Oxford English Dictionary [20, 2 ed.]

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THE OXFORD ENGLISH DICTIONARY SECOND EDITION

THE OXFORD ENGLISH DICTIONARY First Edited by JAMES A. H. MURRAY, HENRY BRADLEY, W. A. CRAIGIE and C. T. ONIONS COMBINED WITH

A SUPPLEMENT TO THE OXFORD ENGLISH DICTIONARY Edited by R. W. BURCHFIELD AND RESET WITH CORRECTIONS, REVISIONS AND ADDITIONAL VOCABULARY

THE OXFORD ENGLISH DICTIONARY SECOND EDITION Prepared by

J. A. SIMPSON

and

E. S. C. WEINER

VOLUME XX Wave-Zyxt BIBLIOGRAPHY

CLARENDON PRESS•OXFORD 1989

Oxford University Press, Walton Street, Oxford 0x2

6dp

Oxford New York Toronto Delhi Bombay Calcutta Madras Karachi Petaling Jay a Singapore Hong Kong Tokyo Nairobi Dar es Salaam Cape Town Melbourne Auckland and associated companies in Berlin Ibadan Oxford is a trade mark of Oxford University Press

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© Oxford University Press ig8g All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of Oxford University Press

v-

Xi>

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Oxford English dictionary. — 2nd ed. 1. English language-Dictionaries I. Simpson, J. A. (John Andrew), 195JII. Weiner, Edmund S. C., ig$o423

ISBN 0-1Q-861232-X (vol. XX) ISBN o-ig-861186-2 (set) Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data The Oxford English dictionary. — 2nd ed. prepared by J. A. Simpson and E. S. C. Weiner Bibliography: p. ISBN o-ig-861232-X (vol. XX) ISBN o-ig-861186-2 (set) I. English language—Dictionaries. I. Simpson, J. A. II. Weiner, E. S. C. III. Oxford University Press. PE1625.087 ig8g 423—dcig 88-5330

Data capture by ICC, Fort Washington, Pa. Text-processing by Oxford University Press Typesetting by Filmtype Services Ltd., Scarborough, N. Yorks. Manufactured in the United States of America by Rand McNally & Company, Taunton, Mass.

KEY TO THE PRONUNCIATION The

pronunciations given are those in use in the educated speech of southern England (the so-called 'Received

Standard’), and the keywords given are to be understood as pronounced in such speech.

I. Consonants b, d, f, k, 1, m, n, p, t, v, z have their usual English values g as in go (gau) h

... ho\ (hau)

r

run (rvn), terrier ('tEria(r))

(r) ... her (h3:(r))

see (si:), success (sak'sss)

s w

... wear (wea(r))

0 as in thin (0in), bath (ba:0) 8 . .. then (Ssn), bathe (beiS) J tj

■ .. shop (Jop), dish (dij) ■ .. chop (tjop), ditch (ditj)

■ .. vision ('vijan), de/euner (dejone) d3 • .. judge (d3Ad3)

X as in It. serrag/io (ser'ra/(o) ji

... Fr. cognac (kopak)

x

... Ger. ach (ax), Sc. loch (Idx), Sp.

9

... Ger. ich (19), Sc. nicht (ni9t)

Y

... North Ger. sagen ('za:yan)

c

... Afrikaans baardmannetjie

H

... Fr. cuisine (kijizin)

3

hw... when (hwen)

D

j

0g • .. finger ('fii)ga(r))

... yes (jes)

(foreign and non-southern)

•

.. singing ('sirjit)), think (0ir)k)

fri/oles (fri'xoles)

('bairtmanaci)

Symbols in parentheses are used to denote elements that may be omitted either by individual speakers or in particular phonetic contexts: e.g. bottle ('bot(a)l), Mercian ('m3:J(i)an), suit (s(j)u:t), impromptu (im'prDm(p)tju:), father ('fa:Sa(r)).

II. Vowels and Diphthongs SHORT i as in pit (pit), -ness, (-ms) 8

.

LONG

DIPHTHONGS, etc.

i: as in bean (bi:n)

ei as in bay (bei)

. pet (pet), Fr. sept (set)

a:

. .. barn (ba:n)

ai

...

buy (bai)

. .. born (born)

01

...

boy (bai)

ae

.

. pat (paet)

o:

A

. .. putt (pAt)

u:

. .. boon (burn)

oo ...

no (nau)

D

.

. pot (pDt)

3:

. . . burn (b3:n)

au ...

now (nau)

u

.

. put (put)

e:

. .. Ger. Schnee (Jne:)

10

...

peer (pia(r))

. another (a'nAba(r))

e:

. .. Ger. Fahre (’fe:ra)

83

...

pair (pea(r))

. beaten ('bi:t(a)n)

a:

. .. Ger. Tag (ta:k)

03 . . .

tour (tua(r))

0:

. .. Ger. So/m (zo:n)

03

boar (baa(r))

. .. Ger. Goethe ('goita) • .. Ger. gru'n (gry:n)

0

.

(a) . i

.. Fr. si (si)

e

. . . Fr. bebe (bebe)

0:

a

.

. Fr. mari (mari)

y:

a D

.

. Fr. homme (am)

NASAL

0

.

. Fr. eau (0)

8, X as in Fr. fin (fe, fie)

0

.

. Fr. peu (po)

a

.

Fr. franc (fra)

oe

.

. Fr. boeuf (beef) coeur (koer)

5

.

Fr. bon (b5)

de

.

Fr. un (oe)

. .. Fr. douce (dus)

Y

.

. Ger. Muller ('mylar)

y

•

. Fr. du (dy)

aia as in fiery ('faiari) aoo ...

. .. Fr. batiment (batima)

u

...

sour (saua(r))

The incidence of main stress is shown by a superior stress mark (') preceding the stressed syllable, and a secondary st mark (,), e.g. pronunciation (pr3,nAnsi'eiJ(3)n). For further explanation of the transcription used, see General Explanations, Volume I.

891898

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS, SIGNS, ETC. Some abbreviations listed here in italics are also in certain cases printed in roman type, and vice versa. a. (in Etym.) a (as a 1850) a. abbrev. abl. absol. Abstr. acc. Acct. A.D.

ad. (in Etym.) Add. adj. Adv. adv. advb. Advt. Aeronaut. AF„ AFr. Afr. Agric. Alb. Amer. Amer. Ind. Anat. Anc. Anglo-Ind. Anglo-Ir. Ann. Anthrop., Anthropol. Antiq. aphet. app. Appl. Applic. appos. Arab. Aram. Arch. arch. Archseol. Archit. Arm. assoc. Astr. Astrol. Astr on. Astronaut. attrib. Austral. Autobiogr. A.V. B.C.

B.C. bef. Bibliogr. Biochem. Biol. Bk. Bot. Bp. Brit. Bulg.

adoption of, adopted from ante, ‘before’, ‘not later than’ adjective abbreviation (of) ablative absolute, -ly (in titles) Abstract, -s accusative (in titles) Account Anno Domini adaptation of Addenda adjective (in titles) Advance, -d, -s adverb adverbial, -ly advertisement (as label) in Aeronautics; (in titles) Aeronautic, -al, -s Anglo-French Africa, -n (as label) in Agriculture; (in titles) Agriculture, -al Albanian American American Indian (as label) in Anatomy; (in titles) Anatomy, -ical (in titles) Ancient Anglo-Indian Anglo-Irish Annals (as label) in Anthropology; (in titles) Anthropology, -ical (as label) in Antiquities; (in titles) Antiquity aphetic, aphetized apparently (in titles) Applied (in titles) Application, -s appositive, -ly Arabic Aramaic in Architecture archaic in Archaeology (as label) in Architecture; (in titles) Architecture, -al Armenian association in Astronomy in Astrology (in titles) Astronomy, -ical (in titles) Astronautic, -s attributive, -ly Australian (in titles) Autobiography, -ical Authorized Version Before Christ (in titles) British Columbia before (as label) in Bibliography; (in titles) Bibliography, -ical (as label) in Biochemistry; (in titles) Biochemistry, -ical (as label) in Biology; (in titles) Biology, -ical Book (as label) in Botany; (in titles) Botany, -ical Bishop (in titles) Britain, British Bulgarian

Bull.

(in titles) Bulletin

Diet.

c (as c 1700) c. (as 19th c.) Cal. Cambr. Canad. Cat. catachr. Catal. Celt. Cent. Cent. Diet. Cf„ cf. Ch. Chem.

circa, ‘about’ century (in titles) Calendar (in titles) Cambridge Canadian Catalan catachrestically (in titles) Catalogue Celtic (in titles) Century, Central Century Dictionary confer, ‘compare’ Church (as label) in Chemistry; (in titles) Chemistry, -ical (in titles) Christian (in titles) Chronicle (in titles) Chronology, -ical

dim. Dis. Diss. D.O.S.T.

Chr. Chron. Chronol. Cinemat., Cinematogr. Clin. cl. L. cogn. w. Col. Coll. collect. colloq. comb. Comb. Comm. Communic. comp. Compan. compar. compl. Compl. Cone. Conch. concr. Conf. Congr. conj. cons. const. contr. Contrib. Corr. corresp. Cotgr.

cpd. Crit. Cryst. Cycl. Cytol. Da. D.A. D.A.E. dat. D.C. Deb. def. dem. deriv. derog. Descr. Devel. Diagn. dial.

in Cinematography (in titles) Clinical classical Latin cognate with (in titles) Colonel, Colony (in titles) Collection collective, -ly colloquial, -ly combined, -ing Combinations in Commercial usage in Communications compound, composition (in titles) Companion comparative complement (in titles) Complete (in titles) Concise in Conchology concrete, -ly (in titles) Conference (in titles) Congress conjunction consonant construction, construed with contrast (with) (in titles) Contribution (in titles) Correspondence corresponding (to) R. Cotgrave, Dictionarie of the French and English T ongues compound (in titles) Criticism, Critical in Crystallography (in titles) Cyclopaedia, -ic (in titles) Cytology, -ical Danish Dictionary of Americanisms Dictionary of American English dative District of Columbia (in titles) Debate, -s definite, -ition demonstrative derivative, -ation derogatory (in titles) Description, -tive (in titles) Development, -al (in titles) Diagnosis, Diagnostic dialect, -al

Du. E. Eccl.

Ecol. Econ. ed. E.D.D. Edin. Educ. EE. e-gElectr. Electron. Elem. ellipt. Embryol. e.midl. Encycl. Eng. Engin. Ent. Entomol. erron. esp. Ess. et al. etc. Ethnol. etym. euphem. Exam. exc. Exerc. Exper. Explor. f. f. (in Etym.) f. (in subordinate entries) F. fern. (rarely f.) figFinn. fl. Found. Ft. freq. Fris. Fund. Funk or Funk's Stand. Diet. G. Gael. Gaz. gen. gen. Geogr.

Dictionary; spec., the Oxford English Dictionary diminutive (in titles) Disease (in titles) Dissertation Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue Dutch East (as label) in Ecclesiastical usage; (in titles) Ecclesiastical in Ecology (as label) in Economics; (in titles) Economy, -ics edition English Dialect Dictionary (in titles) Edinburgh (as label) in Education; (in titles) Education, -al Early English exempli gratia, ‘for example’ (as label) in Electricity; (in titles) Electricity, -ical (in titles) Electronic, -s (in titles) Element, -ary elliptical, -ly in Embryology east midland (dialect) (in titles) Encyclopaedia, -ic England, English in Engineering in Entomology (in titles) Entomology, -logical erroneous, -ly especially (in titles) Essay, -s et alii, ‘and others’ et cetera in Ethnology etymology euphemistically (in titles) Examination except (in titles) Exercise, -s (in titles) Experiment, -al (in titles) Exploration, -s feminine formed on form of French feminine figurative, -ly Finnish floruit, ‘flourished’ (in titles) Foundation, -s French frequent, -ly Frisian (in titles) Fundamental, -s Funk and Wagnalls Standard Dictionary German Gaelic (in titles) Gazette genitive general, -ly (as label) in Geography; (in titles) Geography, -ical

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS, SIGNS, ETC. Geol. Geom. Geomorphol. Ger. Gloss. Gmc. Godef.

Goth. Govt. Gr. Gram. Gt. Heb. Her. Herb. Hind. Hist. hist. Histol. Hort. Househ. Housek. Ibid. Icel. Ichthyol. id. i.e. IE. Illustr. imit. Immunol. imp. impers. impf. ind. indef. Industr. inf. infl. Inorg. Ins. Inst. int. intr. Introd. Ir. irreg. It.

(as label) in Geology; (in titles) Geology, -ical in Geometry in Geomorphology German Glossary Germanic F. Godefroy, Didionnaire de I’ancienne langue franpaise Gothic (in titles) Government Greek (as label) in Grammar; (in titles) Grammar, -tical Great Hebrew in Heraldry among herbalists Hindustani (as label) in History; (in titles) History, -ical historical (in titles) Histology, -ical in Horticulture (in titles) Household (in titles) Housekeeping Ibidem, ‘in the same book or passage’ Icelandic in Ichthyology idem, ‘the same’ id est, ‘that is’ Indo-European (in titles) Illustration, -ted imitative in Immunology imperative impersonal imperfect indicative indefinite (in titles) Industry, -ial infinitive influenced (in titles) Inorganic (in titles) Insurance (in titles) Institute, -tion interjection intransitive (in titles) Introduction Irish irregular, -ly Italian

Jap. joc. Jrnl. Jun.

(quoted from) Johnson’s Dictionary Jamieson, Scottish Diet. Japanese jocular, -ly (in titles) Journal (in titles) Junior

Knowl.

(in titles) Knowledge

1. L. lang. Led. Less. Let., Lett. LG. lit. Lit. Lith. LXX

line Latin language (in titles) Lecture, -s (in titles) Lesson, -s letter, letters Low German literal, -ly Literary Lithuanian Septuagint

m. Mag. Magn. Mai. Man. Managem. Manch. Manuf. Mar.

masculine (in titles) Magazine (in titles) Magnetic, -ism Malay, Malayan (in titles) Manual (in titles) Management (in titles) Manchester in Manufacture, -ing (in titles) Marine

J-, (J-) (Jam.)

masc. (rarely m.) Math. MDu. ME. Mech. Med. med.L. Mem. Metaph. Meteorol. MHG. midi. Mil. Min. Mineral. MLG. Misc. mod. mod.L (Morris), AIus.

Myst. Mythol. N. n. N. Amer. N. & Q. Narr. Nat. Nat. Hist. Naut. N.E. N.E.D.

Neurol. neut. (rarely n.) NF., NFr. No. nom. north. Norw. n.q. N.T. Nucl. Numism. N.W. N.Z.

masculine (as label) in Mathematics; (in titles) Mathematics, -al Middle Dutch Middle English (as label) in Mechanics; (in titles) Mechanics, -al (as label) in Medicine; (in titles) Medicine, -ical medieval Latin (in titles) Memoir, -s in Metaphysics (as label) in Meteorology; (in titles) Meteorology, -ical Middle High German midland (dialect) in military usage (as label) in Mineralogy; (in titles) Ministry (in titles) Mineralogy, -ical Middle Low German (in titles) Miscellany, -eous modern modern Latin (quoted from) E. E. Morris’s Austral English (as label) in Music; (in titles) Music, -al; Museum (in titles) Mystery in Mythology North neuter North America, -n Notes and Queries (in titles) Narrative (in titles) Natural in Natural History in nautical language North East New English Dictionary, original title of the Oxford English Dictionary (first edition) in Neurology neuter Northern French Number nominative northern (dialect) Norwegian no quotations New Testament Nuclear in Numismatics North West New Zealand

OS. OS1. O.T. Outl. Oxf.

object oblique obsolete (in titles) Obstetrics occasionally Old English (= Anglo-Saxon) Old French Old Frisian Old High German Old Irish Old Norse Old Northern French in Ophthalmology opposed (to), the opposite (of) in Optics (in titles) Organic origin, -al, -ally (as label) in Ornithology; (in titles) Ornithology, -ical Old Saxon Old (Church) Slavonic Old Testament (in titles) Outline (in titles) Oxford

PPalaeogr.

page in Palaeography

obj. obi. Obs., obs. Obstetr. occas. OE. OF., OFr. OFris. OHG. OIr. ON. ONF. Ophthalm. opp. Opt. Org. orig. Ornith.

Palseont.

Publ.

(as label) in Palaeontology; (in titles) Palaeontology, -ical passive participle, past participle (quoted from) E. Partridge’s Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English passive, -ly past tense (as label) in Pathology; (in titles) Pathology, -ical perhaps Persian person, -al in Petrography (as label) in Petrology; (in titles) Petrology, -ical (quoted from) C. Pettman’s Africande risms perfect Portuguese in Pharmacology (as label) in Philology; (in titles) Philology, -ical (as label) in Philosophy; (in titles) Philosophy, -ic phonetic, -ally (as label) in Photography; (in titles) Photography, -ical phrase physical; (rarely) in Physiology (as label) in Physiology; (in titles) Physiology, -ical (in titles) Picture, Pictorial plural poetic, -al Polish (as label) in Politics; (in titles) Politics, -al in Political Economy (in titles) Politics, -al popular, -ly (in titles) Porcelain possessive (in titles) Pottery participial adjective participle Provenfal present (in titles) Practice, -al preceding (word or article) predicative prefix preface preposition present (in titles) Principle, -s privative probably (in titles) Problem (in titles) Proceedings pronoun pronunciation properly in Prosody Provencal present participle in Psychology (as label) in Psychology; (in titles) Psychology, -ical (in titles) Publications

Qquot(s). q.v.

(in titles) Quarterly quotation(s) quod vide, ‘which see’

R. Radiol. R.C.Ch. Rec. redupl. Ref. refash. refl. Reg.

(in titles) Royal in Radiology Roman Catholic Church (in titles) Record reduplicating (in titles) Reference refashioned, -ing reflexive (in titles) Register

pa. pple. (Partridge),

pass. pa.t. Path. perh. Pers. pers. Petrogr. Petrol. (Pettman), pf. PgPharm. Philol. Philos. phonet. Photogr. phr. Phys. Physiol. Piet. pi., plur. poet. Pol. Pol. Pol. Econ. Polit. pop. Pore. poss. Pott. ppl. a., pple. adj. pple. Pr. pr. Pract. prec. pred. pref. pref., Pref. prep. pres. Princ. priv. prob. Probl. Proc. pron. pronunc. prop. Pros. Prov. pr. pple. Psych. Psychol.

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS, SIGNS, ETC. reg. rel. Reminisc. Rep. repr. Res. Rev. rev. Rhet. Rom. Rum. Russ.

regular related to (in titles) Reminiscence, -s (in titles) Report, -s representative, representing (in titles) Research (in titles) Review revised in Rhetoric Roman, -ce, -ic Rumanian Russian

S. S.Afr. sb. sc.

South South Africa, -n substantive scilicet, ‘understand' or ‘supply’ Scottish (in titles) Scandinavia, -n (in titles) School Scottish National Dictionary (in titles) Scotland (in titles) Selection, -s Series singular (in titles) Sketch Sanskrit Slavonic Scottish National Dictionary (in titles) Society (as label) in Sociology; (in titles) Sociology, -ical Spanish (in titles) Speech, -es spelling specifically (in titles) Specimen Saint (in titles) Standard (quoted from) Stanford Dictionary of Anglicised Words & Phrases

Sc., Scot. Scand. Sch. Sc. Nat. Diet. Scotl. Set. Ser. sing. Sk. Skr. Slav. S.N.D. Soc. Sociol. Sp. Sp. sp. spec. Spec. St. Stand. Stanf.

str. Struct. Stud. subj. subord. cl. subseq. subst. sujf. superl. Suppl. Surg. s.v. Sw. s.w. Syd. Soc. Lex.

syll. Syr. Syst. Taxon. techn. Technol. Telegr. Teleph. (Th.), Theatr. Theol. Theoret. Tokh. tr., transl. Trans. trans. transf. Trav. Treas. Treat. Treatm. Trig.

strong (in titles) Structure, -al (in titles) Studies subject subordinate clause subsequent, -ly substantively suffix superlative Supplement (as label) in Surgery; (in titles) Surgery, Surgical sub voce, ‘under the word’ Swedish south-western (dialect) Sydenham Society, Lexicon of Medicine & Allied Sciences syllable Syrian (in titles) System, -atic (in titles) Taxonomy, -ical technical, -ly (in titles) Technology, -ical in Telegraphy in Telephony (quoted from) Thornton’s American Glossary in the Theatre, theatrical (as label) in Theology; (in titles) Theology, -ical (in titles) Theoretical Tokharian translated, translation (in titles) Transactions transitive transferred sense (in titles) Travel(s) (in titles) Treasury (in titles) Treatise (in titles) Treatment in Trigonometry

Trop. Turk. Typog., Typogr.

(in titles) Tropical Turkish in Typography

ult. Univ. unkn. U.S. U.S.S.R.

ultimately (in titles) University unknown United States Union of Soviet Socialist Republics usually

usu. v., vb. var(r)., vars. vbl. sb. Vertebr. Vet.

Vet. Sci. viz. Voy. v.str. vulg. v.w. W. wd. Webster Westm. WGmc. Wks. w.midl. WS. (Y.), Yrs. Zoogeogr. Zool.

verb variant(s) of verbal substantive (in titles) Vertebrate, -s (as label) in Veterinary Science; (in titles) Veterinary in Veterinary Science videlicet, ‘namely’ (in titles) Voyage, -s strong verb vulgar weak verb Welsh; West word Webster's (New International) Dictionary (in titles) Westminster West Germanic (in titles) Works west midland (dialect) West Saxon (quoted from) Yule & Burnell’s Hobson-Jobson (in titles) Years in Zoogeography (as label) in Zoology; (in titles) Zoology, -ical

Signs and Other Conventions Before a word or sense

In the listing of Forms

f = obsolete

i = before i ioo 2=12th c. (11 oo to 1200) 3 = 13th c. (1200 to 1300), etc. 5-7 = 15th to 17th century 20 = 20th century

II = not naturalized, alien = catachrestic and erroneous uses

In the etymologies * indicates a word or form not actually found, but of which the existence is inferred :— = normal development of

The printing of a word in small capitals indicates that further information will be found under the word so referred to. .. indicates an omitted part of a quotation. - (in a quotation) indicates a hyphen doubtfully present in the original; (in other text) indicates a hyphen inserted only for the sake of a line-break.

PROPRIETARY NAMES This Dictionary includes some words which are or are asserted to be proprietary names or trade marks. Their inclusion does not imply that they have acquired for legal purposes a non-proprietary or general significance nor any other judgement concerning their legal status. In cases where the editorial staff have established in the records of the Patent Offices of the United Kingdom and of the United States that a word is registered as a proprietary name or trade mark this is indicated, but no judgement concerning the legal status of such words is made or implied thereby.

WAVE wave (weiv), sb. wave v.

i

(Also 6 whave, 8 weave.) [f.

In sense i, which appears early in the 16th c., it seems to have been substituted by popular etymology for the older waw sb., which it rapidly superseded in use. In branch II it is a new formation on the verb.]

1. 1. a. A movement in the sea or other collection of water, by which a portion of the water rises above the normal level and then subsides, at the same time travelling a greater or smaller distance over the surface; a moving ridge or swell of water between two depressions or troughs’; one of the long ridges or rollers which, in the shallower parts of the sea, follow each other at regular intervals, assuming an arched form, and successively break on the shore. Sometimes the word is applied to the ridge and the accompanying trough taken together, and occasionally to the concave curve of the surface between the crest of one ridge and that of the next. 1526 Tindale Jas. i. 6 For he that douteth is lyke the waues [1539 Cranmer, 1557 Geneva, 1611 Authorized, a waue; 1535 Coverdale, the wawes] of the see. 1530 Palsgr. 287/1 Wave of the see, uague. 1551 Robinson tr. More’s Utopia 11. i. (1895) 116 A large and wyde sea, which .. is not rough nor mountith not with great waues. 1565 Stapleton tr. Bede’s Hist. Ch. Eng. 91 The tempest encreased, the whaues multiplied so faste .. that nothing but present death was looked for. 1585 Higins Junius' Nomencl. 400/1 Vnda sequax,.. waue vpon waue: one waue following vpon anothers necke. 1593 Shaks. 3 Hen. VI, 11. vi. 36 As doth a Saile, fill’d with a fretting Gust Command an Argosie to stemme the Waues. 1603 Holland Plutarch’s Mor. 255 As in a setled calme, without winde, weather and wave. 1671 Milton P.R. iv. 18 As .. surging waves against a solid rock, Though all to shivers dash’t, the assault renew. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. iv. 767 Proteus.. in the Billows plung’d his hoary Head; And where he leap’d, the Waves in Circles widely spread. 1781 Cowper Expost. 272 What ails thee, restless as the waves that roar, And fling their foam against thy chalky shore? 1810 Scott Lady of L. vi. xviii. Like wave with crest of sparkling foam, Right onward did Clan-Alpine come. 1855 Tennyson Maud 1. xviii. 8 Is that enchanted moan only the swell Of the long waves that roll in yonder bay? i860-Islet 16 Waves on a diamond shingle dash. 1877 W. H. White Naval Archit. xi. 443 The main bow wave may also be followed by a train of waves, successive waves in a series having diminished heights. 1877 Huxley Physiogr. 171 It is merely the form of the wave, and not the actual water that travels. b. = tidal or tide wave: see tidal i b, tide 16 b. 1812-16 Playfair Nat. Phil. I. 329 The great Wave which, in this manner, constitutes the tide, is to be considered as an undulation .. of the ocean, in which [etc.].

c. Poet. Used in collective sing, for ‘water5, ‘sea’. The plural is also similarly used {poet, and rhetorically), but without quite losing the primary meaning. 1588 Shaks. L.L.L. v. i. 61 Now by the salt waue of the mediteranium, a sweet tutch. 1590 Spenser F.Q. ii. vii. 57 He .. looking downe, saw many damned wights, In those sad waues [of Cocytus]. 1616 Chapman tr. Musseus F 1, Virgin, for thy Loue, I will swim a waue That Ships denies. 1667 Milton P.L. i. 193 Thus Satan talking to his neerest Mate With Head up-lift above the wave. 1742 Gray Eton 26 Say, Father Thames,.. Who foremost now delight to cleave With pliant arm thy glassy wave? 1784 Cowper Task v. 835 When he sees afar His country’s weather-bleach’d and batter’d rocks, From the green wave emerging. 1820 Byron Mar. Fal. 11. i, The calm wave Favours the gondolier’s light skimming oar. 1825 Scott Talism. i, Where the waves of the Jordan pour themselves into an inland sea. 1844 Hood Bridge of Sighs 11 Whilst the wave constantly Drips from her clothing, i860 Patmore Faithf. for Ever 1. viii, Perhaps .. They wander whispering by the wave. 1864 Tennyson Voy. v, We came to warmer waves, and deep Across the boundless east we drove.

2. transf. a. An undulatory movement, or one of an intermittent series of movements, of something passing over or on a surface or through the air. 1810 Scott Lady of L. 1. xi, The western waves of ebbing day Roll’d o’er the glen their level way. 1827 Keble Chr. Y., Christm. Day, In waves of light it thrills along. 1833 Tennyson Dream Fair Worn, xlviii, The holy organ rolling waves Of sound on roof and floor. 1850-In Mem. xci, The thousand waves of wheat, That ripple round the lonely grange. 1899 Allbutt's Syst. Med. VIII. 86 Thus .. there are the waves of goose-skin passing over the body. 1903 K. C. Thurston Circle iii. 23 It was like a wave of sun through a chill room. b. = pulse-wave: see pulse sb.1 6. 1838 Penny Cycl. XII. 81/1 The dilatation of the arteries produced by the wave which is propagated along the column of blood contained in them. 1850 Tennyson In Mem. cxxii. Till all my blood, a fuller wave, Be quicken’d with a livelier breath.

c.

A forward movement of a large body of persons (chiefly invaders or immigrants overrunning a country, or soldiers advancing to an attack), or of military vehicles or aircraft, which either recedes and returns after an interval, or is followed after a time by another body repeating the same movement. 1852 T. Wright Celt, Roman & Saxon i. i Europe was eopled by several successive migrations, or, as they have een technically named, waves of population, all flowing from one point in the east. 1862 Stanley Jew. Ch. (1877) I. ix. 176 The Israelite conquest of Palestine .. is in itself but one amongst a succession of waves which have swept over the country. 1875 Stubbs Const. Hist. I. ii. 16 The populations .. which .. were still affected by the great

migratory wave. 1879 Green Readings fr. Eng. Hist. xix. 98 Turned back wave after wave of the enemy. 1893 O. M. Edwards in Traill Soc. Eng. i. 1 The first wave of immigrants that reached Britain.. was a wave of men of short stature and swarthy countenance. 1915 Times 3 Feb. 9/1 They send forward wave after wave of men, regardless of the punishment. 1943 R. V. Jones Most Secret War (1978) xli. 382 Longer raids will always be liable to attacks on their last waves whenever fighters can fly. 1951 O. Berthoud tr. Clostermann's Big. Show 1. 38 The airfield at Triqueville.. was going to be bombed in force by two waves of 72 Marauders. 1982 Daily Tel. 12 Oct. 17/8 The fly past will take place in two waves—a slow one consisting of five formations of helicopters.., then the fixed-wing aircraft, again in five formations.

d. A long convex strip of land between two long broad hollows; one of a series of such strips; also occas. a rounded ridge of sand or snow formed by the action of the wind. 1788 A. Young in J. Baxter's Libr. Pract. Agric. (ed. 4) II. p. viii, The Downs are.. nearly flat, or only in gentle waves at the top. 1789 J. Williams Min. Kingd. I. 108 The variation of the dip and rise there generally consists of gentle easy swelling waves. 1796 W. H. Marshall W. Eng. II. 212 A fine Vale District: rich waves of grass land. 1819 S. Rogers Human Life 682 A hollow wave Of burning sand their everlasting grave. 1886 Ruskin Praeterita I. viii. 248 The field fences buried under crested waves of snow. 1887 Rider Haggard Allan Quaterm. xx, The crest of a great green wave of land, that rolled down a gentle slope to the banks of a little stream.

e. A wave-like effect produced in a grandstand or stadium by successive sections of the crowd of spectators standing up, raising their arms, and sitting down again. Usu. as human, Mexican, or Mexico wave. orig. U.S. This form of crowd participation was publicized through its popularity among spectators at the World Cup football competition held in Mexico City in 1986. 1984 N.Y. Times 6 Oct. 1. 21/1 This undulating human wave. . apparently became popular at University of Washington football games a few years ago. 1986 Financial Times 2 June 1/8 The huge Azteca amphitheatre was roaring and rolling, as the crowd performed the jump-up-and-down body ‘wave’. 1986 Times 21 June 40/2 As if India were not already finding batting hard enough, the crowd started during this final session to behave as they have seen others doing in Mexico, and performing what is apparently called the ‘human wave’. 1986 Today 29 June, 100,000 fans had turned up at the Aztec stadium and performed the wave for two hours.. on a day when there was no match. 1986 Sunday Times (Colour Suppl.) 27 July 27/3 There was the uncertainty among us media people about whether to stand when the congregation did. Half of us would rise, a third sit confusedly down again, then a fifth struggle to their feet. The Queen must have thought we were trying out a Mexico Wave. 1986 Guardian 18 Aug. 23/2 An occasion and result that satisfied the partisan bulk of the 88,000 crowd. We even saw a passable Mexican Wave.

3. fig. and in figurative context, a. chiefly pi., rough, stormy, or fluctuating conditions (of life, care, passion, etc.). e J?ridde part of pe Chirche fi3ti)? here aftir Crist, and taki)? ensaumple and weie of him to come to hevene as he cam. 1450-1530 Myrr. Our Ladye iii. 307 Lyghte to the blynde, way to the croked.

e. to go the -wrong way: of food or drink, to go into the windpipe instead of the gullet when being swallowed. 1764 Phil. Trans. LV. 42 An acquaintance.. was killed by a piece of chesnut, which went the wrong way, as we commonly express it. i860 Hughes Tom Brown Oxf. iv, In a constant sort of mild epileptic fit, from laughter, and wine going the wrong way. i860 O. W. Holmes Elsie Venner vii. (1887) 94 He’s swallered somethin’ the wrong way.

f. Mode of transport. 1708 Caldwell Papers (Maitl. Club) I. 214, I have inquired what way my goods may safeliest be sent, and am told that by Holstein ships.

g. Way of the Cross (= eccl.L. Via Crucis): a series of images or pictures representing the ‘Stations of the Cross’ (see station sb. 23), ranged round the interior of a church, or on the road to a church or shrine; also, the series of devotions prescribed to be used at these stations in succession. 1868 Walcott Sacred Archaeol. 554 The stations of the way of the cross .. are— (1) the condemnation of our Lord; (2) Christ bearing His cross; (3) [etc.].

5. a. Course or line of actual movement. 1382 Wyclif Prov. xxx. 19 The weie of an egle in heuene, the weie of the shadewe eddere on a ston, the weie of a ship in the myd se. 1632 Lithgow Trav. vii. 327 Our way is Serpent like. 1665-6 Phil. Trans. I. 6 At what Angle the Way of the Comet cuts the /Equator. 1683 Hooke in Birch Hist. Roy. Soc. (1757) IV. 231, I shewed an instrument, .by which the way of a ship through the sea might be exactly measured. 1715 Desaguliers Fires Impr. 146 The winding Lines .. shew the way of the Air in different Constructions of Chimneys. 1735 Somerville Chase iv. 431 See there he dives along! Th’ ascending Bubbles mark his gloomy Way. 1868 Lockyer Elem. Astron. vii. (1879) 261 The direction of the Earth’s motion in its orbit, called the Earth’s Way.

fb. The wake of a vessel. Obs. C1565 J Sparke Sir J. Hawkins' 2nd Voy. in Hakluyt (1589) 535 [The alligator] plunged into the water, making a streame like the way of a boate. C1635 Capt. N. Boteler Dial. Sea Services (1685) 300 In speaking of the Wake of a Ship.. You said that it was also called the Way. 1706 Phillips (ed. Kersey), Way of a Ship, the smooth Water that she makes a-stern when under Sail.

c. Engraving. (See quot. 1891.) 1874 Willshire Anc. Prints iii. 96 This operation., consists in rocking the cradle to and fro in certain directions or ‘ways’, determined by a plan or scale that enables the engraver to pass over the plate in very many directions without any one of them being repeated. 1891 Adeline's Art Diet., Way (Engrav.) the series of parallel paths hewn out by the rocker on a mezzotint is technically termed a way.

6. a. In generalized use: Opportunity for passage or advance; absence of obstruction to forward movement; hence fig. freedom of action, scope, opportunity. In various phrases, as give way (see give v. 49), have way (see 24), make way (see 25); also ellipt. way! (= ‘make way’). a 1400-50 Bk. Curtasye 277 In Babees Bk., 3if f>ou go with a-no)?er at po gate, And 3e be bothe of on astate, Be curtasye and let hym haue pe way. 1634 Sir T. Herbert Trav. 188 If any vulgar fellow meet them, they presently shake and vibrate their Swords.. and so obtaine the way without opposition. 1714 in Jrnl. Friends Hist. Soc. (1918) 29 Having

WAY seen the comfort of our labours I found my way opened for a Return [sc. home]. 1850 Tennyson In Mem. cii, Poor rivals in a losing game, That will not yield each other way. 1898 A. Balfour To Arms v, Once or twice I saw a courier flying north,.. and clearing the road with a loud shout of ‘Way, way!’

b. in legal documents sometimes equivalent to RIGHT OF WAY. 1766 Blackstone Comm. II. iii. 35 A fourth species of incorporeal hereditaments is that of ways; or the right of going over another man’s ground. 1790 Durnford & East Cases K.B. III. 766 The plaintiff.. by reason of his possession thereof was entitled to a certain way from the said messuage unto into through and over a certain close of the defendant &c. unto and into the king’s common highway &c. and so back again &c. 1803 C. Barton Elem. Convey. (1821) III. 180 If a copyholder has had time out of mind, a way over another’s copyhold. 1832 Act 2 & 3 Will IV, c. 71 §2 No Claim which may be lawfully made at the Common Law, by Custom, Prescription, or Grant, to any Way or other Easement, [etc.].

7. a. Travel or motion along a particular route or in a particular direction, to take (a place, etc.) in one’s way: to visit in the course of one’s journey. ciooo Sax. Leechd. II. 16 Lsecedom gif mon on langum wege teorige. a 1400 Minor Poems fr. Vernon Ms. xlvii. 121 5if j?ou haue eny wey to wende, I rede J?ou here a masse.. In pe Morennynge. 14.. Tundale's Vis. (Cott. MS.) 42 But Tundale hadde a harde warnynge, For as he yn a transynge lay Hys sowle was in a dredefull way, There as hit sawe mony a hydwysse payne Ere hit come to pe body agayne. c 1430 Chev. Assigne 220 The grypte eypur a staffe in here honde & on here wey straw3te. 1568 Grafton Chron. II. 262 They were well onward on their way toward Gascoyn. 1590 Shaks. Com. Err. iv. iii. 92 Belike his wife acquainted with his fits, On purpose shut the doores against his way. 1600 E. Blount tr. Conestaggio 230 The ioints thereof [sc. of the boats] were so shaken and open with the waie. 1617 J. Taylor (Water P.) Three Weeks Observ. B 1, We past the way away by telling tales by turnes. 1697 Dryden JEneis in. 714 Our way we bend To Pallas. 1735 Johnson Lobo's Abyssinia, Descr. xi. 111, I left the place of my Abode, and took in my way four Fathers,.. so that the Company.. was five. 1741 C’tess Pomfret in C'tess Hartford's Corr. (1805) III. 166 Here we left the shore, but continued our way on very good roads, till [etc.]. 1777 Earl Carlisle in Jesse Selwyn & Contemp. (1844) III. 228 As to our motions,.. We may take Chatsworth in our way. 1779 Storer Ibid. IV. 242, I shall look in upon you at Matson in my way. 1818 Scott Hrt. Midi. xl. The attendants on the execution began to pass the stationary vehicle in their way back to Carlisle. 1827Highl. Widow i, There was some originality in the man’s habits of thinking and expressing himself.. which made his conversation amuse the way well enough, a 1863 Faber Hymn, ‘/ was wandering', As He came along His way.

b. Qualified by poss. pron., the word often occurs as object or as adverbial accusative to the verb go (see got;. 21 b) and its synonyms, if are, if ere (see fare v. i, fere v.), wend, etc. From an early period my, his (etc.) way in these collocations were often nearly equivalent to ‘away’, and with this weakened sense they were formerly used with other verbs of motion, as flee (see flee v. 1 d), run (see run v. 34), come, pass, ride. In present literary use to go, wend one's way survive as archaisms; mod. dialects have only the imperatives go, come your (thy) way (or ways: see 23 b). c 1205 [see flee v. id], c 1205 Lay. 25954 Ich wulle faren minne waei. a 1250 Owl Night. 308 \>e hauec fol3e)? gode rede & fli3t his wei & lat him grede. c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 1429 Eliezer is went his wei. a 1325 Prose Psalter xviii. 6 He ioyed as a giaunt to erne his waye. 1390 Gower Conf. I. 94 ‘Ryd thanne forth thi wey’, quod sche. a 1400-50 Wars Alex. 133 Furj?e on his fete withouten foie he passis his way. a 1450 Knt. de la Tour x. 14 Yef ye fare rudely and be cruell with hym [the hawk], he will fle his way and neuer come atte you. 1487 Cely Papers (Camden) 167 The Kynge .. muste flee hys weye owte of the contrey. 1678 Bunyan Pilgr. 1. 90 Then she railed on me, and I went my way. 1772 Cumberland Fashionable Lover 11. 23 Go your way for a simpleton, and say no more about the matter. 1837 Dickens Pickzv. xviii, As he wended his way to the Peacock. Ibid, xxvi, Mr. Weller went his way back to the George and Vulture.

c. In the Bible phrase to go the way of all the earth (Josh, xxiii. 14, 1 Kings ii. 2) meaning ‘to die’. Also in erroneous forms (due to confusion with other Bible passages), the way of all flesh, of all living. (The way of all flesh has sometimes been used to mean the experience common to all men in their passage through life.) A passage (dated 900) in Birch’s Cartul. Sax. II. 241 ‘Quando /Elfred rex.. viam vniverse carnis adiit’, shows that the substitution of ‘of all flesh’ (universse carnis) for ‘of all the earth’ (universes terras) was current in med. Latin. The reading of the Douay Bible (quot. 1609) suggests that the substitution must have found its way into some printed copies of the Vulgate; also, the Plantin Concordance (1642) reads carnis s.vv. Caro and Ingredior, though elsewhere the two passages are cited with the reading terras. 1597 Shaks. 2 Hen. IV, v. ii. 4 Hee’s walk’d the way of Nature, And to our purposes, he liues no more. 1609 Bible (Douay) 1 Kings ii. 2, I enter into the way of all flesh [Vulg. universae terras]. Ibid., Josh, xxiii. 14. 1611 Heywood Golden Age iii. i. F46, If I go by land, and mis-carry, then I go the way of all flesh. If I go by sea and mis-carry, then I go the way of all fish. 1809 Malkin Gil Bias 1. v. If 10, I heard that Don Rodrigo had gone the way of all flesh. 1835 Dickens Sk. Boz, Mr. Watkins Tottle i, He pardoned us off-hand, and allowed us something to live on till he went the way of all flesh. 1887 Murray's Mag. Sept. 422 His former retainer, Phil Judd, had long gone the way of all flesh, however seasoned.

WAY jocularly. 1607 Dekker & Webster West-w. Hoe 11. ii, I saw him euen now going the way of all flesh (thats to say) towardes the Kitchin.

d. In verbal phrases with the sense ‘to effect a forward movement by the action denoted by the verb’, e.g. in to force, push, squeeze one's way; also occas. with the sense ‘to accompany one’s advance by the specified action’. 1694 Atterbury Sertn., Isa. lx. 22 (1726) I. 101 In this manner the Prophet of the East hew’d out his way by the power of the Sword. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg, hi. 843 The slow creeping Evil eats his way, Consumes the parching Limbs, and makes the Life his Prey. 1748 Richardson Clarissa (1768) VIII. 137 McDonald, being surrounded, attempted to fight his way thro’, and wounded his man. 1750 Gray Elegy 3 The plowman homeward plods his weary way. 1770 Goldsm. Des. Vill. 42 No more thy glassy brook reflects the day, But, choked with sedges, works its weedy way. 1833 [see elbow v. 4]. 1836 Dickens Sk. Boz, Hosp. Patient, We .. entered the office, in company with .. as many dirty-faced spectators as could squeeze their way in. Ibid., Streets—Night, The muffin-boy rings his way down the little street. 1859— T. Two Cities 11. iii, The virtuous servant, Roger Cly, swore his way through the case at a great rate. 1883 Whitelaw Sophocles, Oed. Col. 717 The oarblade wings its wondrous way, Sped by stout arms. 1892 Lady F. Verney Verney Mem. I. 3 If enemies forced their way into the house. 1897 J. L. Allen Choir Invisible ii, He failed to urge his way through the throng as speedily as he may have expected.

fe. A journey, voyage; a pilgrimage, lit. and jig. Also = EYRE. Obs. With quot. c 1325 cf. OF. ‘faire une voie a Saint Jacques’ quoted by Du Cange (s.v. Via) with date 1368. a 1225 Ancr. R. 350 j>auh heo beon ine worldliche weie, as ich seide er, of pilegrimes, auh habbeS hore heorte euer toward heouene. c 1325 Metr. Horn. 53 It was a man .. That til sain Jamis hit [= hight, promised] the way. 1382 Wyclif Gen. xxiv. 21 Wilnyng to wite whether the Lord had maad his weye welsom [Vulg. utrum prosperum iter suum fecisset Dominus], or noon. ? a 1400 Morte Arth. 553 He wylle wyghtlye in a qwhyle on his wayes hye. c 1400 Three Kings Cologne (1886) 56 Whan J?ey had spoke togedir and euerych of hem had tolde his purpos and pe cause of his weye. a 1500 in Arnolde's Chron. (1502) B ij b, That the citezens may recorde ther libarteis afore the kingis Justicis and mynystres what so euer notwythstandyng Statutis of the Wey or domes in the contrey made or shewyd oute. Ibid. C vj, And that the forsayd Citezens in the weys of Justice to the tour of London fro hensforward goyng, that they bee not lad by the lawes by which they were ledde in the Weys holden in the tymes of John and herry Somtyme kynge of englande.

ff. the way’s end: lit. the end of the journey; fig. the completion of a process. Obs. 1526 in Househ. Ord. (1790) 219 It shall be lawfull for the purveyour.. to take.. such Poultry stuff.. paying unto them such prices .. as the said purveyor.. should have paid therefore at the wayes end. 1528 Tindale Obed. Chr. Man 141b, Thou must therfore goo alonge by the scripture as by a lyne, vntyll thou come at Christ, which is the wayes ende and restynge place. 1662 Petty Taxes 84 The one [stuff] wanting nothing but tacking up, to be at its ways end; and the other tayloring.. and several other particulars.

g. to hold, keep one's way (cf. 4 c): to travel without interruption; fig. to continue one’s course of action, to ‘keep going’, ffo hold, keep way: to keep pace (const, with or dative). c 1375 Sc. Leg. Saints xi. (Simon & Jude) 326 Syne to pe eddris can pai sa; ‘ve commawnd 30W to hald 30ur va\ 1598 Shaks. Merry W. in. ii. 1 Nay keepe your way (little Gallant) you were wont to be a follower, but now you are a Leader. 1599-Much Ado 1. i. 144, I would my horse had the speed of your tongue .. but keepe your way a Gods name, I haue done. 1605 Bacon Adv. Learn. 11. vii. §2. 25 It seemeth best to keepe way with Antiquities, vsque ad aras. 1625 - Ess., Fortune (Arb.) 377 When there be not Stonds, nor Restiuenesse in a Mans Nature. But that the wheeles of his Minde keepe way with the wheeles of his Fortune. 1640 Yorke Union Hon., Battles 63 She .. had her fore mast broken off, which so hindred her sayle, that shee was unable to keepe way with the Fleete. 1706 E. Ward Wooden World Diss. (1708) 1 It flies so far, that no bird .. but a Woodcock, can hold way with it. 1708 Constit. Watermen's Co. 82 All plying to keep Way, on forfeiture of 00.00.06. 1726 Shelvocke Voy. round World 2, I did not doubt but that I should be able to hold him away. 1818 Tuckey's Narr. Exped. R. Zaire Introd. p. xxvii, In running .. from the Nore to the North Foreland,. .she kept way with the transport. 1827 Scott Surg. Dan. xiii, The .. reeds of the jungle were moving like the ripple of the ocean, when distorted by the course of a shark holding its way near the surface. 1848 Dickens Dombey x, People who have enough to do to hold their own way.. had better be content with their own obligations and difficulties.

fh. by the way of my soul (as an oath): by my soul’s salvation. Obs. 1460 Paston Lett. I. 522 For be the weye of my sowle, this lond wer uttirly on done.

i. Naut. Progress (of a ship or boat) through the water; rate of progress, velocity; impetus gained by a vessel in motion, to freshen way. see FRESHEN V. 3. Cf. under way (38), from which this sense was perh. evolved. 1663 Davenant 2nd Pt. Siege of Rhodes 11. i, Those who withstand The Tide of Flood .. Fall back when they in vain would onward row: We strength and way preserve by lying still. 1669 Sturmy Mariner's Mag. iv. vi. 160 If you sail against a Current, if it be swifter than the Ship’s way, you fall a Stern. 1744 M. Bishop Life 15 She stood away for Brest, and we .. fired a Chace Gun, but we fired too soon, for we lost Way and she gained. 1757 Phil. Trans. L. 34 The sea was rough, and the yacht had great way. 1764 J. Byron in Hawkesw. Voy. (1773) I. 23 On the 7th, I found myself much farther to the northward than I expected, and therefore supposed the ship’s way had been influenced by a current, i860 Hughes Tom Brown Oxf. xiii, Now mind,

18 boys, don’t quicken,.. four short strokes to get way on her, and then steady. 1885 Law Rep. 10 P.D. 101 She ran into the Nio before her way could be stopped. 1889 Jerome Three Men in Boat ix, We can’t steer, if you keep stopping. You must keep some way on the boat. 1899 F. T. Bullen Log of Sea-waif 27 By the time our way was exhausted, about ninety fathoms had been paid out on the first anchor. transf. 1857 Dickens Dorrit 1. xiii, A..short dark man came into the room with so much way upon him, that he was within a foot of Clennam before he could stop. 1911 Times 22 Aug. 8/2 He shut off his engine and by so doing took the ‘way’ off the biplane. 1914 Contemp. Rev. Nov. 680 The train gathered way.

j. Colloq. phr. on the (or one’s) way out (or down): going down in status, position, estimation, or favour; similarly with in or up, expressing the opposite sense. 1937 Time 25 Jan. 12/3 Every time one of them has called on the President and emerged smiling, rumor has whispered throughout Washington that the other was ‘on his way out’. 1938 Sat. Rev. (U.S.) 17 Sept. 17/1 The thrill of being on the way up, of being prominent, being envied. 1938 H. L. Ickes Diary 5 Nov. (1955) II. 497 France is but little better than a third-rate power and is on the way down. 1955 A. L. Rowse Expansion Eliz. Eng. i. 27 The Scottish king could well afford to make the concession: she was on her way out, he was on his way in. i960 Guardian 9 Dec. 8/5 Sunrise yellows and pinks are definitely on the way in. 1962 in R. Jarrell Sad Heart at Supermarket 92 Poetry is on the way out! 1975 D. Bagley Snow Tiger xx. 163 This is the last job I’ll hold as chief engineer. If I lose it I’ll be on the way down —I’ll be assistant to some smart young guy who is on his way up. 1980 A. Scholefield Berlin Blind 1. 5 Calland was a good-looking young man on the way up.

8. a. Distance travelled or to be travelled along a particular route. Hence (with adjs. long, short, good, great, little), a distance between places or to a place; often as advb. accusative. Also with Off. Cf. HALFWAY. a little goes a long-way and varr.: see go v. 43 c, little sb. 4. fa mile of way: = ‘a mile away’ (obs. rare). c 900 tr. Baeda's Hist. 1. xxiii, Hig.. sumne dael Saes weges gefaren haefdon. nsere mara we$ )?onne meahte on tyn dagum geferan. c 1400 Maundev. (Roxb.) viii. 32 It es a grete way betwene ham. 1535 Coverdale j Kings xix. 7 Stonde vp, and eate, for thou hast a greate waye to go. 1551 T. Wilson Logic 11. I vii b, It is no good argument, if I se a tree a good way from me, to say, it is a tree, therefore it is an Apple tree. 1585 T. Washington tr. Nicholay's Voy. in. viii. 82 b, Trauailing both day and night.. [they] do dispatch more way then the best horse.. coulde doe. 1588 Shaks. L.L.L. iii. 57 The way is but short, away. 1590 Spenser F.Q. i. i. 28 Long way he traveiled before he heard of ought. 1632 Lithgow Trav. v. 176 There came a man, and two women swimming to vs, more then a mile of way. 1662 J. Davies tr. Olearius' Voy. Ambass. 36 The Sand-banks .. reach out a good way into the Sea. 1667 Sprat Hist. Royal-Soc. 250 A Chariot-way-wiser, measuring exactly the length of the way of the Chariot or Coach to which it is apply’d. 1697 C'tess D'Aunoy's Trav. (1706) 44 They commit these Villanies hard by a Sanctuary, so have the less way to an Altar. 1711 Budgell Spect. No. 77 |p 1, I saw him squirr away his Watch a considerable way into the Thames. 1818 Scott Hrt. Midi, xxxvi, I must ask the favour of your company a little way. 1835 Dickens Sk. Boz, Pawnbroker's Shop, It is a low,.. dusty shop, the door of which stands always doubtfully, a little way open. 1844 Brougham Alb. Lunel I. ii. 39 The Marchioness’s walk seldom lasted less than an hour, so that she must have some way to go. 1856 F. O. Morris Brit. Birds V. 8 Ventriloquism, .making the sound at one moment appear close to the listener, and the next a long way off. 1882 Besant All Sorts xxi, But the village of Davenant is not a great way off. 1898 Flor. Montgomery Tony 18 She stood a little way from the door. fig. 1744 Harris Three Treat. 1. (1765) 18 And now then, continued he, as we have gone thus far, and have settled between us what we believe Art to be; shall we go a little farther, or is your Patience at an end? Oh! no, replied I, not if any thing be left. We have walked so leisurely, that much remains of our Way.

f b. For a mile way, a furlong way, meaning the time which it takes to go that distance, see MILEWAY, FURLONG b. Obs. c. In advb. phrases used figuratively, (by) a long way: qualifying a comparative, = ‘far’ (better, etc.), at the least way(s: see leastways. f a great way : to a great extent, f afoul way out: miserably far from success, some way: for some distance (in time), to go a long or great way : (a) see go v. 43 c, d; (b) to be in agreement with someone, all the way: completely; cf. senses 8 e, f below. 1601 Shaks. All's Well I. i. nz, I loue him for his sake, And yet I .. Thinke him a great way foole. 1601-Jul. C. II. i. 107 Heere, as I point my Sword, the Sunne arises, Which is a great way growing on the South. 1601-Twel. N. 11. iii. zoi If I cannot recouer your Neece, I am a foule way out. 1699 Bentley Phal. 484 Why, forsooth, so much ado, why such a vast way about, to obtain a few Verses? 1850 Lady Lyttleton Let. 12 June (1912) 401, I cannot quite enter into his politics... But a very great way I go along with him. 1859 Darwin Let. Nov. (1887) II. vi. 224 Also from Quatrefages, who is inclined to go a long way with us. 1859 T. Hughes Tom Brown at Oxf. iv, in Macmillan’s Mag. Dec. 102/1 He is more of a gentleman by a long way than most. 1874 Sweet in Trans. Philol. Soc. 1873-4, 516 The most characteristic features of Middle English, as, for instance, ii and uu, were preserved some way into the sixteenth century. 1890 W. E. Norris Misadventure xiv, Bligh, who was his junior by a long way. 1973 ‘N. Carter’ Spanish Connection x. 112 I’m saying I can’t buy your story all the way, Corelli.

d. all the way from-to-: (a) throughout the specified interval, at every point in it; (b)

WAY U.S., (estimated, etc.) at any amount between the specified quantities. (a) 1791 R. Mylne 2nd Rep. Thames Navig. 10 There is the finest navigable Water, all the Way from Mr. Tovey’s Meadows to Clieve Lock. 1966 Listener 5 May 643/2 The peak age [for crime] is during the last year at school... The rate is fairly high all the way from twelve to twenty. (b) 1878 J. H. Beadle Western Wilds xxxi. 493 The value of the booty taken has been estimated all the way from $150,000 to $300,000. 1931 G. T. Clark Leland Stanford xi. 365 The amount said to have been wagered.. has been variously stated all the way from $5,000 to $50,000.

e. to go all the way, the whole, way: (a) to continue a course of action to its conclusion; spec, (slang), to engage in sexual intercourse (with someone), as opposed just to fondling; (b) to agree completely with someone. 1915 J. C. Powys Visions & Revisions 12 If you lack the courage, or the variability, to go all the way with very different masters, and to let your constructive consistency take care of itself, you may become, perhaps, an admirable moralist; you will never by a clairvoyant critic. 1922 H. J. Laski in Holmes-Laski Lett. (1953) I. 412, I can’t go all the way with it, for if it was as a business man that the tyrant found the path to power I should have thought there would have been mention of it in Aristotle. 1924 P. Marks Plastic Age xiv. 151 ‘Wonder if Janet would have gone the whole way,’ flitted across his mind. 1927 H. T. Lowe-Porter tr. Mann's Magic Mountain I. iii. 78 ‘Am I right?’ ‘You certainly are, I can go all the way with you there.’ 1961 L. P. Hartley Two for River 49 I’d sooner go the whole way with somebody than natter with them at a tea-table. 1970 W. J. Burley To kill Cat x. 186 The things we found in her room! I mean it was obvious she was going all the way and her not fifteen! 1975 Listener 30 Oct. 574/4, I am not sure that I go all the way with Mr Miller in some of his analysis. 1979 R. Jaffe Class Reunion (1980) 1. i. 24 She would go to medical school... She didn’t know if she would have the guts to go all the way: intern, resident, actually practice medicine. Ibid. vi. 86 They would do as much as they could without either removing the rest of her clothes or going all the way.

f. to come or go a long way (with personal subj.: for impersonal subj. see GO v. 43 c, d): to achieve much, to make much progress; to have a long way to go, etc., to be far short of some accomplishment; so a long way from, far short of, much inferior to. 1917 H. J. Laski in Holmes-Laski Lett. (1953) I. 121 Your bretheren [ric] .. have still a long way to go before they understand the meaning of a certain dissent in Adair v. U.S. 1922 W. S. Maugham in Pearson's Mag. Oct. 320/2 He had come a long way since then. 1925 New Yorker 5 Sept. 11/3 Which is another way of saying that he will go a very long way. 1933 F. Baldwin Innocent Bystander viii. 150 Sherry had a long way to travel before she would be a Fontanne or a Cornell. 1935 H. L. Mencken Let. 4 Jan. (1961) 386 You must yet go a long way, of course, before you are eligible to it. 1940 Chatelaine July 37/2 Pat and Rosemary have come a long way; they started their careers with Fred Waring’s Pennsylvanians and ended up stars in one of the largest motion picture studios in the world. 1957 Practical Wireless XXXIII. 684/2 The system is a very long way from Hi-Fi, but is sufficient for the transmission of speech. 1966 Seventeen July 140/3 Society seems to have come a long way since the days of the Puritans, and now we’re up to topless bathing suits. 1977 P. Baelz Ethics & Belief vii. 79 Man has still a long way to go before he exercises his freedom responsibly and responsively.

9. a. Direction of motion, relative position, or aspect. Chiefly in advb. phrases, as this way (— hitherwards), my way (= towards me, into my neighbourhood), that way, which way, all ways, etc. In early use way often followed a local name or a sb. preceded by to with the force of the suffix -ward. In mod. colloquial and esp. rustic speech expressions like (down) Essex way (i.e. in Essex or its neighbourhood) are common. For the right way, the wrong way, in uses belonging to this sense, see those adjs. a 1300 Cursor M. 22573 he fixses pat har-in er stade,.. Til erth wai [Gott. Till erdward] han sal pai fle. 1573-80 Tusser Husb. (1878) 103 In Cambridge shire forward to Lincolne shire way, the champion maketh his fallow in May. 1591 Shaks. j Hen VI, iii. iii. 52 Oh turne thy edged Sword another way. 1605 —-Macb. iv. i. 45 By the pricking of my Thumbes, Something wicked this way comes. 1607 Cor. 1. iii. 8 When youth with cornelinesse pluck’d all gaze his way. 1632 Lithgow Trav. vi. 276 From whence we saw ..to the Westward, in the way of Egypt, the Castle of.. Elisha, a 1654 Selden Table-T. (Arb.) 67 As take a straw and throw it up into the Air, you shall see by that which way the Wind is. 1680 Moxon Mech. Exerc. xiv. 235 The Work must run always one way. 1697 Dryden JEneis xi 1123 This way and that his winding Course he bends. 1744 M. Bishop Life 190 Our advantageous Ground was the Destruction of a great many Thousands of the French, for we had them all Ways, Front, and Rear, and Flank. 1800 Lathom Dash of Day 1. iii, I seldom come your way now. 1821 Scott Kenilw. xxiii, Janet.. ventured to ask her lady, which way she proposed to direct her flight. 1841 Thackeray Gt. Hoggarty Diamond ii, As it was a very fine night, [we] strolled out for a walk West End way. 1846 James Stepmother xxxviii. II. 106 The instant he entered—though the servant said, ‘this way, sir,’ and walked on towards the opposite door—Mr. Morton’s visitor stopped, bowed to the ladies, [etc.]. 1850 Newman Difficulties Anglicans 1. ii. (1891) I. 55 Drive a stake into a river’s bed, and you will at once ascertain which way it is running. 1853 Lytton My Novel vi. xix, The first time you come my way you shall have two glasses of brandy-and-water. 1873 Ruskin Fors Clav. xxxiii. 2 When last I was up Huntly Burn way, there was no burn there. 1878 Trelawny Rec. Shelley etc. I. 167 A vehement exclamation .. from one of the trio of ladies, drew all eyes her way. 1891 ‘R. Boldrewood’ Sydneyside Sax. vi, At last I made out a whirlwind coming our way. 1896 Gratiana Chanter Witch of Withyford xv. 185 Joan she

WAY

19

married Farmer Blake as lives over Molton way. 1902 Violet Jacob’ Sheep-Stealers viii, ‘Where are you going to now?’.. ‘Down Crishowell way’. 1904 P. Landon in Times 24 Sept. 8/2 We took care not to offend .. by deviating from the orthodox left-to-right course... The ‘way of the wine’ is a custom which would need no explanation to a Buddhist. 1912 S. H. Warren in Jrnl. R. Anthrop. Inst. XLII. 115 The shaft-hole is bored through the thinnest way of the [stone] blade, so that the cutting-edge comes at right angles to the shaft.

b-fig. in non-spatial applications, that way. in the direction indicated contextually; spec. (a) homosexual; (b) (const, about) in love or infatuated; also (in general sense) that way inclined, to get that way. In colloquial use sometimes in predicative phrases, as (a little) that way, approximating to that condition; (all, quite very much) the other way. *598 Shaks. Merry W. in. ii. 79 My consent goes not that way. 1603 [see inclined ppl. a. 3 a]. 1605-Lear 111. iv. 21 O that way madnesse lies, let me shun that. e sond by gan to drye And hyt hym makede weye.

c. To move from one’s place so as to allow a person to pass. c 1400 Maundev. (Roxb.) xxv. 120 He commaundez pe lordes pat rydez nere him to make way pat pe men of religioun may comme to him. 1593 Shaks. Rich. II, v. ii. no Make way, vnruly Woman. 1842 Borrow Bible in Spain vii,

WAY

22

WAY

A Portuguese or Spaniard will seldom make way for a stranger, till called upon or pushed aside. 1911 Gouldsbury & Sheane Gt. Plateau N. Rhodesia 259 If a young man sees his mother-in-law coming along the path, he must retreat into the bush and make way for her.

d. To leave a place vacant for a successor or substitute. 1760-72 H. Brooke Fool of Qual. (1809) III. 122 When my family.. were thus turned out of doors, an old follower made way for them in his own cottage, and retired.. to a cow-house hard by. 01828 H. Neele Lit. Rem. (1829) 33 The tragedies of Shakspeare were driven from the stage to make way for those of Addison and Rowe. 1853 Kingsley Hypatia xxx, If they [the philosophers] had no better Gospel than that to preach, they must make way for those who had. 1869 Freeman Norm. Conq. III. xii. 151 His castle .. has been wantonly destroyed to make way for one of the barbarous official buildings of modern France. 1896 Law Times C. 407/2 At Durham .. [Sir Charles] refused to stand, and his refusal made way for the present Lord Herschell.

e. To make progress on a journey or voyage. Often with qualifying word, as to make good, much, little way. (Cf. 7 above.) (a) Naut. (see 7 i). 1490 Caxton Eneydos xxvii, 97 Castyng her sight ferder towarde the see, she sawe the saylles, wyth the flote of the shippes that made good waye. 1556 Toweson in Hakluyt Voy. (1589) 98 The windes and seas were high, yet we made some way. a 1626 Bacon New Atl. 1 The Winde .. setled in the West for many dayes, so as we could make little or no way. 1624 Capt. J. Smith Virginia in. vi. 60 We seeing them prepare to assault vs, left our Oares and made way with our sayle to incounter them. 1626 -Accid. Yng. Seamen 29 Fetch the log-line to try what way shee makes. 1744 M. Bishop Life 49 We lost our Main top Mast, so that after the Storm was over we could not make any Way. 1791 Smeaton Edystone L. §155 Our vessels .. made better Way in a rough sea. 1837 Marryat Dog-Fiend xlii, He stood up on the choak to ascertain what way she was making through the water. 1882 De Windt Equator 75 The river, however, widened to nearly a mile in breadth.. and we made better way.

(b) gen. Also fig. 1588 Shaks. Tit. A. 11. ii. 24 And I haue horse will follow where the game Makes way. 1590 Spenser F.Q. i. i. 39 He making speedy way through spersed ayre. a 1593 Marlowe & Nashe Dido 221 ffineas is my name.. With twise twelue Phrigian ships I plowed the deepe, And made that way my mother Venus led. 1596 Shaks. Tam. Shr. 1. i. 239 Waite you on him,.. While I make way from hence to saue my life. 1820 Scott Monast. Introd. Ep., So great is the difference betwixt reading a thing one’s self, making toilsome way through all the difficulties of manuscript, and, as the man says in the play, ‘having the same read to you’. 1845 McCulloch Taxation III. ii. (1852) 446 Should the system [of life annuities] not make any greater way than it has done, it may not., be worth objecting to. i860 Mozley Univ. Serm. vii. (1876) 182 See.. how little way they have made in truly spiritual, unselfish affections and inclinations. 1882 Besant All Sorts xviii, And he made no more way with his wooing. That was stopped, apparently, altogether. 1883 Frances M. Peard Contrad. i, His companion .. was making rapid way towards the point. 1888 Bryce Amer. Commw. xxxix. II. 71 There are some signs the view is making way.

ff. To make a hole in, through. Obs. 1581 A. Hall Iliad iv. 73 That of the staffe the steeled point made in his forehead way. 1596 Shaks. Tam. Shr. 11. 155 With that word she stroke me on the head, And through the instrument my pate made way. 1611 Cotgr., Faire jour a, to make way vnto.

tg- Of an event or action: To lead to, afford facilities for something; to render it possible to do something. Obs. 1646 H. Lawrence Commun. & War with Angels 14 And this will not be unusefull to consider since it makes way to shew to what end they appeare and what they .. can doe for us. 1677 Temple Moxa Miscell. (1680) 194 About which time [the age of forty] the natural heat beginning to decay, makes way for those distempers, a 1715 Burnet Own Time hi. viii. (1900) II. 143 This made way to more desperate undertakings.

fh. to make way to: to approach (a person) with a view to establishing relations with him. 1671 Milton Samson 481, I already have made way To some Philistian Lords, with whom to treat About thy ransom.

26. make one’s (its) way.

(Cf. 7 above.) a. To travel or proceed in an intended direction or to a certain place, to make the best of one’s way (also, f to make one's best way): to go as quickly as one can; fto decamp. C1400 Maundev. (Roxb.) xxxiv. 156, I made my way., vnto Rome. 1582 N. Lichefield tr. Castanheda's Conq. E. Ind. 1. iii. 7 b, The rest then departed,.. making their waye into the Sea, with a South southwest winde. 1668 Clarendon Contempt. Ps. Tracts (1727) 473 Those who.. make their way through a sea of blood and rapine to grasp an authority which belonged not to them. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg, iii. 395 He makes his way o’re Mountains, and contemns Unruly Torrents, and unfoorded Streams. 1705 Addison Italy Monaco, etc. 4 The next Day we again set Sail, and made the best of our way ’till we were forc’d, by contrary Winds, into St. Remo. 1742 Fielding J. Andrews 1. xvi, The Thief.. without any Ceremony, stepped into the Street, and made the best of his Way. 1836 Thirlwall Greece xxii. III. 215 A very small number made their way to Ambracia. 1840 Dickens Old C. Shop xxiii, With that they parted; Mr. Swiveller to make the best of his way home and sleep himself sober; and Quilp [etc.]. 1844 Disraeli Coningsby VII. iv, Coningsby bade his friend farewell till the morrow, and made his best way to the Castle. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. iii. I. 366 Hardly any gentleman had any difficulty in making his way to the royal presence. 1864 Trollope Small Ho. Allington xxi, Johnny made his way on to the road by a stile that led out of the copse. Ibid., Then we’ll make the best of our way home, and have a glass of wine there. 1874 Green Short Hist, vi. §4. 300 It was in

despair of reaching Italy that the young scholar [Erasmus] made his way to Oxford.

fb. To effect a passage by force, force one’s way. Obs. 1647 Clarendon Hist. Reb. vi. § 157 But if they compelled him to make his way, and enter the town by force, it would not be in his power to keep his soldiers from taking that which they should win with their blood.

c. To make progress in one’s career; to advance in wealth, station, reputation, etc. by one’s own efforts. 1605 Shaks. Lear v. iii. 29 If thou do’st As this instructs thee, thou dost make thy way To Noble Fortunes. 1711 Addison Sped. No. 123 ]f 4 He was to make his Way in the World by his own Industry. 1771 Smollett Humphry Cl. 18 July 11. (1815) 261, I am not at all surprised that these Scots make their way in every quarter of the globe. 1853 Lytton My Novel 11. vi, A young man who has his own way to make in life had better avoid all intimacy with those of his own age who have no kindred objects.

fd. To find means to do something. Obs. a 1300 Cursor M. 23179 Quat he war wijs pat moght Stedfast hald J>is dai in thoght!.. For pan mund he her make his wai Fra wrak to were him on pat dai.

te. (Also fto make one's ways.) To gain favour, establish relations with a person. Obs. 1618 Ralegh Apol. Wks. 1751 II. 250 It was bruited., that.. being once at Liberty,.. having made my Way with some foreign Prince, I would turn Pirate. 01660 Contemp. Hist. Irel. (Ir. Archseol. Soc.) II. 37 He made his waies with Colonell Monke, Governor of Dundalke, for the Parliament, and bought of him worth £1500 of amunition.

f. Of a thing, to make its way: to travel, make progress; (of an opinion, custom, etc.) to gain acceptance. 1656 Cowley To Sir W. Davenant 35 Thy Fancy like a Flame its way does make, And leave bright Tracks for following Pens to take. 1711 Addison Spect. No. 119 f6 This infamous Piece of Good-breeding, which reigns among the Coxcombs of the Town, has not yet made its way into the Country. 1861 M. Pattison Ess. (1889) I. 48 It might have been anticipated that Luther’s doctrines would have made their way early among this little colony of his countrymen. 1874 Mickleth waite Mod. Par. Churches 80 Brass instruments have already begun to make their way.

27. pay one’s way. fa. To defray one’s expenses on a journey. Obs. 01825 Willie Wallace vi. in Child Ballads III. 271/2 Take ye that, ye belted knight, ’T will pay your way till ye come down.

b. To succeed in paying one’s expenses as they arise, without incurring debts. Of a business undertaking, to pay its way : To be carried on at least without loss, to be self-supporting. 1803 G. Colman John Bull 11. iii. 22, I earned my fair profits; I paid my fair way. 1823 Byron Age of Bronze xiv, But bread was high, the farmer paid his way. 1858 Trollope Three Clerks iii, Mrs. Woodward.. had there maintained a good repute, paying her way from month to month as widows with limited incomes should do. 1885 Times (weekly ed.) 2 Oct. 15/3 The pier has never come near paying its way. 1892 Law Times' Rep. LXVII. 139/1 It seems to me a most reasonable thing for a person applying for shares to look for a guarantee of interest until the concern can pay its own way. 1899 Lady M. Verney Verney Mem. IV. 155 By great economy John has just paid his way.

