A GLOSSARY OF PROVINCIAL WORDS USED IN HEREFORDSHIRE. 1839. BERKELEY LIBRARY imWz* TYOF CALIFORNIA J PROVINCIAL WORDS HEREFORDSHIRE. &&lL7- creor^e Come w&M <_/• cw/ s GLOSSARY PROVINCIAL WORDS HEREFORDSHIRE AND SOME OF THE ADJOINING COUNTIES. LONDON: JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE-STREET. 1839. LONDON : Printed by William Clowes and Sons, Stamford Street. LC7+ PREFACE. The following Glossary is intended to exhibit a collec- tion of the provincial words and expressions used in Herefordshire and some of the contiguous counties. The only collection of the provincialisms of Here- fordshire which has been hitherto made is that in- serted in Duncumb's topographical work on the county. As this list is meager and imperfect, and as it is contained in a scarce and expensive book, it seemed worth while to form a new collection, and to print it separately. In order that the nature of the following Glossary may be understood, it will be convenient first to define the classes of words which are included in it ; and secondly, to state the extent of country which it comprehends. A provincial word seems properly to mean a word which is not actually used in the written or spoken language of educated persons, but which is current in the familiar language of the inhabitants of some district. 597 A provincial word, as so defined, may belong to any one of the four following classes : — 1. Words used by classical writers, but now obso- lete. Examples of this class are furnished by the words Cantle, Mirky, Pleach, in the following Glossary. 2. Words not obsolete, but used only in poetry, or as technical terms. See Craven, Dank, and To Oust, in the following Glossary. 3. Words which are not known to have ever been used in the language of educated persons. Such are, for example, the words Dar, Gorm, Niscal, in the following Glossary. 4. Words substantially the same as words current in the language of educated persons, but modified in form. In some cases, the provincial form is more ancient than the literary form ; as the preterits col- lected at the end of the following Glossary. In some cases, there is a variety of forms without any indi- cation by which the greater or less antiquity of either can be determined : see the words Keech, Pank, Queek, in the Glossary. In other cases, the provin- cial form is a corruption of the literary form, arising from ignorance : as Atomy, and Rusty, in the Glossary. The following Glossary is intended to comprise all words, coming within any of the classes just described, PREFACE. Vll which are current in Herefordshire and parts of some of the adjoining counties. Many, if not most, of the provincial words current in Herefordshire are (as will appear from the references in the Glossary) cur- rent as provincialisms in other parts of England. This is likewise true of many words included in other provincial glossaries. Indeed, few provincial words are confined to any one locality. " In collections of this kind (Mr. Hunter remarks, in the preface to his Hallamshire Glossary), it is not to be expected that the words are all peculiar to the district in which they are gathered ; or, indeed, that there will be many which are found there and not in other parts of the kingdom. A pastoral and agricultural region will preserve more of the terms which belong to hus- bandry : more of the ancient terms of art will be found in a manufacturing district. Peculiarities in local circumstances, in the structure of habitations, in the nature of the food, in the amusements of the peo- ple, may, in a few instances, have occasioned the pre- servation of words in some narrow district, and in that alone ; but the great mass of archaical words in any particular district will, of course, be the same with those of any other district, since they are relics of a language once common to the whole of England, superseded by that new language which custom has gradually introduced,'' p. 26. Vlll PREFACE. Nevertheless, it appears that, from the accidents of tradition, the use of some provincial words is con- fined within very narrow limits, though they may perhaps be known in other and distant parts of the country. Hence it is difficult to make a complete list of the provincial words current over an extensive district; and although the following Glossary was compiled with the assistance of gentlemen resident in various parts of Herefordshire, it is not impossible that some peculiar words may have escaped the notice of all the contributors. The determination of the meaning of provincial words is likewise, in many cases, liable to doubt ; since it is difficult by conversation alone, and that with illiterate persons, to obtain an induction sufficiently wide for fixing the precise import of a word. The words included in the following Glossary are generally current in Herefordshire, and in parts of the contiguous counties of Brecknock, Radnor, Mon- mouth, and Gloucester. The Gloucestershire words entered in the following Glossary were collected by a gentleman whose residence is not far from Gloucester ; many of these words are marked in the Glossary as being peculiar to the latter county, and as not being current in Herefordshire. From an examination of these words, as well as of the short list of agricultural provincialisms used in the vale of Gloucester, which PREFACE. IX is given in Marshall's Rural Economy of Gloucester- shire, vol. i. p. 323 — 32, it would seem that the dialect of Gloucestershire approaches more to that of Somersetshire than to that of Herefordshire. The provincial words used in the Midland counties, which are collected by the same writer in his Rural Economy of the Midland Counties, vol. ii. p. 433 — 45, agree more closely with the Herefordshire dialect ; but no copious provincial Glossary, for any of the midland counties (as Shropshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, Worcestershire, Derbyshire, or Leicestershire) has hitherto been published. A writer in the Quarterly Review has divided the provincial dialects of England in the following man- ner : — "1. Southern or standard English, which in the fourteenth century was perhaps best spoken in Kent and Surrey by the body of the inhabitants. 2. Western English, of which traces may be found from Hampshire to Devonshire, and northward as far as the Avon. 3. Mercian, vestiges of which appear in Shropshire, Staffordshire, and South and West Derby- shire, becoming distinctly marked in Cheshire, and still more so in South Lancashire. 4. Anglian, of which there are three subdivisions : the East Anglian of Norfolk and Suffolk; the Middle Anglian of Lin- colnshire, Nottinghamshire, and East Derbyshire ; and the North Anglian of the West Riding of York- X PREFACE. shire , spoken most purely in the mountainous parts of the district of Craven. 5. Northumbrian." — (Vol. 55. p. 354.) It does not, however, appear from this division, to which branch the writer would refer the Herefordshire dialect : nor does this dialect bear a striking affinity to any of the dialects exhibited in the Glossaries, of which a list is subjoined to this preface.* It may be observed that the Herefordshire dialect is not so remote from the literary language, and does not contain so many provincial expressions, as some other local dialects ; for example, the Lancashire and Exmoor dialects, as exemplified in Tim Bobbin and the Exmoor Dialogues. It may be, moreover, observed, that the Hereford- shire dialect, although spoken on the borders of Wales, and coming in contact with the Welsh lan- guage, contains few words borrowed from the Welsh ; though it contains more words of Welsh origin than the dialects which are altogether removed from this contact, as, for example, the dialect of Norfolk and Suffolk. The words in the following Glossary, which appear to be of Welsh origin, are to bag, Jlannen, givethally kevin, mawn, moiled, pant, pill, prill, ross, suck, tare, timsarah, and tump. London, October, 1839. * Herefordshire was a part of the kingdom of Mercia. See Bosworth's Anglo-Saxon Dictionary, Preface, p. xvi. List of Provincial Glossaries consulted in the com- pilation of the subjoined Glossary. Ray's Collection of English Words not generally used (frequently reprinted). Grose's Glossary of Provincial and Local Words used in England. London, 1839 (with Pegge's Sup- plement incorporated), 1 vol. Dialogues, Poems, Songs, and Ballads, by various Writers, in the Westmoreland and Cumberland Dialects, now first collected, with a copious Glos- sary of Words peculiar to those Counties. London, 1839. 1 vol. Glossary of the Dialect of Craven. London, 1828. 2 vols. The Hallamshire Glossary, by the Rev. Joseph Hunter, F.S.A. London, 1829. 1 vol. Ancient Words at present used in the Mountainous District of the West Riding of Yorkshire. By Dr. Willan. Archseologia, vol. 17. p. 138 — 67. An Attempt at a Glossary of some Words used in Cheshire. By Roger Wilbraham, Esq. London, 1826. 1 vol. Observations on some of the Dialects in the West of England, particularly Somersetshire. By James Jennings. London, 1825. 1 vol. xii List of Provincial Glossaries, fyc. An Exmoor Scolding, also an Exmoor Courtship. A new Edition, with Notes and a Glossary. London, 1839. 1 vol. A Dialogue in the Devonshire Dialect, to which is added a Glossary. By J. F. Palmer. London, 1837. 1 vol. Suffolk Words and Phrases. By Edward Moor. Woodbridge and London, 1823. 1 vol. The Vocabulary of East Anglia (Norfolk and Suffolk). By the Rev. Robert Forby. London, 1830. 2 vols. Boucher's Glossary. London, 1833. 2 Parts (un- finished). GLOSSARY. [Note. — The words marked (GL.) are used in Gloucestershire and not in Herefordshire.] A. A. pron , he, she, or it. " In Gloucestershire," says Marshall, (Rural Economy of Gloucestershire, vol. i. p. 324,) " an extra pronoun is in use, ou ; a pronoun of the singular number, analogous with the plural they ; being applied in a masculine, a fe- minine, or a neuter sense. Thus, c ou wulP expresses either he will, she will, or it wull." In Here- fordshire a similar pronoun is in use, but its sound is that of the inarticulate a, and is nearly represented by the sound of ir or ur in sir 9 bird, absurd, &c. A. In Gloucestershire, among the middling classes only, a is changed into e, when the sound is as in spade, gave, which are pronounced spede, geve. Among the lower classes it has generally a broader sound, as spaad, gaav. To Abide, v. to bear, to endure. E. g. " the weather is so hot, I can't abide it." B 2 Provincial Words Able, adj. wealthy. An "able man,' 5 means a wealthy man. Aboove, prep, above. Abundation, s. abundance, a large number Cor- rupted into Bundation, in Gloucestershire. Abuseful, adj. abusive. Afeard, adj. or fart, afraid. An ancient classi- cal word, still current as a provincialism in many parts of England. See Nares in To AfTear, Moor and Forby in Afeard, Jennings in AfFeard, Craven Glossary in Afeard and Feard. Afeard occurs ten times in Shakspeare, according to Ayscough's Index. Aferedia used by Chaucer, C. T. 12218. Troilus and Cressida, II. 606. Again, or Agin, prep, over-against, next to, oppo- site to. It sometimes means " before : " as " I will do it agin next Sunday," i. e. u I will do it before next Sunday/' Also used in Somersetshire ; Jen- nings in v. Againis used for against in Skelton's Elegy on Henry, fourth Earl of Northumberland. (Percy, vol. i.) r * Provydent, discrete, circumspect, and wyse, Tyll the chaunce ran agyne him of fortunes duble dy se." st. 20. See also Boucher's Dictionary in Again and Anent, and Forby in Again. Aiddled, part, addled. (GL.) used in Herefordshire. 3 All as is. " All as is to me is this," i. e., all that I have to say about it, or, all that I observe in it. All about. " To get all about in his head," to become light-headed. All about it. " That's all about it :" that is the very point in question. All b'ease, adv. all by ease, i. e. quietly, gently, gradually. Also, prep, a corruption of all save. Thus, " six- pence also twopence," meaning, " sixpence all save (or all but) twopence," i. e. fourpence. Anty tump, s. ant hill. See Tump. Aneaoust, neaous, adv. almost, near to. (GL.) Anevst means about the matter, nearly, in Berk- shire, according to Grose. Anunt, prep, against, over-against. This old word exists in lowland Scotch, and is current in the cognate dialects of Yorkshire and Cheshire. See Jamieson in Anens, Craven Glossary in Anent, Willan and Wilbraham in Anenst, Boucher in Again and Anent. It is also used in Derbyshire, according to Grose in Anent: over anunt occurs in Gloucestershire ; Grose in v. Apricock, s. apricot. Also used in Somersetshire ; Jennings in v. Apricock is used by Shakspeare in Midsummer Night's Dream, act 3, sc. 1, and Richard II., act 3, sc. 4. It is the more genuine. b 2 4 Provincial Words form ; compare the Italian abricoccolo, and the Portuguese albricoque^ from the Arabic word albarquqe : Diez, Roman. Grammat. vol. ii, p. 229. See Skinner and Junius in v. Apricock. Arc, s. a mare's tail cloud, or cirrhus, in the form of a streak crossing the sky. Probably the same word as arch. To Arg, v. to argue. " He would arg me that it was so." Also used in Somersetshire : Jennings in v. The latter dialect also has the compound verb, to downarg: ibid. To Argufy, v. a. to signify. Hence " of no argufi- cation," of no importance. The verb to argufy is used in the same sense in Yorkshire, Norfolk, and Somersetshire : Craven Glossary, Forby, and Jennings in v. As. Used instead of the relative pronoun ; e, g. "The man as I seed." " The child as- was there." So is similarly used in German : — " Von alien so da kamen." Burger's Lenore. See Grimm D. G. vol. iii. p. 197. Tooke, vol. i. p. 257. Aside n, adv. on one side. Askel, s. a newt, from ask or esk. The origin of the word is explained in the Quarterly Review, vol. lv. p. 374. used in Herefordshire. 