warped. It constantly happens that a saw in
unskilful hands becomes twisted on one
edge this is called buukt. To buck a saw is to so handle it in using as to bulge or cripple
the blade in such a way that it will
not cut truly. A saw may be bent without injury as it can easily be straightened, but a bucked
saw is spoilt for any nice work, and
can only be put right by hammering by an experienced saw-maker. Any other tool would be buckled
(q. v.).
2. Applied to cheese when full of air-holes or blisters like bread badly made. See NOTE, Ex. Scold, p. 122.
BUCKISH [buuk'eesh], adj. i. Marts appetcns: said of hares or rabbits.
2. Dandified; showily dressed.
BUCKLE [buuk'l, v. To bend out of shape, to warp, to cripple.
[Due 1 ee tak kee'ur Maa'stur Uurchut yue doa'n buuk'l mee zuyv,] do take care, Master Richard, that
you do not bend my scythe. The word
means rather more than to bend, as it would
never be applied to any article without some spring, as to a
poker or piece of wire. These would be
bowed. It implies an injury; a
twisting or warping. A sheet of iron might be buckled without being actually bent. See BUCKED.
To buckle to means to set-to in earnest. Nearly all labourers wear a leather strap round the waist,
called a buckle -stewp; and when about
to exert themselves specially, draw the buckle a hole or two tighter. Compare "girding up the
loins."
Yeet avore oil, avore Voak, tha wut lustree, and towzee, and chewree,
and bucklee, and tear, make wise, as
any body passath. Ex. Scolding, 1. 290.
BUCKLE AND THONGS [buukl-n-dhaungz], adj. phr. Lean, scraggy, empty. Used both literally and
figuratively.
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(delwedd B8956) (tudalen 096)
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96 WEST
SOMERSET WORDS,
Poor old blid, her's a'most come to nothin can't call her nort but nere buckle -n thongs.
es olways thort her to ha be bare Buckle and Thongs.
Ex. Scolding, 1. 545.
BUCKT UP [buukt aup]. Dressed in holiday clothes; spruced up: spoken only of a man.
[Waud-n aawur Saam K-buukt aup dhan, laas Zun'dee?] was not our Sam smartly dressed then, last
Sunday?
BUDDLE [buud'l], v. To suffocate as from being buried in mud; not to stifle as with dust or vapour.
I have a farm named "Tarr
Buddie" where there is certainly plenty of mud, but I have been unable to discover the origin of the
name. From some appearances I think
there were possibly some washings of ore
from the hill (Tor, or Tarr) which rises above it. Tarr is common in the district.
I mind once up 'pon Dunkery I got in to one o' those yer gurt zogs; and if there had'n a-bin two or dree
there vor to help, I'm darn'd if
should-n zoon a-bin *.-buddled t 'oss and all.
the Old Hugh dracle thee out by tha vorked Eend, wi thy dugged clathers up zo vur as thy Na'el, whan tha wart just
a buddled.
Exmoor Scolding, 1. 135.
BUDDLE-HOLE [buud'l oa-1], sb. A hole in a hedge to carry off surface drainage. Possibly this
meaning may give the name to the above
farm. Certainly the drainage from a large
common passes through the homestead.
BUG [buug-]. A beetle.
So snug as a bug in a rug. Sef MAY-BUG.
BUGGLE-ARSED [buugi aa'sud], adj. Dutch built. You knows Page th'igler little fat
buggh-arsed, drunkin old fuller.
Verbatim, Aug. 29, 1885.
BU1LDED [bee'uldud], adj. Applied to an egg just before hatching. Some hours
before the young bird escapes, the egg is cracked at the larger end; when this has occurred
the egg is said to be \bec'iildud~\.
[Dhur-z vaawur u aa'ch-n dree moar \\-bee' uldud^\ there are four (already) hatched, and three more builded
/. e. just ready for hatching.
BULDERY [buul-duree], adj. Applied to weather; thundery, lowering, dark, threatening for rain.