28. see one’s way. a. In literal sense, to have a view of the portion of the road or route immediately before one, so as to be able to avoid wandering or stumbling, b. fig. in obvious metaphorical uses; now often, to know that some object is attainable (const, to); also (chiefly in negative contexts) to feel justified in deciding to do something. 1774 Burke Let. to Marq. Rockingham 25 Sept., I must see my way much more clearly before me, before I take any other step in that business. 1775-Sp. Concil. Amer. 22 Mar. 56, I do not absolutely assert the impracticability of such representation [of the Colonies]. But I do not see my way to it. 1823 Keble Serm. iii. (1848) 64 To see his way safely, if not clearly or comfortably, through all the snares of error and disputation. 1861 M. Pattison Ess. (1889) I. 33 Simple fighting John Bull can understand, but in a negotiation he can’t see his way. 1865 Mrs. Newby Comm. Sense lv. III. 44, I feel that I know my business pretty well already, and that I begin to see my way. Ibid. lvi. III. 55, I wish I could do more.. but I think I see a way. 1870 Newman Gram. Assent 11. ix. 353 Laud said that he did not see his way to come to terms with the Holy See, till Rome was ‘other than she is’. 1875 Helps Soc. Press, ii. 24 The neighbours do not see their way to altering it. 1885 Law Times LXXIX. 342/1 He did not see his way clear to allow their names to remain upon the register. 1886 Manch. Exam. 16 Jan. 5/4 Lord Salisbury has at last seen his way to the final choice of a bishop for Manchester. 29. a. take the way. (Cf. sense 4 and take v.

25 b.) To enter on and follow the route leading to a specified place. In early use sometimes without mention of destination; fTo set out, travel. c 1300 Harrowing of Hell (Harl. MS.) 38 In godned toke he )>en way p>at to helle gates lay. 13.. Guy Warw. (A.) 1708 Gij him spedde ni3t & day; Into Inglond he toke pe way. 1375 Barbour Bruce 11. 146 All him alane the way he tais Towart the towne off Louchmabane. c 1386 Chaucer Man of Law's T. 556 The Constable and his wyf also And Custance han ytake the righte way Toward the see. c 1420 ? Lydg. Assembly of Gods 551 Wherfore Cerberus tooke the next way. c 1485 Digby Myst., Christ's Burial Resurr. 983 Then let us tak pe way furth strayte. a 1533 Berners Huon lxii. 215 They departyd & tooke the way towardes Rome. 1801 Scott Eve of St. John 86 O fear not the priest,.. For to Dryburgh the way he has ta’en. 1831 -Ct. Robt. xxxiv, Count Robert subjected himself to necessity,.. and .. took

WAY the way to Europe by sea. 1831 James Phil. Augustus xx, Here the anchorite bade God speed him, and, turning his steps back again, took the way to his hut.

fb. To go about to do something. Also, to take its course without interference. Obs. 1605 Bacon Adv. Learn. 11. xvii. §9. 64 That opinion., hath beene of ill desert, towardes Learning, as that which taketh the way, to reduce Learning to certaine emptie and barren Generalities. 01700 Dryden Theod. & Hon. 138 Give me leave to seize my destin’d Prey, And let eternal Justice take the way.

30. to take one’s way. To set out on a journey; to journey, travel. a 1300 Cursor M. 11382 pis kinges thre par wai pai tok A tuelmoth ar pe natiuite. 1338 R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 327 After pe enterment pe kyng tok his way. To pe south he went horgh Lyndesay. 1375 Barbour Bruce xvm. 114 For the laiff has thair vayis tane Till the Erische kyngis. C1386 Chaucer Melib. IP 2996 And right anon they tooken hire wey to the Court of Melibee. c 1450 St. Cuthbert (Surtees) 7456 His way barfote pan he toke. 1484 Caxton Fables of Poge vii, Sayinge these wordes [the foxe] toke his waye & ranne as fast as he myght. 1498 Cov. Leet Bk. 588 And they came forth at pe south durre in pe Mynstere & toke their wey thurgh the newe bildyng downe pe Bailly-lane. c 1600 Shaks. Sonn. xlviii. 1 How carefull was I, when I tooke my way, Each trifle vnder truest barres to thrust. 1642-4 Vicars God in Mount 149 Lord Paulet..took his way toward Myncard. 1667 Milton P.L. xii. 649 They hand in hand with wandring steps and slow, Through Eden took thir solitarie way. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg, in. 405 Alone, by Night, his watry Way he took; About him, and above, the Billows broke. 1761 Gray Odin 13 Onward still his way he takes. 1893 Ashby-Sterry Naughty Girl xviii. 157 As she took her way sadly and slowly down the pier.

** with prepositions.

31. by the way. a. Along or near the road by which one travels; by the road-side. In early use also f by way. 971 Blickl. Horn. 15 pa saet peer sum blind pearfa be Son weje. c 1205 Lay. 26612 WhaSer heo liue weoren, pa heo bi wa?ie laeien. a 1300 Cursor M. 8055 A riche man was par bi wai Was seke, to him pan turnd pai. 1550 Crowley Epigr. 227 Than, by the waye syde, hym chaunced to se A pore manne that craued of hym for charitie. Whye (quod thys Marchaunt).. Do ye begge by the waye. 1879 Jefferies Wild Life in S. Co. ii. (1889) 17, I passed flocks of dying sheep: in the hollows by the way their skeletons were here and there to be seen.

b. While going along, in the course of one’s walk or journey. In early use f by way. c 1000 Ags. Gosp. Luke x. 4 Ne bere ge sacc.. ne nanne man be weje [Vulg. per viam] ne gretaS. a 1122 O.E. Chron. (Laud MS.) an. 1096, Ac pes folces pe be Hungrie for, fela pusenda paer & be waeje earmlice forforan. c 1290 Beket 1208 in 5. Eng. Leg. 141 J>ov hauest selde i-se^e pene Erchebischop of caunterburi wende in swuche manere bi weie. a 1300 K. Horn 759 He fond bi pe weie Kynges sones tweie. 1387 Trevisa Iligden III. 115 pe kyng..wente homwarde, and was i-slawe by pe weie. 1550 Crowley Last Trumpet 31 The rauens fed him [5c. Elias] by the way. 1590 Shaks. Mids. N. iv. i. 204 Lets follow him, and by the way let vs recount our dreames. 1617 Moryson Itin. 1. 204 By the way, in this mornings journey, we did see Weyssenburg, a free but not imperiall City. 1719 De Foe Crusoe 1. (Globe) 156 Nor is it possible to describe.. what strange unaccountable Whimsies came into my Thoughts by the Way. 1760 [see by prep. 12]. 1898 M. Pemberton Phantom Army 1. vii, It had been in his mind when he rode out of Zaragoza that he would find an early opportunity' by the way to question the gipsy. fig. 1603 Shaks. Meas.for M. v. 458 His Act did not oretake his bad intent, And must be buried but as an intent That perish’d by the way.

c. fig. with reference to the tenor of discourse: Incidentally, in passing, as a side-topic. 1556 Robinson tr. Moreys Utopia 1. (Arb.) 38 margin, Land-lordes by the wai checked for Rent-raisyng. 1581 J. Haddon's Answ. Osor. 45 Whiche I thought meete to touch briefly by the way. 1598 Shaks. Merry W. 1. iv. 150 Shee is pretty, and honest, and gentle, and one that is your friend, I can tell you that b\ the way. 1620 T. Granger Div. Logike 100 They are inferred often by the way for illustration sake. 1632 Lithgow Trav. v. 228 And now by the way I recall the aforesayd Turke. 1731 Art of Drawing & Paint. 32 But we must take this by the Way, that in the refining of it, two Ounces will not produce above 40 Grains of good Colour. 1847 H. Goodwin Serm. Ser. 1. viii. 131, I would hint to you by the way, that we are perhaps not fair judges of our own actions. Bell

d.

used parenthetically to apologize for introducing a new topic, a casual remark, or the like. a 1614 Donne Biathanatos (1644) 99 Though, by the way, this may not passe so generally, but that it must admit the exception, which the Rule of Law upon which it is grounded, carries with it. 1668 Dryden Ess. Dram. Poesy 46, I mean besides the Chorus, or the Monologues, which by the way, show’d Ben. no enemy to this way of writing, c 1730 Burt Lett. N. Scot. (1754) II. 97 By the Way, altho’ the Weather was not warm, he was without Shoes, Stockings, or Breeches. 1836 Dickens Sk. Boz, Sentiment, This, by the way, was another bit of diplomacy. 184.0 Thackeray Barber Cox Feb., When we lost sight of him, and of his little account, too, by the way. 1884 Rider Haggard Dawn xxvii, By the way, talking of letters, there was one came for you this morning in your Cousin Philip’s handwriting.

e. in predicative or complemental use. 1564 T. Dorman Proofe Cert. Art. Relig. 95 b, This is yow saie but by the waie, before yow entre into the matter. 1652 Nedham tr. Selden's Mare Cl. 46 Also, a word by the way, touching the Mediterranean Sea in possession of the Romanes. 1653 Ramesey Astrol. Restored 5 But this by the way, let us now proceed. 1719 De Foe Crusoe 1. (Globe) 245 However, I allow’d Liberty of Conscience throughout my Dominions: But this is by the Way. 1904 Burnand Records & Remin. II. 285 But this by the way.

f. As a by-work; as a subordinate piece of work.

WAY

23 1611 Cotgr. s.v. Passant, En passant, sleightly, lightly, cursarily, accidentally, by the way. a 1708 Beveridge Thes. Theol. (1711) III. 265 It is not to be done by the way, but with all our might. 1881 Jowett Thucyd. I. 91 Maritime skill is .. not a thing to be cultivated by the way [en irapepyov] or at chance times.

Dupin's Hist. Canon O. & N. Test. I. 2 They are likewise styl’d the Scriptures by Way of Eminence. 1703 [see EMINENCY 8]. 01704 [see EXCELLENCE I b]. I7II SHAFTESB. Charac. Misc. v. ii. III. 278 Have you writ.. a Play, a Song, an Essay, or a Paper, as by way of Eminence, the current Pieces of our Weekly Wits are generally stil’d.

fg. Indirectly, information.

f. Followed by gerund, forming predicative phrases with the sense: In the habit of (doing something); also, more usually, making a profession of, or having a reputation for (being or doing so-and-so), colloq.

by

a

side

channel

of

1605 Shaks. Macb. in. iv. 130 Macb. How say’st thou that Macduff denies his person At our great bidding. La. Did you send to him Sir? Macb. I heare it by the way: But I will send.

h. attrib. haphazard.

as

adj.

phr.:

Incidental,

casual,

1869 Mrs. Whitney We Girls ii, At parting, she.. said .. in an off-hand, by-the-way fashion —‘Ruth’ [etc.]. 1881 F. Hueffer Wagner 32 The introduction in a by-the-way manner of the two great religious principles appears not particularly happy. 1881 Saintsbury Dryden i. 21 The ordinary prose style of the day.. indulged .. in every detour and involution of second thoughts and by-the-way qualifications.

32. by way of-. A prepositional phrase used in various senses. Also f by the way of. (The governed sb. is usually without article.) fa. By means of; through the medium of; by the method of. Obs. 1390 Gower Conf. I. 69 This lord.. spak so that be weie of schrifte He drowh hem [sc. the priests] unto his covine. 1439 in Fenland N. & Q. (1905) July 222 And yat.. ye wole at yis tyme in yis oure grete necessite putte youre handes and ese us by wey of lone of ye somme of C marc, a 1450 Marg. Anjou Let. to Dame J. Carew (Camden) 97 Burneby.. desireth with all his hert to do yow worship by wey of marriage. 1495 Rolls of Parlt. VI. 493/2 That noo persone .. be not empeached nor chargeable.., by wey of accion or otherwise. 1526 Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 2, I requyre you .. that.. ye neuer by way of curiosite be besy to attempte ony persone therin. 1530 Palsgr. 898 Diuerse comunications by way of dialoges. 1577-87 Holinshed Chron. III. 1149/2 To indamage some of his countries by waie of inuasion. 1598 Grenewey Tacitus, Ann. 11. xvi. (1622) 56 Flaccus..by way of great promises [per ingentia promissa], perswaded him.. to enter into the Romane garrison. 1613 Shaks. Hen. VIII, in. i. 54 We come not by the way of Accusation, To taint that honour euery good Tongue blesses. 1663 Gerbier Counsel 5 Master-work-men may receive Instructions by way of Draughts, Models, Frames, &c. 1675 J. Owen Indwelling Sin viii. (1732) 96 At least spiritual Sense is not radically in them, but only by way of Communication.

fb. By the action of (a person or persons). Obs. 1447 in Reg. Mag. Sig. Scot. 1450, 70/2 Gif it happnis the said landis to be distroublit or vexit be way of Inglismen it sal be alowit to the said Alex, of the malis.

t c. Law. by way of feat [ = AF. par voye de fait]: see feat sb. 1 b. Also (Sc.), by way of deed. 1535 Stewart Cron. Scot. III. 141 The tother part with haill power and mycht, Without ressone agane he wald persew, Be way of deid his richtis till reskew. 1564 Reg. Privy Council Scot. I. 275 In caise ather of the saidis partiis.., sail happin to be hurt, harmit, invadit, or persewit be utheris be way of deid. 1582-8 Hist. James VI (1864) 62 That na injure be done to ony subiect be way of deid.

d. As an instance or a mode of; in the capacity or with the function of; as something equivalent to. [Cf. AF. ‘par voye de charite’, 1321 in Rolls Parlt. I. 393.] 13 .. E.E. Allit. P. A. 580 By pe way of ry3t to aske dome. C1380 Wyclif Wks. (1880) 59 He were a cruel fadir pat my3tte not 3eue his owene childre bred.. & 3k wolde not suffre anoper man to helpe pes children bi weie of mercy. C13S9 in Eng. Gilds (1870) 38 Also pese bretherin han ordeyned, be weye of charite, pat [etc.]. 01400 Maundev. (1839) xviii. 199 The Kyng of that Contree, ones every 3eer, 3evethe leve to pore men to gon in to the Lake, to gadre hem precyous Stones and Perles, be weye of Alemesse. 1429 Rolls of Parlt. IV. 349/1 Bi weie of hongvng or keveryng. 1551 Sir J. Williams Accompte (Abbotsf. Club) 99 To be gevin vnto straungers by waie of his maiesties reward, vml li. 1589 Puttenham Eng. Poesie in. xviii. (Arb.) 203 We be allowed now and then to ouer-reach a little by way of comparison. 1672 Villiers (Dk. Buckhm.) Rehearsal 1. i. (Arb.) 31 My next Rule is the Rule of Record, and by way of Table-book. 1674 Essex Papers (Camden) I. 168 There ought to be a distinction made in Letters of that nature, betweene passing a thing over by way of Connivance and giving a Publick Liberty. 1711 Steele Sped. No. 78 f 4 Nothing was wanting but some one to sit in the Elbow Chair, by way of President. 1712 Addison Ibid. No. 267 f 2 Virgil makes his Heroe relate it by way of Episode. 1744 M. Bishop Life 260 Most of them were very industrious in selling one Thing or other by Way of turning the Peny to a good Use. 1749 Fielding Tom Jones in. vii, I ask pardon for this short appearance, by way of chorus, on the stage. 1806 J. Beresford Miseries Hum. Life ii. §22 Attempting to spring carelessly .. over a five-barred gate, by way of shewing your activity to a party of ladies. 1820 Byron Juan v. liii. note, In Turkey nothing is more common than for the Mussulmans to take several glasses of strong spirits by way of appetizer. 1842 Dickens Amer. Notes xiv, The drapers always having hung up at their door, by way of sign, a piece of bright red cloth. 1843 Prescott Mexico 1. ii. I. 31 The sovereign., holding a golden arrow, by way of sceptre, in his left hand. 1856 Ruskin King of Golden River i. 4 He used to clean .. the plates, occasionally getting what was left on them, by way of encouragement. 1868 J. Bruce Digby's Voy. Mediterr. (Camden) Pref. p. x, Dr. Richard Farrar composed some lines upon him by way of epitaph. 1868 Louisa M. Alcott Little Women vi, ‘You’ll have to go and thank him,’ said Jo, by way of a joke. 1892 Bookseller 17/1 The summary [of the Act] given by way of introduction is concise and clear.

1824 Miss Ferrier Inher. xxxii, The Colonel was by way of introducing him into the fashionable circles. 1852 C. B. Mansfield Paraguay, etc. (1856) 182 A wiseacre passenger, who is by way of knowing the river well, says they are called capinchos in these parts. 1862 H. Kingsley Ravenshoe xlvii, Mary was ‘by way of’ helping Lady Hainault’s maid, but she was very clumsy about it. 1877 Lady M. A. Broome Yr.'s Housekeeping S. Africa iv. 61 ‘Charlie,’ our groom, who is by way of being a very fine gentleman,.. only condescends to work until he can purchase a wife. 1881 Mallock Rom. igth Cent. iii. v. II. 34, I am by way, here, of doing the same thing. 1891 Sat. Rev. 18 July 77/1 Mr. Brander Matthews finds fault with the phrase ‘by way of being’, and says an American can hardly understand it... ‘By way of being’ is endeavouring or purporting to be, holding oneself out in a certain character, or being so reputed; and this with an implied disclaimer of precise knowledge or warranty on the speaker’s part. 1897 Du Maurier Martian v. 236 The Gibsons weTe by way of spoiling me. Ibid. ix. 379 Nor did he.. come across them at any house he was by way of frequenting. 1906 Lit. World 15 Nov. 515/1 The character of this woman, who is by way of being the female villain of the story, is drawn with skill.

g. By the route which passes through or over (a specified place): = via prep. Also f by the way ofFormerly with omission of of, the place-name being prefixed to way. Cf. sense 9. 11.. O.E. Chron. (MS. F.) an. 888, Heo forSferde be Rome wege [L. in itinere Rome]. 1460 Paston Lett. I. 515 He schall send his man horn be Newmarket wey. 1701 W. Wotton Hist. Rome 481 He went by the way of Illyricum. 1771 Smollett Humph. Cl. To Sir W. Phillips 21 Sept., We set out from Glasgow by the way of Lanark. 1865 Cornh. Mag. XI. 595 It invaded France by way of Avignon. 1901 Alldridge Sherbro xxvi. 291 From Bafodia we were diverging from the main road to Freetown which is by way of the Bumban hills.

fh. Through the medium of (a person). Obs. 1560 Sir N. Throgmorton in Wright Q. Eliz. (1838) I. 49 The 29th of October last, I wrote to you from Paris by the waye of Monsieur de Chantonet.

f33. from the way: Out of the way, in a secluded place. Obs. 1593 Shaks. Lucr. 1144 Some darke deepe desert seated from the way,.. Will wee find out.

34. in the (etc.) way.

(See also senses 16 a,

17-19.)

fa. As one proceeds or goes along; in the course of one’s journey (to a place). Also in one’s way; in early use, in way. Cf. to take in one’s way (sense 7). Obs. to do (a person, etc.) in the way. to send out (refl. to set forth) on a journey or expedition. 1297 R. Glouc. 3765 He.. greipede is noble ost & dude him in pe weye. a 1300 K. Horn 1007 Horn dude him in pe weie On a god Galeie. 13.. K. Alis. 3392 (Laud MS.), pine Olifauntz & pine beest Do alle ordeyne on hast And do hem done in pe waye pat hij weren in feld contreye. 13.. Guy Warw. 259 At Felice he tok his leue po, and in his way he gop apli3t. 1377 Langl. P. PI. B. xvii. 47 As we wenten pus in pe weye wordyng togyderes. 1382 Wyclif Gen. xlv. 24 Ne wraththe 3e in the weye. c 1450 Mirk's Festial 9 He stervet yn pe way. 1629 Hobbes Thucyd. 11. 127 But they of Stratus, aware of this, whilest they were yet in their way.. placed diuers Ambushes not farre from the Citie. c 1643 Ld. Herbert Autobiog. (1886) 140 Going from St. Julian’s to Abergavenny, in the way to Montgomery Castle. 1712 Budgell Sped. No. 277 |f 11 If you please to call at my House in your Way to the City. 1748 Richardson Clarissa (1811) VII. 143 In the afternoon [she] was at Islington church, in her way home. 1791 Smeaton Edystone L. §264 The master of the floating light saw the buoy in his way to Plymouth. 1822 [Mary A. Kelty] Osmond I. 186 A heavy foreboding made her linger in her way to her own apartment.

b. In Biblical use, to be or walk in the way with (fmid) = to accompany a person on a journey; fig. to associate with. C950 Lindisf. Gosp. Matt. v. 25 Uses Su jeSafsum wiSerbracae Sinum hraSe miS5y bist in uoej mi6 him [Vulg. dum es in via cum eo], 1611 Bible Prov. i. 15 My sonne, walke not thou in the way with them.

c. (Chiefly in one's way.) On or along the road by which one travels; so as to be met, encountered, or observed.

f e. by way of excellency (or eminence): = ‘par excellence.’ Obs.

C1205 Lay. 26770 Wo waes heom iboren pa ipan weie heom weoren biuoren. Ibid. 26793 In his waei3e pat he funde al he hit aqualde. . 1387 Trevisa Higden V. 449 For refresshynge and socour of way farynge [MS. y wey varyng] men. 1502 Atkynson tr. De Imitatione iii. xxiii. (1893) 216 O iesu, ..the solace & conforte of wayfarynge soules. 1545 Ascham Toxoph. 11. (Arb.) 157 The waye beyng sumwhat trodden afore, by waye fayrynge men. 1597 Hooker Eccl. Pol. v. lxxviii. §11. 241 The necessities of trauailers waifaring men and such like. 1611 Bible Isa. xxxv. 8 The wayfaringmen, though fooles, shall not erre therein. 1678 Bunyan Pilgr. 1. 155 When the Shepherds perceived that they were way-fairing men, they also put questions to them,.. as, Whence came you? 1897 Edna Lyall (title) Wayfaring Men.

t b. wayfaring man’s tree, the fuller form of WAYFARING-TREE. Both are found in Gerarde for the first time, but only the latter survived. 1597 Gerarde Herbal iii. cxv. 1305 The Wayfaring mans tree groweth vp to the height of an hedge tree, of a meane bignesse.

Hence wayfaringly adv. rare. 1552 Huloet,

Wayfayryngly, peregrine, uiatice.

wayfaring-tree. [Short for wayfaring man’s tree (see above); cf. traveller's joy.] 1. The tall shrub Viburnum Lantana, with broad leaves downy underneath, white flowers in dense cymes, and green berries turning first red then black. It grows wild in hedges and underwood. 1597 Gerarde Herbal iii. cxv. 1305 Of the Wayfaring tree. 1670 Evelyn Sylva xxi. §19. (ed. 2) 101 The Viburnum, or Way-faring tree,.. makes the most plyant and best bands to Fagot with. 1671-96 Phillips, Weafering-tree. 1731 Miller Gard. Diet., Viburnum; The Wayfaring or Pliant Mealy Tree. 1785 Martyn Lett. Bot. xvii. (1794) 239. 1830 Howitt Bk. Seasons (1837) 117 Wayfaring tree! what ancient claim Hast thou to that right pleasant name? 1859

W. S. Coleman Woodlands (1866) 121 The Wayfaring Tree, belonging to the same genus as the Guelder Rose, bears a considerable resemblance to that shrub, both in its flowers and berries; but in the leaves differs entirely.

2. U.S. The hobble-bush (V. lantanoides). 1814 Pursh Flora Amer. Septentr. 711. 1856 A. Gray Man. Bot. U.S. (i860) 168.

wayfe: see waif sb.1, waive v.2 t wayferer.

Obs.

[f. way sb.1 + fere k.1 +

-ER1.] = WAYFARER. 1388-9 in 1 st Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. 80/1 De xvi d. solutis uni weyferer eodem tempore, c 1450 Myrc. Par. Pr. 1364 Hast pou in herte rowpe I-had, Of hem pat were nede be-stad, To seke & sore and prisonerus, I-herberet alle weyfer[er]us?

t wayfering, ppl. a. Obs. Forms: 1 wegferende, 3 weiverinde, 4 wayverinde, -ferande, way-, weyferyng(e. [OE. wegferende, f. weg way sb.1 + pres. pple. of feran fere v.1] = wayfaring ppl. a. c 890 W/ERFKRTH tr. Gregory’s Dial. 128 pa cwaeS se wejferenda to pam aewftestan mien, c 1000 TElfric Horn. I. 164 Dysij biS se wegferenda man seSe nimS pone smeSan wej pe hine mislset. a 1225 Ancr. R. 350 Heo iuindeS, iwis, Sein Julianes in, pet weiuerinde men 3eorne secheS. 1303 R. Brunne Handl. Synne 10510 Be a man yn sykenes, or yn prysoun, Weyferyng, or yn temptacyun. 1340 Ayenb. 39 Robberes and kueade herberieres pet berobbep pe pilgrimes an pe marchons and pe opre wayuerindemen. 13.. E.E. Allit. P. B. 79 pe wayferande frekez, on fote & on hors,.. Lapez hem alle luflyly to lenge at my fest. c 1374 Chaucer Boeth. II. pr. v. (1886) 34 (Cambr. MS.) Yif thow haddyst entred in the paath of this lyf a voyde wayferynge [Addit. MS. way-faryng] man. CI380 Wyclif Sel. Wks. II. 348 In pis epistle techip Poul how wey-ferynge men pat lyven here shulden go pe street wey pat ledip men to pe blisse of hevene.

wayff(e, wayft: see waif sb.1, weft sb.2 wayfire, obs. f. wafer. way-gang. Sc. [gang sfi.1] = way-going. 1737 Ramsay Sc. Prov. 27 Frost and fawshood have baith a dirty waygang. 1894 Latto Tam. Bodkin xxxi. 315 Their wa’ gang [sc. the death of her parents] brak the hindmost link that bund her affections to Breeriebuss.

f'waygate1. Obs. Also 6 -gait. [f. way adv. + gate yfe.2] The act of going away, departure. i575-6 Durham Depos. (Surtees) 269 This examinate at his waygait bad the said Thomas fairwell. 1598 R. Bernard tr. Terence, Heautontim. III. i. (1607) 221 Least that old wonted austeritie of yours bee worse then it was at his waygate. 1600 Heywood 2nd Pt. Edw. IV (1613) Q 4b, So God respect the waygate of my soule, as I know nothing. 1641 Best Farm. Bks. (Surtees) 77 It is an usuall course (amongst shepheards) att the way-gate of a snowe.. to keepe theire sheepe.. on some swarth-grownd.

waygate2. Sc. and north, [f. way sb.1 + gate sb 2 Cf. way-gang, -go s.v. way sb.1 40.] 1. A passage-way. For various special uses see Eng. Dial. Diet. a 1800 in Hogg Jacobite Relics {1819) I. 24 He’s awa to sail, Wi’ water in his waygate, An’ wind in his tail. 1866 Carlyle E. Irving in Froude Remin. (1881) I. 101 ‘Upon all these [books] you have will and waygate’, an expressive Annandale phrase of the completest welcome.

2. Speed, progress, headway. Sc. and north. 1825-82 Jamieson. 1894 Northumbld. Gloss.

waygh, obs. form of weigh v. way-going (weigaoir)). Sc. and north. Also 9 Sc. -ga’en, -gaun. [f. way adv.] The action or fact of going away, departure (on a journey, from life); the act of leaving (a habitation, employment). 1633 Sir A. Johnston (Ld. Wariston) Diary (S.H.S.) I. 98 Coming hoome .. my saule blissed God .. for his goodnes to me in this comunion conforme to my voue befor my waygoing. 1649 J. Carstaires Lett. (1846) 58 Fearing much the [letter] bearer’s way-going, I dare say no more; but let [etc.]. 1702 H. Guthry Mem. 56 They press’d that the prorogation might be with the consent of the Estates, and upon his refusal they oppos’d his way-going. 18x9 Alex. Balfour Campbell I. xviii. 326 It was a wae wa-ga’en to mae nor me at that time. 1825-82 Jamieson, Way-gaun, Wa'-gaun, Way-going, adj., removing from a farm or habitation. 1896 ‘G. Setoun’ Robert Urquhart xxiii. 248 He may ha’e so putten the words in my mouth just to ease the wa-gaun o’ a faithfu’ servant. 1899 Crockett Kit Kennedy ii. 13 Christopher Kennedy had lost his position.. for drunkenness, and even at that very moment with his companions he was celebrating his way-going.

b. attrib., as way-going premium-, way-going crop (see quots.). 1773 Harpham Inclos. Act 8 Such farmer .. shall.. have a •way going crop or crops following him. 1797 J. Bailey & G. Culley Agric. Northumbld. ii. 25 Where the tenant quits on the 12th of May, he is allowed to have a crop of com from off two-thirds of the arable lands; this is called the waygoing crop. 1855 FI. Broom Comm. Common Law (1856) 13 A custom that a tenant shall have the waygoing crop after the expiration of his term is reasonable and good. 1920 Act 10 & 11 Geo. V, c. 76 §10 (7) (f) The tenant shall, along with the last or waygoing crop, sow permanent grass seeds. 1881 Times 17 Mar. 4/5 They [sc. Irish tenants] care not to realize five years’ rent for the ‘way-going premium which at any time they might receive.

Similarly way-going a., departing, outgoing.

WAYGOOSE

29

1812 Sir J. Sinclair Syst. Husb. Scot. 11. 62 Much depends on the conditions obligatory on the way-going tenant. 1845 R. Hunter Law Landt. & Tenant Index, Waygoing tenant’s right to value of fallow land.

waygoose.

Now dial, or Obs. [Of obscure etymology; there is no evidence that the second element is to be identified with goose s/>.] (See quots. and cf. wayzgoose.) 1683 Moxon Mech. Exerc., Printing 361 It is also customary for all the Journey-men to make every Year new Paper Windows..; Because that day they make them, the Master Printer gives them a Way-goose; that is, he makes them a good Feast, and not only entertains them at his own House, but besides, gives them Money to spend at the Ale¬ house or Tavern at Night. These Way-gooses, are always kept about Bartholomew-tide. And till the Master-Printer have given this Way-goose, the Journey-men do not use to Work by Candle Light. 1833 Timperley Songs of the Press 23 Song, Composed for a Printers’ Way Goose. 1847 Halliwell, Way-goose, an entertainment given by an apprentice to his fellow-workmen. West. 1857 Wright Diet. Obs. Prov. Engl., Way-goose, an annual feast among printers. It appears to have been formerly a practice peculiar to Coventry, where it was usual in the large manufactories of ribbons and watches, as well as amongst the silk dyers, at the season of the year when they commenced the use of candles, to have what was called a way-goose, when all the persons of the establishment were accustomed to go a short distance into the country and partake of an entertainment provided for the occasion at the charge of their employers: and this practice uniformly preceded the working by candle-light. 1865 J. Brown J. Leech, etc. (1882) 13 note, Once a year they attend the annual dinner of the firm, at which compositors, readers, printers, machinemen, clerks, etc. dine. This dinner is called the ‘Way Goose’, and is often referred to in Punch. 1886 Cheshire Gloss., Waygoose or wayzgoose, an entertainment given to journeymen workmen.

'way-in, a. slang, [f. out a.~\ sophisticated.

way

way adv. + in adv., after

Conventional;

fashionable,

i960 N.Y. Times Mag. 12 June 19/1 A famous lady columnist with a way-out taste in millinery but a way-in taste in film fare. Ibid. 78/4 Many artists.. have sought refuge in .. way-in or way-out religious conversions. 1967 Punch 29 Nov. 817/2 There’s a real way-in guy looking like how a guy on The Times Saturday Review ought to look like.

waying

('weni)), vbl. sb. poet, nonce-wd. [f. way

v. + -ing1.] A going away; departure. 1922 Hardy Late Lyrics & Earlier 120 So, with this saying, ‘Good-bye, good-bye,’ We speed their waying.

wayk(e, wayken:

see weak, weaken.

wayl, obs. form of waylaway,

vail v.1, wale v.1

obs. form of wellaway.

waylay (wei'lei, ’weilei), v. Pa. t. and pa. pple. waylaid (wei'leid, ’weileid). Also 6-7 way-laye, 6-9 way-lay. [f. way sb.1 + lay v.1 (where see senses 18 b, c.), after MLG., MDu. wegelagen (= MHG. and early mod.G. wegelagen, weglagen, superseded in later German by wegelagern), f. wegelage: — OS., OHG. *wega laga besetting of ways (wega genit. pi. of weg way + lage besetting, ambush, related to lay v.1).] 1. trans. To lie in wait for (a person or thing) with evil or hostile intent; to seize or attack in the way. 1513 in G. P. Scrope Castle Combe (1852) 292 The saynd [sic] Robert Bruer, Richard Pollen, John Lewis cam and wayelaynd [ric] my kepers man, and so hert hyem. 1596 Shaks. 1 Hen. IV, 1. ii. 183 [They] shall robbe those men that wee haue already way-layde. 1601-Twel. N. III. iv. 176, I will way-lay thee going home, where if it be thy chance to kill me [etc.]. 1666 Dryden Ann. Mirab. ccii, Now on their Coasts our conquering Navy rides, Way-lays their Merchants, and their Land besets. 1674 Milton P.R. i. 184 How thou lurk’st.. In Valley or Green Meadow to way-lay Some beauty rare. 1759 Johnson Idler No. 73 f 3 The rich are neither way-laid by robbers, nor watched by informers. 1779 Forrest Voy. N. Guinea 144 Then we should be way¬ laid by armed corocoros. 1813 Scott Rokeby in. xii, Thou art a wanderer, it is said; For Mortham’s death, thy steps way-laid. 1861 Sat. Rev. 7 Dec. 578 A screw-steamer of war .. waylaid the English Royal West India Mail steamer in the Bahama Channel.. and brought her to by firing a round shot across her bows. 1883 Manch. Guardian 18 Oct. 4/7 A ruffian.. waylaid her in the street and assaulted her in the most brutal manner.

b .fig. a 1616 Beaum. & Fl. Little Fr. Lawyer 11. iii, Dost thou way-lay me with ladies? 1635 Quarles Embl. 111. Epig. ix, Thy soule’s way-laid by sea; by Hell; by earth. 1680 C. Nesse Church Hist. 495 That Word of God There must be ten horns way-lays them. 1750 Johnson Rambler No. 69 If 3 All the other Miseries, which way-lay our Passage through the World, Wisdom may escape, and Fortitude may conquer. 1760 Sterne Tr. Shandy hi. vi, The accidents which unavoidably way-lay them.

c. To intercept and seize (a thing in transit). Also jig. to seize (an opportunity). 1599 B, Jonson Ev. Man out of Hum. Dram. Pers. (1600) Aiij, He way laies the reports of seruices, & cons them without booke, [etc.]. 1639 Mayne City Match 11. iii, Use stratagems To get her silver whistle, and way-lay Her pewter knots or bodkin. 1672 Essex Papers (Camden) I. 37, I. .resolve to waylay all opportunityes for ye future. 1851 Helps Comp. Solit. iv. (1874) 43 The fond wife used to waylay and open large packets. 1856 Kane Arct. Expl. II. vii. 84 Hans has not returned. I give him two days more before I fall in with the opinion .. that Godfrey has waylaid or seized upon his sledge.

2. transf. (without implication of hostility). To wait for (a person) in the way and accost; to stop (a person) in order to converse with him. 1612-15 Bp. Hall Contempt., O.T. xix. i. (1625) 1355 The Prophet.. way-layes the King of Israel, and sadly complaines of himselfe in a reall parable, a 1625 Fletcher Chances iv. i, Our loves shall now way-lay ye; welcome, Gentlemen. 1728 Sir R. Walpole Let. 8 Oct. in 10th Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. App. 1. 241 Our scheme about the Duke of Riperda must be alter’d unlesse you can way-lay this Evening or to-morrow morning, & prevail wth him to alter his course. 1804 Wordsw. ‘She was a Phantom’ 10 A dancing Shape, an Image gay, To haunt, to startle, and way¬ lay. 1807 Miss Mitford in L’Estrange Life (1870) I. iii. 62 The driver of the Reading coach is quite accustomed to be waylaid by our carriage. 1840 Dickens Old C. Shop xlviii, Being directed to the chapel [he] betook himself there, in order to waylay her, at the conclusion of the service. 1886 Ruskin Praeterita II. 60, I have held it a first principle of manners not to way-lay people. 1914 Blackw. Mag. Nov. 577 The canal lock-keepers waylay me for the latest information.

f3. To impede or intercept (a person) in his progress; to block the path of. Also, to impede or obstruct (an activity). Obs. 1625 Bacon Ess., Usury (Arb.) 543 For the Employment of Money, is chiefly, either Merchandizing, or Purchasing; And Vsury Way-layes both. 1649 Milton Eikon. viii. 68 Using a strange iniquity to require justice upon him whom he then waylayd and debarr’d from his appearance. 1660 Ingelo Bentiv. & Ur. 1. (1682) 156 By this means we endeavour to way-lay an inconvenience which others accelerate by Excess in meats and drinks. 1681 Flavel Right Man's Ref. 170 ’Tis our wisdom to way-lay our troubles. 1688 Bunyan Jerus. Sinner Saved (1886) 121 Art thou crossed, disappointed, and way-laid, and overthrown in all thy foolish ways and doings?

4. To beset or blockade (a road, position, district) with an armed force or the like. ? Obs. 1609 [Bp. W. Barlow] Answ. Nameless Cath. 292 The Pope caused them to bee staied from that meeting, way¬ laying the Coastes of Verona and Millan. 1618 J. Taylor (Water P.) Pennyles Pilgr. Fib, Then all the valley on each side being way-laid with a hundred couple of strong Irish Grey-hounds, they are let loose as occasion semes vpon the heard of Deere. 1757 Washington Lett. Writ. 1889 I. 498, I.. ordered the passes of the mountains to be waylaid by commands from other places. 1784 Belknap Tour to White Mts. (1876) 19 The next morning they waylaid the road and killed these men. 1813 Scott Rokeby 11. xiii, Is our path way-laid? 1828 W. Irving Columbus viii. iii. II. 237 He spread his army through the adjacent forests; and waylaid every pass.

Hence waylaid ppl. a. waylayer, one who waylays, waylaying vbl. sb. and ppl. a. (Stress variable, as in the vb.) 1626 Breton Fantasticks C 4, The quarter Sessions take order with the way-layers. 1666 Dryden Ann. Mirab. xxv, Like hunted Castors, conscious of their Store, Their way¬ laid wealth to Norways coasts they bring. 1674 N. Fairfax Bulk & Selv. 71 Something.. as powerful to check or bind motion, as the way-laying of a gross unweildy body. 1694 Motteux Rabelais v. xxvi. 125 As we went back to our Ships, we saw three Way-Layers [Fr. trois guetteurs de chemins], who having been taken in Ambuscade, were going to be broken on the Wheel. 1759 Dilworth Life of Pope 149 A lurking way-laying coward. 1828 Smeeton Doings in London 222 That fellow.. is one of the way-layers, a contemptible class of thieves, who attend the waggon and coach-yards, pretending to be porters; they watch the country people, and offer their services to carry their parcels. 1855 Landor Imag. ConvAsin. Pollio & Licin. Calvus i. Wks. 1876 II. 437 Wherever there are rich wayfarers there also are sly and alert waylayers. 1870 Morris Earthly Par. II. iii. 501 Without a will for aught, did Bodli stand, Nor once cast eyes on the waylayer’s band. 1872 Greg Enigm. Life v. 190 It [sc. death] continues the most waylaying thought of the thoughtful man, till he silences its importunity by listening to all it has to say, and reasoning it back into the tomb. 1897 ‘O. Rhoscomyl’ White Rose Arno 224 Ned ran rapidly over the history of the waylaying of Ithel.

wayle, obs. form of vail v.2 1601 W. Percy Cuckqueanes & Cuckolds Errants iv. i. (Roxb.) 48 Cause your Friggats Bonnets to wayle.

wayle: see wail sb., v., wale sb.1, a. (a. absol.). fwaylead. Sc. Obs. Forms: 6 wayleid, -laud, walaid, waled, [f. way sb.1 + lead si.2] An artificial watercourse leading to a mill; a milllead or mill-leat. 1547 Reg. Mag. Sig. Scot. 33/1 Cum molendino.. cum.. aqueductu et cursu ac le walaid ejusdem. Ibid. 39/1 Lie waylaud. 1565 Ibid. 1583, 173/2 Cum lie wayleid pro deservitione dicti molendini. 1588 Ibid. 1591, 656/2 Molendinum .. cum sequelis.. lie dam, waled et wattergait.

'way-leave, 'wayleave. In 5 waylefe, -leve. [f. way sb.1 + leave sft.1] Permission to make and use a way for conveying coal from the pit-head across a person’s land; the rent or royalty paid for such permission; the way or road constructed for the purpose. Also, permission to carry telephone wires over or along buildings, or to lay water-pipes or drains across private land, and the charge or rent payable therefor. More widely, a right of way granted by the owner of land to a particular body and for a particular purpose, often in return for payment; also, a document conferring the right. 1427-8 Durham Acc. Rolls (Surtees) 709 Elemosinario pro waylefe, 6s. 8d. 1431-2 Ibid. 711 Wayleve. 1661 in N. & Q. Ser. XII. XI. 391/2 (Lease of a coalmine) Vna cum bona et

WAY-MAKER sufficient! wayleave et stayleave in per et trans territorium de Casterton Fell., pro omnibus .. carriagiis. 1725 Portland Papers (Hist. MSS. Comm.) VI. 104 These way leaves are an artificial road made for the conveyance of coal from the Pit to the Steaths on the riverside, a 1734 North Life Ld. Keeper Guilford (1742) 136 Another thing, that is remarkable, is their Wayleaves; for, when Men have Pieces of Ground between the Colliery and the River, they sell Leave to lead Coals over their Ground. 1739 Enq. Price Coals 14 For leave of way he must pay a consideration, called a way-leave. 1879 Cases Crt. Session Ser. iv. VI. 929 His property is advantageously situated for enabling him to demand wayleave. 1884 Standard 26 Sept. 4/2 The Telephone Companies are now permitted.. to make their own arrangement for way-leaves. 1892 Times 23 Mar. 8/3 The Royal Commission on Mining Royalties and Wayleaves. Ibid. 9/4 As between towns the Post Office usually has way-leaves enough to accommodate trunk telephones. i893 Neasham North-country Sk. 28 By agreement with Mr. Tempest who let them both wayleave and staithroom they were limited to an annual vend of 12000 chaldrons. 1928 H. G. Wells Way World is Going xi. 127 The exploitation of the air, as a means of.. available travel, is hopeless without.. secure wayleaves over Europe. 1930 Times 22 Mar. 19/2 We have also practically completed the Scottish overhead ‘Grid’ system for the Central Electricity Board... Owing to the difficulty of securing permission for wayleaves our work was necessarily interfered with, i960 Farmer & Stockbreeder 1 Mar. 91/1 The Central Electricity Generating Board has no legal right of entry on your land without your permission or until such time as you have signed a wayleave. 1963 Times 24 May 16/6 A wayleave for a future subway linking the triangle with the Radcliffe Infirmary and passing under the Banbury and the Woodstock roads. attrib. 1830 Edin. Rev. LI. 179 Those whose collieries are in that situation, have to pay way-leave rents, i960 Times Rev. Industry Feb. 75/1 There is no way-leave payment. 1971 P. Gresswell Environment 215 Landowners are in a strong position to influence power line proposals through granting or refusing wayleave consent.

fway-leet. Ohs. Forms: 3 weienlaete, weynleate, 4 weonlete, weialot; 4 weilot, 5 weylate, -lete, 6 waileete, 6-7 wayleet(e. [Partly repr. OE. weggelsete, partly wega, wegena gelzkte: see way sb.1 and leet sb.3 The forms with -lot, -late show obscuration of vowel in the second syllable due to absence of stress.]

A place where two or more roads meet. For two-, three-, four-way-leet see leet sb.3 c 1000 O.E. Glosses (Napier) 1. 4716 Competalia, wejjgelaete. C1205 Lay. 15509 Summe heo wenden to pan wude, summe to weien-laeten [C1275 weynleates]. 13.. in Minor Poems fr. Vernon MS. 341 Ren a-boute bi pe strete, Bi wey and bi weonlete. 1388 Wyclif Gen. xxxviii. 14 Sche sat in the weilot [Vulg. in bivio itineris] that ledith to Tampna.-2 Sam. i. 20 Nether telle 3c in the weilottis of Ascoion [Vulg. in compitis Ascalonis]. c 1430 Pilgr. Lyf Manhode in. xlviii. (1869) 161 A verrey dunghep in a weylate, ther eche at his time may come to make filthe. 1450 Myrc Par. Pr. 748 (ed. 1868) A1 pat leyen her childeren at eny wey-letes or at eny chirch dores or at eny other comyn weyes and leveth hem.

wayless (’weilis), a. Also 4 weyles, 4, 7 wayles, 6-7 wai-, waylesse, way-less, 7 waieless. [OE. wegleas: see way sb.1 and -less. Cf. Icel. vegalauss out of the way, lost in the woods, MHG. wegelos, mod.G. weg{e)los.] Having no way or road. Chiefly of a country, region, etc.: Trackless, pathless. cixoo Voc. in Wr.-Wuleker 149/20 Auiaria, weglsesa beara, secreta nemora. Ibid. 177/17 Inuium, ungefere, uel wegleas pasS. 1387 Trevisa Higden II. 219 Man .. fel.. out of hous in to maskynge and wayles contray [L. de domo ad devium]. 1398 - Barth. De P.R. xiv. Iii. (Tollemache MS.) A weyles wildirnesse [L. invia solitudo]. 1591 Sylvester Du Bartas 1. v. 389 If without wings we fly.. Through hundred sundry way-less wayes addrest. 1612 Drayton Poly-olb. ii. 164 As though the peopled townes had way-less deserts been. 1630 Drumm. of Hawth. Flowres of Sion, Hymne Fairest Faire 162 With wonders new my Spirits range possest, And wandring waylesse in a maze them rest. 1690 C. Nesse O. & N. Test. I. 462 He was also their courteous companion in all their wayless ways. 1821 R. S. Hawker Cornish Ballads, etc. (1904) 258 Joys such as these, Visions of wayless fancy, were the fire That burnt within me. 1901 ‘Zack’ Tales Dunstable Weir 151 The bush which from his account was wide-spreading and wayless.

Hence 'waylessness. 1871-4 Hort The Way, etc. i. (1894) 37 The delightfulness of the opening world depends in no small measure on its semblance of waylessness.

wayll, obs. Sc. form of well adv. waylle, variant of vail sb.1 (advantage, profit). 01550 Vox Populi iv. 115 in Skelton's Wks. (1843) II. 405 Lett marchantmen goe sayle For that ys ther trwe waylle.

waylle, var. vail v.1; obs. f. wale sb.2 waylor(e, obs. forms of valor. 01483 in Eng. Gilds (1870) 313 Every person .. that ys of the waylore of xx. It. of goodes, and aboffe. Ibid. 314 Euery seruant.. that takyt wagys to the waylor of xx. s. and a-boffe.

f way-maker. Obs. 1. One who makes or mends roads. 1483 Cath. Angl. 405/2 A Way maker or mender, portitor. 1609 in F. Devon Issues Exch., Jas. I {1836) 95 To Thomas Norton, his Majesty’s way-maker, appointed to oversee the performance of the mending of the highways.. £29. 10s.

2. A person or thing that prepares the way for another; a forerunner, precursor; a prelude (to). 1574 T. Newton Health Mag. Tj b, Sleepe at noone.. is a foremessanger or way-maker to Feuers, Apostumations,

WAY-MAN

WAYSANDE

3°

and Abscesses. C1614 Sir C. Cornwallis in Gutch Coll. Cur. I. 139 Which match, I conceived, had been a preparation, and a way-maker to this other. 1634 Bp. Hall Contempt., N.T. iv. iv. 117 What was his [John Baptist’s] errand, but to be the way-maker unto Christ? 1640 Bastwick Ld. Bishops viii. Ij, Now the spirit of Prelacie was the very beginning of the Apostacie, which was Antichrists way-maker.

1566 Gascoigne Jocasta v. v. 116,1 will.. washe thy wounds with my waymenting teares. 1603 Florio Montaigne in. iv. 504 For their lost husbands they entreate their waymentings by repetition of the good and gracefull partes they were endowed with. 1621 Molle Camerar. Liv. Libr. 11. xviii. 130 The.. pittifull waymenting of the people. 1883 R. W. Dixon Mono 1. xvi. 53 How waymenting Came in joy’s place.

'way-man. [way sb.l] 11. A waywarden. Obs.

f waymen'tation. Obs. -ATION.] Lamentation.

1570 in Toulmin Smith Parish vii. (1857) 509 Jhon Stone, Jhon Margorn, Waymen of West Ashton do give up their Accounts. 1630 in G. P. Scrope Hist. Castle Combe (1852) 336 That every housekeeper within the parish which hath noe ploughe, doe com or send one to dige or picke stones one day before the aforesayd day, being warned by the way-men.

11403 Lydg. Temple of Glas 949 Of him I had so gret compassioun, Forto reherse his weymentacioun, That. . I want connyng, his peynes to discryue. c 1425 St. Eliz. Spalbeck in Anglia VIII. 113/43 She schewith in weymentacyouns and turmentz hir owne compassyone. c 1450 Merlin xx. 347 Thus wente kynge Rion, makynge grete sorowe and weymentacion in-to his contrey.

f2. A traveller, wayfarer. Obs. 1638 Brathwait Barnabees Jrnl. 111. (1818) 83 Shew thy selfe a famous way-man. 1876 Whitby Gloss., Wayman, a journier.

3. A workman employed on the permanent way of a railway; a plate-layer. 1840 F. Whishaw Railiv. Gt. Brit. & Irel. 252 Waymen, who are paid by the contractors for keeping the permanent way in repair. 1885 Pall Mall Gaz. 7 Oct. 7/2 A party of waymen found that a wood and iron bridge.. had been . . destroyed by fire.

'waymark, 'way-mark, sb. An object, whether natural feature or artificial structure, which serves as a guide to the traveller. Also fig. 1611 Bible Jer. xxxi. 21 Set thee vp way-markes. is, as it helpij? better by sum wey and mene to pe send of a ping, pan an oJ>er dop. 1500-20 Dunbar Poems lxxvii. 70 The for to pleis thay socht all way and mein. [1530 Palsgr. 287/2 Wey or meane, acheison.]

2. a. spec. In Legislation: Methods of procuring funds or supplies for the current expenditure of the state. Also attrib. Committee of Way and Means. (a) A committee of the whole House of Commons, which sits to receive the annual financial statement from the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and to consider the means of procuring the necessary annual supply, (b) U.S. A standing committee of the House of Representatives, to which are referred bills dealing with revenue, tariff, etc. 1644 Jrnl. Ho. Comm. III. 509/1 This Committee, or any Four of them, is to consider of all Ways and Means for raising of Monies .. and to make Report to the House. 1685 Ibid. IX. 759/1 The House then.. resolved into a Committee of the whole House, to consider of the Ways and Means to raise his Majesty’s Supply. 1695-6 Luttrell Brief Rel. IV. 16 The commons were yesterday in a committee of the whole house upon wayes and means for raising two millions. 1695 {title) An Essay upon ways and means of supplying the war. [By C. Davenant.] 1737 Gentl. Mag. VII. 654/1 When we take this Affair into our Consideration in the Committee of Ways and Means. 1738 Johnson London 245 Ye Senatorian Band, Whose Ways and Means support the sinking Land. 1767 Sterne Tr. Shandy ix. xi, The first Lord of the Treasury thinking of ways and means, could not have returned home, with a more embarrassed look. 1785 Rolliad, Prob. Odes xi. 92 Rapt in St. Stephen’s future scenes, I sit perpetual Chairman of the Ways and Means. 1798 T. Jefferson Let. to J. Madison 26 Apr., Writ. 1854 IV. 237 The Committee of Ways and Means have voted a land tax. 1824 Macaulay Prophetic Acct. Epic Poem Misc. Writ, i860 I. 149 His Lordship., advises him [Mr. Vansittart] to look after the ways and means, and leave questions of peace and war to his betters. attrib. 1867 Oregon State Jrnl. 5 Jan. 2/2 The Ways and Means Committee decided to postpone an action on Mr. Boutwell’s bill. 1919 Lit. Digest 22 Mar. 21/2 Mr. Fordney, of Michigan,.. will probably be.. Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee. 1973 B. J. Sims Suppl. to Sergeant on Stamp Duties (ed. 6) A55 This section and the associated Ways and Means Resolution provides powers whereby changes in stamp duty may be given effect to by means of a Budget Resolution. 1977 Time 12 Dec. 34/2 A1 Ullman, the House Ways and Means chairman, has been pleading with Carter for a ‘minimalist’ rather than a ‘maximalist’ tax bill. fig. 1699 Garth Dispensary vi. 108 No Ways and Means their Cabinet employ, But their dark Hours they waste in barren Joy.

b. Pecuniary resources in general. f to be upon ways and means, to be trying to raise money. 1738 Gentl. Mag. VI11. 41 /2 So have I known a buxom lad .. taught by kind mamma at home; Who gives him many a well try’d rule. With ways and means—to act a fool. 1760 Foote Minor 11. Wks. 1799 I. 250 People that are upon ways and means, must not be nice. 1791 Smeaton Edystone L. §313 And whenever it shall appear to be necessary to renew it [$c. the gilding], I doubt not but ways and means will be found. 1869 A. Macdonald Love, Law & Theol. x. 159 The party then adjourned to McGroggy’s large room, and .. resolved themselves into a committee of ways and means. 1872 Geo. Eliot Middlem. lviii, She had not yet had any anxiety about ways and means. 1879 ‘Edna Lyall’ Won by Waiting xxi, She .. went to the nursery, to discuss ways and means with Bella’s nurse.

wayse,

obs. form of ooze sb.3 and of wase. C1475 Cath. Angl. 409/2 (Addit. MS.) Wayse, alga.

'wayside, a. The side of a road or path, the land bordering either side of the way. Phr. to fall by the wayside [after Luke viii. 5: see quot. 1526], to fail to stay the course, to drop out. ? a 1400 Morte Arth. 1713 They are enbuschede one blonkkes, with baners displayede, In 3one bechene wode appone the waye sydes. 1526 Tindale Luke viii. 5 As he sowed some fell by the waye syde. 1550 Crowley Epigr. 221 By the waye syde, hym chaunced to se A pore manne that craued of hym for charitie. 1673 Ray Journ. Low C. 19 Among the Corn by the way-sides as we went. 1752 J. Hill Hist. Anim. 498 This species is very frequent with us especially on heaths and by way-sides, a 1784 Johnson in Mrs. Piozzi Anecd. (1786) 5 A stone he saw standing by the

WAYWARD

31 way-side, set up.. in honour of a man who had leaped a certain leap thereabouts. 1850 Anne Pratt Comm. Things of Sea-side iii. 171 The wild-flowers, which grace every wayside. 1878 Swinburne Poems B. Ser. 11. Before Sunset 6 Lighted shade and shadowy light In the wayside and the way. 1893 Max Pemberton Iron Pirate i, A crucifix that stood on the wayside by the hill-foot yonder. 1894 J. Davidson Ballads Songs 121 All the waysides now are flowerless. 1965 New Statesman 7 May 719/1 Responding to persuasion, young wives go back into teaching... Some toughen and survive, others fall by the wayside. 1973 Times 24 May 10/1 She went to San Diego for a world junior tournament last year and fell by the wayside only because of a marker’s error. 1977 L. T. Milic in Bond & McLeod Newslett. to Newspapers 1. 41 As society changes, so must the tone of a publication or it falls by the wayside.

b. attrib. passing into adj. Of or pertaining to the wayside; situated on, lying near, occurring, growing or living by the wayside, wayside pulpit, a board, usu. placed outside a place of worship, displaying a religious text or maxim. 1807 J. Ruickbie {title) The Way-side Cottager; consisting of Pieces in Prose and Verse. 1845 J. Saunders Cab. Piet. Engl. Life, Chaucer 17 The little wayside chapels, erected for the accommodation of travellers. 1861 Miss Jane M. Campbell Hymn, 'We plough the fields' He paints the wayside flower. 1878 B. Taylor Deukalion iii. vi. 132 Free as the wayside brook to whoso thirsts. 1883 S. C. Hall Retrospect II. 388 The coach stopped to change horses at a way-side inn. 1906 Petrie Relig. Anc. Egypt xiii. 85 Such were the places for wayside devotions and passing prayers. 1925 Advertising World Dec. 302/2 {heading) How the ‘wayside pulpit’ scheme was organized. 1932 Q. D. Leavis Fiction Gf Reading Public 11. iv. 193 An inspection of the slogans displayed on Wayside Pulpits .. reveals that they are largely devoted to denunciation of an attitude described as pessimistic. 1976 Church Times 20 Feb. 11/1 ‘My greed is another’s need’ and ‘Live simply that others may simply live’ have become familiar slogans on wayside pulpits and in parish magazines. 1981 F. Inglis Promise of Happiness iii. 93 We most of us know when we are lying. My wayside pulpit-point is that we no longer care very much.

wayst, wayster: see waste, waster. way station. U.S. Also way-station. a. An intermediate station on a railway route, a way-side station. Also transf. 1850 Ann. Rep. Railroad Corp. Massachusetts 1849 21 Way stations for express trains. 1854 Harper's Mag. VIII. 566/2 The boats touched at most of the prominent towns on the river, to land such passengers as might desire to disembark at ‘way-stations’. 1855 [see lock v.1 7d]. 1856 Olmsted Slave States 53 Twenty minutes spent at waystations. 1881 R. G. White Eng. Without & Within ii. 44 If it is at a way-station, the passengers give up their tickets as they pass out through the station. 1891 C. Roberts Adrift Amer. 67 This was only what is called a way station. There was nothing but a section house and a long siding, besides the usual offices. 1912 F. J. Haskin Amer. Govt. 210 Cities which are to-day mere way stations on the international routes of trade will grow into rich world centers. 1914 Sat. Even. Post 4 Apr. 52/2 At ten o’clock that night at a waystation the kid was ditched. 1934 A. Woollcott While Rome Burns 258 To fly by way of Ottawa, Point Barrow, and other way-stations. 1944 Daily Progress (Charlottesville, Va.) 21 July 1/8 The island [sc. Guam].. formerly served as a way-station on the trans-Pacific airroute to the East. 1976 N. Thornburg Cutter & Bone vi. 134 It was.. a way station carefully restored and preserved to offer at least a semblance of its original state. 1984 New Yorker 9 July 43/2 The United States may.. use Moroccan facilities.. as way stations for combat troops destined for service in, say, the ^Middle East.

b. fig., or in fig. context. 1892 Congress. Rec. 23 Mar. 2462/2 ‘Will the gentleman allow me to ask him a question?’.. ‘The gentleman will excuse me. On a fast schedule I can not stop at way stations.’ 1926 [see tectal a.]. 1948 Menjou & Musselman It took Nine Tailors 10 She thought a theater was just a way station on the road to perdition, i960 Bruner & Klein in Kaplan & Wapner Perspectives in Psychol. Theory 65 There are corticofugal impulses that go down through the reticular formation to program selectivity of intake by way stations in the sensory system. 1973 Sci. Amer. July 52/1 Lymphocytes are found in high concentrations in the lymph nodes, way stations along the lymphatic vessels. 1978 W. Garner Mobius Trip (1979) i. 12 The Belgravia apartment was not a home... It was a way station. 1982 H. Kissinger Yrs. of Upheaval viii. 302 The cease-fire was merely a tactic, a way station toward their objective of taking over the whole of Indochina by force.

wayt(e, obs. ff. wait sb., v.1, v.2, weight. wayte, obs. Sc. f. wite sb.; obs. f. wot v. wayth, variant of waith sb.1, wothe Obs. way-tree. dial. [? f. way sb.1 or weigh

v.]

(See

quot.) 1854 Anne E. Baker Northampt. Gloss, s.v. Batticle, Sway-tree, Swingel-tree, and Way-tree, are synonymous in different parts of the county. 1856 J. C. Morton Cycl. Agric. II. 726 Way-tree, (Lincolns.), the largest tree of the three ‘swingle-trees’.

way up, adv. and a. orig. U.S. (f. way adv. + up adv.] A. adv. Far up. 1851 ’E. Wetherell’ Wide, Wide World I. xii. 150 Do you live ’way up there? 1862 O. W. Norton Army Lett. 100 A minister of the gospel who was so wonderfully.. war-like way up in Erie. 1901 Lee Bacon Houseboat on Nile 51 The Howadji.. was ’way up in that painter’s paradise where [etc.]. 1946 K. Tennant Lost Haven {1947) vii. 95 If you owned a bath, it put you ’way, ’way up in the world. 1956 H. Kurnitz Invasion of Privacy xiv. 92 She came down the stairs and I thought that was funny because they live way up top. 1972 National Observer (N.Y.) 27 May 14/1 Way up in the high-level social circles are those who are so rich they never, ever talk about money.

B. adj. Usu. 'way-up. Excellent, first-class; of high social standing, slang (chiefly U.S.). 1887 F. Francis Saddle & Mocassin 81 A real way-up cook, who could make chile-con-carne, tamales, and all the best Mexican dishes. 1902 Kipling Traffics & Discoveries (1904) 17 He’s a way-up barrister when he’s at home. 1909 ‘O. Henry’ Roads of Destiny xviii. 299, I want to be manager of something way up—like a railroad or a diamond trust or an automobile factory.

way-up (wei'Ap), sb. Geol. [f. phr. {which, this, the right, etc.) way up (way sb.1 9 a, up adv.2 9 a).] Orientation as regards which part is uppermost or was deposited last. 1958 Q. Jrnl. Geol. Soc. CXIII. 364 Way-up has been determined from graded bedding. 1969 Bennison & Wright Geol. Hist. Brit. Isles ii. 3^ Certain characters, such as.. the way-up of shells, provide evidence of bottom conditions and the strength of currents. 1982 Collinson & Thompson Sedimentary Structures vi. 97/1 Aeolian structures could help to establish way-up in highly dipping sequences.

wayve, obs. form of

.1

waive v

and v2 Obs.

wayward ('weiwad), a. Not now in colloquial use. Also 4 waiwerd, weiward, 4-5 weyward (4 -werd, 6 -warde), 4, 6 waywarde, 6-7 waiward (6 -warde), (7 waward). [Aphetic f. awayward. Cf. froward. The word has prob. often been apprehended as a derivative of way sb.1, with the literal sense ‘bent on going one’s own way’; this notion seems to have influenced the development of meaning.]

1. Disposed to go counter to the wishes or advice of others, or to what is reasonable; wrongheaded, intractable, self-willed; froward, perverse. Of children: Disobedient, refractory. In recent use the sense is somewhat milder, and perhaps always with some mixture of 2. If applied to conduct deserving severe moral reprobation it would now be apprehended as euphemistic. c 1380 Wyclif Wks. (1880) 376 As waiwerd clerkis wolden in seynt Austyns time haue done owte.. pis worde of pe gospelle. 1382 - Matt. xvii. 16 A! thou generacioun vnbyleeful and weiward [Vulg. perversa]. C1425 Eng. Conq. Irel. 142 Folk so weyward & so vnredy. C1475 Lament. Mary Magd. 237 Wherfore ye lyke tyrantes wode & waywarde Now haue him thus slayne for his rewarde. 1526 Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 20 Than he waxeth testy and weywarde, and for every tryfell is impacyent and angry. 1557 North Gueuara's Diall Pr. Gen. Prol. Aij, Many sorowes endureth the woman in nouryshyng a waywerde chylde. 1583 Stubbes Anat. Abus. 11. 102 [They] shewe them selues either wilfull, waiwarde, or maliciouslye blinde. 1583 Whitgift Serm. (1589) C6b, The third kinde is of those that are conceited and wayward, who onely obey when they list, wherein they list, and so long as they list. 1590 Shaks. Com. Err. iv. iv. 4 My wife is in a wayward moode to day. 1651 Featly Abel Rediv., Reinolds 486 A waward Patient maketh a froward Physitian. 1830 D’Israeli Chas. I. III. 97 Charles.. used the wayward genius with all a brother’s tenderness. 1833 Tennyson New; Year's Eve 25, I have been wild and wayward, but you’ll forgive me now. 1840 Dickens Old C. Shop lxix, The wayward boy soon spurned the shelter of his roof, and sought associates more congenial to his tastes. 1894 Lady M. Verney Verney Mem. III. 326 Sir Ralph treated the wayward girl with a courtesy to which her mother never condescended. absol. 1581 j. Bell Haddon's Answ. Osor. 63 b, Here our old peevish wayward, piketh a new quarell agaynst me. 1582 N. T. (Rhem.) 1 Pet. ii. 18 Not only the good and modest, but also the waiward [Vulg. dyscolis]. 1912 Spectator 27 July 135/2 The two together supply the unwise and the wayward with the necessary instructions.

fb. Of things personified. Also of conditions, natural agencies, etc.: Untoward. Obs. 1567 Turberv. Epit., etc. 80 b, When waywarde Winter spits his gall. 01586 Sidney Arcadia iii. xxix. §1 What spiteful God.. hath brought me to such a waywarde case, that neither thy death can be a reuenge, nor thy ouerthrow a victorie. 1608 Shaks. Pericles iv. iv. 10 Pericles Is now againe thwarting thy wayward seas. 1718 Prior Solomon 11. 803 My Coward Soul shall bear it’s wayward Fate. 1792 Mme. D’Arblay Diary Apr., This wayward month opened upon me with none of its smiles. 1821 Joanna Baillie Metr. Leg., Ghost of Fadon vii, We war with wayward fate.

fc. Of judgement: Perverse, wrong, unjust. Also of the eye: Perverted. Obs. 1382 Wyclif Matt. vi. 23 3if thyn eise be weyward [Vulg. nequam]. - Hab. i. 4 Wey werd dom [Vulg. judicium perversum]. 1551 Robinson tr. More's Utopia (1895) 40 Suche prowde, lewde, ouerthwarte, and waywarde iudgementes [L. superba, absurda ac morosa iudicia]. 1668 Dryden Dram. Poesy 51 The wayward authority of an old man in his own house.

fd. Of words, actions, countenance: Indicating or manifesting obstinate self-will. Obs. c 1450-1530 Myrr. Our Ladye 44 An other he [the Evil One] sturreth to make som weywarde token. 1599 Sandys Europse Spec. (1632) 94 If a man should heap together all the cholerike speeches, all the way-ward actions, that ever scaped from him in his life. 1630 Pathomachia 1. iv. 8 From wayward words they passed on to bloody blowes. 1818 Scott Rob Roy xii, I shall never forget the diabolical sneer which writhed Rashleigh’s wayward features.

fe. Of a disease, etc.: Not yielding readily to treatment, obstinate. Obs. 1541 R. Copland Galyen's Terap. 2 F iv, By the occasyon of them the vlcere is waywarde and rebel to be healed.

2. Capriciously wilful; conforming to no fixed rule or principle of conduct; erratic. 01533 Berners Golden Bk. M. Aurel. Let. iv. (1537) 118b, Our lyfe is so doubtefull, and fortune so waywarde, that she dothe not alway threate in strykynge, nor striketh in

WAYWARD thretnynge. 1604 Dekker Honest Wh. 1. B 1, My longings are not wanton, but wayward, 1750 Gray Elegy 106 Hard by yon wood .. Mutt’ring his wayward fancies he would rove. 1832 Wordsw. Loving & Liking 44 Instinct is neither wayward nor blind. 1881 Jowett Thucyd. I. 88 The movement of events is often as wayward and incomprehensible as the course of human thought,

b. transf. and fig. (of things). 1786 Burns Brigs of Ayr 51 He left his bed and took his wayward rout, And down by Simpsons wheel’d the left about. 1799 Wordsw. Poems Imag. x. 28 In many a secret place Where rivulets dance their wayward round. 1817 Scott Harold 11. xv, Thus muttering, to the door she bent Her wayward steps. 18.. Smithson Usef. Bk. Farmers 32 (Cassell) Send its rough wayward roots in all directions. 1905 C.T.C. Gaz. June 254/1 The wayward hoop is a fruitful cause of those accidents for which no one except the victim gets punished.

t'wayward, v. Obs. rare~{. [f. prec. adj.] passive: To be perversely prejudiced.

WD

32

In

1586 Stanihurst Ded. in Holinshed II. 81 If anie be ouerthwartlie waiwarded, as he will sooner long for that I haue omitted, than he will be contented with that I haue chronicled.

[wayward, -wards. In the 17-18th c. the suffix -ward(s was often appended to phrases like this way, that way, our way, etc., preceded or not by to or from. (See -ward 4, -wards 2, 5.) In printed books it was common to join the suffix to the word way (either with or without hyphen), but to leave the preceding words of the phrase without hyphen, so that way-ward(s or wayward(s has a fallacious appearance of being a word. I599 Warn. Faire Women n. 548 To creep that way-ward whilst I live ile trye. 1662 Pepys Diary 7 May, He left the Queene and fleete in the Bay of Biscay, coming this way¬ ward. 1682 Wheler Jonrn. Greece iv. 317 Turning back to our way-ward, we had the view of the highest Part of Parnassus. Ibid. vi. 474 Not very far from hence we cross’d a stream that ran from this Way-wards thither. 1686 F. Spence tr. Varilla’s Ho. Medicis 169 He invited their children to a match of hunting that way-wards where he was to embarque. 1770 H. Walpole Let. to G. Montagu 31 Mar., I depend upon seeing you whenever you return this wayward.]

wayward(e, variant forms of vaward. c 1530 Berners Arth. Lyt. Brit. civ. (1814) 497 The baner of Britaine sholde be in the way ward. Ibid. cv. 500 The King of Orqueney.. was put to the wayward with xxx. M. hawberts.

waywarden ('weiwo:d(3)n). [f. way sb1 + warden sb.1] A person (later, one of a board) elected to supervise the highways of a parish or district. 1776 G. White Selborne, To Barrington 8 Jan., As to that [shrew-ash] on the Plestor, ‘The late vicar stubb’d and burnt it,’ when he was way-warden. 1829 in Archaeologia (1831) XXIII. 398 Mr. George Charman, the way-warden .. had frequently observed that the cattle resorted to a particular spot to rest. 1862 Act 25 & 26 Viet. c. 61 §9 The Highway Board shall consist of the Waywardens elected in the several Places within the District. 1863 Trollope Rachel Ray I. 274 He was poor-law guardian and waywarden. 1872-4 Jefferies Toilers of Field (1892) 238 This man .. was enabled to do a quantity of hauling, flint-carting for the way-wardens, [etc.].

waywardly (’weiwodli), adv. [f. wayward a. + -ly2.] In a wayward manner. 1388 Wyclif Ecclus. xxvii. 26 At the last he schal turne weiwerdli his mouth [Vulg. pervertet os suum]. 1395 Purvey Remonstr. (1851) 45 These principlis vndirstonden weiwardli, and applied blasfemeli to a synful man. 1545 Elyot Diet., Morose, waywardely. 1549 Coverdale etc. Erasm. Par. 1 John ii. 7-11 He loued his enemies, yea those that turned waywardly from him and that were worthy of euyll. 01586 Sidney Arcadia 11. xxii. §2 Waiwardly proud; and therefore bold, because extreamely faultie. 1825 JNeal Bro. Jonathan III. 331 Thou art still a creature of.. courage and power. But why went such power so waywardly? 1880 Academy 23 Oct. 299/2 Taste changes so waywardly.

waywardness ('weiwsdms). [f. wayward a. + -ness.] The quality of being wayward (see the various senses of the adj.). 1382 Wyclif Rom. i. 29 Fulfillid with al wickidnesse,.. couetyse, weywardnesse [Vulg. nequitia], c 1450-1530 Myrr. Our Ladye 152 Wretched were that persone that for eny waywardenes of harte wolde be vnreconcyled.. at that tyme. 1577 tr. Bullinger's Decades 11. vi. 165 Our faulte and not the waywardnesse of God [non Dei morositatem] is the cause. 1676 Hale Contempl. 11. Lord's Prayer 116 Therefore in great condescension to the waywardness of our Natures, he is often pleased to keep the Treasury of outward Blessings in his own hands [etc.]. 1796 Mme. D’Arblay Camilla V. 528 The barbarous waywardness that could deprive me.. of the exquisite felicity of my lot! 1823 Lamb Elia, Poor Relations, The waywardness of his fate broke out against him with a second and worse malignity. 1853 Dickens Bleak Ho. xviii, For all his waywardness, he took great credit to himself as being determined to be in earnest ‘this time’. 1863 Kinglake Crimea (ed. 4) II. vi. 137 There was a waywardness in the course of the disease.. for which it is difficult to account. 1872 Tennyson Gareth & Lynette 1150 He, who lets His heart be stirr’d with any foolish heat At any gentle damsel’s waywardness. 1919 19th Century May 897 Parliament.. has rallied the people from the waywardness of rebellion.