5 Asp, s. the aspen tree. Asp is the proper form of the substantive; aspen is an adjectival form. See Bosworth in iEps, JEsp, and iEspen, and Johnson in Aspen ; compare below in Elmen. The form aspen appears to have been preferred to asp, in order to avoid confusion with the species of serpent called asp. Atchorn, s. acorn. " To atchorn," to gather acorns. Also used in Cheshire : Wilbraham in v. Ater, prep, after. Also used in Somersetshire and Norfolk : Jennings and Boucher in v. Atomy, s. (also pronounced otomy), a skeleton. This old corruption of anatomy is also used in other parts of England : see Nares and Boucher in Atomy, Moor and Jennings in Mottomy. The corruption has arisen from a confusion of the indefinite article with the first syllable of the succeeding word. Instead of saying an anatomy, illiterate persons said an atomy. Many similar corruptions have taken place in our own and other languages. Thus a nadder has become an adder ; a nawl> an aivl ; a napron, an apron ; a nide of pheasants, an eye of pheasants., So, being an adept at anything has been corrupted into being a dab at anything, and an abettor into a butty. In like manner, number has in some dialects been corrupted into umber \ (Grose in v.) and nettle into ettle, (See Ettles.) See also 6 Provincial Words Tyrwhitt's Glossary to Chaucer in Nale, and Boucher's Dictionary in An. In Italian, una apecchia has become una pecchia ; una aguglia, una guglia ; V Alamagna, la Magna, and /' ana- lomia, la notomia. On the other hand, /' onza, I' or dura, have become la lonza, la lor dura. In French, m'amie has become ma mie, and VApouille, la Pouille ; whilst Voisir has become le loisir, and Vendemain has become le lendemain, (like the tother in English.) Audacious, adj. not shy, insolent. Aul, or orl, s. an alder. Alor, air, A.S. Pro- nounced aller in Devonshire and Somersetshire : Palmer and Jennings in v. The following are proverbial lines : — " When the bud of the aul is as big as the trout's eye, Then that fish is in season in the river Wye." In Yorkshire and Derbyshire, an alder is called an owler : Grose and Hunter in v. Aulen, adj. of alder, as " the aulen coppice," " an aulen pole." Compare Elmen. To Awhile, v. n. Used only in the expression, " I can't awhile," I can't wait, I have no time, that is, probably, " I can't have while." To Ax, v. a. to ask. This old form of the word (see Nares in v.) seems to be current as a provin- cialism in most parts of England. It occurs in the Craven Glossary, Hunter's Hallamshire Glossary, used in Herefordshire. 1 Moor's Suffolk Words, Forby's East- Anglian Vo- cabulary, Jennings's Somersetshire Glossary, and Palmer's Devonshire Glossary. It is also Scotch : see Jamieson in v. Compare Boucher in v. B. Backside, s. the back ; as, the backside of the wood, the house, &c. E.g. "Did you see maister?" " No : he went out at the backside now just." Bad, adj. "Bad to do in the world," is opposed to " well to do in the world." Poor, in straitened cir- cumstances. To Bag, v. a. to bag peas is to cut them with a hook, resembling the common reaping-hook, but with a handle long enough to admit of both hands being applied to it. This expression is used in a nearly similar sense in Gloucestershire, and also according to Boucher, in Shropshire. Boucher says, " I suspect the people of these counties borrowed this term (bagging hook) from their neighbours the Welsh ; adding to bach a hook, the English of it." Bait, s, a meal taken by a labourer in the middle of the day. Bald-rib, s. spare-rib. Also used in Gloucester- shire. It is spelt ballrib in Jennings's Somerset- shire Glossary. 8 Provincial Words Banky, adj. U a banky piece," a field with banks in it. Bannut-tree, s. a walnut-tree bearing small fruit. This word is stated by Jennings, p. 10, to be also used in the northern parts of Somersetshire. In Grose's Glossary, the expression " bannet-tree " for walnut-tree is stated to be used in Gloucester- shire. Barm, s. yeast, from beorma, A.S. A word used in other parts of the country. See Boucher in v. It is pronounced burnt in Devonshire : Palmer in v. Bash, s. 1. the mass of the roots of a tree before they separate. In Grose's Glossary, tc bashy" is stated to be a north-country word for " fat, swelled." In Norfolk, according to Forby, "to cut a bosh, is something stronger than the more usual expression to ' cut a dash ;' something more showy and ex- pensive." Forby states that bosen out is rendered by tumidus in the Promtuarium Parvulorum ; and he compares the French bosse. See also Grose in Bosh. The word svjell is similarly used in modern slang language : Compare the description of the approach of Dalila, in Samson Agonistes, v. 710. 2. Bash is also used to signify the front of a bull's or pig's head. Pash is a ludicrous term for the head in Scotch : Jamieson in v. Bash in this sense appears to be derived from to bash or pash, to strike^ or push : see Todd's Johnson, Forby and used in Herefordshire. 9 Crav. Glossary, in Pash, and Jamieson in Bash. The word pash occurs in this sense in Winter's Tale :— Leontes. How now, you wanton calf? Art thou my calf? Mamillius. Yes, it' you will, my Lord. Leont. Thou want'st a rough pash, and the shoots that I have, To be full like me, — Act I. sc. 2. Which passage is correctly explained by M alone thus : ct You tell me that you are like me ; that you are my calf. I am the horned bull ; thou wantest the rough head and the horns of that animal, com- pletely to resemble your father." A mad-brained boy is called a mad pash in Cheshire (see Grose in Pash) ; which, as Henley remarks on the passage in Winter's Tale, is designed to characterize him from the wantonness of a calf that blunders on, and runs his head against anything. Bat, s. a wooden tool used for battering or beating clods of earth. To Bat, v. a. to strike with a bat. Bath, s. a sow. Beethy, adj. soft, sticky, contrary to crisp, overripe. It is also said of a person in a slight perspiration. Grose in v. states that underdone meat is so called in Herefordshire; but this sense is not known b3 ]0 Provincial Words at present. In Boucher's Glossary, to heath is explained to mean k< to dry by exposure to the fire." To bathe is used by Chaucer, C. T. 15273, as equivalent to bask. From these uses it may be inferred that beethy means such a degree of moisture as is created in a porous substance by imperfect exposure to heat, sufficient to cause the steam to pervade it, but not to drive it off entirely. To Bellrag, v. to scold in a clamorous manner. " To ballerag " has the same meaning in the West Riding of Yorkshire ; "to bullyrag" in Norfolk; " to ballirag " in Devonshire and Somersetshire : Willan, Forby, Palmer, and Jennings, invv. "To rag " is used in the North in the same sense : Grose in v. Comp. Crav. Gl. in Bullyrag. To Bellock, v. to bawl, to bellow. A cow which has lost her calf bellocks. Formed, as well as bellow, from bellan, A. S. To bullock is used in Norfolk : Forby in v. Bent, s. the seed-stalk of grass. Hence the popu- lar distich : Pigeons never do know woe, But when they do a benting go. That is, pigeons are never in want of food except at times when they are reduced to the necessity of living on the seeds of the grass, which ripen before the crops of grain. In Jennings's Somersetshire used in Herefordshire. 1 1 Glossary, "bennet' ; is "long coarse grass," and "bennety, abounding in bennets." In the West- moreland and Cumberland Glossary, bent grass is explained to be long coarse grass, which chiefly grows upon the moors. See also Crav, Gl. and Forby in v. Bent is used in the old ballad of Chevy Chace, — el Bomen bickarte upon the bent, With their broad aras cleare." Stanza 5. and in the ballad of Sir Cauline, Part 1, st. 20, (Percy, vol. i.) " Then a lightsome bugle heard he blow- Over the bents so brown." It is remarkable that the word bent, as used in the old ballad of Chevy Chace, to signify grass or field generally, was mistaken by the author of the modern ballad to mean inclination of the mind. See Percy's Introduction to the modern ballad, vol. ii. See further Boucher's Glossary in v. Bent is also Scotch, and is used by W. Scott ; e. g. in Thomas the Rhymer, Part 3. •' But footsteps light across the bent The warrior's ears assail." Bent is so called, because the seed-stalk of grass bends 12 Provincial Words with the wind. In Chancer, bent signifies the bending or declivity of a hill, Tyrwhitt in v. Bessy, s. " Don't be a bessy," said to a man who in- terferes with a woman's affairs or business. (Forest of Dean.) Besom, s. a birch broom. (In common use.) It is never applied to a bair broom. Used in other parts of the country; Grose in Beesom and Besom. To Bett, v. a. to pare the greensward with a breast- plough, or betting-iron, usually with a view to its being burnt, and the ashes spread for manure. The sod when so pared is called " the betting :" thus " setting up the betting," " putting fire to the betting." The same process is known in Devon- shire and other parts of England by the name of • ' beat," or " burning-beat," or " beat-burning," ac- cording to Boucher in Beate burning, and Palmer in Beat. To "bete fires" is used in Chaucer for to prepare fires, C. T. 2255. 2294. In C. T. 3925, "to bete ,? means to mend ; and in another place to 64 bete sorwe '' is to heal sorrow. The original sense of the word seems to be that of mending or setting to rights; connected with bet, bette, (Chaucer, C. T. 7. r )33,) and better. It may tend to confirm the notion that this is the original meaning of bete, if we consider that "bette," adj., meant fertile used in Herefordshire. 2 3 in old English. " Let the soil be as fertile and bette as any would wish," quotation from Holin- shed in note to Southey's Life of Wesley, ii. p 594. Now on looking to u till " we find the . general sense of preparing, setting in order, narrowed to the agricultural meaning; and so it may have been with bete, bette, and beti. Better, adv. more numerous. As, Ci better nor ten." See Craven Glossary, in v. To Bewray, v. to defile with ordure. " g The birds bewray the church." It is used by old writers in the sense of discover or betray : see Junius, Nares, and Tyrwhitt in v. Bilberry, s. a small black bogberry, the wortleberry. Black Poles, poles in a copse which have stood over one or two falls of underwood. Blob, s. a blister. Bleb \ and blob occur in the Craven Glossary, with the sense of a bubble or blister. Blob is also Scotch; see Jamieson in Bleib and Blob. In Suffolk, blob, according to Moor, signifies "a blunt termination to a thing that is usually more pointed. A parrot's tongue is said to be blob-indid, or to have a blob end. A per- son who, by biting his or her nails, has injured the shape of the fingers, would be called blob-Jin- gered* p. 35. See also Forby in v. The word blob is etymologically connected with the Latin 14 Provincial Words bulbus, and other numerous words belonging to the same root, in which the idea of roundness pre- dominates. See the Philological Museum, vol. i. p. 405, sqq. Body, s. Used as a term of commiseration, to de- note deficiency. As " A poor simple body." " I never seed such a poor helpless body in my life ; she canna do nothing." Body-horse, s. the second horse of a team of four. e. g. " Smiler was in the body yesterday." (GL.) Bogie, s. a ghost. Not peculiar to Herefordshire. See Junius in Bogie and below in Bugabo. Bolting, s. A " bolting of straw " is a quantity of straw tied up into a bundle or small truss. When straw is sold by the weight, each bolting ought to weigh 14 lbs. ; but boltings of straw are often bought and paid for according to their apparent size. The word is also used in Gloucestershire. It is probably derived from the peculiar -mode in which the band of straw is fastened down, and, as it were belted, for the purpose of holding the truss together. See Thrave. Pease-bolt is used for pease-straw in Essex : Grose in v. To Boodge, v. a. to stuff bushes into a hedge. Pro- bably a variety of to push. Boosy, n. s. the manger of a cattle-stall. From Bosig or bosg, A. S. Bosworth in v. Boose is ex- used in Herefordshire. it plained by Johnson to mean " a stall for a cow or an ox," but he gives no example of it in any writer. It is used in Cheshire, according to Wil- braham, and in Yorkshire, according to the Cra- ven Glossary, and Hunter's Appendix, p. 119. See Junius in Boose. Bottle, n. s. Sometimes used in the same sense as costrel, which see. To be Bound, v. to be sure. " He is bound to be there," he is sure to be there. Also used in Gloucestershire. To Box, v. n. to strike, as a gun which recoils. The word box signifies a blow, in the expression, M Box on the ear." It has the same sense in Chaucer : Tyrwhitt in v. Brad, n. s. a nail with a small head. This word is used in Cheshire : see Wilbraham in v. Grose says, " Brod, a kind of nail, called brads in the south." This word, though it occurs in other provincial glossaries, seems to be generally used, and is inserted in Johnson's Dictionary. Brags, s. u To make his brags" is to brag, to boast, to threaten to do great things, in a presumptuous and confident manner ; as, " He made his brags as he would do for 'em all if he met them at the fair." Brass, s. copper coins. " I paid him eleven pence : 16 Provincial Words sixpence silver, and five pennyworth of brass" Also used in the northern counties : Grose, Crav. Gl., and Westmoreland and Cumberland Glossary in v. To Brevet about, v. to beat about the fields in search of something. (GL.) Breveting, adj. gadding about. (Forest of Dean.) Brouse, s. (pronounced like house), cut brushwood, the smaller ends of bushes. As, " I did na take the faggots ; it was only some bits of brouse anunt the stack.'