We shall have rain avore long, looks so buldery.
Tha wut let tha Cream-chorn be oil horry, and let tha Melk be buckarJ in buldermg Weather. Exmoor Scolding, 1. 204.
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(delwedd B8957) (tudalen 097)
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WEST
SOMERSET WORDS. 97
BULGE [biilj, buulj'], v. t. i. To indent; to batter out of shape.
[Dhee-s M-buulj' een mee aat*,] thou hast battered in my hat.
[Zee aew yue-v \\.-buulj dhu tar pant,] see how you have indented the tea-pot.
2. sb. An indentation caused by a blow.
How come this here gurt bulge in the spranker?
B ULLAGE [buul'us]. Wild plum. I am unable to exactly identify the variety, but my gardener, an
Exeter man, tells me that bullace or
bullaces means a small yellow plum, and not the sloe, Prunus spinosa; and that it used to
grow in great quantities between
Exeter and Starcross. I have heard the word used by peasantry, but cannot say I have seen the
fruit. I suspect, however, that any
wild plum would be so called.
Welsh. Bwlas, s. winter-sloes, bullace. Richards. Bolas frute (hollas P.). Pepulum,
ntespilutn. Pro nip. Parv.
Of trees or fruites to be set or remoued. Boollesse, black and white.
Tusser, 34.
and Jnirjth J>e grace of god: gete vs sumwat elles, bolaces and blake-beries: pat on breres
growen.
William of Paler me, 1. 1808.
The Bullesse and the Sloe tree are wilde kindes of Plums. ... Of the Bullesse, some are greater and of better
taste than others.
Gerarde, Herbal, p. 1498.
A Bullace. Prune sauvage. A Bullace tree. Bellocier.
Cotgrave( Sherwood, 1672).
BULL-BAITING [beol-buyteen, beol-bauyteen]. The bull was tethered from a ring through his nose
by a rope to an iron ring fixed in the
ground, and was then set upon by dogs trained
to worry him. Many of these rings are still existing in situ, and the places are still known as bull-rings,
generally at the village cross-way, or
on the village green. Cf. the Bull-ring at Birmingham. Many now living have witnessed these
exhibitions, which regularly formed
part of the village revel.
BULL-BEGGAR [beol-bag-ur]. A ghost; a frightful object.
[Nuvur zeed noa jish chee'ul uur-z u-fee'urd tu g-een dhu daa'rk, eens uur miid zee u beol-bag'ur,
aay spoo'uz,] never saw such a person
she is afraid to go in the dark, lest she should see a ghost, I suppose. See BOGY. See Nares, I.
p. 118.
BULL-DISTLE [beol-duyshl daaslvl], sb. Same as Boar-distle. Carduus lanceolatus.
BULLED [buul'ud], adj. The condition of a cow (always). Marts appetens. In this word the usual
vowel sound of bull [beol] is
completely changed to that heard in lit. hull.
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(delwedd B8958) (tudalen 098)
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9 8 WEST
SOMERSET WORDS.
BULLERS [bul-urz buul-urz], sb.pl The flowers of any umbelliferous plants,
such as chervil, cow-parsnip, &c. I have heard it applied to the small feathery umbels of
the hog-nut. Bunium flexuosum.
Occasionally, though rarely, the name is given to the entire plant, particularly Htracleum
sphondylium.
BULLOCK [buul-eek], sb. The universal generic name for horned cattle including bulls as well as
cows.
[Dhu fae-ur wuz veol u buul'eeks, sheep-m, au'sez,] the fair was full of bullocks, sheep, and horses.
[V-ee zoa-ul dhik yaef'ur? Aa! vuuree nuys buul'eekf} have you sold that heifer? Ah! very nice
bullock!
Mr. Hosegood d'always keep a bullock \. e. a bull. Jan. 15, 1886.
BULLOCK-BOW [buul'eek boa-], sb. A round piece of wood, bent to the shape of U. The bow passes
round the animal's neck, and its ends
pass upwards through two corresponding holes in the yoke, which rests on the necks of the oxen.