H In lists of ‘Proper Terms’ mentioned as the typical attribute of haywards. i486 Bk. St. Albans fvij, A waywardnes of haywardis.

fwaywards, aphetic form of awaywards. a 1400 Pistill of Susan 55 Heore wittes wel wai-wordus pei wrethen awai.

way-way, obs. form of wawa. way-wiser ('werwaiz3(r)). Now Hist. Also 8-9 -wizer. [Formed after G. wegweiser (= Du. wegwijzer, Sw. vdgvisare, Da. vejviser), f. weg way sb.1 + weiser, agent-n. f. weisen to show. The Eng. sense is not found in the other Teut. langs. In German the word has, besides its primary sense ‘one who or something which shows the way’, several other meanings, the most common being ‘guide-post’, which is also current in Du., Da., and Sw.]

1. An instrument for measuring and indicating a distance travelled by road. Of various forms, usually operated either by the step of the pedestrian or by the revolution of the wheels of the vehicle. 1651 R. Child in Hartlib's Legacy (1655) 70, I say twenty Ingenuities have been found even in our days, as Watches, Clocks, Way-wisers, [etc.]. 1654 Evelyn Diary 13 July, He [Dr. Wilkins] had above in his lodgings and gallery variety of shadows, dyals,.. a way-wiser, [etc.]. 1657 Ibid. 6 Aug., I went to see Colonel Blount, who showed me the application of the Way-wiser to a coach, exactly measuring the miles, and showing them by an index as we went on. 01679 J. Ward Diary (1839) 160 An instrument calld a waywiser, by the motion whereof a man may see how many steps he takes in a-day. 1683 Hooke in Birch Hist. Roy. Soc. (1757) IV. 23 1 It was one part of a way-wiser for the sea.. designed to keep a true account, not only of the length of the run of the ship through the water, but the true rumb or leeward way [etc.]. 1701 Moxon Math. Instr. 21 Waywiser, for the pocket; a movement, like a Watch to Number or count your steps or paces, in Order to find how far you walk in a day. a 1734 R. North Life Sir D. North (1744) 202, I contrived a Way-wiser, and we both wrought upon it hard till it came to Perfection, and was fixed upon a Calash we used. 1886 Cheshire Gloss., Way-wizer, a pedometer. [1891 N. & Q. Ser. vii. XI. 195/2 The waywiser [of c 1800].. registers only up to twelve miles, after which distance the index must be again adjusted.] fig. 1801 Monthly Mag. XII. 98 It is with the spying-glass of conjecture, not with the way-wiser of record, that the bearing of their sources must be made out.

1(2. [In the German sense.] finger-post. rare~x.

A guide-post,

*855 W. White To Switz. & Back x. 127 Why should one side of the mountains have all the crosses, and the other all the way-wisers?

Bailey’s assertion that the word had the sense of ‘stubblegoose’ is unsupported, and is very unlikely; this allegation, and the accompanying fantastic misspelling of wase, may have been suggested by the idea that the obscure word waygoose could be explained on the assumption that it had lost a z. (The Eng. Dial. Diet, refers to Cope’s Hampshire Glossary for ‘waze-goose, a stubble-goose’, but Cope’s authority for this is a MS. word-list which, he says, ‘contained many words that had certainly no relation to the dialect of the county’.) It seems clear that the genuine traditional form among printers was waygoose, and that the form wayzgoose, now prevailing, is a supposed correction following the authority of Bailey. The statement that goose was ‘the principal dish’ (or even that it was eaten at all) at the ‘waygoose’ dinner is destitute of evidence. It is possible that waygoose may be a corruption by popular etymology of some earlier word, but no satisfactory explanation has been found either in English or in any foreign language.]

Originally, an entertainment given by a master-printer to his workmen ‘about Bartholomew-tide’ (24 August), marking the beginning of the season of working by candle¬ light. In later use, an annual festivity held in summer by the employees of a printing establishment, consisting of a dinner and (usually) an excursion into the country. 1731 Bailey (ed. 5), Wayz, a Bundle of Straw. Wayz¬ goose, a Stubble-Goose, an Entertainment given to Journey¬ men at the beginning of Winter. [1833 Temperley Songs of the Press 23 note, Way Goose.— The derivation of this term is not generally known. It is from the old English word wayz, stubble. A wayz Goose was the head dish at the annual feast of the forefathers of our fraternity. "Wayz Goose, a stubble Goose, an entertainment given to journeymen at the beginning of Winter.’ —Bailey.] i875 Southward Diet. Typogr. 137 The wayzgoose generally consists of a trip into the country, open air amusements, a good dinner, and speeches and toasts afterwards. 1895 Surrey Mirror 23 Aug. 2/7 The members of the typographical staffs of the Surrey Advertiser (Guildford) and the Surrey Mirror (Redhill) had their wayzgoose on Saturday last, when they journeyed to Brighton. b. attrib. a 1880 F. T. Buckland Notes & Jottings (1882) 39 London printers generally have a ‘wayzgoose’ dinner in the autumn. 1897 F. T. Bullen Cruise of ‘Cachalot’ 372 Carriages were chartered, an enormous quantity of eatables and drinkables provided, and away we went, a regular wayzgoose or bean-feast party.

(w3'zi9(r)). Also 9 wezeer, wuzeer. [Arab, wazir, whence the Turkish vezir: see

Ilwazir1

waywode ('weiwaud). Now Hist. Forms: 7-9 waywode, -wood, weywode, (7 weiwode, 8 weyvode, -wod), 8-9 waiwode, (8 waivod, woewood). [Var. of vaivode, repr. an early Magyar form of a common Slavonic title of office. Cf. mod.L. wayvoda.] = voivode. 1661 Mercurius Caled. in Sir A. Boswell's Poet. Wks. (1871) 64 There is a considerable number of horses to carry on the work of the day; among others, a Waywood of Polonia hath a Tartarian horse. 1662 J. Davies tr. Olearius’ Voy. Ambass. 7 The Weywode or Governour of Novogorod. 1739 Elton in Hanway's Trav. (1762) 1.1. iv. 11 We arrived at the city of Saratoff, and waited on the Weyvode. 1812 Byron Ch. Har. 11. xii. Note, Lusieri has laid his complaint before the Waywode. 1837 Alison Hist. Europe xvii. (1848) V. 13 Their waywodes or military chieftains [in Poland]. 1905 Sat. Rev. 21 Oct. 522/2 There were hospodars in Wallachia and waywodes in Moldavia. H b. = WAYWODESHIP. 1837 Alison Hist. Europe xvii. (1848) V. 11 The waywodes and palatinates into which every province was divided [in Poland].. became divided against each other.

Hence 'waywodeship [-ship], the province or district ruled by a waywode. 1684 Scanderbeg Rediv. iv. 62 [He] returned his thanks to the several Waywodeships. 1704 Lond. Gaz. No. 3988/1 General Reinschild.. is marching towards the Weywoodship of Cracow. 1908 Contemp. Rev. Aug. 226 The Servians desired to transform the territory inhabited by them into a Servian waywodeship.

way-worn, a. Worn or wearied by travel. 1777 Potter JEschylus, Choeph. 350, I, like a stranger, harness’d in this coarse And way-worn garb. 1788 Crowe Levesdon Hill 14 By soft gradations of ascent to lead The labouring and way-worn feet along. 1824 Miss L. M. Hawkins Annaline II. 24 [He had a] wayworn look and meagre aspect. 1836 W. Irving Astoria II. 141 The wayworn and hungry travellers. 1866 Le Fanu All in Dark xxi, The horses.. emerged from the inn-yard gate .. to replace the way-worn team. fig. 1848 Thackeray Van. Fair liii, That night..she prayed humbly for that poor wayworn sinner.

waywort ('weiw3:t). Also 3 waiwurt, 5 weyewourth, 6 weywort. [f. way sb.1 -1- wort. Cf. early mod.G. weg(e)wurz, synonym of G. weg(e)wart(e endive.] A name for fa. the saxifrage (obs. rare_1); b. the pimpernel. c 1265 Voc. Plants in Wr.-Wiilcker 556/25 Saxifragium,.. waiwurt. a 1400-50 Stockh. Med. MS. p. 194 Pympernol or selfhol or weyewourth or morecrop: ipia maior. 1597 Gerarde Herbal Suppl., Waywort is Pimpernell. Ibid., Weywort is Ipia maior. 1886 Britten & Holland Plant-n., Way-wort. Anagallis arvensis.

wayzgoose ('weizguis). [Alteration of waygoose, under which the earlier evidence for the word is given. The eccentrically spelt form wayzgoose, which, although established in recent use, has not been found, exc. in Bailey’s Dictionary, earlier than 1875, is prob. a figment invented in the interest of an etymological conjecture (see quot. 1731).

VIZIER.] = vizier 1. 1715 J. Stevens Hist. Persia 191 Kobad.. accordingly gave Orders to his Wazirs or Viziers. 1807 E. S. Waring Tour Sheeraz 27 We .. reached a Surae, built by a son of the late Wuzeer. 1839 Lane Arab. Nts. I. 2 King Shahriyar.. ordered his Wezeer to repair to him. 1902 E. G. Browne Lit. Hist. Persia vii. 256 The office of Wazir, for all the power and dignity which it carried with it, was a perilous one. So wazirate (wa'zisrst) = vizierate i, 2;

wa'zirship = viziership i. *7*5 J- Stevens Hist. Persia 163 Dividing them [5c. his dominions] all into four wazir, or Vizierships, that is, Governments. 1886 Burton Arab. Nts. (abr. ed.) I. 173 After which time they entered upon the Wazirate, and the power passed into their hands as it had been in the hands of their father [the Wazir]. 1902 E. G. Browne Lit. Hist. Persia vii. 256 When the 'Abbasids came to the throne, the laws of the Wazirate were fixed. 1919 Sir S. Low in Edin. Rev. Apr. 399 The country was annexed to the Wazirate.

(wa'zisfr)). Also Waziri; 9 Vaziri, Vizeeree, Wuzeera, etc. A member of a Pathan people of north-west Pakistan; also, this people collectively. Also attrib. or as adj. Wazir2

1815 M. Elphinstone Caubul hi. iii. 385 The Vizeerees are said to be tall and muscular. 1838 in Pari. Papers 183Q XL. 29 The Vezeree territory. 1842 C. Masson Journeys I. vii. 100 A few Vaziri huts. 1847 H. B. Edwardes Diary 3 Dec. (1911) 156 A very extensive triangular Thull, or sand, occupied by the Vizeeree tribes. 1851 R. G. Latham Ethnol. Brit. Colonies iv. 182 The mountaineers around them—the Vizeri— are a pure branch. 1873, etc. [see Mahsud]. 1924 Ld. Ronaldshay India vii. 76 Our dealings with the Mahsud Waziris. 1957 B. J. Gould Jewel in Lotus x. 134 The ‘girls’ were Wazir tribesmen and the welcome they received was a salvo of rapid fire. 1977 J. Cleary High Road to China v. 163 The Mahsuds and Wazirs have .. shot down several of our machines. Ibid. 175 The four Waziri.. remained behind. wch, wch., abbrev. of which pron. I739 T. Coram Let. 15 Sept, in R. McClure Coram's Children (1981) iii. 31 The Attorny & Solicitor Generals Fees.. wch they had for Examining the Proposals. 1793 C. Burney Let. 10 July in F. Burney Jrnls. Lett. (1972) II. 171 > I dread the evils into wch their sudden union wd involve them. 1811 Shelley Let. 6 Jan. (1964) I. 37 Ignorant of the refinements in Love, wch. can only be attained by solitary reflexion. wd, wd., abbrev. of would s.v. will v1 *793 [see wch, wch.]. 1800 [see wholesale v.]. 1811 Shelley Let. 12 Jan. (1964) I. 44 Wd. that I cd. believe them to be as [they] are represented. 1888 H. O. D. Davidson Let. 12 July in R. S. Churchill Winston S. Churchill (1967) I. Compan. 1. v. 169, I thought it wd do him good to spend a day with you. 1910 [see week-endize vb. s.v. week-end]. 1930 E. Pound XXX Cantos vi. 24 They wd. have given him poison But for the shape of his sword-hilt. 1981 J. Stubbs Ironmaster xiv. 188 There wd be an Outcry if the wedding was to fall in the month of May.

WDER wder, var. uder, Sc. f. other. I53* Abstr. Protocols Town Clerks Glasgow (1897) IV. 44 Wderis commissionaris of Dwmbertane protestit for rameyd.

we (wi:, wi), pron. Forms: 1 we, we, Northumb. woe, 2 weo, hwe, 4-5 whe, 5 whee, 4-7 wee, Sc. ve, 2- we. Also 7 rarely w’ (before a vowel or h). [Com. Teut.: OE. we corresponds to OFris. wi (WFris. wi, wy, NFris. wi, we, wii), OS. wi, we, MDu. wi (mod. Du. wij), OHG. wir, wer, wier (MHG., mod.G. wir), ON. ver, vaer (Sw., Da. vi), Goth. wets. These forms seem to go back to more than one OTeut. type. The Gothic form represents OTeut. *wiz:—pre-Teut. *weist an extension (with nominative suffix -s) of Indogermanic *wei found in Skr. vaydm, Avestic vaem, we. With regard to the OE., ON., and some other forms, there is difference of opinion, some scholars referring them to an ablaut-variant (either *we-z or *we-z) of *wt-z, and others to a pre-Teut. *we of which *wei is supposed to be an extension by the addition of a demonstrative particle.]

1. a. The pronoun of the first person plural nominative, denoting the speaker and one or more other persons whom he associates with himself as the subject of the sentence. For the obsolete dual see wit pron. For emphasized compounds see ourself 2, ourselves 2. Beowulf 260 We synt gumcynnes Seata leode. c 1000 Ags. Gosp. Luke xxii. 71 And hig cwaedon: hwi gyrne we jyt jewitnesse? sylfe we jehyrdon of hys muSe. a 1250 Owl & Night. 1690-1 Ah hit was unker uoreward po we come hiderward pat we f>arto holde scholde par riht dom us 3iue wolde. a 1300 Cursor M. 4820 ‘Childer,’ he said, ‘wej?en are yee?’ ‘Sir, wee are o farr cuntre.’ 1382 Wyclif 2 Thess. i. 4 So that we silf glorien in 30U. aer laeg secg msenig, garum ajeted,.. ofer scild scoten,.. werij, wises saed. a 1200 Moral Ode 240 (Lamb. MS.) Ho [5c. souls in hell] walke6 weri up and dun, se water de5 mid winde. c 1290 Katerine 24 in S.E. Leg. 92 Of sonne and Mone and steorrene also, fram pe este to pe weste pat trauaillieth and neuere werie ne beoth. c 1290 Beket 1158 ibid. 139 Swipe weri was pe holi man, onnepe he bar up is fet. C1350 Will. Palerne 2518 Meliors was so wery pat sche ne walk mi3t. 1375 Barbour Bruce xii. 143 His men als that wer very Hynt of thair basnetis. C1400 Maundev. (Roxb.) xvi. 75 He was so wery pat he my3t na ferther. 1557 N. T. (Genev.) Matt. xi. 28 Come vnto me all ye that are wearie and laden. 1567 Maplet Gr. Forest 68 b, The fift or odde Crane.. flieth all alone before, till he be wearie so doing. 1684 J. S. Profit Pleasure united 159 To know when the Stag is weary, is easily done by his Slavering, froathing at the Mouth, [etc.]. 1837 W. Irving Capt. Bonneville xliv. III. 188 After an absence of twenty days, they returned weary and discouraged. 1856 Mrs. Browning Aur. Leigh 1. 465 Producing what? A pair of slippers, sir, To put on when you’re weary. 1865 Swinburne Chastelard 1. ii. 30, I am tired too soon; I could have danced down hours Two years gone hence and felt no wearier. absol. 1382 Wyclif Job iii. 17 There resteden the wery in strengthe [1611 There the wearie be at rest]. 1382-Isa. xl. 29 The Lord .. 3yueth to the weri vertue. 1568 Grafton Chron. II. 627 The Duke of Yorke sent euer fresh men, to succor the werie, and put new men in places of the hurt persons. 1760-72 H. Brooke Fool of Qual. (1809) II. 160 Death may bring rest to the weary and overladen. 1804 Campbell Soldier's Dream 4 Thousands had sunk on the ground overpowered, The weary to sleep, and the wounded to die. 1848 Dickens Dombey lviii, The eternal book for all the weary and the heavy-laden. 1887 I. R. Lady's Ranche Life Montana 105 In a few minutes we were sleeping the sleep of the weary.

b. said of the body, its limbs or organs. c 1205 Lay. 16592 To lechinien pa wunden of leofenen his cnihten & ba8ien on bur3e heore waerie ban. 1573 Gascoigne Posies, Hearbes Wks. 1907 I. 354 If thou sitte at ease to rest thy wearie bones. 1590 Spenser F.Q. i. ii. 29 There they alight, in hope.. to.. rest their weary limbs a tide. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg, iv. 264 Late at Night, with weary Pinions come The lab’ring Youth, and heavy laden home. 1792 Rogers Pleas. Mem. 1. 73 (1810) 12 How oft.. We.. Welcom’d the wild-bee home on weary wing. 1841 Longf. Excelsior v, ‘O stay,’ the maiden said, ‘and rest Thy weary head upon this breast!’

c. with the source of weariness indicated. Const, with, formerly also fo/(now only in sense 2), tfor> or tgenitive. Beowulf 579 Sipes werij. a 1000 Riddles liv [lv]. 10 Werij paes weorces. C1205 Lay. 18406 Heo beo8 swi8e werie iboren heore wepnen. CI220 Bestiary 635 Danne he is of walke weri. 1362 Langl. P. PI. A. Prol. 7, I was weori of wandringe [B. wery forwandred]. ?a 1366 Chaucer Rom. Rose 440 Ne certis she was fatt no thing But semed wery for fasting. 1382 Wyclif John iv. 6 Jhesu maad wery, or feynt, of the iurney, sat thus on the welle. C1400 Maundev. (Roxb.) x. 40 When he was wery of bering of pe crosse. 1489 Caxton Faytes of A. 11. xxxvii. 157 They fonde the watchemen sore wery of longe watche. 1584 Powel Lloyd's Cambria 93 Both armies being werie with fighting. 1596 Spenser F.Q. vi. vii. 19 Weary of trauell in his former fight, He there in shade himselfe had laid to rest. 1610 Shaks. Temp. iv. 134 You Sun-burn’d Sicklemen of August weary. 1617 Moryson I tin. 1. 179 My horse weary of this long journey without so much as a daies rest, beganne to faint. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg, iv. 581 Weary with his Toyl, and scorch’d with Heat. 1805 Scott Last Minstrel 1. ii, The stag-hounds, weary with the chase, Lay stretch’d upon the rushy floor.

f. Weary Willie: see Tired Tim s.v. tired ppl.

a.1 1 c. 1896 Illustr. Chips 16 May 1/3 Lazy Larry. ‘Watcher doin’, Willie?’ Weary Willie: ‘Oh, jest wipin out a little debt I owe.’ 1901 Munsey's Mag. Sept. 884/2 Dan had not been gone a day when the first Weary Willy appeared and demanded pie, with a horrid leer. 1906 E. Dyson Fact ry 'Atids vii. 76 ‘Garn,’ he said, ‘no airs. Yer Weary Willie’s brother Sam, halias Ther Frequent Sleeper, [etc.].’ I9°9 Punch 20 Jan. 46 (caption to picture of two tramps) Weary Willie: I’d sooner walk up ’ill than I would down, any day — it do throw yer into yer boots so. 1927, etc. [see TIRED ppl. a.' 1 c]. 1929 Amer. Speech IV. 345 Weary Willie, a tramp who usually hikes it and is too tired to work. 1972 [see tired ppl. a.' 1 c],

2. a. Discontented at the continuance or continued recurrence of something, and desiring its cessation; having one’s patience, tolerance, zeal, or energy exhausted; ‘sick and tired’ of something. Also with in, and to with inf. C1205 Lay. 1328 Ne bi6 na man weri heora songes to heraen. 1377 Langl. P. PI. B. xv. 181 Whan he is wery of pat werke panne wil he some tyme Labory in a lauendrye. c 1386 Chaucer Parson's T. 1042 It [sc. the Paternoster] is schort.. for a man schulde be pe lasse wery to say it. c 1400 Rom. Rose 6298, I wol no more of this thing seyn, If I may passen me herby; I mighte maken you wery. 1470-85 Malory Arthur xvi. i. 664, I am nyghe wery of this quest. 1526 Tindale 2 Thess. iii. 13 Brethren be not weary in well doynge. [So all later versions exc. Rheims.] 1534-Gal. vi. 9 Let vs not be wery of well doynge [1611 in well doing]. 1535 Coverdale Ps. vi. 6, I am weery of gronynge. I551 Robinson More's Utopia ii. vi. (1895) 212 In the exercyse and studdye of the mynde they be neuer werye. c 1590 Fair Em iv. i. 28, I am growen werie of his companie. 1605 Shaks. Lear 1. iv. 218 He that keepes not crust, nor crum, Weary of all, shall want some. 1647 Clarendon Hist. Reb. iv. §42 By this time the King was as weary of Scotland as he had been impatient to go thither. 1670 Dryden 1st. Pt. Conq. Granada 1. i, ’Tis just some joyes on weary Kings should waite. 1711 in 10th Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. App. 1. 143 He cannot be ignorant how weary we are of the war. 1726 Swift Gulliver 1. i, The last of these voyages not proving very fortunate, I grew weary of the sea. 1790 Burns The Taylor fell 13 There’s somebody weary wi’ lying her lane. 1817 Shelley Rev. Islam Ded. 33 For I grow weary to behold The selfish and the strong still tyrannize Without reproach or check. 1855 Tennyson Maud 1. xxii. 4 She is weary of dance and play. 1864-Islet 29 His compass is but of a single note, That it makes one weary to hear. 1875 Jowett Plato (ed. 2) V. 122 Plato is never weary of speaking of the honour of the soul.

b. Tired of, anxious to be rid of (a person). rare. ?ci472 Stonor Papers (Camden) I. 123 Me thynk pay sshuld nat be so wery of yow, pat dyd so gret labour & diligence to have yow. 1602 W. S. Thomas Ld. Cromwell iv. ii. 6 All parts abroade where euer I haue beene Growes wearie of me, and denies me succour, a 1653 R. Brome City Wit iv. i, I will suddenly take occasion to break with the Foole Wolsie; of whom I am heartily weary. 1859 Tennyson Vivien 687, I am weary of her.

3. Depressed and dispirited through trouble, anxiety, disappointment, etc.; sick at heart. c888 /Elfred Boeth. xxii. §1 Eala Wisdom, pu 6e eart sio hehste frofer ealra werijra moda. c 1000 Wanderer 15 Ne msej werij mod wyrde wi6stondan. c 1205 Lay. 28081 pa wes ich al wet & weri of sor3en and seoc. a 1300 Cursor M. 15875 Mate and weri war pai pan. 1535 Coverdale 2 Esdr. xii. 5 Yet am I weery in my minde. 1538 Starkey England 11. i. 150 Many febul and wery soulys, wych haue byn oppressyd wyth wordly vanyte. 1605 Shaks. Macb. iii. i. 112, 1 Murth. So wearie with Disasters, tugg’d with Fortune. 17.. Slighted Nansy in Ramsay Tea-t. Misc. (I733) !• 23 Far ben the house I rin; And a weary wight am I. 1792 Burns Banks of Doon (later version) 4 How can ye chant, ye little birds, And I sae weary fu’ o’ care! 1892 L. Johnson in 1st Bk. Rhymers' Club 6 Our wearier spirit faints, Vexed in the world’s employ.

4. Of persons: Having little strength, feeble, sickly. Sc. and dial. c I375 Sc. Leg. Saints xviii. (Egipciane) 240 J>ocht he auld & very vas. 1533 Bellenden Livy iii. iii. (S.T.S.) I. 250 Than was Ebucius, ane of pe consullis, dede in pe ciete, and his colleig seruilius sa wery pat he mycht skarsly draw his aynd. 1808 Jamieson s.v., A weary bairn, a child that is declining, S. a 1825 Forby Voc. E. Anglia s.v., It is a poor weary child. 1879 Good Words 405/1 The minister had christened Nicky Macdonald’s bairn in the house, since it was far too weary a thing to be brought to the kirk. fig. 1533 Bellenden Livy in. vii. (S.T.S.) I. 273 pe ciete was nocht sa wery [L. aegram] pat It mycht be dantit with sic remedis as It was wont to be.

II. Causing weariness.

5. Fatiguing, toilsome, exhausting.

d. Of pace, tread, voice, etc.: Showing signs of fatigue.

(Some¬ times blending indistinguishably with sense

a 1000 Cynewulf s Christ 993 Beornas greta6 . . werjum stefnum. 1638 Quarles Hierogl. i. 8 When at length His weary steps have reach’d the top. 1697 Dryden JEneis xi. 803 His Foes in sight, he mends his weary pace. 1784 Burns Man was made 6, I spy’d a man, whose aged step Seem’d weary, worn with care. 1820 Shelley Sensit. PI. in. 9 The weary sound and the heavy breath, And the silent motions of passing death. 1821 - Epipsych. 155 The beaten road Which those poor slaves with weary footsteps tread. 1840 Dickens Old C. Shop xv, Accordingly, towards this spot, they directed their weary steps.

6.)

fe. quasi-sf>. in for weary, see for- prefix io. c 1350, c 1400 [see FOR- prefix 10]. c 1400 Laud Troy Bk. 5574 Then were the Troyens wel weri, Thei myght not for weri hem steri. c 1420 Avow. Arth. xvii, For werre slidus he on slepe, No lengur my3te he wake. 14 .. Sir Beues (O.) 2449 What for wery and what for faynt, Syr Beuys was nerehande attaynt. a 1450 Mirk's Festial 180 But on pe morow, what for wach, what for wery, he fylle on slepe. c 1460 Towneley Myst. xxx. 226 Vnethes may I wag, man, for wery in youre stabill Whils I set my stag, man.

WEARY

52

£•1315 Shoreham ii. 84 To bere hyt [sc. the cross] to caluary, I-wys, hyt was wel wery. 11386 Chaucer Miller's T. 457 The dede slepe for wery bisynesse ffil on this Carpenter. 1560 Daus tr. Sleidane's Comm. 219 b, They wente a werye and a paynefull Jorney [L. difficili et molesto itinere]. 1560 Bible (Geneva) Isa. xxxii. 2 As the shadowe of a great rocke in a wearie land. [Literal from the Heb.] 1575 Fleming Virg. Bucol. ix. 29 Let’s synging passe our weary waye, lesse trouble wyll be oures. 1719 De Foe Crusoe 1. (Globe) 129 Many a weary Stroke it [sc. the boat] had cost, you may be sure; and there remained nothing but to get it into the Water. 1764 Goldsm. Trav. 423 Vain, very vain, my weary search to find That bliss which only centres in the mind. 1783 Burns Despondency 5 O Life! Thou art a galling load, Along a rough, a weary road, To wretches such as I. 1832 Ht. Martineau Life in Wilds vi. 76 It was weary work with any tool but the hatchet. 1833 Tennyson Lotos-Eaters 41 Evermore Most weary seem’d the sea, weary the oar. 1849 Aytoun Lays Scott. Cavaliers (ed. 2) 72 And aye we sail’d, and aye we sail’d Across the weary sea. 1894 J. A.

Steuart In Day of Battle iv, India, .is far away. Many a weary mile lies between us and it.

6. a. Irksome, wearisome, tedious; in graver sense, burdensome to the spirit. 1465 Patton Lett. II. 188 Thys ys to wyry a lyffe to a byde for you and all youre. 1603 Shaks. Meas.for M. iii. i. 129 The weariest, and most loathed worldly life That Age, Ache, periury, and imprisonment Can lay on nature. 179® Wordsw. Lines Tintern Abbey 39 In which the heavy and the weary weight Of all this unintelligible world, Is lightened. 1813 Scott Rokeby v. iii, In the rude guard-room, where of yore Their weary hours the warders wore. 1850 Kingsley Alton Locke xii, Like the clear sunshine after weary rain. 1884 Tennyson Cup 1. ii. 26, I have had a weary day in watching you. Yours must have been a wearier.

f b. Of discourse, a speaker or writer: Tedious, wearisome. Obs. 1549 Coverdale etc. Erasm. Par. 1 Tim. i. 1-7 Wherto should a man labour for saluacion by meanes of so many wiery obseruacions [per tot molestas obseruatiunculas ad salutem contendere], 1571 T. Fortescue Mexia’s Foreste vii. 15 b, Sundry are the considerations, of whiche Lactantius Firmianus.. as also somme others, haue written, large, & wery volumes. 1603 Shaks. Meat, for M. 1. iv. 25 Your Brother kindly greets you: Not to be weary with you; he’s in prison.

7. Sc. and north, dial. a. Sad, sorrowful, hard to endure. 01785 W. Forbes Dominie in R. Forbes Poems Buchan Dial. 11. 35 With blubber’d cheeks and watry nose, Her weary story she did close. 1813 Scott Rokeby iii. xxviii. Song, A weary lot is thine, fair maid, a 1893 in R. Ford Harp Perths. 24 This weary, waefu’ tale o’ mine.

b. As an expression of irritation: Tiresome, vexatious, ‘wretched’, ‘confounded’. 01785 W. Forbes Dominie in R. Forbes Poems Buchan Dial. 11. 27 Wae worth that weary sup of drink He lik’d so well! 1802 Sibbald Chron. Sc. Poetry IV. Gloss., Weary, wretched, cursed; as the weary or weariful fox. 1845 Mrs. S. C. Hall Whiteboy x. 85, I went hunting everywhere for the weary cat and her kittens. 1864 Latto Tam. Bodkin xiv. 131 Ye weary, weirdless, ne’er-do-weel vagabond. 1893 ‘L. Keith’ 'Lisbeth ii, ’Lisbeth, mind these weary steps. Your aunt’s very infirm in the feet.

c. quasi-adv. ‘sadly’.

as

an

intensive:

Grievously,

1790 Shirrefs Poems Sc. Dial. 262 Poor Scota now is daz’d and auld, Her childrens blood rins weary cauld, To see her Palace like a fauld For haddin’ sheep! i860 J. P. KayShuttleworth Scarsdale II. 155 Hoo’ll be weary pottert (disturbed) wi’ a letter fro’ onybody bur mysel’.

8. Sc. in certain phrases, perh. influenced by wary v., to curse: weary fa' (fall), weary on,

weary set (a person or thing), a curse on (him, etc.). 1788 Burns Duncan Gray 1 Weary fa’ you, Duncan Gray. 1816 Scott Old Mort. xxxix, O, weary on the wars! mony’s the comely face they destroy. 1816-Bl. Dwarf iii, O weary fa’ thae evil days! 1828 W. McDowall Poems 21 There’s Brawnie, weary on her, Hear how she roars an’ rowts. 1875 W. Alexander Sk. Life Ain Folk 149 Weary set that chiel’,..he has seerly nae taste ava. 1893 Stevenson Catriona ii, The French recruiting, weary fall it! 1896 A. Lilburn Borderer xxix. 221 Eh, weary on us! There seems no end to our misfortunes.

III. 9. Comb., as weary-brained, -eyed, -laden, -looking, -winged, -worn adjs.; fweary-foot a., having weary feet, tired with walking. 1898 G. B. Shaw Let. 1 May (1972) II. 38, I finish the book at a sitting, as I don’t want to be *weary-brained when Charlotte comes. 1930 J. Masefield Wanderer of Liverpool 24 *Weary-eyed men came on deck. 1798 O’Keeffe Wild Oats 11. i, The hungry and *weary-foot traveller. 1784 Burns Man was made to mourn end, A blest relief to those That *weary-laden mourn! 1885 Ld. R. Gower Old Diaries (1902) 21 A worn *weary-looking man of middle age. 1833 Scargill Puritan's Grave (1846) 63 The occasional cawing of the * weary-winged rooks. 1795-6 Wordsw. Borderers 1. 420 If you knew.. how sleep will master The *weary-worn. 1819 Keats Otho 11. ii. 117 For I am sick and faint with many wrongs, Tir’d out and weary-worn with contumelies. Hence f'werihede [-head], weariness. 1340 Ayenb. 33 Efterward comp werihede pet makep pane man weri and worsi uram daye to daye.

weary ('wisri), v. Pa. t. and pa. pple. wearied (’wisrid). Forms: i (sejwerijian, (sejwerjian, werian, 3 wer3e, 4-6 wery(e, werie, 6 weerie, 6-7 wearie, 6- weary. [OE. wer(i)gian, -gean intr., and gewergian trans., f. werig weary a.] I. intr. To grow weary. 1. To become tired; to suffer fatigue. Now rare. c 890 WiERFERTH Gregory's Dial. 204 past ilce mod tejper se mid healicum msesnum weaxeS & stranjaS & eac of his ajenre untrymnysse werjaS & teoraS. c 900 Baida's Hist. 1. xxvii. (1890) 78 ForSon hyngran, pyrstan, hatian, calan, WEerijian, al p;et is of untrymnesse paes gecyndes. Ibid. ill. ix. 178 pa ongon his hors semninga werjian & gestondan. a 1225 Ancr. R. 252, & gif pet heo werseS, euerichon wreoSeS him bi oSer. 1577 Grange Golden Aphrod. etc. Rj b, My hande with long holdyng werieth. 1686 P. Gordon Diary (Spalding Club 1859) 126, I had not ridden four miles when one of the horses wearyed. a 1776 Lizae Baillie xi. in Child Ballads IV. 269 She was nae ten miles frae the town When she began to weary. 1850 Tennyson In Mem. xxv. 9 Nor could I weary, heart or limb, When [etc.].

b. Of the heart, mind, patience, etc.: To become tired or exhausted. Also of a person, to grow dispirited or sick at heart. 1434 Misyn Mending of Life xi. 124 Stedfastly he bidys in body & werus not in hart. 1600 in Harington Nugse Antiq. 0779) II. 257 Thus I will lay down my quill, which seldom wearys in a friendly tale. 1650 J. Carstaires Lett. (1846) 74,

WEARY I hope he [God] keeps you from wearieing in reference to the delay of our libertie. 1769 Eliz. Carter Lett. (1809) III. xlvii. 379 The spirit wearies with perpetual dissipation. 1829 Herschel Ess. (1857) 514 That diligence which never wearies,.. goes on adding grain by grain to the mass of results. 1891 E. Peacock N. Brendon II. 76 His poetic mind never wearied.

c. To become affected with tedium or ennui. 1798 Monthly Mag. Dec. 436 [‘Improper expressions used in Edinburgh’] I weary when I am alone; I become weary. 1853 G. J. Cayley Las Alforjas II. 288 There is one kind and sympathising spirit which does not weary over my dilated gossip.

2. With various constructions, a. To grow tired of (something, doing something); to do ( = of doing) or to be (= of being) (arch, or poet.); also with pres. pple. a 1225 Juliana 22 For ne wer3e$ he neauer to wurchen ow al pat wandreSe world a buten ende. c 1400 Destr. Troy S2997 Thai werit of pere werke pe wallis to kepe. C1475 Wisdom 847 in Macro Plays 63 pat of hys lyff he xall wery, & qwak for very fere, c 1480 Henryson Swallow & other Birds 1891 Quhilk day and nicht weryis not for to ga Sawand poysoun.. In mannis Saull. 1627 Bp. P. Forbes Eubulus 15 Whence anie, who in singlenesse seeketh Resolution will not wearie to search it. 1782 Miss Burney Cecilia 11. iv, She now wearied of passing all her time by herself, and sighed for the comfort of society. 1829 Carlyle in Foreign Rev. IV. 120 Into the ocean of air he gazed incessantly; and never wearied contemplating its clearness, a 1834 Coleridge Lit. Rem. II. 376 How the mind wearies of, and shrinks from, the more than painful interest, the /xict^tov, of utter depravity. 1846 G. Warburton Hochelaga I. 217 The eye does not weary to see, but the hand aches, in even writing the one word—beauty. 1859 Tennyson Elaine 628 He .. had ridd’n a random round To seek him, and had wearied of the search. Ibid. 894 As a little helpless innocent bird. .Will sing the simple passage o’er and o’er.., till the ear Wearies to hear it. 1876 L. Stephen Eng. Th. 18th C. I. 356 It is not wonderful that a man pursuing so vast a plan .. should have wearied of his task before it was completed.

b. To suffer weariness from long waiting or deferred hope; to wait wearily for or to do (something), or through (a period of time); to long or languish for something. Chiefly Sc.

c. With adv. or advb. phr.; esp. to weary out, to fatigue completely, so as to render incapable of further exertion. 1647 Cowley Mistress, Thraldom v, Like an Egyptian Tyrant, some Thou weariest out, in building but a Tomb. 1670 Dryden 1st Pt. Conq. Granada iv. (1672) 35 In walls we meanly must our hopes inclose, To wait our friends, and weary out our foes. 1829 Landor Imag. Conv. Greeks & Rom. (1853) 352 Whose movements would have irritated, distracted, and wearied down the elephants. 1848 Dickens Dombey lv, He was stupefied, and he was wearied to death. 1859 Tennyson Vivien 586 Then he found a door..; And wearied out made for the couch and slept.

5. To tire the patience of; to affect with tedium or ennui; to satiate {with). Also with out. 1340 Ayenb. 99 He wolde J?et hit were ssort uor J?et non ne ssolde him werye hit uor to lyerny. C1386 Chaucer Can. Yeom. Prol. & T. 751 It weerieth me to telle of his falsnesse. c 1460 Sir R. Ros La Belle Dame 62 It werieth me this mater for to trete. c 1489 Caxton Sonnes of Aymon x. 271 How am I shamed for four glotons! certes this weryes me sore! 1553 T. Wilson Rhet. 115 b, But nowe because I haue halfe weried the reader with a tedious matter, I will harten him agayne wyth a merye tale. 1600 Shaks. A. Y.L. v. ii. 56, I will wearie you then no longer with idle talking. 1667 Milton P.L. xii. 107 Till God at last Wearied with their iniquities, withdraw His presence from among them. 1675 E. Wilson Spadacr. Dunelm. Pref., And now, good Reader, I have even wearied thee out. 1797 Mrs. Radcliffe Italian xvi, Our patience is wearied already. 1798 Sophia Lee Canterb. T., Young Lady’s T. II. 384 Wearied out at last by the tender importunity .. she reluctantly took solemn charge of the child. 1830 Tennyson Lilian iii, Gaiety without eclipse Wearieth me. 1855 Macaulay Hist. Eng. xvi. III. 649 He was.. doing his best to weary out his benefactor’s patience and good breeding. 1877 Mrs. Oliphant Makers Flor. v. 138 Oddly enough, however, this excessive applause wearied the simple-minded artist. 1883 ‘Ouida’ Wanda I. 206 He had a sensitive fear of wearying with his presence ladies to whom he owed so much.

b. To trouble by importunity (heaven, the gods, etc.). 1633 Ford ’Tis Pity 1. iii, I have even wearied heaven with pray’rs. 01718 Prior Henry e wesill ouercumys him [sc. the basilisk] & slas him. 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xvm. lxxiv. (1495) 829 The wesell hathe a red and a whyte wombe and chaungeth colour. c 1440 Pallad. on Husb. 1. 540 The wesil shal for this doon hem noon harm. 1:1480 Henryson Mor. Fab. v. {Pari. Beasts) xvii, The quhirand quhitret with the quhasill went. 1577 B. Googe Heresbach's Husb. hi. 156b, I would., counsell you to destroy your Rattes and Mise with.. Weesels. 1579 Lyly Euphues (Arb.) 272 If thou be [be]witched with eyes, weare the eie of a wesill in a ring, which is an enchauntment against such charmes. 1606 N. B[axter] Sydney's Ourania G 1, The Pole-catte, and wildecatte, the Weezle, & Stoate. 1624 Capt. J. Smith Virginia 11. 35 Of Weesels and other Vermines skins a good many. 1726 Leoni Alberti's Archit. I. 97/2 Pole-cats, Weezels,. .or the like Vermin. 1832 L. Hunt Sir R. Esher (1850) 336 Staring like a weasel. 1844 Jesse Scenes Country Life 357 Keepers have informed me that Weazles will sometimes kill and feed on Snakes. 1883 Simmonds Diet. Useful Anim. s.v., The long-tailed weasel {Mustela longicauda). 1919 Contemp. Rev. Aug. 183, I came across a bloodthirsty weasel, dragging a large buck rabbit after it. transf. and fig. 1599 Shaks. Hen. V, 1. ii. 170 For once the Eagle (England) being in prey, To her vnguarded Nest, the Weazell (Scot) Comes sneaking, and so sucks her Princely Egges. 1632 Chapman & Shirley Ball 1. (1639) A 4, Co. Dee not know him, tis the Court dancing Weesill. Ma. A Dancer, and so gay. 1633 B. Jonson Tale Tub 1. vi, Wherefore did I, Sir, bid him Be call’d, you Weazell, Vermin of a Huisher? 1638 Ford Fancies 11. ii, Whoreson, lecherous weazle! 1790 Wolcot (P. Pindar) Advice to Future Laureat 11. 39 Brudenell, thou stinkest! weasel, polecat, fly! 1886 P. Robinson Teetotum Trees 39 A thin little weasel of a Bengalee Baboo. C725 TElfric

b. In proverbial sayings. -\to be bit by a barn weasel, to be drunk. 1673 R. Head Canting Acad. 171 He is bit by a barn Weesel. 1825 J. Neal Bro. Jonathan III. 269 ‘On with your story, will you; and if you are caught another time—’ ‘Caught! me!— .. catch a weasel asleep!’ 1840 Dickens Old C. Shop xxiii. I’m .. as sharp as a ferret, and as cunning as a weazel.

If c. Erroneously spoken of as a corn-eating animal. c 1600 Distr. Emperor hi. i. in Bullen Old PL (1884) III. 208 True, daughter; love is like the weassel that went into the meale-chamber;.. it growes plumpe and full of humor; it asks a crannye as bygg as a conye borrowe to gett out agayne. a 1744 Pope Imit. Hor. Ep. 1. vii. 51 A Weasel once made shift to slink In at a Corn-loft thro’ a Chink. [Hence *755 Johnson, Weasel, a small animal that eats corn and kills mice.]

d. In some parts of England and Ireland confused with the stoat, which is sometimes called ermine weasel or (when wearing its winter coat) white weasel. 1607 Topsell Four-f. Beasts 726 The white Weasel is called Minever. 1676 Cotton Angler 11. viii. 75 A Flie called the Owl-Flie; the dubbing of a white Weesel’s tail. 1774 Goldsm. Nat. Hist. III. 358 This animal [sc. the ermine] is sometimes found white in Great Britain, and is then called a white weasel. 1891 Fishing Gaz. 3 Jan. 7/2 The stoat, or ermine weasel {Mustela erminea) .. in many parts of England is called a weasel. 1916 Field 22 Apr. 661/3 The stoat.. in many parts [of Ireland] is known as ‘weasel’.

2. Applied with qualifying words to various animals belonging to the family Mustelidae, or having some marked resemblance to the weasel, as fisher w. (see fisher1 2 b); four-toed, w. = suricate; Malacca w. = rasse; Mexican w. = kinkajou; water-w. (see water sb. 30). Syn. Quadr. 228 Four-toed Weesel. 1781 -Hist. Quadr. II. 328 Fisher Weesel. Ibid. 338 Mexican Weesel. 1800 Shaw Gen. Zool. I. 11. 406 Malacca Weesel. 1771 Pennant

f3. [transl. L. mustela (marina).] A fish, taken to be the lamprey. (Cf. weasel-fish, -ling in 8 b, and Fr. belette.) Obs. 1601 Holland Pliny xxxii. ix. II. 445 The liver also of the fish named the Sea-cat or Weazill, is given in like case. f4. The smew. Cf. weasel coot, duck in 8 b.

WEASENY

54

1845 in C. Cist Cincinnati Misc. I. 240 The inhabitants of .. S. Carolina [are called] Weasels. 1875 Chamb. Jrnl. 13 Mar. 171/2 South Carolina is Palmetto State, and the natives are Weasels.

6. A tracked vehicle capable of travelling over difficult terrain; spec, (a) a light cargo and personnel carrier (U.S. Mil.); (b) a snow tractor (see quot. 1958). 1944 Yank 4 Aug. 17/2 Cargo carrier M29, nicknamed the Weasel, is now in full production. 1949 [see snow-buggy s.v. snow sb.1 8 b]. 1958 Times 11 Nov. 6/7 The Weasel—one of the snow vehicles used by Sir Vivian Fuchs on his transAntarctic journey—was invented by a civilian, the late Mr. Geoffrey Pyke. 1964 ‘J. H. Roberts’ Q Document (1965) ix. 206 The hotels operated what the student referred to as ‘wesaru’—which.. was the Japanese way of pronouncing ‘weasel’, a cross between a jeep and an army tank—to carry the guests. 1980 Globe Laurel July/Aug. 227/2 We in fact lost two vehicles doing this, one being my own command vehicle which was a cargo LVT with a weasel in the back.

7. An equivocal statement or claim, esp. one used in an intentionally misleading advert¬ isement. See weasel word, sense 8 b below.

c. attrib. or as adj., after weasel word, above. Of a statement, etc.: equivocating, ambiguous, quibbling. 1912 T. Roosevelt in Outlook 27 July 662/2 The weasel sentence about States’ rights could well have been suggested by the astuteness of Mr. Bryan’s fellow-Democrat Mr. Ryan. 1965 M. Naylor Your Money x. 59 If. other things remain equal.., the price will rise... It is now time to deal with that weasel qualification, ‘other things being equal’. 1974 R. M. Pirsig Zen Art of Motorcycle Maintenance (1976) iv. xxviii. 337 The whole business seemed to many of them merely a new and pretentious jargon of weasel concepts. 1979 Financial Rev. (Melbourne) 27 Apr. 2 The probability is that the commission will deliver another of its weasel judgements, recognising merit on all sides.

'weasel, v. colloq. (orig. U.S.). [f. the sb.] 1. a. trans. To render (a word, phrase, etc.) ambiguous or equivocal; to remove or detract from (its meaning) intentionally. 1900 Century Mag. June 305/2 I’ve seen him take his pen, and go through a proposed plank or resolution, and weasel every flat-footed word in it. 1919 T. Roosevelt in Maine, my State (Maine Writers Research Club) 20 ‘His words weasel the meaning of the words in front of them,’ said David, ‘just like a weasel when he sucks the meat out of an egg and leaves nothing but the shell’.

b. intr. To equivocate or prevaricate, to use weasel words.

1959 T. Griffith Waist-High Culture (i960) 83 The answer may have to be a ‘weasel’, the phrasing that avoids or begs the question. 1963 D. Ogilvy Confessions Advert. Man xi. 155, I plead guilty to one act of suggestio falsi—what Madison Avenue calls a ‘weasel’. 1975 Idle Moments (Austral.) Dec. 26/2 The ‘weasels’ are so cleverly written, so subtle, you hardly notice them at all.

1956 [see dirt sb. 6 e]. 1963 D. Ogilvy Confessions Advert. Man v. 99 If you tell lies, weasel, you do your client a disservice. 1972 C. Weston Poor, Poor Ophelia xxv. 151 He listened to the younger detective weaseling at the other end.

8. a. attrib. and Comb., as weasel family, kind, tribe (designations for the order Mustelidae); weasel-colour, -mind, -run, -skin, -whelp; similative, as weasel-^becked (= beaked), -eyed, -faced, -headed, -like adjs.

1925 J. Bone London Perambulator 162 How to weasel out of London, north, south, east and west, with the fewest possible obstructions. 1963 T. Pynchon V. vii. 171,1 was always weaseling in, you know, on some show where you wouldn’t expect to find naval personnel. 1968 P. Dickinson Skin Deep ix. 176 Pibble weaseled out of the car and ran across the road.

1587 Harrison England 11. vii. 172/1 in Holinshed, If a man.. be *wesell becked then much heare left on the cheekes will make the owner looke big like a bowdled hen. 1585 Higins Junius' Nomencl. 177/2 Fuluus,.. fox or *weazill colour. 1922 *Weasel-eyed [see peanut-brained adj. s.v. peanut 3 a]. 1985 C. FitzGibbon Love lies a Loss v. 59 The weasel-eyed creditors lined the dock. 1596 Nashe Saffron-Walden X 1 b, Mounsieur Fregeuile Gautius, that prating *weazell fac’d vermin, is one of the Pipers in this consort. 1807-8 W. Irving Salmagundi (1824) 148 A little meagre, weazel-faced Frenchman. 1877 Cassell's Nat. Hist. II. 182 The *Weasel Family. 1681 Grew Musaeum 1. § ii. i. 19 The *Weesle-Headed Armadillo, Tatu Mustelinus. 1768 Pennant Brit. Zool. I. 82 This species is the least of the *weesel kind. 1899 F. V. Kirby Sport E.C. Africa 322 Their .. *weasel-like slenderness of body. 1923 Chambers's Jrnl. Feb. 88/1 Simon would have dallied by the way, his *weaselmind alert to draw news of the hindering from this Heseltine. 1901 ‘Linesman’ Words by Eyewitness 153 Setting his traps in a * weasel run. 1583 Rates Custome ho. Fijb, *Wesel skinnes the dosen, iiij. d. 1800 Shaw Gen. Zool. I. 11. 378 The *Weesel tribe. 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xvm. lxxiii. (Bodl. MS.), 3if pe *wesel whelpes fallep bi ony happe in chynnes.. pe wesel hele)? ham wij> a certeyne herbe.

b. Special comb.: weasel-coot, -duck, the female or young male of the smew; f weaselfish, a rockling (cf. whistle-fish); weasellemur, a small short-tailed lemur (Lepilemur mustelinus)-, f weasel-ling, a kind of rockling; f weasel-monger, one who hunts rats, etc., with weasels; weasel-snout, the yellow deadnettle or archangel (Lamium Galeobdolon), from the shape of the corolla; weasel word orig. U.S., an equivocating or ambiguous word which takes away the force or meaning of the concept being expressed; hence weasel-worded a. 1804 Bewick Brit. Birds II. 266 Red-headed Smew, or *Weesel Coot. j885 Swainson Prov. Names Birds 165 *Weasel ducks or Weasel coots. 1773 Gentl. Mag. XLIII. 220 The Bladder Fish, and the *Weasel Fish. 1877 Cassell's Nat. Hist. I. 223 This *Weasel Lemur.. has fair-sized ears, and its colours are of all sorts of shades of red, grey, white, and yellow. £21682 Sir T. Browne Norf. Fishes Wks. 1835 IV. 328 Mustela Marina; called by some a *weazel ling, which, salted and dried, becomes a good Lenten dish. 1591 ? Peele Sp. to Q. Eliz. at Theobalds, Gard. Sp., This * weasel-monger [i.e. a mole-catcher]. 1796 Withering Brit. Plants (ed. 3) III. 530 Yellow Archangel. Yellow Dead Nettle, or *Weasel snout. 1900 S. Chaplin in Century Mag. June 306/2 ‘The public should be protected—’ ‘Duly protected,’ said Gamage, ‘That’s always a good *weasel word.’ 1916 N. Y. Times 1 June 1/2 Colonel Roosevelt began the day’s speechmaking by opening his guns upon President Wilson... He accused Mr. Wilson of using ‘weaselwords’ in advocating universal military training, but ‘only the compulsion of the spirit of America’. A weasel, the Colonel explained, would suck all the meat out of an egg and leave it an empty shell. 1939 Florida (Federal Writers’ Project) 1. 125 There were no ‘weasel word’ qualifications, such as ‘it is alleged’. 1952 G. Sarton Hist. Sci. I. xvi. 404 It is perhaps a little ambiguous to call them idealists. [Note] The weasel word idealist is sometimes understood as the opposite of realist. 1977 P. Johnson Enemies of Society viii. 108 Whereas in the spheres of advertising, education and economics the use of weasel words tends to be towards gross overstatement, in the field of killing and mass destruction, the tendency is to understate and minimize. 1923 Ld. Charnwood Theodore Roosevelt x. 215 It is even comically reminiscent of the writer’s own criticisms later of Mr. Wilson’s ‘*weasel-worded’ phrases. 1981 N. Y. Times 29 Mar. 4/1 The facts it contained did not support what one official termed the agency’s ‘weasel-worded’ conclusion.

2. a. To extricate oneself from or get out of a place in the manner of a weasel. Also with in (with movement in the opposite direction).

b. To escape from or extricate oneself out (of a situation, obligation, etc.), esp. dishonourably; to welsh on. Also with one's way. 1956 Washington Post 7 Aug., For this country to weasel on its obligation would be both to fracture the Atlantic alliance and to engage in the most offensive and immoral sort of appeasement. 1962 N. Maxwell Witch-Doctor's Apprentice ii. 10, I wanted to commit myself publicly to it so that it would be hard to weasel out after only a day or two. 1973 New Yorker 3 Mar. 85/1 Canterbury is one of the ‘decadent’ communities that gradually weaseled out of the Shaker strictures against ornament and luxury. 1978 M. Puzo Fools Die xxi. 239 A real fucking claim agent weaseling out of his obligations. 1980 Logophile IV. 1. 46/1 It required weaseling his way into the confidence of his bank-manager. 1981 Spectator 6 June 16/2 Jilly Cooper was too kindhearted to name those who weaseled out of the exercise.

3. trans. To obtain or extract (something) out of another, esp. by cunning. 1975 L. Deighton Yesterday's Spy xii. 99 He .. ‘weaseled’ luggage for the boat-train passengers and was not above stealing the occasional camera. 1975 Observer 30 Nov. 22/4 My sole achievement was weaselling a medical certificate out of my G.P. Hence 'weaselling ppl. a. and vbl. sb. 1956 H. Kurnitz Invasion of Privacy xii. 81 Never could get along with lawyers... Bunch of weaseling doubletalkers. 1969 Listener 31 July 132/2 ‘Legitimate puffery’ is often plain lying. At best, it encourages ‘weaselling’—the use of meaningless and unverifiable formulae like ‘Bloggo is better’; at worst, it is demonstrably fraudulent. 1978 N. Y. Times 30 Mar. d 18/1 Arum says there has been heavy pressure for a return bout from all over the world. He offers this as justification for his weaseling out of a commitment to match Spinks with Ken Norton.

weaselish

('wi:z(3)lif), a. rare. [f. weasel sb. +

-ISH1.] = weaselly a. 1923 D. H. Lawrence Captain’s Doll xiv, in Ladybird 225 The driver, who was thin and weaselish.

t'weaselled, a.

Obs. [f. weasel sb. + -ed2 (irregularly used).] = next. Only in Comb. weaselled-coloured, -faced adjs. 1607 Topsell Four-f. Beasts 714 The colour of them was like a Weaseled coloured horse. 01692 Shadwell Volunteers IV. i. (1693) 36. I never saw so weasell’d-faced a Puppy.

weaselly (\vi:z(o)li), a. Also weas(e)ly.

[weasel

sb. + -y1.] Weasel-like. Also weaselly-looking. 1838 Bentley’s Misc. III. 582 He was a weaselly-looking little man. 1857 Borrow Romany Rye II. App. xi. 359 An individual.. of middle stature, a thin and weaselly figure, a sallow complexion. 1900 ‘Anthony Hope’ Quisante i. ro He was a little weaselly perhaps. 1973 M. Amis Rachel Papers 128 He was wearing a fashionable black polo-neck jersey (fashionable, that is, among the weasly middle-aged) whose sleeves he was rolling down. 1982 Barr & York Official Sloane Ranger Handbk. 17/2 What a funny little weasely face he has!

weaselship ('wi:z(3)ljip). -ship.]

[f.

weasel

sb.

+

fa. A mock title for a weasel, b. The

condition or qualities of a weasel. In quot. fig. 1702 Yalden ZEsop at Crt. vii. 23 A Fox..ask’d him., why his Weazleship would keep In durance vile. 1861 Macm. Mag. IV. 311/1 Such a representation .. as would., exhibit his weaselship in the most striking light.

weasen,

obs. form of weasand.

weaseny,

variant of weazeny.

WEASILL weasill, variant of weezle Obs. weason, variant of weasand.

weast,

obs. form of west.

wea-swa, obs. form of whoso. [weasy, spurious word in Diets., is based on a misreading of wealy in Joye's Expos. Dan. 1545. So weasiness (Joye wealynes).] weat(e, obs. forms of wait w.1, wet. 1557 N. T. (Geneva) 2 Thess. iii. 5 The Lord guyde your hearts to the loue of God, and the weating for of Christe.

weather ('weS3(r)), sb.

Forms: 1 weder, 2 waeder, 2-5 weder, 4 Sc. vedir, weddire, wedyre, 4- 5 wedir(e, wedre, wedur, wedyr, whedir, 5 Sc. weddre, -ir, -yr, wedere, wedyer, wheder, whed(d)yr, 6 weddur, wedor, Sc. wadder, (veddir), wodder, -ir, woder, (vodder); 5 wethyr, 5- 7 wether, 5-6 whether, 6, 9 Sc. wathir, (6 vedthir), 6- weather. [Com. Teut. (not recorded in Gothic): OE. weder neut., OFris. weder, wether (NFris. wedder, WFris. waer, war), OS. wedar weather, storm, Du. weder, weer, OHG. wetar (MHG. weter, mod.G. wetter), ON. veSr (Sw. vdder, Da. vejr):—OTeut. *wedro-m. It is uncertain whether the pre-Teut. form was *wedhro-m (= OS1. vedro, Russian vedro good weather, vedru adj., fair, said of weather; cogn. w. Lith. vidras, vydra, storm, audra storm, flood) or *wetro-m (ablaut-var. of Lith. vetra storm, OS1. vetru air, wind); on either alternative the word is prob. f. the Indogermanic root *we to blow (see wind sb.1) + suffix dhro- or tro-. The spelling with th instead of the earlier d first occurs in the 15th c. (though the pronunciation which it indicates may well be much older); before the end of the 16th c. it had become universal. In several dialects, chiefly Sc. and n.w., the pronunciation with (d) still survives. See th 6, and the note s.v. father sb. The nautical use = wind, direction of the wind (see senses 3, 8) is probably derived from ON. veffr.]

I. 1. a. The condition of the atmosphere (at a given place and time) with respect to heat or cold, quantity of sunshine, presence or absence of rain, hail, snow, thunder, fog, etc., violence or gentleness of the winds. Also, the condition of the atmosphere regarded as subject to vicissitudes. For wind and weather (rarely f weather and wind) see wind sb. c725 Corpus Gloss. (Hessels) T 121 Temperiem, uueder. a 1000 Azarias 62 Wedere onlicust, )?onne on sumeres tid sended weor^eS dropena dreorung. a 1100 Gerefa in Anglia IX. 259 past he friSige & forSige aelce [tilpe] be Sam .. Se hine weder wisaS. c 1205 Lay. 12042 pe wind gond aliSen & pat weder leoSede. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 2441, & vor weder & oJ?er ping on erpe after horn [sc. the planets] moche is, J?is misbileuede men horn clupede godes. c 1374 Chaucer Troylus in. 670 And if ye liggen wel to-night, com ofte, And careth not what weder is on-lofte. c 1400 T. Chestre Launfal 223 And for hete of the wedere Hys mantell he feld togydere And sette hym doun to reste. c 1403 Lydg. Temple of Glas 395 And oft also, aftir a dropping mone, The weddir clerep. c 1450 St. Cuthbert (Surtees) 627 But sodanly pe wedir chaunged. c 1520 Skelton Garl. Laurel 1442 How men were wonte for to disceme By candelmes day what wedder shuld holde. 1545 Ascham Toxoph. 11. (Arb.) 161 The lengthe or shortnesse of the marke is alwayes vnder the rule of the wether. 1545 Raynalde Byrth Mankynde 88 Item the intemperancie & mutation of the ayre, & whether, may be cause of aborcement. 1528 Lyndesay Dreme 774 Surmountyng the myd Regioun of the air, Quhare no maner of perturbatioun Off wodder may ascend so hie as thair. 1609 Pimlyco, or Runne Red-Cap D 2, To know what Wether was to come By ’th Almanacke. 1667 Sprat Hist. Royal-Soc. 247 A Wheel-Barometer, and other Instruments for finding the pressure of the Air, and serving to predict the changes of the Weather. 1678 Lady Chaworth in 12th Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. App. v. 45 Lady Portsmouth.. goes to Bourbon as soone as the weather opens to allow travelling. 1779 Mirror No. 35 The conversation began about the weather, my aunt observing, that the seasons were wonderfully altered in her memory. 1853 Mrs. Gaskell Ruth xxv, It was weather for open doors and windows. 1859 H. Kingsley G. Hamlyn viii, However, I am sincerely glad you are come, I knew no weather would stop you. 1890 C. Dixon Ann. Bird Life 309 They are birds which have no regular winter home... they wander to and fro, south and north, just as the exigency of the weather drives them.

f In advb. phrases sometimes with omission of in. 1738 C ’tess Pomfret in C’tess Hartford’s Corr. (1805) I. 10 On your left hand is the fire (no bad thing this weather), and on your right a window. 1896 Housman Shropshire Lad xxv, Fred keeps the house all kinds of weather.

b. With descriptive adj., e.g., good, bad-, hot, cold, warm; bright, dull; fine, fair, foul; dry, wet, rainy; clear, thick; rough, windy, still, calm. c893 /Elfred Oros. vi. xxxii, pa het he betan paerinne micel fyr, for pon hit waes ceald weder. ciooo Ags. Gosp. Matt. xvi. 2 To-morjen hyt byS smylte weder, pes heofen ys read, c 1220 Bestiary 236 De mire is ma3ti, Mikel 3e swinkeS In sumer and in softe weder. c 1290 S.E. Leg. 198 pat weder pat was so cler and fair. 1340 Ayenb. 129 Ase uayr weder went in-to rene. 1340 Hampole Pr. Consc. 1442 Nowes the wedir bright and shynand, And now waxes it alle domland. c 1350 Will. Palerne 2440 What of here hard hewing & of pe

WEATHER

55 hote weder, Meliors was al mat. 1362 Langl. P. PI. A. vii. 310 J>orw Flodes and foul weder Fruites schul fayle. c 1394 P. PL Crede 300 Nou han pei.. hosen in harde weder. c 1440 Promp. Parv. 146/1 Fayre, mery wedur or tyme, amenus. 1470-85 Malory Arthur xiv. ix. 653 And at that tyme the wheder was hote. 1490 Caxton Eneydos xv. 56 The reyny wedre therto propyce and conuenable. 1578 Lyte Dodoens 11. xlvi. 204 Sometimes they flower againe in Autumne when the whether is milde and pleasant. 1600 Shaks. A. Y.L. v. iv. 142 You and you, are sure together, As the Winter to fowle Weather. 1631 Pellham Gods Power 4 But the next day,.. the weather falling out something thicke, and much yce in the Offing [etc.]. 1653 Walton Angler ii. 41 The gloves of an Otter are the best fortification for your hands against wet weather that can be thought of. 1774 M. Mackenzie Marit. Surv. 95 In moderate Weather, anchor a Vessel at the Shoal. 1782 Miss Burney Cecilia viii. ix, To go out in all weather to work. Ibid. ix. v, The weather being good on the morning he called. 1842 Dickens Amer. Notes ii, The vessel being pretty deep in the water,.. and the weather being calm and quiet, there was but little motion. 1853-Bleak Ho. xv, There was no fire, though the weather was cold. 1919 H. L. Wilson Ma Pettengill 165 Will you look at that mess of clouds? I bet it’s falling weather over in Surprise Valley.

c. fig. and in figurative context; spec. (Lit.), applied to an intellectual climate, state of mind, etc. 1603 R. Johnson Kingd. G? Commw. 65 Iustinian restored it [the Empire] somewhat to a better state, driuing the Vandals out of Africke, and the Gothes out of Italy by his captaines; but this faire weather lasted not long. 1630 Bp. Hall Occas. Medit. §73 O God.. Let mee haue no Weather but Sunne-shine from thee. 1751 Smollett Per. Pickle xevi, Pipes, who .. knew the contents of the piece [a pistol], asked .. if it must be foul weather through the whole voyage. 1818 Scott Hrt. Midi, xlvii, Certain polemical skirmishes betwixt her father and her husband, which.. often threatened unpleasant weather between them. 1862 Thackeray Philip xxviii, We hadn’t much besides our pay, had we? we rubbed on through bad weather and good, managing as best we could. 1878 E. W. Benson in Life (1899) I. xiii. 463 But we have foul weather coming. We have to do the Church’s work without sacrificing those party men, [etc.]. 1901 N. Amer. Rev. Feb. 266 A barometer is thus formed by which the financial weather of the country is forecast. 1909 H. James Roderick Hudson (rev. ed.) vii. 147 He supposed that these changes of intellectual weather.. were the lot of every poet. 1922 G. Santayana Soliloquies in England 30 What governs the Englishman is his inner atmosphere, the weather in his soul. 1927 T. Wilder Bridge of San Luis Rey 17 Such authors live always in the noble weather of their own minds. 1962 K. Allott Penguin Bk. Contemp. Verse 18 A short introduction giving explicit attention to the poetic ‘weather’ of each of the last four decades.

fd. With indef. article: A kind of weather; a spell of a particular kind of weather. Obs. c 1205 Lay. 4573 /Est aras a ladlich weder. Ibid. 7398 peo com heom a wedere wunderliche feire. C1374 Chaucer Troylus in. 657 Lord, this is an huge rayn! This were a weder for to slepen inne. c 1400 Laud Troy Bk. 12914 It made tho a lothely wedur, Hit raynes faste, thondres, & blowes. 1546 Gassar's Prognost. A viij b, Not long before the Sonne shall set, we may looke for a trobelous wether, & perchaunce snow. 1548 Elyot's Diet., Apricitas,. .a fayre clere wether. 1618 Rowlands Sacred Mem. 25 Their storme was chang’d into a fayre calme weather.

e. pi. Kinds of weather: sometimes equivalent to sing. Now rare exc. in phr. (in) all weathers. Beowulf 546 Wedera cealdost, nipende niht ond norj?an wind, heaftogrim ondhwearf. orw werre and wykked werkes and wederes vnresonable Wederwise shipmen.. Han no belieue to pe lifte ne to pe lore of philosofres. 1449 Pecock Repr. 11. ii. 146 God is such oon, that he nedith not to haue housis ouer him for to couere him fro reyne and fro othir sturne wedris. a 1450 Le Morte Arth. 2470 Wederes had they feyre and good. 1526 in Willis & Clark Cambridge (1886) I. 618 Dowble bandes of leade for defence of great wyndes and other outragious wethers. 1639 J. Taylor (Water P.) Pt. Summers Trav. 44 Every Sunday, be it Winter or Summer, all manner of weathers. 1697 T. Smith in Lett. Lit. Men (Camden) 247, I was forced.. to go downe to Westminster .. in all weathers. 1706 E. Ward Wooden World Diss. (1708) 21 He’s, .not so stiff as to carry Sail against all Weathers. 1717 Lady M. W. Montagu Let. to Abbe Conti 17 May, It is covered on the top with boards to keep out the rain, that merchants may meet conveniently in all weathers. 1849 C. Bronte Shirley xi, She took walks in all weathers—long walks in solitary directions. 1862 H. Kingsley Ravenshoe xix, It was impossible to pass round the promontory on horseback in the best of weathers; now doubly so. 1865 Dickens Mut. Fr. 1. v, All weathers saw the man at the post. fig. 1611 Shaks. Wint. T. v. i. 195 Camillo ha’s betray’d me; Whose honor, and whose honestie till now, Endur’d all Weathers.

ff. With implied favourable qualification: Weather suitable for some purpose. Obs. c 1375 Sc. Leg. Saints xxvii. (Machar) i486 J?ar-to weddire had pai pane, pat pai wane froyt of land & se thru his prayere in gret pleynte. 1393 Langl. P. PI. C. vii. 113 Bote ich hadde wedir at my wil ich wited god pe cause, c 1400 Laud Troy Bk. 3280 Thei.. passed the see, when thei hadde wedur, To Thenedoun. 1469 Plumpton Corr. (Camden) 21 Whether is so latesum in this cuntrey, that men can neither well gett corne nor hay.

g. With unfavourable implication: Adverse, unpleasant, hurtful, or destructive condition of the atmosphere; rain, frost, wind-driven waves,

etc. as destructive agents, stress of weather: see stress sb. 3. a 1122 O.E. Chron. (Laud) an. 1097, He t>ohte his hired on Winceastre to healdenne, ac he wearfi J?urh weder gelet. Ibid. an. 1114, Ac wseder him laette. 1340-70 Alex. e wederes stronge & tempestes.. hem duden grete molestes. C1381 Chaucer Pari. Foules v. 681 Now welcom somer, with thy sonne softe, That hast this wintres weders over-shake. 1387-8 T. Usk Test. Love 1. iii. 63 And so by mokel duresse of weders and of stormes.. I was driven to an yle. c 1400 Maundev. (Roxb.) xxxii. 144 p>er es neuermare .. nowper thunner ne leuenyng, haile ne snawe, ne oJ?er tempestez of ill weders. 1402 Pol. Poems (Rolls) II. 44 To were us from wederes of wynteres stormes. c 1420 Wyntoun Cron. vii. x. 3278 And par be a tempest fel Off gret wedderis scharpe and snel. 1450-1530 Myrr. Our Ladye in. 303 There are gendered tempastes of weder and hayle. 1490 Caxton Eneydos xxx. 114 Whan thenne they had ronne & saylled so moche that they were in the highe see a stronge weddre arose. 1523 Berners Froiss. (1812) I. cccxxiv. 506 This rayne and wether endured tyll the sonne rose. 1526 Tindale Heb. xii. 18 Ye are not come.. to myst and darcknes and tempest of wedder [Gr. OviXXg]. 1531 Test. Ebor. (Surtees) VI. 26 Tempestes of wedder or stormes. I553 T. Wilson Rhet. 106 b, Diogenes beeyng vpon the Sea emong a number of naughtie packes in a greate storme of wether, when diuerse of these wicked felowes cried out for feare of drownyng, [etc.]. 1598 in Rec. Convent. Burghs Scot. (1870) II. 27 [They] alegeit thai war impeidit be storme of wedder. 1703 Dampier Voy. III. 1. 10 Upon these Signs Ships either get up their Anchors, or slip their Cables and put to Sea, and ply off and on till the Weather is over. 1718 Hearne Collect. (O.H.S.) VI. 212 The Master and the other Servant, running through the Weather towards the Houses, were both struck dead. 1894 Hall Caine Manxman iii. v, ‘Then don’t be late,’ said he, ‘there’s weather coming.’ 1898 Morn. Post 11 Nov. 5/2 Wasn’t it a beautifully disciplined Mess, though? I wish you could see ’em at sea in weather.

f i. What falls from the clouds; rain, snow, etc. Also in fig. context. Obs. 1382 Wyclif Deut. xxxii. 2 Flowe as dewe my speche, as wedre [Vulg. imber] vpon erbe. Ibid. Job xxiv. 8, Eccl. xi. 3, Isa. v. 6, Jer. xiv. 22. c 1400 Rom. Rose 4336 But er he it in sheves shere, May falle a weder that shal it dere. c 1475 Rauf Coiljear 74 The wedderis ar sa fell, that fallis on the feild. 01533 Berners Golden Bk. M. Aurel. xxxiv. (1535) 59 The labourer whan it reyneth not, couereth his house, thinkinge that an other tyme the wethers or raynes wyll fall theron and trouble hym. 1595 Shaks. John iv. ii. 109 A fearefull eye thou hast!.. So foule a skie cleeres not without a storme: Poure downe thy weather! how goes all in France? 1825 Jamieson, Weather, a fall of rain or snow accompanied with boisterous wind. Roxb. When the wind comes singly.., [people say] ‘It ’ill be no weather the day, but wind’.

f j. In contexts relating to clouds or fog, the word sometimes assumes the sense of: Air, sky. Obs. cl375 Cursor M. 24414 (Fairf.) p>e wedder [earlier texts air, aier] be-gan to derkin & blake. CI475 Piet. Voc. in Wr.Wulcker 801/1-4 Hie aier, Hec aera, Hie ether, Hec ether a, the wethyr. a 1500 Coventry Corpus Chr. Plays i. 209 These wedurs ar darke and dym of lyght. 1530 Palsgr. 648/1, I overcast, as the weather dothe wan it is close or darke and lykely to rayne... We shall have a rayne a none, the weather is sore overcaste sodaynly... I overcast, as the cloudes do the weather, c 1605 Drayton Ballad Agincourt 76 Arrowes .. that like to serpents stoong, pearcing the Wether.