* Also used in Gloucestershire. Bucking, n. s. the mode of washing so called. This old word appears to be derived from buc, A. S., a bowl or tub, from which bucket is formed : see Bosworth's A. S. Dictionary in v. Bucato in Italian, and bu'e in old French, signify washing. Bud-bird, s. a bullfinch. To Buff, v.n. to stammer: whence "a buffer," a stammerer. This appears to be an imitative word, like hiss, growl, murmur, buzz, &c. To play the Bugan. To play the devil. Bug occurs as well as bugbear in old writers : Johnson zn v. It is said to be derived from the Welsh bwg, a hobgoblin. See Jamieson in Boggarde and Bo- gill. Bugabo, s. a bugbear, a ghost. Also used in Glou- cestershire. used in Herefordshire. 17 To Bunt, v. a. (pronounced boont) to push with the head. A sucking calf, lamb, or colt, which strikes the udder with its nose, is said to hunt. The word is also used in Gloucestershire in this sense. Slightly modified from the word pun, which see. In Somersetshire "to bunt" means to bolt, or separate the flour from the bran : Jennings in v. " To bult" is used for to bolt in Yorkshire : Cra- ven Glossary in v. Bur, s. 1. The sweetbread, or pancreas, of a calf. This word is also used in this sense in Cheshire and Derbyshire : Wilbraham and Grose in v. 2. A tree cropped to produce poles. A "bur-oak" is a pollard oak. The latter sense is probably derived from a pollard tree having a round bristly look, instead of having spreading branches. A " bur- tree" means an elder tree in the north : Grose in v. Burrough, or Burrow, s. the lee, the side shel- tered from the wind. " Burrow hurdles " are wattled hurdles which the wind cannot easily blow through. (GL.) See Div. of Purley, vol. ii. p. 186. Bursted, or Busted, the preterit of to burst, e. g. " It bursted open the door." Also used in Glou- cestershire. Burying, $. a funeral. ' To fetch a burying ' is to accompany the corpse. Pronounced berring in 18 Provincial Words Yorkshire : Mr. Hunter doubts whether the word be not rather derived from bear than bury. The conjecture seems probable : see Boucher in Beoryng. Bustle, s. a scolding bout. Thus, " to get into a bustle about a thing" signifies to get into a scolding about it. Butt, s. the lower part of the stem of a timber-tree. Also used in Somersetshire. Butty, s. an assistant, comrade, helpmate, partner. Also used in Gloucestershire. Corrupted from abettor. See Atomy. By your LEAve, or By'r leave. An expression of civility used by an inferior to a superior, in the act of causing him some slight inconvenience. It is nearly equivalent to pardon and scusi, as used in French and Italian. Bytack, s. a farm taken by the bye, in addition to another farm, and on which the tenant does not reside ; e. g. " Them bytacks be the ruin of the country.'' Compare Tack. C. Caddling, adj. false, insincere, cajoling with a view of buying anything below its value. Very often applied to butchers, but always in a bad sense : used in Herefordshire, \ 9 thus, " a little caddling butcher." " Don't be cad- dling so long about it." " I don't bid caddling, I bid fair." (GL.) Scaddle means thievish, rapa- cious, in Kent, according to Grose in v. Cadger, s. an itinerant dealer whose wares are carried in a small cart. Cag, s. the stump of a branch protruding from the tree, the stump of a broken tooth. Compare Snag. To Cant, v. to backbite, without reference to reli- gious hypocrisy. Cantle, s. a piece, a fragment (in common use) ; e. g. u a cantle of bread" means a corner off a loaf; *' a cantle of a field," a small piece of a field. The word is used by Chaucer, C. T. 3010. " Of no partie ne cantel of a thing." And by Shakspeare, 1 Hen. IV. act 3, sc. 1. " See how this river comes me cranking in, And cuts me, from the best of all my land, A huge half-moon, a monstrous cantle out." Antony and Cleopatra, act 3, sc. 8. si The greater cantle of the world is lost With very ignorance." See Nares in Cantle, Grose and Moor in Cant, and the Craven Glossary in Cant and Canting. The word kante or kant, for edge or corner, occurs 20 Provincial Words in nearly all the Teutonic languages. See Meidin- ger's Compar. Dictionary, p. 193. Candle of the Eye, s. pupil of the eye. In Nor- folk and Suffolk the pupil of the eye is called the " bird of the eye ;" Grose and For by in v., in which expression "bird" means damsel, or girl, (see Jamieson in v.) and is equivalent to Kopiy in Greek and pupil la in Latin. The name is derived from the diminished image of himself which the beholder sees iu the eye of the person whom he addresses. See Boucher in " Bird of the eye." Carlock, s. the weed charlock. Cauve, s. calf. Char, or Cher, s. a job. " To do a char (or chair) for a friend," is to do a job for a friend. u That's a good cher," that is a good job; expressive of approbation. Also used in Gloucestershire. See Nares in Chare. In Devonshire and Somerset- shire this- word is pronounced choor. See Jennings in Choor, Palmer in Chures. See Tooke's Div. of Purley, vol. ii. p. 192. Charks, s. charcoal. To Chark, v. to make charcoal, to char. A Charker, s. one who makes charcoal. To Chastise, v. to question closely, particularly as to some mischief done. A similar confusion of examination and punishment occurs in the line of used in Herefordshire. 21 Virgil, " Castigatque, auditque dolos, subigitque fateri." Mn. vi. Chats, s. dead sticks. According to Grose's Glos- sary, " chat " means " a small twig " in Derbyshire ; " chats" means " keys of .trees, as ash-chats, syca- more-chats," in the northern counties ; and " chat- tocks" means "refuse wood, left in making 4 fag- gots," in Gloucestershire. According to the present usage in Gloucestershire, the chips which fly from the axe when a tree is cut down are called chats ; what the carpenter cuts off, chips, " Chats " is explained to mean spray- wood in the Westmoreland and Cumberland Glossary. According to the Craven Glossary, "chatts-" are " the capsules of the ash, sycamore, &c, called also keys" According to Moor's Suf- folk Words, " chates," or " chaits," are " broken victuals; the remnants of turnips or other food left by fatting sheep, &c, to which leaner or more hungry stock is turned in, to pick up the chaits, or orts." " Chats," or " chatter bushes," are explained by Moor to be " pro- truding bushes of blackthorn, &c, running into a field from the fence; or the lower straggling branches of a tree, which we otherwise call sprawls" Forby, in v., says that chaits is the 22 Provincial Words same word as chits, whence the diminutive chitter- lings. In German, katze has the sense of a bundle or bunch; and it also signifies the keys of a tree. See Adelung in Katze, No. 5. The English word catkins is a cognate form. Chawm, s. a crack in the ground caused by dry weather. Corrupted from chasm. (GL.) Cheese, s. Cider hairs filled with must aud piled in readiness to be pressed. A various form of case. It may be observed that the Italian formaggio is derived from forma, in the sense of a case, i. e. the case in which the cheese is pressed. Chilver, s. an ewe lamb. (GL.) Grose explains it to mean " the mutton of a maiden sheep." Chimbley, s. chimney. This pronunciation of the w r ord is mentioned in the Craven Glossary, in Wilbraham's Cheshire Glossary, in Jennings's So- mersetshire Glossary, in Palmer's Devonshire Glossary, and in Forby's East Anglian Vocabulary. It is also usual in Gloucestershire. The insertion of b after m occurs likewise in homber and sumber in this glossary : see further, Lewis's Essay on the Romance Languages, p. 19, and Donaldson's New Cratylus, p. 292. Sometimes the provincial dialect omits the b after m : thus the Somersetshire dialect has timmer for timber (Zimmer, German), and used in Herefordshire. 23 the Somersetshire and Devonshire dialects have emmers and yammers for embers : Jennings and Palmer in v. Compare Boucher in Aymers. Chump, s. a log of wood for burning. The thick end of a sirloin of beef is called the ' chump end.' This word is also used in Gloucestershire and in Norfolk : Forby in v. Churm, s. a churn. To Clam, v. a. I. to clog up, 2. to starve. In Glouces- tershire u to clam" means to stick or adhere, as clay or the like, so as to hinder work. If clay or earth sticks to the spade, so that a man cannot dig, he is said to be ' c clammed up." This old word (Nares in Clem) is still current in the north of England. See Willan in Clam, Craven Glossary in Clam and Clammed, and Wilbraham's Cheshire Glossary in Clem. In Suffolk the word is stated to be nearly obsolete ; see Moor in Clammd. But see Forby in v. It does not occur in Jennings's So- mersetshire Glossary ; and in Palmer's Devonshire Glossary, " to clum" or " clam" is explained, "to rumple or soil by handling, from clumian, Sax., to daub, foul, or besmear." From " to clam," in the sense of "to stick," is derived the adjective clammy, Clea, s. claw. Each division of the hoof of an ox or other cloven-footed animal is called a clea. This 24 Provincial Words form is used in Yorkshire, Cheshire, and Norfolk : Craven Glossary, Wilbraham and Forby in v. Cleaching Net, s. a bag-net, attached to a semi- circular hoop having a transverse piece, to the centre of which a pole is fixed. The net is put gently into the stream, and drawn towards the bank when the river is in flood, and the fish draw to the sides. Called a clinching-net in Gloucester- shire. To Cleach, v. to use a cleaching net. Cockshut, s. a contrivance for catching woodcocks in an open glade or drive in a wood, by means of a suspended net. In some places, cockshut, from an appellative, has become a proper name, the meaning being extinct. To Collogue, v. n. to converse together (used in a bad sense). See Nares, Hunter, Craven Glossary, Forby, Moor, and Jennings, in v. Colly, adj. dirty, smutty, from coal. See Nares in Colly and To Colly, Wilbraham's Cheshire Gloss. in Collow. Steevens on " Othello," act 2, sc. 3, (" Passion having my best judgment collied,") states that the word colly was used in the midland counties in his time. In Gloucestershire, ac- cording to Grose, colley means the black or soot from a kettle. In Somersetshire, a colley, ac- cording to Jennings, means a blackbird. used in Herefordshire. 25 To Come, v. applied to the increase of a river in flood, as " Wye's a coming." Come by now, used as an exclamation for "get out of the way." To Come down upon, v. to reprove, to chide. The same as to " get over." Comical, adj. ill-tempered. See Stick. Out of the common, out of the common way. To Conceit, v. and Conceit, s. (sometimes pro- nounced consate.) To suppose, a notion, as u I conceited it was so ;" " I had no conceit of it." To Concern with, v. n. to meddle with. Cop, s. The " cop of a ridge" is the summit of a ridge in a ploughed field ; compare re en. Cop sig- nifies a top or summit in Welsh ; but the word occurs in all the Teutonic languages, and it is doubtful whether its use in Herefordshire was de- rived from the Welsh. See Grose in Cop and Cope. Coppy, s. a coppice ; so called, according to Willan in v., as being a round woody eminence, from cop. Cornel, .9. a corner. Costrel, s. a small portable cask, used for carrying beer or cider into the field. This word is in the Craven Glossary, and Grose calls it a north coun- try word. It may probably occur as a provin- 26 Provincial Words cialism in other parts of the kingdom ; for its usage is ancient. Costrellus occurs in Matthew Paris ; see Ducange in v. Costeret or cousterei is used in old French, in the sense of a measure for wine or other liquors ; Roquefort in vv. This form of the word occurs in the Romance of Richard Cceur de Lion : * Now, steward, I warne thee Buy us vessel [i. e. vaisselle] great plente. Dishes, cuppes, and saucers, Bowls, trays, and platters, Vats, tuns, and costret ; Maketh our meat withouten let." Ellis's Romances, vol. ii. p. 213. Costrel is used by Chaucer, Legend of Goode Women, 2655. A costrel is probably so called from being made of costce, staves or ribs hooped together. To Couch, v. n. to squat, to sit as a rabbit or hare. From the French coucher. To Cowse, v. to chase animals, particularly sheep and pigs. It may also be said of an idle person, that he " goes tampering and cowsing about." Probably a corruption of to course. Cowt, s. a colt. Cratch, s. a rack for hay in a stable. Cratch is also used in other counties : Grose, Moor, and Hunter in v. An old word : thus Spenser, Hymn used in Herefordshire. 