This kind of ox-gear is now almost
gone out of use.
BULL-STAG [beol stag]. A gelded bull. See STAG.
BUM [buum], sb. Seat, buttocks, anus.
A Burning. Cul. A foul great Bumme. Culasse. Cotgr. (Sherwood).
Chloe. . . . before I disbased myself, from my hood and my farthingal, to these fo/w-rowls and your whale-bone
bodice.
Ben Jonson, Poetaster, II. I.
BUM [buum], v. and sb. To dun; a dun. Sheriffs officer. Also as in lit Eng. to dun into.
You can't bum nort into the head o' un.
I can't abear t'urn about bummin vokes vor money.
Those yer bums gets their money aisy like, they 'ant a-got to work 'ard same's I be a-fo'ced to.
BUM-BAILIE [buum-bae-ulee], sb. A sheriffs officer.
BUMBLE [buum -bl buum -1], sb. A bumble-bee.
I tell thee tidn a dummle-dary, 'tis a bummle.
I bomme, as a bombyll bee dothe, or any flye. Palsgrave.
BUM-CORK [buunv-kaurk], sb. A bung. We never use the word bung alone. So [buum--oal,~] a
bung-hole \buum-shecuv, ,] bung-shave,
a taper cutting tool for enlarging bung-holes used by coopers.
BUMMLE [buunrl], sb. A bundle; a quantity of anything; an untidy package.
[Aay zeed-n wai u guurt buum' I tiie liz baak,] I saw him with a great bundle on his back.
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(delwedd B8959) (tudalen 099)
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WEST
SOMERSET WORDS. 99
[Dhaat-s u fuyn buum'l, shoa'r nuuf!] that is a fine slovenly parcel, sure enough!
BUMP [bump], v. t. To jolt; to shake.
I wish we could have some springs a-put to our cart; hon I do ride in un to market, he do bump anybody
jis to death.
BUMPING [buunrpeen], adj. Big.
[Dhaat-s u buunrpeen luy,] that's a bumping lie. On'y zix mon's old! well then, I calls-n a
gurt bumpin cheel vor his age.
BUMPY [buunrpee]., adj i. Uneven: said of a rough road. Bumpy-lane; the name of a lane in
Wellington.
[U buumpee soa'urt uv u roa'ud,] an uneven sort of a road.
2. v. i. To shake; to jolt.
Well he do bumpy a bit j I 'spose, Missus, we must see about some springs vor-n arter a bit.
BUM-SUCKER [buurrr-zeok'ur]. A toady; a tuft hunter. (Com.)
BUM-TOWEL [buum-taewul], sb. The bottle-tit,
[Jaak! aay noa'us u buum-taeiwulz nas* wai zab'm agz een un,] Jack! I know a bottle-tit's nest with seven
eggs in it.
BUNCH [buunch], sb. i. Spot, patch, mark.
[Ee d u-guut buun'chez au'l oa'vur dhu fae*us oa un,] he had
spots or marks all over his face.
2. Bad figure; stumpy shaped; squat.
[Aay ziim uur leok'ud au*l tue u buunch^\ I fancy she appeared all of a bunch.
BUNCHY [buun-shee], sb. Banksia (rose) (always). No doubt the clustering growth of this variety has
led to the corruption. I never didn
zee my bunchies so fine 's they be de year.
BUNCHY [buun'shee], adj. Punchy, short, fat, stumpy. [Uur-z u buun'shee leed'l dhing, uur aez',]
she is a short, fat, little thing, she
is.
BUNGY [buung-gee], adj. Short, stumpy, squat: spoken of both man and beast.
[Puurdee lee'dl au's u lee'dl tue' buung-gee luyk,] pretty little horse a little too squat and short.
Bungy old fuller like, all ass an' pockets, 's-now.
BUNT [buunt], sb. A machine for dressing flour /. e. for separating the flour from the bran and
pollard. A bolting-mill; always called
bunt in this district.
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