2. Phrases. fa. the weather rains, thunders, etc. = ‘it rains’, etc. Obs. 1390 Gower Conf. I. 140 The weder schal upon thee reine. 1590 Sir J. Smythe Disc. Weapons 19 b, If in the tyme of anie battle.. the weather doth happen to raine, haile, or snow. 1634 Sir T. Herbert Trav. 24 The weather thundring and storming exceedingly.

fb. to make (rarely bear) fair weather: to be conciliatory, make a show of friendliness (to or

WEATHER with a person); also, to make a specious show of goodness, etc. to make fair weather of (a state of things): to gloss over, represent as better than it is. Obs. c 1400 Laud Troy Bk. 8289 At here comyng thei made fair wedur, And spak of many thynges to-gedur. 1537 Cromwell in Merriman Life & Lett. (1902) II. 93 Thother parte declare him in wordes towardes his Maieste to make only faire wether, and in his harte. . to doo all that he canne to his graces dishonour. 1547 Cheke in Harington Nugae Ant. (1804) I. 20 And if anye suche shall be, that shall of all things make fair weather, and, whatsoever they shall see to the contrarye, shall tell you all is well. 1560 Daus tr. Sleidane's Comm. 369 b, Duke Moris., to make fayre weather [L. pacificationis causa] sendeth his ambassadors to the Counsell. 1583 Golding Calvin on Deut. cxix. 732 And that is the cause why wee see so fewe holde out in weldoing. Many make faire wether for a time, so as yee woulde thinke them to bee maruellous good men: but in the turning of a hande all is marde. 1589 R. Payne Brief Descr. Irel. 7 A1 the better sort doe deadly hate ye Spaniardes, & yet I thinke they beare them fayre weather, for that they are the popes champions. 1593 Shaks. 2 Hen. VI, v. i. 30 But I must make faire weather yet a while, Till Henry be more weake, and I more strong. 1596 Edw. Ill, 1. ii. 23 Returne and say, That we with England will not enter parlie, Nor neuer make faire wether, or take truce. 1598 Marston Pygmal., Sat. i. 31 Ixion makes faire weather vnto Ioue. 1622 Bacon Hen. VII, 49 To which message, although the French King gaue no full credit, yet he made faire weather with the King, and seemed satisfied. 1673 Kirkman Unlucky Cit. 163 My Mother-in-law made very fair weather to me, and gave me many good words.

c. Naut. Of a ship, to make good, bad, etc. weather of it: to behave well or ill in a storm. 1669 Sturmy Mariner's Mag. 1. ii. 17 We make foul weather. 1781 Naval Chron. XI. 287 The Ship makes a very good weather of it. i860 Merc. Marine Mag. VII. 86 The ship making very bad weather and shipping large quantities of water. 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., Make bad weather, To. A ship rolling, pitching, or leaking violently in a gale. 1881 Daily Tel. 28 Jan., The sea was .. not so heavy but that in my judgment a twenty-ton yacht would have made excellent weather of it. fig. 1915 ‘Ian Hay’ 1st Hund. Thou. 1. xiii. §2 The feckless and muddle-headed, making heavy weather of the simplest tasks. d. in the weather: in an exposed situation,

unprotected from rain, cold, and wind; in the open air (usually with implication of severe weather). Similarly to go into, through the weather. 01513 Fabyan Chron. v. Ixxxiii. (1516) 32 The kynges Herdemen passyd by, And seynge this Bysshop with his company syttyng in the weder, desyred hym to his howse to take there such poore lodgynge as he had. 1669 Sturmy Mariner's Mag. 11. 102 The Tree roots best, that in the Weather stands. 1693 Moxon Mech. Exerc. (1703) 241 The out side of Buildings that lies in the Weather. 1842 Dickens Amer. Notes ii, The captain .. turns up his coat collar.. and goes laughing out into the weather as merrily as to a birthday party. 1865 Mrs. H. Wood Mildred Arkell xlvi, They started together through the weather to the house of William Arkell. 1880 Howells Undisc. Country xiii. 190 Her longing to be in the weather [after an illness].

t e* down the weather: in adversity, to go down the weather: to become bankrupt. Obs. 1611 Cotgr., s.v. Aller, Aller au saffron, to fall to decay, to grow bankrupt in estate, to goe downe the weather. 1641 J. Shute Sarah Hagar (1649) 63 We see how Job was despised when he was down the weather, yea even by those, whom, when he prospered, he would scarce have set with the dogs of his flock.

f. under the weather (orig. U.S.): indisposed, not quite well. 1827 Austin Papers (1924) I. 1622 The fredonians is all here rather under the wether. 1850 D. G. Mitchell Lorgnette (1852) I. 50 As for the Frenchman, though now, between the valorous Poussin and the long-faced Bonaparte, a little under the weather [etc.]. 1882 Miss Braddon Mt. Royal II. iv. 59 ‘What, old lady, are you under the weather?’ he asked, turning to survey his mother with a critical air. 1887 F. R. Stockton Borrowed Month 68 They had been very well as a general thing, although now and then they might have been under the weather for a day or two.

g. weather permitting: often appended to an announcement (e.g. of the sailing of a vessel) to indicate that it is conditional on the weather being favourable. 1712 Lond. Gaz. No. 4953/4 The Edgley Gaily will be ready to Sail.., Wind and Weather permitting. 1842 Dickens Amer. Notes i, There was a beautiful port-hole which could be kept open all day (weather permitting). 1883 Black's Guide Devon, (ed. 11) 164 The steamers from Portishead to Ilfracombe call, going and returning, weather permitting.

h. clerk of the weather: see clerk sb. 3. 1829 P. Egan Boxiana 2nd Ser. II. 302 Asking of no favours from the clerk of the weather to keep off ‘the pitiless pelting storm’, as their greasy jackets were proof against all watery attacks. 183s C. F. Hoffman Winter in West I. 38, I could not, if I had made my own private arrangements with the clerk of the weather, have fixed it upon the whole more to my satisfaction. i. to stretch wing to weather: to fly. 1825 Scott Betrothed xxiii, If they be not carefully trained .. I would rather have a gosshawk on my perch than the fairest falcon that ever stretched wing to weather.

j. above (or over) the weather (Aeronaut.), above the range of weather conditions acting at ground-level; above the clouds. 1944 Aviation Feb. 497/1 The plane climbs .. to fly ‘over the weather’. 1958 Listener 16 Oct. 593/1 It was said that they [sc. accidents] had destroyed all prospect of carrying passengers at speeds not far short of the speed of sound, far above the weather, at heights of 35,000 feet.

56

WEATHER

3. Naut. The direction in which the wind is blowing. ‘Applied to anything lying to windward of a particular situation’ (Adm. Smyth). In various phrases: to luff nigh the weather-, to sail near the wind; in quot. fig. to drive with the weather: to drift with the wind and waves, to have the weather of: to be to windward of (another ship); similarly in, into, on, to, upon (the) weather of. Also, in, into the weather-, up to weather: to windward. Cf.

Suppl., Weather-caster. 1965 Punch 5 May 660/2 His great ambition in life is to be a TV weathercaster. 1980 Time 17 Mar. 37 TV weather-casters have been much mocked for their polyester jocularity. Ibid, (heading) The wonderful art of weather-casting. 1900 Nature 29 Nov. 110/2 Disappointing.. from the viewpoint of the weather forecaster. 1981 Times 9 Dec. 1 The weather forecasters were criticized .. for not giving enough warning.. of the snowfall. ci6ii Chapman Iliad vii. 3 As the weatherwielder sends, to Sea-men prosperous gales. 1818 Scott Hrt. Midi, xliii, Those prudent and resolved and weatherwithstanding professors, wha hae kend what it was to lurk .. in bogs and in caverns.

A-WEATHER. 1390 Gower Conf. II. 370 Or elles thei take ate leste Out of hir hand or ring or glove, So nyh the weder thei wol love. 1526 Tindale Acts xxvii. 15 We lett her goo, and drave with the wedder [ifepopteda]. 1557 Towrson in Hakluyt Voy. (1589) 113 Wee had sight of three sailes of shippes .. which were in the weather of vs. Ibid., When we met, they had the weather of vs. ? 1565 j Sparke Ibid. 524 His pinnesse.. being in the weather of him. 1588 in St. Papers Defeat Sp. Armada (Navy Rec. Soc. 1894) II• i°7 After this we cast about our ship, and kept ourselves close by the Spaniard until midnight, sometime hearing a voice in Spanish calling us; but the wind being very great and we in the weather, the voice was carried away. C1595 Capt. Wyatt Dudley's Voy. W. Ind. (Hakl. Soc.) 18 [Hee] gave commaundement that the carvell shoulde plie up into the weather. Ibid., The French admerall, who laie aloofe of some six leagues to weather. 1692 J. Smith's Sea-mans Gram. 1. xvi. 78 Weather Gage, is when one Ship has the Wind (or is to weather) of another. 1842 Browning Waring iii. 12 Then the boat., from the lee, Into the weather, cut somehow Her sparkling path beneath our bow. 1868 Field 25 July 83/2 The Mabella [yacht] too, was much closer on her weather than was pleasant. 1903 Times 21 Aug. 4/3 Reliance, though astern, was well up to weather. Ibid., Reliance by now had unmistakably got upon the challenger’s weather.

c. instrumental, as weather-bleached, -blown, -borne, -bronzed, -eaten, -hardened, -roughened, -scarred, -stayed, -tanned, -tinted, \-waft, -wasted, -worn ppl. adjs. Also WEATHER-BEATEN, etc.

4. The angle which the sails of a windmill make with the perpendicular to the axis. More fully, angle of weather. 1759 Smeaton in Phil. Trans. LI. 141 note, The angle of the sails is accounted from the plain of their motion; that is, when they stand at right angles to the axis, their angle is denoted o°, this notation being agreeable to the language of practitioners, who call the angle so denoted, the weather of the sail. 1825 J- Nicholson Oper. Mech. 138 In the mill¬ wright’s terms, the greatest angle of weather was 30 degrees, and the least varied from 12 to 6 degrees, as the inclination of the windshaft varied from 8 to 15 degrees.

5. = weathering vbl. sb. 3. rare. 1894 A. M. Bell in Jrnl. Anthrop. Inst. XXIII. 272 Beyond doubt they [two flints] were chipped at the same time .. yet one is weathered, and the other is unaltered. So from an isolated example of weather I am in no haste to draw a conclusion. Ibid. 273 So also with surface finds; if they possess definite characteristics of form, of wear, of weather, . . then these are certainly local accidents.

II. attrib. and Comb. 6. a. Simple attrib., as weather bulletin, -cast, -change, -chart, -forecast, -journal, -lore, -lorist, -map, -mark, prediction, -report, -saw, -screen, -wear, f -wrack. 1926 R. Macaulay Crewe Train 11. viii. 157 She asked Arnold.. to tell her when the ‘weather bulletin came on; that was normally the only part of the programme to which she cared to listen. 1980 P. Moyes Angel Death xv. 198 The weather bulletin .. advised guests that Hurricane Beatrice was .. moving at a brisk fourteen knots. 1866 Steinmetz Weather casts 142 ‘Weathercasts by the Barometer. 1878 R. Strachan in Mod. Meteorology (1879) 84 A system of storm-warnings and weather-casts. 1980 Time 17 Mar. 37/1 A native American art form, the television weathercast. 1876 Geo. Eliot Deronda lii, Something as dim as the sense of approaching ‘weather-change. 1901 Westm. Gaz. 26 Oct. 5/2 The ‘weather-chart... showed that there were several small atmospheric disturbances in the neighbourhood of the British Isles. 1883 Encycl. Brit. XVI. 158/1 ‘Weather Forecasts and Storm Warnings. 1868 G. M. Hopkins Jrnls. & Papers (1959) 189 Henceforth I keep no regular ‘weather-journal but only notes. 1875 Chamb. Jrnl. 2 Jan. 7/2 We shall thereby add every year to our ‘weather-lore of the various oceans and seas. 1905 Westm. Gaz. 21 Aug. 10/1 A remarkable dearth of acorns.. which, according to the ‘weather lorists, is a favourable augury for the coming weather. 1877 ‘Weather map [see facsimile 3]. 1883 Encycl. Brit. XVI. 157/1 The International Monthly Weather Maps issued by the United States Signal Service. 1693 Humours Town 15 Bringing Old Age and ‘Weather marks on you before you have run half your Course. 1909 ♦Weather prediction [see gaffe]. 1951 M. McLuhan Mech. Bride (1967) 75/1 The comment is given in the style of stockmarket operations or weather predictions. 1863 R. Fitzroy Weather Bk. 349 Local changes should be indicated to observers.. by due attention to the published ‘Weather Reports. 1939 T. S. Eliot Family Reunion 11. i. 97 And now it is nearly time for the news We must listen to the weather report. 1980 A. E. Fisher Midnight Men vii. 78 He could do without unfavourable weather reports. 1871 G. M. Hopkins 6 Aug. Jrnls. & Papers (1959) 213 The common ‘weather-saw about the rainbow. 1914 ‘Bartimeus’ Naval Occasions xx. 181 The men on the bridge ducked their heads as.. a shower of spray drifted over the ‘weather-screens. *977 P- Smalley Trove ii. 84 The triple-panel weather screen was fitted with heavy duty wipers. 1824 Mactaggart Gallovid. Encycl. 191 Owre moor and dale for mony a year, May Davie’s famous dykes appear, Ne’er bilged out wi’ *wather-wear, But just the same. 1875 Brash Eccl. Archit. Irel. 96 In truth, I have seldom seen a better executed piece of masonry, despite the weather-wear of over seven hundred years, a 1616 Beaum. & Fl. Wit at Sev. Weapons 11. i, Well, well, you have built a nest That will stand all stormes, you need not mistrust A ‘weather-wrack.

b. objective, as weather-caster (so -casting), -forecaster, f-tvielder; weather-braving, -withstanding ppl. adjs. 1800 Hurdis Fav. Village 4 How long upon the hill has stood Thy weather-braving tower. C1904 Encycl. Diet.

1784 Cowper Task v. 834 His country’s ‘weatherbleach’d and batter’d rocks. ci6ii Chapman Iliad 11. 532 Strong Enispe, that for height, is euer ‘weather-blowne. 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., * Weather-borne, pressed by wind and sea. 1837 W. Irving Capt. Bonneville xv, Their .. ‘weather-bronzed complexions. 1814 Coleridge Lett. (1895) 640 [A Janus face] all ‘weather eaten. 1834 Southey Doctor ix. I. in A countenance which, ‘weather-hardened as it was, might have given the painter a model for a Patriarch. 1897 W. B. Yeats Secret Rose 187 Her dark, ‘weather-roughened skin. 1876 Miss Broughton Joan 1. i, The ‘weather-scarred gray walls. 1854 Mrs. C. L. Balfour Working Women (1868) 395 Whenever he had a guest belated or ‘weather-staid in that lonely region. 1853 Dickens Bleak Ho. lii, A ‘weather-tanned.. woman with a basket. 1814 Scott Wav. v (verses), The ‘weather-tinted rock and tower. 1647 Ward Simple Cabler 20 Men.., that are ‘weather-waft up and down with every eddy-wind of every new doctrine. 1822 Scott Pirate xix, These haggard and ‘weather-wasted features. 1609 Healey Discov. New World 1. v. 13 We beheld a tombe, which as far as I could guesse by the ‘weather-worne inscription conteined the bones of the Romane Apicius. 1827 Carlyle Germ. Lit. Misc. 1857 I. 48 The weather-worn sculptures of the Parthenon. 1862 Ansted Channel Isl. 1. i. (ed. 2) 8 Sark, somewhat the loftiest of the islands, is also the most weather-worn.

d. with adjectives expressing imperviousness or power of resistance (to the weather), as weather-free, -resistant, -resisting, -tight, -tough. Also weather-resistance; weather¬ proof. 1648 G. Daniel Eclog ii. 6 Lambs, sooner wise then wee, Have got the Hedge, and now stand Weather-free. 1819 Byron Juan 11. xi, The dashing spray Flies in one’s face, and makes it weather-tough. 1832 Ht. Martineau Ella of Garv. i. 10 If your honour would order the place down below to be made weather-tight for us. 1855 Poultry Chron. III. 388 Place a hen, with her brood, under a good weather-tight coop. 1894 Weather-resisting [see roofing (vbl.) sb. 1 b]. 1902 A. Austin Haunts Anc. Peace 20 The cottages .. looked solid, sturdy, and weather-tight. 1934 Archit. Rev. LXXVI. 16/1 Many years of use have proved the method satisfactory, both as a weather-resistant and as insulation. 1942 E. African Ann. 1941-2 98 (Advt.), Anti-rust paint.. durable, elastic, weather-resisting. 1967 M. Chandler Ceramics in Mod. World iv. 117 Another property that makes both porcelain and glass insulators particularly suitable for highvoltage insulators is their weather-resistance. 1970 New Yorker 3 Oct. 27/2 You can bolt on anything from redwood to weather-resistant aluminum.

7. Special comb.: weather balloon, a balloon sent up to provide meteorological information, either by the course it takes or by means of instruments it carries; f weather-basket, a wickerwork screen or covering to protect a plant; weather-box = weather-house', weather¬ brained a. = weather-headed; weather bureau U.S., an agency (spec, one established by the Government) which observes and reports on weather conditions; f weather-caster, a weather-prophet; weather centre, an office which provides weather information and analysis; spec. in U.K., part of the Meteorological Office; weather clerk = clerk of the weather s.v. clerk sb. 6 c; weather-cloth Naut., a covering of canvas or tarpaulin used to protect boats, hammocks, etc., or to shelter persons from wind and spray; weathercoat, a weather-proof coat, a raincoat; weather-cord, a cord used as a hygrometer; weather-cottage = weather-house-, weather cycle, a recurring pattern of weather or of some tendency in the weather; weather-dog dial, [dog sb. io] = weather-gall; weather-door, (a) a louverhole in a church steeple (cf. louver 4, quot. 1858); (b) Mining (see quot.); f weather-fan, a punkah; weather-fane = fane sb.1 2; weatherfast a., secure against the weather; weatherfence v. trans. = weather-fend; weather-fish = thunder-fish b (s.v. thunder sb. 6); f weather-flag, a vane; weather-gleam, -glim Sc. and north, dial., clear sky near a dark horizon; also, the horizon; weather-god, a god who presides over the weather; weather-guard v. trans., to guard against bad weather; weather-head dial., a secondary rainbow; weather-hen jocular, a female weathercock; an inconstant woman; weather-house, a toy hygroscope in the form of a small house with

WEATHER figures of a man and woman standing in two porches; by the varying torsion of a string the man comes out of his porch in wet weather and the woman out of hers in dry; weather-line, the surface of an embedded timber just above the ground; weather-maker, a weather-prophet; also weather-making vbl. sb.; weather-man, (a) one who observes the weather; now also spec. one who presents a weather forecast on radio, television, etc.; (b) (freq. with capital initial and in pi.) (a member of) a violent revolutionary group in the U.S. (see quot. 1970); cf. Weather Underground below; weather modification, the deliberate alteration of the weather in an area; weather-monger, a weather-prophet; weather¬ moulding Arch., a dripstone; weather plane, an aeroplane designed to collect data on weather conditions at high altitudes; f weather-plate, a plate marked with a scale for indicating the height of the mercury in a barometer; f weather-prophecy Obs., the foretelling of the weather; weather-prophet, one who foretells the weather; one who is weather-wise; a\so fig.; weather radar, radar used for meteorological investigations (e.g. of rain); f weather-rope (see quot.); weather satellite, a satellite especially equipped to observe weather conditions and to provide meteorological information; weathersharp U.S. colloq., a weather-prophet; an official meteorologist (Cent. Diet. Suppl. 1909); weather ship, a ship serving as a weather station; weather-sick a., sick of, suffering from, the weather; weather-sign, a phenomenon that indicates change of weather; also fig.; t weather-skirt U.S. = safeguard sb. 8; weather-slated, -slating (cf. weather-tiled, -tiling)-, f weather-spar = weatherboard 2; f weather-spy, a weather-prophet; weather station, a meteorological observation post; f weather-stone, a kind of stone classed according to its imperviousness to weather; weather-strip orig. U.S., a strip of wood or rubber applied to a crevice in order to exclude rain and cold (Webster 1864); hence as vb. trans., to apply a weather-strip to (Cent. Diet. 1891); hence weather-stripped ppl. a.\ weather-stripping vbl. sb., material used to weather-strip a door, window, etc.; the process of applying this; weather-table Arch. — watertable 1 b; weather-tile, a kind of tile used instead of weather-board to cover a wall; weather-tiled ppl. a., covered with overlapping tiles; weather-tiling vbl. sb., the process or result of covering a wall with tiles; weathertree, the white poplar, Populus alba; Weather Underground, the revolutionary organization formed by the Weathermen (see above); weather-vane = vane i; also fig.; weatherwall, a wall serving as a shield from the weather; weather-warning (see quot.); weather window Oil Industry, a brief interval in the year when the weather is calm enough to allow construction, loading, etc., operations to be carried out at sea; weather-wiseacre nonce-wd., one who professes to be weather-wise; f weather-wizard, a weather-prophet; weather woman, (a) (with capital initial) a female member of the revolutionary Weatherman organization; (b) a woman who presents a weather forecast on radio or television; j- weather-works, devices to protect a ship from rough weather. 1940 War Illustr. 19 Jan. 614/3 (caption) Finnish soldiers are investigating weather conditions by sending up a ‘weather balloon. 1979 J. Gribbin Weather Force vii. 160 (caption) Russian scientists. . prepare to launch a flock of weather balloons, which will radio back information about conditions in the atmosphere’s lower levels. 1699 Meager New Art Garden. 28 When they are Grafted they must be fenced, either with a ‘weather-basket, or some earthen Vessel. 1848 Thackeray Van. Fair x, The elder and younger son of the house of Crawley were, like the gentleman and lady in the ‘weather-box, never at home together. 1826 Scott Woodst. vii, But art thou not an inconsiderate ‘weather-brained fellow, to set forth as thou wert about to do, without any thing to bear thy charges .. ? 1854 H. Miller Sch. & Schm. i. (1858) 10 There was a weather-brained tailor in the neighbourhood, who used to do very odd things, especially, it was said, when the moon was at the full. 1871 Harper's Mag. Aug. 401/1 In the year 1857 Lieutenant M. F. Maury.. appealed to the public and Congress, through the press, urging the establishment of a storm and ‘weather bureau. 1890 U.S. Statutes XXVI. 653 The civilian duties now performed by the Signal Corps of the Army shall hereafter devolve upon a bureau to be known as the Weather Bureau. 1950 Los Angeles Times 12 Feb. 1/4 Weather Bureau figures show that -34 inch fell during the rainstorm. 1978 S. Sheldon Bloodline iv. 71 July turned out to be the rainiest month in the history of the French weather bureau. 1607 Dekker Knt.'s Conjur. (1842) 9 The storme beeing at rest, what buying vp of almanacks was there to see if the ‘weather-casters had playd the doctors to a haire.

57 [1959 Times 19 Aug. 8/7 The Air Ministry Meteorological Office is to open a ‘weather shop’ where the public may call in person at the new home of the London forecasting office at Princes House, Kingsway.]. 1961 A.A. Handbk. 17 ‘‘Weather Centres’ staffed by the Meteorological Office are open in London, in Glasgow, and in Manchester. 1973 C. Bonington Next Horizon xiii. 185, I..went through the daily ritual of getting the weather forecast. This entailed ’phoning .. the weather centre in London. 1877 ‘ Mark Twain’ New England Weather in Index (Boston) n Jan. 16/2 It must be raw apprentices in the * weather-clerk’s factory who experiment and learn how in New England .., and then are promoted to make weather for countries that require a good article. 1898 H. S. Canfield Maid of Frontier hi, I wouldn’t have a weather clerk inside of me for any thing. 1856 Kane Arct. Expl. I. xxiv. 315 A sort of "weather-cloth, which.. would certainly make her more comfortable in heavy weather. 1897 Outing XXIX. 547/1 A coil of rope for head-rest, a discarded sail for weather cloth. 1897J. L. Allen Choir Invisible x. 132 He got up at last and wrapped his "weather-coat about him. 1930 Daily Express 6 Oct. 13/5 {caption), Real Harris tweed weathercoat. 1978 Sunday Times 21 May 1/6 (Advt.), A pure silk wrap-around weathercoat.. to protect you from summer showers .. £ 165. 1746 Phil. Trans. XLIV. 169 The *Weather-Cord is an Hygrometer of a very ancient Invention. 1906 E. V. Lucas Wanderer in Lond. 170 One of the old "weather-cottages, with a little man and a little woman to swing in and out and foretell rain and shine. 1930 Engineering 31 Jan. 148/2 Based upon a "weather cycle or period of almost fourteen years. 1758 Borlase Nat. Hist. Cornw. 17 There appeared in the North-East the frustum of a large rainbow... They call it here in Cornwall a "weather dog,.. and pronounce it a certain sign of hard rain. 1865 R. Hunt Pop. Rom. W. Eng. (1881) 434 ‘Weather dogs’.. are regarded as certain prognostications of showery or stormy weather. 1753 F. Price Observ. Cathedral-Ch. Salisbury 40 The upper part of the Spire, .just below the "weather Door. 1881 Raymond Mining Gloss., Weather-door, a door in a level to regulate the ventilating current. 1611 Cotgr., Poille,,. also, an Vmbrello, or great *weather-fanne. 1773 Phil. Trans. LXIV. 140 The *'weather-fane which terminates the conductor. 1910 J. Farnol Broad Highway 1. xxiv, It was somewhat roughly put together, but still very strong, and seemed, save for the roof, "weather-fast, a 1850 W. L. Bowles Poems, Sylph of Summer 466 Yon eastern downs, That *weather-fence the blossoms of the vale. 1886 H. G. Seeley Freshw. Fishes Europe 248 In Germany and Austria it [Misgurnus fossilis] is regarded as a weather prophet, and sometimes is called the "Weather-fish, because it usually comes to the surface about twenty-four hours before bad weather, and moves about with unusual energy. 1611 Cotgr., Girouette, a fane, or "weather-flag. 1802 Sibbald Chron. S.P. Gloss., *Weddir-glim, clear sky, near the horizon; spoken of objects seen in the twilight or dusk; as ‘between him and the wedder-glim’. 1817 Blackw. Mag. Oct. 84/1 While..the weather-gleam of the eastern hills began to be tinged with the brightening dawn. 1819 W. Tennant Papistry Storm'd (1827) 185 Nae cloud owr-head the lift did dim, But i’ the wastern weddir-glim A black upcastin’. 1905 E. Clodd Animism §11.58 Indra, the old Vedic "weather-god, has been completely elbowed out as an object of worship by special rain-gods. 1885 Buck’s Handbk. Med. Sci. I. 338/2 The pioneers attend to this work, trenching the ground, "weather-guarding the shelters, a 1825 Forby Voc. E. Anglia, * Weather-head, the secondary rainbow. 1904 Edith Rickert Reaper 318 The old folk watched for weatherheads and talked of storms. 1632 Heywood 2nd Pt. Iron Age 1. i. C 2, And now faire Troian *Weather-hen adew, And when thou next louest, thinke to be more true. 1899 B. Thomas & Granv. Barker {title), The Weather-Hen. 1726 Post-Man 1-3 Sept. 2/2 Advt., The Gentlemen, Ladies and Farmers famous new invented *Weather Houses. 1784 Cowper Task 1. 211 Peace to the artist, whose ingenious thought Devis’d the weather-house, that useful toy! 1800 Lathom Dash of Day 1. i, He is always in bed when I am up, and I am always at rest, when he is stirring; our movements put me in mind of the man and woman in the Dutch weather-house. 1915 ‘Q’ (Quiller-Couch) Nicky-Nan xiii. 156 A man has no business to stand grimacing in his own doorway .. like a figure in a weather-house. 1830 R. Mudie Pop. Guide Observ. Nature 302 As little was the injury done at the ‘"weather-line’, just by the surface of the earth, where the durability of timber is put to the severest test. 1888 Emily Gerard Land beyond Forest II. 30 note, Instances of "weather-makers are also common in Germany. 1891 Pall Mall Gaz. 13 Oct. 7/2 A weather-maker for an almanack got into conversation with a shepherd. 1883 Stallybrass tr. Grimm's Teut. Mythol. III. 1152 The gift of prophecy and the art of "weather-making. 1545 Ascham Toxoph. 11. (Arb.) 152 Therefore in shootynge there is as muche difference betwixt an archer that is a good “"wether man, and an other that knoweth and marketh nothynge, as is betwixte a blynde man and he that can se. 1901 Weather man [see hot wave s.v. hot a. 12]. 1944 Sun (Baltimore) 15 Nov. 11/2 Nobody ever gets anywhere telling the weatherman how to behave. 1952 W. Stevens Let. 26 June (1967) 757 It did not go below 85° in N.Y. last night according to the weather man. 1970 Guardian 28 Oct. 13/3 The Weathermen have been in existence for just over a year, since the SDS [sc. Students for a Democratic Society] split of June, 1969... The Weathermen got their name from a line in a Bob Dylan song: ‘You don’t need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows.’ 1971 Times 15 Jan. 12/6 Could this country have acquired an Anglicized offshoot of the American Weatherman—or Weathermen as these violent urban guerillas are less accurately but probably more widely known? 1979 R. Perry Bishop's Pawn i. 23 The West was agreed that the IRA, the Weathermen, the Red Army Faction.. were composed of criminals, terrorists and murderers. 1983 Listener 14 July 17/3 We asked the weatherman, Jack Scott, to demonstrate some of those extraordinary regional variations for us. 1951 U.S. Congr. Senate Committee Interior Hearings Apr. 152 "Weather modification on a small scale, such as protection against frost . .is known to be possible. 1968 Times 1 Nov. 6/6 Russian research on methods of reducing damage to crops by hailstorms is being examined seriously in the United States, according to a National Science Foundation report on last year’s activities in weather modification. 1977 Time 7 Mar. 55/1 The Governors also agreed to create a task force that could channel such requests for aid and coordinate weathermodification (cloud seeding) programs. 1656 2nd Ed. New

WEATHER Alamanack 3 If the “"weather-mongers rule hold true. 1911 J. G. Frazer Golden Bough: Magic Art (ed. 3) I. iv. 227 Wizards, doctors, weather-mongers, prophets. 1841 Few Words to Churchwardens 1. (Camb. Camden Soc.) 10 You may see what is called the "weather-moulding of the old roof remaining, a 1878 Sir G. Scott Lect. Archit. I. 165 A hollow projecting moulding containing the foliage, capped by a weather moulding. 1962 Listener 18 Oct. 632/2 The ‘Coliseum of cloud’ that a “"weatherplane captured for us. 1976 Evening Post (Nottingham) 13 Dec. 7/2 Experts., identified it as a crashed weather plane which sends wind and temperature conditions from a height of 90,000 feet. 1698 Derham in Phil. Trans. XX. 4 The "Weather-plates are to be put upon the Frame [of a portable barometer], by setting them to the same height, at which the Mercury stands in a common Barometer. 1843 Mill Logic I. in. iv. 389 The reliance on astrology, or on the “"weatherprophecies in almanacs. 1866 Steinmetz Weather casts 7 The most successful "weather-prophet of modern times,.. the late lamented Admiral Fitzroy. 1884 S. E. Dawson Handbk. Dom. Canada 4 The metaphors of political weather-prophets. 1946 1st Technical Rep. Weather Radar Research (Mass. Inst. Technol. Dept. Meteorol.) (AD 54113) 3 {heading) *Weather-radar observations at M.I.T.’s Radiation Laboratory. 1979 Atmosphere-Ocean XVII. 78 The radar data were obtained from the McGill Weather Radar located just outside Montreal. 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., * Weather-ropes, an early term for those which were tarred, i960 Aeroplane XCIX. 90/2 After taking 22,952 photographs of the Earth’s cloud cover, Tiros I, the World’s first "weather satellite, has ended its useful life.. after the satellite’s electronics had suffered a failure. 1976 L. Deighton Twinkle, twinkle, Little Spy xi. 115 His factories make complicated junk for communications satellites... And there are weather satellites too. 1884 Graphic 13 Dec. 610/3 The New York ‘“"weathersharps’, who have to their westward some three thousand miles of land studded with signal stations. 1946 Shell Aviation News No. 100. 6/3 A proposal by the Search and Rescue Committee that "weather ships should be maintained in the North Atlantic for meteorological observations. 1978 Nature 1 June 407/1 Following the withdrawal of US weatherships in 1973, it is the only regularly reporting deep ocean (3,000 m) station in the North Atlantic north of the tropics and south of 50° N. 1757 Dyer in J. Duncombe Lett. (1773) III. 62, I think I never was so "weather-sick; the deep snows forbid me air and exercise. 1892 Meredith Ode to Comic Spirit Poems 1898 II. 222 A statue losing feature, weather-sick. 1856 Mrs. Browning Aur. Leigh 11. 691,1 can tell The "weathersigns of love: you love this man. 1915 igth Cent.]an. 190 His prophecies [about India] are perpetual, and he read the weather-signs at a glance. 1903 Alice M. Earle Two Cent. Costume Amer. II. 617 Another name for a safeguard was a “"weather-skirt. 1870 Lond. Society Sept. 266 A.. house, “"weather-slated from top to bottom. 1859 Jephson Brittany xvi. 269 Buildings of lath and plaster, covered on the most exposed parts with "weather-slating. 1632-3 in Willis & Clark Cambridge (1886) II. 698 The Windowes in ye Roofe, to be of good Oake Timber, with "Wether sparrs handsomely wrought, c 1595 Donne Sat. i. 59 And sooner may a gulling "weather Spie By drawing forth heavens Scheme tell certainly [etc.]. 1895 Funk's Stand. Diet., "Weather station. 1953 Encounter Nov. 7/1 Japan gets its weather from China, but no weather reports—at least not until the Japanese experts again manage to break the code of the Chinese weather-stations. 1981 ‘E. Lathen’ Going for Gold vii. 87, I was on to the weather station... The forecasters are talking about the blizzard of the century. 1686 Plot Staffordsh. 168 It being all of it good "weatherstone, but not enduring the fire. 1847 Rep. Comm. Patents 1846 (U.S.) 94 One patent has been granted for improvement in fences, and another for a "weather strip for doors. 1921 Daily Colonist (Victoria, B.C.) 25 Oct. 6/6 (Advt.), Weather Strip—‘Stormproof, 24 feet in box. 1970 K. Ball Fiat 600, 600D Autobook xii. 143/2 The front windscreen and rear window are secured in place by a special weatherstrip. 1985 Times 19 July 13/4 In windy winter conditions the windloading presses the door up against the weatherstrip. 1908 I. N. Stevens Liberators 8 The wind that shook the windows, "weather-stripped as they were, crept into the room. 1945 Nelson & Wright Tomorrow's House xiii. 147/2 A heavy flush door, weatherstripped, .. would .. reduce the direct transmission of sound. 1942 Archit. Rev. XCI. 99/3 The windows are pine with aluminium "weatherstripping. 1959 eS. Ransome’ Til die for You xii. 144 A part of the weather stripping was loose, and in a heavy rain it leaked. 1975 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 14 Nov. 2/5 As for weather-stripping, Mrs. Macdonald said their house doesn’t need it because of extra insulation and double windows. 1839 Civil Engin. & Arch. Jrnl. II. 361/2 A weather fillet, or "weather table, which projects half an inch from the general face of the window. 1906 Antiquary Jan. 7/2 A weather-table on the north wall. 1875 Knight Diet. Mech. 2568/2 Siding-tiles are sometimes called "weather-tiles. 1887 Hissey Holiday on Road 230 A somewhat quaint little inn, having a "weather-tiled upper story. 1904 A. C. Benson House of Quiet iv, One wing is weather-tiled. 1703 [R. Neve] City & C. Purchaser 286 "Weather-tyling.. Is the Tyling, (or Covering with Tyles) the upright Sides of Houses. 1833 Loudon Encycl. Archit. §438 The weather-boarding may be covered.. with what is called weather-tiling. 1847 C. A. Johns Forest Trees I. 357 note, I think there will be rain,.. for the "weather tree is shewing its white lining. 1972 National Observer (U.S.) 27 May 10/2 The.. ‘"Weather Underground’, which boasts that it is responsible for so many of these bombings, is down to only 15 or 20 members now, according to sources in the House Internal Security Committee. 1982 H. Kissinger Years of Upheaval iv. 89 The terrorism of the Weather Underground. 1721 Bailey, " Weather-vane. 1866 Le Fanu All in Dark x, The pointed gables, with stone cornices and glittering weather-vane on the summit. 1896 Tablet 1 Feb. 167 The Pall Mall Gazette even prefers to regard him as a Royal weather-vane. 1838 Civil Engin. & Arch. Jrnl. I. 235/1 A "weather wall in the centre will run the whole length [of the pier]. 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., * Weather¬ warning, the telegraphic cautionary warning given by hoisting the storm-drum on receiving the forecast. 1974 Petroleum Rev. XXVIII. 787/1 The "weather-window is normally reckoned to last into September. 1983 Sunday Times 6 Mar. 69/4 It’s been said that Esso’s development of artificial islands has not merely opened the weather window further but ripped it off its hinges. 1807 W. Irving

WEATHER Salmagundi (1824) 122 This is the universal remark among the .. ♦weather-wiseacres of the day. 1596 Nashe Saffron Walden Ep. Ded. 63 b, False Prophets, *Weather-wizards, Fortune-tellers. 1652 Gaule Magastrom. 23 Weatherwizzards, planet-prognosticators, and fortune-spellers! 1971 Times 15 Jan. 12/7 Only one unconnected ♦Weatherwoman has since been traced. 1973 Daily Tel. 14 Dec. 3/3 BBC Television is to have its first weather woman. She is Miss Barbara Edwards,.. who at present reads weather forecasts on radio. 1982 Times 28 May 9/3 Diana Arp .. was from a very wealthy family and became a Weather woman, making bombs. 1776 Cook 3rd Voy. 1. iii. (1784) I. 34 The caulkers were set to work.. to caulk the decks and inside *weather-works of the ship.

8. Naut. Used attrib. or as adj. with the sense: Situated on the side which is turned towards the wind; having a direction towards the wind; windward; opposed to lee, leeward adjs.; as weather-anchor, -beam (beam sb.1 17), -bowline, -brace, -division, -earing, -gangway, -gun, -leech, -lift, -lurch, -port, -quarter, -rail, -roll, -sheet, -shore, -shrorwd, -spoke, -tack, -tide, -topping-lift, -wheel, weather-bow, the bow that is turned towards the wind; hence as v. trans., to turn the weather-bow to; weatherdeck, a deck exposed to the weather [cf. G. wetterdeck\, the uppermost unprotected deck, other than the forecastle, bridge and poop; weather-dodger slang, a screen on the bridge of a ship, affording protection from the weather; weather-gage, -gauge (see gauge sb. 5); hence as v. trans., to keep the weather-gage of; weather-helm, a tendency in a ship under sail to come too near the wind, requiring the tiller to be kept constantly a little to windward; weathermark Sailing, a mark on a racing course towards which boats sail into the wind. Also (to the) weatherward adv. 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., * Weather-anchor, that lying to windward, by which a ship rides when moored. 1790 Beatson Nav. & Mil. Mem. II. 140 Two sail.. gave us chase and .. kept on our ♦weather-beams till morning. 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., Weather-beam, a direction at right angles with the keel, on the weather side of the ship. 1626 Capt. J. Smith Accid. Yng. Seamen 18 On the ♦weather bow. 1851 H. Melville Whale xvi. 80 Take a peep over the weather-bow .. and tell me what ye see there. 1840 R. H. Dana Bef. Mast xxxvi, We made but little by ♦weather-bowing the tide. 1669 Sturmy Mariner's Mag. 1. 18 Set in the Lee-Braces, and hawl forward by the *Weather Bowlines. Ibid. 17 Let go the .. Lee-Braces;.. set in your ♦Weather Braces. 1762-9 Falconer Shipwr. ii. 308 The sheet and weather-brace they now stand by. 1836 Marryat Midsh. Easy xxv[i], lA small pull of that weather main-top¬ gallant brace—that will do,’ said the master. 1850 Rep. Committee in G. Moorsom Admeas. Tonnage (1853) 167 The Depth in Midships from the Underside of the *Weather Deck to the Ceiling at the Limber Strake. 1906 Attwood War-ships 46 Wood is now only used for weather decks [etc.]. 1908 Paasch From Keel to Truck (ed. 4) 75 Weatherdeck, Term given to an upper deck on account of its exposure to the sun, rain and wind. 1973 H. Gruppe Truxton Cipher (1974) xiii. 135 Tolley.. disappeared down the weather-deck ladder. 1920 Discovery Nov. 329/2 Nelson had intended his ^weather division to be in line ahead. 1924 R. Clements Gipsy of Horn v. 84 One was.. in comparative comfort under the lee of the *weather-dodger. 1840 R. H. Dana Bef. Mast iv, The first [sailor] on the yard goes to the ♦weather earing, the second to the lee, and the next two to the ‘dog’s ears’. 1834 Marryat P. Simple xiii. Walk this boy up and down the ^weather gangway. 1892 Field 2 July 30/3 Daffodil.. was sufficiently far to windward to ♦weathergauge her. 1759 Ann. Reg. 120 We .. run our ♦weather-guns out. 1691 T. H[ale] Acc. New Invent. 126 ♦Weather, or Leeward Helm.. may be fitted to promote or hinder the Sailing upon occasion. 1882 Nares Seamanship (ed. 6) 190 A screw ship carries more weather helm than a sailing ship. 1836 Marryat Midsh. Easy xxv[i], The Aurora dashed through at the rate of eight miles an hour, with her ♦weather leeches lifting. 1899 F. T. Bullen Log of Sea-waif 279 The weather-leech of the lower stun’ sails began to flap. 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., * Weather-lurch, a heavy roll to windward. 1894 Outing XXIV. 36/2 The ‘Una’ turned the ♦weather-mark with a lead of nearly half an hour. 1963 Times 8 June 5/1 By the weather mark Andromeda was in front. 1809 Sporting Mag. XXXIII. 127 A great sea poured through one of the ♦weather-ports. 1626 Capt. J. Smith Accid. Yng. Seamen 19 Boord him on his *weather quarter. 1743 Bulkeley & Cummins Voy. S. Seas 9 The Commodore being on the Weather-Quarter, bore down under our Lee, and spoke with us. 1834 M. Scott Cruise of Midge i. (1836) 16 The felucca was now within long pistolshot of our weather-quarter. 1888 E. J. Mather Nor'ard of Dogger 352 We had to hang on the ♦weather-rail, the seas rolling along like mountains. 1815 Falconer's Diet. Marine (ed. Burney), * Weather-Rolls, those inclinations which a ship makes to windward in a heavy sea. a 1625 Manwayring Sea-mans Diet. (1644) 76 If the ♦weathersheate be as farre as the Bulk-head. 1851 H. Melville Whale xiii. 67 The tremendous strain upon the main-sheet had parted the weather-sheet. 1626 Capt. J. Smith Accid. Yng. Seamen 30 Come to an Anchor vnder the Ley of the ♦weather shore. 1697 J. Puckle New Dial. 16 A North-West Wind .. makes Holland a Lee and England a Weather Shore. a 1625 Manwayring Sea-mans Diet. (1644) 32 Then cutting the ♦weather shrowdes, the mast will instantly and without danger fall over boord. 1849 Cupples Green Hand vi. (1856) 59, I looked to the wheel.. as he coolly gave her half a ♦weather-spoke more. 1883 Man. Seamanship Boys 56 Haul on the *weather-tack and lee-sheet. 1815 Falconer's Diet. Marine (ed. Burney), * Weather -Tide, denotes that which, by setting against a ship’s lee-side, while under sail, forces her up to windward. 1883 Man. Seamanship Boys 163 The fiddle-block is hooked to the *weather-topping lift. 1557 Towrson in Hakluyt Voy. (1589) 127 At night the Minion, and the pinnesse came vp to vs, but could not fetch so farre

WEATHER

58 to the *weatherward as we, and therefore they ankered about a league a wether the castle. 1600 (25 Dec.) Adm. Ct. Exam. 34 (P.R.O.) [A ship] to the weatherward about a league. 1904 Dowden R. Browning 73 The boat veers weatherward. 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., * Weather-wheel, the position of the man who steers a large ship, from his standing on the weather-side of the wheel.

weather ('we83(r)), v. Forms: 5 wederyn, 5-7 wether, 6- weather, [f. weather sb. OE. had wedrian, widrian, wuderian, gewiderian, to be (good or bad) weather = ON. vidra: see weathering vbl. sb. I. Cf. MHG. weteren (mod.G. wettern), to subject to wind and sun (= sense i below), witeren (mod.G. wittern) to storm, etc.; also wither v.]

1. trans. To subject to the beneficial action of the wind and sun; to air. a. Hawking (see quot. 1856). Also refl. and intr. in passive sense. 14.. in Harting Perf. Bk. Kepinge Sparhawkes (1886) Introd. p. ix, For wetheringe yor hauke offer yor hauke water. 1575 Turberv. Faulconrie 134 When you haue kept hir two houres vpon the fist, then set hir in the Sunne to weather hir half an houre. C1575 Perf. Bk. Kepinge Sparhawkes (1886) 11 Set her to wether fastinge a longe tyme. Ibid. 14 In myste they will neuer wether, nor flye well. 1615 Markham Country Contentm. 1. vii. 88 Then he shall bee sure to weather his Hawke abroad euery euening except on her bathing daies. 1773 J. Campbell Mod. Faulconry 191 Of Bathing and Weathering Hawks. 1856 ‘Stonehenge’ Brit. Sports 1. iv. §5. 223/2 Hawks must also be weathered; that is to say, they should be put out on perches .. in the open air, and then left.. for many hours a-day, but not in the rain. transf. 1590 Spenser Muiopotmos 184 And then he [the butterfly] pearcheth on some braunch thereby, To weather him, and his moyst wings to dry. 1596-F.Q. v. iv. 42.

b. To air (linen, etc.); to dry thoroughly (a harvested crop). c 1440 Promp. Parv. 519/2 Wederyn, or leyn or hangyn yn the wedyr, auro. 1530 Palsgr. 780/2, I wether a thyng, I lay it abrode in open ayre. Je ayre... It shall be well done to weather your garmentes in Marche for feare of mothes. a 1569 Kyngesmill Man's Est. xii. (1574) F vj b, They may not flourish long: Euen as herbes that growe in the shadowe, neuer well weathered with the warme sunne. 1580 Tusser Husb. (1878) 129 Maides, mustard seede gather, for being too ripe, and weather it well. 1844 Jrnl. R. Agric. Soc. V. 1. 269 After reaping.. the produce of the several plots was well weathered, and then thrashed. 1847 Halliwell, Weather, to dry clothes in the open air. 1892 P. H. Emerson Son of Fens xvii. 173 ‘Well, the stuff [cut reeds] is rather heava, ain’t it?’ ‘It want to be weathered, bor.’

c. To expose (land, clay for brick- or tile¬ making) to the pulverizing action of the elements. 1548 [see WEATHERING vbl. sb. 3 b]. 1865 Daily Tel. 3 Nov. 5/4 The clay bank, where the raw material is stored and ‘weathered’.

2. To change by exposure to the weather, a. trans. To wear away, disintegrate, or discolour by atmospheric action. Const, into, to a specified form or condition. Chiefly in passive. Also with away. Also, to produce as an incrustation on a surface by the action of the weather. Spec, in Geol. 1757 tr. J• F- Henckel's Pyritol. v. 61 This leady clay.. derived from a lead-ore, weathered and reduced to earth. Ibid. 87 On this sinter.. we find glitter, iron and copper pyrites, not conveyed by streams of water, nor agglutinated, but weathered thereon, or produced by weather or damps. 1789 [see weatheredppl. a. i]. 1833 Lyell Princ. Geol. III. 210 The face of the limestone is hollowed out and weathered into such forms as are seen in the calcareous cliffs of the adjoining coast. 1867 H. Macmillan Bible Teach, xiii. (1870) 267 The rain-cloud hangs low.. overhead; the smoke hovers around; and they weather the finest sculptured surface. 1878 Ansted Water Water Supply 89 It [sc. percolation] acts also very powerfully in weathering the rocks through which the water passes. 1918 H. Balfour in Man XVI II. 147 The nose either was not represented or has been weathered away.

b. intr. To become worn, disintegrated, or discoloured under atmospheric influences. Const, into, to a specified condition, to weather out: to become prominent or isolated by the decay or disintegration of the surrounding rock. 1789 J- Williams Min. Kingd. II. 20 The grey granite begins to weather or decompose. 1839 Murchison Silur. Syst. 1. xxxiii. 441 The lower shale is here clearly seen beneath the limestone, and weathers to the same light ashen colour as in Salop. 1862 Ansted Channel Isl. 1. i. 7 Hard crystalline rock, decomposing or weathering by the constant action of the sea and weather. 1883 Ruskin Fors Clav. xcii. 207 The dark rock weathers easily into surface soil. 1885 Sir J. W. Dawson Egypt & Syria v. 112 The pillar-like masses of salt that weather out of the salt cliff of Jebel Usdum. 1914 Moir in Man XIV. 179 Those fragments of flint would in time, by thermal effects, ‘weather out’ and leave a clean-cut groove behind.

c. In pass., esp. of a crop: To be deteriorated by too long exposure to bad weather. 1821 Clare Vill. Minstr. I. 74 With feet nigh shoeless.. And napless beaver, weather’d brown. 1875 Ure's Diet. Arts III. 185 All barleys that have been weathered in the field.. should be rigidly rejected [for malting],

d. intr. To wear (well or ill) under atmospheric influences. 1883 R. Haldane Workshop Rec. Ser. 11. 436/2 For outside work, boiled oil is used, because it weathers better than raw oil.

3. Naut. a. trans. To sail to the windward of (a point or headland, another ship, etc.). c1595 Capt. Wyatt Dudley's Voy. W. Ind. (Hakl. Soc.) 18 Our carvell plyinge up into the winde weathered the saile which came from the shore. 1608 W. Hawkins in Hawkins' Voy. (Hakl. Soc.) 383 We lay close E.S.E. with a S. W. wynd,

seeking to wether Socotora but could not. 1627 Capt. J. Smith Sea Gram. xii. 57 You cannot boord him except you weather him. 1660 Ingelo Bentiv. & Ur. 1. (1682) 170 When they have weather’d the Cape of Good-Hope. 1694 Luttrell Brief Rel. (1857) III. 323 Not being able to weather the Lizard Point because of the strong south west wind. 1703 Burchett Mem. Trans, at Sea 141 Our Blue Squadron.. by a shift of Wind had weather’d the French. 1801 Nelson in Nicolas's Disp. (1845) IV. 314 The Agamemnon could not weather the shoal of the middle, and was obliged to anchor. 1820 Scoresby Arctic Regions II. 476 An impervious mass of ice .. which .. we could neither weather, nor discover a passage through. 1878 Dixon Kemp Yacht 6f Boat Sailing 378/1 To weather is to pass on the windward side of an object. In cross tacking the vessel ‘weathers’ another that crosses ahead of her.

b.fig. To get safely round; to get the better of. 1626 Donne Serm. xxi. (x 640) 210 That soule which is but neare destruction, may weather that mischiefe. 1654 Whitelocke Swed. Ambassy (1772) I. 449 Butt, through mercy, he weathered this point also. 1708 Addison Pres. St. War 15 We have been tugging a great while against the Stream, and have almost weather’d our point. 1833 Marryat P. Simple xxxvii, Peter, read me about Jacob, and his weathering Esau with a mess of pottage.

f c. To aim wide of (the windward side. Obs. rare~ l.

mark)

on

the

1588 Lucar Tartaglia's Colloq., Lucar Appendix 4 Euery Gunner ought to weather the marke according to the hardnes of the winde, and the distance.

d. intr. to weather on or upon: to gain upon in a windward direction; also fig., to get the advantage of, take liberties with. c 1595 Capt. Wyatt Dudley's Voy. W. Ind. (Hakl. Soc.) 16 Some fowre leagues of, wee sawe a saile to weather on us. 1706 E. Ward Wooden World Diss. (1708) 35 How well soever he can weather upon others, he is never able to forereach upon his Commander. 1748 Anson's Voy. II. iv. 163 We had both weathered and fore-reached upon her considerably. 1829 Marryat F. Mildmay xvii, How do you think the scoundrels weathered on me at last? 1836 Fraser's Mag. XIV. 475, I weathered upon my duty without discredit, my leisure without care, my liquor without quarrelling. 1863 Reade Hard Cash I. ix. 252 The other [pirate].. came up to weather on him and hang on his quarters, pirate fashion. 1881 Daily News 9 June 5/4 There is a triumph, too, which only a genuine yachtsman can feel when inch by inch a dreaded rival is weathered on.

4. trans. a. Naut. To withstand and come safely through (a storm). Often with out (also absol.). 1673 Temple Observ. United Prov. viii. 255 Such old Sea¬ men in so strong a Ship that had weathered so many storms without loss. 1681 H. Nevile Plato Rediv. 22 [No more than] the Pilot and Marriners [are answerable] for not weathering out a Storm, when the Ship hath sprung a planck. 1748 Anson's Voy. 1. vi. 62 Had they [the masts] weathered the preceding storm, it would have been impossible .. to have stood against those.. tempests we afterwards encountered. 1790 Cowper On Receipt of Mother's Piet. 89 As a gallant bark.. (The storms all weather’d and the ocean cross’d) Shoots into port. 1819 Byron Juan 11. xii, But the ship labour’d so, they scarce could hope To weather out much longer, a 1859 Macaulay Hist. Eng. xxiv. V. 204 In the port lay fleets of great ships which had weathered the storms of the Euxine and the Atlantic. 1864 Tennyson Enoch Arden 135 To sell the boat —and yet he loved her well—How many a rough sea had he weather’d in her! 1866 R. M. Ballantyne Shifting Winds ii, She had sailed from the antipodes, had weathered many a gale.

b. fig. or in fig. context. To come safely through (a period of trouble, adversity, affliction, etc.); to sustain without disaster. 1655 Fuller Ch. Hist. ix. xvi. 192 He Weathered out the Raign of Queen Mary. 1671 Caryl Sir Salomon iv. 66 My designs of Revenge are vain, and unjust. I must pull down my Sailes to weather out this storme. 1674 Boyle Excell. Theol. 1. iii. 95 Afflictions slight and short may well be weather’d out by these Philosophical Avocations. 1706 E. Ward Wooden World Diss. (1708) 78 They value no such Puffs, if they can but weather a Beating. 1772 Mackenzie Man of World 11. xx, After having weathered so many disasters, I at last arrived near the place of my nativity. 1775 Jefferson Let. 4 July in H. S. Randall Life (1858) III. 568 If we can weather out this campaign, I hope that we shall be able to have a plenty [of gunpowder] made for another. 1787 Burns Let. Earl Glencairn Dec., My brother’s farm is but a wretched lease, but I think he will probably weather out the remaining seven years of it. 1834 Creevey in C. Papers (1904) II. xii. 296 The Government.. could not have weathered the session. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. x. II. 623 They were.. thrown into the shade by two younger Whigs, .. who weathered together the fiercest storms of faction. i853 Dickens Bleak Ho. xiv, Pa told me, only yesterday morning,. .that he couldn’t weather the storm. 1865Lett. (1880) II. 242, I rather doubt..their being able to weather it out. 1885 Contemp. Rev. June 906 Their proprietors are less indebted and weather a crisis better. 1900 G. C. Brodrick Mem. & Impr. 143 The other weathered a serious illness and lived on for two or three years.

c. gen. To pass through and survive (severe weather). 1680 Otway Orphan iv. i, The Beasts that under the Warm Hedges slept, And weather’d out the cold bleak Night, are up. 1742 T. Woodroofe in Hanway Acc. Brit. Trade Caspian Sea (1753) I. 1. xvii. 113 We had weathered out the inclement season with as good spirits as could be expected in so bad a neighbourhood. 1785 Cowper Let. Lady Hesketh g Nov., Wks. 1835 I. 171, I began, .to fear I should never be able to weather out the winter in so lonely a dwelling. 1795-6 Wordsw. Borderers I. 513 My husband, Sir, Was of Kirkoswald—many a snowy winter We’ve weathered out together. 1805-Waggoner iii. 80 Among these hills, from first to last, We’ve weathered many a furious blast. 1854 Thoreau Walden xiv. (1863) 275, I weathered some merry snow storms.

WEATHER fd. To take shelter from (a storm). Obs. 1742 Fielding J. Andrews 11. iii, They said there was a violent shower of rain coining on, which they intended to weather there [i.e. at an alehouse]. 1749-Tom Jones xii. viii, Partridge, with much earnest Entreaty, prevailed with Jones to enter, and weather the Storm. 1798 Bloomfield Farmer's Boy, Winter 296 Beneath whose trunk I’ve weather’d many a show’r.

5. intr. to weather along, f to weather it on: to sail or make headway in spite of wind and weather. Also to weather her way. 1599 Nashe Lenten Stuffe D3, [All] that euer Yarmouth vnshelled or ingendred to weather it on till they lost the North-starre. 1836 W. Irving Life & Lett. (1866) III. 91, I have ever since made my calculations to ‘weather along’, as the sailors say, for some time to come, without any of the funds I have invested. 1881 J. K. Scott Galloway Glean. 14 See the ‘Press Home’ steerin’ strecht for lan’, Will she weather her way to the shore?

6. trans. To set (the sails of a windmill) at the proper angle to obtain the maximum effect of the wind-force. Cf. weather sb. 4. 1745 Phil. Trans. XLIV. 1 All which Sails [of a water¬ wheel] are weathered in the same Manner as those designed for Windmills. 1759 Smeaton Ibid. LI. 144 Plain sails weather’d according to the common practice. 1825 J Nicholson Oper. Mech. 138 From which it appears that sails weathered in the Dutch manner produced nearly a maximum effect.

7. Arch. To slope or bevel (a surface) so as to throw off the rain; to furnish (a wall, buttress) with a weathering or water-table. 1833 Loudon Encycl. Archit. §860, 13 feet 6 inches oak wrought, framed, and weathered (beveled to throw off the wet). 1878 MacVittie Ch. Ch. Cathedral, Dublin 66 A plinth which is weathered in the depth of the buttresses by nine courses of Water-tables. 1879 Cassell's Techn. Educ. II. 294/1 Fig. 391 shows the manner in which the sill is sloped off, or ‘weathered’.

weather,

obs. f. wether, wither sb.

'weatherable, a.

[f. weather v. + -able.] Capable of withstanding the effects of the weather. Also .weathera'bility. 1961 Webster, Weatherability. 1963 H. R. Clauser Encycl. Engin. Materials & Processes 662/1 The poor weatherability of some of the man-made fibers can be overcome by the use of special finishing and/or coating treatments. 1972 J. G. Cruickshank Soil Geogr. ii. 52 Even where the parent material is rock in place, the weatherable minerals—or what has survived complete chemical weathering—are of continuing importance for soil profile development. 1979 New Scientist 17 May 547 Silicones in paint prevent colour fading, and give better long-term weatherability and heat resistance.

'weather-beaten, pa. pple. and ppl. a. 1. Beaten or buffeted by wind and rain; that has been exposed to severe weather. 11560 T. Mowntayne in Narratives Reform. (Camden) 210 Thence to Colchester, and there toke shypynge, thynkynge to have gone ynto Seland,.. but we were so whether-beatyn that of force we were glad to returne bake agayn. 1563 Golding Caesar iv. (1565) 102 b, Most of our shyps were thus broosed and weatherbeaten. 1589 Greene Menaphon (Arb.) 32 To rest our wearie and weather-beaten bones. 1632 J. Hayward tr. Biondi's Eromena 16 The galleys of Sardegna being (by a great tempest) wetherbeaten and driven to that shore. 1647 Clarendon Hist. Reb. vi. §137 The King’s harassed, weatherbeaten, and halfstarved troops. 1722 Croxall Fables JEsop xli. 76 The Sun .. darted his warm sultry Beams upon the Head of the poor weather-beaten Traveller. 1830 J. G. Strutt Sylva Brit. 141 It becomes harder and tougher in proportion as it is weather-beaten. 1882 ‘Ouida’ Bimbi 98 The tall old houses are weatherbeaten into the most delicious hues. 1904 Daily Chron. 16 July 9/2 Another weather-beaten pigeon sought rest on the brigantine Jan tyre. fig. or in fig. context. 1621 T. Williamson tr. Goulart's Wise Vieillard 22 At that time when Saint Cyprian liued, the whole world was iudged to be very much weather-beaten. 1639 Fuller Holy War 11. xxxvii. 94 Mean time Jerusalem was a poore weather-beaten kingdome. 1668 Bp. E. Hopkins Van. World Wks. (1710) 19 If honourable, we are but raised above others to be the more weather-beaten.

2. As adj., expressing the result. a. Of things: Worn, defaced, or damaged by exposure to the weather. 1547 Surrey Eccles. iii. 12 Auncient walls to race,.. and of their wether beten stones, to buylde some new deuyse. 1593 Norden Spec. Brit., Midsx. 38 Pancras Church standeth all alone, .old and wetherbeaten. 1608 Machin Dumb Knt. I. B3, Orators wiues shortly will bee knowne like images on water staires, euer in one wetherbeaten suite, a 1618 Ralegh Royal Navy 27 They make their Ocum .. of old seere and weather-beaten ropes. 1697 Lond. Gaz. No. 3260/4 Wearing a Weather-beaten Periwig. 1848 Thackeray Van. Fair i, A very small and weather-beaten old cow’s-skin trunk, i860 Whyte Melville Mkt. Harb. xii, Under the weather¬ beaten winkers and shabby harness of a four-horse waggon.

b. Of persons, their countenances, etc.: Bronzed, coarsened, toughened, hardened by exposure to all kinds of weather. 1530 Palsgr. 844/1 Weather beaten, as men be that have lyen in the felde or see. 1577-87 Holinshed Chron. I. 175/1 Harold answered, that they were not priests, but wether¬ beaten and hardie souldiers. 1607 Dekker Knt.’s Conjur. ii. D1 b, Neither they, nor the weather-beatenst Cosmographicall Starre-catcher of em all. 1662 Hibbert Syntagma Theol. 11. 144 Such was his undoubted resolution, that neither their great words, nor their high looks could daunt him, Weather-beaten-souldier (as I may so speak) in Christianity. 1769 Falconer Diet. Marine (1780) A aa 2, s.v. Emmarine, Matelot emmarine, a case-hardened or weather¬ beaten tar; a veteran sailor. I771 Smollett Humph. Cl. 5 May (1815) 63 An old man, with a wooden leg and a

WEATHERCOCK

59 weather-beaten face. 1853 Kingsley Hypatia xviii. 209 The scarred and weatherbeaten features of the old warrior. 1855 Macaulay Hist. Eng. xv. III. 613 Two weatherbeaten old seamen who had risen from being cabin boys to be Admirals.

Similarly f'weather-beat (dial, -bet) ppl. a. Also f 'weather-beat v. trans. rare~°. f 'weather-beating vbl. sb. 1586 [? J. Case] Praise Mus. vi. 75 Alas what pleasure could they take at the whippe and ploughtaile in so often and vneessant labours, such bitter weatherbeatings. 1598 Florio, Sbattere, ..to thrash, to wetherbeate. 1615 Chapman Odyss. vi. 193 [Ulysses] So wet, so weather-beate. 1621 T. Granger Expos. Eccles. xii. 3. 319 The teeth., standing like weather-beate stakes,.. falling out one after another. 1719 D’Urfey Pills IV. 198 The Devil he was so Weather-beat, He was forc’d to take to a Tree. 1886 S.W. Lines. Gloss., Weather-bet, weather-beaten.

t 'weather-bit, -bitten, ppl. a. Obs. rare. [Cf. Da. veirbidt, Norw. vederbiten, Sw. vaderbiten.] Nipped, gnawed, or worn by the weather. 1611 Shaks. Wint. T. v. ii. 60 Now he thanks the old Shepheard (which stands by, like a Weather-bitten Conduit, of many Kings Reignes). 1624 Heywood Captives 11. i. in Bullen O. PI. IV, What are you poore soules Thus wett and wether-bitt?

'weatherbitt, -bit, sb. Naut. [See

bitt.] An extra turn of the cable about the bitts in bad weather. Also v. trans., to give this extra turn to (the cable). 1769 Falconer Diet. Marine (1780), Weather-bit, a turn of the cable of a ship about the end of the windlass, without the knight-heads. It is used to check the cable, in order to slacken it gradually out of the ship, in tempestuous weather, or when the ship rides in a strong current. 1840 R. H. Dana Bef. Mast xxiv, Weather-bit your chain and loose the topsails! 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., Weather-bitt, is that which holds the weather-cable when the ship is moored. 1883 Man. Seamanship for Boys 191 To weather bitt a cable is to take another turn round the bitt end. 1900 Century Mag. Feb. 600/2, I now moor ship, weather-bitt cables, and leave the sloop Spray.. safe in port.

weather-blate, -blade, -bleat. Anglo-Irish. [Etymologizing perversion (after weather sb.) of OE. haeferblsete: see heather-bleat.] The snipe. 1802 G. V. Sampson Statist. Surv. Londonderry 459 The weather-blate, or snipe, flying high in a calm night, is a good sign. 1890 D. A. Simmons Words Armagh £sf S. Donegal (E.D.D.), Weather-blade, a snipe which utters a sound like a goat. 1908 Westm. Gaz. 29 Sept. 2/3 The black water-hen and the sad weather-bleat.

'weatherboard. 1. a. One of a

series of boards nailed horizontally, with overlapping edges, as an outside covering for walls. Also collect, sing. 1539-40 in Swayne Churchw. Acc. Sarum (1896) 268, C fowt of whether borde to whetherborde the howes end. 1759 Phil. Trans. LI. 287 Some of the weather-boards were thrown outwards to the bottom of the garden. 1802 Barrington's Hist. N.S. Wales x. 420 The stores were of brick, and the guard-house of weather-boards. 1845 J. O. Balfour Sk. N.S. Wales 87 Settlers.. have, according to their means, built of free-stone, brick, or weather-boards, cottages and houses. 1883 Sladen Austral. Lyrics 25 The other, sore-dinted, scarcely crawled to the sheltering weatherboards. 1890 ‘R. Boldrewood’ Miner's Right vi. 61 The more ambitious buildings are of weather-board, sawn pine or hardwood boards, roofed with large sheets of galvanized iron. attrib. 1894 A. Robertson Nuggets, etc. 173 The weather¬ board walls creaked and groaned like a ship’s timbers in a gale.

b. A board laid over builders’ work or material as a protection. 1851 B'ham & Midi. Gardeners' Mag. Apr. 30 Every heap [sc. of quick lime] being covered by mats or weatherboards. 1879 Cassell's Techn. Educ. I. 195 Unfinished walls should be covered with straw, on which boards, called weather¬ boards, should be laid.

c. A weatherboarded building. Austral.

dwelling

or

other

1925 ‘H. H. Richardson’ Way Home II. i. 123 Jerry and his bride had made ready their tiny weatherboard. 1935 L. Mann Human Drift xxxvi. 238 Magnificently the two stories of Geelong weatherboards, new that year, overlooked on the ridge. 1975 D. Malouf Johnno ii. 28 But our one-storeyed weatherboard wasn’t the only one to be fortified. The whole city had taken on the aspect of an armed camp.

2. a. A board placed sloping over a window or other opening to throw off or keep out rain; fpl. louver-boards; also, a board used to carry off water. 1568 Ludlow Churchw. Acc. (Camden) 128, ij bordes to make wether bordes for the windowes in the steple. 1569 Ibid. 138, iij bordes.. ffor wetherbordes in the steple windowes. 1585 Higins Junius' Nomencl. 210/2 Deliquiae,.. water boords, or weather bordes; gutters whereinto the house eaues doe drop. 1598 Hakluyt Voy. I. 577 The Cathedrall Church of Holen hauing.. also beames and weather-bourdes, and the rest of the roofe proportionally answering to this lower building. 1741 Phil. Trans. XLII. 498 A great Number of large Holes, regularly placed,.. with Weather-boards placed over each Range of Holes, so as to hang over them obliquely downwards. 1818 Moore Fudge Fam. Paris iii. 80 Such hats!—fit for monkeys—I’d back Mrs. Draper To cut neater weather-boards out of brown paper. 1833 T. Hook Love & Pride, Marquess xii, Rattle went all the windows—slap went the weather boards [of an omnibus]. 1892 Diet. Arch. (Archit. Publ. Soc.), Weather board, a board fixed .. at the bottom of a door or window, to keep out driving rain.

b. Naut. (See quots.)

1760-72 tr .Juan & Ulloa's Voy. (ed. 3) II. 304 On the 30th we took down our weather-boards. 1815 Falconer's Diet. Marine (ed. Burney), Weather-Boards are pieces of plank placed in the ports of a ship, when laid up in ordinary; they are fixed in an inclined position, so as to turn off the rain without preventing the circulation of the air. 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk. 1908 Paasch From Keel to Truck (ed. 4) 546 Weather-boards,.. boards fitted closely together.. in front or on the sides of a bridge, poop or raised quarter-deck.

3. Naut. [See weather sb. 8 and board sb. 12. Cf. I cel. vedr-bord.] The windward side of a ship. ava], indicate raising, backing, lowering, and fronting. 1980 Early MusicJuly 401/1 The most fascinating [signs] are the wedges indicating crescendo, diminuendo and messa da voce on single long notes: ◄, ►, ♦, and a passage with second-position fingerings.

WEDGE

73 j. Golf. A golf club with a wedge-shaped head, used for lofting the ball at approach shots, or (= sand wedge s.v. sand sb.2 10 a) out of a bunker, etc. Also, a shot made with a wedge. [1924 J. White Easier Golf iv. 100 What I attempt to do is to use this heel [of a club].. as a wedge, and by driving this into the sand behind the ball I create sufficient disturbance to force the ball out of any lie.] 1937 [see sand wedge s.v. sand sb.2 10 a]. 1952 Chambers's Jrnl. May 300/1 Basil walked moodily off the tee, and after five minutes’ search found his ball embedded in a patch of the foulest rough on the course, hacked it out with his wedge, and, playing two odd to the green, lost the hole. 1961 Times 1 July 4/1 He. .played an overcautious wedge at the Royal. 1975 Daily Tel. (Colour Suppl.) 12 Sept. 9/4 Putting is out; most golfers carry just a driver, a four-wood, mid-iron and wedge.

k. A wedge heel; a wedge-soled shoe. sense 9 b below, colloq.