2? of Heav. Love, st. 33. " Begin from first, where he encradled was In simple cratch, wrapped in a wad of hay." See also Nares in Cratch. Cratch and rack are probably different forms of the same word. Craven, s. (pronounced cravven), a coward. In common use. Crink, s. a very ^small child. In Gloucestershire, according to Grose, a crinch means a small bit. To Crowdle, v. n. to crouch. " Crowdled up" is bent or doubled up, like a sick animal : from to crowd. This word has a nearly similar sense in Yorkshire, Cheshire, Devonshire, Norfolk, and Suffolk. See Craven Glossary in Cruddle, Wilbra- ham and Moor in Crewdle, Forby, Grose, and Hunter in Croodle, Palmer in Crudle. Cue, s. a coop, hatch, kennel. A variety of coop Cue (or Kew), s. an ox's shoe. Also used in Glou- cestershire. To Cue (or Kew), v. to fasten shoes on the feet of oxen. An old man resided many years ago at Michel Dean, in Gloucestershire, who was known by the name of the Ox-cuer, from his dexterity in this business, which requires skill and care, inas- much as it is necessary that the animal should be thrown. The word ox-kew appears to have been originally ox-skew, and to have been derived from c 2 28 Provincial Words the oblique or crooked form of the iron plate which was attached to each division of the ox's hoof. The absorption of the initial 5 after a final x would, upon this supposition, be analogous to the corrup- tions explained under the word Atomy. To Curf potatoes, is to earth them up. From to cover. Curious, adj. strange; as "a curious temper." The adjectives, comical, curious, and ridiculous, imply blame. Curst, adj. ill-tempered, cross-grained ; applied both to men and animals. An ancient usage ; see Nares in v. Cute, or Cude, adj. sharp, acrimonious, corrupted from acute. Also used in Cheshire : Wilbraham in v. Cutwith, s. the bar of the plough to which the traces are attached. Compare Lantree. D. Daddock, s. dead wood, touchwood ; in Gloucester- shire, dead wood is said to be " daddocky," or " all of a daddock." In Somersetshire, according to Jennings, " daddick" is rotten wood, and " dad- dicky" is rotten. According to Grose, dadacky means tasteless in the western counties. Daddock used in Herefordshire. 29 has been derived from dead-oak ; but the termina- tion is probably similar to that in bullock, paddock, mammocks, and other words. See Philol. Museum, vol. i. p. 685. Daffish, adj. shy, embarrassed, easily abashed. Daftish has the same sense in the Craven Glos- sary. Grose has to daffe, to daunt, as a north country word. " To daff" is to confound, in the West Riding, according to Willan in v. DafTe signifies a fool in Chaucer, C. T. 4206. " I shall be holden a daffe or a cokeney." The Scotch daft is evidently the passive participle of to daff. Dar, s. a mark, as a mark set up in a field to mea- sure by. " How did you measure it ?" — " I did stick up my stick as a dar." In Chaucer, to dare, is to stare : " That lie and dare As in a form sitteth a wery hare." — C. T. 13,033. Thus dar may mean a thing stared at ; as we call a colour a " staring colour," which attracts notice. Dandering, part, twaddling. See Wilbraham in Dander. Dank, adj. damp ; also used in Gloucestershire. It is pronounced donk in the north. Crav. Gloss. 30 Provincial Words and Grose, in v. 9 and see Hunter in v. The word occurs in Shakspeare, (M. N. D. act ii. sc. 3. — Julius Caesar, act ii. sc. 2,) in Milton (Translation of Horace's Ode, Quis multa gracilis), and other old writers ; and it may still be used in poetry. Dark, adj. blind. Also used in Devonshire : Palmer in v. Dashed, part, abashed. Numerous examples of this sense of to dash are given by Johnson. It occurs in other provincial dialects : see Crav. Gl. and Forby in v. Dawny, adj. damp, as " dawny wheat." Dawny, near Windsor, appears to be named from this word. Thony is damp in the Craven Glossary, and " thone, thony," for " thawn, damp, moist," is a north country word in Grose. Dawny is a derivative of the root thaw or dew. Day-house, s. a dairy ; the room so called. But the word dairy would be used in such expressions as "a dairy-farmer," "a dairy-woman." (GL.) Lye in Junius, v. dairie, derives it from dey y " quod majoribus nostris lactariam denotabat." Todd, in Johnson, misquotes Lye, by making him say that dey formerly signified milk. Comp Richardson in dairy. Dead Alive, adj. very stupid. (GL.) Deadly, adv. very, exceedingly, like "mortal. " (GL.) used in Herefordshire. 31 Dead Man, s. a scarecrow. Dergy, adj. (g hard), short and thick-set. From dweorg or diver g, A. S. Compare the German zwerg. The word stuggy appears to be used with a similar meaning in Devonshire : Palmer in v. Devil-screecher, s. the bird called a swift. (GL.) Diern, adj. severe, hard, stern, as applied to men. It is also used metaphorically, as " a diern frost." In A. S. dyrnan means to hide ; whence dernunga or dearnunga, secretly, and dern-geligr, a secret- lier, an adulterer (Bosworth in vv.) Hence too the adj. dem y which in Chaucer means secret : as C. T. 3200. " Of derne love he cowde, and of solas." And again, v. 3297. " Ye mosten be full derne as in this cas." See also Junius in v. In Scotch, to darn or dern is to conceal, and darn is secret : (Jam. in v. See also the ballad of Robyn andMakyne in Percy.) In modern English, " to darn" is to mend, so as to conceal the hole by imitating the texture of the stuff : see Todd's Johnson in v. From the notion of concealment is derived the sense of lonely, melancholy, which dearn generally bears in the writers of the age of Elizabeth : see Nares in Dearn and Derne, and Pericles, act iii. sc. 1. Grose 32 Provincial Words likewise says, that decern means lonely, solitary, in the northern counties. From the same notion of concealment is also derived the sense of severe or stern ; the ideas of close and uncommunicative, and severe or stern, being nearly allied. Dearnly has the sense of severely in a passage of the " Faery Queen," iiL 1. 14, cited by Nares. <• Long they thus travelled in friendly wise, Through countreyes waste, and eke well edifyde, Seeking adventures hard, to exercise Their puissaunce, whylome full dernly tryde." F. Q. b. 3. cant. 1. st. 14. In b. 2. cant. 1. st. 35, and in b. 3. cant. 12. st. 34, dernly appears to mean earnestly. See Todd's Notes on the Passages. The insertion of i before e (as in diem for dern) occurs in fiern, piert, and tiert, in this glossary. Compare Jiele, lieve, brieve, &c, Italian. Other examples from the Romance languages are given in Diez, Rom. Gram. vol. i. p. 129. To Disburst, v. to disburse. Common among farm- ers ; as, " I have disbursted all the money as was gathered into (within) sixpence." Also used in Norfolk : Forby in v. To Disgest, v. to digest. This is universal, and many of the country people appear to think that to disgest or dischest is to pass the food out of the used in Herefordshire. 33 chest into the alimentary canal. Also used in Yorkshire : Craven Glossary in v., and it occurs in old writers. Dither, s. a confused noise, a bother. To Dither, v. n. to tremble, to shake, to confuse. " A dithering noise" means a confused noise. This word is also used in the Forest of Dean ; and it is current in Yorkshire and Cheshire : see Craven Glossary, Hunter's Hallamshire Glossary, and Wilbraham in Dither, and Marshall's Rural Econ. of Yorkshire, vol. ii. p. 316. " To didder" is to have a quivering of the chin through cold, in Norfolk : Forby in v. " To dudder " also sig- nifies " to deafen with noise, to render the head confused," in Somersetshire, according to Jennings. It corresponds to the German zittern. Divvy Duck, s. a dabchick; i. e. a diving duck. Doited, adj. doting. Done, part, used for the preterit, as " I done it" for " 1 did it." See Known and Taken. Dormedory, corruptly Dromedory, adj. a sleepy stupid person who does not get on with work. From dormir. Dormitoire was an adjective in old French, and is explained by Roquefort " qui fait dormir." Dormit, s. an attic window projecting from the roof. Probably a corruption of dormitory. Dormer c 3 34 Provincial fiords means a large beam in Norfolk : Forby in v. The latter word may perhaps be compared with sleeper, which Grose explains to be a " baulk or summer supporting a floor." The use of the latter word has lately become familiar from its being applied to the supports of the rails on railways. Doust, s. dust. Dousty, adj. dusty. Dousting, s. dusting. (GL.) To Dout, v. a. to put out, as a candle. " He is just douted," — he is just dead. Also used in Gloucestershire. Drag, s. a fence placed across running water, con- sisting of a kind of hurdle which swings on hinges, fastened to a horizontal pole. To Dreaten, v. to threaten. To Dresh, v. to thrash. Also used in Gloucester- shire. Pronounced drash in Devonshire and Somersetshire : Palmer and Jennings in v. To Drive a Boat, to propel a boat with a pole or paddle. To Drop out, v. to fall out, to quarrel. (GL.) Droughty, adj. (pronounced drufty), thirsty ; from drought. To Drow, v. to throw. Droxy, adj. the same as daddocky, which see. (GL.) Duberous, adj. doubtful. Also used in Devonshire, Palmer in v. used in Herefordshire. 35 Duff, adv. to fall duff, to fall heavily. Dufian, A. S. is to sink (Bosworth in v.) Perhaps that which falls as if it would sink to the bottom falls duff. See H. Tooke, i. 419. Dunny, adj. hard of hearing. See Jamieson in Donnar and Donnard. Dunch is deaf in the Gloucestershire and also the Somersetshire dialect ; whence (and not from Duns Scotus), as Jennings observes, is derived the word dunce. Compare Adelung in Donner. Dull means hard of hearing in Somersetshire and Yorkshire, according to Grose and Crav. Gl. To Dup, v. to do up, to fasten. (GL.) In Hamlet, act 4. sc. 5. it means to open, probably from raising the latch. " Then up he rose and donned his clothes. And dupp'd the chamber door."' Dyche, 5. a mound, a dyke, the bank of a hedge. Dyson, *. the flax, &c., on a distaff. This word appears to be connected with the first syllable of distaff. E. Elder, s. udder. The use of this word extends to Gloucestershire and Worcestershire, and it also oc- curs in Yorkshire, Lancashire, and Cheshire. See Craven Glossary, Hunter, and Wilbraham in v. 36 Provincial Words Ellern Tree, or Ellern Aul, s. an elder tree. The elder is called eller in Yorkshire and Cheshire : Craven Glossary, and Wilbraham in v. The older adjectival form of el lam or ellern (used in Piers Ploughman's Vision) is preserved in Hereford- shire, as it also is in Norfolk : Forby in Eldern. Elmen, adj. from elm. " Elmen tree," is elm tree. Used also in Somersetshire : Jennings in v. Com- pare Aulen, Ellern-tree, Poplern, and Tin- nen, in this Glossary, which adjectives are formed like oaken, ashen, treen, golden, &c. Dirten and hornen are used in Somersetshire : Jennings in v. To Empt, v. a. to empty. This verb is also in Jen- nings's Somersetshire Glossary. Etherings, s. long rods twisted at the top of a hedge. Edderings and eder are used in Cheshire, Wilbraham in v.; and ether in Yorkshire, Essex, and Norfolk : Craven Glossary in v. and in Yether, Forby in Ether, Grose in Edder. Eder, edor, or efSor is a hedge in A. S. (Bosworth in v.), and consequently etherings is a word regularly formed, and means hedgings, or materials for hedging. Ettles, or Ettle^s, s. nettles. Also used in Gloucestershire. The common form is the correct one : netele A. S. (see Bosworth in v.), nessel H. German. used in Herefordshire. 37 F. Fagget, s. an " old fagget " is a term of reproach to emaciated old people, equivalent to the familiar expressions, u a bundle, or bag, of bones." In Gloucestershire, to call a woman an old faggot is almost the greatest insult that can be offered to her. Also used in Norfolk : Forby in v. Fainty, adj. faint. To Fall, v. a. to throw down. As, " she fell the child." Also 4t to fall a tree." Compare to*Rise. Also used in Norfolk : Forby in v. Fancical, adj. fanciful. Fatch, v. and s. thatch. Fatches, s. vetches. Fat-hen, s. a weed so called. To Fault, v. a. to find fault with. " I don't fault him for that." Featherfold, s. the herb feverfew. To Fear, v. a. to frighten. See Nares in v., and compare afeard. Feast, s. a day of merry-making for the country- people. Each village has its feast, which occurs on a fixed day in every year. The use of this word in Herefordshire exactly resembles that described by Mr. Hunter in his Hallamshire Glossary. 3S Provincial Words To Feed, v. n. to grow fat. Also used in the northern counties, Grose in v. Feg, s. grass which has withered upon the ground, without being severed from its root. Fog is used in a similar sense in Cheshire, Yorkshire, and other northern counties ; and also in Norfolk and Suffolk. See Grose, Willan, Craven Glossary, Moor, and Forby in v. Feg is used in Worces- tershire. According to Thoresby and Watson in Hunter's Appendix, p. Ill, 146, fog in York- shire means aftergrass. Fellom, s. a whitlow. The word "fellon" is cited in Nares's Glossary, with the sense of " a boil or whitlow," from writers of the sixteenth and seven- teenth centuries. Fellom, however, is probably the more correct form of the word, having arisen, by mispronunciation, from film. Film signifies a tiiin skin, and is sometimes applied to the morbid skin which covers an ulcer ; thus in Hamlet : — "It will but skin andjilm the ulcerous place, While rank corruption, mining all within. Infects unseen." — Act 3, sc. 4. The letter m does not combine easily with another consonant at the end of a syllable ; and in several words where this combination occurs, a vowel has been interpolated before m, in order to assist the pronunciation. Thus the A. S. besm and bosm used in Herefordshire. 