See

1959 Chambers's 20th Cent. Diet. Add. 1965 R. Hardwick Plotters (1966) xi. 102 Stretch pants, wedges, and a leghorn hat. 1968 J. Ironside Fashion Alphabet 137 Wedge, a solid heel joined to the sole in one solid piece. 1976 Washington Post 19 Apr. a 12/3 (Advt.), Casual style wedges in Oxford and slip-on styles. 1983 Times 14 July 11/3 Gladiator straps on stacked wooden wedge .. £44.50.

l. A hair style in which the ends of the hair are slightly graduated so that they form a series of wedges, orig. U.S« 1976 Time 19 Apr. 69 There are many variations on the new wedge. Stylists at the Paul McGregor shops in New York and Los Angeles have shaped the back of the cut into three inverted pyramids. 1977 Daily News (Perth, Austral.) 19 Jan. 6/4 After she became a headliner, Dorothy’s hairdo, called the wedge, sent girls rushing off to hairdressers to duplicate the look. 1985 Hair Summer 78 {caption), Short, sculptured sweeping version of the wedge has classy clout in the form of a pink flash.

6. Geom. a. A triangular prism, b. A simple solid formed by cutting a triangular prism by any two planes. 1710 J. Clarke tr. Rohault's Nat. Philos. (1729) I. 87 Let ABC represent a Wedge; and let CG be perpendicular to AB. 1829 Nat. Philos., Mech. 11. x. 43 (U.K.S.) A Wedge is a solid figure, which is called in geometry a triangular prism. 1883 Encycl. Brit. XVI. 24/2 The wedge being merely the frustum of a triangular prism, we have at once [etc.]. 1895 A. Lodge Mensuration 7 If from a triangular prism of indefinite length, a piece is cut off by two transverse planes which are not parallel, this piece is called a wedge.

7. Her. A charge consisting of an isosceles triangle with a very acute angle at its vertex. 1716 S. Kent Gramm. Her., Proctor of Norfolk; He beareth Or, three Wedges Sable. 1780 Edmondson Her. II. Alph. Arms, Isam or Isham. Vert, three wedges ar. 1847 W. S. Evans Gramm. Her. 151 The Nail (sometimes called the Passion-nail).. must not be confounded with the Wedge, which is of course wider at the top, and in shape something like a pile.

8. Cambridge University. the {wooden) wedge: the student last in the classical tripos list. This counterpart to the older ‘wooden spoon’ (see wooden a.), designating the last man in the mathematical tripos, was suggested by the fact that in the first classical tripos (1824) the fast man was Wedgwood of Christ’s College, afterwards famous as an English etymologist. 1852 Bristed Five Yrs. Eng. Univ. (ed. 2) 253 Of the remainder, five were Wranglers, four of these Double men, and a fifth a favorite for the Wedge... The last man is called the Wedge, corresponding to the Spoon in Mathematics.

9. a. Combinations, chiefly similative, as wedge-blade, -block, -bolt, -fashion, -form, -head, -shape, -stone, -wad; wedge-balancing, -billed, -sided adjs. 1921 D. H. Lawrence Tortoises 19 Four rowing limbs, and one ♦wedge-balancing head. 1836 E. Stanley Fam. Hist. Birds xiii. (1848) 289 Tribe 1. Cuneirostral (*WedgeBilled). 1917 D. H. Lawrence Look! We have come Through! 113 The fine, fine wind... Like a fine, an exquisite chisel, a ♦wedge-blade inserted. 1868 Rep. to Govt. U.S. Munitions of War 55 The breech is opened and closed by a ♦wedge-block worked by a hinged lever. 1892 Greener Breech-Loader 22 A round steel ♦wedge-bolt. 1665 J. Webb Stone-Heng 190 These [stones] also were either of a * Wedge fashion, or wedged under the Great One. 1802 Playfair Illustr. Hutton. Theory 295 This *wedge-form of the whinstone masses. 1899 Westm. Gaz. 7 June 4/2 A disc on which black and white wedge-forms alternated. 1880 Encycl. Brit. XIII. 343/1 These [bars of steel] are welded together by forging to ♦wedge-heads, tying together with wire [etc.]. 1812 Sir J. Sinclair Syst. Husb. Scot. 1. 43 The white thorn [hedge].. when properly trained, and occasionally cut over, or dressed in the *wedge-shape,.. will last for ages. 1895 Hoffman Begin. Writing 141 The end of the stick would be sharpened into a wedge-shape. 1852 Mechanics' Mag. 10 July 23 When taper or ‘* wedge-sided’ type is employed, the cylinder need not be more in circumference than the size of the sheet of paper. 1854 Ct. E. de Warren tr. De Saulcy's Round Dead Sea II. 113 The voussoir, or early *wedge-stone. 1879 Man. Artill. Exerc. 53 ♦Wedge wads .. consist of two wooden wedges connected by a piece of cane... These wads are to be rammed home separately after the projectiles.

b. Designating a wedge-shaped heel extended under the instep of a woman’s shoe (also, the sole which includes this), or a shoe having such a heel. Freq. as wedge-heel, shoe, sole; wedgeheeled, -soled adjs. Cf. sense 5 k above. 1939 M. B. Picken Lang. Fashion 164/3 Wedge-soled, having a wedge-shaped piece making a solid sole, flat on the ground from heel to toe. 1940 Graves & Hodge Long WeekEnd xxi. 375 A high-heeled fancy shoe .. and a wedge-heeled streamlined type. 1940 Manch. Guardian Weekly 11 Oct. 259 Today’s displays of courts..and wedge-heel, and all other of the creations of the fashion-designer, give no indication .. of what was really a welcome weeding out. 1940

O. Nash in New Yorker 23 Nov. 18/2 Let us give thanks that women’s wedge shoes weren’t invented until they were. 1942 in C. W. Cunnington Eng. Women's Clothing in Present Cent. (1952) viii. 271 Practical [shoes], with flatter heels, square toed and wedge-soled. 1951 [see creeper i d]. 1957 R. Hoggart Uses of Literacy iv. 102 Mail-order firms advertise fancy wedge-shoes. 1975 D. Beaty Electric Train 153 Painted faces clumping up. .on six-inch wedge shoes. 1983 P. Devlin All of us Here x. 112 Her daughter, in a new permanently pleated skirt, wedge-heeled shoes.

10. Special comb.: f wedge-battle = sense 5 a; wedge-bill, a bird with a wedge-shaped bill, as (a) the Australian Sphenostoma cristatum; (b) a S. American humming-bird of the genus Schistes; wedge-bone, f (a) the sphenoid bone; (b) a small bone sometimes occurring in lizards on the undersurface of the spinal column at the junction of a pair of vertebrae; wedge-coral (see quot.); wedge-draining, a mode of draining land, somewhat similar to plug-draining; wedge-fern, a fossil fern of the genus Sphenopteris; wedge-fid Naut. (see quot.); wedge-form, -formed adjs. = wedge-shaped; wedge-grafting (see quots.); wedge-gun, a field-gun in which a wedge is used in closing the breech; wedge-leaf fern = wedge-fern; wedgemicrometer, a graduated wedge-shaped piece of metal or glass, to be thrust between two fixed points to determine their distance apart; wedgephotometer Astr., an instrument consisting of a wedge of glass, used for measuring the comparative brightness of stars; wedge-press, a press used for extracting oil from seeds; wedgeshell, a marine bivalve, belonging to Donax or allied genera; wedge-tail Austral., the wedge¬ tailed eagle (see wedge-tailed adj.); = eaglehawk 2; wedge-tailed a., having a wedgeshaped tail; used spec, in the names of birds, as the wedge-tailed eagle (Uroaetus audax) of Australia, and the wedge-tailed gull, Rhodostethia rosea; wedge tent = A tent. 1598 Barret Theor. Warres 78 Out of a square of men hath bin reduced a triangle or *wedge battell in perfect order to fight. 1603 Knolles Hist. Turks (1638) 273 The wedge battell of the Christians could not of the Turks be broken. 1848 Gould Birds of Australia III. PI. 17 Crested ♦Wedgebill. 1861 - Trochil. IV. PI. 219 Schistes personatus,.. Masked Wedge-bill. Ibid. PL 220 White-throated Wedgebill. 1615 Croqke Body of Man 442 Sphenoides or the ♦Wedge-bone. 1871 Huxley Anat. Vert. v. 217 Such a., sub-vertebral wedge-bone is commonly developed beneath and between the odontoid bone and the body of the second vertebra, i860 Gosse Actinol. Brit. 324 The Smooth-ribbed ♦Wedge-coral. Sphenotrochus Macandrewanus. Ibid. 326 The Knotted Wedge-coral. Sphenotrochus Wrightii. 1830 Cumb. Farm Rep. 67 in Libr. Usef. Know!, Husb. Ill, The ♦wedge or brick draining.. is certainly not so well known among practical farmers as its merits deserve. 1867 W. W. Smyth Coal & Coal-mining 36 Sphenopteris (*wedge-fern). 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., * Wedge-fids, for top and top-gallant masts; in two parts, lifting by shores and settwedges. 1822 J. Parkinson Outl. Oryctol. 221 Ovatedly ♦wedge-form. 1843 Holtzapffel Turning I. 15 In many plants the wedge-form plates.. appear as an irregular cellular tissue. 1822 J. Parkinson Outl. Oryctol. 188 A longitudinal, *wedge-formed, equivalved bivalve. 1861 Darwin in Life & Lett. (1887) III. 265 These packets cohere into many wedge-formed masses in Orchis. 1838 W. Barron in Gardener's Mag. XIV. 80 The grafting of the Cedrus Deodar a on the Cedar of Lebanon .. is accomplished by what I call ♦wedge-grafting. 1842 Loudon Suburban Hort. §657 Wedge-grafting.. is a modification of side¬ grafting. Ibid. §664 Herbaceous wedge-grafting is effected by paring the scion into a wedge shape, and inserting it into a corresponding slit in the stock. 1876 Voyle & Stevenson Milit. Diet. (ed. 3), *Wedge Gun. 1851 Mantell Petrif. 32 The other characteristic Wealden plant is the Sphenopteris {S. Mantelli), or ♦wedge-leaf fern. 1891 Century Diet. s.v. Micrometer, *Wedge-micrometer. 1883 C. Pritchard in Mem. R. Astron. Soc. XLVI I. 394 The question, then, arises as to the applicability of the *wedge-photometer to the measurement of the magnitude .. of such stars. 1844 Penny Mag. Sept. 381 The triturated seeds were put into woollen bags which were wrapped up in hair-cloths, and then submitted to the ♦wedge-press. 1820 Wodarch Introd. Conchol. 23 Donax.—♦Wedge-shell. 1935 A. C. Chisholm Bird Wonders Austral, x. 102 The ♦'Wedge-tail is a formidable foe for any native mammal. 1965 [see eaglehawk 2]. 1974 D. Stuart Prince of my Country ii. 9 Watching the long effortless circling of the wedgetail high in the air. 1977 Times Lit. Suppl. 21 Jan. 76/2 Australia is the only place in the whole world where the wedgetail eagle is known. 1848 Gould Birds of Australia I. PI. 1 ♦Wedge¬ tailed Eagle. 1872 Coues Key N. Amer. Birds 316 Wedge¬ tailed, or Ross’ Rosy Gull. 1898 ‘R. Boldrewood’ Canvas Town Rom. 73 The great wedge-tailed Eagle soaring above them. 1862 O. W. Norton Army Lett. (1903) 49 We used to sleep on the ground or on pine boughs when we had the small *wedge tents. 1940 G. W. Martin Mod. Camping Guide v. 86 The wedge tent, known also as the A tent, is a popular model with explorers and other outdoorsmen who want something a little larger than a tiny crawl-in tent. 1980 D. T. Roscoe Your Bk. Camping (‘Your Bk.’ Ser.) ii. 22 Wedge tents.. are designed to save weight and bulk and to withstand wind better when the smaller end is pitched directly into it.

wedge (wed3), v.1 Also 5-6 wegge. [f. wedge sb.] 1. a. trans. To tighten, fasten tight by driving in a wedge or wedges. Also with in, on, up. c 1440 Promp. Parv. 520/1 Wedge, wythe a wedge [Winch. Wegge with a wegge], cuneo. 1523-34 Fitzherb. Husb. §24

WEDGE

WEDGWOOD

74

Than maye he.. tothe the rakes.. and driue the tethe vpwarde faste and harde, and than wedge them aboue with drye woode of oke. 1667 Boyle in Phil. Trans. II. 590 A piece of Shining Wood, wedged in with a piece of Cork. 1678 Moxon Mech. Exerc. iv. 66 The Iron [of the Plane] being then well wedg’d up. 1722 A. Philips Briton hi. v. 32 My Chariot straight; another, for the Prince. Store them with Spears; wedge on the keenest Scythes, a 1790 W. Newton tr. Vitruvius vi. xi. (1791) 146 When posts are placed under them, and wedged, the beams cannot settle or be damaged. 1816 Jane Austen Emma xxviii, I have been assisting Miss Fairfax in trying to make her instrument stand steadily... You see we have been wedging one leg with paper. 1826 Gwilt tr. Vitruvius vi. xi. (i860) 148 When posts are introduced and wedged up under them, the beams are prevented from sagging. 1840 H. S. Tanner Canals fef Rail Roads U.S. 151 The wooden key used in wedging fast the upper string piece. 1842 Min. Proc. Inst. Civil Engin. II. 78 Compressed trenails.. would hold tighter than the trenails now used, which require to have the points split and wedged up. 1875 Carpentry & Joinery 55 The simple but useful operation of wedging tenon and mortice joints.

(1858) 465 A dense mass of pilgrims who sit or stand wedged round it. 1871 Carlyle in Mrs. Carlyle's Lett. (1883) I. 8 The 2,000 human figures, wedged in the huge room into one dark mass, were singular to look down upon.

clay wedger, cuts lump of clay into pieces or wedges with wire cutter, and beats one piece of clay vigorously against another to make it homogeneous and free of air bubbles, for use in manufacture of highest class ware.

5. intr. a. To become fixed or jammed tight by (or as by) the operation of a wedge.

wedge-shaped ('wed3jeipt), a. Shaped like a

-wise.]

fb. transf. and fig. To fasten firmly or attach to. Obs.

6. to wedge out (Geol.): = thin out s.v. thin v.1 2 a; = lens out s.v. lens v. 1819 [implied in wedging out s.v. wedging vbl. sb. 4]. 1839 R. I. Murchison Silurian Syst. 140 Limestone., can be traced tapering away from a central mass to thin extremities, which really wedge out between the coal grits and the older deposits. 1945 Bull. Amer. Assoc. Petroleum Geologists XXIX. 1563 The distinction from the Permeability Trap Reservoirs is made by restricting the Pinch-Out Trap Reservoirs to types located in such stratigraphic intervals or zones which actually wedge out. 1966 Earth-Sci. Rev. I. 163 Ignimbrites tend to wedge out against or thin over topographic highs. 1979 Nature 27 Sept. 267/1 These nappes wedge out and converge to the west and seem to represent a telescoping of Lower Palseozoic Facies.

1548 Elyot’s Diet., Cuneatim, wedgewyse, by lyttell bandes or companies, imbattayled wedgewise. 1600 Holland Livy 11. 1. 79 They..with a pointed battaile wedgewise pierced through and made themselves passage. 1610-Camden's Brit. 1. 456 It lieth Wedg-wise upon the sea. 1657 R. Carpenter Astrol. 28 That these words may be understood to the bottom, and withstand all Objections; and that no opposition may wedge-wise enter upon them. 1703 Neve City & C. Purchaser 10 Bricks moulded.. Wedge¬ wise, broader above, than they are below. 1852 De Morgan in Graves Life Sir W. R. Hamilton (1889) III. 415 Nothing but two sheets of thin pasteboard .. with three bits of bookcovering cloth.. pasted on, so as to open out wedgewise. 1900 M. Hewlett Richard Yea-and-Nay 11. ix, Inside the town gate they took up close order, wedgewise, linked and riveted.

1629 Maxwell tr. Herodian iv. 191 Both the Emperours .. seeking to win and wedge men to their seuerall Factions, by faire Promises. 1670 G. H. Hist. Cardinals 1. 11. 46 They find the Prelates and Popes themselves, so wedg’d and link’d to Secular advantages, they have not time to think upon God.

+ c. To render (a gun) useless by the insertion of a wedge. Obs. 1680 Exact Jrnl. Siege Tangier 8 Leaving the Guns double shotted, spiked and wedged with steel. Ibid. 11 The Men of Charles Fort having Spiked and Wedged their great Guns.

d. to wedge up: to raise a ship before launching, by means of slivers or wedges driven between the false keel and the bilgeways. 1879 ‘H. Collingwood’ Secret of Sands xix, Four months .. saw her caulked, her seams paid, her hull painted, and, in short, everything ready, even to wedging up, for launching.

2. a. To cleave or split by driving in a wedge. 1530 Palsgr. 778/2, I wedge a blocke, I put in a wedge to cleave it, je coigne... Wedge this blocke, it wyll ryve the soner. 1606 Shaks. Tr. & Cr. 1. i. 35 My heart, As wedged with a sigh, would riue in twaine. 1678 [see wedging vbl. sb. 1].

b. To split off, to force apart, asunder, or open, by driving in a wedge. A\so fig. 1853 Kane Grinnell Exp. xlvi. (1856) 423 And even now great ledges are wedged off from the hillsides by the ice. 1865 Carlyle Fredk. Gt. xix. vi. (1873) VIII. 201 Friedrich and he are wedged asunder by that dike of Russians and Austrians. 1873 Moggridge Harv. Ants 1. 33 Having contrived to wedge off several large flakes of the rock. 1894 Advance (Chicago) Oct. 4 It is not commonly the big things but the little ones which wedge pastor and people apart. 1914 H. Balfour in Jrnl. R. Anthrop. Inst. XLIV. 33 A billet of lime wood, split at one end and wedged open with a stone.

3. a. transf. To drive, push, or squeeze (an object) into something where it is held fast; to fix firmly by driving in, or by pressing tight. Const. into, in, under, between. Also with adv., as in, up, down. 1513 Douglas JEneis xi. xv. 85 Quhill that the lance., wedgyt deip within hir cost stude. 1607 Dekker Whore of Babylon L 1, Fall thunder, And wedge me into earth, stiffe as I am. 1613 Shaks. Hen. VIII, IV. i. 58 Among the crow’d i’ th’ abbey, where a finger Could not be wedg’d in more. 1665 J. Webb Stone-Heng 190 These [stones] also were either of a Wedge fashion, or wedged under the Great One. 1697 Dampier Voy. I. vii. 195 Besides what Gold and Sand they take up together, they often find great lumps, wedg’d between the Rocks. 1697 Dryden JEneis v. 285 Sergestus in the Centaur soon he pass’d, Wedg’d in the Rocky Sholes, and sticking fast. 1726 Swift Gulliver 11. iii, Squeezing my legs together, [he] wedged them into the marrow-bone above my waist. 1764 Foote Patron in. Wks. 1799 I. 353, I was wedged so close in the pit, that I could scarcely get out. 1806 A. Duncan Life of Nelson 12 They became., fast wedged in the ice. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. iii. I. 336 If a coach or a cart entered those alleys, there was danger that it would be wedged between the houses. 1852 Mrs. Stowe Uncle Tom's C. vii. 43 The boy.. tried to wedge some of his cake into her mouth. 1869 Dickens Mut. Fr. 1. xiv, Driven into that nook, and wedged as he had described, was Gaffer’s boat. 1870 Spectator 19 Nov. 1370/1 If they are permitted to go on, they will wedge themselves in between the Germans, and be able to enfilade the corps on each side. 1890 Hardwicke's Sci.-Gossip XXVI. 239 In its persevering search for the snails, it had got its head tightly wedged some distance into the wall. 1908 H. Wales Old Allegiance i. 14 He .. sat with .. his pipe firmly wedged in the corner of his mouth.

b.fig. 1607 Shaks. Cor. 11. iii. 30 Nay your wit will not so soone out as another mans will, ’tis strongly wedg’d vp in a blocke head. se serpentes [5c. crocodiles] slen men & pe\ eten hem wepynge. 1602 Shaks. Ham. in. ii. 282 Let the strucken Deere go weepe. 1612 Webster White Divel D 3, Here is a Stag my Lord hath shed his homes, And for the losse of them the poore beast weepes. 1872 Darwin Emotions vi. 167 The Indian elephant is known sometimes to weep. 1875 Jowett Plato (ed. 2) V. 361 Man .. is.. affected with the inclination to weep more than any other animal.

c. Const, for, over, f°n (a person or thing regretted or commiserated). ^2900 O.E. Martyrol. 30 July 132 pa weop eall Romana dugoS for l?aere d$de. C950 Lindisf. Gosp. Luke xxiii. 28 NallaS 3ie woepa ofer mec [Vulg. super me] ah ofer iuh seolfo woepaS. CI175 Lamb. Horn. 157 He iseh Martham and Mariam Magdalene )?e sustren wepe for hore broSer de6. 01225 Ancr. R. 312 He weop oSe rode, & o Lazre, & o Jerusalem, c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 4149, .xxx. dai3es wep israel for his dead, a 1300 Cursor M. 1799 For par misdedes wepe t?ai pan. c 1374 Chaucer Boeth. 11. pr. ii. (1868) 35 Paulus .. whan he hadde take pe kyng of perciens weep pitously for pe captiuitee of t?e self kyng. 1382 Wyclif Luke xix. 41 He seynge the citee, wepte on it [Vulg.flevit super illam]. a 1450 Mirk's Festial 32 pen for Ion segh mony wepe for hyr, Ion sayde to hyr: Drusyan, ryse vp. 1549 Compl. Scot. ii. 25 The prophet hieremye vepit for the stait of the public veil of babillone. 1593 Shaks. Rich. II, v. i. 87 Weepe thou for me in France; I, for thee heere. 1601-All's Well 1. i. 3 And I in going Madam, weep ore my fathers death anew. 1623 Cockeram iii. s.v. Crocodile, Hauing eaten the body of a man, it [sc. a crocodile] will weepe ouer the head, but in fine eate the head also. 1711 Addison Sped. No. 70 f 8 Instead of weeping over the Wound she had received, as one might have expected from a Warrior of her Sex. 1803 M. G. Lewis Sir Agilthorne liv, They who can weep for others’ woes, Should ne’er have cause to weep their own. 1827 Carlyle Ess., Richter (1840) I. 29 Like him we have long laughed at them or wept for them. 1833 Tennyson Two Voices 149 In some good cause.. To perish, wept for, honour’d, known. 185s -Maud 1. viii, An angel watching an urn Wept over her, carved in stone. 1853 Dickens Bleak Ho. Iv, I knew by that time .. how you had mourned for me, and wept for me.

d. Const, for (the emotion that prompts weeping). Similarly with to and inf., or a that-clause. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 6954 pe bissopes pat hir ladde vor ioye wepe al so. 01352 Minot Poems xi. 12 For wo will he wepe. 1375 Barbour Bruce xx. 237 Thar wes nane in that Cumpany That thai ne wepit for pite. C1420 Anturs of Arthur 560 (Douce MS.) Thus wepus for wo Wowayne J?e wighte. 1591 Shaks. Two Gent. 11. iii. 12 A lew would haue wept to haue seene our parting. 1593-2 Hen. VI, iii. ii. 121 Henry weepes, that thou dost Hue so long. 1593Rich. II, ill. ii. 4, I weepe for ioy To stand vpon my Kingdome once againe. 1648 Herrick Hesper., To Daffadills 1 Faire Daffadills, we weep to see You haste away

so soone. 1667 Milton P.L. ix. 991 So saying, she embrac’d him, and for joy Tenderly wept. 1784 Cowper Task vi. 700 Maidens wave Their ’kerchiefs, and old women weep for joy. ou mi3t wel witen bi mi play bat ich wile hauen mine away, a 1300 Cursor M. 866, I sagh wel pat i misfard. 1340-70 Alex. & Dind. 91 Men sep wel pat pe see sesep & stintep. 01366 Chaucer Rom. Rose 1355 There were, and that wote I full well, Of pome garnettys a full gret dell, c *386-Merck. T. Epil. 7 And from a sooth euere wol they weyue; By this Marchauntes tale it preueth weel. 1411 Rolls of Parlt. III. 650/1 He knoweth wel that.. he ne hath noght born hym as he sholde hav doon. c 1450 Merlin xxxii. 655 Segramor.. hadde well sein and parceyved whiche was Petrius. 1483 Caxton Golden Leg. 429/1 The kyng theodoryk that wel wyste of it commaunded [etc.]. c 1483 Skelton Death Edw. IV, 37, I se wyll, they leve that doble my 3eris. 1526 Tindale John iv. 26, I wot well Messias shall come. 1581 Rich Farew. Milit. Prof. Ep. Ded. aij, Wisdome now hath warned me, that I well knowe Cheese from Chalke. .1585 T. Washington tr. Nicholay's Voy. 1. xix. 22 b, Which hee well perceiued, and smiling, tolde mee that he saw wel that I dissembled. 1624 Bp. Mountagu Immed. Addr. 95 As .. his most sacred Maiestie can well remember. 1638 Baker tr. Balzac's Lett. II. 33 The number of my enemies is great, I see it well. 1667 Milton P.L. iv. 926 Well thou knowst I stood Thy fiercest. 1711 Steele Spect. No. 78 f 7 We well know, Sir, you want no Motives to do Justice. 1741-2 Gray Agrippina 60, I well remember too (for I was present). 1788 Priestley Lect. Hist. iv. xxiv. 191 Nor does it well appear that their kings did afterwards introduce any of another sort. 1837 Whewell Hist. Induct. Sci. (1857) II. 158 All is done by an impulsion which one does not well understand. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. vi. II. 24 He..could well remember the political contests of the reign of James the First. 1895 Law Times XCIX. 544/1 The parties know perfectly well beforehand what are the points in dispute.

b. Intimately, familiarly; closely, in detail. (a) c 1320 Sir Tristr. 225 Mi broper wele it [a ring] knewe, fader 3af it me. 1393 Langl. P. PI. C. xxi. 253 Peter pe apostel.. wel hym knewe. c 1400 Destr. Troy 13508 Wele his cosyn he knew, & kaght hym in armys. c 1420 Avow. Arth. xxx, The kinge his bugulle con blaw, His kny3tus couthe hitte welle knaw. 1470-85 Malory Arthur vi. iii. 186 We here knowe the wel that thou arte syre Launcelot du laake. 1535 Coverdale Gen. xxix. 5 We knowe him well. 1596 Shaks. Merck. V. 1. i. 153 You know me well. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg, iii. 442 The Shepherd knows it well; and calls by Name Hippomanes. 1709 Steele Tatler No. 58 f 2 He being well known to us all. 1862 Thackeray Philip xxvii, I know him.. too well to think he will ever apologize! (b) a 1400-50 Wars Alex. 44 He couth .. wele as Aristotill pe artis all seuyn. 1422 Yonge tr. Secreta Secret. 122 Arystotle.. well kowth the lawes. c 1440 Generydes 3698 Be cause ye knowe so will this contre. 1602 2nd Pt. Return fr. Parnassus Prol. 46 Vnlesse you know the subiect well you may returne home as wise as you came. 1759 Johnson Rasselas vii, He thought himself happy in having found a man who knew the world so well. 1819 Scott Ivanhoe xxxiii, I can well of woodcraft. Mi

15. a. In a skilful or expert manner. C825 Vesp. Psalter xxxii. 3 Wel singaS [L. bene psallite] in wynsumnisse. onne he biS west gesewen, ponne tacnaS he aefen. 0900 O.E. Chron. an. 894 pa he pa wiS pone here pser wsest abisgod waes. 971 Blickl. Horn. 129 Serusalem.. is west ponon from paere stowe on anre mile. C1200 Ormin 12125 pa fowwre daless alle patt y^st, & Wesst, & Sup, & Norrp piss middellaerd bilukenn. a 1250 Owl & N. 923 East & west, soup & norp, I do wel fayre my mester. C1310 in Wright Lyric P. xviii. 59 Whether y be south other west. C1350 Libeaus Desc. 2128 Est, west, norp and soupe, Be maistris of har moupe Many man coup pey schende. 14.. Sailing Directions (Hakl. Soc. 1889) 18 Londay and the old hede of Hindilforde lye west and by north. 1559 Cuningham Cosmogr. Glass 172 Fiue Ilandes.. Of which that whiche is most west, is called properlye Ebuda. 1610 Holland Camden's Brit. (1637) 459 Where it [Suffolk] lieth West and toward Cambridge-shire. a 1626 Bacon New Atlantis 14 The Phoenicians.. had great Fleetes. So had the Carthaginians their Colony, which is yet further West. 1719 De Foe Crusoe n. (Globe) 379 One of the Islands which lay West, a 1788 Burns Ploughman 9, I hae been east, I hae been west. 1890 Hardwicke's Sci.-Gossip XXVI. 256 Another imaginary line so many degrees east or west of the meridian of Greenwich. 1905 H. G. Wells Kipps 11. v. §1 We shall have a nice little flat somewhere, not too far west.

b. Followed by of. 1577 Harrison England 11. i. 49V1 in Holinshed, The Kenet ryseth aboue Ouerton, v or vj myles west of Marleborow. 1597 Shaks. 2 Hen. IV, iv. i. 19 West of this Forrest, scarcely off a mile, In goodly forme, comes on the Enemie. 1728 [see westerling]. 1784 Filson Kentucky 22 Lees town is west of Lexington. 1807 Southey Espriella's Lett. II. 219 The Lakes.. lay south-west, and west of Keswick. 1875 Ruskin Morn. Florence i. 5 A few hundred yards west of you .. is the Baptistery of Florence.

c. U.S. In the West, out West. (Cf. C. 3 b.) 1888 Howells Annie Kilburn xi. 126 One of ’em married West, and her husband left her.

3. With modifying addition (in senses i and 2), as west by south, etc. Also west-north-west, -south-west. 1577 Harrison England n. i. 48b/i in Holinshed, The Winrush.. meeteth wyth the Isis west by south of Northmore. 1760 R. Rogers Jrnls. (1769) 197 We., then steered .. west-by-south two miles, west-by-north four miles.

4. Sc. Ellipt. as prep. a. At, in, or to the west of. b. Towards the west along (a road, etc.). 1587 Reg. Mag. Sig. Scot. 480/2 Insuper creavit dictum Burgum de Anstruther super occidentali torrentis (west the burne). 1589 Ibid. 573/1 Strekand west the hie streit to the dyk. 1728 Ramsay Monk & Miller's Wife 48 But step ye west the Kill A Bow-shot, and ye’ll find my Hame. Mod. I saw him rinnin’ wast the road. He bides wast the toun.

B. 1. Quasi-sb. = C. c 1200 Ormin 11258 All piss middellserd iss ec O fowwre daless dseledd, Onn TEst, o Wesst, o Sup, o Norrp. a 1300 Cursor M. 22139 Fra est to west, fra north to soth, He sal do mak his sarmun cuth. a 1300 K. Horn 1177 (Camb. MS.) Ihc habbe go mani Mile, Wel feor bi 3onde weste. c 1391 Chaucer Astrol. 1. § 15 A longe croys in 4 quarters from est to West, fro sowth to north, c 1400 26 Pol. Poems xxiv. 208 Lord, whenne pou comest to deme so A1 pe world be fyre, bope est and west. 1500-20 Dunbar Poems xxiv. 23 Thocht he this warld had eist and west, All wer pouertie but glaidness. 1575 A. Fleming Virg. Bucol. 11. 67 Th’ increasing shadowes doubleth the sunne going downe at West. 1577 D. Settle Frobisher's Voy. Biij, Wee., followed our course between West and Northwest, vntill the 4. of Iulie. 1611 Shaks. Cymb. v. v. 471 The Romaine Eagle From South to West, on wing soaring aloft Lessen’d her selfe. 1648 T. Shepard Clear Sun-shine of Gosp. 30 A brighter day. .wherein East & West shall sing the song of the Lambe. 1674 Sir J. Moore Math. Compend. 93 From West to East the account is by degrees and parts, or by hours. 1789 s. Shaw Tour W. Eng. 444 The principal street extending from east to west is remarkably paved. 1819 Keats Song Four Faeries 45 So you sometimes follow me To my home, far, far, in west. 1847 Tennyson Princess 11. 64 Our statues!—not of those that men desire,.. Nor stunted squaws of West or East. 1892 Kipling Barrack-room Ballads etc. 75 Oh, East is East, and West is West, and never the twain shall meet. 1904 H. Belloc Old Road 31 Sea¬ going vessels .. would have calm water.. so long as the wind was south of west.

WEST fb. As a compound prep.: On the west side of, to the west of (see by prep. 9 c). Also fig. (quot. 1612). Obs. c 1275 Lay. 2136 Camber hafde al him seolf bi weste Seuarne. 14.. Sailing Directions (Hakl. Soc. 1889) 16 And by west belille and Ortingere southwest. 1482 Rolls of Par It. VI. 203/1 In Southe Wales, by west the blak Montayne. 1525 in Reg. Mag. Sig. Scot. 152J, 96/1 Nixt befor Sanct Michaelis altar be West the said altar. 1612 Davies Why Ireland etc. (1787) 177 Whereupon grew that bye-word used by the Irish, viz. that they dwelt by west the law, which dwelt beyond the river of the Barrow. 1661 Lamont Diary (Maitl. Club) 139 The Earle of Weyms be-ganne to bueld a new harbory for shipping, a little be west Saltgreine. 1714 R. Smith Poems of Controv. (1853) 2 Let all be-west the Spittel come.

c. Naut. Indicating certain points of the compass (see by prep. 9 b). 14.. Sailing Directions (Hakl. Soc. 1889) 14 Huschaunt and the pople hope lien north and by west south. Ibid. 20 For cause of that Rok ye must go north and by west. 1598 W. Phillip tr. Linschoten 1. xciii. 165 We held our course.. from thence south West and by West, vnto the cape de Bona Speranza. 1762 Falconer Shipwr. 11. 242 South and by west the threatening demon blew.

3. Bridge. (With capital initial.) The player sitting opposite and partnering East, and having South to his right. 1926 [see EAST sb. 4]. 1958 Listener 2 Oct. 541 /1 West was a good enough player to have a chance of succeeding. 1974 Country Life 3 Oct. 975/1 Warned off Hearts and Clubs, West had to lead a Spade or a Diamond.

C. sb. (Usually with the.) 1. a. That one of the four cardinal points which lies opposite the east and at right angles to the north and the south; that part of the horizon or of the sky which is near the place of the sun’s setting. in the west, of the wind, = blowing from the west. cn8o Newminster Cartul. (Surtees) 118 Inde versus le West per viridem viam. a 1225 Ancr. R. 94 Ase is pe sunne gleam, pet smit from east into pe west. C1290 Brendan 48 in S. Eng. Leg. 221 We comen to a watur.. pat euere fram-ward pe est, toward pe west it drov3. C1305 St. Kenelm 13 in E.E.P. (1862) 48 Engelond .. is.. two hondred [miles] brod iwis Fram pe est in to pe west. 1382 Wyclif Exod. x. 19 The Lord.. made blow the moost hidows wynde fro the west. 1387 Trevisa Higden I. 45 pe lengj?e of pe erpe pat men wonej? ynne from pe est to pe west, pat is from Ynde to Hercules is pilers. c 1400 Maundev. (1839) v. 46 Toward the West, is the Contree of Coston. a 1450 Mirk's Festial 294/28 pan is hys hed leyde into pe west and hys fette into pe est. 1526 Tindale Luke xii. 54 When ye se a cloude ryse out off the west, strayght waye ye saye: we shall have a shewer. 1577 Googe Heresbach's Husb. 1. 42 Leauing open a space for twoo doores, a fore doore and a backe doore, but so, as neyther of them open to the West. 1614 E. Wright Dialling C 2, Your face being turned towards the North, your right hand sheweth the East, your left hand the West. 1667 Dryden Ind. Emp. v. ii, I in the Eastern Parts, and rising Sky, You in Heav’ns Downfal, and the West must lie. 1712 J. Morton Nat. Hist. Northampt. 422 Pikes..never bite more freely, than when the Wind is in the West. 01723 Bingham Antiq. Chr. Ch. xi. vii. §6 In renouncing the Devil they had their Faces to the West. 01748 Watts Summer Evening 5 Now the fair traveller’s come to the west,.. He paints the sky gay, as he sinks to his rest. 1805 Scott Last Minstrel ill. xxiv, Her blue eyes sought the west afar. 1848 B. Webb Cont. Ecclesiol. 156 A rood,. .between which and the communion-table was a small prayer-desk facing the west, i.e. the people. 1876 Bridges Growth of Love xxix, I travel to thee with the sun’s first rays, That lift the dark west and unwrap the night. 1925 J. Metcalfe Smoking Log, etc. 116 When the wind was in the west. transf. and fig. 1613 Donne Epithal. 181 May never age, or error overthwart With any West, these radiant eyes, with any North, this heart. 1649 C. Wase Sophocles, Electra 47 O joyfull day! Thou hast restord our light, Wrapt up in constant night, In one continu’d West. 1655 Fanshawe Camoens' Lusiad 1. xxxii. 7 But now he fears that Glorie’s neer it’s West, In the black Water of Oblivion.

b. That quarter which with regard to the speaker or some particular place lies in a westerly direction. 1537 Registr. Aberdon. (Maitl. Club) I. 412 His tenment lyand in Auld Abirdene afornent pe cors of pe samynge one pe weist. 1671 Milton P.R. iv. 448 A Sunny hill.. Back’d on the North and West by a thick wood. 1773 Noorthouck Hist. Lond. 597 Cordwainers-ward .. is bounded., on the west by Bread-street-ward, a 1857 Kemble Horae Ferales (1863) 25 The Lithuanians of Prussia on the west.

c. Followed by of. 1613 Zouche Dove B6b, Aboue ludaea, bord’ring on the West Of great Armenia, lesser Asia lyes, a 1660 Contemp. Hist. Irel. (Ir. Archaeol. Soc.) I. 152 The armie marched to Bellaghnegrege on the weaste of Aleage. 1715 tr. Gregory's Astron. (1726) I. 318 According as the Meridian of the one lies to the East or to the West of the Meridian of the other. 1789 S. Shaw Tour W. Eng. 563 To the west of this.. lies Overton. 1834 Ainsworth Rookwood iv. ii, Harrow-on-theHill.. lying to the west of the green on which they walked.

2. by west: f a. In the west; on the west side; also westward of. Obs.

2. spec. a. The western part of the world. Now commonly, Europe as distinguished from Asia. C1205 Lay. 1231 Bi-3ende France i pet west pu scalt

13.. K. Horn 5 (Harl.) Kyng he wes by weste. c 1300 —— 1366 (Laud) He wonep alby weste. C1305 St. Kenelm 18 in E.E.P. (1862) 48 Temese into pe est see, & seuerne bi weste. C1315 Shoreham vii. 64 By weste hy grendep, alle pyse, And comep a3en per hy aryse. a 1400 Minor Poems Vernon MS. (1901) 696 As I wandrede her bi weste ffaste vnder a forest syde. c 1470 Golagros & Gaw. 419 Quhare wourschip walkis be west, a 1550 Leland Itin. (1764) III. 7 A Castel a Mile by West from Markesin. 1577 Harrison England 11. i. 50/1 in Holinshed, The Weie or the Waye rising by west, cometh from Olsted. Ibid. 53/2 By west of Auterton point also lyeth another hauen. 1596 Spenser F.Q. v. vi. 22 Not farre away, but little wide by West, His dwelling was.

finden a wunsum lond. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 2 Engelond his.. Iset in pe on ende of pe worlde as al in pe west. 1382 Wyclif Matt. viii. 11 Manye shulen come fro the est and west, c 1420 Anturs of Arth. 703 Waynour gared wisely write in pe west, To al pe religious to rede and to singe. 1593 Shaks. 2 Hen. VI, 1. i. 154 All the wealthy Kingdomes of the West. 1613 Zouche Dove B 4, First Bacchus.. set vp trophees in the conquer’d East: Oh would he had gone on as he begunne, And neuer turned to subdue the West! 1761 Gray Desc. Odin 63 In the caverns of the west. 1784 Cowper Task vi. 811 Eastern Java there Kneels with the native of the farthest west. 1802 Wordsw. Extinction of Venetian Rep. 2 Once did She hold the gorgeous east in fee;

WEST And was the safeguard of the west. 1864 Tennyson Aylmer's F. 348 He never yet had set his daughter forth Here in the woman-markets of the west, Where our Caucasians let themselves be sold. 1892 Kipling Barrack-room Ballads etc. 188 The Lords of Their Hands assembled; from the East and the West they drew. 1902 A. S. Hurd Naval Efficiency 109 In the West there seems to be an impression that the fleet of Japan is a mere matter of show.

b. The western portion of the Roman world after its division into two empires in a.d. 395. 1577 Hanmer Anc. Eccl. Hist., Socrates Schol. vi. i. 360 When ye Emperour Theodosius had departed this life .. his sonnes tooke in hand the gouernment of the Romaine empire. Arcadius ruled the East and Honorius the West. 1610 R. Field Fifth Bk. Ch. xxxv. 194 The Bishop of Rome .. called a Synode of al the Bishops of the West. 1781 Gibbon Decl. & F. xxxiii. (1787) III. 327 Honorius, emperor of the West. 1790 Priestley Gen. Hist. Chr. Ch. II. 332 Having seen what was doing in the East, let us now turn our eyes towards the West, where Valentinian governed. 1840 Milman Hist. Chr. 11. viii. II. 207 Of the persecution under Severus there are few, if any, traces in the West. 1865 Bryce Holy Rom. Emp. iii. (1866) 27 Odoacer.. resolved to.. extinguish the title and office of Emperor of the West.

c. The western parts of Europe. 1916 J. Buchan Nelson's Hist. War XIII. 121 A strong offensive in the-West might induce the Allies to make a premature counter-attack.

3. The western part of a country, region, or area; spec. a. of England, Great Britain, Scotland, or Ireland. 14.. Trevelyan Papers (Camden) 67 The Boor’ is farr in to the west, That shold vs helpe wr shild and sper’. 15 .. Ladye Bessie (Percy Soc.) 53 When thou rydest into the weste, I pray the take noe companye But such as shall be of the beste. 1631 Heywood {title) The Fair Maid of the West. 1651 J. Nicoll Diary (Bannatyne Club) 54 Thir ministeris .. held thair awin secreit meetingis in the west. 1666 Earl Orrery St. Lett. (1742) 158 From Kingsale I intend to go to Bandon to settle that town, and all the West. 1693-4 Luttrell Brief Rel. (1857) III. 248 Letters from the west say, our Streights fleet are clear of the Lands End. 1731 Flying Post 10 Aug. 2/1 Edinburgh... The Earl of Aberdeen is set out for the West to visit his daughter, a 1734 Wodrow Collect. Lives Reformers (1834) I. 109 Mr. Willock was appointed.. Superintendant of the West. 1793 Coleridge Sonn. River Otter 1 Wild streamlet of the West! 1836 Southey Lett. (1856) IV. 465 My purpose is to. .take Cuthbert with me into the West by way of Bristol. 1841 Lever O'Malley xii, He was peaceably taking his departure from the West on Saturday. 1869 A. Macdonald Love, Law &? Theol. xii. 189 The aunt.. resided in the vicinity of the capital of the west [i.e. Glasgow].

b. The western States of North America. Formerly the country west of the original thirteen states, now usually taken to mean the country' west (or north-west) of the Mississippi River. Sometimes limited, as The Far, Middle West. See also Wild West. 1796 G. Washington in Claypoole's Amer. Daily Advertiser 19 Sept. 2/2 The West derives from the East supplies requisite to its growth and comfort. 1829 Everett Or at. & Sp. (1850) I. 203, I have made a journey of between three and four thousand miles in the west. 1837 Peck Gaz. Illinois Introd. p. vi, No state in the ‘Great West’ has attracted so much attention.. as that of Illinois. . 1855 Putnam s Monthly Mag. Apr. 380/2, I am disgusted with the West. If ever you catch me at large, anywhere west of the Alleghanies, again, you may shoot me. 1872 Schele de Vere Americanisms 165 The States west of the Mississippi continue to be called the West. 1878 H. H. Vivian Notes Tour Amer. 101 Omaha is the last city of the West. After you pass it you are in the ‘Far West’—in the State of Nebraska. 1886 F. M. Crawford Tale Lonely Parish v, In the mining districts of the West, in up-country stations in India.

c. The western part of a specified country, etc. 1613 Zouche Dove B5, The west of Asia, once Earths Paradice. 1789 S. Shaw {title) A Tour to the West of England. 1838 Dowling Introd. Eccl. Hist. 37 The political and social condition of the west of Europe. 1840 Dickens Old C. Shop xxxvii, Pretty nigh all over the West of England. ellipt. 1894 C. Vickerman Woollen Spinning 232 Our super west cloths are all tender.. when finished. [Ibid. 271 A plain super west of England cloth.]

d. The West End of London. 1823 W. T. Moncrieff Tom & Jerry in. iii, Let the West boast of their highflyers as they will, you’ll find there are still some choice creatures of society left here. 1871 A. Austin Golden Age 34 In one brief hour behold him curled and drest, And borne on wings of fashion to the West!

e. (With capital initial). The non-Communist states of Europe and America. 1946 H. Nicolson Diary 22 Aug. (1967) 75 He is convinced that the Russians wish to dominate the world... The only way in which the West can counter this is to pool their philosophy of liberalism, put up a united front. 1951, etc. [see east sb. 2b]. 1957 Ann. Reg. 1956 228 Some 5,000 citizens a week continued to flee to the West. 1964 M. McLuhan Understanding Media (1967) ii. 40 Competitive sports between Russia and the West. 1979 T. Benn Arguments for Socialism i. 38 It is not only in the West that Marxism is seen as one of the main sources of democratic socialist philosophy.

4. Ch. Hist.

The Catholic Church in the Western Roman Empire and countries adjacent to it; the Roman or Latin Church. x586 [? J. Case] Praise Mus. ix. 94 Look vpon the East and the West, the Greeke and Latine Churches, and you shall finde this to be true. 1652 E. Sparke Scint. Altaris 4 Do not all the golden Fountains of the Fathers (both of the East and West, the Greek and Latine Church) flow with the same streams? 1790 Priestley Gen. Hist. Chr. Ch. II. 314 Though the bishops of the West had been deceived at Ariminum, they had all abjured the blasphemies of that council. 1850 Neale Hist. Eastern Ch. I. Introd. 9, I shall constantly reckon among the Saints those whom the Eastern Church, whether with or without the consent of the West, so

WEST

162 accounts. 1877 J. D. Chambers Div. Worship 233 According to the universal custom of the West, this water should be cold.

5. a. The west wind. 1604 E. G[rimstone] D'Acosta's Hist. Indies iii. v. 133 They have reckoned two other windes, the East of summer, and the East of winter, and by consequence, two Weasts. 1725 Pope Odyss. xii. 478 Now out flies The gloomy West, and whistles in the skies. 1814 Scott Lord of Isles vi. xxi, Dark rolling like the ocean-tide, When the rough west hath chafed his pride. 1865 Swinburne Poems & Ballads Ser. 1. 128 As roses, when the warm West blows, Break to full flower.

b. A westerly direction of the wind. 1842 Dickens Amer. Notes xvi, Some nautical authority had told me a day or two previous, ‘anything with west in it, will do’.

D. adj. 1. a. Lying towards the west; situated at or in the west; western, westerly. fOf a planet: Seen in the western part of the sky (tr. L. occidentalism. c 1375 Sc. Leg. Saints ii. {Paul) 70 Syne Nero In pe weste partis has lattyn hym go. 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. ix. xxiv. (1495) 361 A weste sterre that hyghte Vesperus. c 1400 Maundev. (1839) v. 44 At Marrok, upon the West See, duelte the Calyffee of Barbaryenes. c 1460 Oseney Reg. 176, j. rodde of Arable londe vppon Otehulle at forthsheter, pat is to say, the more weste Rodde. 1482 Rolls of Parlt. VI. 204/1 Crete part of the Westbordures of Scotlande. a 1550 Leland Itin. (1764) III. 9 The very Westeste Pointe of Cornewaulle. Ibid. 46 The Est and the West Gates be now the fairest. 1577 D. Settle Frobisher's Voy. title, A true reporte of the laste voyage into the West and Northwest regions. Ibid. Bviij, On this West shoare we found a dead fishe floating. 1789 N. Portlock Voy. 314 There is anchorage to the Northward of the West point of Morotoi. 1895 ‘p. Hemingway’ Out of Egypt 11. 185 The west sky grew pale and gold.

b. Of western Europe, as opposed to the east; esp. belonging to the Roman or Latin church; = western 4. Now rare or Obs. I553 Becon Reliques of Rome (1563) 141b, The Occidentall or weast Churches thorow out all Europe. 1565 Harding Answ. Jewel's Challenge 86 b, Yet had they of that nation their Seruice then in Latine, as all the West churche had. 1577 Hanmer Anc. Eccl. Hist., Socrates Schol. v. xxiv. 358 In the West empire there was one Eugenius, [etc.]. 1594 Hooker Eccl. Pol. iv. xi. §12 The West Church vsing vnleauened bread, as the Iewes in their passouer did. 1628 Bp. Hall Old Relig. xii. 116 The most eminent Diuines of both East and West Churches.

c. spec, the West Bank, a region west of the River Jordan and north-west of the Dead Sea which became part of Jordan in 1948 and was occupied by Israel in the Arab-Israeli War of 1967; hence West Banker, an inhabitant of the West Bank; fwest isles, the western isles of Scotland; fwest world, the new world, America. 1587 Harrison Descr. Eng. 1. x. 39/1 in Holinshed, The lies that lie about the north coast of.. Scotland .. are either occidentals, the west lies, [etc.]. 1613 S. Daniel 1st Pt. Hist. Eng. 5 As now, we see all the West world (lately discovered) to bee. 1967 Times 3 Aug. 16/7 Making the Israeli pound legal tender side by side with the Jordanian dinar on the Israeli-occupied West bank should go a long way towards increasing imports of goods from Britain. Ibid. 10 Aug. 7/1 Even those Israelis who would gladly abandon Sinai, Gaza and the West Bank would prefer to keep the Syrian heights overlooking the Sea of Galilee. 1968 N. Y. Times 22 Dec. iv. 4/6 The many interviews given by King Hussein who often refers to granting more self-government to the West Bankers. 1972 Guardian 10 Apr. 11/3 Hussein .. is seeking to prevent disaffected West Bankers .. from reversing their links with the Hashemite throne. 1978 Internat. Relations Diet. (U.S. Dept. State Library) 35/2 These groups rejected.. the establishment of a Palestinian state on the West Bank. 1983 j le Carre’ Little Drummer Girl ii. 32 Miss Bach had been talking wistfully of taking up the wagon-trail life of a West Bank settler.

d. Of or pertaining to the west. IS72 Twyne Dionysius’ Surv. World B vj b, Two winds,.. the Hesperian or Sicilian wynde, whiche is West, and the Southeaste, whiche bloweth from the sea Aegseum. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg, iii. 549 All the West Allies of stormy Boreas blow. 1900 H. S. Holland Old & New 97 Whether East or West, we all with one consent excuse ourselves from our responsibilities. 2. With proper names: a. Denoting the

western part of a country, district, etc., or the more westerly of two places having the same name. 1470-85 Malory Arthur v. ii. 162 The lord of westwalis promysed to brynge xxx M men. 1530-1 Act 22 Hen. VIII, c. 17 §ro In West Depyng or Est Depyng yn the countie of Lyncoln. 1645 Boate Ire/. Nat. Hist. (1652) 6 East-Meath and Catherlogh or Carlo.. West-Meath, Kildare, Kilkenny, [etc.]. 1646 R. Baillie Lett. (Bannatyne Club) II. 388 The French are like this year to have very bad successe, both in Italie, Spaine, and West Flanders. 1714 in Jrnl. Friends Hist. Soc. (1918) 27, I. .set forward through west and East Jarsey. 1794 Morse Amer. Geog. 566 The principal town in West Florida is Pensacola. 1811 Willan (title) A List of Ancient Words at present used in the mountainous district of the West Riding of Yorkshire. 1886 Kington Oliphant New Engl. I. 44 The term wench is used in the honourable sense of the West Midland.

b. Denoting the western division of a race, nation, or people. West Britcm: f (a) a native of Wales; (b) a native of Ireland; in mod. use, (chiefly derogatory) one who favours a close political connection with Great Britain; hence West Britonism. Cf. West Saxon.

1561 Daus Bullinger on Apoc. Ixi. 430 The Westegothes possessed all Spayne, 1712 P. Leigh Life S. Wenefride 46 Whatever this incredulous Age may think of. .our Saint’s Return to Life; it appear’d so evident to the West Britains.. that many Pagan People.. came .. to receive Baptism. 18.. T. C. Luby Life & Times O'Connell 342/1 Thomas Spring Rice.. was probably the first Irishman who nicknamed himself ‘a West Briton’. 1816 J. Giffard Let. to Sir Robert Peel 19 Mar. (Brit. Library Add. MSS. 40,253, f. 258), The periphrastic Title of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.. goes out of its way—to remind people that they were once disunited and to keep them so—had the whole been called by one common name Britain—we should have had the Inhabitants proud of the glorious Title Britons and we West Britons would have been as much conciliated and attached as the North Britons are. 1836 D. O’Connell in J. O’Connor Hist. Ireland 1798-1924 (1925) I. vii. 226 The people of Ireland are ready to become portion of the Empire, provided they be made so in reality and not in name alone; they are ready to become a kind of West Britons, if made so in benefits and justice; but if not, we are Irishmen again. 1909 Jane Barlow Irish Ways 3 Not to believe in, at least, fairies, argues you a west-Briton, if nothing worse. 1910 D. Hyde in R. M. Dorson Peasant Customs (1968) II. 718 The men who.. while protesting.. against West Britonism, have helped .. to assimilate us to England and the English. 1918 West Britonism [see shoneen]. 1925 in J. O’Connor Hist. Ireland 1798-1924 II. xxiv. 368 The American friends of Irish liberty are both grieved and resentful at some of the recent exhibitions given there of the revival of West Britonism. 1944 Joyce Stephen Hero xvii. 54 No West-Briton could speak worse of his Countrymen. i960 C. C. O’Brien Shaping of Mod. Ireland 19 When Moran and his friends talked of West Britons they had in mind, I imagine, some archetype of a dentist’s wife who collected crests, ate kedgeree for breakfast and displayed on her mantelpiece a portrait of the Dear Queen. 1962 B. Inglis West Briton viii. 143, I never heard of West Briton being used except pejoratively. 1972 C. C. O’Brien States of Ireland iv. 77 Protestant loyalists—that is to say, most Protestants—also came inevitably under attack, usually as West Britons.

c. With sbs. and adjs. derived from the names of countries, districts, or peoples. 1614 Selden Titles Honor 80 Kings of West-gothique bloud. 1824 Collier & MacCarthy {title) West-African sketches. 183. Graves Rom. Law in Encycl. Met. (1845) II. 765/1 A manuscript of the Westgothic compilation, called the Breviarium Aniani. 1848 Gould Birds Australia I. PI. 18 West-Australian Gos-Hawk. 1852 Henfrey Veget. Eur. 169 Thus we get four sections of Germanic plants, viz.:. .c. the west-Germanic. 1863 Irish People 5 Dec. 24/3 The WestBritish press chimed in. 1865 R. F. Burton Wit & Wisdom from W. Afr. iii. 121 The practical selfishness and feelinglessness of the wild West African, who, when, tamed by slavery, becomes one of the most tender of men. 1877 Cassell's Nat. Hist. I. 363 The West African River Shrew. 1925 J- O’Connor Hist. Ireland 1798-1924 II. xxiv. 373 People dance the same dances as were the fashion in the old West-British days. 1950 New Yorker 16 Sept. 83/1 They [sc. the Germans] think that German rearmament is inevitable, and suggest that a sort of Foreign Legion.. be activated immediately, in which all West European men willing to go to war against Communism could volunteer. 1958 Listener 11 Dec. 977/2 He [sc. Herr Brandt] is coming gradually to symbolize for many West Berliners their determination to remain free. 1969 A. Marin Rise with Wind (1970) vi. 75 Clay sank into a chair, his eyes fixed coldly on the West German. 1973 Times 27 Nov. 9/1 {heading) Fewer West Berliners visit the East. 1976 W. Laqueur in D. Villiers Next Year in Jerusalem 86 The non-Jewish Jew is a specifically West European phenomenon. 1976 M. Birmingham Heat of Sun iii. 34 To build a house in his home town, to which all West Africans dream of retiring. 1981 J. Johnston Christmas Tree 114 It wasn’t that I objected to De Valera’s neutrality... I had no political feelings of being West British.. no Crown fever. 1983 Spectator 14 May 8/1 It is unsettling to find a pillar of West German industry collecting Nazi memorabilia.

d. With abstract sbs. derived from the sbs. and adjs. of prec. sense. 1895 Dundalk Examiner 24 Aug. 2/6 A slogan cry which would.. sound the death-knell of ascendancy and West Britishism in this country? 1971 ]. Spencer Eng. Lang. W. Afr. 28 There is certainly a sufficiency of terms and expressions peculiar to the use of English in this region to justify the term West Africanism. 1980 English World-Wide I. I. 76 AVE |sc. African Vernacular English] is., characterized by a vocabulary adapted to its environment, which shows itself in oft-quoted West Africanisms.

3. Eccl. Situated in or at that part of a church (normally the actual west) which is farthest from the altar or high altar. 1412 Catterick Ch. Contract (1834) 9 The Ienght of the body of the Kirke.. with the thicknes of the west walle. a 1700 Evelyn Diary Aug. (end) 1641, There hang near the West window [of the church] two modells of shipps. 1773 Noorthouck Hist. Land. 629 The west front [of St. Paul’s] is graced with a most magnificent portico. 1818 Rickman Engl. Archit. 72 The west doors of York are of the richest execution. Ibid. 92 The west window of St. George’s, Windsor, has fifteen lights in three divisions. 1896 Hardy Under Greenw. Tree Pref., The Mellstock choir and its old established west-gallery musicians.

4. Facing to the west. 1593 T. Fale Horolog. 7 b, The making of the East and West Erect Dials. 1638 S. Foster Art of Dialling 13 Those plaines are called East and West incliners, whose horizontall line lyeth full North and South, and their inclination is directly towards either East or West. 1642 Fuller Holy & Prof. St. III. vii. 167 In a West-window in summer time towards night, the Sun grows low. 1832 Planting (Libr. Usef. Knowl.) 26 The soil of the nursery must be.. under a south, east, or west exposure.

E. In combination: a. with vbl. sbs. and ppl. adjs. as f west-coming-, west-facing, -going, t -walling adjs. 1592 in Maitl. Club Misc. I. 53 That thai report testimonial! heirintill agane thair first west cuming in this

WEST cuntrey. 1595 Markham Trag. Sir R. Grinvile xxxiv The great west-walling boisterous sea. 1866 Good Words 1 June 390/1 During the first two days we passed upwards of a hundred west-going waggons. 1898 Contemp. Rev. Aug. 181 A long.. west-facing gallery.

b. with advbs., as west-about, -away. 1579'n Reg. Mag. Sig. Scot. 1581 73/1 Thairfra passand west about as the new stank braa lyis. 1891 Century Diet., West-about adv., around toward the west; in a westerly direction. 1818 Scott Rob Roy xxvii, Will onybody.. grumble at the treaty that opened us a road west-awa’ yonder? 1855 Kingsley Westw. Ho! xxx, If you sailed right west away far enough, you’d surely come to the edge, and fall over cleve. 1875 Anderida II. xi. 195 Three ships ran down the coast westaway.

c. With adjs., as west-central a., belonging to the western half of the central postal division of London. i860 All Year Round No. 66. 372 A small street off one of the west-central squares. 1865 ‘Annie Thomas’ On Guard II. 265 The show-room of the west-central Mantalini for whom she worked.

west (west), sb,2 Obs. exc. dial. [Of obscure origin.] A sty or inflammatory swelling on the eyelid. 1569 Androse tr. Alexis' Seer. iv. 1. 4 To heale a West that riseth vpon the eye liddes. 1705 Land. Gaz. No. 4185/4 A down Look, having a West in one of his Eyes. 1847 Halliwell. 1899 C. K. Paul Memories 250, ‘I have a west coming in my eye’.

west (west), v. Also 4 weste. [f. west adv.] intr. To move towards the west. Chiefly of the sun: To draw near to the west, to sink in the west. c 1381 Chaucer Pari. Foules 266 On a bed of gold sche lay to reste Tyl that the hote sunne gan to weste. C1385L.G.W. 61 Whanne the sunne be-gynnys for to weste. 1596 Spenser F.Q. v. Introd. viii, Foure times his place he shifted hath in sight, And twice has risen, where he now doth West, And wested twice, where he ought rise aright. 1607 Walkington Optic Glass 162 Phoebus beginneth low to west. 1807 J. Barlow Columb. x. 213 From Mohawk’s mouth, far westing with the sun, Thro all the midlands recent channels run. 1888 Doughty Arabia Deserta I. 443 The sun at length westing to the valley brow. 1889 in F. W. H. Myers Human Personality (1903) II. 340 A ship going round the world making east all the way would gain a day, and by westing would lose one.

west, obs. Sc. f. vest v.; obs. pa. t. and pa. pple. of wit t;.1 westar, obs. Sc. form of waster sb.1 'west-bound, a. [west adv.] Travelling to the west or in a westerly direction; connected with travel in this direction. Orig. U.S. of railway-trains. In more general use from c 1900, freq. of Transatlantic steamers. 1881 Chicago Times 12 Mar., The west-bound express was laid up all night at Kearney. 1889 Pall Mall Gaz. 3 Sept. 2/3 He will at once give you a west-bound ticket to Chicago. 1891 C. Roberts Adrift Amer. 67, I watched my chance.. and got on a west-bound freight train. 1902 Westm. Gaz. 22 Oct. 1/3 The West-bound traveller.. would choose his ’bus .. along the Embankment.

f'Westbury apple. Obs. (See quot. 1676.) 1676 Worlidge Vinetum Brit. 160 The Westberry-Apple, taking its name from Westberry in Hampshire,.. its one of the most solid Apples that grows, of a tough rind, [etc.]. 1707 Mortimer Husb. 537 The Westberry Apple [1721 The Westbury Apple]. 1747 Mrs. Glasse Cookery xxi. 164 Pippins,.. Westbury Apples, Russetting.

west-by(e ('west'bai), adv. Sc. [f. west adv. + by adv. 1.] In a westerly direction, westwards. 1790 A. Shirrefs Poems 72 We met wi’ Bessy .. Wha taul’s ye gaed west-by a wee before. 1864 Latto Tammas Bodkin xxvii. 283 Tibbie’s letters bein’ aye left wastbye at Janet Wabster’s to be forwarded.

west coast. 1. The western coast of a country or region; in some cases with capital initials as a proper name. Also attrib. 1377 Langl. P. PI. B. xviii. 113 frere I sawe sothely.. Out of pe west coste a wenche, as me thou3te, Cam walkynge in pe way. 1689 Acts Parlt. Scot. (1875) XII. 54/2 That two friggetts be gott to cruse on the west coasts. 1801 M. Downie Observ. Atmosphere 89 Those parts of the West coasts of Africa which lie between the Tropics. 1845 N.Z. Jrnl. 13 Sept. 234/2 Of the west coast of the Middle Island, commonly called by the whalers the ‘West Side’, we heard a good deal. 1850 Calif. Courier (San Francisco) 2 Dec. 2/1 Our position here on the West Coast has been and still is a peculiar one. 1862 Jrnl. R. Geogr. Soc. XXXII. 294 Arrangements entered into with the Provincial Government of Nelson for the survey of the West Coast district of that province. 1897 M. Kingsley Trav. W. Afr. 8 Sound knowledge.. collected during an acquaintance with the West Coast of over thirty years. 1926 A. Huxley Jesting Pilate iv. 287 The stranger coming to the West Coast will be astonished by the amount of casual embracement. 1959 A. McLintock Descr. Atlas N.Z. p. xvi, The road.. here swings in a northerly direction.. towards Arthur’s Pass, 3,020ft, and thence to the West Coast. 1971 Country Life 9 Dec. 1642/2 Last year, .the west-coast herrings proved to be the only plentiful supply in northern Europe. 1977 H. Fast Immigrants 11. 88 We’re the lifeline, the West Coast, San Francisco.

2. (Usu. with capital initials.) Used attrib. with reference to a style of modern jazz playing that was centred on Los Angeles in the 1950s, typified by small ensembles, technical sophistication, and elaborate writing, orig. U.S. Cf. West Coaster below, quot. 1954.

163

WEST END

1954 Downbeat 7 Apr. 6/1 The latest example of this thinking-by-pigeonholes is the attempt to convince the populace that there is a growing west coast school of jazz. Ibid. 19 May 16/3 Nat HentofFs comments on ‘west coast jazz’ aroused considerable comment. 1959 News Chron. 12 Aug. 6/5 He is not only benevolent about West Coast jazz but aware of its technical ins and outs. 1961 Times 4 Feb. 11/5 Music of considerable variety, ranging from some vigorous Dixieland .. to West Coast Jazz (with Palm Court cello). 1962 Melody Maker 21 July 7/1 Some of the 1954 tracks have a nostalgic, almost dated, appeal, in the writing, it is so typical of West Coast jazz of the time—neat, smooth and often very clever. 1980 New Grove Diet. Mus. XX. 371/2 Miles Davis’s 1949-50 recordings were an initial influence as is shown by such archetypal West Coast performances as Rogers’s Didi (1951). 3. Used attrib. to designate a kind of large rear¬ view mirror (see quot. 1963). orig. U.S. 1963 Amer. Speech XXXVIII. 46 West coast mirror,., a large, square, rear-view mirror attached to the side of a cab. 1968 Globe Mail (Toronto) 17 Feb. 41 (Advt.), Mercury l ton pickup... 4 speed transmission, west coast mirrors. 1980 Truck & Bus Transportation (Austral.) Mar. 96/1 All¬ round vision is generally good, but Cronulla Carrying have gone one step further by replacing the meagre standard mirrors with the efficient west-coast type. Hence West Coaster, (a) one who lives on the West Coast; spec. (N.Z.)

=

coaster 3 c;

(b) a

player or devotee of West Coast jazz. 1896 N.Z. Alpine Jrnl. II. 157 He was .. not a native born West Coaster. 1936 ‘R. Hyde’ Passport to Hell ii. 54 He washed shirts for the brawny West Coasters. 1941 O. Duff N.Z. Now v. 71 The people are never ‘Southlanders’.. as the people of the West Coast are ‘West Coasters’. 1949 M. Steen Twilight on Floods 11. ii. 198 Eighty-five per cent West Coasters die of fever, or return home total wrecks! 1954 Time 1 Feb. 38/2 Today, the liveliest center of developing jazz is California... The West Coasters include such names as.. Shelly Manne.., Shorty Rogers.., Gerry Mulligan and Stan Getz.., Dave Brubeck. 195* K. Goodwin in P. Gammond Decca Bk. Jazz xiii. 148 Groups from four to nine pieces have been most popular among the West Coasters. 1974 M. Braithwaite Ontario ii. 7 It is nonsense to maintain that there are no special characteristics of Canadians from different regions of the country. West Coasters are different from those who live on the East Coast. 1977 Times 16 May 8/7 Their effect on humourless West Coasters [5c. in California] was.. devastating. west country,

[west a.]

The western part of

any country; the district or region towards the west; spec, of England or of Scotland. Usually the remoter counties west (or south-west) of the speaker, or of London (in Scotland west of Edinburgh); sometimes spec, the south-western counties (Somerset, Devon, etc.). 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xi. iii. (Bodl. MS.) In pe est londes and contreyes is muche more plente of fruytes and floures J?anne in pe northe and in pe weste contreys. c 1400 Brut ccxxviii. 301 In pe same 3ere, aboute pe Sowthcuntreys and also in pe west cuntres, pere fell so much reyne .. J?at [etc.], c 1470 Henry Wallace iv. 171 Our wast contre thar statute is so strang, Into the north my purposs is to gang. 1473 Warkw. Chron. (Camden) 10 The Erie of Warwyke londede in the west countre. 1534 Cromwell in Merriman Life & Lett. (1902) I. 395 Ye do deteyne.. certeyne londes in the weste cuntrey contrary to all right. 1570-6 Lambarde Peramb. Kent (1596) 474 At Dartmouth in the West countrie. 1639 G. Plattes Discov. Subterr. Treas. xi. 51 Every one may see in the west Country, where such a multitude of Firre trees doe lie covered so deepe in the earth, that [etc.]. 1827 Scott Let. in Lockhart (1837) I. v. 136, I had very little acquaintance .. with the gentry of the west country. 1845 Carlyle Cromwell xliii. I. 359 The Whiggamore Raid, all the force of the West Country, 6,000 strong, is already there. 1906 J. E. Vincent Highways Berks, ix. 241 It is a little strained, perhaps, to include Berkshire in the West country. b. attrib. (Frequently hyphened.) a 1653 Binning Usef. Case Consc. (1693) 40 They think these Malignants better than the West-Countrey forces. 1678 T. Jordan Tri. Lond. 14 Zome honest plain WestCountry-mon. 1690 Lond. Gaz. No. 2579/2 Edinburgh... Several Thousands of the West-Country Men have offered to Serve Their Majesties against the Highlanders. 1720 Ibid. No. 5895/4 Speaks in a broad West-Country Dialect. 1805 R. W. Dickson Pract. Agric. I. 435 Sheep..of the Devonshire, or west-country breed. 1820 Scott Monast. Introd. Ep., A west-country whig frae Kilmarnock. 1865 Kingsley Herew. v, Why should he know our West country ways? 1879 St. George's Hosp. Rep. IX. 586 One branch of her family, living in a west-country town. fig- 1853 W. D. Cooper Sussex Gloss, (ed. 2) 85 Westcountry Parson, the Hake; so called from the black streak on the back, and from its abundance along the West Coast. fwestdeal. Obs. In 1 westdsel, 3 westdel, Orm. wesstdale. [See west adv. and deal sb.1]

The

western part or district, the west. C825 Vesp. Psalter lxxiv. 7 Ne from eastdaele ne from westdaele. 971 Blickl. Horn. 93 fry fiftan dsege.. se heofon tobyrst from psem eastdaele op pone westdasl. c 1200 Ormin 16406 Wesstdale off all piss werelld iss Dysiss bi name nemmnedd. 01300 E.E. Psalter cii[i]. 12 Hou mikle estdel stand westdel fra, Fer made he fra vs oure wickenes swa. t weste, sb.

[Reduced form of OE. westen (see

western sb.2), or f. next.] A desert, wilderness. c 1200 Ormin 11747 freer i pe wesste paer he wass Himm ane. Ibid. 17408 Alls he comm wipp all pe folic Inntill a wilde wesste. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Horn. 127 On his 3uwe8e he fleh fro folke to weste. Ibid., Weste was his wunienge. t weste, a. Obs. Also 3 west. [OE. weste, earlier wceste

=

OFris. wdste (WFris.

woast), MDu.

and Du. woest, OS. wosti (MLG. wost, wust, LG. wost), OHG. wosti, wuosti (MHG. wiles te,

G. wiist), f. the stem *wost-, related to L. vastus: see waste a.] 1. Of places: Uninhabited and uncultivated or untended; desert, desolate, waste. Beowulf 2456 [He] jesyhS sorheearis.. winsele westne. C825 Vesp. Psalter lxviii. 26 Sie eardung heara woestu. Ibid. lxxiv. 7 From woestum muntum. C900 tr. Bseda's Hist. 1. xv. 52 Is saed of paere tide.. paet hit [sc. pa?t land] weste wunije. c 1000 Ags. Gosp. Matt. xiv. 15 Deos stowe ys weste. c 1200 Ormin 1417 All forrpi wass heoffness £erd Swa summ itt wesste waere. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Horn. 127 He..perfore ferde into weste wildeme. c 1205 Lay. 10591 A1 pat lond heo makeden west. Ibid. 17330 Ich wulle.. maken him weste paSes & wildernes monie. c 1250 Owl & Night. 1528 Wowes weste [v.r. west] and lere huse. a 1300 Maximian 211 (MS. Digby 86) J>is world me pinkep west.

2. west(e) land, waste land; desert. CI030 Sherburn Surv. in Eng. Hist. Rev. (1912) Jan. 18 Ond pys synd weste land: Ane is Sal-leje; ofier is Grantelege. c 1200 Ormin 9239 Sannt Johan i wessteland Wass wurrpenn cup patt time. Ibid. 11429 All swa summ wessteland iss all Forrworrpenn & forrlaetenn. c 1205 Lay. 16268 He funde west lond [CI275 in west lond], leoden ofslae3ene.

f weste, v. Obs. [OE. westan (:—wostjan: see weste a.) = OS. (a)wostian, OHG. wuostan (MHG. wuesten G. wiisten).] trans. To lay waste. is oritore is vgly.

'westy, a.2 Obs. exc. dial. [Of obscure origin.] Confused; giddy. 1599 Bp. Hall Sat. iv. i. 158 While hee lies wallowing with a westie hed And palish carkasse, on his brothel-bed. 1674-91 Ray N.C. Words. Westy, dizzy, giddy. 1867 Cornh. Mag. XV. 741 He’s a bit westy by times is Ashford. 1881 Evans Leicest. Gloss, s.v., My head’s very westy and bad.

westy, var. westie. wesy, obs. f. vizy v. Sc. wesyng, rare obs. f. weasand. wesz, obs. f. was, pa. t. of be v.

'westwardmost, a. [f. as prec. + -most.] Most westerly; farthest west. 1685 W. Hedges Diary (Hakl. Soc.) I. 175 We. .came to an anchor .. on y' Westwardmost Brace. 1788 J. White Jrnl. Voy. N.S. Wales (1790) 109 The westward-most point of a very large bay. 1894 Daily News 7 May 6/3 They propose to commence at once on the westwardmost bay of the chapel.

'westwards, adv. and sb. Also 6 -wardes. [f. westward adv. + -s1. Cf. Du. westwaarts, G. westwarts, and OE. westweardes (once).] A. adv. — westward adv. 1 a. 1540 Act 32 Hen. VIII c. 17 The way from the barres in Holborne westwardes to the farre ende of high holborn. 1581 Borough Discourse Var. Curnpas (1585) F iv, From hence Westwardes to Meta Incognita. 1614 E. Wright Dialling E 1 An occidental Dial looketh directly West¬ wards. 1652 Heylyn Cosmogr. iv. 96 He .. informs us that he sailed not Westwards, but more towards the South. 1915 J. Buchan Nelson's Hist. War V. 126 The bulk of the Russian army went westwards to reinforce the van.

b. = westward adv. I b. i5®5 T. Washington tr. Nicholay's Voy. 11. vii. 37 b, A mountaine Westwards, and fiue miles from the Citie. 1599 E. Wright Haven-finding Art 11 Helmshude (which place is Westwards from the North Cape of Finmark). 1854 tr. Hettner's Athens & Pelop. 162 Westwards yonder, towards the sea, lies Lema.

B. sb. rare.

= WESTWARD sb. (Also with of.) Now

1.574 W. Bourne Regiment for Sea 47 To the Westwardes of your towne. 1581 Borough Discourse Var. Cumpas (1585) Gij, Wheras y' Narue .. should be from S. Nicholas ..to the Westwardes. 1584 R. Norman tr. Safegard of Sailers 37 Then he shall see the towne to the westwards before him. 1602 Carew Cornwall 28 b, Vpon the North coast, and to the Westwards of Foy, few or none are taken. 1669 Earl WiNCHiLSEA True Relat. Mt. Etna 22 The other Torrent..in probability could not easily overflow to the Westwards. 1728 Chambers Cycl s.v. Wind, The Easterly Trade-Winds blowing to the Westwards thereof.

west wind, west-wind. [OE. westwind, = OS., MLG., MDu., G. westwind, WFris. westewyn, NFris. wastwinj. OE. had also westanwind —

wet (wet), sb.1 Forms: a. 1 wit, 3 wet (dat. wete), Orm. wtet {dat. wsete), 3-6 wete, (5 whete), 4-6 weete, 4-5, 6- Sc. weet, 6 weat(e, 5-6 north, and Sc. weytt, 5-7 Sc. weit. B. 4 north. wat(e. y. 6wet, 6 wette, 7 wett. S. 9 Sc. wat. [OE. wset neut. (substantival use of watt adj., = WFris. wiet), giving normally ME. wet, wete, weete and later weat(e. The other ME. and mod. forms are due to the influence of the adj. OE. had also wxta wk. masc., represented in ME. by wete; in later use the two become undistinguishable, and some of the examples given here (in sense 1) may really be survivals of weeta.] 1. Moisture; liquid or moist substance. In occasional use applied to water, blood, sweat, sap, etc. a. c 888 Alfred Boeth. xxxiii. §5 Swa pxt heora nan oSres mearce ne ofereode, & se cile jeprowode wiS Sa haeto, & pxt wa:t wiS pum dryjum. c 1220 Bestiary 73 Hise feSres fallen for Se hete, And he dun mide to Se wete FalleS in Sat welle grund. a 1240 Ureisun in O.E. Horn. I. 187 Hwa is benne unwaschen jie haueb bis halwende wet inwiS his heorte. c 1290 St. Michael 668 in .S'. Eng. Leg. 318 Man hath of eorbe al is bodi, and of watere he hauez wete. c 1386 Chaucer Can. Yeom. Prol. & T. 634, I se wel how ye swete, Haue heer a clooth, and wipe awey the wete. r 1400 Beryn 1022 [He] smote pe Damesell vndir pe ere, pe weet gon vpward spyn. 1412-20 Lydg. Chron. Troy iv. 3375 Whan he [Phoebus].. driej) vp |>e moysture & pe weete Of herbe & floure with his feruenthete. 1483 Cath. Angl. 415/1 Weytt, maditas. 01500 Hist. K. Boccus & Sydracke (? 1510) M ij b, After a man hath in hym most Of wete of dryeth hete or colde Shall his complexcyon be tolde. 1523-34 Fitzherb. Husb. §124 The quyckeset wyll take no rote, excepte it haue greate weate. y- *597 Shaks. Lover’s Compl. 40 Like vsery applying wet to wet. 1633 G. Herbert Temple, Providence xxix, When th’ earth was dry, thou mad’st a sea of wet. 1709 J. Ward Yng. Math. Guide (1734) 437 Divide the Sum of all those Dips or Wet Inches by the Number of Places you dipp’d in, and the Quotient will be the Mean Wet of all those Dips. 1784 Twamley Dairying 32 If you cut the Cheese when young, you will find, that there is a Moisture, or Wet, in every Place where the Eye is,.. which Wet or Moisture is called Tears. 1848 Dickens Dombey liv, The foam was on his lips; the wet stood on his forehead. 1894 K. Grahame Pagan P. 129 The

WET drippings made worms of wet in the thick dust of the road. 1897 Max Pemberton Queen of Jesters iii. 105 The floor of the staircase was covered with wet and slime.

2. a. Rainy or damp weather. a. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Horn. 123 Man .. poleS .. hwile druie and hwile wete, hwile chele, wile hete. 1362 Langl. P. PI. A. vi. 21, I haue walked ful wyde In weete and in druye. r 1400 Maundev. (Roxb.) vi. 23 per falles oft sithes grete derth of corne.. by cause of ouer mykill wete. c 1460 Towneley Myst. xii. 4 Now in hurt, now in heyll, now in weytt, now in blast, c 1480 Henryson Garm. Gude Ladeis 24 Hir mantill of humilitie, To tholl bayth wind & weit. 1650 J. Nicoll Diary (Bann. Club) 27 That nicht being.. full of wind and weit. Ibid. 32 Tempestis of weit and wind. 1790 Burns Young Jockie iii, Thro’ wind and weet, thro’ frost and snaw. f$. a 1300 Cursor M. 6365 Ne for na drught, ne for na wat, Changed neuer pai pare state. 1340 Hampole Pr. Consc. 7611 In wate and drye, in hate and cald. y- i573~8o Tusser Husb. (1878) 92 By sowing in wet, is little to get. 1577 Goqge Heresbach's Husb. 1. 28 There is nothyng more hurtfull to Winter Corne,.. then the wette of Winter. 1601 Shaks. All's Well 1. iii. 157 This distempered messenger of wet, The manie colour’d Iris, a 1715 Burnet Own Time 11. (1724) I. 801 Great numbers came to see him. But, after they had stood long in the wet, he disappointed them. 1801 Wordsw. Sparrow's Nest 8 The Sparrow’s dwelling, which.. in wet or dry My sister Emmeline and I Together visited. 1840 Dickens Old C. Shop xviii, Make haste in out of the wet, Tom. i860 Froude Hist. Eng. xxxiii. VI. 419 The sermon intended to be preached at the stake was adjourned, in consequence of the wet, to St. Mary’s. 1905 Sat. Rev. 15 July 82/1 It is the alternation of wet and fine which brings every crop in its season.

b. Atmospheric moisture precipitated as rain, mist, or dew. a. C1290 St. Michael 604 in 5. Eng. Leg. 317 3wane pe sonne hath pudere idrawe pene mist for hete, It ne may no feor for pe colde, ake bicometh al to wete, And gaderez pare to one watur-cloude. 1533 Bellenden Livy 1. vii. (S.T.S.) I. 41 Ane horribill tempest.. made this nobil prince.. Invisibill with thik schoure of wete and myst. 1794 Burns My Nannie's Awa' 6 And violets bathe in the weet o’ the morn. y. 1613 T. Campion Relat. Royal Entert. A4b, Because some wet had fallen that day in the forenoone.. all her foot¬ way was spred with broad cloth. 1617 Moryson Itin. 11. 68 The Pace of the Moyrye, by reason of much wet lately fallen, .. was hard to passe. 1671 Milton P.R. iv. 433 And now the Sun.. Had .. dry’d the wet From drooping plant, or dropping tree. 1830 Herschel Study Nat. Phil. 11. vi. (1851) 159 When no rain or visible wet is falling. 1883 Black Shandon Bells xxiv, The silent thin wet that seemed to hang in the atmosphere like a vapour. 1901 A. M. Fairbairn in Selbie Life (1913) 385 Nothing but wet and water fills the whole scene.

c. Rain, water, or damp regarded as deleterious or detrimental. Also, standing water which collects in pools, or which makes the ground muddy. a. c 1400 Destr. Troy 2006 pre dayes proly pai.. duret vnder hacche, For wete of pe waghes pat wastis ouer hed. Ibid. 9653 [They] Turnit to pere tenttes.. Thurgh the rug, & the rayn, pat raiked aboue, All wery for wete, & for wan strokes, c 1480 Henryson Swallow & Birds 212 The woddis grene wer wallowit with the weit. 1523-34 Fitzherb. Husb. § 54 Pelte-rotte.. commeth of greatte wete, specyally in woode countreyes. 1545 Acc. Ld. High. Treas. Scot. VIII. 341, xxiiij pyonaris .. quhilkis drew the cannonis and arta^e .. withtin the munitioun hous to saife the stokis thairof from weit. 1595 in J. Bulloch Pynours (1887) 68 Salt and vther girnell guid subject to the perrell of weytt and rayn. a 1670 Spalding Troub. Chas. I {Bann. Club) I. 207 Monro caused bigg up betuixt the croces ane court de guard, for saiffeing his souldiers frae weitt and cauld on the night. y. 1684 J. S. Profit & Pleasure united 74 The Infirmitie of this Creature [the Ass] is mostly in the Feet, occasioned by standing or travelling in the wett. 1710 Hilman Tusser Rediv. Feb. (1744) 16 The reason why unharrowed Beans set in Clay are apt to dye, is because the Wet fills the Holes and rots them. 1730 Swift Panegyr. Dean 109 Familiar grown to dirt and wet, Though daggled round, I scorn to fret. 1853 Dickens Bleak Ho. lix, The wet had penetrated my dress. 1858 J. MCD. Stuart Jrnls. Explor. Australia (1864) 18 All our rations.. being perfectly saturated with wet. 1862 H. Marryat Year in Sweden I. 74 On high, safe out of wet’s way. 186. Whitman Amer. Feuillage Poems (1868) 95 Parties of snowy herons wading in the wet to seek worms. 1883 Hardy Wessex Tales {1888) I. 5 The gable-end of the cottage was stained with wet. Comb. 1902 Daily Chron. 30 June 3/7 Wet-proof wire coverings.

d. (With pi.) A burst, storm, shower, or spell of rain.

WET

171

downpour,

a. c 1440 Alphabet of Tales 217 On pe day at he was berid on, per fell suche a wete and a rayn, pat ij dayes after pai mott nott berie hym. 1513 Douglas JEneis v. xii. 53 A huge weit gan doun pour and tumbill. 1545 Taverner Erasm. Prov. 53 A mysselyng rayn gendreth a great weat. 01578 Lindesay (Pitscottie) Chron. Scot. (S.T.S.) II. 312 Terribill windes with raine and weittis quhilk continewit xlviij houris togidder. 1606 in Sel. Rec. Kirk Sess. Aberd. (Spalding Club) 53 The gryt invndatioun of weittis liklie to rott the cornis. 1650 J. Nicoll Diary (Bann. Club) 8 Much unseasonable weather, the lyke quhairof wes not usuall for weittis, cold, frostes and tempestis. 1661 Childrey Brit. Baconica 65 Earthquakes always succeed great wets. y. 1611 Speed Hist. Gt. Brit. ix. xxi. (1632) ion The weather extreame in wets and frosts. 1726 J. Laurence Agric. 281 Gardens which.. are apt to be overflowed or soak’d with Water in the Winter, (for Summer Wets never hurt them). 1733 W. Ellis Chiltern & Vale Farm. 47 The Wets that generally fall then. 1851 Jrnl. R. Agric. Soc. xii. II. 391 The weather often turning into sudden wets.

3. Liquor, drink. In mod. use only slang; esp. in heavy-wet, malt liquor. a. C960 iEthelwold Bened. Rule xliii. 69 Ac he ana gereorde.. and be dx\e aet and waet jewanod sy. c 1000 /Elfric Horn. I. 66 He ne maeg aetes oS6e waetes brucan.-

Saints' Lives xvi. 270 He.. to micel nimfi on aete oS8e on waete [CI175 Lamb. Horn. 103 on ete o8er on wete]. C1200 Ormin 7852 Himm birrp lokenn himm full wel Fra luffsumm aete & waete. y. 1821 Egan Life in London iii. 226 The soldiers and their trulls were seen tossing off the heavy wet and spirits. 1821 [? Egan] Real Life Lond. I. xviii. 392 note, Heavy wet—A wellknown appellation for beer, porter, or ale. *839 j Grant Trav. Town I. 167 Pots of foaming heavy wet. 1894 Astley 50 Years Life II. 197 After a lot of talk and a certain amount of ‘wet’ he and I made three matches.

14. Phr. wiihoutwet, without being wetted, to take wet, to be injured by damp. Obs. 01300 Cursor M. 18547 Apon pe see wit-vten wete Gangand als apon a strete. 1513 [see take v. 44b]. 1609 Holland Amm. Marcell. 378 After they had beene weakened with this daungerous wet that they tooke. 1631 Pellham Gods Power 24 Wee found that all our Frittars of the Whale were almost spoyled with the wet that they had taken. 1693 Locke Educ. §7 He that considers how Mischievous and Mortal a thing, taking Wet in the Feet is to those, who have been bred nicely. 1712 [see take v. 44 b].

|5. in wet = in fresco (see fresco sb. 2). Obs. 1622 Peach am Compl. Gent. (1634) xii. 141 He wrought in distemper (as we call it) or wet with size, sixe histories of patient lob. Ibid. 149 Making in his Cloyster many Histories in wet, after Masaccio’s manner.

6. A ‘wet’ person (see wet a. 15 b); spec, a politician with liberal or middle-of-the-road views on controversial issues (often applied to members of the Conservative Party opposed to the monetarist policies of Margaret Thatcher). 1931 F. L. Allen Only Yesterday x. 254 The Government putting wood alcohol and other poisons into industrial alcohol to prevent its diversion, and the wets thereupon charging the Government with murder. 1933 D. L. Murray Eng. Family Robinson vii. 159 He’s quite right... You are a wet! Who does pay regularly? 1939 G. Heyer No Wind of Blame xvi. 299 He’s a regular wet, that chap: doesn’t hold with blood sports. 1948 C. Day Lewis Otterbury Incident ix. 111 Don’t be a wet. We’ll get off all right. 1961 C. Willock Death in Covert xi. 201 ‘That wet,’ said fford, reverting to a school-boy expression. ‘Wet he may be, but he knows about lighters.’ 1974 I. Murdoch Sacred & Profane Love Machine 76 You’ve made me into a bloody wet. I’m a fighter and you’ve made me into a weak person. 1976 S. Barstow Right True End iii. xii. 180 She likes to throw out these challenges that put me to the test and make feel a weakkneed wet. 1980 B. W. Aldiss Life in West ii. 42 He’s a bit of a wet, but quite a sound art-historian. 1980 Sunday Tel. 6 Apr. 9 At least Sir Ian Gilmour and other political wets do not have their hair pulled. 1980 Times 7 Apr. 9/1 Mr James Prior, Secretary of State for Employment, is described in one Sunday paper as ‘the champion of the Tory wets’. Ibid., Who.. are to be counted among the wets? The answer seems to be anybody who crosses the Prime Minister in fashioning a particular policy. 1980 W. Whitelaw in Observer 23 Nov. 11, I don’t really know what a wet is. 1983 Age (Melbourne) 5 Oct. 13 [Of U.K. politics] In contrast to the expansionist, protectionist and welfare-oriented Wets, the Dries stand for small government, economic rationality and individual responsibility.

7. U.S. slang. = wetback s.v. wet a. 21. 1973 Daily Tel. (Colour Suppl.) 16 Feb. 13/1 In the past, unscrupulous employers would employ a ‘wet’ for a month, then denounce him to the Immigration authorities before pay day. 1979 Time 8 Oct. 33/1 A group of ‘wets’, or ‘undocumented workers’, as official jargon calls them. Most of the Mexican aliens are poor, frightened and docile people whose only crime is seeking to find work and a better life in the U.S. 1979 G. Swarthout Skeletons 104 Why doesn’t this [system] detect every wet who puts a toe across the line?

wet, sb.2 colloq. (f. wet v.] 1. A drink or draught of some beverage; a glass of liquor.

alcoholic

In the 18th c. app. sometimes confused with whet sb. 2 b. 1719 D’Urfey Pills V. 125 At Noon he gets up for a wet and to Dine, c 1752 Narr. Journ. Ir. Gentl. Eng. (1869) 47 Valerius protested he could not walk back to dinner until he had taken a wet, as he called it: and.. he went into a tavern .. and produced some cold roast beef, Cheshire cheese, and a cool tankard. 1789 Trifler No. xxxviii. 487 John Whip enquired of his knot of brethren on the roof whether they would take a wet. 1880 Baring-Gould Mehalah xxiv, Do you, Elijah, hand a wet round. 1881 A. C. Grant Bush-Life Queensland iii. (1882) 22 No bargain could be completed without a ‘wet’ over it. 1890 Beeton's Christmas Ann. 17 You look dry; let’s have a wet. 1910 Louise Gerard Golden Centipede x, Chrys won’t dare to hide the wets when there are visitors in the house.

2. slang. Urination, the act of urinating; urine. rare. 1925, 1975 [see wet v. 17].

wet (wet), a. Forms: a. 1-2 waet (wat), 1 Anglian wet (uet), 3-4 wet, 3-6 wete, 4-5, 9 Sc. weet, 4-6 weete, 5 weiete, north, weytt, 5-7 Sc. weit, 6 weat(e. /3. 4 north, wat, 4-5 north, and Sc. wate, midi, wote, 5-6 Sc. wait. y. 4- wet, 4-7 wette, 4-8 wett, (6 whet). 8. Sc. 6 watt, 6- wat. [Three distinct types are represented here: (1) the a-forms, originating in OE. weet adj. = OFris. wet (WFris. wiet, dial, weet, NFris. wiat, wit), ON. vatr (Icel. votur, Norw. vaat\ Sw. vat, Da. vaad), a word not found outside of the AngloFrisian and Scandinavian groups; (2) the /3-forms resulting from the adoption of the OScand. *wat- (ON. vatr), giving the common northern ME. wate, wait, and the rare midland wote\ (3) the y-forms, properly the pa. pple. of the verb, which finally supplant the others

except in dialect. The Sc. wat may either be a variant of this or of the earlier wate.) 1. Consisting of moisture, liquid. Chiefly as a pleonastic rhetorical epithet of water or tears. In OE. used with ref. to mediaeval physiology = moist 1 d, humid b. c888 Alfred Boeth. xxxiii. §5 Sie eorSe is dryje & ceald, & pxt waeter waet & ceald. c 1000 ^lfric Saints' Lives xxx. 441 Forjif, drihten, pxt l?yses fyres haeto sy jecyrred on waetne deaw. c 1220 Bestiary 752 Al Sat eure smelleS swete, be it drie, be it wete. a 1300 Cursor M. 23679 Waters renand alwais wat. 13 .. K. Horn 970 (Harl. MS.) Horn .. spec wij? wete tearen. c 1330 R. Brunne Chron. Wace 9952 pre dayes hit was pey nought ete, Ne nought drank pat was wete. CI374 Chaucer Compl. Mars 89 This cely Venus nygh dreynt in teres wete. - Troylus v. 1109 Phebus with his hete Gan. .to warmen of pe Est See pe wawes wete. 1513 Douglas JEneis vii. v. 82 Careit throu feill large haw stremys wait. 1605 Shaks. Lear iv. vii. 71 Be your teares wet? Yes faith: I pray weepe not. 1862 Mrs. Browning Last Poems, My Heart & I iii, Our voice which thrilled you so, will let You sleep; our tears are only wet. 1894 Pall Mall Gaz. 20 Dec. 3/1 At Suez, Padishah gave way to tears— actual wet tears—when Potter became the owner of the birds. 1896 Kipling Seven Seas 85 But, oh, the little cargoboats, that sail the wet seas roun’. Comb. 1597 Middleton Wisd. Solomon xix. 18 The drieland foule, did make the sea their nest, The wet-sea fish did make the land their rest.

2. a. Of weather, a period of time, a locality: Rainy. C893 Alfred Oros. iii. iii. 102 Of untidlican gewideran, pxt is, of waetum sumerum, & of dryjum wintrum. c 1380 Wyclif Sel. Wks. I. 96 As wete somers nurishen siche tares. C1461 Bale's Chron. in Six Town Chron. (1911) 145 Upon Thursday which was a wete day. 1577 Googe Heresbach's Husb. 1. 21 b, You must not plowe in wette weather. 1634 Milton Comus 930 Wet Octobers torrent flood. 1685 in Verney Mem. (1907) II. 382 The wettest and windiest day that I have seene. a 1700 Evelyn Diary 6 Oct. 1679, A very wet and sickly season. 1785 Burns Halloween xv, The simmer had been cauld an’ wat. 1849 c. Bronte Shirley xii, They had passed a long wet day together without ennui. 1861 J. H. Bennet Shores Medit. 1. vi. (1875) 161 [In] the Riviera.. it is seldom or never, at the same time, cold and wet. 1863 [see soaking/)/)/, a. 6], 1877 Huxley Physiogr. 46 The wettest spot in England being near Seathwaite in Cumberland.

b. Of the air, wind, etc.: Holding or carrying moisture in the form of vapour. c 1400 Destr. Troy 12474 Wintur vp wacknet with his wete aire. 1883 Stevenson Silverado Sq. (1886) 42 In the tunnel a cold, wet draught.. blew.

c. Of a star: Bringing rain. c 1425 MS. Digby 233 If. 225/1 At holy rode day., bygynneth pe my3t & pe strengpe of pe wete sterre arture.

d. transf. and fig. (Cf. rainy 2 b.) a 1661 Fuller Worthies, Gen. xi. (1662) 38 Ergo, saith the Miser, part with nothing, but keep all against a Wet day. 1691 Norris Pract. Disc. 34 The children of this World .. will [not] let slip any other advantage .. of providing against a Wet Day. 1865 J. Hatton Bitter Sweets v, You’d most likely come down topsy-turvy, and have a werry wet welcome at the end of it. 1872 Black Adv. Phaeton xxix, Scotland was evidently bent on giving us a wet welcome.

e. Comb. (adj. + sb. used as an attrib. phr.). 1883 Miss Broughton Belinda iii. vi, It was an innocent enough wet-day amusement! 1897 Mary Kingsley W. Africa 96 The torrential downpour of the wet-season rain. 1901 C. Holland Mousme 323 Their huge wet-weather hats.

f. absol. — wet season. Freq. with def. article and also with capital initial, colloq. (chiefly Austral.). 1897 Mary Kingsley W. Africa 371 When the Ogowe and its neighbouring rivers come down in the ‘long wet’. Ibid. 375 In February comes the short dry, then the short wet till May. 1908 Mrs. A. Gunn We of Never-Never i. 5 He .. wired an inane suggestion about waiting till after the Wet. 1934 Bulletin (Sydney) 29 Aug. 20/4 In the ‘wet’ it became a miniature lake at which one cocky’s horses were wont to drink. 1941 I. L. Idriess Great Boomerang vii. 51 An early and heavy wet would set in that would spill water for a thousand miles south-west. 1968 S. L. Elliott Rusty Bugles in E. Hanger Three Austral. Plays 1. ii. 41 That’s what everyone tells me. Wait until you’ve done a Wet. 1981 P. Carey Bliss iii. 135 Each year when the wet ended she found herself looking forward to it again.

3. a. Of land or soil: Holding water, saturated with water, heavy. 0900 Leiden Riddle 1 Mec se ueta uong, uundrum freorij, ob his innaSae aerest caendae. c 1000 Sax. Leechd. I. 90 Deos wyrt.. biS cenned gehwaer on smepum landum & on waetum. a 1023 Wulfstan Horn. (1883) 249 Loca humentia, pxt beoS waete stowa. 01300 Cursor M. 1318 Gyson, fison, tigre, eufrate, pis four mas al pis erth wate. 1375 Barbour Bruce xix. 692 For I haf gert spy ws a gat. Suppos that it be sum-deill wat, A page of ouris we sail nocht tyne. 1377 Langl. P. PI. B. xiv. 41 pe wylde worme vnder weet erthe. c 1425 Wyntoun Cron. 1. xi. 968 pe watyr of Nyle our fletis it all Withe mowynge spryngis wip outtyn spate, Qwhen Egipte nedis to be wate [MS. W. wait], c 1470 Golagros & Gaw. 35 Sa wundir wait wes the way. 1523-34 Fitzherb. Husb. §14 [Oats] wylle grow on weter grounde than any corne els. 1557 Tusser ioo Points Husb. §38 When pasture is gone, and the fildes mier and weate. 1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. (S.T.S.) II. 286 Thay contendet to cum out of that narow and watt place ful of dubis and myres. 1625 G. Markham Inrichment Weald Kent 9 A cold, stifle and wet clay. 1784 Young's Annals Agric. II. 43 In many of their fields they are troubled with springs; they call the wet spots squalls. 1842 Bischoff Woollen Manuf. II. 383 This is not, however, a turnip soil, being much too wet and heavy. 1847 [see soaking ppl. a. 6]. 1911 G. Macdonald Roman Wall Scot. 132 The field at the bottom is still wet and marshy. absol. 1824 Scott St. Ronan's viii, Miss Clara cares little for rough roads .. Zounds! she can spank it over wet and dry.

WET fig. 1824 W. Irving Tales Trav. 11. Club Queer Fellows, A good joke grows in a wet soil,.. but withers on your d-d high dry grounds. Comb. 1778 [W. Marshall] Minutes Agric., Digest 70 A wet-land Farm.

b. Of a crop: Grown in a moist or watery soil. 1885 W. W. Hunter Imp. Gaz. India (ed. 2) II. 63 The most valuable of the ‘wet’ crops is sugar-cane.

4. Made damp or moist by exposure to the elements or by falling in water; sprinkled, covered, or permeated with rain, dew, etc. Const, with, fof. a. of things, esp. clothing. C900 Bseda's Hist. v. xii. (1890) 436 Naefre he £/. a. 1 c]. 1611, 1764 [see skin sb. 6e]. 1798 Southey Lett. (1856) I. 61 But all this does not make it the more agreeable to get wet through. 1835 W. Irving Tour Prairies xiii, Some dripping wet, having fallen into the river. 1840 Longf. in Life (1891) I. 359 The last eighteen miles it rained like fury, and I reached Hartford wet through. 1859 F. E. Paget Curate Cumberworth 343 The rain set in .. so heavily, that in half an hour I was wet to the skin.

d. absol. the wet — one’s wet clothes. 17.. The Ploughman iii. in Herd Songs (1776) II. 145 Cast aff the wet, put on the dry, And gae to bed, my deary. 1816 Scott Antiq. xxvi, And then the man casts aff the wat and puts on the dry, and sits down.. ahint the ingle.

e. Applied to a removable liner for the cylinder of an internal-combustion engine that has cooling water flowing between it and the cylinder wall. 1935 Jrnl. R. Aeronaut. Soc. XXXIX. 470 The four cylinders 63 m/m. bore by 120 m/m. stroke were steel jacketed, wet liners, having four valves per cylinder. 1959 Motor 14 Oct. 304/2 Cylinder blocks with individual wet liners of cast iron. 1975 M. J. Nunney Automotive Engine iii. 94 Positive sealing arrangements must be made with wet cylinder liners to prevent leakage of coolant into the crankcase. 1981 H. E. Ellinger Automotive Engines x. 157/2 Coolant flows around the cylinder sleeve, so this type of sleeve is called a wet sleeve.

5. a. Suffused with tears; moist with weeping or with being wept upon. Const, with, fof. c 1205 Lay. 30268 Wete weoren his wongen. a 1225 Ancr. R. 278 Bihold mid wet eien J?ine scheomeful sunnen. c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 2356 Euerilc he kiste, on ilc he gret, lie here was of is teres wet. a 1300 Cursor M. 25999 >at )?ou mai sai al wit pe prophet, Mi weping mas mi bed al wet. C1386 Chaucer Hnt's T. 422 The pure fettres on his shynes grete Weren of his bittre sake teeres wete. 1390 Gower Conf. I. 98 Hire yhen smale and depe set, Hire chekes ben with teres wet. C1489 Caxton Sonnes of Aymon ix. 226 His eyen wexed weete agen for pite. 1500-20 Dunbar Poems lxxii. 133 Repentence ay with cheikis wait, No pane nor pennence did eschew. 1611 Shaks. Cymb. v. v. 35 These her Women., who with wet cheekes Were present when she finish’d. 1667 Dryden & Dk. Newcastle Sir M. Mar-all iv. i, Lord! her innocency makes me laugh my Cheeks all wet. 1785 Cowper Task iv. 17 Epistles wet With tears, that trickled down the writer’s cheeks. 1871 Bryant Odyss. v. 105 Gazing with wet eyes upon the barren deep. 1885-94 Bridges Eros & Psyche

WET

172 May xxvi, And when at night her lover kisst her, lo! Her tender face was wet with tears of grief.

b. Suffused or covered with blood; dripping or oozing with blood. (Only of wounds, or with explicit mention of blood.) a 1300 Cursor M. 15628 pat was blod pan of him ran, pe place was J?ar-wit wett. Ibid. 24082 His bodi al blodi wat. 13.. Sir Orfeo 80 Sche froted hir honden and hir fet, And crached hir visage, it bled wete. C1320 Cast. Love 1433 pe woundes grene and weet, W^uche pat weoren on honden and feet, c 1400 Destr. Troy 1329 Wyde woundes & wete. c 1440 York Myst. xxxviii. 283 pat swete, pat for my loue tholed woundes wete. 1804 W. L. Bowles Spir. Discov. iv. 24 The evil of his march through cities stormed, And regions wet with blood!

c. Moist or damp with perspiration. c 1400 Laud Troy Bk. 8436 Of his forhede barst the swote, That al his face ther-of was wote. 1803 Med. Jrnl. X. 84 After violent perspiration, a linen or cotton shirt becomes wet.

d. to get wet: to lose one’s temper, become angry. Austral, slang (? Obs.). 1898 Bulletin (Sydney) 17 Dec. Red Page, To get narked is to lose your temper; also expressed by getting dead wet. 1916 C. J. Dennis Songs of Sentimental Bloke 42 Romeo gits wet as ’ell. 1945 Baker Austral. Lang. 121 A man in a temper is said .. to get wet.

e. to get (someone) wet: to gain the upper hand over; to have at one’s mercy. N.Z. slang. c 1926 ‘Mixer’ Transport Workers' Song Bk. 29 He skites about in-fighting. Stick to him, Mick; you’ve got him wet. 1941 Coast to Coast 1941 124 ‘Got you wet, haven’t they?’ He flung the remark over his shoulder as he went over to his bed. 1945 F. Sargeson When Wind Blows vi. 40 Now we’ve got ’em wet.

f. Of those activities of intellignece organizations, esp. of the K.G.B., that involve assassination, slang. 1972 A. Price Col. Butler's Wolfvi. 58 The Russian slang for Spetsburo Thirteen was Mokryye Dela—‘The department of wet affairs’.. and to get wet was the feared, inevitable fate of traitors pursued by the special bureau. 1975 J- Grady Shadow of Condor ii. 47 ‘The courier made other mistakes... It was a wet affair.’.. Ryzhov like to use the old KGB liquid euphemism for executions. 1980 J. Gardner Garden of Weapons 11. vii. 191 He had seen men killed: and killed them himself: he had directed ‘wet operations’, as they used to be called. 6. a. Made moist or damp by dipping in, or

sprinkling or smearing with, water or other liquid. Freq. of new-printed matter (newspapers or books), esp. in the phr. wet from the press. 1390 Gower Conf. II. 264 Tho lay ther certein wode cleft, Of which the pieces nou and eft Sche made hem in the pettes wete, And put hem in the fyri hete. 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. vii. Ixiv. (1495) 280 The water slydeth of as it were of a wete hyde. c 1430 Two Cookery-bks. 48 Wete pin dyssche in pe hony, & with pe wete dyssche ley pe malmenye & cofyns. 1432-50 tr. Higden I. 267 Then the white neckes schalle be humectate or made weiete with golde. c 1450 Mirk's Festial 191 Byd hym goo ynto pe chirch, and se how al pe pament 3et ys wete of pe holy watyr. 1644 Milton Areop. (Arb.) 53 Do we not see.. weekly that continu’d Court-libell.. Printed, as the wet sheets can witnes, and dispers’t among us for all that licencing can doe? 1721 E. Ward Wand. Spy 1. (1729) 3 Then a wet Finger does its Duty, And robs the Bar-board of its Beauty. 1754 Connoisseur No. 29 If 1, I snatch up the favourite sheets wet from the press and devour every syllable. 1798 Coleridge Recantation xx, With the morning’s wet newspaper. 1804 Med. Jrnl. XII. 494 It should be afterwards cleaned with a wet sponge. 1835 New Monthly Mag. XLIV. 337 Just published, and wet from the press, ‘The Stranger’s Guide through Little Pedlington’. 1838 Dickens Mem. Grimaldi I. vii. 186 No sooner did they arrive wet from the press, than men on horseback were immediately despatched with them to Canterbury. 1839 De Quincey Wordsw. G? Southey Wks. 1889 11. 316 Wordsworth’s habits of using books .. were not vulgar; not the habits of those who turn over the page by means of a wet finger. 1850 F. K. Hunt Fourth Estate II. 220 Just as the wet Newspaper, fresh from the News-boy, is being opened at the eight o’clock breakfast table. 1859 FitzGerald Omar xxxvi, I watch’d the Potter thumping his wet Clay.

t b. (a) with a wet finger: easily, with little effort. Also (b) readily, without hesitation; (c) slightly, lightly. Obs. Perh. from the practice of wetting the first or second finger on one’s tongue in order to facilitate turning over the leaves of a book or to rub out writing on a slate. Cf. quots. 1721 and 1839 in 6. 1542 Udall Erasm. Apoph. To Rdr. *iv, A large and plain table.. whereby.. to any good matier in the booke conteined, readie waye and recourse maye with a weat fynger easily bee found out. 1562 J. Heywood Prov. & Epigr. (1867) 78 With a wet fynger ye can fet, As muche as maie easyly all this matter ease. 1589 Rare Tri. Love &? Fortune iii. C4, And I can finde One with a wet finger that is starke blinde. 1593 G. Harvey Pierces Super. 2, I hate brawles with my hart: and can turne-ouer A volume of wronges with a wett finger. 1600 Wisd. Dr. Dodypoll iii. E3b, Flo. Canst thou bring me thither? Pea[sant]. With a wet finger sir. 1644 Featly Roma Ruens 5,1 could with a wet finger produce divers decrees of Popes .. flat repugnant one to the other. 1690 C. Nesse O. & N. Test. I. 293 How easily .. even with a wet finger, (as we say) could God.. have overturned Jacob. 1728 [De Foe] Street-Robberies 47 When our Tryal came on, we got clear with a wet Finger, as the Folks say. 1748 Richardson Clarissa (1768) V. 152 If thou likest her, I get her for thee with a wet finger, as the saying is! 1754 Foote Knts. 1. 15 If Dame Winifred was here, she’d make ’em all out with a wet Finger; but they are above me. 1818 Scott Hrt. Midi, xii, If we could but find ony ane to say she had gien the least hint o’ her condition, she wad be brought aff wi’ a wat finger. (b) 1583 Stubbes Anat. Abus. 11. 39 The broker will giue mony for them, with a wet finger. 1604 Dekker Honest Wh.

1. A 4, If ever I stand in neede of a wenche that will come with a wet finger. (c) 1586 [? J. Case] Praise Mus. vii. 79 To let passe all generalities which I touched before with a wet finger. 1624 Gataker Transubst. 45 The slightnesse and slendernesse of his Answeres, with a wet finger (as we say) passing by the manifold allegations produced.

c. in other proverbial expressions. to cover oneself with a wet sack: see sack sb.1 3. 1561 tr. Calvin's 4 Serm. Idol. i. Aiij b, Thinking that he is escaped when he is couered, as the common saying is, vnder a wette sack. 1578 H. Wotton Courtlie Controv. 61 For so many pleasures vanished, as an Ele through a wette hande. 1579, e water wolde.. wete [MS. y weete] al her clones, c 1480 Henryson Age & Youth 4 Perly dropis of pe balmy schowris \>ir wodis grene hed with pe watter wet. 1530 Palsgr. 780/2 In the begynnyng of the yere the dewe weteth the grounde swetely. 1589 Pappe w. Hatchet in Lyly's Wks. (Bond) III. 394 We care not for a Scottish mist, though it wet vs to the skin. 1600 W. Watson Decacordon (1602) 218 Men.. of as bad a nature and base a moulde as euer water wette, or winde dried. 1658 Nicholas Papers (Camden) IV. 57 Wee had not above 4 shots of powder and that the worst that euer water wet. a 1700 Evelyn Diary an. 1646, These waters in some places breaking in the fall wett us as if we had pass’d through a mist. 1719 De Foe Crusoe 11. (Globe) 554 The Place was not deep, but it wetted me all over. 1795 Southey Lett.fr. Spain (1799) 60 The clouds wetted me as they passed along. 1816 Tuckey Narr. Exped. R. Zaire v. (1818) 179 During the night we had two smart showers of rain, which.. wetted us through. 1839 Dickens Nickleby xiv, ‘It doesn’t take much to wet you and me through, Mr. Crowl,’ said Newman, laying his hand upon the lappel of his threadbare coat. 1858 Lardner Hand-bk. Nat. Phil. 73 If a capillary tube be plunged in a liquid which wets it. 1874 March. Dufferin Canad. Jrnl. (1891) 171 A thunder¬ shower .. which wetted us to the skin. 1884 Law Times Rep. LI. 229/2 The water .. soaked under the wall and wetted the mud below it. fig. a 1340 Hampole Psalter xvii. 17 Apparuerunt fontes aquarum.. pat is pe sothfastnes of prechours is seen, pat wetis men wip halesome lare. 1627 E. F. Edw. //(1680 fol.) 93 What can he do to England, which hath a wooden wall will wet his courage?

b. absol. c 1330 R. Brunne Chron. Wace 10340 Wyp rysyng wawes, .. Fer aboute hym wil he [the lake] wete. Ibid. 10343 be wawes pat so wetes. a 1600 Montgomerie Misc. Poems v. 44 All is not gold that gleitis.. Nor water all that weitis. 1600 Shaks. A. Y.L. iii. ii. 27 The propertie of raine is to wet, and fire to burne. 1660 F. Brooke tr. Le Blanc's Trav. 373 All they ever have is a dew, which is so slender it never wets at all. 1661 Boyle Physiol. Ess. (1669) 187 Though every wetting Liquor be fluid, yet every fluid Body does not wet. 1756 C. Lucas Ess. Waters I. 82 The purest water wets soonest and most.

c. passive. Often to be wet through, (also f thorough or through wet), wet to the skin (cf. a). The form wet of the pa. pple. is sometimes difficult to distinguish from wet a. 4 c. c 1400 tr. Higden VII. 151 In processe of tyme pat body ywette wip dewy droppes knewe pe comoun corrupcioun of dedly men. C1400 Laud Troy Bk. 12942 So faste doun the water 3et, That thei were alle thorow wet. 1497 Naval Acc. Hen. VII (1896) 129 The Newe making of a last of gonnepoudre wett in saltwater. 1535 Coverdale Dan. iv. 15 With the dew of heauen shall he be wet. 1542 Udall Erasm. Apoph. 99 b, But if he had been wetted from toppe to toe, no man standyng by to see it, then had he been miserable in veraye deede. 1589 Puttenham Eng. Poesie 111. xvii. (Arb.) 189 As the drie ground that thirstes after a showr Seemes to reioyce when it is well iwet. 1594 [see through adv. 4]. 1639 J. Taylor (Water P.) Part Summers Trav. 44 So that the miserable Stipend.. will hardly buy wood to make a fire for him when hee comes home to dry him, when hee is through wet. 1659 in Verney Mem. (1907) II. 141 Hee .. was wett to the skin before he came half way. 1759 Johnson Idler No. 71 If 9 He.. heard with great delight a shower, by which he was not wet, rattling among the branches, a 1766 Mrs. F. Sheridan Sidney Bidulph (1796) IV. 53 The bottom of that vile ditch into which he had fallen was full of water, and he had been wet quite through. 1775 A. Burnaby Trav. N. Amer. 36, I had been wet to the skin in the afternoon. 1820 Southey Wesley I. 78 Having slept on the floor one night, because his bed had been wetted in a storm. 1842 Min. Proc. Inst. Civil Engin. II. 78 Some of the compressed trenails had been wetted by accident, and could not be afterwards driven into the holes in the chairs. 1856 Hawthorne Engl. Notebks. (1870) II. 14 We were caught in two or three showers .. but got back.. without being very much wetted. 1898 A. Balfour To Arms vii, The street was paved with large, rounded stones, which.. were splashed and wetted by dirty water thrown from above. 1904 A. N. Cooper Quaint Talks 10 Few things have struck people as more wonderful than how I have survived being wet through so often.

5. a. Of a person or animal: To get (oneself, one’s body or clothes, also another person or object) moist or damp by contact with, or immersion in, water or other liquid. 1338 R Brunne Chron. (1810) 204 Sir kyng rise vp & skip, for pou has wette pi hater, c 1386 Chaucer Prol. 129 She leet no morsel from hir lippes falle Ne wette hir fyngres in hir sauce depe. c 1400 Maundev. (Roxb.) vi. 21 pat wymmen schuld mow wade ouer and no3t wete paire kneesse. 1589 Hakluyt Voy. 542 When they can flye no further [they] fall into the water, and hauing wette their wings take a newe flight againe. 1639 J. Taylor (Water P.) Part Summers Trav. 40 You know you need not wet your foot to seek them, they are your own already. 177° C. Jenner Placid Man v. vii. II. 142 If you can be contented .. to return at night,.. having in four or five hours tired a pair of coach-horses, wetted two servants to the skin [etc.]. 1816 G. S. Faber Orig. Pagan Idol. I. 398 Every morning they [certain aquatic birds] repaired to the sea, wetted their wings, and sprinkled the sacred edifice. 1818 Scott Br. Lamm, xiii, Twa finer

dentier wild-ducks never wat a feather. 1846 Mrs. A. Marsh Father Darcy xliv, In traversing the ford of the Stour .. they have wetted the bag of powder. 1873 March. Dufferin Canad. Jrnl. (1891) 82 The gentlemen.. in getting into the canoe .. were upset, and wet all their clothes.

b. Proverb. C1384 Chaucer H. Fame 1785 For ye be lyke the sweynte catte, That wolde haue fissh but.. He wold no thinge wete his clowes. 1390 Gower Conf. II. 39 As a cat wolde ete fisshes Withoute wetinge of his cles. c 1394 P. PI. Crede 405 J>ou woldest not weten py fote, & woldest fich kacchen. 1545 Taverner Erasm. Prov. 59 b, The cat wold fyshe eate, but she woll not her fete weate. 1546 J. Heywood Prov. 1. xi. (1867) 28. 1639 J. Clarke Parcem. 234 The Cat loves fish well, but is loath to wet her foot.

c. To void urine in (one’s bed, clothes), to wet one's pants fig., to become excited or upset (as if to the extent of involuntarily voiding urine). 1767 Ordinary's Acc. Eliz. Brownrigg 10 The deceased child had wetted the bed. 1899 Allbutt's Syst. Med. VIII. 259 The man who wets his bed, rather than take the trouble to get out and make water, is insanely idle. 1979 ‘M. Underwood’ Smooth Justice i. 35 There are quite a few people who’ll wet their pants if I get sent down. 1981 A. Price Soldier no More 184 We did see the Histories season at Stratford, I grant you. But I don’t remember any schoolgirls wetting their pants next to me.

d. refl. To urinate involuntarily. Also fig. (as at sense 5 c above). 1922 Joyce Ulysses 730 What do I care with it dropping out of me and that black closed breeches he made me buy takes you half an hour to let them down wetting all myself. 1970 G. F. Newman Sir, You Bastard 258 The Sunday editors would wet themselves; they liked nothing better than a sordid purge in an institution. 1976 Times Lit. Suppl. 30 Jan. 100/5 She also sweats, weeps, vomits and wets herself.

6. Of a river, sea, etc.: a. To water, irrigate (land). 1382 Wyclif Josh. xiii. 3 The trubli flood that weetith [Vulg. irrigat] Egipt. a 1425 Cursor M. 1318 (Trin.) Fison, gison, tigre & eufrate, Al erpe pese weten erly & late. 1773 Fergusson Leith Races iv, I dwall amang the caller springs That weet the Land o’ Cakes.

b. To lave, border country), rare.

with

water

(a

coast,

1572 T. Twyne tr. Dionysius' Surv. World A v, The Sea.. which .. wetting the countrie Issica .. is called Issicum. 01774 Fergusson Auld Reekie 319 As lang as Forth weets Lothian’s shore.

7. a. to wet (one’s) whistle, weasand, mouth, beak, beard, etc.: to take a drink. See also CLAY sb. 4 b. c 1386 [see whistle sb. 2]. c 1460 Towneley Myst. xiii. 103 Had She oones Wett Hyr Whystyll She couth Syng full clere Hyr pater noster. 1530, 1653 [see whistle sb. 2]. 1611 Cotgr., Crocquer la pie, to wet the whistle, or weason, throughly; to drinke hard. 1682 N. O. Boileau's Lutrin 11. 154 Wetting their Whistles with the good Ale-pot. 1722 Croxall Fables JEsop xcviii. 169 I’ll give you a Dram to wet your Whistle, a 1774 Fergusson Auld Reekie 4 Whare couthy chiels at e’ening meet Their bizzing craigs and mous to weet. 1785 Burns Scotch Drink xiv, Monie daily weet their weason Wi’ liquors nice. 1850 Dickens Copperfield vii, The wine shall be kept to wet your whistle. 1888 R. Buchanan Heir of Linne i, I ne’er can sing till my throat’s wetted, Tammas. 1910 W. H. Hudson Sheph. Life xi. 135 The starlings.. singing and talking and swallowing elderberries between whiles to wet their whistles. 1939 T. S. Eliot Old Possum's Bk. Pract. Cats 16 For to the Bell at Hampton he had gone to wet his beard. 1978 J. Carroll Mortal Friends 1. v. 53 Is there a public house here where a fellow could wet his beak?

fb. passive. To be primed with liquor. (Cf. wet a. 14a.) Obs. c 1440 Partonope 5198 And so they dronke pat bope they bene Welle I-wette [Rawl. MS. Well wet]. 1540 Hyrde tr. Vive s’ Instr. Chr. Worn. iii. i. (1557) 130 At bankettes and festes, whan they be well wette with drynke.

fc. refl. To imbibe liquor, take drink. Obs. c 1440 York Myst. xxx. 94 Itt were appreue to my persone pat preuely 3e paste me, Or ye wente fro this wones Or with wynne 3e had wette yowe. 1672 R. Wild Poet. Licentia 27 And if the fiery trial should return, Most of you wet your selves too much to burn.

d. to wet the other (or t'other) eye: to drink one glass after another. 1745 Life Bampfylde-Moore Careui 89 The Officers.. filled him out a Bumper of Cherry Brandy, which when he had drank they forced another upon him, persuading him to wet the other Eye. 1840 J. T. J. Hewlett P. Priggins xiii, Take one more jug of beer—wet t’other eye, we call it. 1840 Dickens Old C. Shop lxii, Moisten your clay, wet the other eye, drink, man! a 1845 Barham Ingol. Leg., Hints Hist. Play 47 There’s not a drop left him to ‘wet t'other eye’.

e. absol. To drink alcoholic liquor; to ‘liquor up'. 1783 J Woodforde Diary 9 Oct. (1926) II. 97 With the latter I walked to the Swan and there wetted with him that is, drank a glass of Wine. 1840 Haliburton Clockm. Ser. iii. xi. 147 But come, let’s liquour; I want to wet up. 1880 Baring-Gould Mehalah xxi, I’m dry after my row and want a wet. As I wet I will talk.

f. To accompany (solid or dry food) with liquor. 1878 T. Hardy Ret. Native vi. iv, Maul down the victuals from corner-cupboard.. and I’ll draw a drop o’ sommat to wet it with.

8. a. To celebrate by drinking; to have a drink over. The earliest use is to wet a commission (in the Army or Navy). 01687 Villiers (Dk. Buckhm.) Milit. Couple Wks. 1715 I. 128 He was as Drunk as a Chaplain of the Army upon wetting his Commission. 1698 J. H. Farquhar's Love & Bottle Prol., Come on then; foot to foot be boldly set, And our young Author’s new Commission wet. 1710 C.

Shadwell Fair Quaker Deal 11. 27 Crib. Ay, the two Ships would serve us nicely. Easey. Then we should have Commissions to wet. 1711 Steele Sped. No. 88 f 4 Three Quarts to my new Lord for wetting his Title. 1829 Marryat F. Mildmay xvi, They.. declared I should give them a dinner to wet my commission, a 1854 L. Beecher Lect. Intemperance 23 Until in some places a man can scarcely wear an article of dress, or receive one of equipage or furniture, which has not been ‘wetted’. 1876 Hindley Cheap Jack 268, I shall be back again shortly, when we will wet the deal. 1894 A. Robertson Nuggets 16 Drinks is to be redooced to-day from a shillin’ to sixpence, so we’ll wet the occasion.

b. to wet the baby's head and varr.: to drink to celebrate the birth of a child, colloq. 1885 W. Westall Old Factory xxiv. 161 ‘We’ll wet little Mabel’s head with some of it.’ ‘What mean you?’.. ‘Why my wife was brought to bed last night of a little lass as we are going to call Mabel, and I’d like us to drink to her health. That’s what we call wetting a child’s head in these parts.’ 1924 Lawrence & Skinner Boy in Bush xiv. 210 Come along in—all welcome!—an’ wet the baby’s eye. 1953 E. Simon Past Masters iii. v. 173 At the party given to ‘wet the baby’s head’ the McGillivrays’ friends and relations produced only large and expensive gifts. 1970 Guardian 2 May 3/7 If he had not been wetting the baby’s head, and so been slightly above proof, he might have run for it.

9. f a. Naut. To cast or drop (an anchor). Obs. a 1600 Montgomerie Misc. Poems xlviii. 168 We wat ane anchor evin betuixt they tua. 1638 Mayne Lucian (1664) 95 One Anchor more, perhappes, I have never yet cast, or wet, which is to pretend old age, sicknesse, [etc.],

b. to wet one's line: to start fishing, to fish. 1653 Walton Angler iii. 80, I have not yet wet my line since I came from home. 1898 G. A. B. Dewar In Pursuit of Trout 165 On days when nothing was doing.. he might not rarely be heard remarking that he had not wetted his line.

10. a. To steep or soak (grain) in water in order to convert it into malt. 1695 Lond. Gaz. No. 3076/4 A large Mault House that wets 700 Quarters per Annum. 1742 Lond. & Country Brew. 1. (ed. 4) 22 In a great Brew-house, .they wetted or used a considerable Quantity of Malt in one Week. 1844 J. T. Hewlett Parsons W. xxv, The farmer would get a good price for his barley, the poor man would be able to ‘wet’ and convert into malt enough for his family.

b. To infuse (tea) by pouring boiling water on the leaves; also with tea-leaves as obj. dial, and colloq. 1902 Cornh. Mag. Dec. 776, I ha’ wetted th’ tea pretty nigh half-an-hour ago. 1905 H. G. Wells Kipps iii. ii. §3 Ann .. stooped with the kettle-holder to wet the tea. 1916 Blackw. Mag. Apr. 499/1 ‘Aye, aye, sir,’ replies the duty servant. ‘Tea just being wetted.’ (We never ‘make’ tea, we always ‘wet’ it!) 1939 Joyce Finnegan s Wake 585 You never wet the tea! 1944 M. Laski Love on Supertax viii. 77 Make yourself at home, and I’ll just wet the tea-leaves. 1978 I. Murdoch Sea 419 ‘I’ll wet the tea,’ said Hartley and disappeared into the kitchen.

11 .to wet dorwn, to damp (sails, paper, embers) with water. 1840 R. H. Dana Bef. Mast iv, We.. continued wetting down the sails by buckets of water whipped up to the mast¬ head. 1888 Jacobi Printers' Vocab., Wetting down, the process of damping paper for printing purposes. 1891 Daily News 26 Sept. 2/5 Holland said that when he came on his watch there was no supply of coal in the bunkers, and that Jensen would not wet down his ashes.

12. Dyeing, to wet out, to soak in water. 1882 Crookes Dyeing 106 The yams or pieces are first wetted out uniformly with water. 1900 Jrnl. Soc. Dyers XVI. 8 Before dyeing, the bodies [of hats] are well wettedout in boiling water.

13. Glass-making, to wet off, up. (See quots. and cf. wetter i b, wetting vbl. sb. 3 d.) 1849 A. Pellatt Curios. Glass Making 85 The pontil secures the whole preparatory to its being whetted [szV] off the bowl.. by the touch of the cold pucellas. 1908 Rosenhain Glass Manuf. 57 The virgin clay and chamotte having been intimately mixed, the whole mass is ‘wet up’ by the addition of a proper proportion of water and prolonged .. kneading. Ibid. 99 The blower.. detaches the bottle from the pipe .. by locally chilling the glass—a process known by the descriptive term of ‘wetting off.

11. intr. 14. To become wet. Also to wet through. 01310 in Wright Lyric P. ix. 36 The water that it [sc. a stone] wetes yn, Y-wis hit wortheth al to wyn. 1757 in Phil. Trans. L. 361 The millers do not deny .. that some whiting is carried to all the great mills. The excuse alleged for it is, that it makes the flour wet, and consequently bake, the better. 1902 S. E. White Blazed Trail xviii, I thought any leather would wet through in the snow!

15. To rain, drizzle, dial. 1740 Richardson Pamela II. 88 Dont you think that yonder Cloud may give us a small Shower? and it did a little begin to wet. 1825 Jamieson, To weit, weet, to rain. 1828 Carr Craven Gloss., Wit, to rain gently. 1886 Chesh. Gloss., Weet or wet, to rain slightly.

16. Naut. Of a vessel: To ship water. 1875 Bedford Sailor's Pocket Bk. vi. 214 A reef should be taken in directly the boat begins to wet.

17. To urinate. Also fig. 1925 D. H. Lawrence Novel in Reflections on Death of Porcupine 122 But see old Leo Tolstoi wetting on the flame. As if even his wet were absolute! 1935 V. Woolf Let. 21 June (1979) V. 403 The marmoset is just about to wet on my shoulder. 1954 J. Steinbeck Sweet Thursday xiv. 82 Housebroken dogs wet on the parlor rug. 1975 J. Cleary Safe House ii. 71 The children want to wet... Come on, love. Have your wet.

III. 18. The vb. stem in comb., as wet-bed = bed-wetter s.v. bed sb. 19. 1934 ‘J. Spenser’ Limey breaks In iv. 61, I lay awake for so long that I heard the night watchman come to call the wet-

WET beds, i960 J. Stroud Shorn Lamb xviii. 204 Does he enurete?.. I’ve got four chronic wet-beds already.

wet, adv. rare[f. wet a. in wet nurse.] As a wet nurse. 1697 Vanburgh Relapse v. v, I who had suckled it, and swadled it, and nurst it both wet and dry.

wet, obs. form of what, wit v. weta ('weta). N.Z. [Maori.] Any of several wingless orthopteran insects of the genus Deinacrida, Pachyrhamma, or Hemideina. 1843 E. Dieffenbach Trav. N.Z. II. iii. 396 Weta—an insect so called. 1857 C. Hursthouse N.Z. I. v. 123 The Weta, a suspicious-looking scorpion-like creature, apparently replete with ‘high concocted venom’, but perfectly harmless. 1863 S. Butler First Year in Canterbury Settlement ix. 441 One of the ugliest-looking creatures.. is called ‘weta’, and is of tawny scorpion-like colour, with long antennae and great eyes, and nasty squashy-looking body, with (I think) six legs. 1888 Trans. N.Z. Inst. XXI. 41 Not a sound was heard in that lonely forest, except.. the sharp noise produced by the weta. 1949 [see huhu]. 1961 R. Park Hole in Hill (1962) xiv. 115 A giant glistening black insect.. waving its antennae... ‘It’s only a wetaV 1975 E. Hillary Nothing Venture, Nothing Win ii. 40 When I was making up the bed I found a huge weta.. in one of the blankets.

wetale, obs. Sc. form of victual. wet blanket. 1. A blanket that has been drenched in water; esp. one used for quenching a conflagration. Chiefly in allusive use. 1662 Atwell Faithf. Surveyor 95 Of quenching an house on fire. The Instruments.. are .. forks, wet-blankets, ladders,.. pails, &c. Ibid. 97 Cover the out-side with wet blankets, hair-cloths, &c. that neither the flame get out nor air get in. 1702 Baynard Cold Bathing 11. (1709) 264 At Whitny in Oxfordshire, those who work at the BlanketMills, carry wet Blankets in their Arms next their Breast, Winter and Summer, and never catch Cold. 1772 Cumberland Fashionable Lover 1. i. 4 His humours damp all mirth and merriment, as a wet blanket does a fire. 1821 Byron Juan iii. xxxvi, Lambro’s reception at his people’s banquet Was such as fire accords to a wet blanket. 1838 Pusey in Liddon Life (1893) II. xxi. 54 It seems like a wet blanket cast upon all the fire we have been fanning.

2. fig. a. Something that acts as a damper to activity, enthusiasm, or cheerfulness. 1810 Sir G. Jackson Diaries & Lett. (1873) I- r43 It would have been a cruel stroke of fate.. if.. a wet blanket [had] been thrown over them [sc. gaieties]. 1829 Sporting Mag. XXIII. 426 All was in readiness .. when a wet blanket was thrown upon all their hopes. 1848 Mrs. Gaskell Mary Barton ii, It was an unlucky toast or sentiment... It was a wet blanket to the evening. 1894 Jessopp Rand. Roaming vi. 195 That chilling maxim—the wet-blanket of enthusiasm.

b. A person who has a depressing or dispiriting effect on those around him. 1857 Mrs. Mathews Tea-Table T. I. 185 Such people may be termed the wet blankets of society. 1875 S. Beauchamp N. Hamilton II. 18 As he is of course the wet blanket of the party, they are none of them sorry when he leaves again. 1883 Miss Broughton Belinda 11. iv, She would spoil the whole thing; she is such a wet blanket. 1897 Mrs. Oliphant W. Blackwood I. iii. 128 Sometimes he called her a wet blanket, when she thus damped his ardour.

Hence wet-'blanket v. trans., to throw a damper on, discourage, depress. Also (noncewds.) wet-'blanketing ppl. a.; wet-'blanketiveness; wet-'blanketty a. 1866 J. D. Coleridge Let. in Life Ld. Coleridge (1904) II. 140, I think any one would have felt * wet-blanketed by the utter commonplaceness of the whole affair. 1868 Louisa M. Alcott Little Women xxi, I know Meg would wet-blanket such a proposal, but I thought you had more spirit. 1893 W. A. Shee My Contemp. iii. 47 Such people .. should.. not be allowed to wet-blanket the world with their stolid stare. 1901 Scotsman 12 Mar. 9/5 Power traction.. had been effectively wetblanketed for fully two generations. 1843 J. F. Murray World of London I. 131 The impossiblemongering, cold-water-throwing, •wet-blankettingfellows, howled in this way about the Thames tunnel. 1834 Fraser's Mag. X. 412 Throwing off the ‘*wetblanketiveness’ which usually extinguishes your social qualities. 1848 Zoologist VI. 2048 Adapting my phraseology to the author’s, I would say such parts of the book are very ‘*wet-blanketty’.

wetche, obs. form of watch. wetched, -et, obs. forms of watchet. wet dock. (In contrast to dry dock.) fl. = dock sb.3 1 (where see quot. 1627). Obs. 2. (See dock sb:3 4.) 1661-2 [see dock sb.3 4]. 1689 Lond. Gaz. No. 2512/4 A Pink about 30 Tun, lying in the Wet-Dock at Deptford. 1724 Ibid. No. 6321/3 The great wet Dock in Rotherhith. 1753 Hanway Trav. (1762) I. vii. lxxxvi. 400 The harbour or wet-dock .. will contain eighty men of war. 1814 Scott Wav. xviii, The little inlet of water.. where, as in a wetdock, the skiff.. was still lying moored. 1839 Civil Engin. & Arch. Jrnl. II. 26/1 It is proposed to construct a ship canal from Newhaven Harbour to Lewes, with a wet-dock and basin at Lewes. 1880 Encycl. Brit. XI. 466.

fwete. Obs. [OE. wxta wk. masc. In later ME. merged in wet sb.1 i.] Moisture; a liquid, liquor, drink. 1:897 /Elfred Gregory's Past. C. xi. 73 Se wzeta Sara innoSa [humor viscerum], 971 Blickl. Horn. 209 Swipe wynsum ond hluttor WEeta utflowende. c 1000 Ags. Gosp. Luke viii. 6 Hit forscranc forpam pe hit waetan nafde. c 1000 ^Elfric Horn. II. 298 Ne dranc he wines drenc, ne nan Stera

176 waetena pe druncennysse styriaS. c 1205 Lay. 19769 Vt heo dro3en sone amppullen scone ifulled mid attere, weten alre bitterest. 01225 Ancr. R. 164 Hwo pet bere a deorewurSe licur, oSer a deorewurSe wete, as is bame, in a feble uetles.

wete, obs. f. weet v.1, wet, wheat, wit. weter, obs. f. water sb. weteri, -y, obs. ff. water v. weterly, var. witterly. wetewold, obs. f. wittol. fweth, var. waith sb.2 1602 Reg. Mag. Sig. Scot. 476/1 Cum parvis custumis,.. wrak, wair, weth et proficuis quibuscumque. 1631 Ibid. 633 Cum lie gressingis, scheillingis, multuris wraik, wair, weth.

fwethe, v. Obs. rare. [Of obscure origin; perh. an alteration of weve (cf. biweve ii.1 2), or related to south-western dial, weath pliant, supple.] trans. To twist or twine. 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P R. XVII. cxliv. (Bodl. MS.), Som wepies bep .. so pliaunte pat pei brekep nought but bep made stronge wip weping [ed. 1495 weuynge] and windinge as prede is wl twynyng. c 1440 Pallad. on Husb. IV. 676 Too bowes .. they take And bynde, and wethe [L. torques] hem so that germynynge Commixt vp go.

wethe, obs. form of withy. t 'wethead. Obs. rare. In 4-5 wetehed(e. [f. wet a. + -head.] Wetness. 1379 Glouc. Cath. MS. 19 No. 1. I. iv. 11 b, And wirketh as frost doth in the wetehede. c 1440 Jacob's Well 238 Moysture, wetehed, softhed & neschhed.

wethen, var. whethen Obs., whence. wether ('weSa(r)). Forms: a. 1, 3 weSer, 3-4 wej?er, 4-5 wethur, -ir, 5 wethyr, -ire, 6 wethar, 6-9 weather, 4- wether; 4-5 whethir, -ur, 4-6 whether, 5 whetther. jS. 4, 6 weder, wedir, 5 wedyr, wedor; 5-9 wedder (5 -ur, -yr); Sc. 5-6 vedder, weddir, 6 wadder, wodder, weadder. [Common Teutonic: OE. weder = OFris. *wether (NFris. wether, WFris. weer), OLFrank. wither (MDu. weder, Du. weer), OS. withar, -er (MLG. weder, wer, LG. weer), OHG. widar, -er, -ir (MHG. wider, G. widder), ON. and Icel. veSr (Norw. veder, ver\ MSw. vdpur, wddhur, etc., Sw. vddur, Da. vasder), Goth, wiprus (= lamb), prob. related to L. vitulus calf.] 1. A male sheep, a ram; esp. a castrated ram. See also bell-wether. a. c 890 W^erferth tr. Gregory's Dial. 34 He breac on parc\ haelftre for bridelse & wej>era fella for sadole. c 1000 TElfric Horn. II. 576 His bijleofa wzes aelce daej.. hundteontig weSera. c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 3998 On ilc alter fier alSernefier, And 6oron an calf and a weSer. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 1210 Vourti pousend of ruperen he let quelle per to, & of fatte wet?eren an hondred pousend al so. a 1300 Cursor M. 11649 Wolf and wej?er, leon and ox, Sal comen samen, and lamb and fox. 1382 Wyclif Gen. xxx. 35 And he seuerde that day the she geyt, and the sheep, and the hye3 geyt, and the wetheres. 1398 T revisa Barth. De P. R. viii. x. (1495) 310 As a whetther in lyenge vpon 00 syde tornyth and chaungyth by egall tymes. C1450 Mirour Saluacioun (Roxb.) 81 Ysaac .. was delyvred fro dede And a wethire cleving in breres sacrified in his stede. 1533 in Weaver Wells Wills (1890) 2 John Horley oon whether,.. ii yewes. 1588 Lambarde Eiren., Precedents (1591) Yyj b, Tres oues castratas (anglice vocatas Weathers). a time pe god sende pe halie witi^e. c 1250 Kent. Serm. in O.E. Misc. 30 \>u hest i-hialde l>et beste wyn wat nu. c 1315 Shoreham v. 245 Fram crystes resurreccioun, Wat comep hys ascensioun. 13 .. Guy Warw. (A.) 4902 In pat cite pai bileued pere What Tirry was hole & fere, c 1330 Arth. & Merl. 5022 No fined pai neuer swiche a sle^t, What pai to Gaheriet com ri3t. 1340 Ayenb. 87 Wypoute comynge ayen of huyche pinges, non ne is ury in pise wordle, huet hi is y-do. 12. To the extent that; as much as, so far as. (Cf. C. 2 a, 8.) Obs. exc. dial. c 1374 Chaucer Troylus iv. 35 Ector.. Caste on a day wip Grekes for to fighte As he was woned to greue hem what he myghte. c 1400 Destr. Troy 1794 He.. welcomyt hym worthely as a wegh noble, And fraynit hym with frendship qwat the fre wold. 1561 T. Hoby tr. Castiglione's Courtyer ill. (1577) Q viij b, As though shee woulde . . allure what she can the eyes and affection of whoso beholdeth hyr. 1647 Ward Simple Cobler (1843) 52, I speak these things to excuse, what I may, my Countrymen in the hearts of all. 1690 Penn Rise Progr. Quakers (1834) 6 They changed what they could, the kingdom of Christ.. into a worldly kingdom. fl3. (? after F. que..ou.) Whether (with correl. or). c 1550 Rolland Crt. Venus 1. 797 Befoir my Maiestie .. Or my deputis quhat thay be greit or small. D. Indefinite (non-relative) uses. 1. pron. (sb.).

fl. Something; anything: only

OE. exc. as surviving in phrases in which what is

qualified

word,

by

a

quantitative

(sometimes a genitive),

or

identifying

e.g. anywhat,

elsewhat (OE. elles hwaet), little-what (OE. lyties hwaet, ME. titles what, what litles, little B. 3 c),

MANYWHAT,

mickle

what,

otherwhat,

MOST what, mickle

somewhat,

MUCHWHAT (also

A.

3),

q.v.,

nowhat,

whence

was

evolved a subst. use of what = thing, all what: all sorts of things. Obs. c 1200 Ormin 9035, & 3et forr all an operr whatt Se33de pe laffdi3 Mar3e, pat I Josaep Cristess faderr wass. Ibid. 18553 patt all patt strenedd iss off Godd, Off Godess a3henn kinde, All iss itt all patt dike whatt patt Godd iss inn himm sellfenn. c 1290 St. Edmund 408 in S. Eng. Leg. 442 3wat lutles it was pat he et, was al of grete pingue. 1303 R. Brunne Handl. Synne 5963 3yf pou receyuedyst any what Of one pat hys pyng forgat. CI374 Chaucer Boeth. iv. pr. vi. 104 (Camb. MS.) She a lvtel what smvlynge. 1390 Gower Conf. I. 98 Florent.. syh this vecke w'her sche sat. Which was the lothlieste what That evere man caste on his vhe. a 1400-50 Wars Alex. 3046 So fell fli3t was of flanys.. Of arrows & of all quat. 1562 J. Heywood Prov. & Epigr. (1867) 112 Doo, say, or syng, in any what, Thou art a minion marmsat. 1579 Spenser Sheph. Cal. July 31 Come downe, and learne the little what, that Thomalin can sayne. 1596-F.Q. vi. ix. 7 They .. gaue him for to feed Such homely what, as serues the simple clowne. II. adv. or con). (Often, esp. in early examples, capable of being construed as a pronoun = ‘some'.) 2. a. Introducing (a) each, or (b) only the first, of two or more alternative or co-ordinate words or

phrases:

(fas,

fso)

(a) =

including.. and;

what., what,

(b)

Some.. others; as

well.. as;

what., and both., and;

partly .. partly.