39 have, in modern English, become besom and bosom > and the A. S. word hearmsceare (Grimm, Deutsche Rechtsalterthumer, p. 681) has been corrupted into harumscarum. So chrism (from chrisma) was corrupted into chrisom and kirsom (Nares, in vv.), and alarm into alarum. The Cornish and Devon- shire word pilm, which signifies dust, is pronounced pi/am or pillum (Grose and Palmer in v.). The Cheshire word rism is also pronounced risom ( Wilbr. in v.); and the word baron (in the ex- pression " baron of beef") is derived from an older form, birn (Crav. Gloss, in v.). In like manner, in Italian, chrisma, baptisma, and spasma, became cresima, battesimo, and spasimo. If the words sarcasm, schism, and chasm had become popular in English, their pronunciation would probably have been changed. (See above in Chawm.) Where / or r follows a and precedes m, the vowel is lengthened, and the following consonant is sup- pressed in pronunciation : thus psalm, balm, calm, farm, harm, are pronounced sdm, bam, cam, fdm 9 ham. The word film is probably connected with the English and German fell. In Yorkshire, the word fellon signifies a disease in cows : see Craven Glossary in v. Fellow, s. a young unmarried man. To Fettle, v. a. to settle, arrange, put in order. This 40 Provincial Words word is also used in Cumberland, Westmoreland, Yorkshire, and Cheshire : Cumberland and West- moreland Glossary, Grose, Willan, Craven Glos- sary, and Wilbraham in v. ; and compare Nares in v. The word fettle occurs three times in the ballad of Robin Hood and Guy of Gisborne, in Percy, vol. i. Field, s. a ploughed field as distinguished from grass ground. (GL.) Fiern, s. fern. Compare Diern. Fiern-owl, s. a goat-sucker. Fildefare, s. a fieldfare. This word is similarly pronounced in Somersetshire : Jennings in v. In Gloucestershire it is sometimes pronounced vil- dever. Filler, or Viller, s. the shaft horse of a cart or wagon. (GL.) Also used in Norfolk : Forby in v. Filthy, adj. In Gloucestershire this word is used in only two senses, viz., for a field full of weeds, especially couch grass, and for a person who has lice on his body. Filtry, or Viltry, s. trumpery, filth. Particularly applied to weeds in a field or garden. (GL.) Also used in Somersetshire : Jennings in v. Another form of Jilt h. Fimble, s. a wattled chimney. used in Herefordshire. 41 To Find, v. to stand sponsor to a child. To Finegue, v. to avoid or evade a thing. To Firm, v. to affirm. So in Somersetshire, to frunt is used for to affront : Jennings in v. Compare Abundation. Fitchuck, s. a pole-cat. Called Jitcher or fitchet in Gloucestershire. See Grose in Fitchet and Fitchole, and Nares in Fytehock. Flannen, Si flannel. Pronounced vlannin in Somer- setshire, and Jtannin in Devonshire : Jennings and Palmer in v. Flat, s. a hollow in a field. (GL.) Flath, s. dirt, filth, ordure. Fleak, or Flake, s. a hurdle. This word is also used in Yorkshire : Hunter in Flake, Crav. Gloss, in Fleeok, Grose in Fleake. So called from being interwoven : compare the German Jlechten, Adelung in v. To Flee, v. to fly ; as " the rooks fled away," for flew away. Flitchen, s. a flitcher of bacon. Flummock, s. a slovenly person. Also used in Glou- cestershire. 4C Flammakin " is a blowsy slatternly wench, in Devonshire, according to Palmer in v. To Flummocks, v. a. to maul, to mangle. Fought, part, of to fetch, . Also used in Gloucester- shire and other counties. 42 Provincial Words Frany, adj. violent tempered. From phrenzied. Fresh liquor, hog's lard without salt in it. (GL.) To Fret, v. n. Cider, when fermenting, is said to fret. Fretchet, adj. fretful, peevish ; or hot, fidgety (of a horse) : from fret. Fritful, or Frightful, adj. fearful, timorous. Frum, adj. 1. early. From the A. S. frum, which means original, primitive. Frum-bearn is first born. In Cheshire and Lancashire, frim signifies " tender or brittle" (Wilbr. in v.), which is pro- bably the same word. 2. Numerous, thick. In Gloucestershire, frum means thick and strong, as mowing grass. In Oxfordshire, its meaning is rank, overgrown. Frim, in the north, means handsome, rank, well-living, in good case, according to Grose. From the A. S. from, which means stout, strong, bold. Fromm, in high German, had originally the same meaning ; " ein frumer schlach," was equivalent to "ein heftiger schlag;" "ein frommer Ritter:" Adelung in v. The two dis- tinct words frum and from are now confounded together, as the English word light corresponds to the German licht and leicht. The name of the Fromey, a stream in Herefordshire, appears to be connected with the latter sense of the word in question. It is thus described in Leland's Itinerary, used in Herefordshire. 43 vol. v. p. 12. " Fromey, a big broke, sumtyme raging, cummetli by Bromyard, as I remembre, and so into Lug ; and about it be very good pas- tures" Fuel, s. garden stuff. Fund, Funded, part, found. G. Gadaman, adj. roguish. To Gale, v. In the Forest of Dean, to gale (i. e. to gavel) a mine is to acquire the right to work a mine from the officer called a gaveller, and to pay the share of the crown. Gall, or Gaul, s. a place where water breaks out on the land. Compare Soak. Gally, adj. wet, as applied to land. In Yorkshire, a gall means a spring or wet place in a field, and gaily means spungy, wet ; Crav. Gloss, in v. In Norfolk, a gall is a vein of sand in a stiff soil, through which water is drained off, and oozes at soft places on the surface ; otherwise sandgalls : Forby in v. See also Grose in galls, gally-lands, and sandgalls. Galle has the very same meaning in German : " Nasse stellen auf den ackern, besonders wenn sie von kleinen quellen herkom- men," says Adelung in v. 44 Provincial Words Gally-team, s. a team kept for hire. Gallier (or Hallier), s. one who keeps teams for hire. From to haul. Gambrel, s. a cart with rails or thripples. In Suf- folk, according to Moor, a " gambrel " is " the crooked piece of wood on which the carcases of slaughtered beasts, hogs, and sheep are expanded and suspended. " The word is similarly explained by Jennings in v. In Devonshire, " gammerells," or " gambrils " means not only a butcher's stretcher, but also the hocks or lower hams of an animal : Palmer in v. Gambrel probably meant originally a piece of crooked wood ; and was derived from the word which appears in different languages under the form hamme, ham, gamba, emdjambe. Thus shipwrights speak of knees in ship-building. In like manner, the handle of a scythe is called hamme and hammen in Switzerland; Stalder, Schweiz. Idiot, in v. Hames (see below) has pro- bably the same origin. Cammed is explained crooked, in the Westmoreland and Cumberland Glossary. In Welsh, too, camm or gam is crooked ; it also means one-eyed, whence the name of Sir David Gam. This use of the word is analogous to the Spanish tuerto from tortus ; " mas vale tuerto que ciego." See likewise Crav. Gl. in Cammerels. Gamut, s. mischievous sport ; from game. In De- used in Herefordshire. 45 vonshire, gammet means fun, merriment : Palmer in v. Gapesing, " To go a gapesing," is to go sight-seeing. ct We had a famous gapesing." Probably from to gape, in the sense of to open ; viz., to open the eyes. See Bosworth in Geapan. Compare to trapes ("to go trapesing about"), from trape. Gaun, s. a measure or tub (z. e. a gallon). In Cheshire, according to Wilbraham, a gaun is a gallon, Gears and Gearing, s. horse-harness. In Gloucester- shire, only used for filler's or viller's gears ; the harness of the shaft horse of a cart or wagon. Compare Forby in v. To Geld, v. " to geld anty tumps,'' is to cut off the tops of ant-hills, and to throw the inside over the land. Giglet, s. a giddy girl. In Devonshire, according to Palmer, a gigglet is a laughing romp, a tom-boy ; for which reason wakes and fairs are sometimes called gigglet fairs. In Somersetshire, according to Jennings, gigleting means wanton, trifling, and is applied to the female sex. Grose states that giglet is a north country word for a laughing girl. In Norfolk, according to Forby, a gig means a trifling, silly, flighty fellow. From the A. S. goegl, or gagol, wanton : Bosworth in v. 46 Provincial Words Gigleting, adj. giggling. From giglet. Girl, s. an unmarried woman of any age. Glat, s. a gap in a hedge. Perhaps this word is the past participle of to glide, and meant originally a part of a bank between two enclosures which had slipped down, and consequently left a gap. At present, glat signifies a gap in a dead or quick fence. To Gorm, v. a. to smear, to dirty ; also used in the West Riding of Yorkshire : Willan in v. From gor, A. S., whence comes the word gore. Gor, A. S., signifies mire, which sense it still retains in Norfolk ; For by in Gore. Gorsty, adj. abounding in gorse or furze. Gout, s.*a drain from a house. (GL.) Derived from the French egout, and allied to the German guss, the Flemish goot, and the English gutter. Gownd, s, gown. Compare swound for swoon, and swounded for swooned in the Craven Glossary. Grab, s. the crab-apple. (GL.) To Graff, v. a. to dig with a spade. Ground can be grafFed, when it is soft enough not to require a pickaxe. " In Yorkshire (says Grose in Dig) they distinguish between digging and graving ; to dig is with a mattock, to grave with a spade." In Gloucestershire, a "grafting tool 15 is the strong spade in the shape of a segment of a circle, used used in Herefordshire. 47 in digging canals, and other very heavy work. From grafan, A. S., to dig. Greenstone, s. The soft slaty rocks in Radnorshire and the borders of Herefordshire are provincially called greenstone, as distinguished from free sandstone, or limestone. Greenstone is not so called from its colour, but probably from its being often moist, when used in buildings ; in which respect it resembles green wood. It is difficult to determine the sense of green stone, in the following stanza of Chaucer : — " And by a river forth I gan cost ay [coast] Of water clear as beryll or crystall ; Till, at the last, I found a little way Toward a park, enclosed with a wall In compass round, and by a gate small. Whoso that woulde, freely mighte gone Into this park walled with grene sto?ie." Complaint of the Black Knight, Ellis's Poets. vol. i. p. 218. Perhaps its meaning in this passage may be newly hewn stone. Compare the use of the word green in the ballad of " Gentle Herdsman," in Percy, vol. ii., " Thy years are young, thy face is fair, Thy wits are weak, thy thoughts are green : Time hath not given thee leave as yet For to commit so great a sin." — Stanza 4. 48 Provincial Words Grip, s. a narrow trench or gutter. Also used in Gloucestershire and in Yorkshire : Grose and Crav. Gloss, in v. Pronounced gripe in Somerset- shire : Jennings in v. See Todd's Johnson in v. From groep, A. S., a furrow or ditch, connected with grafan, to dig. To Grip, v. to make grips. (GL.) In Devonshire, " S r ipP m § " i s tne operation of water-furrowing a field : Palmer in v. Grist, s. This word has the common meaning, but the i is pronounced as in grind. Gryze, s. a squeeze or abrasion. As, " see what a gryze this horse has had on his knee." To Gryze, v. to squeeze or abrade. As, " to gryze a wheel against a post." Also, to wear or annoy, as a " gryzing pain" for a constant pain. To gryze appears to be the same word as to graze used in a similar sense ; and is probably the more genuine form, connected with grit, A. S., and grist. To Gule, v. to laugh ; to glory or boast. As, which means " again." Pease-brush, s. pease-stubble, when harrowed or brushed, preparatory to sowing wheat. Peazen, or Pazen, s. pease. (GL.) Peg, s. pig. (GL.) Pelt, s. the skin of a sheep, after the wool has been taken off. Not peculiar to Herefordshire : see Grose and Forby in v. Compare peltry in the fur trade, and pelz German. Peramble, s. a long tedious discourse. Corrupted from preamble. Perky, or Pergy (the g hard), adj. saucy, uncivil, impudent, obstinate. Also in a good sense: in spirits, as applied to a person recovering from sick- ness. In Norfolk, perk means brisk : Forby in v. " To spurk up," is to spring, shoot, or rise up briskly, in the south, according to Grose. Connected with the words to peer and to perk up. Pert, or Piert, adj. brisk, in good health. Peth, s. crumb of bread. The same word as pith. used in Herefordshire. 79 To Pick, v. a. to glean. To pike has the same sense in the midland counties, according to Marshall. Piece, s. a field. Sometimes applied to animals and men, as, " a sickly piece," a sickly child. Pikle, s. a hayfork. Also used in Cheshire : Wilbra- ham in Pikehill. In Gloucestershire, a hay fork is called pike or pick. Pike and pich, or pitch, are different forms of the same word ; and from pike comes pikle. Pill, s. a small creek, capable of holding small barges for loading and unloading. From the Welsh pil, a creek. This word is used on the Severn, and is probably peculiar to that river, as an appellative ; but it occurs elsewhere in Celtic districts as a proper name. Thus a village on the Falmouth river is named Pill; Pill town, in the county of Kilkenny, is situated on a creek called the Pill near the Suir ; and Pilltown, in the county of Waterford,is on the Blackwater. Pitch, s. a steep hill, generally on a road. See Jet. Pitchats, s. broken glass, china, &c. Perhaps a corruption of potsherds. Pishty, s. used in calling to a puppy, as puss is used in calling to a cat. Also used in the Forest of Dean, Pitous, adj. piteous, pronounced pitis in Somerset- shire ; Jennings in v. Pitous is the form used by Chaucer, C. T. 8962, from the French piteux. 80 Provincial Words Place, s. a house with a small quantity of land at- tached to it. As, " What place have you got ?" " I do live in a nice little place under the hill." To Pleach, v. a. to make a hedge by partially cutting the upright shoots near the ground, and then bend- ing them down and intertwining them between upright stakes. An old word (Nares in v.), still used as a provincialism in many parts of England : Grose and Moor in t\ Pleisseicum is domus subur- bana, Ducange in v. Hence Plessis les Tours and other places in France (Manage in v.) Pleissiare is pleclere, and the name is derived from the pleached hedges round country houses of this kind. Plim and Plimmer, s. a plummet. To Plim, v. a. to let down a plumb line. Plim, adj. upright, perpendicular. " A horse goes plim;" j. e. he is upright, well-balanced. The word plum is similarly used in Yorkshire and in Suffolk : Craven Glossary and Moor in v. ; and the word plim in Cheshire : Wilbraham in v. To Plim, v. to swell. (GL.) Also used in Somer- setshire : Jennings in v., and see Grose in v. Probably connected with plump, Plock, s. a small field. Equivalent to croft, as used in other parts of the country. To Poche, v. " To poche ground" is to tread it when wet. A gateway about which cattle and used in Herefordshire. 81 horses stand in winter, is pocked. Fields are pocked in like manner. See Grose in Pochy. Poplern, or Poplen, adj. made of poplar. See Elmen. Poppet, s. a term of endearment, used to an infant. " Pretty poppet." The word is similarly used in Yorkshire, according to the Crav. Gloss, in v. In Suffolk, poppet is a term of endearment to a young girl : Moor in v. In Norfolk, poppet is equivalent to puppet : Forby in u. The word occurs in Chaucer's Sir Thopas, v. 13631. u This were a popet in an arm to embrace, For any woman, smal and faire of face." Compare Adelung in Puppe. To Pother, v. a. to shake, to poke. To Poult, v. a. to strike the branches of a tree with a pole, in order to get the fruit. From pole. Pound, s. a pond, particularly a mill pond. (GL.) Pound-stakle, s. the floodgates of a pond and the posts and frame which support them. (GL.) Pout-ledden, adj. spirit-led, as by will of the wisp. From the Welsh pwca, a fiend or hobgoblin, whence the Puck of Midsummer's Night's Dream. " Pouke" is quoted as a spirit from the romance of Richard Cceur de Lion in Toome's Glossary. To Poutch, v. n. to pout. E 3 82 Provincial Words Povey, s. an owl. (GL.) Power, s. a quantity. Similarly used in Yorkshire ; Crav. Gl. and Hunter in v., and in Norfolk : Forby in v. Compare the use of vis in Latin : " Est hederse vis Multa qua crines religata fudges." — Hor. O. Pretty well, adv. expressive. As " He did pretty well tell him out," i. e. roundly or fully. It is applicable to actions as well as words. Pricked, adj. sour, as " pricked cider." Prill, s. a small stream of running water. From the Welsh prill, a rill. Promiscuously, adv. accidentally, by chance. A similar use of this word prevails in Suffolk : Moor in Pramiscas. Pue, s. the udder. (GL.) The Public, s. the public house. The same abridg- ment is used in Norfolk : Forby in v. To Pug, v. a. to pluck out; as, " to pug a rick," to tug out the projecting hay from a rick, in order to put it in shape; " to pug a horse's mane or tail," " to pug feathers from poultry," &c. " To pug" also signifies " to pull " in Perthshire, according to Jamieson in v. To pug meant to steal in old Eng- lish : Nares in Pugging. Pulfin, s. "A great pulfin of a boy," a large fat used in Herefordshire. 83 child. In the Norfolk dialect, "pulky" means " thick, fat, chubby, and short :" Forby in v. {i.e. bulky). To Pun (pronounced poon), v. a. to beat. This old word (Nares in v.) is also used in Cheshire : Wilbr. in v. In Yorkshire it is pronounced pund : Crav. Gloss, in v. According to Grose, " to poon " or " pun" is a north country word for " to kick." The ordinary sense of punning is (as Nares observes) derived from repeatedly striking upon the same word. Punishment, s. pain, in a general sense. As, " I was in great punishment with the tooth-ache." There is a similar use of the word in the slang lan- guage of the prize-ring. Pure, adj. free from disease. An answer delivered by a servant to an inquiry after a lady's health : " My mistress gives her service to you, and she is pure." Purely has the same meaning in Norfolk : Forby in v. To Put about, v. to teaze, or worry. As, " Now don't go to put me about" (Forest of Dean.) Q. To Quank, v. to subdue. Probably the same as to quench. Quar, s. quarry. (Forest of Dean.) 84 Provincial Words To Quat, v. to squat. (GL.) Quat, as an adjective, for squat, occurs in Devonshire : Palmer in v. To Queek, v. a. to press or squeeze down, to pinch. Probably queek, queech, squeech, and squeeze, are different forms of the same word. Queest, s. a wood pigeon. This old word (Nares, in v.) is probably contracted, as well as the Scotch cushat, and the north country cowshut, from the Anglo-Saxon cusceote. To Quilt, v. to swallow. (GL.) To Quire, v. to inquire. (GL.) To " lay quirance," means to inquire, in Herefordshire. Quob, s. a quicksand, a shaking bog. Quabbe is the Mecklenburg word for a marshy place. See Adelung in Quabbeln, and Schlegel, as below. To Quop, v. to throb, as a gathering. Also used in Gloucestershire, according to Grose. See Adelung in Quabbeln, which is used of the palpitation or quivering of fat or soft flesh. Quabbeln is the same word as wabble, which is applied to the irregular motion of an arrow through the air ; see A. W. SchlegePs remarks on a translation of a passage in Romeo and Juliet, Krit. Schriften, vol. ii. p. 120. R. Rack, s. a rude road, a narrow path, a track. used in Herefordshire. 85 To Rail, v. to reel. Raisty, adj. rancid. Applied to bacon spoilt by long keeping. Used in other parts of England; see Crav. Gl. and Forby in Reasty, and Jennings in rasty. Raith, or Rait, s. weeds, sticks, straw, and other rubbish in a pool or in running water. According to Grose, "to rait timber, hemp, or flax," means, in the northern counties, to put it into a pond or ditch, in order to water or season it. Compare Crav. Gl. in Rate. Rammily, or Rommily, adj. tall and rank, as grass. Also applied to animals ; as " a long, rammily colt," means one leggy, loose, ill put together. This word is also used in Gloucestershire : Marshall's Rural Econ. of Glost. vol. ii. p. 331. Its root is the same as that of the verb to ramble (rammeln, German). Ramile, which means " underwood, twigs," in the Craven dialect, is derived by the author of the Craven Glossary from the Latin ra- mulus ; rammed which means "branchy" in Scotch, is derived by Jamieson from the French ramille. It seems more probable that they are connected with the root of ramble. Rampaging, Rampagious, adj. riotous, ill-disposed. " To rampadge," in Devonshire, means, according to Palmer, " to prance about, to scour up and down 86 Provincial Words stairs." From to romp or ramp : see Jamieson in Ramp and Jennings in Ramping. Randy row, s. a disturbance. Corrupted from ren- dezvous. Ratch, s. a subsoil of stone and gravel, mixed with clay. According to Grose, " ratchel " means " broken stones found under mould," in Derby- shire; and " ratcher" means "rock" in Lanca- shire. Rathe, adj. early ; e.g. a " rathe hatch of birds," meaning an early hatch. Used in other counties : Grose in v. An old word : Nares in v. It occurs in Chaucer, as well as its comparative and super- lative, rather and rathest. The former likewise occurs in Spenser : u The rather lambs been starved with cold." Shepherd's Calendar, February. The comparative form has remained in common use as an adverb. " I would rather do so," is pre- cisely equivalent to " I would sooner do so," and corresponds to the German use of eher ; "das h'atte ich eher gethan." The root of rathe and ready is the same : see Bos worth in hraed and raft. Home Tooke, vol. i. p. 4*73. To Rebel, v. to revel. Reen, s. the interval between the ridges of ploughed ground. Compare Wilbraham in Reean. Hunter used in Herefordshire. 87 states that in Yorkshire, " a line across meadows which has formerly been a hedge or a road is called the rain?' Rem e tic, s. emetic. Some use the expression a " remetical man," for " a medical man." Remetic is coined out of emetic and remedy. Reprobate, s. applied only to a common swearer. Rheumatiz, or Rheumatics, s. rheumatism. Rid, s. earth removed from the top of a quarry. To Rid, v. to empty, as, " To rid the stomach," for to vomit. Also to clear ground ; whence " the riddings," as the name of a field ; ground which has been ridded of trees and bushes. Ridiculous, adj. scandalous, morally wrong. Com- pare Comical and Curious, which convey a similar meaning. Right, s. duty ; as, " I have no right to pay," mean- ing, I am not bound to pay, I ought not to pay. This use of the word also prevails in other parts of England; see e.g. Moor, Forby, and Hunter in v. Ripple, s. a small coppice, or thicket of underwood. Perhaps the parish of Ripple, between Upton and Tewkesbury, in Worcestershire, derives its name from this word. There is still a quantity of waste ground overgrown with bushes and timber, forming " Ripple Common." To Rise, v. to raise. Compare to fall for to fell. 88- Provincial Words Rochlis, s. rattle. cc The rochlis in the throat," i. e. before death. Compare the German rocheln. " Wer scheidet dort rochelnd vom Sonnenlicht," Korner, Lutzow's Wilde jag d. See Adelung in v. To Rollick, or Rollock, v.n. to romp or ramble in an irregular wayward manner, like a child or a puppy. Connected with roll. See Crav. Gl. in Rallakin. Root, s. a rut. (GL.) To Rouse, v. a. to stir up, to turn out ; as, " the chickens were in the barn ; I did rouse them out." Ross, s. a morass. From the Welsh rhos. To Row for, v. to look for. (GL.) Rowcast, adj. rough-cast. (GL.) To Rowstle, v. n. to stir oneself up. Used of birds when dusting themselves in the sun. The same as to rustle, from to rouse. Rubble, s. a mixture of stones and earth in a quarry. " Rubble" is explained in Palmer's Devonshire Glossary to mean loose gravelly rubbish. Ruck, s. 1. a heap; as " rucks of mawn," heaps of peat. Chickens are " all of a ruck" when crowded under the hen. 2. A rut of a road. 3. A crease. Smooth linen, when tumbled, is " all of a ruck :" hence — To Ruckle, v. a. to rumple, to crease. In the York- used in Herefordshire. 89 shire dialect, ruck and ruckle signify " a great quantity, a heap of stones :" Crav. Gloss, in v.; and see Hunter in v. In Cheshire and Lancashire ruck is used, as a substantive and verb, in the same senses as in Herefordshire : Wilb. in v. The meanings of ruck in Suffolk are nearly similar : Moor in v. The form reck occurs in old English : Skinner in v. Ruck is also Scotch : Jam. in v. The German ruck, the Scotch rig, and the Eng- lish ridge, and rick, are other forms of the same word. Rudge, s. a ridge in a field. See Ruck. Rumpled skein, anything that is in great confusion, as an account badly kept. (GL.) Rundle, s. a hollow pollard tree. Probably a roundle, from round. R o st y, adj. intractable; corrupted from restive. The word used in Yorkshire and Norfolk is reasty : Craven Gloss. andForbymv. — See above in Reasty . The desire of converting a strange into a familiar sound is a frequent cause of corruption in all lan- guages. Changes of this sort are usually made without any reference to the meaning of the word. Thus the French rondeau became round 0, and bourdon became burden (of a song) ; so bumble bee became humble bee, kink-cough became chin- cough, and gorstberries, gooseberries. The craig 90 Provincial Words (i. e. throat) end of a neck of mutton became the scrag end ; and lustring, a shining silk, so called from its lustre, was commonly written lutestring. Livorno was changed into Leghorn, Coruna into the Groin, and a Prussian fir into a spruce fir (Nares in v.) Compare Disgest, Randyrow, and Remetic. S. The 's of the possessive case is used in Hereford- shire where educated persons would use the par- ticle of. Thus " Monnington's parish" would, in the mouth of a countryman, mean the parish of Monnington ; in that of an educated person, it would mean the parish belonging to Mr. Mon- nington, or the parish in which he lived. Safe to have, sure to have. Sally, s. a willow. Also used in Gloucestershire ; called sallow in Suffolk : Moor in v. See Adelung in Sahlweide, Stalder in Sale. Compare the Latin salix. Salty, adj. rather salt. To Sauce, v. to abuse. As, " He sauced me shock- ing." Also used in Norfolk : Forby in v. A Say so, s. a merely nominal advantage. Scallage, or Scallenge, s. a detached covered porch used in Herefordshire. 