Now rare exc. with special implication (see b). (a) a 1175 Cott. Horn. 237 Of pe folce we siggeS pat hit cump fastlice.. wat frend, wat fa. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 1152 Hor folc hii lore .. Wat in bataile, wat in pe se, and hore hors nei echon. Ibid. 5548 Wat poru is stalward-hede, wat poru godes grace, Mony was pe gode body, pat he slou. Ibid. 8289 Wat adreint, wat aslawe, tuelf princes per were ded. a 1300 Cursor M. 2293 Quat for luue and quat for doute. Ibid. 3907 Quat of his wiues tuin in spus, And wat of hand wimmen in hus, Tuelue suns had he o paa. c 1330 Arth. & Merl. 8873 What wip wristling^wat wip togging, What wip smiteing & wip skirminge, On bope half so pai wrou3ten, Her kinges on hors pai brou3ten. c 1384 Chaucer H. Fame hi. 968 The thinges that I herde there What a lovde, and what in ere. c 1400 Maundev. (Roxb.) xxv. 118 Fyfty comacy of men, what of hors men, what of fote men. c 1449 Pecock Repr. 11. viii. 189 He schal, what in the firste partie, and what in the ij'. partie, fynde herto proof ynou3- 1531 Tindale Prol. Jonas Wks. (i573) 28/2 All the noble bloud

was slayne vp, and halfe the commons thereto, what in Fraunce, and what with their owne sword, in fightyng among them selues for the crowne. a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. IV 13 b, These Lordes had much people folowing them what for feare and what for entreatie. 1610 Holland Camden's Brit. i. 634 The Severn sea .. what beeing driven backe..with a Southwest winde, and what with a verie strong pirrie from the sea troubling it, swelled [etc.]. 1654 Earl Monm. tr. Bentivoglio's Wars Flanders 122 Most of the Kings ships which, what great, what little, were about forty. 1670 Cotton Espernon 11. vm. 350 A hundred and fifty Horse (what Gentlemen, and what of his own Guards). a 1693 Urquhart's Rabelais in. i. 19 Seven Children at the least (what Male what Female) were brought forth. 1819 Scott Ivanhoe xxvi, I conceive they may be—what of yeomen—what of commons, at least five hundred men. (6) c 1400 Maundev. (1919) xxviii. 170 What on horse & on fote, mo J?an CC. Mi. persones. 1442 Beckington s Jrnl. (1828) 101 There is in pypes, what in the towne so in the castel, moo than CC legge herneys. c 1450 Brut 11. 483 What of rayne, thondere and lightnyng and hayll. c 1500 Melusine 240 Many riche rayments.. were made what for the spouse as for the ladyes & damoyselles. Ibid. 266 About xviii. C what balesters as Archers. 1509 Hawes Past. Pleas, ill. iii, The very perfect bryghtnes, What of the tower, and of the cleare sunne. 1523 Ld. Berners Froiss. I. ccxxiv. 119 b/1 They rode so long what night and day. 1670 Cotton Espernon ill. ix. 441 They had been mann’d out with above four hundred and fifty, what Mariners, and Souldiers.

b. Introducing advb. phrases formed with prepositions (in the earliest periods chiefly for, later usually, now almost always, with), implying (in early use only contextually) ‘in consequence of, on account of, as a result of; in view of, considering (one thing and another)’. In quot. 1591 without alternative: what for simply = ‘for, because of. (a) c 1175 Lamb. Horn. 145 Alle we beoS in monifald wawe .. hwat for ure eldere werkes, hwat for ure a3ene gultes. c 1290 Beket 391 in S. Eng. Leg. I. 117 3wat for e^e, 3wat for loue, no man him ne with-seide. 1340 Hampole Pr. Consc. 7100 What for sorow, and what thurgh smoke And what thurgh cald, and what thurgh hete.. pai salle ay grete. c 1450 St. Cuthbert (Surtees) 1743 What for hungyr, what for thriste, pe shipmen of na lykyng lyste. 1476 Paston Lett. III. 161, I ame somewhatt erased, what with the see and what wythe thys dyet heer. 1551 Robinson tr. More's Utopia 11. (1895) 116 The .ii. corners, what wythe fordys and shelues, and what with rockes, be very ieoperdous. 1570 Foxe A. & M. (ed. 2) 209/2 What for the pillage of the Danes, and what by inward theues and bribers: this land was brought into great affliction. 1603 Shaks. Meas.for M. 1. ii. 83 What with the war; what with the sweat, what with the gallowes, and what with pouerty, I am Custom-shrunke. a 1672 Wilkins Nat. Relig. 1. iii. (1675) 36 What through their vicious affections ..; what through their inadvertency or neglect.. they are not to be convinced. 1673 Marvell Reh. Transp. 11. 181 The Penalty of the Bonds should have differ’d, what in case he run the Subject only into Errour, and what in case of Sin. 1678 J. Williams Hist. Gunp.-Treas. 18 What for avoiding the Report of too much Credulity,.. what from the care of doing any thing that might redound to the blemish of the Earl of Northumberland,.. it was resolved [etc.]. 1756 Monitor No. 35. I. 325 What by.. diminution of trade: what by the immense weight of taxes;.. some were actually ruined. 1819 Scott Ivanhoe xliv, Athelstane’s spirit of revenge, what between the natural indolent kindness of his own disposition, what through the prayers of his mother Edith.. had terminated [etc.]. 1842 De Quincey Mod. Greece Wks. 1890 VII. 331 What through banks, and what through policemen, the concern has dwindled to nothing. 1865 Kingsley Herew. ii, The track, what with pack-horses’ feet, and what with the wear and tear of five hundred years’ rainfall, was a rut three feet deep and two feet broad. (b) c 1386 Chaucer Sqr.'s T. 46 The foweles.. What for the seson and the yonge grene Ful loude songen hire affeccions. 1393 Langl. P. PI. C. xvm. 85 What J?orw werre and wrake and wycked hyfdes. 01400-50 Wars Alex. 781 Quat of stamping of stedis & stering of bernes, All dymed pe dale. C1420 Chron. Vilod. 3173 What by-cause of pe hele of pis gode wyff, & also of pe meracle pe whiche per was do. c 1440 Alphabet of Tales 13 What for calde & for holdyng in pe watir, I was nere-hand slayn. 1579 Twyne Phis. agst. Fort. 1. xxx. 41 What by the wonderfulnesse and number of the woorkes, there was nothyng in all the whole world to be wondred at, but Rome. 1591 Greene Maiden s Dream 154 She.. wrong out sighes so sore: That what for grief her tongue could speak no more. 1665 Sir T. Herbert Trav. (1677) 166 What by Themistocles on shore, and Leonidas at Sea, at Salamis and Thermopylse, his huge Army melted away. 1702 De Foe Shortest Way w. Dissenters 29 Alas the Church of England! What with Popery on one Hand, and Schismaticks on the other; Now has she been Crucify’d between two Thieves. 1768 Sterne Sent. Journ., Fragment I. 106 What for poisons, conspiracies and assassinations .., there was no going there by day—’twas worse by night. 1822 Cobbett Cott. Ecoti. (1823) § 108 What of Excise Laws and Custom Laws and Combination Laws and Libel Laws, a human being .. scarcely knows what he dares do or.. say. 1867 Parkman Jesuits in N. Amer. xxiii. (1875) 346 What with hunting, fishing, canoe-making, and bad weather, the progress of the august travellers was so slow. 1870 Dasent Ann. Eventf. Life xxxvi, Aunt Mandeville,. .what between the White Lady and the warm verses, was cjuite upset.

V For other indefinite (non-relative) uses see C. 4 d, 9 c. E. Substantival nonce-uses (from A., B., C.). 1. The question ‘What?’, ‘What is it?’, or the like, or the answer to such question; the essence or substance of the thing in question. 1656 Cowley Pindar. Odes, Extasie vi, An unexhausted Ocean of delight Swallows my senses quite, And drowns all What, or How, or Where. 1796 Mme. D’Arblay Camilla v. vi, ‘What, ma’am?—how?—what?—’ ‘Nay, nay, don’t be frightened. Come down to dinner, and we’ll talk over the hows? and the whats? afterwards.’ 1832 Motley in Corr. (1889) I. 18, I was summoned before the Senate of the University, and then wrote my name and my whences and whats, etc., etc., in a great book. 1844 L. Hunt Blue-

WHAT-D’YE-CALL-’EM Stocking Revels 11. 171 Poems 114 My lady will know all the what and the why. 1861 J. Brown Horae Subsec. Ser. 11. 101 Desiring to divine the essences rather than the appearances of things —in search of the what chiefly in order to question it, make it give up at whatever cost the secret of its why. 1884 tr. Lotze's Metaph. 431 It must seem utterly inconceivable that we should ask for the ‘what’ of a thing, and yet look for the answer in anything except that which this thing is and does.

2. A something. 1654 Whitlock Zootomia 149 who’s, and in short the slender Learning in Religious Division. Sheaves 54 We are not seeking Whom.

We have seen the Pittifull whats are against modest 1903 A. Maclaren Last a What; we are seeking a

3. An instance of the exclamation ‘What!’ 1779 Warner in Jesse Selwyn Contemp. (1844) IV. 254 His partner.. gave.. a ‘What!’ of such sharp, shrill astonishment, that you could not but have laughed at it. 1785 Mme. D’Arblay Diary 16 Dec., The What\ was then repeated.

fwhat, a.2 Obs. Forms: i hwaet, 3 hwat, whaet, wat. [OE. hwaet = OS. hwat keen, bold, OHG. hwaz, waz sharp, rough, severe, ON. hvatr bold, vigorous: related to WHET v., q.v.] Quick, active; stout, brave. Beowulf 1601 Nses ofjeafon hwate Scyldingas. a 1000 Bi Monna Craeftum 81 Sum bip to horse hwaet. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Horn. 183 To gode pu ware slau and let; and to euele spac and hwat. C1205 Lay. 7137 per weoren eorles swiSe whaete [c 1275 wate] and leiden per\e king bi ane 3ate.

what, Sc. f.

WHET V.

whata, var. futtah. whatabout(s ('hwDt9baut(s). rare. [f. what pron., after whereabout(s.] What one is about; doings, occupations. 1830 Southey Lett. (1856) IV. 170 Then you might know of all my.. whatabouts and whereabouts from Henry Taylor. 1841 N. Hawthorne in N. H. & Wife(4885) I. 227, I bethink me that you may have no objections to hear something of my whereabout and whatabout. 1868 Eliz. Prentiss Life Lett. (1882) 244, I was right glad.. to learn of your whereabouts and whatabouts.

t what-call-ye-him. Obs. Also simply whatcall. = what-d’ye-call-’em (-um), -her, -him, -it. 1473 Sir J. Paston in P. Lett. III. 104 Berthe cuppe evyn, as What-calle-ye-hym seyde to Aslake. 1592 Nashe P. Penilesse Wks. (Grosart) II. 130 His Page shal say.. he is so busie with my L. How-call-ye him, and my L. What-call-ye him. 1598 Seruingman's Comf. (1868) 166 M. what-callyou-hims man. 1609 Ravenscroft's Deuteromelia 21 This other day I start a hare On what-call Hill.

whatcha ('wotjs, ’hw-), repr. a colloq. or vulgar pronunciation of what do (or are, or have) you? See watcha. 1934 J. T. Farrell Calico Shoes 43 H’lo, baby! Whatcha say, kid! 1966 M. & G. Gordon Undercover Cat prowls Again (1967) v. 44 Whatcha getting me today, Tim? 1973 Black World June 65 Awwwwh, Baby what’cha done to meee. 1978 • M. Craig’ Were he a Stranger xvi. 128 ‘Whatcha want?’.. ‘We’re looking for a man,’ Ted called.

whatchamacallit (’wDtfsms.koilit, 'hw-), repr. a pronunciation of what-you-may-call-it (see what-d’ye-call-’em, etc. y). Chiefly U.S. [1928 M. Ostenso Mad Carews xii. 160 It’s your— whatcha-may-call-it—your dowry!] 1942 Berrey & Van den Bark Amer. Thes. Slang §75/4 Contrivance.. gadget, whatchamacallit. 1974 R. B. Parker God save Child (1975) ii. 13 A pet whatchamacallit... Guinea pig. 1979 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 24 Jan. 6/2 Wouldn’t everyone feel silly if it turned out.. that the whang-doodle was just a whatchamacallit with speed stripes?

what-d’ye-call-’em (-um), -her, -him, -it ('hwotdja-, 'wDtJakoitam, Etc), colloq. Less commonly what-do-you-call-’em, etc.; also variously abbreviated (see quots.); also simply 7-8 what-d’ye-call. See also /3. below, [what pron. A. 1.] An appellation for a thing or person whose name the speaker forgets, does not know or wish to mention, or thinks not worth mentioning. Also occas. substituted for any word (e.g. an adjective) which the speaker fails to recall. *639 [J. Taylor (Water-P.)] Divers Crabtree Led. 217, I .. gave her a sound spurnne upon the Buttocks:.. O my what doe you call’t, said shee. 1641 Cowley Guardian v. v, Dog. .. How the what-d’ye-call-’um runs? What do ye call it? Pun. Time, Sir. c 1646 Milton Sonn., On new forcers Consc. 12 By shallow Edwards and Scotch what d’ye call. 1678 Dryden Kind Keeper iii. i, His Father was Squire what-d’you call him, of what d’you call ’em Shire. 1704 Swift T. TubPrei. 17 Spoken by Mr. Whatdicall’um. 1752 Foote Taste 11, She was a kind of a what d’ ye call ’em.. a sort of a Queen or Wife, or something or other to somebody, that liv’d a damn’d while ago. 1765 Sterne Tr. Shandy VIII. xix, There being so many tendons and what d’ye call’ems all about it. 1773 H. Walpole Let. to W. Cole 8 Jan., Mr. What-d’ye-call-him’s pamphlet. 1779 Mme. D’Arblay Diary 16 June, Miss What-d’ye-call-her. 1806 Surr Winter in Lond. III. 257 We. .went to that public house or whatd’ye-call, in Piccadilly. 1827 Scott Chron. Canongate iii, There is good accommodation at the what-d’ye-call-’em arms. 1838 Dickens Nich. Nick, xxv, To break up old associations and what-do-you-callems of that kind. 1870 Lowell Study Wind. 74 As legitimate a subject of human study as the glacial period or the Silurian what-d’ye-callems. 1875 F.E. Trollope Charm. Fellow i, College is out of

WHATE the question .. unless he entered himself as a what-do-youcall-it?. . A sizar. 10. In contracted forms whatd’ecalt, what d’ee

cal’t, what-d’ye-caw’t, whatchicalt, what-shacallum, etc. (cf. washical): sometimes analysed as = what shall I call.. ? Obs. 1593 G. Harvey Pierce's Super. Wks. (Grosart) II. 57 Hollinsheads engrosing; some-bodies abridging; and whatchicaltes translating. 1598 B. Jonson Ev. Man in Hum. 1. ii. (1601) B4, Didst thou not see a fellow here in a what-shacallum doublet? 1632 Brome North. Lasse v. v, Your great acquaintance, and alliance in the Whatshicall Court Non obstante. 1641-Jov. Crew 11. (1661) F 1, Rogue enough though, to offer us his whatd’ecalts? his Doxies. 1654 Whitlock Zootomia 121 What think you Sir of your whatsha’come Water and Diascord? 1658 A. Fox tr. Wiirtz' Surg. 11. xxviii. 188 It is called also the not-named, or (a whats you call) an unknown Sore, no body knows what it is. 1673 S'too him Bayes 55,1 came onely to.. be a witness for the orthodoxness of what d’ee cal’t. 1691 Mrs. D’Anvers Academia 10 ’Tis, let me see, now, whach’ee call, Syncategorematical. 01807 J- Skinner Songs & Poems (1859) 43 That camsteary—what-d’ye-caw’t? (I think it’s genius, walie fa’t). 1820 Scott Abbot xxvi, My Lady Whatshall-call ’urn’s powder.

y. So what-ye (or -you) -call(-it, etc.), later usually what-you-may-call-it [what pron. C.4]. 1598 Chapman Blinde Beg. Alexandria Plays 1873 I. 28 Eli. Why hees a what you calt. Mar. A what you call it can you not name it. 1600 Shaks. A. Y.L. in. iii. 74 Good euen good Mr what ye cal’t. 16.. Middleton, etc. Old Law in. ii, Lis. Heeres your first weapon ducks meat. Sim. How, a dutch what you call em, Stead of a German falchion. 1848 Dickens Dombey xxvii, There is no What’s-his-name but Thingummy, and What-you-may-call-it is his prophet! 1870 Mary Bridgman Robt. Lynne xxiv, Fine place, Bob; built by the what-you-may-call-its. 1891 Kipling Light that Failed ix, Say good-bye to the what-you-call-um girl.

t whate, sb. Obs. Forms: 1 pi. hwata, 3 hwat, 3-4 quate, 3-5 wat(e, what(e, 5 qwate. [OE. pi. hwata, *hwatan (gen. hwatena), related to hwata augur, hwatung divination.] 1. Divination, augury; ? foreboding. c 1000 /Elfric Lev. xix. 26 Ne eton ge blod, ne ne jimon hwata ne swefna! C1200 Trin. Coll. Horn. 11 Warienge, and handselne, and time, and hwate, and fele swilche deueles craftes. c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 1054 3et sat loth at 6e bunes gate, After sum geste stod him quake [read quate]. c 1375 Cursor M. 19567 (Fairf.) Of wate he [5c. Simon Magus] was ful wonder wise.

2. Fortune, destiny, fate, luck. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Horn. 105 pe unbileffulle.. WerpeS )?at gilt.. uppen hwate, and seiS, nahte ich no betere wate. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 802 Alas alas j?ou luj?er wate [MS. 8 fortune], pat vilest me £>us one. Ibid. 8519 Vor gode wate afterward he nadde in none dede. 13 .. St. Gregory (Vernon MS.) 294 is a child of goode whate. c 1400 Destr. Troy 13681 pen fortune his fall felli aspies, Vnqwemys his qwate, & pe qwele turnys. 14.. MS. Cantab. Ff. v. 48, If. 94 (Halliw.) To bilde he hade gode quate.

b. ? Good fortune, luck. £1330 Florice & Bl. (1857) 14 And be hit erli and be hit late To thi wille thou schalt haue whate.

t whate, adv. Obs. [f. what a.2] Quickly. The identity of the word in the phr. alse (h)wat se (= as soon as) is uncertain. c 1175 Lamb. Horn. 79 A1 se hwat se he forgulte wes .. pet him er luuede ho him for wundeden. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Horn. 71 Alse wat swo pe man his sinne sore bimurneS, ure drihten lefteS pe sinne bendes. 13.. K. Alis. 2639 (Laud MS.) To Tebes ward hij wende)? whate, Hij shete)? a3eins hym pe gate. 01400 Lybeaus Disc. 1741 Lambard ladde hym forth well whate.

whate, obs. north, f. wot. whatever (hwDt'svafr)), pron. and a. Also poet. whate’er (hwDt'e3(r)); 6-7 whatere. [Orig. two words, what A., B. and ever adv. 8e.] 1. interrog. An emphatic extension of what, used in a question (direct or indirect), implying perplexity or surprise. Now colloq. (More properly written as two words: see ever adv. 8d.)

a. pron. 13.. Seuyn Sag. (W.) 3514 Son, what may al this noys be, ..Whateuer sal it sygnyfy? 14.. in Anglia XXVII. 285 Scho.. thoght: what euer menes pis message to me. c 1440 York Myst. xxiii. 85 Petrus. Brethir, what euere 3one brightnes be? 1823 Spirit Publ. Jrnls. 409 Whatever possessed her, I know no more than the child unborn. 1856 F. E. Paget Owlet of Owlst. xiv. 143 ‘Gracious heart alive, whatever in all the world was that?’ asks one. 1880 Mrs. Oliphant He that will not etc. xxiii, Whatever can you want to emigrate for?

b. adj. Mod. Whatever [or What ever] contrivance is that? I wonder whatever [or what ever] queer thing he’ll do next.

2. As compound relative, in a generalized or indefinite sense: see ever adv. 8e. (Occas. with correl. demonstrative following.) a. pron. Anything at all which, anything that; sometimes contextually (esp. poet.), all that, everything that. c 1375 Cursor M. 321 (Fairf.) Quat euer pe haly gaste wille, pe fader and sone wil tyte fulfil. C1450 Godstow Reg. 31 Holdynge ferme & stable what euyr he wolde do ther-with. 1456 Sir G. Haye Law Arms (S.T.S.) 228 Quhatever sik men dois, it is comperit to the dede of a beste. 1567 Gude Godlie B. (S.T.S.) 39 Quhat euer I haif, all that is thyne. 1592 Shaks. Ven. & Ad. 623 Being mou’d he [sc. the boar] strikes, whatere is in his way. 1671 Milton P.R. i. 149 Whose constant perseverance overcame Whate’re his cruel

WHATKIN

192 malice could invent. 1726 Swift Gulliver iv. v, It is a Maxim among these Men, That whatever has been done before may legally be done again. 1832 Ht. Martineau Life in Wilds vii. 88 In a few months we shall have stores of whatever we want. 1883 D. C. Murray Hearts i, We’ll lay in whatever you want to-morrow. b. adj. (sing, or pi., of things or persons): Any .. at all which (or who), any.. that; sometimes (poet.), all or every .. that. C1380 Wyclif Sel. Wks. III. 343 Whatever reasoun men maken of Crist, of Petir, or oper good ground, it goi)> opinli a3en sich a pope. 1382 - Ezek. xxxiii. 12 The rbtwijsnesse of a iust man shal not delyuere hym, in whateuer day he shal synne. c 1449 Pecock Repr. iv. viii. 463 What euer gouernaunce God in his Holi Scripture of the Newe Testament blameth. 1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. I. 29 Quhateuir thing the handis of men had twechet,.. frome al sik thay absteined mony dayes thaireftir. 1692 Bentley Boyle Led. vi. 22 What-ever successive Duration, shall be bounded at one end, and be all past and present, must come infinitely short of Infinity. 1764 Goldsm. Trav. 113-117 Whatever fruits in different climes were found,.. Whatever blooms in torrid tracts appear... Whatever sweets salute the northern sky ..; These, here [sc. in Italy] disporting, own the kindred soil. 1821-2 Shelley Chas. /, 11. 374 They will hear homilies of whatever length Or form they please. 1887 Goldw. Smith in Contemp. Rev. July 3 The Governor-General has been stripped of whatever little authority he retained. 3. Introducing a qualifying dependent clause equivalent to a conditional or disjunctive clause, often

with

happen

—

verb ‘if

in

any

subjunctive

(sort

of)

thing

(whatever happen’,

‘whether one thing or another happen’), a. pron. =

‘No

matter

what’;

frequently

implying

opposition (equivalent to a conditional clause with

though):

=

‘Notwithstanding

anything

that’. As predicate sometimes (esp. of persons) expressing quality or character, and thus approaching a pred. adj. (cf. what A. 17). Often with ellipsis (whatever its merits = ‘whatever its merits may be’). 13 .. Minor Poems fr. Vernon MS. xlix. 344 Whon pe pef passe)? quyt a-way, pe trewe mon hap schome, what-euer men sai. 01425 Cursor M. 11143 (Trin.) But what euer he had in )?ou3t Mis-likyng chere had he nou3t. 1559 Mirr. Mag., Jack Cade i, Whateuer it were this one poynt sure I know. 1591 Shaks. Two Gent. in. i. 100 Take no repulse, what euer she doth say. c 1600-Sonn. cxiii. 11 Whatere thy thoughts, or thy hearts workings be, Thy lookes should nothing thence, but sweetnesse tell. 1600-A. Y.L. 11. vii. 109 What ere you are That in this desert.. Loose, and neglect the creeping houres of time. 1606-Tr. & Cr. iv. v. 77 JEne. If not Achilles sir, what is your name? Achil. If not Achilles, nothing. JEne. Therefore Achilles: but what ere, know this. 1623 Heminge & Condell 1st Folio Shaks. A 3, But, what euer you do, Buy. 1667 Milton P.L. ii. 162 Whatever doing, what can we suffer more .. ? 1668 Dryden Secret Love 1. iii, Phil. And yet, there is a thing, which time may give me The confidence to name. Lys. ’Tis yours whatever. 1697-JEneis vi. 526 Mortal, what e’re, who this forbidden Path In Arms presum’st to tread, I charge thee stand. 1712 Steele Spect. No. 497 JP 3 Whether it were from Vanity,.. or whatever it was, he carried it so far, that [etc.]. 1780 Warner in Jesse Selwyn as do. C1200 Ormin 471 whillc [see B. 4]. Ibid. 5283 O whillkess kinness wise, c 1200 Vices & Virtues 77 Whilch lean aust Su te hauen of godd? Ibid. 125 3if pu wilt witen wilke ei^ene 8e hierte mu3e habben. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Horn. 179 Hlistefl nu for hwat and o wilche wise. 13.. quhylk [see B. 7a]. 13.. Northern Passion 256 (MS. Camb. Gg. 5. 31), pa\ lukyd .. Whylke [v.r. wylke] of payme it myght be fall. 1424 E.E. Wills (1882) 57, I wul my wyf haf my best ambeler, and my sone .. wylk him likej? best. 1585 Jas. I Ess. Poesie (Arb.) 14 The vapouris .. Whilks syne in cloudds are keiped closs and well, c 1634 W. Cartwright Ordinary iv. i, Lere me whylk way he wended. 1711 in Nairne Peerage Evid. (1874) 132 To be. .granted to the said deceast Robert lord Nairn and the airs male of his body whilks failzieing to the said Margaret now lady Nairn his daughter. 1819 Scott Leg. Montrose iii, Their damnable skirlin’ pipes, whilk they themselves pretend to understand. C1250 Gen. & Ex. 2350 SeiS him quilke min blisses ben. Ibid. 3631 Quilc frud, quat offrende, quilc [MS. quil] \a$e. a 1300 Cursor M. 4788 Lok quilk of us sal tak on hand For vs alle do pis trauail. Ibid. 8454 pe kind o thinges lerd he,.. Quil war pair mightes soth and lele. 1387 in Edin. Charters (1871) 35 In fourme the quylk eftir folowys. 1456 Sir G. Haye Law Arms 1 The rubryis.. be the quhilkis men may better knaw [etc.]. 01592 whilke [see B. 2 b]. 1637-50 Row Hist. Kirk (Wodrow Soc.) 123 The bukes of the Assemblie, all quhilkis I had preserved hole. 1724 Ramsay Vision xvii, Starrie gleims, Quhilk prinkled.

2 hwic, wic, 2-3 hwich, (3wich), 3-6 wyche, wich, 4 hwych, pi. huiche, 4-5 wiche, 4-6 whiche, whyche, wych, 5 whych, (wycche, 6 wycch, Sc. vich, vhich), 4- which; 4-5 quiche, quyche, 5 quich, quyeh, qwiche, qwyche(e, 5-6 Sc. quhich; 5 Sc. quhik.

224 01175 Cott. Horn. 238 Wic 3eie, wic drednesse wur8 per. Ibid. 243 Hwic scule beon ure sceld, sanctus paulus hus sei8. a 1200 Moral Ode 136 Lutel he hit scawe8 hwice hete is per pa saule wune8. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Horn. 141 Luste8 .. wiche wise hie hine bisohte and hwich andswere he hire giaf. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 326 Vor to wite in 3wiche stede is wonii[n]gge were. C1300 Beket (Percy Soc.) 974 In whiche manere. 1340 Ayenb. 129 Yzi3 wrechche ine huiche zor3es and ine huiche perils )?ou art. c 1375 Cursor M. 21136 (Fairf.) pat folk ilkane walde oper steyuen Quiche mu3t come titist to heyuen. C1380 Sir Ferumb. 511 A costrel.. hwych ys ful of pat bame cler. 1390 which [see B. 7 b]. 1415 in 43rd Rep. Dep. Kpr. Publ. Rec. 584 On ye morou ye Fryday ye quich was yis day fourteneghte. 1471 Paston Lett. Suppl. (1901) 138 Wycche mony I pray zow that [ye] bestowe yt as I wryth to zow. a 1500 Bernard, de cur a rei fam. 215 A mane,.. quhik al his fantasy Has geffyne to vice. 1551 Crowley Pleas. & Payne 63 Ye.. Wych wythout me had come to nought. 1585 T. Washington tr. Nicholay's Voy. 1. vii. 6 The master of my skiffe, whiche presently.. was made fast by the leg. a 1600 Montgomerie Sonn. lvi. 6 My teirs vhich so abound. 3. a. i hwylc, 2 hwulch, hulch, 2-3 wulc, 3

whulc(h, wulch, 5 whulche. 871-889 Charter in O.E. Texts 452/52 Swa hwylc mon swa hio wonie & breoce. c 1175 Lamb. Horn. 15 Hwulc mon is pet nauet to broken elche dei has godes la3e pe ic eou nu cwe8. Ibid. 27 huiche [see B. 6]. Ibid. 49 Nu 3e habbe8 iherd wulc hit is for to iheren godes weordes and heom ethalden. c 1205 Lay. 2303 pu nast of whulche londe heo com heder li8en. Ibid. 20735 For whulches cunnes Jfinge ligge we hus here. c 1400 St. Alexius (Vernon MS.) 207, I wolde fayn, & i wuste whulche.

/S. 3 hwuc, hwu(c)ch, wucch, 3-5 wuch(e, woch(e, 4 whuche, (w3uch), 4-5 whuch, whoche, 5 whoch, huch. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Horn. 189 And to-3enes hwuch fo man agh fur8ien sei8 pe holi apostle. Ibid. 219 For woche pinge he nemnede [etc.]. 01225 hwuc [see B. 1]. a 1250 Owl & Night. 1378 Bo wuch ho bo. C1320 Cast. Love no Allas W3uch serue and deol per wes! c 1400 Beryn 176 Huch pe Pardoner, & he, pryuely in hir pouchis pey put hem aftirward. 1401 26 Pol. Poems iii. 36 Whoche party may strengere be. 1422 Yonge tr. Seer. Seer. 143 Wylde bestis, amonge woche euery olt hym abow hym to whome he is prere [? pere].

B. Signification. 1. Interrogative and allied uses. For the distinction between the dependent interrogative and the relative, cf. note s.v. what A. I.**

f 1. adj. Most usually predicative: Of what kind, quality, or character; also attrib. what kind of: = L. qualis. (The interrogative corresponding to the demonstrative such.) Obs. In attrib. use (in sing.) sometimes followed by a. C897 Alfred Gregory's Past. C. lxv. 467 Daer ic haebbe jetaeht hwelc hierde bion sceal. c 1000 Ags. Gosp. Luke vii. 39 He wiste hwaet & hwylc J?is wif waere .., pset heo synful is. c 1205 Lay. 1 o 120 Men .. talden him tiSende of alle pere fore pe Petrus dude in Rome, and whulcne [C1275 wochne] martirdom Petrus hauede vnder-fon. a 1225 Ancr. R. 64 Hwon Godes prophete makede swuche mone of eien, hwuc mone wenestu is to moni mon .. icumen .. of hore eien? C1250 Gen. Gf Ex. 3212 Dor he stunden for to sen Quilc haraon wi8 hem sal ben. 1297 R- Glouc. (Rolls) 1189 So ii mi3te lerni wiche brutons were, c 1320 Cast. Love 53 To W3uche a Castel he alihte, po he wolde here for vs fihte. 1388 Wyclif James i. 24 Anoon he for3at which he was. c 1400 tr. Seer. Seer., Gov. Lordsh. 104 Whiche ys py fayth, and py lawe? a 1400-50 Bk. Curtasye 301 in Babees Bk., To aske his nome, and qweche he be.

2. As general interrogative. (Mostly Obs.) fa. adj. = what A. 13, 14. Obs. (or merged in 3 a.) c 900 tr. Baeda's Hist. iv. xx[i]v. (1890) 348 Hwylc J?earf is 8e husles? c 1000 Ags. Gosp. Matt. xxiv. 3 Seje us.. hwilc tacn si J?mes to-cymys. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Horn. 33 pe engel .. sewe8 a whilche wise and Jmregh hwam J?is blisse cumen sholde. c 1290 Beket 2323 in S. Eng. Leg. 173 In 3wat manere he was a-slawe and 3wuch tyme he was ded. c 1305 Jud. Isc. 101 in E.E.P. (1862) no Sit>^e ic fond mie louerd aslawe y not in whiche wise, a 1340 Hampole Psalter Cant. 515 He leryd him in whilk degre,.. and how he sould luf him. 1588 Shaks. L.L.L. iv. i. 105 Clo. From my Lord to my Lady. Qu. From which Lord, to which Lady? 1715 Leoni Palladio's Archit. (1745) II. 65 Nor ought any one to wonder, which way such vast Quantities of earthen Ware came here. 1752 Chesterf. Lett, ccxcvi. (1792) IV. 6 In some congratulatory poem prefixed to some work, I have forgot which.

b.pron. = what A. 1,6. Also (OE. and occas. later) = Who. Obs. exc. as a dial, or humorous substitute for what. 971 Blickl. Horn. 169 Hwylc aeteowde eow to fleonne fram 8on toweardan Godes erre? C1290 St. Brendan 569 in S. Eng. Leg. 235 Man mai i-seo 3wuch it is to 3yuen oJ?ur mannes ^ing with W0U3. a 1400 Minor Poemsfr. Vernon MS. 240/738 Afftur J?is schaltou witen pen W3uche ben pe comaundemens ten. C1400 Brut 22 (heading), How iiij kynges curteisely helde al Britaigne; and whiche beth here names. 1548-9 Bk. Com. Prayer, Catech., Tell me how many [commandments] there bee... Tenne. Whiche be they? 01592 Greene Jas. IV, 1. 657 Sike is the werld, but whilke is he I sawe? 1599 Shaks. Much Ado 11. i. 107, I haue manie ill qualities? Bene. Which is one? Mar. I say my prayers alowd. 1648 G. Sandy s' s Par. Ps. cxiv. 9 Recoyling Seas, which [ed. 1638 what] caus’d your dread? 1835 A. Parker Trip to West Texas 88 Ask a question, and if they do not understand you, they reply ‘which?’ 1848 Dickens Dombey xxxviii, ‘I want a so-and-so’ he says—some hard name or other. ‘A which?’ says the Captain. 1891 Kipling Light that Failed ix, Who’s interfering with which? 1910 P. W. Joyce Eng. as we speak it in Ireland 348 When a person does not quite catch what another says, there is generally a query... Our people often express this query by the single word ‘which?’ 1938 W. Faulkner Unvanquished 83 Yankee say, ‘Sartoris, John Sartoris,’ and Marse John say, ‘Which? Say which?’ 1950-Coll. Stories 752 ‘Here,’

which Weddel said, extending the tumbler... The Negro stopped. .. ‘Which?’ he said. He looked at the glass.

3. In limited sense, expressing a request for selection from a definite number: What one (or ones) of a (stated or implied) set of persons, things, or alternatives. (The current use.) a. adj. Sometimes, as in which way, indistinguishable from 2 a. c 1000 Ags. Gosp. Matt. vii. 9 Hwylc man is of eow gyf his sunu hyne bit hlafes sylst pu him stan? C1386 Chaucer Reeve's T. 158 Whilk way is he geen? C1400 Destr. Troy 12659 hen pai fraynet qwiche freke, pat schuld first enter. 1535 Coverdale 2 Kings iii. 8 Which waye wil we go vp? 1562 J. Heywood Prov. & Epigr. I iv, I know on which syde my bread is buttred. 1596 Shaks. Merch. V. 11. ix. 11 Neuer to vnfold to any one Which casket ’twas I chose. 1667 Milton P.L. iv. 73 Which way shall I flie? 1770 Foote Lame Lover 11, A wise man should well weigh which party to take for. 1882 Besant All Sorts xxi, Bound for some American port—I forget which. 1916 T. R. Glover The Jesus of Hist. iv. 70 When the question is asked, ‘Was Jesus the Messiah?’ the obvious reply is, ‘Which Messiah?’

b. pron. (foccas., in dependent clause, with the.) c950 Lindisf. Gosp. Matt. vi. 27 Quis autem uestrum.. huzelc uutetlice iurre? c 1000 Ags. Gosp. John xix. 24 Ne slite we hy, ac uton hleotan hwylces ures heo sy. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 928 Among hom..strif me mi3te ise Woch mest maisters were, a 1300 Cursor M. 15275 Ful wel i wat pe quilk o yow pe tresun has puruaid. 13.. St. Alexius 207 (MS. Laud 108) Lauedi, I wille ful fayn, and I wiste wilk. 1402 Jack Upland 28 Frere, how many orders be in erthe, and which is the perfitest order? c 1470 Gol. & Gaw. 919 Quhilk that happynnit the lak, Couth na leid say! 1526 Tindale John viii. 46 Which of you can rebuke me off synne? 1573-80 Tusser Husb. (1878) 77 In making or mending as needeth thy ditch, get set to quick set it, learne cunningly whitch. 1599 Shaks. Much Ado v. iv. 72 Which is Beatrice? Beat. I answer to that name. 1601 R. Johnson Kingd. & Commw. 2 Of these two I doe not know which to prefer. 1611 Shaks. Wint. T. iv. iii. 94, I cannot tell.. for which of his Vertues it was. 1660 Fuller Mixt Contempl. xiii. 21 Two young Gentlemen were comparing their revenues together, vying which of them were the best. 1791 Cowper Let. to W. Bagot 18 Mar., Indisposed.. with gout or rheumatism, (for it seems uncertain which). 1857 Ruskin Pol. Econ. Art Addenda 191 note, The contest between them is not.. which shall get everything for himself. 1889 Stevenson Ballantrae iii, But which is it to be? Fight or make friends?

4. adj. and pron. Repeated (in sense 3): a. in each of two (or more) separate clauses, usually connected by a conj. at friday was our leuedy day On wilk our lord slayn was. c 1386 Chaucer Sqr.'s T. 17, 18 And of the secte of which pat he was born He kepte his lay to which pat he was sworn, c 1450 Merlin ii. 32, I moste go in to that contre ffro whiche these be come to fecche me. 1663 Extr. St. Papers rel. Friends Ser. 11. (1911) 173 Many more thinges which the controuersy of the Lord is against. 1700 Congreve Way of World 11. iii, The Guilt with which you wou’d asperse me. 1830 Macaulay Ess., Moore's Life Byron (1843) I. 336 They wrote concerning things the thought of which set their hearts on fire. 1839 De la Beche Rep. Geol. Cornw., etc. xiv. 459 A bar upon which the sea breaks occurs at the entrance of the Kingsbridge estuary.

K c. In anacoluthic construction, as in that rel. pron. 8. rare. 1729 Law Serious C. ix, Direct your common actions to that end which they did.

9. Used of persons. Now only dial, except in speaking of people in a body, the ordinary word being who (objective whom) or (in sense b) that. a. Introducing an additional statement, as in 7: thus sometimes = ‘and he (they, etc.)\ a 1300 E.E. Psalter cxlv[i]. 3 Traiste never.. in men sones, in whilk hele es nane. C1386 Chaucer Frankl. T. 94 Hire freendes whiche pat knewe hir heuy thoght Conforten hire. -Shipman's T. 153 Yow which I haue loued specially. 1447 Bokenham Seyntys, Caecilia 201 Lord Jhesu Cryst, wych al thyng knowyst. a 1450 Knt. de la Tour 65 The holy man whiche had pitee of his neuew, sorufull he yede into his chapell. C1489 Caxton Sonnes of Aymon xxvi. 547 Charlemagn toke a messager whiche he sente to reynawde. 1526 Tindale j Cor. xv. 57 Thankes be vnto God, whych hath geven vs victory. 1548-9 Bk. Com. Prayer, Matins 2nd

WHICH Collect, O God, which art author of peace, and louer of concorde. 1610 Shaks. Temp. 1. ii. 342, I am all the Subiects that you haue, Which first was min owne King. 1692 O. Walker Grk. & Rom. Hist. 11. 310 He had nine Wives, all which he cast off successively. 1703 Moxon Mech. Exerc. 254 The Master-Bricklayer, or else his Foreman (which ought to be an ingenious Workman). 01774 Goldsm. tr. Scarron's Com. Rom. (1775) I. 200 A couple of women .. one of which.. leaned on the other’s shoulder. 1837 Dickens Pickw. xxxiv, Had been told it herself by Mrs. Mudberry which kept a mangle, and Mrs. Bunkin which clear¬ starched. 1899 Scribner’s Mag. XXV. 114/1 His mother had ten children, of which he was the oldest.

b. Introducing a defining clause, as in 8. 1338 R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 224 Whan pei were inowe, on whilk pei mot afie. C1386 Chaucer Pars. T. jf 981 If ther be a confessour to which he may shriuen hym. 1483 Acta Audit, in Acta Dom. Cone. II. Introd. 106 Because he mariit without his consent quhilk is his ourlord. 1526 Tindale Matt. v. 10 Blessed are they which suffre persecucion for rightewesnes sake. 01548 Hall Chron., Hen. IV 28 b, Entendyng to be reuenged on them whiche he sought for. 1600 Surflet Country Farm vi. xxii. 803 The reader which is carefull of his health, may learne to make choise of such wine. 1605 Shaks. Lear iv. vi. 215 Euery one heares that, which can distinguish sound, o 1703 Burkitt On N. T. Luke iv. 24 That Minister which prostitutes his Authority, frustrates the end of his Ministry. 1774 J. Bryant Mythol. I. p. xiv, Those people which, I term Amonians. 1836 Jas. Grant Random Recoil. Ho. Lords x. 224 Dugald Stewart, one of the greatest men which Scotland has produced. 1841 Alison Hist. Eur. IX. lxix. 202 The wounded, which were carried past.., never failed to salute the Emperor. 1909 Westm. Gaz. 9 July 2/2 He is on the high road to get all the men for which he has asked.

c. Still regularly used of a person in reference to character, function, or the like, in which case the sense is really 7 or 8. 1645 Howell Twelve Treat. (1661) 233 The subject of this Discours were more proper to One of the long-Robe, which I am not. 1797 Bp. Watson Apol. Christ, vi. (ed. 6) 180 He put two maid servants, which were called ministers, to the torture. 1842 Borrow Bible in Spain (1843) II- x. 208 He was by no means the profound philologist which the notary had represented him to be. 1855 Newman Callista xii. 108 He was not quite the craven.. which she thought him.

10. Rarely used after an antecedent to which the ordinary correlative is as. a. after same: = that rel. pron. 4. b. after so or such: often equivalent to ‘that it (he, etc.)\ 1340, etc. [see same A, 1 a]. C1386 [see such B. 12]. 1550 Veron Godly Sayings Ep. Ded. (1846) 19 Who is so dul,.. whiche. .would not be moued too thankefulnes? 1596 ‘L. Piot’ Silvayn's Orator 401 No man ought to bind himselfe vnto such couenants which hee cannot.. accomplish. 1605 Camden Rem., Names 45 Barvch, Hebr. the same which Bennet, blessed. 1607 Topsell Four-f. Beasts 326 A kind of wilde horsse which hath homes like a Hart, and therefore I take it to bee the same which is called Hypellaphus. 1709, 1888 [see such B. 12]. 1802-12 Bentham Ration. Judic. Evid. (1827) V. 321 There is not any argument so absurd, which is not daily received.

** as compound relative (or with ellipsis of antecedent). f 11 .pron. That which, one which, something that: = what C. i, 3 a; also of a person, One who; pi. Those which or who. Ohs. c 1205 Lay. 2167 Al Albanakes folc folden i-scohten Buten while pat per at-wond purh wode bur3e. c 1430 Syr Gener. (Roxb.) 8837 He dremed of you which him affrayed. c 1470 Henry Wallace xi. 321 Na men he tuk bot quhilk he hydder brocht. 1548 Udall, etc. Erasm. Par. John vii. 31 Should he do greater thynges then whiche this man doeth? 1579 Fulke Heskins' Pari. 105 They interprete literally, which the doctors did write figuratiuely. 1599 Shaks. Much Ado iv. ii. 83, I am a wise fellow, and which is more, an officer, and which is more, a housholder. 1643 Digges Unlawf. Taking up Arms 8, I shall desire one thing especially may be remembred, as which hath great influence upon all cases. 1654 Z. Coke Logick 16 An ambiguous word is which indistinctly signifieth things that in nature are divers. 1719 De Foe Crusoe 1. (Globe) 75, I had the loose Earth to carry out; and which was of more Importance, I had the Cieling to prop up.

12. In generalized sense (adj. or pron.), with or without qualifying adv. (ever, so, etc.): Any (person or thing) that, whatever; usually, now always, with limitation of reference, as in 3: = whichever 1; also (with ever or soever) = WHICHEVER 2. OE. swa hwile (swa), ME. hwilch. .so, se (see which-so), north, quilk sum, were ultimately superseded by which ever, soever (see whichever, whichsoever). 0890 Charter in O.E. Texts 451 Swa hwylc minra faedrenmega swa Saet sio. 900-30 O.E. Chron. an. 755 (Parker MS.), paes cyninges pegnas.. pider urnon swa hwelc swa ponne jearo wearp. c 1000 Ags. Ps. (Th.) cxxxvii[i]. 4 [3] Swahwylce daga ic pe deorne cige. c 1220 Bestiary 5 in O.E. Misc. 1 Bi wile weie so he wile, a 1225 Ancr. R. 8 O hwuche wise se heo euer wule. 1297 R- Glouc. (Rolls) 497 Brut bad corineus for to chese of ech contrei.. 3wich .. him likede best, a 1300 Cursor M. 16373 Ask quilk sum yee will haue. C1400 Rule St. Benet (prose) liii. 35 pabbesse.. oupir anopir nunne, wilke sam sho cumandis. 1464-5 in Acts Parlt. Scot. (1874) XII. 31/1 Thai personis. .sail outhir entire pe kingis ward .. or thane dewoide pe realmes.. quhilk pat salbe seine maist expedient. 1523 Ld. Berners Froiss. I. cccxli. 217/2 Whiche of them yl euer should breake this peace.. shoulde rynne in the sentence of the pope. 1545 Raynalde Byrth Mankynde 134 Whiche of these wayes so euer it cume it shall be very good to bathe the chylde. 1602 Shaks. Ham. iv. vii. 13 My Vertue or my Plague, be it either which. 1633 G. Herbert Temple, Home ix, Nothing but drought and dearth,.. Which way so-e’re I look, I see. 1667 Milton P.L. iv. 75 Which way I fiie is Hell; my self am Hell. 1690 Child Disc. Trade (1698) 10 Which way ever we take our

measures, to me it seems evident [etc.]. 1753 Johnson Adventurer No. 69 (f 10 Which way soever he turned his thoughts, impossibility and absurdity arose in opposition. 1824 Scott St. Ronaris xvi, [He] lets a’things about the manse gang whilk gate they will. 1844 S. R. Maitland Dark Ages xv. 243 The table was so large that, place it which way they would, it could not be prevented from shewing above water. 1877 Tennyson Harold 11. ii. 141 But wherefore is the wind, Which way soever the vane-arrow swing, Not ever fair for England?

*** 13. the which,

arch. a. as adj. = 6.

13.. Cursor M. 9434 (Gott.) pe first law was cald ‘of kinde,’.. pe toper has ‘possitiue’ to name; pe whilk lawe was forbed Adam. Forto ete pat fruit. 1447-8 J. Shillingford Lett. (Camden 1871) 26 The whiche copies all y pray yow avysely to over rede. 1526 Tindale Heb. x. 10 By the which will we are sanctified. 1607 Topsell Four-f. Beasts 466 There was a lionesse which had whelpes in her den, the which den was obserued by a Beare, the which Beare on a day finding the den vnfortified,.. entred.. and slew the Lions whelpes. 1820 Byron Mar. Fal. note, Wks. (1842) 193/1 Finished copying August.. 1820; the which copying makes ten times the toil of composing, a 1850 Rossetti Dante & Circle 1. (1874) 98 Of the which thing I bethought me to speak unto her.

b. as pron. (a) = 7. 1340-70 Alex. & Dind. 1127 Wo & wikkede paine, pe whiche pe heie godus haten. 1461 Paston Lett. II. 42 Desieryng to herre of 30ur welfar and good prosperite, the gwyche [sic] I pray God encresse. 1510 in Leadam Sel. Cases Star Chamber (Selden Soc.) II. 69 If the whiche shuld contynewe .. your seid Towne.. shall wexe empty. 1526 Tindale Gal. v. 21 The dedes of the flesshe.. off the which I tell you before, as I have tolde you in tyme past. 1590 Spenser F.Q. i. i. 36 Sweet slombring deaw, the which to sleepe them biddes. 1682 Bunyan Holy War iii. (1905) 209 He told too, the which I had almost forgot, how Diabolus had put the Town of Mansoul into Arms. 1812 Cary Dante, Par ad. xxn. 146 [This world] o’er the which we stride So fiercely. 1884 Tennyson Becket Prol., He holp the King to break down our castles, for the which I hate him.

(b) = 8. a 1300 Cursor M. 146 How god bigan pe law hym gyfe pe quilk the Iuus in suld life. 1470-85 Malory Arthur xx. vii. 809, I told hym the peryls the which ben now fallen. 1526 Tindale Acts xxvi. 16 To make the.. a witnes both off the thynges which thou hast sene and off tho thynges in the which I will apere vnto the. 1611 Bible James ii. 7 Doe not they blaspheme that worthy Name, by the which ye are called?

f c. as compound relative: = 11. Also qualified by soever: = 12. Ohs. 1523 Ld. Berners Froiss. I. xx. 11/2, I knowe yt the most worthy.. knight of my realme shall acheue for me, the whyche I coulde neuer attayne vnto. 1551 Robinson tr. More's Utopia 1. (1895) 89 For there is no waye so proffytable.. as the whiche hath a shewe and coloure of iustice. 1581 j. Bell Haddon's Answ. Osor. 67 We follow not your fayth, as the which we have tasted to bee.. most detestable. 1660 Heylin Hist. Quinquart. 11. 7 To put his hunting spear amongst them, and the which of them soever should lay hold upon it, should be .. drawn out of the water.

fd. Of persons: = 9. 1338 R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 52 Emme pe quene.. of pe whilk was born Alfred & Edward, c 1386 Chaucer Frank! T. 452 This Briton clerk hym asked of felawes The whiche pat he had knowe in olde dawes. 1470-85 Malory Arthur 1. xviii. 64 Kynge Ryence of North walys the whiche was a myghty man of men. c 1500 Lancelot 184 The metire and the cuning.. Quhilk I submyt to the correccioune Of yaim the quhich that is discret & wys. 1567 Gude Godlie B. (S.T.S.) 172 Geue Christ, the quhilk hes me redrest, Be on my syde. 1596 Shaks. j Hen. IV, 11. i. 78 There are other Troians that yu dream’st not of, the which (for sport sake) are content to doe the Profession some grace. 1606 G. W[oodcocke] Hist. Ivstine xxm. 85 He the which was Lord of infinit riches to daie, was scarce maister of any to morrow.

**** pecu]iar constructions. (See also 7 d, 8 c.) 14. a. (as pron. or adj.) With pleonastic personal pronoun or equivalent in the latter part of the relative clause, referring to the antecedent, which thus serving merely to link the clauses together: (a) with the pers. pron. (or the antecedent noun repeated) as subj. or obj. to a verb (principal or subordinate) in the relative clause, which is usually complex; (b) with genitive of pers. pron. (or equivalent, as thereof), which together with this being equivalent to the genitive of the relative (whose, of which)’, cf. that rel. pron. 9. (a) C1374 Chaucer Troylus 11. 654 pis is he, which pat myn vncle swereth he mot be ded. 1449 Paston Lett. I. 84 Yowr wurschupfull ustate, the whyche All myghte God mayntayne hyt. 1481 Cov. Leet Bk. 493 Which yf it so be, we haue gret cause of displeasure. 1526 Tindale John xxi. 25 There are also many other thynges which Jesus did, the which yff they shulde be written every won, I suppose [etc.]. 1589 Puttenham Engl. Poesie III. iv. (Arb.) 159 Ye finde these words, penetrate, penetrable, indignitie, which I cannot see how we may spare them. 1655 Fuller Ch. Hist. ix. vi. §27. 175 A Schedule containing his heresies, (which what they were may be collected by that which ensueth). 1690 Locke Govt. 11. v. §42 (1694) 196 Provisions.. which how much they exceed the other in value,.. he will then see. 1726 Shelvocke Voy. round World Pref. p. vii, Scandalous and unjust Aspersions.. which, how far I deserve them, I shall leave to the candid opinion of every unprejudiced Reader. 1768 Sterne Sent. Journ. II. Fragment, The history of myself, which, I could not die in peace unless I left it as a legacy to the world. (b) c 1374 Chaucer Troylus ii. 318 pe kynges dere sone,.. which alwey for to do wel is his wone. 1470-85 Malory Arthur xvn. xi. 705 Ther is in this Castel a gentylwoman whiche we and this castel is hers, c 1530 Ld. Berners Arth. Lyt. Bryt. (1814) 270 To do many thynges, the whyche the hurte therof lyghteth on theyr owne neckes. 1622 Mabbe tr. Aleman s Guzman d'Alf. 11. 164 Take away.. mens credits,

WHICKER

226

WHICH-A-WAY

and estates.., which lies not afterwards in their power to make restitution thereof. 1721 Bradley Philos. Acc. Wks. Nat. 90 Bulbous-rooted Plants, which when the Leaves of them decay, a new framed Root.. supplies their Loss. If b. Hence, in vulgar use, without any antecedent,

as

a

mere

connective

or

introductory particle. 1723 Swift Mary the Cook-Maid's Let. 13 Which, and I am sure I have been his servant four years since October, And he never call’d me worse than sweetheart, drunk or sober. 1862 Thackeray Philip xvi, ‘That noble young fellow’, says my general... Which noble his conduct I own it has been. 1870 Bret Harte Truthful James, Answ. to Let. viii, Which I have a small favor to ask you, As concerns a bull-pup, which the same,—If the duty would not overtask you,—You would please to procure for me, game. 1905 Daily Chron. 21 Oct. 4/7 If anything ’appens to you—which God be between you and ’arm—I’ll look after the kids. U 15. In sylleptic construction, e.g. as obj. of two different verbs, or of a prep, and a verb, or as obj. of one verb and subj. of another; giving the effect of ellipsis of a personal pronoun (it, them). 1687 Wood Life (O.H.S.) III. 238 Dr. Dolbein .. did read much of his sermon before the king.. which the king telling him of, he never after did. a 1697 Horneck Gt. Law Consid. v. (1702) 302 To see me roll Sisyphus his Stone, which when I have brought to such a pitch, rolls down again. 1741 Johnson's Debates (1787) I. 390 A quality.. which, if we could obtain, would add nothing to our honour. 1796 Eliza Hamilton Lett. Hindoo Rajah (1811) II. 271 They still retained an authority over his mind, at which, though his pride revolted, his understanding could not conquer. 1818 H. F. Clinton Lit. Rem. (1854) 24 These were works which, though I often inspected, I did not accurately study. 16. Preceded by and. a. in regular construction,

and

connecting

two

relative

clauses, or an adjectival phrase and a relative clause, qualifying the same sb. 1579-80 North Plutarch, J. Caesar (1595) 771 An army vnuincible, & which they could not possibly withstand. 1668 Dryden Dram. Poesy Ess. 1900 I. 78 We have many plays of ours as regular as any of theirs, and which, besides, have more variety of plot and characters. 1779 Johnson L.P., Addison (1868) 225 Two books yet celebrated.. for purity and elegance, and which, if they are now less read, are neglected only because [etc.]. 1804-6 Syd. Smith Mor. Philos. (1850) 284 The habit of contradicting, into which young men.. are apt to fall; and which is a habit extremely injurious to the powers of the understanding. 1810 Southey Ess. (1832) I. 40 The subject.. was one of great difficulty and which required very serious consideration. 1876 Ruskin Fors Clav. lxx. VI. 315 If the dog have the good fortune to find a master, he has a possession.. better than bones; and which, indeed, he will.. leave, not his meat only, but his life for. H b. in erroneous or illogical use, either and or which being superfluous. 1606 G. W[oodcocke] Hist. Ivstine etc. LI 3, Galeaze.. who had conquered a great part of Italy, and which inheritance discended to his Nephews. 1608 Topsell Serpents 288 His forefeet being like hands, are forked and twisted very strong, & with which it fighteth and taketh his prey. 1748 G. White in Jrnl. Sacred Lit. (1863) July 299 For the proper return to virtue and Good-works is Honour, & Love; this is their Due, and which ought to be rendered to them by all people. 1796 Mrs. Inchbald Nature & Art xvi. (1820) 42 The dean had just published a pamphlet in his own name, and in which that of his friend the bishop was only mentioned with thanks for hints. 1848 W. Templeton Locomot. Eng. (ed. 2) 71 A recent occurrence .. seems .. to have established the fact of steam being highly charged with electricity, and which may.. be the means of increasing our knowledge [etc.]. 1861 Dasent Burnt Njal I. p. lviii, Every temple must contain a ring of at least two ounces in weight, and which the priest was to bear on his arm. 'which-a-way, pron. U.S. colloq. and dial. [Cf. WHICH a. and pron. B. 12; every which way s.v. every a. 1 f.] Which way, in what direction. Cf. THAT-A-WAY adv. 1909 Dialect Notes III. 381 Which-a-way,.. which way. 1938 M. K. Rawlings Yearling i. 13 Which-a-way will we begin huntin’ him? 1968 O. Spann in P. Oliver Screening Blues iii. 125 Well, you know I’m so mad this morning, don’t know whichaway to go. which(ch)e, var. whitch Obs., chest. whichever (hwitj'eva(r)), a. and pron.

[Orig.

two words, which and ever adv. 8e.]

1. As compound relative: Any or either (of a definite set of persons or things, expresssed or

shall take her home. 1911 Act 1 & 2 Geo. V c. 46 §16 (1) Copyright shall subsist during the life of the author who first dies and for a term of fifty years after his death, or during the life of the author who dies last, whichever period is the longer. 1919 G. B. Shaw Inca of Perusalem in Heartbreak House 205 The Inca is to come and look at me, and pick out whichever of his sons he thinks will suit.

2. Introducing a qualifying dependent clause: Whether one or another (of a definite set); no matter which. 1690 Locke Hum. Und. 11. xvii. §3 Which-ever [ed. 1714 Whichsoever] of these he takes, and how often soever he doubles., it, he finds [etc.]. 1704 Swift Batt. Bks. Misc. (1711) 226 Both Sides hang out their Trophies too, which ever comes by the worst. 1769 Junius Lett, xxiii. (1788) 135 Whichever way he flies, the Hue and Cry of the country pursues him. 1847 De Quincey Joan of Arc Wks. 1890 V. 390 On whichever side of the border chance had thrown Joanna, the same love to France would have been nurtured. 1856 Merivale Rom. Emp. xlii. V. 29 To whichever of the two camps .. he should repair, his own jealous nature feared to awaken the jealousy of the other. 1882 Besant All Sorts xxviii, In politics you are used as the counters of a game... You get nothing, whichever side is in.

f 'which-like, a. Obs. rare~l. [f. which -I- like a.y after such like.] Of which kind. 1641 Sanderson Sermons (1681) II. 4 By long accustoming themselves to which-like outward observances, they had almost lost the vigor and soul of true religion.

'which-so, pron. arch. [= which and so adv. 17d.] fa. Whoever, whatever, b. Whichever. c 1230 Hali Meid. 26 Hwuch-se wule beon of pe lut of his leoueste freond. Ibid. 45 Beo he cangun oSer crupel, beo he hwuch-se he eauer beo. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 771 He is kni3tes echone, Vor coust binome him, bote an vif men one, Wuche so hii were to serui him. a 1325 MS. Rawl. B. 520 If. 31 Wuche so a uinden per of gulti, a sullen punissen hoem. 1890 W. Morris in Engl. Illustr. Mag. June 695 Let the Hoary One.. carry me to life or death, which-so he will.

whichso'ever, pron.

arch.

[f.

which:

see

SOEVER.] 1. = WHICHEVER I. Godstow Reg. 532 To the said Alisaundre and molde his wyf and to ther heires or ther assignes or whomso-euer or which-so-euer and whan-so-euer he wolde yeve bequeth selle or assigne hit. 1795 Washington Let. Writ. 1892 XIII. 65 To go to whichsoever [side] their interest, convenience, or inclination, might prompt them, a 1843 Southey Cid 11. xiv, Saying that to whichsoever God should give the victory, to him also would he give up the kingdom. 1862 Johns Brit. Birds 235 Hunting., for whichsoever article of their diet happens to be in season. 2. = WHICHEVER 2. a x533 Ld. Berners Huon xxi. 64 Whiche so euer way ye take, it shall not be without me. 1691 T. H[ale] Acc. New Invent, f 9, [The] Proposal of an obvious.. Remedy to the said Evil, to whichsoever of the supposed Causes the same should be found imputable. 1714 [see quot. 1690 s.v. whichever 2]. 1769 Robertson Chas. V x. III. 248 Whichsoever of these authors an intelligent person takes for his guide.., he must discover [etc.]. 1828 Scott Tales of Grandfather Ser. 1. (ed. 6) II. 274 To whichsoever he might attach himself, he was sure to become an object of hatred and suspicion to the other. 1853 Dickens Repr. Pieces, Noble Savage, Yielding to whichsoever of these agreeable eccentricities, he is a savage. 1853-Bleak Ho. x, With whichsoever of the many tongues of Rumour this frothy report originated, it.. never reached .. the ears of young Snagsby. 11450

'whichway(s, adv. Chiefly U.S. = every which way s.v. every a. i f. Often prec. by all. 1961 in Webster, Leaving her towel and brush and comb lying whichway. 1968 ‘J. Welcome' Hell is where you find It xiv. 166 He told me they [sc. drugs] took everyone all whichways. If you’d ever had a drink or two before, you want a lot more where you were on the pills kick— sometimes. 1975 ‘Miss Read’ Battles at Thrush Green i. 16 What chance is there of pushin’ a mower up these 'ere paths with the graves all going which-way? Ibid. xix. 223 He was on a bike far too big for him—sawing away he was, wobbling all whichways. 1978 People's Friend 13 May 19/1 She pictured the scene and winced at the idea of Gregory seeing her without make-up, her hair all-which-way from the steam.

fwhick, v. Obs. rare. squeak, as a pig.

[Imitative.]

intr.

To

a 1693 Urquhart’s Rabelais III. xiii. 107 The .. whicking of Pigs, gushing of Hogs.

whick(e, etc.: see quick, etc.; wick a.2

implied) that...; that one (or those) who or which (with implication that it is unknown or undetermined which).

-[Formerly also without

restriction to a definite set: = whatever 2. Often following, and in apposition with, a pair or set of alternatives connected by or; the construction is then app. identical with that in 2, but is really different, and distinguished by intonation. 1388 Wyclif Ps. i. 3 Alle thingis which euere [first vers. what euere] he schal do schulen haue prosperite. 1418 in Engl. Gilds 445 pat the bretheren and susteren .. 3erely chese on Alderman and Maistres,.. qwicheuer [hem] thinketh most best. C1449 Pecock Repr. 1. xix. 112 He.. allowith which euer of thilk weies and meenis be take. 1754 in Nairne Peerage Evid. (1874) 48 Upon their attaining their respective ages of eighteen years compleat or their being lawfully married whichever of these events should first happen. 1802 Maria Edgeworth Moral T., Forester xi, At a walk, trot, or gallop, whichever you please. 1844 Alb. Smith Adv. Mr. Ledbury xlii, They were.. permitted to go whichever way they chose. 1872 Black Adv. Phaeton x. 145 To dinner—or supper, whichever it ought to be called. 1880 Hardy Trumpet-Major I. ix. 178 Whichever of us she likes best, he

whicker (’hwikajr)), v. dial, and U.S. Also 9 wicker, whecker, whihher. [Imitative. Cf. nicker, snicker, and MHG. wiheren (G. wiehern).] 1. intr. To utter a half-suppressed laugh; to snigger, titter. a 1656 Ussher Ann. vi. (1658) 284 Having never seen the like done before, he fell a whickering, c 1730 Haynes Dorset. Voc. in N. Q. 6th Ser. (1883) VIII. 45/2 To whicker, to laugh. 1808 Jamieson, Whihher,. .to titter. 1891 Hardy Tess 1, The green-spangled fairies that ‘whickered’ at you as you passed.

2. Of a horse: To whinny; also of a sheep or goat, to bleat, of a dog, to whine, etc. 1753 J- Poulter Discoveries (ed. 5) 7 The Horse, as soon as the others past began to whicker, so that we were obliged to gag him. 1808 Jamieson, Whihher.. to wicker, to neigh or whinny. 1825 Jennings Obs. Dial. W. Eng., To Whecker,.. to neigh. 1888 Elworthy W. Somerset Word-bk. s.v. Wickery. 1893 Kipling Many Invent. 215 The mare whickered. 1912 Masefield Widow in Bye St. vi. xxxii, The wall-top grasses whickered in the breeze.

WHID

227

3. To make a sound as of something hurtling through or beating the air.

whidel, widdle.

1926 Spectator 28 Aug. 313/2 Bid Jove send down a thunderbolt to whicker through the sky. 1965 G. Maxwell House of Elrig xiii. 167 My aunt’s black-and-white nun pigeons whickered past my window and drank at the birdtable.

So 'whicker sb., a snigger; a whinny; also, the sound of something beating the air; hence 'whickering vbl. sb. and ppl. a. 1882 Harper's Mag. June 53 The whicker of old Molly at the foot of the lane, and the answer of the colt in the lot. 1899 Somerville & ‘Ross’ Some Experiences Irish R.M. xi. 277 A pale, yellow foal sprinted up beside us, with shrill whickerings of joy. 1909 ‘O. Henry’ Roads of Destiny ix, Through the intense silence, he heard the whicker of a horse. 1920 J. Masefield Right Royal 73 Far over his head with a whicker of wings Came a wisp of five snipe from a field full of springs. 1937 E. Sitwell I live under Black Sun I. iii. 48 The door of her room .. opened with a dark strawy noise like the wickering voice of a bear. 1940 H. Spring Fame is Spur i. 11 And so great was the silence that the whickering of banners could be heard. 1965 G. Maxwell House of Elrig ii. 27 Black rock cliffs with deep mysterious caves full of the whicker of rock-pigeons’ wings.

whid (hwid), sb.1 Forms: 6 whydd, 7- whid, 9 Sc. whud. [Origin uncertain. That it is a dial, variant of OE. civide speech (otherwise not represented in the language) is possible, but the absence of parallels is a serious objection. The sense-development is remarkably similar to that of YED.] 1. A word. (Usually in pi.). Thieves’ cant. 1567 Harman Caveat (1869) 84 To cutte bene whydds, to speake or geue good wordes, to cutte quyre whyddes, to geue euell wordes or euell language. Ibid. 86 Stowe your bene, cofe, and cut benat whydds. 1673 R. Head Canting Acad. 49 Be wary. Stow your whids. 1728 [De Foe] Street Robberies Consider'd 34 Plant the Whids, take Care what you say. 1821 Scott Kenilw. x, The swaggering vein will not pass here, you must cut boon whids. 1861 Reade Cloister H. lv, I pray Heaven thou mayest prove to paint better than thou cuttest whids.

2. A lie, fib, falsehood; an exaggerated story. Sc. 1791 Burns Death Gf Dr. Hornbook i, Ev’n Ministers, they hae been kenn’d,.. A rousing whid, at times, to vend, And nail’t wi’ Scripture. 1863 M. Dods Early Lett. (1910) 330 Your irpwTov ifievSos, i.e. Your fundamental whid. 1894 Crockett Raiders xlvi, Kennedy thinks no more o’ tellin’ a whud (lie) than o’ slappin’ a cleg that nips him on the hench bane.

3. A dispute, quarrel, dial. 1847 Halliwell, Whid, a dispute; a quarrel.

whiddle ('hwid(3)l), v.

East.

whid (hwid), sb.2 Sc. Forms: 6 quhyd, 8-9 whid, whud. [? a. ON. hvida squall = OE. hwipa.] 11. A squall, blast of wind. Obs. 1590 Burel in Watson Coll. Sc. Poems 11. (1709) 24 The wind, with mony quhyd, Maist bitterly thair blew.

2. A quick noiseless movement, esp. of a hare. in or wi' a whid, in a trice. 1719 Ramsay 2nd Answ. to Hamilton i, Wi’ a Whid,.. She’ll rin red-wood. 1785 Burns To W. S*****n xii, Jinkin hares, in amorous whids. 1788 R. Galloway Glasgow Fair II. vi, He lent a blow at Jonny’s eye, That rais’d it, in a whid.

whid (hwid), v.1 Sc. Also whud. [f. whid sft.1] intr. To talk cant; to lie, fib. Chiefly in vbl. sb. and ppl. a. 1823 Egan Grose’s Diet. Vulgar T., Whidding, talking cant. Scotch cant. 1881 Walford Dick Netherby v, A fairfarrend, whuddin’ youngster. 1891 ‘H. Haliburton’ Ochil Idylls 90 Whiddin’s an airt.

whid (hwid), v.2 Sc. Also 9 whud. [f. whid sb.2] intr. To move nimbly without noise. c 1730 Ramsay 1st Answ. to Somerville 94 You range After the fox or whidding hare. 1790 Burns Elegy on Capt. MH-vi, Ye maukins whiddin thro’ the glade. 1816 Scott Bl. Dwarf iii. Ye see yon other light that’s gaun whiddin’ back and forrit.

whidah, whydah ('hwida). [Name of a town in Dahomey, West Africa. Whidah bird is an alteration of widow-bird, q.v., due to association with this as one of the habitats of these birds.] 1. In full whidah-bird, etc.: = widow-bird. 1783 Latham Gen. Synopsis Birds II. 1. 178 Whidah B[unting]... Rather less than a Hedge Sparrow. Ibid., note, Whidah Bird. 1872 Livingstone Last Jrnls. 19 June (1874) 11. vii. 199 The young whydah birds crouch closely together at night for heat. Ibid., Whydahs, though full fledged, still gladly take a feed from their dam. 1896 G. E. Shelley For. Finches 273 The Whydahs.. form a natural group of Finches, nearly allied to the Weavers.

2. whidaw goat, a West-African species of goat, Capra reversa. w. thrush, Pholidauges leucogaster. 1781 Pennant Hist. Quadrup. I. 57 Goat. . Whidaw Capra reversa... From Juda or Whidaw, in Africa. A small kind: the horns short, smooth, and turn a little forwards. 1783 Latham Gen. Synopsis Birds II. 1. 58 Whidah Thr[ush], Size of a Lark, or rather less:.. the plumage in general is violet, excepting the belly, which is white... Inhabits the kingdom of Whidah, in Africa.

whiddelynge, obs. f. whitling. whidder: see whether, whither sb. and v.

[?

f.

WHIFF slang.

Also 8 whidle,

whid ii.1]

intr.

a.