91 at the entrance of a churchyard : Ducange in v. shows that scalus was sometimes used for stallus, in the sense of a seat. Hence perhaps may have been derived scalagium. Concerning the termina- tion agium, see Diez, Rom. Gramm.vol. ii. p. 252. Scambling, adj. sprawling. " Shambling" means awkward in the gait in Derbyshire, according to Grose. Scar, s. a precipice, a steep bare bank. This word is also Scotch : Jam. in v. It is likewise used in Westmorland and Cumberland : Gloss, in v. and in Yorkshire : Ray, Willan, and Craven Gloss, in ?;. See Tooke's Div. of Purley, vol. ii. p. 113. To be Scarified, v. to be frightened out of one's wits. To Scog, v.n. to boast. A Scogger, s. a boaster. Scote, s. a dragstafT. (GL.) To Scote, v. to plough up the ground by slipping in attempting to stop. (GL.) To Scrat, v. to scratch. Also used in Gloucester- shire. To Scrawl, v. to crawl. The s prefixed, as in slanget ; while in quat and queech it is omitted. Compare cag and skag. Scrawling, adj. slight. " A scrawling frost" is a slight frost. (GL.) 92 Provincial Words Screech, s. the missel thrush. (GL.) Screeches, s. swifts. (GL.) To Scrouch, or Scrowge, v. a. to crush, to press to- gether, to make untidy; foimed from to crouch. This word, according to Grose, is also used in Mid- dlesex. A scrudge is a squeeze in Westmorland and Cumberland : Gloss, in v. Scutch Grass, s. couch grass. In Gloucestershire, according to Grose, couch (vulgarly pronounced squitch) means the roots of grass collected by the harrow in pasture lands, when first ploughed up. Seedny, s. time of sowing the land. Seg, s. sedge. This mode of pronouncing the word also obtains in Yorkshire and Suffolk : Craven Gloss, and Moor, in v. Nares, in v., gives instances of it from old writers. Selfish, adj. self-conceited. To Send, v. to " go to send" is to accompany on the road ; as " he is gone to send his sister to Here- ford." In like manner to " come send," is to go to meet. Compare the Greek 7rpo7ri/ji7r£iy. To Shift, v. a. to move, to remove. A man who changes his clothes is said " to shift himself." Also used in Gloucestershire : see likewise Hunter in v. Shimmy, s. shift; now used by cottagers. From chemise. used in Herefordshire. 93 Shoul, s. shovel. (GL.) Also used in Somerset- shire : Jennings in v. Grose in Shool ; in West- morland and Cumberland: Westm. and Cumb. Gloss, in v., and in Yorkshire, Hunter aud Crav. GL in v Compare the Scotch deil from devil. Shuppick, s. a hay fork. Probably from shove-pike. Shut, a. a shoot or spout of water. See Landshut. To Get Shut of, to get rid of. This word is also used in Gloucestershire, as well as in Yorkshire and Cheshire : Craven Gloss., Hunter, and "Wilbr. in v. See Tooke, Div. of Purl., vol. ii. p. 130. Sich, or Sish, such. Also used in Gloucestershire. Sight, s. a large number. C| A sight of sheep, birds, &c." Also used in Gloucestershire, and in Suffolk and Norfolk : Moor and Forby in v. Of no Signification; of no importance. Also used in Gloucestershire. Simple, adj. sickly, feeble, helpless. Skeg, s. the stump of a branch ; also a rent in a piece of cloth such as would be made by a stump of a branch. (GL.) It is used in the latter sense in Somersetshire : Jennings in v. See Cag. To Sklem, v. to steal slyly. It seems to be applied exclusively to animals, especially cats and dogs. Thus, " Lor, missus, if our cat hanna gone and sklemmed all our cream." " Come out, dog, get bye, dog. If I hanna minded him, he'd ha sklemmed aw our victuals." If this word originally 94 Provincial Words meant to steal for purposes of gluttony, as a cat or dog does, it may be connected with the German schldmmen ; see Adelung in v. Slab, s. the piece which is sawn from a tree in squar- ing it. Also used in Gloucestershire and other counties : see Grose, Crav. GL, Wilbraham, Forby, and Moor in v. Slade, s. a valley. Slammockin, s. a slattern. This word is also used in Gloucestershire and in other parts of England : Crav. Gloss, in Slammocking, Moor in Slammaken, Jennings in Slomaking, Palmer in Slummaking. Formed from lammockin (which see), by prefix- ing s. Slang, or Slinget, s. along, narrow piece of ground. Compare Langet. To Slart, v. a. to stain. " To slart" is explained to plash with dirt, in Thoresby's Yorkshire words, in Hunter's Appendix, p. 122 and see Craven Glos- sary in v. To Slat, v. to slit. Slat is evidently the past par- ticiple of slit (like slate), made into a new verb, like hoist, throng, sloken in Scotch, and many others. Compare to Hope, in this Glossary. To Sleave, v. a. to tear down, as a branch of a tree or a cutting of a plant. S leaving, s. a twig s leaved off. " To slive" means to split or to slice in Yorkshire, Lancashire, and used in Herefordshire. 95 Cheshire : Crav. Gloss, and Wilbr. in v. In Suf- folk, a sliver is a splinter or a slice : Moor in v. The word is common in old writers : see Nares in v. Thus, in " King Lear," act iv. sc. 2 : — '* She that herself will sliver and disbranch From her material sap, perforce must wither." And " Macbeth," act iv. sc. 1 : — *' Slips of yew Slivered in the moon's eclipse." Sled, s. a sledge. Slike, adj. slippery. Pronounced sleek, or slick, in Gloucestershire. Slick has become an Americanism. S linger, s. one who steals cloth yarn or the like from clothiers, with a view to its being worked up or finished. (GL.) To Slither, v. n. to slide. Also used in Yorkshire. Crav. Gl. in v. In Somersetshire, " to slitter" is to slide, according to Jennings. " To slather" is used in Cheshire : AVilbr. in v. Sludge, or Slush, s. a wet or muddy place. As, "The field is all in a slush:' " The road be a complete sludge." Hence Slushy, muddy. Smart, adj. in good health. " A smart few" means a considerable number. The latter expression is also used in Gloucestershire. To Smirch, or Smouch, v. a. to daub, dirty, stain. An old word : See Johnson in Smirch and Besmirch. 96 Provincial Words It is formed from mirk. Compare Scrawl and Queek. Snag, $ a rough projecting stump of a tree. Also used in Norfolk: Forby in v. In Somersetshire, snag means a tooth : Jennings in v. Snag is used in the United States for a tree lodged in a river, and projecting from the bottom so as to be dan- gerous to vessels. It is apparently the same word as nug> used in Devonshire for a knot or protuber- ance : Palmer in v. Compare Cag and Skeg. " To snag," in Cheshire, means to cut off the lateral branches of trees : Wilbr. in v. The verb has the same sense in the Westmorland and Cum- berland dialect : Gloss, in v. To Snag, v. to teaze, to repeat the same thing several times. (Forest of Dean.) See Crav. Gl. in knag and snag. To Snite, v. to blow the nose. (GL.) Also used in Yorkshire : Thoresby, and Watson in Hunter's App. p. 123. 160. So, " She is so," she is pregnant. An euphemismus. (GL.) Soak, s. A " green soak," or " a warm soak," is a small spot of marshy ground, in which a spring rises, or which is kept moist during the winter by the action of water. It differs from a gall (which see), as being generally a low hollow place, whereas a gall may be on a sloping bank. used in Herefordshire. 97 Soft, adj. foolish. Thus we say " a hard-headed person," meaning a shrewd or sagacious person. Used also in Yorkshire : Hunter in v. Sole, s. a collar of wood, put round the neck of cattle to confine them to the stelch. (See Stelch ) This old word is also used in Cheshire : Wilbr. in Sahl. From the A.S. sal or seel, a bond or rope (whence seal). Compare the High German seil, and in a narrower sense sahlband (Adelung in v.) The relation of this word to sale and sally (which see) makes it analogous to iMac 7rap' 'Iioviv 6 curb \vyov fcfffiog, Eustath. p. 834. 39. See Phil. Mus. vol. i. p. 413. Solid, adj. steady and serious. As " a solid child." Used in the same sense in Gloucestershire. In Monmouthshire it is sometimes used with reference to the intellect, as " He is not quite solid in his mind." Soller, s. an upper floor. Also used in Norfolk : Forby in v. The loft on which the ringers stand is called a bell-soller in this county : Forby in v. It is a south country word, according to Grose in v. Anything placed in an upper room is said to be laid "on the soller." The usage is old: " On a so leer, as Be vis looke out At a window all about, Helms he saw and brynnys bright.*' Sir Bevis of Hamptoun, in Ellis's Romances, vol. ii. v. 160. F 98 Provincial Words " Some skilfully drieth their hops on a kell, And some on a softer, oft turning them well. 37 Tusser, c. 47. s. 53. The word solarium belongs to the Latinity of the middle ages, and is probably derived from solum, (like " floor," applied to the successive stories of a house.) Ducange explains it to be " domus contignatio vel cubiculum majus ac superius," and he cites, " Chronica Australis anno 869. — Ludo- vicus Imperator de solaria cecidit." There was a hall at Cambridge, which a Man clepe the soler hall at Cantabrege." Chaucer, C. T. 3988. See Tyrwhitt's note to this passage, who says that it seems to have meant an open gallery or balcony, which is doubtful. Adelung in Soller discusses at length the meaning and etymology of this word, which he appears to consider of purely German origin, and connected with sahl. It seems, how- ever, more probable that (like many other German words belonging to architecture, as pforte, thurm, &c.) it was borrowed from the Latin. Adelung himself states that Soller in Low German is equi- valent to boden in High German. Solar in Spanish is the mansion house of a family. " Hidalgo de solar conocido" is, a gentleman of good family. Compare Tallet. used in Herefordshire. 99 Sore, adj. " A sore fellow" means a rogue, a rascal. " A sore time" means a sad time. It is a term of strong disapprobation : see Forby in Sore, and Wilbr. in Sorry. Sort, s. " A thing of a sort" means a correspond- ing thing : " Words of a sort" means a quarrel. Sould, s. soul. Compare Gownd and Lost. Spede, s. spade. (GL.) Spill, s. a splinter. Long thin splinters of wood used in farm houses for lighting caudles are called spills. Concerning the ancient use of this word see Bosworth A.S. Diet, in Spild, and Nares in Spel and Spil. The word now used in Yorkshire is spelk : Crav. Gloss, in v. from the A.S. spelc. Compare the German spille, and the Italian spillo. The game of spillikins is a diminutive from this word; see Phil. Mus. vol. i. p. 681. To Spill, or Spall, v. a. to splinter. It is used not only by carpenters to express the splitting of wood from surfaces, but also by masons to describe the breaking of the edges of worked stone. This word also occurs in Gloucestershire, and other counties. See Grose and Palmer in Spalls. Spittle, s. a spade. Comp. Crav. Gl. in v. Splavin, ir. a great blotch of eruption. To Spottle, v. a. to splash. From spot. Sprack, adj. lively, active. Also used in Glou- f2 100 Provincial Words cestershire, and see Grose in v. Shakspeare has the word : Merry Wives of Windsor, act iv. sc. 1. " He is a good sprag memory." Spreader, s. (pronounced spreeder), a cross-piece of wood, which prevents the traces of the fore-horses of a team from collapsing. Also used in Glou- cestershire. Squilt, or Squelt, s. an eruption or spot on the skin. Stack, s. a flight of stone steps up to a hay-loft, or the like, on the outside of a building. (GL.) Stam, or Stom, s. stem. (GL.) Stank, s. a dam which keeps back water ; e. g. in a water-meadow turfs would be put in a shallow ditch used for irrigation, as a stank to turn or raise the water. A stank is sometimes made acci- dentally; stones, bushes, &c, accumulate in the bed of a brook, and stank back the water. This frequently happens where a fence of any kind crosses running water. A man shutting down a floodgate would stank back the water. Also used in Norfolk : Forby in v. To Stank, v. The verb is most commonly used with the addition of the word back. Stean, s. an earthen vessel with straight sides. The word is also used in Devonshire : Palmer in v , and in Cheshire .: Wilbraham in v. used in Herefordshire. 101 Steecker, or Sticker, s. a stick to stop a wagon ascending a hill. To Steen a Well, v. a. to line a well. Steening of a Well, lining of a well. Also used in Gloucester- shire, and sometimes applied to stoning a road. Stelch, s. the upright post to which the sole (see the word) is attached by means of a with. Formed from stele. Stele, s. the wooden handle of a rake or pitchfork. This old word (Lye and Nares in v.) is also used in Yorkshire, Cheshire, and Suffolk : Crav. Gloss. , Hunter, and Wilbraham in Stele, Moor in Stale, Grose in Stale and Steal. The expression " rake- stele " occurs in Chaucer : Tyrwhitt in v. The A. S. stel or stele means a column (compare 0-7-77X77 and (ttvXoq) ; whence the origin of stelch is obvious. Stick, s. a timber tree. A riding stick is commonly called a rod or wand. Stick, in the sense of a timber tree, is not peculiar to Herefordshire, but occurs in Gloucestershire and other counties. It is likewise used as a vituperative term ; as " a comical stick" an ill-tempered person. Stipe, s. a steep ascent on a road. As " when you come to the stipe." (GL.) To Stock, v. a. to peck, as a bird. To strike and wrench with an axe having a flat end. Hence a stocking axe. Also used in Gloucestershire. 102 Provincial Words Stockel, Stoggerel, or Stockeld, Si an old pol- lard tree. From stock. To Strip the Cows is to take the last milk from them. After calves have sucked all they can get, the cows stand a few minutes, and are then stripped. Stub. A bull stub is a bull that has been cut. Stuck, s. a shock of wheat. Stupit, adj. obstinate. Corrupted from stupid. Suck, s. a ploughshare, from swch, Welsh ; whence soc de charrue in French. Suity, adj. (pronounced shuty), -uniform. From suit. Likewise used in Gloucestershire. Also Unsuity, irregular. As " this barley is so unsuity, that it will not do for malting." Sumber, s. summer. Compare Homber. 7b Swale, v. a. to split down or off. In sawing the bough of a tree, you must take care lest the weight should make it swale down the tree. Grose says, " swale or sweal, to singe or burn ; as, to sweal a hog ; a swealed cat, a cat whose hair or fur is singed off by sleeping in the ashes. Sweal is also sometimes applied to a candle that drozes and melts, called in Middlesex flaring. A north and south country word." To sweal, or swale, in the sense of melting, like a candle in the wind, occurs in the Craven Glossary, in the Appendix to used in Herefordshire. 103 Hunter's Glossary, in Wilbraham, and in Forby. Swelan, A. S. means to burn, see Bosworth in v. In high German, schwelen means to burn slowly ; Adelung in v. How to swale obtained in Herefordshire the sense of splitting, does not appear. Sweltered, adj. very hot. Also used in Gloucester- shire. In Devonshire, " to swelter "is to perspire, to be overcome with heat : Palmer in v. In York- shire, " to swelt " is to overpower with heat, so as to be ready to faint away : Crav. Gl. in v. " Swelted " and " sweltered" mean overpowered with heat, in Derbyshire, according to Grose. " Sweldersome " or " sweltersome " is overpoweringly hot, in Norfolk and Suffolk : Forby in v. In the Westmorland and Cumberland Glossary, to sivelt is explained to overcome with heat and exercise, to faint, to swoon, to die. See also Johnson in Swelt and Swelter. From sweltan, A. S., to die : Bosworth in v. Swelten in old low German meant deficere, lan- guescere, ibid. The word sweltered is used in a well known passage of Macbeth : "Toad, that under coldest stone Days and nights hast thirty-one Sweltered venom sleeping got, Boil thou first i' the charmed pot." Act 4, sc. 1. The meaning of sweltered in this passage is correctly explained by Steevens. "The word (he 104 Provincial Words says) seems to be employed by Shakspeare to signify that the animal was moistened with its cold exsudations" To Swill, v. a. to rinse, to wash out. Swilian is to wash in Anglo-Saxon : Bosworth in v., and to swill has this meaning in Shakspeare : •' Let the brow o'erhang it, As fearfully, as doth a galled rock O'erhang and jetty his confounded base, SwiWd with the wild and wasteful ocean." Henry V.> act 3, sc. 1. From washing or drenching, the transition was easy to drinking inordinately, which is the common meaning of swill. See Johnson, Grose, Moor, and Crav. Gl. in v. To Swinge, v. to singe. (GL.) Also used in York- shire : Grose and Crav. Gl. in v. T. Tack, s. hired pasturage for cattle, sheep, or horses. Used in such expressions as " taking cattle into tack," " he has found tack for his cattle." To Tack, v a to hire pasturage for cattle, sheep, or horses. " He has tacked out his cattle." This and the preceding word are similarly used in Gloucestershire. The use of tack, in the general sense of a lease, is well known : see Wilbraham and Jamieson in v. Compare by-tack. Tack, s. timber at the bottom of a river. Hence, used in Herefordshire. 105 when a net catches in timber at the bottom of a river, it is said to be tC tacked." Tail, s. Tail wheat or barley is refuse small grain, usually given to the farmers' wives for their poultry. Taken, part, used for " took ;" as " I taken it away." This use of the participle (see Done and Known) is exactly like the elliptical form in German where the auxiliary verb is omitted : (e Hier, wo mir nichts als du geblieben, Hier ist mein Vaterland." Heyse, D. Gramm. p. 477. The origin of the Herefordshire idiom however is probably quite independent, and is to be attributed to mere rustic carelessness ; for in High German it is a modern practice only, chiefly allowed in poetry, and in relative and dependent sentences. It only occurs when the auxiliary verb follows the par- ticiple. In Swedish, the omission occurs frequently in relative and conjunctive sentences, but not in Danish; which, as Grimm remarks (D. G. vol. iv. p. 173), is a curious discrepancy in two closely allied languages. Taking, s. a gathering, an ulcer, an attack of sickness. It is also used metaphorically for distress of mind ; as, " to be in a taking about something." Tallet, Tallard, Tollet, Tollard, s. a space over a stable or cowhouse, from which it is usually di- f3 106 Provincial Words vided by a rough flooring made of branches. It bears the same relation to a stable or cow-house which a soller bears to a house. The word is also used in Somersetshire and Devonshire : Grose, Palmer, and Jennings in Tallet. This word is probably contracted from tabulata : " ^Edicula tabulis compacta, vel in qua plures sunt tabulae usibus rusticse domus destinatae (seu potius sta- bulum.") Ducange in v. Compare Soller. Or it may be derived from the Welsh tavlawd, which signifies a loft, or the space next to the roof in a building; Owen's Diet, in v. Tavlawd is itself formed from tavlu, to throw or cast. To Tang, v. a. To tang bees is to make a clatter in order to draw a swarm of bees into a hive. An old word : Nares in v. The word used with the same sense in Norfolk is to ting : Forby in v. To Tansel, v. a, to punish. From tancer or tencer, French, which meant to dispute, to reprimand, to scold, or to correct : Roquefort in Tencer, Tantadlins, s. apple-dumplings. (GL.) To Tap shoes, v. to new sole, or mend shoes. Taplash, s. bad small beer. Also used in Glou- cestershire. It is likewise known in Yorkshire : Grose and Crav. Gl. in v. Tare, adj. eager. "How tare the flies be!" From the Welsh taer, eager, ardent, urgent. used in Herefordshire. 107 Tater, s. potato. To Tater, v. to dig or raise potatoes. To Ted, v. a. To ted hay is to scatter hay. The word is inserted in Johnson's Dictionary; and it is used provincially in other parts of England : Ray, Willan, and Craven Glossary in v. See Haymaking. To Terrify, v. a. to torment. For example, flies terrify a horse that has a sore back ; stones in the ground terrify a man digging it. This word is similarly used in Gloucestershire, and also in Norfolk : Forby in v. Thave, s. a female sheep, in the second year, which has ceased to be a lamb, and is not yet an ewe. It corresponds to heifer among cattle ; a heifer being a female of the ox-kind, which has ceased to be a calf, and is not yet a cow. Theave does not ap- pear to be used in the northern counties ; it occurs in Moor's Suffolk Words, and Ray attributes it to Essex. It is also used in Gloucestershire : see, however, Grose in v. The, used as for the demonstrative pronoun this. "The day," for " this day." This usage is also Scotch : " What would' st thou do, ray squire so gay, That rid'st beside my rein, Wert thou Glenallan's earl the day, And I were Roland Cheyne ? " Elspeth's Ballad, in W. Scoffs Antiquary. 108 Provincial Words These, for this. Thesun, these. Thick, (th hard), pron. this. (GL.) Thickun, pron. this one. This'n, this. Thrave, s. (drove, GL.) A " thrave of boltings " is 24 boltings or bundles of straw. See Bolting. In Lancashire and Cheshire, a " thrave " is generally 12, but sometimes 24 sheaves of corn : Wilbraham in v. Grose likewise explains a thrave to be a shock of corn, containing 24 sheaves. The word threave is also used in Yorkshire : Hunter's App., p. 126. From )>reaf, A. S., a handful. Threshal, s. a flail. From Thresh. Tid, adj. playful, skittish. (GL.) It is applied to a spoilt child, in the Forest of Dean. It denotes the possession of the qualities which naturally belong to an animal or child which is tiddled, or petted. To Tiddle, v. a. to nurse a young animal by the hand, to pet. Also to entice, as " to tiddle him on." Tiddling, s. a young animal nursed by the hand, a pet. Tid, adj. and to tiddle, are derived from tydr, A. S., tender, weak ; and tydrian, to nourish or feed : Bosworth in vv. Tidy, adj. honest, well-disposed. A " tidy man" is a good kind of man. It also signifies a person who is " well to do in the world." Tidy meant originally "punctual," " attending to tide," or time. See Bos- used in Herefordshire. 109 worth, A, S. Diet, in Tid (corresponding to high German Zeit) and Tidlic, and Jamieson in Tydy. From tide in this sense is derived titter, more timely, sooner, earlier, used in the northern coun- ties : see Westmorland and Cumberland Glossary, Crav. Gl., and Watson in Hunter's App., p. 162, in v. Tiert, adj. tart. A " tiert blow " is a sharp blow. Compare Diern. Tilled up, part, propped up, set up. As, " the pole was tilled up against the house ;" " that horse is tilled up too high on his legs," meaning that his legs are too long. (GL.) Tilian, A. S., is to prepare in a general sense, as well as to till or prepare ground. "Teeled" is used in Cornwall for " ready." oh, where one would expect pZxkov %, is probably to be explained in the same way. The former would be " rather nor? the latter " rather than." See Thucyd. ii. 62., iii. 36, and Arnold's note to the first passage ; also Herod, vii. 16. v. 94. The French use of " ne " after com- paratives is based on the same principle. " Vous ecrivez mieux que vous ne parlez." It is quite consistent with this view that when " que " follows " tant," " autant," or " aussi," the negative must not be added. The same idiom exists in Italian (see Lewis on the Romance Languages, p. 267), and in Spanish ; as "Blanca sois Senora mia mas que no el rayo del sol." Romancero Duran. 1.13. Out of Hand. Immediately, off-hand. Like the German aus der hand. t Pane, in the sense of a skirt, may be derived from pannus. To Pitch, v. to raise hay or corn with a fork. Hence a pitcher, for the labourer who pitches. Likewise used in Norfolk : Forby in v. Plant, s. a cabbage. Plant leaves, cabbage leaves. Compare Fruit. t Ridiculous. See the letter cited (p. 132) in Which. To Sag, v. to hang down, as a beam. The word is old, 130 Provincial Words and is also used in Yorkshire and Norfolk : Crav. Gl. and Forby in v. Johnson inserts the word, and explains it, 1. To load, to burthen. 2. To hang heavy, referring for the latter sense to Macbeth. " The mind I sway by, and the heart I bear, Shall never sag with doubt, nor shake with fear." Act v. sc. 3. Where Mr. Toilet remarks that it was common in Staffordshire to say, " a beam in a building sags, or has sagged" In the Promtuarium Parvulorum "saggynge, or satlynge," is explained bassatura, bassatio. Junius has " sagge : gravitare, oneribus deprimere." See also Nares in Sagg. The Scotch dialect likewise has this verb both in an active and a neuter sense : Jamieson explains " to sag " by to press down, and " to seg * by to fall down. The Low Latin assagium (see Ducange in v.), and its Romance derivatives saggio, assaggiare, essai, essayer, are doubtless derived from to sag in the sense of weighing. " Saggio dicesi anclie a quelle bilancette con cui si pesano le monete." Dizion. di Lingua Ital. (Bologna, 1824) in v. Scowles, s. excavations caused by the workings of old mines, now generally overgrown with wood. (Forest of Dean.) In the Fourth Report of Dean Forest Commissioners, p. 3, this word is said to be de- rived from the British ceawll, caves. Sideland, adj. A farm on the slope of a hill is called a sideland farm. E. g. " A troublesome sideland place." used in Herefordshire. 131 f Sludge, or Slush. In Norfolk, slush means loose mud, and figuratively loose talk; slushy means miry, and also foul-mouthed : Forby in v. In York- shire slosh means snow in a melting state, like pulp, and sloshy, in a state of slosh: Crav. Gl. in v. Slush, or slosh, appears to be formed from lush, or losh; from which (in the sense of clammy and cloying) is probably derived the adjective luscious. (Compare Scrawl.) f Sole. In Yorkshire, to seal, or sele, is to bind or fasten cattle in their stalls : Crav. Gl. in v. Spit, s. the depth of a spade in digging ; thus, fresh garden ground may be dug "two spit deep." t Stank. " Stanca : agger aquis oppositus, vel id quo aqua continetur." Ducangemi?.; and stancare is to staunch, which is the same word as to stank. The Spanish estanco means a dam, and also (most appro- priately) the shop where tobacco, salt, and other commodities monopolized by government are sold. Stancare is probably altered from stagnare, and stanca has been formed from the altered verb. "Stank" in Yorkshire means a boggy piece of ground : Crav. Gl. in v. t Stick, hi Yorkshire, a "comical stick" means a queer, sly, sarcastic fellow : Crav. G. in v. Swag-bellied, adj. having a loose prominent belly. See Johnson in swag. tTAiL. " Tail end" corn was so called from its being the lightest part of the corn, which was driven furthest from the fan. t To Tap Shoes. A heel-tap was a small piece of 132 Provincial Words. leather fixed by pegs to the end of a high heeled shoe. Hence the figurative expression " to clear away heel-taps,'' applied to drinking the wine remaining in a glass, as being the small layer at the bottom, t Tilled up. The sense of raising or setting up is seen in tilt, the covering of a wagon. See Home Tooke, vol. ii. p. 73. Year, s. Used for the plural as well as the singular ; as, " I hanna seen him this twenty year." This old usage also exists in Yorkshire : Crav. Gl. in v. t Which. The use of which, explained in the Glossary, is further illustrated by the following authentic letter, lately written in Gloucestershire : — rt Mr. and Gentlemen Present. ft I have Taken the Oppertunity of writeing Those few Lines to your worships to inform you that I have been served most Rediculous By the Managers of the Parish of North Nibley. The Occurrence is this : that I Rents a house at Three Pounds Per year, and they Charges 2 Shillings per Rate ; which at the same time my Neighbours that Rents Six or 7 Pounds Per year is only 18 Pence per rate. This, gentle- men, is my Refuse for not Paying the Poor Rates, because i think it is very unlawful, as i have been informed by other Magistrates that is very impropper and Impossible for me to Do it, and Because i was Persuaded not Do it ; & they Said that i must & Should Support my Father and have Done it for a month ; which i am Sure i cannot Do it, and that people knows very well." London: Printed by W. Clowes and Sons, Stamford Street.