To

divulge a secret, turn informer, ‘peach’, b. See quot. 1725. Hence 'whiddler. ci66i Marq. Argyle's Last Will in Harl. Misc. (1746) VIII. 28/1, I understand .. he hath made so large a Progress in Discovering, that he can pay it now to himself—The Devil was in me to suffer such a pitiful Fellow to whiddle before me. 01700 B. E. Diet. Cant. Crew, Whiddler, a Peacher (or rather Impeacher) of his Gang. 1725 New Cant. Diet., To Whiddle, to enter into a Parley, to compound with, or take off by a Bribe. 1756 J. Cox Narr. Thief-takers 66 The Prisoner.. then swore he wished he had cut off his Head, for then he would not have whidelled again. 1781 G. Parker View Soc. 11. 133 About Darkey [i.e. twilight], or when Oliver don’t widdle [footn. The Moon not up]. 1812 J. H. Vaux Flash Diet, s.v., Don’t you whiddle about so and so, that is, don’t mention it. whider, whie, whieale, whiel, whiet, whieu, whiew,

whife:

see

whither,

quey,

why,

WHEEL, QUIET, WHITE, WHEW, WIFE. Whieldon ('hwiildsn).

The name of Thomas

Whieldon (1719-95), Staffordshire potter, used attrib.

to

designate

earthenware 1740).

Also

made

the

in

Comb.,

kind

his as

of

coloured

factory

(founded

Whieldon-type adj.,

resembling this ware. 1869 C. ScHREiBERjrn/. i Oct. (1911) I. 42 One Wheildon [sic] Ware plate. 1900 F. Litchfield Pott. & Pore. vii. 317 Whieldon ware is peculiarly light and the articles well potted. 1929 H. Read Staffordshire Pottery Figures PI. 14 (caption) The term ‘Whieldon type’ [is used] when the figure depends entirely for its decoration on coloured glazes. 1942 Burlington Mag. Oct. 260/1 Most dangerous are the increasingly skilful fakes of Astbury and Whieldon figures. 1968 Canad. Antiques Collector July 13/1 What is Whieldon Ware? This is a term referring to all types of ware of a mottled, cloudy or splashed character. 1978 Times 28 Jan. 12/6 (caption) A Whieldon-type teapot and cover, c. 1765. 1983 Country Life 2 Dec. (Suppl.) 72/2 A Whieldon pottery horse, decorated in underglaze colours of green, yellow and brown. whiff (hwif), sb.1

Also 6-7 whiffe, 8-9 whif.

[?

Partly an alteration of ME. weffe (= offensive odour or taste, vapour, hoisted signal), partly a new onomatopoeic formation. The senses are in part identical with those of waff sb. and waft sb.1] 1. 1. a. A slight puff or gust of wind, a breath. 1591 Sylvester Du Bartas i. iv. 334 The Winde.. Whirls with a whiff the sails of swelling clout. 1602 Shaks. Ham. 11. ii. 495 With the whiffe and winde of his fell Sword, Th’ vnnerued Father fals. 1610 Holland Camden's Brit. 1. 195 Their ensignes.. Waue to and fro with whiffes of wind. 1786 in Mme. D'Arblay's Diary 6 Oct., A whiff [of wind] from the King’s stairs, enough to blow you half a mile off! 1838 Dickens O. Twist xxxix, Give her a whiff of fresh air with the bellows, Charley. b. transf. and fig. A ‘breath’, ‘blast’, ‘burst’. 1644 Milton Areop. 24 That the whiffe of every new pamphlet should stagger them out of thir catechism. 1649 - Eikon. xxvii. 222 Deny’d and repuls’d by the single whiffe of a negative. 1766 Sterne Tr. Shandy IX. ii, A whiff of military pride had puffed out his shirt at the wrist. 1817 Byron Beppo liii, They had their little differences, too; Those jealous whiffs, which never any change meant. 1851 Brimley Ess., Wordsw. (1858) 174 The Quarterly Review.. issued a mild whiff of qualified approval. 1878 Hardy Ret. Native v. ix, There seemed to be not a whiff of life left in either of the bodies. 1883 Stevenson Treas. Isl. xx, This little whiff of temper seemed to cool Silver down. 1912 Times Lit. Suppl. 13 June 241/1 Factories.. brought with them the first whiff of cotton-spinning democracy. c. A slight attack, ‘touch’; = waff sb. 3 b. 1837 Carlyle New Lett. (1904) I. 58, I have twice had flying whiffs of cold. d. U.S. slang. A miss, a failure to hit (a ball). 1952 N. Y. Herald Tribune 15 May 21/6 On the first tee he took a careful stance and then fanned the air four times. After the fourth whiff he growled, ‘This is the hardest course I ever played.’ 2. a. An inhalation of tobacco-smoke; smoke so inhaled;

in

early

use

also,

fthe

‘taking’

of

tobacco, smoking (to take the whiff, to smoke). 1599 B. Jonson Ev. Man out of Hum. Dram, pers., His chiefe exercises are taking the Whiffe, squiring a Cocatrice, and making priuy searches for Imparters. Ibid. III. i, Sog... Doe you professe these sleights in Tabacco?.. Punt. But you cannot bring him to the Whiffe so soon? 1600 Marston, etc. Jack Drums Entert. I. (1601) B3, lust like a whiffe of Tabacco, no sooner in at the mouth, but out at the nose. 1603-37 Breton Poste with Packet Lett. Wks. (Grosart) II. 35/2 Tobacco is like to grow a great commoditie, for there is not an Ostler nor a Tapster, but will be at his whiffe or two. 1607 Walkington Optic Glass ix. 54 Tobacco.. must needs be very pernicious in regard of the immoderate 8c too ordinary whiffe. 1690 J. Stevens Jml. (1912) 139 Seven or eight will gather to the smoking of a pipe and each taking two or three whiffs gives it to his neighbour, a 1718 Prior Epigr., Frank carves very ill, Four Pipes after Dinner he constantly smokes; And seasons his Whifs with impertinent Jokes. 1742 Fielding J. Andrews iv. xvi. Gaffer Andrews.. complained bitterly that he wanted his pipe, not having had a whiff that morning. 1812 Heyne Tracts on India (1814) 392 The Malays.. roll a little tobacco in a small piece of plantain leaf,.. and after it is lighted, take only a few whifs, and throw the rest away. 1841 Dickens Barn. Rudge i. He had taken his pipe from his lips, after a very long whiff to keep it alight. 1886 G. R. Sims Ring o' Bells Prol. 1 He took a couple of whiffs at his long churchwarden. tb. A sip or draught of liquor. Obs.

1605 Tryall Chev. iii. i. Ej b, I had but a whiffe or two; for I was passing dry. 1624 Bp. Hall True Peacemaker Wks. (1625) 539 In beds of lust, chests of Mammon, whiffes and draughts of intoxication. 1653 Urquhart Rabelais 1. vi. 31, I will yet go drink one whiffe more [orig. encores quelque veguade].

3. a. A wave or waft of (usually unsavoury) odour. 1668 R. L’Estrange Vis. Quev. (1708) 137 The Poysonous Whiffs she sends from her Toes and Arm-Pits. 1731 Swift Strephon & Chloe 12 No noisom Whiffs or sweaty Streams .. Could from her taintless body flow. 1774 Burke Sp. Amer. Tax. Wks. 1842 I. 172 To whom a single whiff of incense withheld gave much greater pain, than he received delight in the clouds of it. 1784 Cowper Task iv. 469 A whiff Of stale debauch. 1844 Dickens Mart. Chuz. v, That whiff of russia leather, too, and all those rows on rows of volumes, neatly ranged within. 1872 Black Adv. Phaeton xiii. 182 A whiff of honeysuckle was borne to us as we passed. 1884 Mrs. C. Praed Zero i, Is not the very name Monte Carlo like a whiff of some intoxicating draught?

b. fig. Flavour, savour. 1872 Morley Voltaire vii. 321 Apologising for some whiffs of orthodoxy which Voltaire scented. 1895 Rashdall Univ. Eur. II. 514 note, There is a whiff of the Renaissance about the very words of the Statute.

4. a. A puff of smoke or vapour, esp. of tobacco-smoke. 1714 Addison Sped. No. 568 f 1,1 lighted it at a little wax candle.. and, after having thrown in two or three whiffs among them, sat down. 1752 Lady's Curiosity 10 He., knocks you down with a whiff, or a f—, if you ask for an argument. 1839 Longf. Wreck of Hesperus 19 The skipper he blew a whiff from his pipe. 1875 Howells Foregone Conclus. vii, The.. heaven, in whose vast blue depths hung light whiffs of pinkish cloud.

b. transf.

A cigarette or small cigar.

1881 Instr. Census Clerks (1885) 60 Cheroot Maker... Whiff Maker. 1896 Daily News 9 Mar. 5/4 The popular form of these daintily-got-up cigarettes is a ‘whifF of about two inches in length.

5. a. A puffing or whistling sound, as of a puff or gust of wind through a small opening; a short or gentle whistle; hence freq. = whew (also as int.). 1712 Arbuthnot John Bull iv. i, Nic... pull’d out a Boat¬ swain’s Whistle; upon the first Whiff, the Tradesmen came jumping into the Room. 1828 Lytton Pelham xxxiifi], Sir Willoughby.. made .. no other reply than a long whiff, and a ‘Well, Russelton, dash my wig.. but you’re a queer fellow.’ 1847 Tennyson Princess Concl. 58 But yonder, whiff! there comes a sudden heat. 1854 R. S. Surtees Handley Cr. ix, Now we read the ‘Hercules’ on the engine, and anon it pulls up with a whiff, a puff, and a whistle. 1869 Lowell Cathedral 74 Sunshine, whose quick charm.. wiled the bluebird to his whiff of song. 1876 Bristowe Theory & Pract. Med. (1878) 387 A like whiff or blowing sound follows each sonorous expiratory shock of cough.

b. A discharge of shot or explosive. 1837 Carlyle Fr. Rev. III. vii. vii, Six years ago, this Whiff of Grapeshot was promised. 1870 Routledge's Ev. Boy's Ann. Feb. 90 He might clear the gangway for the boarders with a ‘whifF of this terrible projectile [i.e. grapeshot]. 1915 ‘Ian Hay’ First Hundred Thou. 11. xviii. 251 A whiff o’ shrapnel. 6. in a whiff: in a short time, in a jiffy, dial. 1800 M. Edgeworth Parent's Assistant (ed. 3) VI. 158 Lean on my arm, madam, and we’ll have you in and at home in a whiff. 1825 Brockett N.C. Gloss, s.v., In a whiff, in a short time. 1888 Lippincott's Mag. Apr. 454 All this passed through his mind in a whiff.

II. 7. A flag hoisted as a signal. Cf. waff sb. 1 b, waft sb} 6, waif sb} 2, weffe, whiffler2 3, WHIFT sb. 2. 1693 Lyde Retaking Ship 20, I took a Sash from one of them,.. and put it out for a Whiff. 1832 Marryat N. Forster xlviii, The stranger.. hoisted a whiff, half-mast down.

III. 8. A light kind of outrigged boat for one sculler, used on the Thames. 1859 Guardian 13 Apr. 331/1 The accidental upsetting of a pleasure-boat, called a ‘whifF, on the river Cherwell. 1875 H. R. Robertson Life Upper Thames 209 A funny is an open, out-rigged sculling-boat, having stem and stern alike, the keel falling away in a sloping curve from either end. A whiff resembles a funny in every point, except that the stern is upright, and not sloped away as the bows are. 1880 Daily News 2 Mar. 5/1 Every Etonian who has passed an examination in swimming may boat.. in skiffs or whiffs, gigs and outriggers. 1910 Encycl. Brit. IV. 100/1 Whiff. Length. 20' to 23'. Beam. 1' 4" to 1' 6"... Whiff Gigs. 19' to 20'. 2' 8" to 2' 10".

whiff, sb.2 [? Same word as prec.] A name for various flat-fishes or flounders, as the sail-fluke or mary-sole, Rhombus megastoma, the smeardab, Pleuronectes microcephalus. 1713 Jago in Ray's Synopsis Piscium 163 Passer Cornubiensis asper, magno oris hiatu. A Whiff. 1836 Yarrell Brit. Fishes II. 251 The Whiff. The Carter, Cornwall. 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., Whiff, the Rhombus cardina, a passable fish of the pleuronect genus. 1873 T. Gill Catal. Fishes E. Coast N. Amer. 17 Citharichthys microstomus... Whiff.

whiff, ti.1 [f. whiff sft.1] 1. a. intr. To blow with a whiff or slight blast; to move with or make the sound of this. Chiefly in vbl. sb. and ppl. a. 1591 Sylvester Du Bartas 1. ii. 545 When through their green boughs whiffing winds do whirl With wanton puffs their waving locks to curl. 1608 Ibid. 11. iv. Schism 620 A sudden whirl-winde, with a whiffing Fire. Ibid., Decay 652 The whiffing flashes of this Sword so quick. 1645 Z. Boyd Holy Songs in Zion's Flowers {1855) App. 12/2 Their head on neck could not abide, off chop’t with whiffing steele. 1851 Walshe Dis. Lungs 93 The character of the murmurs is

hollow, whiffing, and moderately metallic. 1866 J. Macgregor Rob Roy on Baltic x, The whiffing of the strong wings of the wild goose. 1890 Daily News 12 Dec. 3/1 A raw and biting breeze whiffing about his grey hairs.

b. trans. To utter with a whiff or puff of air. 1765 Sterne Tr. Shandy VIII. xxvi, Then whiffing out a sentimental heigh ho! 1889 ‘Mark Twain’ Yankee Crt. K. Arth. xxvi, They crossed themselves, and whiffed out a protective prayer or two.

2. a. trans. To drive or carry by or as by a whiff; to puff or blow away, etc. 1601 W. Percy Cuckqueanes & Cuck. Err. 1. ii. (Roxb.) 11, 1 take him by the sleeue,.. bid him looke to himself, Then round as a Jugler’s boxe, whiffe his vpper vestment, and away. Ibid. 1. iii. 16 Neither keene knife, nor yet Thumbe, May whiff him by slit or by numbe. 1615 Sylvester Job Triumph. 11. 395 How oft, as Straw before the winde, are They, And as the Chaff with Tempest whift away? 1620 B. Jonson News from New World Wks. (1641) 42 The smoake took him and whift him up into the Moone. 1657 Farindon Serm. v. 108 That joy which is.. raised as a Meteor out of dung and is whiffed up and down by every wind and breath. 1812 W. Tennant Anster F. 11. xii, John Frost.. Whiff’d off the clouds that the pure blue conceal’d. 1837 Carlyle Fr. Rev. 1. v. ii, And then his ‘sincere attachment’, how was it scornfully whiffed aside! Ibid, vi, A rabble to be whiffed with grapeshot. 1916 Blackw. Mag. Jan. 59/1 Troops would not always remain in the open to be whiffed out of existence by shrapnel.

b. intr. To move with or as with a puff of air. 1686 Goad Celest. Bodies 1. xvi. 105 The Index hath whiffed round all the points of the Compass. 1889 Stevenson Master of Ballantrae ii, I have sought to stay myself.. against what looked to be a solid trunk, and the whole thing has whiffed away at my touch like a sheet of paper.

3. a. trans. To puff out tobacco-smoke from a pipe, etc.; hence, to smoke. (With the smoke or the pipe, etc. as object.) Also^zg. 1616 R. C. Times' Whistle v. 2218 Every, .skip-iacke now will have his pipe of smoke, And whiff it bravely till hee’s like to choke. 1617 Brathwait Sol. Jov. Disput. etc. 171 These smokers of our Age; they whiffe me [Time] out in fume. 1628 Mad Pranks Robin Goodf. (Percy Soc.) 34 She whift her pipe, she drunke her can. 1646 Quarles Judgem. & Mercy Medit. 16 What pleasure tak’st thou in that breath, which draws and whiffs perpetuall fears? 1756 Mrs. Calderwood in Coltness Collect. (Maitland Cl.) 166 He put his pipe in the cheek next him, and whifed it in his face. 1859 Meredith R. Feverel xxii, Richard.. found him furtively whiffing tobacco. 1867 Good Cheer 7 These formal toasts .. having been all drunk, the men whiffed their pipes.

b. absol. or intr. 1602 Dekker Satirom. C4b, Morrow, Captaine Tucca, will you whiffe this morning? 1639 Junius Sin Stigmatized 269 They are bound.. to be powring in at their mouths, or whiffing out at their noses. 1713 Tyldesley Diary (1873) 88, I found honest Tho. Barton very harty and ffree, but the 2 Wadsworths only whiffed. 1714 tr. Joutel's Jrnl. Voy. Mexico (1719) 148 Then they made us all smoke round, and every one of them whiff’d in his Turn. 1862 H. A. Kennedy Waifs Strays 205 Luxuriously whiffing away at my after¬ breakfast cheroot.

|4. trans. To imbibe, drink (liquor). A\so fig. 1609 Dekker Gull's Horn-bk. iv. 18 Hee.. that would striue to fashion his legges to his silke stockins, and his proud gate to his broad garters, let him whiffe downe these obseruations. 1650 Trapp Comm. Num. vi. 20 The most generous wine in Lovain and Paris, is known by the name of vinum theologicum: the divines (those Sorbonists) do so whiffe it off. 01693 Urquhart's Rabelais ill. xvii. 141 She whiffed off a .. good Draught.

5. a. To inhale, sniff; also intr. to smell, sniff. 1635 Quarles Embl. iv. vii. (1718) 213 Let us both retire, And whiff the dainties of the fragrant field. 1646 Sheph. Oracles x. Wks. (Grosart) III. 231/1 Which like a Sun in this our Orbe, Whiffes up the Belgick fumes. 1854 R. S. Surtees Handley Cr. lviii, The pack.. now whiffing with curious nose round the hollies, and now trying up the rides. Mod. (slang). What a horrid smell! Can’t you whiff it?

b. intr. To emit an unpleasant odour, slang. 1899 Kipling Stalky iii. 79 Then she’ll whiff. Golly, how she’ll whiff! 6. U.S. slang, a. intr. Of a batter in Baseball or

a golfer: to miss the ball. Cf. fan

v.

8 b.

1913 Wells Fargo Messenger I. 93/2 When he has to line ’er out he does, but he doesn’t whiff at random. 1926 Amer. Speech I. 369/2 He [sc. a baseball player] ‘whiffs’ when he fails to hit. 1942 Berrey & Van den Bark Amer. Thes. Slang §677/34 Miss the ball,.. whiff.

b. trans. = fan

WHIFFLER

228

WHIFF

v.

8 a.

1914 R. Lardner in Sat. Even. Post 7 Mar. 7/2, I whiffed eight men in five innings in Frisco yesterday. 1941 Nebraska State Jrnl. 20 June (heading), Hurler whiffs 20. 1951 in Wentworth & Flexner Diet. Amer. Slang (i960) 575/1 Vic Raschi whiffed twelve batters in gaining his 15th win of the year.

Hence 'whiffing vbl. sb.1 (also attrib.) and ppl. a.\ also 'whiffer, one who whiffs. 1591-1866 [see sense 1]. c 1614 Tobacco-whiffer [see tobacco 3]. 1632 Lithgow Trav. x. 435 The Alehouse is their Church.., their singing of Psalmes the whiffing of Tobacco. 1811 Sporting Mag. XXXVIII. 191 Opening his tobacco-box, soon commenced his whiffing operation.

whiff, v.2 Angling. [Perhaps same as prec.] intr.

To angle for mackerel, etc. from a swiftly moving boat with a hand-line towing the bait near the surface. Hence 'whiffing vbl. sb.2 (also attrib.). 1836 Yarrell Brit. Fishes II. 172 Hand-line fishing for Pollacks is called whiffing. 1863 Johns Home Walks 164 We generally threw out our whiffing lines as we cruised about. 1886 Globe 22 July 3/1 When you ‘whiff at Scilly, you whiff for pollack.

whiffet ('hwifit). U.S. Also whiffit, wiffet. [? f. whiff sb.1 + -ET1.] 1. (Also whiffet dog.) A small dog. 1801 Olio (Philad.) 41 (Thornton) Who heeds the Whiffit’s bark, when tempests howl? 1848 Ladies' Repository VIII. 315 The best protection to a house, with a family in it that can be named—that is, a little, barking, noisy, cowardly, whiffet dog. 1879 J. Burroughs Locusts G? Wild Honey 30 The king-bird will worry the hawk as a whiffet dog will worry a bear.

2. transf. An insignificant person; a whippersnapper. colloq. (Cf. WHIFLING.) 1839 Congress. Globe Jan., App. 105/3 There was not a Whig whiffet in the country but could ask [etc.]. 1876 Whitman Specimen Days 1 Sept., Writ. 1902 IV. 157 This gusty-temper’d little whiffet, man. 1883 L. A. Lambert Notes on Ingersoll xxii. 200 We hold ourselves responsible to him, and to all the glib little whiffets of his shallow school. f The sense ‘a little whiff or puff given in Webster 1864 is not authenticated.

whiffle ('hwif(3)l), sb. [f. whiff sb.1 + -le.] fl. Something light or insignificant; a trifle. 1680 H. More sleight whiffle.

Apocal. Apoc. 253 Such a childish trifle or

2. An act of whiffling; a slight blast of air; a veering round. 1842 in Gosse Birds Jamaica (1847) 366 At first two or three whiffles make darkened tracks on the glassy waters. 1870 Miss Alcott Good Wives xxi, Amy keeps me pointing due west most of the time, with only an occasional whiffle round to the south. 1909 Begbie Cage x, The whiffle in the air grew more distinct.

3. A soft sound as of gently moving air or water. 1972 F. Ford Atush Inlet i. 9 Their subdued cries could be heard faintly against the gentle whiffle of falling water. 1976 J. Crosby Snake (1977) xxx. 179 She listened to. .the soft whiffle of her breathing.

4. Comb., as whiffle-ball U.S., a light hollow ball used for playing a variety of baseball; also, a game played with such a ball; cf. Wiffle; whiffle-minded a. (U.K. and U.S. dial.), changeable, fickle. [1931 Official Gaz. (U.S. Patent Office) 17 Nov. 573/2 Whiffle. For game apparatus of the type having ball receiving and discharging mechanism.] 1965 F. Knebel Night of Camp David xvii. 273 The boys of Saybrook were playing whiffle ball. 1970 New Yorker 11 July 20 Kids playing with whiffieballs and baseballs. 1976 Woodward & Bernstein Final Days 242 He would get a whiffleball game going on the White House tennis court. 1980 N. Y. Sunday News Mag. 2 Mar. 12/2, I would chase the whiffleball across the street. 1985 T. Boyle Only Dead know Brooklyn xvii. 133 Clusters of Puerto Ricans.. swung plastic bats at whiffle balls. 1902 H. F. Day Pine Tree Ballads 47 Hate to act so whiffle-minded, but my father used to say, ‘Men would sometimes change opinions; mules would stick the same old way’. 1905 in Eng. Dial. Diet. VI. 456/1 ’e’s so w’iffleminded—’e dunna know ’is own mind two minutes together.

whiffle ('hwif(3)l), v.1 Also 6 wyffle, 7 whiffe. [f. whiff v1 + -le. Cf. Flem. weyfelen ‘vacillare’ (Kilian).] 1. intr. To blow in puffs to veer or shift about (of ship). Often fig. or in fig. to be variable or evasive.

or slight gusts; hence, the wind; hence, of a context: To vacillate, Now chiefly dial.

1568 [see whiffling ppl. a.x 1]. 1671 R. Bohun Wind 56 Near mountainous Islands, or shoares, they [5c. winds] whiffle up and down, and shift from one point of the Compasse to another. 1697 Dampier Voy. I. 413 The Wind had been whiffling about from one part of the Compass to another. 1699 Ibid. II. iii. 61 If the Winds also whiffle about to the South. 1737 Ozell Rabelais iii. xxxv. 236 note, A Man who is continually turning and whiffling about to all the Points of the Compass. 1768 Tucker Lt. Nat. (1834) 1. 155 Were we to give a full latitude to sympathy, we should whiffle about with every wind. 1801 Spirit Publ. Jrnls. IX. 370 She yaws and whiffles about like a weathercock. 1812 Tennant Anster F. iv. liv, The whizzing wind.. whiffling through the wooden tubes so small. 1840 [Lady Bury] Hist. Flirt xii, They whiffle about like a weathercock. 1854 Miss Baker Northampt. Gloss, s.v., The wind whiffles about so. 1881 Nation (N.Y.) XXXII. 400 Who like a manly man, will not whiffle, or quibble, or evade. 1903 F. Harrison in Westm. Gaz. 24 Nov. 1/3 If he finally whiffle round to tax foreign food.

2. trans. To blow or drive with or as with a puff of air. Often fig. 1641 Trapp Theol. Theol. viii. 335 Whiffled and tossed too and fro with every wind of doctrine. 1655 tr. Sorel's Com. Hist. Francion iv. 3, I so whiffled him on the face with my Torch [orig. je lui passe le flambeau par devant le nez] that I burned off allmost all his beard. 1660 S. Fisher Rusticus ad Acad. Wks. (1679) 152 Like men in a Ship that are whiffled up and down in a troubled Sea. 1664 H. More Expos. 7 Epist. ix. 163 Such as would whiffle away all these Truths by resolving them into a mere moral Allegorie. 1684 Howe Redeemer's Tears Pref., Swollen with the conceit, that they have whiffled Christianity away, quite off the stage, with their profane breath. 1817 Maria Edgeworth Ormond xxvi, No easy dupe, to be whiffled off and on, the sport of a coquette. 1843 Miall in Nonconf. III. 225 The world is not destined to be whiffled out of its own independent reason by a handful of priests and statesmen.

b. fig. To dismiss by evasion; to say or state evasively. 1654 Vilvain Theorem. Theol. Suppl. 227 This he whiffles off slightly, that ’tis a Parabol. 1676 Marvell Mr. Smirke 43 He whiffles, those were the Jewish Ceremonies.

3. intr. To move lightly as if blown by a puff of air; to flicker or flutter as if stirred by the wind. Often fig.

1662 Hibbert Body Div. 11. 26 Any anabaptistical humorist, who hath a company of phanatique toyes whiffling about his understanding. a 1680 Glanvill Sadducismus 11. (1726) 452 A mind that useth to whiffle up and down in the levities of fancy. 01774 Harte Poems, Eulogius 546 Just as int’rest whiffled on his mind, He Anatolians left, or Thracians join’d. 1817 J. Gilchrist Intell. Patrim. 148 Better chirp with the cricket, or chatter with the sparrow, than whiffle round this eternal monotony of futility. 1818 Hazlitt Engl. Comic Writers viii. (1907) 216 He whiffles about the stage with considerable volubility. 1866 Mrs. H. Wood St. Martin's Eve xvi, Suddenly the flame inside began to whiffle. 1870 Julie P. Smith Widow Goldsmith's Dau. xxxvii, She would whiffle and whirl up and down like a withered leaf. 4. intr. To talk idly; to trifle, dial. (See also whiffling ppl. a.1 3.) 1706 Phillips (ed. Kersey), To Whiffle, to trick one out of a thing, to stand trifling. 1847 Halliwell, Whiffle, to talk idly. North. 5. intr. To make a light whistling sound; trans. to utter with such a sound. 1832 Fraser's Mag. VI. 262 The two strangers whiffled and hissed together, in an unknown very rapid tongue. 1863 Cowden Clarke Shaks. Char. xvii. 448 Master Silence whiffling his scraps of ballads. 1893 Daily News 13 Feb. 6/1 Where a keen cold blast whiffles and blusters about the black and sullen monsters. 1909 Ibid. 14 Sept. 3 When a bear comes ‘whiffling’ about your snow hut. 1915 Glasgow Herald 9 Aug. 8 Shells flew ‘whiffling’ over our heads. f6. a. trans. To smoke (tobacco), b. absol. To

.1

drink. Obs. (Cf. whiff v 3, 4.) 1683 Tryon Way to Health 165 The constant and common whiffling it [sc. tobacco]. 01693 Urquhart's Rabelais iii. Prol. 15 Those.. importunate sots who., constrain an easy, good-natured fellow to whiffle, quaff, carouse [orig. trinquer, voire caros et alluz]. Hence 'whiffling vbl. sb1 01677 Barrow Serm. v. Wks. 1687 I. 65 Such as are., versatile whifflings and dodgings. 1681 J. Scott Chr. Life iv. 367 Too much whifling up and down in the little levities of Fancy. 1692 L’Estrange Josephus, Antiq. vii. ix. Wks. (1702) 203 In her Course, upon the whifling of the Air, a snagged Bough of a Tree took hold of his Hair. 1841 J. F. Cooper Deer slayer I. i. 23, I would carry the gal off to the Mohawk by force, make her marry me in spite of her whiffling. 1866 Mrs. H. Wood St. Martin's Eve xvi, The whiffling of the flame was remedied now. 1882 ‘F. Anstey’ Vice Versa iv, This infernal whiffling and sniffing, sir, I will not put up with. 1906 Springfield (Mass.) Weekly Republ. 18 Oct. 3 This outcome of a week of doubt and whiffling will be viewed with mixed emotions. 1984 Daily Tel. 13 Feb. 12/5 When first I heard these whifflings, a couple of years ago, I thought they must be satiric.

'whiffle,

.2

v

nonce-wd.

[Back-formation

f.

WHIFFLER1.] intr. To act as a whiffler. 1857 Borrow Romany Rye App. viii, Nobody can use his fists without being taught the use of them,.. no more than any one can ‘whiffle’ without being taught by a master of the art... The last of the whifflers hanged himself about a fortnight ago.. there being no demand for whiffling since the discontinuation of Guildhall banquets;.. let any one take up the old chap’s sword and try to whiffle.

whiffled

('hwif(3)ld), a. slang. [Origin obscure:

cf. squiffy a.] Intoxicated, drunk. 1927 Wodehouse Meet Mr. Multitier vi. 191 Intoxicated? The word did not express it by a mile. He was oiled, boiled, fried .. whiffled, sozzled, and blotto. 1930- Very Good, Jeeves! ii. 46 ‘Have you forgotten that I did thirty days .. for punching a policeman .. on Boat-Race night?’ ‘But you were whiffled at the time.’ 1956 J. D. Carr Patrick Butler for Defence xiv. 157 Helen .. was much too clear-headed .. ever to let herself get whiffled.

'whifflegig,

a. colloq. Trifling, ‘whiffling’. Also

'whiffmagig = whiffler2 2. 1830 H. Lee Mem. Manager I. i. 10 Not one of your puny punsters, or.. whiffle-gig word-snappers. 1871 Meredith H. Richmond liv, Plenty of foreign whiffmagigs are to be found, but you won’t come upon a fellow like that.

whiffler1

('hwifb(r)).

viffleur, wyffler, wyff-,

Obs. exc. Hist.

Forms: 6

wiffeler, wyfler, weffler,

6-7 wiffler, whiffeler, 6-8 wifler, 7 whyfler, 7-8 whifler, 6- whiffler. [f. wifle javelin, axe + -er1; the spelling with wh is prob. due to association with whiff and whiffle v.1] One of a body of attendants

armed

with

a javelin,

battle-axe,

sword, or staff, and wearing a chain, employed to keep the way clear for a procession or at some public spectacle. Whifflers formed a regular part of the Corporation procession at Norwich till 1835; they were employed also on 11 Sept. 1848, when the then Duke of Cambridge attended the triennial musical festival. 1539 in Archaeologia XXXII. 33 The chamberlayn & councellors of the cytye, & the aldermens deputyes whiche were assigned to be wyffelers on horsebacke, were all yn cotes of whyte damaske.. w' great chaynes abowte theyre necks, & propre javilyns or battle axes yn theyre hands... The wyffelers on fote were iiij. C propre lyght persones apparellyd yn whyte sylke or buffe jerkyns,.. every man havyng a slaugh sworde or a javelyn to kepe the people yn araye, w* chaynes abowte theyre necks. 1544 in Rymer Foedera (1719) XV. 53 [At the King’s departure from Calais] Furst, the Drommes and Viffleurs, then the Trompets, then [etc.]. 1544 in Lett. & Papers Hen. VIII, XIX. II. 305 The captain of the Spaniards.. asketh allowance for the wages of himself, his petty captain, his standard bearer, drum, fife, wifler, surgeon and priest. 1556 J. Heywood Spider & F. lii. v, Drums, fiffes, flags, and wiflers. 1560-1 in Old City Acc. Bk. (Archaeol. Jrnl. XLIII), Payde for iij staves ffor wefflers. 1599 Shaks. Hen. V v. Chorus 12 The deep-mouth’d Sea, Which like a mightie Whiffler ’fore the King, Seemes to prepare his way.

WHIFFLER

229

1605 Bacon Adv. Learn. 11. xiii. 50 They.. were.. scornefull toward particulars, which their manner was to vse .. as .. Sargeants and Wifflers .. to make way .. for their opinions. 1618 Bp. Hall Righteous Mammon Wks. (1625) 701 Some vaine whiffler, that is proud of a borrowed chaine. 1641 Milton Animadv. iv. 30 His former transition was in the ^bout the Jugglers, now he is at the Pageants among the Whifflers. a 1658 Cleveland Poems, etc. (1677) 112 First as a Whifler before the show enter Stamford, one that trod the Stage with the first, travers’d his ground, made a Leg and Exit. 1707 E. Ward Hud. Rediv. vi. II. 23 The Colours that their Whifflers wear, And different Ensigns that they bear. 1712 Addison Sped. No. 536 IP5 Our fine young Ladies.. retain in their Service.. as great a Number as they can of supernumerary.. Fellows, which they use like Whiflers. x7®7 Grose Prov. Gloss., Whifflers, men who make way for the corporation of Norwich, by flourishing their swords.

b. transf.

A swaggerer, braggadocio.

1581 J . Bell Haddon's Answ. Osor. 113 Yet another place of S. Paule out of the whiche this wylde wiffler may rushe upon us with his leaden dagger. 1607 Dekker & Webster Northw. Hoe 11. i, Your right whiffler.. hangs himselfe in Saint Martins, and not in Cheape-side. 1644 Featley Levites Scourge To Rdr., They fight, .rather like whifflers with vizards on their faces. 1881 Shorthouse John Inglesant ix, A motley company of mummers, masquers, fantastic phantoms, whifflers, thieves, rufflers. 1889 ‘Q’ Splendid Spur xiii, The crew of gipsies, whifflers, mountebanks, fortune-tellers.

t The sense ‘piper, fifer’ found in Diets, from Kersey’s ed. of Phillips (1706) onwards is baseless. whiffler2 ('hwifb(r)). [f. whiffle v.1 + -er1.] 11. A smoker of tobacco. Obs. (Cf. whiffer.) 1617 Middleton & Rowley Fair Quarrel iv. i, How likest thou this, whiffler? 1836 Hor. Smith Tin Trump. 117 So may we allow Vesuvius and Etna to smoke, without conceding that privilege to every puny whiffler.

2. A trifler; an insignificant or contemptible fellow (cf. whiffling/)/)/, a.1 3); also, a shifty or evasive person. 1659 Lady Alimony v. iv, Such Whifflers are below my scorn, and beneath my spite. 1675 Covel in Early Voy. Levant (Hakl. Soc.) 279 Here are every year abundance of Whiflers in those scraps of learning. 1678 H. More in Glanvill Sadducismus Postscript (1681) 45 O the impudent profaneness .. of perverse shufflers and whifflers. a 1745 Swift Public Absurd. Eng. Wks. 1841 II. 311/1 It is a common topic of satire, which you will hear.. from the mouths.. of every whiffler in office. 1809-12 Maria Edgeworth Absentee iv, He was not a whiffler to stand upon ceremony about disturbing a gentleman in his last moments. 1866 J. Martineau Ess. I. 187 These metaphysical whifflers draw no blood. 1896 Advance (Chicago) 25 June 935/2 [Giving the Gospel message] requires single-mindedness; no whiffler can succeed.

f3. A flag.

Obs. rare.

(Cf. whiff sb.1 7.)

WHIG

2. Inconstant, shifting; evasive. a 1680 Butler Rem. (1759) II. 109 This puts him upon perpetual Apologies.. in a Kind of whiffling Strain. 1741 Watts Improv. Mind ix. (1801) 79 A person of a whiffling and unsteady turn of mind, who cannot keep close to a point of controversy, but wanders from it perpetually. 1800 Asiat. Ann. Reg., Proc. E. Ind. Ho. 139/1 That it should be got rid of by the whiffling way of an adjournment. 1818 Hazlitt Pol. Ess. (1819) 343 A whiffling turncoat. 1835 W. Irving Tour Prairies iv, Hee had .. a whiffling double voice, shifting abruptly from a treble to a thorough-bass. 1856 Emerson Engl. Traits viii. 143 The national temper, in the civil history, is not flashy or whiffling. 1914 Contemp. Rev. Sept. 323 The whiffling and unsteady frame of mind of the Imperial workman.

3. Trifling, pettifogging, fiddling, fussy; (passing into) paltry, insignificant, ‘piffling’. 1613 Hoby Counter-snarle 3 Some vile blurr, and maleuolous aspersion, from one or other her suborned Pandars and whifling agents. 1671 Crowne Juliana 1. 8 A pittiful whiffling small-beer Duke. 1678 Cudworth Intell. Syst. 1. v. 847 A meer Whifling, Evanid, and Phantastick thing. 1710 Brit. Apollo III. No. 7. 3/1 Whiffling, Noisy Whelp apace Barks. 1719 D’Urfey Pills (1872) IV. 107 The whiffling Gallants of the Inns of Court, Do hinder their Studies certainly. 1817 Hazlitt Times Newsp. Wks. 1902 III. 171 The low, whiffling, contemptible gratification of their literary jealousy. 1854 Miss Baker Northampt. Gloss., Whifling, slight, slender, insignificant. ‘A little whiffling fellow.’ 1903 R. Bridges To a Socialist in Lond. m The least petty whiffling ephemeral insect.

Hence 'whifflingly adv.f in a trifling manner. 1668 H. More Div. Dial. II. 482 All the Articles of our Faith.. might be most frivolously and whifflingly allegorized into a mere.. Fable.

whiffling, ppl. a.2: see whiffling vbl. sb.2 whifflow ('hwiftau). Naut. slang. formation.] (See quot. 1961.)

[Fanciful

1961 F. H. Burgess Diet. Sailing 222 Whifflow, an unnamed gadget; used when a proper name is forgotten. 1971 ‘A. Burgess’ MF v. 64 The cabin was still a mess of smashed and battered whifflows. whiffmagig: see whifflegig.

whiffy ('hwifi), a. slang. [f. whiff sb.1 + -Y1.] Having an unpleasant smell. Also fig. 1849 H. Melville Mardi II. xxvii. 109 A pithy, whiffy sentence or two. 1905 R. Marsh Spoiler of Men xvii. 149 It [sc. his tobacco] is a bit whiffy, ain’t it? 1934 R. Macaulay Going Abroad xi. 77 ‘A bit whiffy,’ Hero said, as they passed among the cottages that encircled the muddy.. pool. 1962 Auden Dyer's Hand (1963) 520, I have always found the atmosphere of Twelfth Night a bit whiffy. 1978 Birds Summer 45/2 The area is dusty and whiffy with lorries arriving to tip every four minutes.

1759 Durand Mem. Capt. Thurot (Percy Soc.) 28 The commodore and second vessel carried white whifflers or pendants forward.

f whifling. Obs. [f. whiff sb.1 + -ling.] An insignificant creature. (Cf. whiffler2 2.)

4. The whistlewing or golden-eye Clangula glaucion. local U.S.

1635 Glapthorne Hollander 1. i, Hang him young whifling, he know a Lady, pity of his life first.

duck,

1888 G. Trumbull Names of Birds 79.

whifflery ('hwiflari). nonce-wd. [f. prec.: see -ery.] Action characteristic of a whiffler; trifling. 1835 Carlyle in Froude T.C. (1884) I. 60 Life is no frivolity, or hypothetical coquetry or whifflery.

whiffletree, U.S. variant of whippletree. 1842 W. P. Hawes Sporting Scenes II. 69 Our whiffle-tree became detached from the vehicle, and fell upon the horse’s heels. 1855 Bristed in Cambr. Ess. 65 Whiffle-tree, the invariable American for splinter-bar. 1868 Rep. U.S. Comm. Agric. (1869) 256 A boy can lead a horse, with a suitable chain attached to the whiffletree. 1896 Century Mag. Nov. 23 With trace-chains rattling and whiffletrees snapping over the stumps of trees.

whiffling, vbl. sb.1: see whiffle v.1 'whiffling, vbl. sb.2 [f. whiffl(er* + -ing1.] The action of a whiffler in clearing the way; also attrib. or as ppl. a., used by, or acting as, a whiffler. 1618 in J. Nicholl Comp. Ironm. (1866) 183 For 14 doz. of whiffling staves and 1 doz. of truncheons .. 2 li. 5 s. o d. 1675 V. Alsop Anti-Sozzo iii. §2. 156 These whiffling Slanders do but make way for the Show. 1683 [J. Norris] Murnival of Knaves 16 The Rabbles Darling, small Birch-rod Of Loyalty, a Whiffing Blade.

whiffling ('hwifhrj), ppl. a.1 [f. whiffle v.1 + -ING2.]

1. That whiffles; blowing, or blown, in light puffs; moving lightly as if driven by gusts of wind. 1568 T. Howell Arb. Amitie (1879) 68 Vphoyst by wyffling windes. 1660 Ingelo Bentiv. & Ur. II. (1682) 205 The whiffling dust which flies in the faces of Travellers. 1685 Wood Life (O.H.S.) III. 135 No raine fell from the 26 Jan..., only a little whiffling snow. 1713 Rowe jfane Shore IV. i, Like a dry leaf, an idle straw, a feather, The Sport of every whifling Blast that blows. 1765 Sterne Tr. Shandy VII. xvi, Those whiffling vexations which come puffing across a man’s canvas. 1800 Hurdis Fav. Village 32 The whiffling breeze .. among the bents. 1845 S. Judd Margaret xvii, Where the whiffling winds had left the earth nearly bare [of snow],

b. Making or characterized by a light whistling sound. 1831 Carlyle Sart. Res. i. iv, Some whiffling husky cachinnation. 1911 Galsworthy Patrician xix, Rain, which the wind drove horizontally with a cold whiffling murmur.

whift (hwift), sb. Obs. exc. dial. Also wift. [var. of whiff sb.1 with excrescent -«.] 1. A whiff or slight blast of wind, etc.; a snatch (of song). 1614 Gorges Lucan v. 202 So hauing said, the surging whifts The ship ten times together lifts. 1855 Browning Fra Lippo Lippi 52 A sweep of lute-strings, laughs, and whifts of song. 1905 Westm. Gaz. 16 June 2/1 A wift of white foam.

2. A small signal flag. (Cf. whiff sb.1 7.) 1644 True Narr. Seige Plymouth 5 Having.. given a signe .. by hanging out a Wift, that he was in distresse. 1839 Beale Nat. Hist. Sperm Whale xii. 155 Two or three small flags, called ‘whifts’, which are inserted in the dead whale, in case the boats should leave it in chase of others. 1846 Young Naut. Diet. 359 Waft, Weft, or Whift, a signal (most frequently for a boat) made by hoisting a flag rolled up lengthways and bound together with a few stops. 1901 W. Clark Russell Ship's Adv. vii, There’s the barque that fouled us last night, sir. She’s got a wift at her mizzen-peak.

t whift, a. Obs. rare. [f. whiff v.1 (cf. sense 4) + -t — -ed2.] Drunk, intoxicated. 1611 Cotgr., Entrebeu, halfe drunke, almost whift.

whig (hwig), sb.1 Now Sc. and dial. Forms: 6 whyg(ge, 6-7 whigge, 6-7, 8-9 Sc. wig, 7, 9 Sc. whigg, 7, 8-9 Sc. wigg, 9 Sc. quhig, 6- whig. [Of unascertained origin, but presumably related to whey. (The variation of whig and wig in Sc. is remarkable.)] Variously applied to (a) sour milk or cream, (b) whey, (c) buttermilk, (d) a beverage consisting of whey fermented and flavoured with herbs. 1528 Roy Rede me (Arb.) 100 Lyvynge on mylke, whyg, and whey. 1561 B. Googe tr. Palingenius' Zodiac IV. H v, My lusty gotes with kid they swel, ne want I whigge, nor whay. 1589 [? Lyly] Pappe w. Hatchet Wks. 1902 III. 406 Martins conscience hath a periwig; therefore to good men he is more sower than wig. 1615 Markham Country Contentm. II. iv. 114 As for the Whey you may keepe it also in a sweet stone vessell: for it is that which is called Whigge, and is an excellent coole drinke and a wholsome. 1633 Hart Diet of Diseased II. xvii. 209 Sowre whey .. is in very great request in the Northerne parts of this Hand, where it is called of some whigge, and of others wigge. 1684 [Meriton] Yorksh. Ale Gloss. 114 Whig is Clarified Whey, put up with Herbs to drink. 1688 Holme Armoury 11. 173/1 Thick Milk, Butter¬ milk made thick through the heat of Summer, the bottom part falling to a Whigg. 1799 Statist. Acc. Scot. XXL 142 Cream, too long kept, and purified by drawing off the thin part, or wig, for drink, was converted into butter. 1834

Tait's Mag. I. 736/1 Whig., is the provincial name in the south-west of Scotland for that blue-and-yellowish, thin sub-acid liquid which gathers on the surface of whey or butter milk. fig. 1661 Nedham Hist. Engl. Reb. xiii, There lies the Cream of all the Cause; Religion is but Whig.

Whig (hwig), sb.2 and a. Forms: 7 whige, whigh, whigue, Sc. uhig, uig, 7-8 wig(g, 8 quig, 7-9 whigg, 7- whig. [Origin unascertained; prob. shortening of whiggamer, whiggamore; the occurrence of sense 1 (if it belongs to this word) some years before the date of the ‘whiggamore raid’ points to the existence of whig in a general sense before that event. The supposition that this word is identical with whig sb.1 (cf. the following quots.) has no historical foundation. 1717 De Foe Mem. Ch. Scot. iii. (1844) 68/2 The word is said to be taken from a mixt Drink the poor Men drank in their Wanderings compos’d of Water and sour Milk. 1721 Wodrow Hist. Suff. Ch. Scot. 11. ii. I. 263 The poor honest People, who were in Railery called Whiggs, from a Kind of Milk they were forced to drink in their Wandrings and Straits, a 1734 North Exam. 11. v. § 10 (1740) 321 This [5c. the name Birmingham Protestants] held a considerable Time; but the word was not fluent enough for hasty Repartee; and, after diverse Changes, the Lot fell upon Whig, which was very significative, as well as ready, being vernacular in Scotland, (from whence it was borrowed) for corrupt and sour Whey. Immediately the Train took, and, upon the first Touch of the Experiment, it run like wild Fire, and became general. And so the Account of Tory was ballanced, and soon began to run up a sharp Score on the other Side.]

A. sb. rare.

fl. A yokel, country bumpkin.

Obs.

C1645 T. Tully Siege of Carlisle (1840) 3 And needs he [sc. Leslie] would retreat to Newcastle, till great Barwise set himself first into the water; and the rest, following him, so frighted ye fresh water countrie whiggs, yr all of them answered the Motto, veni, vidi,fugi. c 1655 J. Gwynne Mil. Mem. Gt. Civil War 11. (1822) 90 Most of them were no souldiers, but countrey bumkins, there called Whigs.

2. An adherent of the Presbyterian cause in Scotland in the seventeenth century; applied orig. to the Covenanters in the West of Scotland who in 1648 wrested the government from the Royalist party and marched as rebels to Edinburgh; in later years, to the extreme section of the Covenanting party who were regarded as rebels. Hist. ‘By rigid Episcopalians, it is still given to Presbyterians in general; and, in the West of S[cotland], even by the latter, to those who, in a state of separation from the established church, profess to adhere more strictly to Presbyterian principles’ (Jamieson, 1808). 1657 in Jas. Campbell Balmerino (1867) 213 Having fallen in among the Whigs of Kilmany. 1666 Nicoll Diary (Bannatyne Club) 452 The Generali [Dalyell] having marched towards the West, he took and killed sindrie persones, callit The Whigs. 1666 Cal. State Papers, Dom. 1666-7 0864) 301 Now not one [sc. of the rebels] dares call himself a Whig. 1667 Lond. Gaz. No. 121/1 We were informed that the Whigs had privately in the night stollen down the heads of 4 of the Rebels that were set up in Glasgow. 1679 Lauderdale Papers (Camden 1885) III. 163 The Whiggs horse and foot fell in pell, mell, upon the Dragoons. 1683 Claverhouse in Clovers, the Despot's Champion (1889) xii. 142, I am as sorry to see a man day, even a whigue, as any of themselfs. 1684 Buccleuch MSS. (Hist. MSS. Comm. 1903) II. 196 The bearer wil tell you the kindness the Whighs has for your lordship, which is no ill argument of your lordship’s zeal in the King’s service. 01699 Kirkton Hist. Ch. Scot. (1817) 46 This was done at the Whiggs’ Road, as was called. 1708 in Brand Hist. Newc. (1789) I. 424 note, [In St. Andrew’s Register, November 1708, this burying-ground for dissenters is called] the Quigs buring-place. 01715 Burnet Own Time 1. (1724) I. 43 Those in the west [of Scotland] come in the summer to buy at Lieth the stores that come from the north: And from a word Whiggam, used in driving their horses all that drove were called the Whiggamors, and shorter the Whiggs. 1875 tr. Ranke's Hist. Eng. xvi. ix. IV. 121 Doubtless, in Scotland also, the republican tendencies appeared; for instance, in October 1680, the King and the Duke were excommunicated with due form;.. These were, however, rather Anabaptist than Presbyterian views; their adherents were indeed called Whigs, but ‘wild Whigs’. 1888 M. Morris Claverhouse ix. 159 The men of the hill-sides and moorlands of the West, the wild Western Whigs, who feared .. the name of Claverhouse.

3. a. Applied to the Exclusioners (c 1679) who opposed the succession of James, Duke of York, to the crown, on the ground of his being a Roman Catholic. Hist. (Opposed to Tory A. 2.) 1679 Wood Life (O.H.S.) II. 431 After the breaking out of the popish plot severall of our scholars were tried and at length were discovered to be whiggs, viz... Georg Reynell of C.C.C., looked upon as alwayes a round-head. 1681 Luttrell Brief Rel. (1857) I. 124 The latter party have been called by the former, whigs, fanaticks, covenanteers, bromigham protestants, &c.; and the former are called by the latter, tories, tantivies, Yorkists, high flown church men. 1682 Tories Confess, vi, What pimping Whig shall dare controule, or check the lawfull Heir. 1683 [J. Norris] Murnival of Knaves 2 Whig and Tory.. The one of Caledonian Race, T’other has an Hibernian Face. 1691 Wood Ath. Oxon. II. 652 In 1678..he closed with the Whiggs, supposing that party would carry all before them. a 1734 [see etymology above]. 1827 Hallam Const. Hist. xii. (1876) II. 439. 1905 C. S. Terry Pentland Rising 84 The.. controversies which cleft the Whigs in 1679, to the paralysis of serious military achievement, were absent in 1666.

b. fig. A rebel.

WHIG 1682 Dryden Another Epil. Dk. Guise 22 When Sighs and Prayers their ladies cannot move, They rail, write Treason, and turn Whigs to love.

4. Hence, from 1689, an adherent of one of the two great parliamentary and political parties in England, and (at length) in Great Britain. (Opposed to Tory A. 3.) Since the middle of the 19th century mostly superseded (exc. as a historical term) by Liberal (see liberal A. 5, B. 1 b), but used occas. since then to express adherence to moderate or antiquated Liberal principles. 1702 Clarendon s Hist. Reb. I. Pref. p. viii, We have lived .. to see the two great Parties, of late known by the Names of Whig and Tory, directly change their ground. 1704 C. Leslie The Wolf Stript 82 A Whigg is a State-Enthusiast, as a Dissenter is an Ecclesiastical. 1713 Guardian No. 1. If 4, I am, with relation to the government of the Church, a Tory, with regard to the State, a Whig, a 1715 Burnet Own Time 1. (1724) I. 43 All that opposed the Court came in contempt to be called Whiggs. 1741 Hume Ess., Parties Gt. Brit. 131 A Whig may be defin’d to be a Lover of Liberty, tho’ without renouncing Monarchy; and a Friend to the Settlement in the Protestant Line. 1778 Johnson 28 Apr. in Boswell, ‘And I have always said, the first Whig was the Devil.’ Boswell. ‘He certainly was, Sir. The Devil was impatient of subordination.’ 1791 Burke {title) An Appeal from the New to the Old Whigs, in consequence of some late discussions in Parliament, relative to the Reflections on the French Revolution. 1844 Disraeli Coningsby vi. iii, ‘I look upon an Orangeman,’ said Coningsby, ‘as a pure Whig.’ 1852 Ld. J. Russell in S. Walpole Life (1889) II. 156 note. The term Whig.. has the convenience of expressing in one syllable what Conservative Liberal expresses in seven; and Whiggism, in two syllables, means what Conservative Progress means in other six. 1883 Sat. Rev. 21 July 67/2 The Gladstonian Moderate, the ‘Whig’ as he is locally called, has ceased to have a reason for existence in Irish politics. 1911 B. Holland Spencer Compton II. 129 Until this moment [1886] the word ‘Whig’ was still in common use to denote a connection loosely bound together, the moderate Liberals, led by the chiefs of certain families of long standing. Since 1886, the word has been used in a purely historical sense, while ‘Tory’ has still a living meaning.

5. Amer. Hist. a. An American colonist who supported the American Revolution. 1768 New York Gaz. 14 Mar., {title of article) The American Whig. 1768 Boston Gaz. 11 Apr. 3/1 On reading, in the American Mercury, an advertisement of a weekly paper to be published, under the title of A Whip for the American Whig; I could not help falling into a train of serious reflections, on the persecuting genius that inspires the high flying Tory party, in the episcopal church. 1775 Thacher Mil.Jrnl. Amer. Rev. (1823) 12 The .. majority .. are united in resolution to oppose.. the wicked attempts of the English Cabinet. This class of people have assumed the appellation of Whigs. 1775 Johnson in Boswell 21 Mar., When the Whigs of America are thus multiplied, let the Princes of the earth tremble in their palaces. 1812 Niles' Weekly Reg. 6 June 240/1 A great battle is said to have been fought about the 1st May, between the ‘whigs’ of Caracos and ‘tories’ of Coro, the latter being aided by some ‘regulars’ from Porto Rico. 1884 A. Johnston Hist. Amer. Pol. (ed. 2) 6 As soon as independence was announced, in 1776, to be the final object of the contest, the names Whig and Tory lost, in America, whatever of British significance they had ever possessed.

b. A member of a party formed in 1834 from a fusion of the National Republicans and other elements opposed to the Democrats; it favoured a protective tariff and a strong national or central government, and was succeeded in 1856 by the Republican party. (See quot. 1905.) 1834 Niles' Weekly Reg. 12 Apr. 101/2 In New York and Connecticut the term ‘whigs’ is now used by the opponents of the administration when speaking of themselves, and they call the ‘Jackson men’ by the offensive name of ‘tories’. 1839 Congress. Globe Jan., App. 105/1 In 1796,.. Whig.. was synonymous with Democrat,. .or, in the Federal language of the times, was fit for the common people;.. but now for political effect, the same party have taken the term Whig to themselves. 1888 Bryce Amer. Commw. 111. liii. II. 340 The majesty and beneficent activity of the National government .. was generally in fact represented by the Federalists of the first period, the Whigs of the second, the Republicans of the third. 1905 A. Johnston's Amer. Pol. Hist. II. 239 His [5c. James Watson Webb’s] newspaper, the Courier and Enquirer, had originally supported Jackson, and had been driven into the opposition by the President’s course. In February, 1834, he baptized the new party with the name of ‘Whig’, with the idea that the name implied resistance to executive usurpation, to that of the Crown in England and in the American Revolution, and to that of the President in the United States of 1834.

B. adj. That is a Whig; of, pertaining to, or characteristic of a Whig or Whigs: holding the opinions or principles of a Whig. 1681 T. Flatman Heraclitus Ridens No. 32 (1713) I. 205 Oh there’s a thick Disguise they say upon Affairs, and unless you have a pair of Whig-spectacles, there’s no seeing through it. 1683 Dryden Find. Dk. Guise 22 As for Knave, and Sycophant, and Rascal, and Impudent, and Devil, and old Serpent,.. I take them to be only names of Parties: And cou'd return Murtherer and Cheat, and Whig-napper. 1683 Luttrell Brief Rel. (1857) I. 279 Commenting on several proceedings of those called the whig party. 1719 T. Gordon Char. Indep. Whig (ed. 2) 19 Let them not. .give up Whig Boroughs into Jacobite Hands. 1732 P. Walker Cargill in Biogr. Presbyt. (1827) II. 100 They said ‘Take up the old damn’d Whig-Bitch.’ 1768 Boston Gaz. 21 Mar. 3/1 May the best of Heaven’s Blessings ever attend the Whig Cause. 1818 Scott Br. Lamm, x, Free and safe as a whig bailie on the causeway of his own borough, or a canting presbyterian minister in his own pulpit. 1837 Syd. Smith Let. Archd. Singleton Wks. 1859 II. 276/2 Lord John Russell, the Whig leader. 1839 Whittier Pr. Wks. (1889) II. 323 The late Whig defeat in New York. 1888 Bryce Amer. Commw. in. liii. II. 333 The other section, which called itself at first the National Republican, ultimately the Whig party. 1912 G.

WHIGGISH

230 O. Trevelyan Geo. Ill & Fox I. 292 A rallying point for the hardy Whig militiamen of the Carolinas.

everything they touched. They gauged and docketed all the objects of Poetry.

C. Comb., as Whig-Radicalsb. and adj.; Whigdefeating, -hunting adjs.; Whig historian, a historian who interprets history as the continuing and inevitable victory of progress over reaction; Whig history, history written by or from the point of view of a Whig historian, f Whigland (obs. slang), the land of Whigs, esp. Scotland; hence fWhiglander, a native or inhabitant of ‘Whigland’.

whig, v.3 dial. [f. whig sb.1] trans. and intr. To

1682 T. Flatman Heraclitus Ridens No. 65 (1713) II. 152 A Cause-confounding, *Whig-defeating.. Dispensation. 1924 G. B. Shaw Saint Joan Pref. p. x, Her [sc. Joan’s] ideal biographer.. must understand the Middle Ages .. much more intimately than our ’"Whig historians have ever understood them. 1980 H. Trevelyan Public & Private 149 George Macaulay Trevelyan.. was essentially a Whig historian, thus continuing the family tradition derived from his father and his kinsman Macaulay. 1931 H. C. Butterfield Whig Interpretation of Hist. i. 6 The truth is that there is a tendency for all history to veer over into ’"whig history. 1973 Listener 28 June 869/1 Macaulay.. wrote consciously Whig history: yet.. enunciated the principles of historical criticism which explains why Whig history is a distortion. 1905 C. S. Terry Pentland Rising 2 The familiar *Whig-hunting duty of Claverhouse. 1681 T. Flatman Heraclitus Ridens No. 45 (1713) II. 39 The Territories of *Whigg-land. 1683 [J. Norris] Murnival of Knaves 16 Patron of all Dissenters, and The Demogorgon of Whigland. 01700 B. E. Diet. Cant. Crew, Whig-land, Scotland. 1682 Ballad, Happy Ret. Old Dutch Miller i, I am so Zealous for *Whiglanders Crew, I’l cure their Distempers with one Turn or Two. 1820 J. Rickman Extr. Life & Lett. 10 Feb. 215 The address of the Yorkshire *Whig Radicals.

Hence (mostly humorous or contemptuous nonce-wds.) 'Whiggarchy (-a:ki) [Gr. apxy rule], government by Whigs; 'Whiggess, a female Whig; 'Whiggify v., trans. to make Whig or whiggish (so .Whiggifi'cation); Whi'ggissimi [jocular f. with L. superl. ending], extreme or absolute Whigs; 'Whiggize v., intr. to act like a Whig, play the Whig; Whiggo'logical a., relating to Whig principles; 'Whiglet, 'Whigling, a small or petty Whig (also attrib.)\ Whi'gocracy [-cracy], government by Whigs; concr. a body of Whig rulers; 'Whigship, the personality or quality of a Whig; f 'Whigster [-ster], a contemptuous appellation for a Whig. 1712-13 Swift App. to Cond. Allies Wks. 1841 I. 437/1 That they will not recognize any other government in Great Britain but *Whiggarchy only. 1776 Pennsylvania Even. Post 2 Jan. 3/2 A reasonable ’"Whiggess scorns all implicit faith in the state as well as the church. 1839 Lady Lytton Cheveley v, Whigesses always make their ‘debut’ later than other girls. 1832 J. Wilson in Blackw. Mag. Sept. 387 We were all along against the *whiggification of the Tory System. 1682 ‘Philanax Misopappas’ Tory Plot 11. 3 If he preach up nothing but Hell and Heaven, and a good Life,.. D - - - me, says he, this Fellow’s *Whiggefi’d. 1835 Fraser's Mag. XI. 364 They may aid. .in whiggifying some of the propositions of the government. 1841 Tait's Mag. VIII. 484 A whiggified Radical is a jobber. 1725 Swift Let. to Sheridan 25 Sept., Because they are above suspicions, as *Whiggissimi and Unsuspectissimi. 1832 J. Rickman Extr. Life Lett. 18 Apr. 294 Whigs, Whiggamores, Whiggissimi. 1832 J. Wilson in Blackw. Mag. XXXII. 708, I don’t like a Whig.. but.. I have even less affection for a *Whiggizing Tory. 1817 Q. Rev. Oct. 135 Mr. Bentham will no doubt be thankful for so striking an illustration of his ♦whiggological theories. 1681 T. Flatman Heraclitus Ridens No. 36 (1713) I. 232 Some tolerable Reasons why the little *Whiglets engag’d themselves in such an Affair. 1821 Blackw. Mag. X. 221 You have made some of the Radicals and Whiglets, both of Edinburgh and Glasgow, feel. Ibid. 3 Tears of joy and gratitude at beholding the *whiglings placed so near his Majesty’s seat of honour. 1834 Oxf. Univ. Mag. I. 41 The carping jibes of Whigling envy. 1883 J. Wilson Ess. Hist. & Biogr. xvi. 289 The whole breed of Radicals, and Whiglings, and Cockneys. 1836 Fraser's Mag. XIII. 568 Any of the *Whigocracy. 01796 Burns Stanzas on Naething 37 Her '"whigship was wonderful pleased. 1846 Landor Imag. Conv., Johnson & John Horne {Tooke) Wks. I. 166/1 People of your cast in politics are fond of vilifying our country. Is this your whigship? 1683 Romulus & Hersilia Prol., Now I dare swear, some of you *Whigsters say, Come on, now for a swinging Tory Play.

turn sour; to curdle. 1756 F. Home Exper. Bleaching 196 The milk is whigged, and still pretty sour. 1825 Jamieson s.v., Stale churned milk, when it throws off a sediment, is said to whig. 1835 De Quincey Tory's Acc. Toryism, etc., Wks. 1863 XV. 224 If you pour milk upon rum, and do it so slowly or so unskilfully as to coagulate the mixture, you are said ‘to whig it.’

whig(g, variants of wig sb.1, kind of bun. whiggamore ('hwig9mD9(r)). Hist. Forms: 7 whigimyre, whiggamaire, -mer, whigmuir, wickhamer, wiggomer, 7whiggamore, 8 whiggamor, whigamoor, 9 whigamore. [The form whig(g)amore, used by Bp. Burnet in the often cited passage given s.v. Whig sb.2 2, and later popularized by Scott, is app. an erratic form (like whigmuir, whigimyre) of wiggomer, whiggamaire, which is prob. f. whig v.1 4- mere, mare sb.1 The word whiggam adduced by Burnet as a term used in driving horses is unsupported by evidence.]

Originally, One of a body of insurgents of the West of Scotland who in 1648 marched on Edinburgh, their expedition being called the ‘whiggamore raid, road, or inroad’; later (,contemptuous), = Whig sb.2 2. Also attrib. 1649 Sir Jas. Balfour Hist. Wks. (1825) III. 388 Anent the Scotts last going into England, and the Englishe, with Cromwell and Lambert, ther heir-coming at the Whiggamaire roade. Ibid. 420 Since Julij last, 1649, and the Whigamore road. 1654 in R. Baillie's Lett. & Jrnls. (Bann. Club) III. 568 Some hes maid a report., that wee wer raysing a Whigimyre road vnder Argyle. 1662 in Wodrow Hist. Suff. Ch. Scot. 1. iii. (1721) I. 151 There was another Statue in a Whigmuir’s Habit, having the Remonstrance in his Hand. 1666 Cal. State Papers, Dom. 1666-7 0864) 302, 68 of the Wickhamers. 1666 in Dom. State Papers Chas. II CLXXIX. If. 136 (MS.), The Wiggomers, for so they call the mutineers, being a middle sort betwixt Anabaptist and Presbyterian, are quite quelld onely that they shifft their quarters as they heare they are pursued. 1670 Sir Jas. Turner Mem. (1829) 68 So soone as the news of our defeate [sc. of the Scots at Preston] came to Scotland, Argile and the Kirks partie rose in armes everie mothers sonne; and this was calld the Whiggamer rode. 01715 [see Whig sb.2 2]. 1816 Scott Old Mort. viii, There’s a thousand merks on the murdering whigamore’s head. 1818-Rob Roy xxv, It isna good for my health to come in the gate o’ the whigamore bailie bodies. 1821 -—- Pirate iv, ‘Hear to him,’ said an old whigamore carline. 1830 J. Rickman Extr. Life Lett. 17 Sept. 267, I hear the Whiggamores begin to be frightened. 1886 Stevenson Kidnapped ix. 77 note, Whig or Whigamore was the cant name for those who were loyal to King George [an. 1751]. 1891 Gardiner Hist. Civil War lxvi. III. 491 The Whiggamore leaders constituted themselves.. into a Committee of Estates. 1898 W. S. Douglas Cromwell's Sc. Camp. 9 It is certain that after the events of 1648 they must have considered the ‘Whiggamores’ more closely bound to their interest than that body proved to be.

[f. Whig sb.2 + -ery.] Whig principles or practice; Whiggism. (Mostly hostile or contemptuous.)

Whiggery ('hwigsn).

1682 T. Flatman Heraclitus Ridens No. 66 (1713) II. 161 What other Whiggery have you? 1714 G. Lockhart Mem. Scot. (ed. 3) 128 The first of these was.. after the Revolution, raised to the Bench upon Account of his Whiggery and Disloyalty. 1814 Scott Wav. xxx, That’s a’ your Whiggery, and your presbytery, ye cut-lugged, graning carles! 1843 E. Quincy Life of W. L. Garrison iii. 92 Great opposition was made to David Lee Child on account of his bias towards Whiggery. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. ii. I. 275 Noisy zealots, whose only claim to promotion was that they were always drinking confusion to Whiggery, and lighting bonfires to bum the Exclusion Bill. 1876 N. Amer. Rev. CXXIII. 213 Whiggery meant sound views on the tariff. 1885 Courthope Lib. Movem. Engl. Lit. ii. 50 Whiggery, in Burke’s days, meant simply adherence to the principles of the Revolution of 1688. 1908 Sat. Rev. 9 May 586/2 We must congratulate Mr. Asquith on disregarding the shrill cries of antiquated whiggery.

b. fig. Rebellion. (Cf. Whig sb.2 3 b.) 1826 Galt Last of Lairds i. 3 When the day happened to be wet, the poultry were accustomed to murmur their sullen and envious whiggery against the same weather [etc.].

whig, v.1 Sc. [Cf. fig (vb.3), frig, jig.] 1. trans. To urge forward, drive briskly.

'whiggish, a.1 rare. In 6 whighish. [f. whig sb.1

1666-7 G. Blackhal Brief Narr. (1844) §8. 163, I did sie the contrie people whigging their meres, to be tymously at the kirk.

r59° Fenne Frutes, Hecuba's Mishaps Cc 4, Whose whighish skin the muddy mire with filthy spots had hild.

2. intr. To jog along. c 1690 Killiecrankie in C. Mackay Jacobite Songs (1861) 38 The solemn league and covenant, Cam whigging up the hills, man. 1701 De Foe Trueborn Eng. 1. 222 Scots from the northern frozen banks of Tay, With packs and plods came whigging all away. 1815 Scott Guy M. xxiv, Just when I.. was whigging cannily awa hame.

Whig, v2 [f. Whig sb.2] trans. To behave like a Whig towards; intr. to play the Whig. 1681 T. Flatman Heraclitus Ridens No. 39 (1713) I. 258 They will Whig us bravely indeed, if by the Pretences of the Fear of Popery and Arbitrary Government, Flanders and Germany should.. fall into the Scale of France. 1695 in C. Mackay Jacobite Songs (1861) 43 Say, was it foul, or was it fair, To come a hunder mile and mair, For to ding out my daddy’s heir, And dash him wi’ the whiggin o’t. 1816 Scott Old Mort. xxxvi, I think he will hardly neglect the parade of the feudal retainers, or go a-whigging a second time. 1832 Lytton in Life, etc. (1883) II. viii. i. 280 They Whigged

+ -iSH1.] Pale as whey.

Whiggish ('hwigif), a.2

Also 7-8 whigish, 8 wiggish. [f. Whig sb.2 + -ish1.] = Whig a.; also, Having or indicating something of the character of a Whig, inclined to Whiggism. (Formerly usually hostile or contemptuous-, now usu. with reference to historical interpretation: see Whig historian, history s.v. Whig sb.2 and a.

C.) 1680 Roxb. Ball. (1883) IV. 637 Great York in favour does remain, In spight of all the Whigish train. 1681 T. Flatman Heraclitus Ridens No. 23 (1713) I. 150, I scorn the Trade of Lying, if it were for nothing else, but that it makes a Man look so Whiggish. 1684 in T. Hutchinson Hist. Mass. (1795) I. 308 note, I suspect you, of the Massachusetts, are more whiggish, and your neighbours more toryish, to express it in the language of late in use. 1705 E. Ward Hud. Rediv. 11. 20 Mix’d with some High Church Vindications Against false Whiggish Defamations. 1779 Burke Corr. (1844) II. 270 Your liberal, wise, and truly whiggish principles. 1790

WHIGGISM

231

Burns Eptt.Capt. M- H- viii, If ony whiggish whingin sot, To blame poor Matthew dare, man. 1813 Miss Mitford 11 Apr. in L’Estrange Life (1870) I. vii. 229 If not a Reformer I am nothing; for I have as pretty a contempt for the ministers as my whiggish papa. 1816 Scott Antiq. v, The whiggish and perverse opposition to established rank and privilege. 1975 Times Lit. Suppl. 28 Nov. 1404/3 The danger, ever-present in women’s history (as in labour history) of whiggish perspectives: of self-indulgently allowing enthusiasm for the women’s cause today to obstruct sensitive understanding of women’s situation yesterday.

fb.fig. Rebellious, factious. Obs. slang. 01700 B. E. Diet. Cant. Seditious, Restless, Uneasy.

Crew,

Whiggish,

Factious,

c. transf. Liberal, ‘broad’: cf. liberal a. 4b. 1715 M. Davies Athen. Brit. I. Pref. 17 In the same fourth Century there were some Whiggish Pamphlets publish’d by some Moderate Heathens. 1907 P. T. Forsyth Positive Preaching iv. 120 They gave the gnostics a huge advantage over the whiggish apologists and their liberal Christianity.

Hence 'Whiggishly adv., 'Whiggishness. 1681 T. Flatman Heraclitus Ridens No. 32 (1713) I. 209 That was as "Whiggishly objected as ever I heard in my Life. 1684 Luttrell Brief Rel. (1857) I. 295 There have been commissioners appointed, who .. have turn’d out those persons in hospitalls and other publick places who are whiggishly inclined. 1728 Swift Let. to Sheridan 18 Sept., I fancy you may do some good with the Primate,.. if you wheedle him and talk a little Whiggishly. 1818 Hogg Brownie of Bodsbeck xii, Whiggishly inclined. 1975 University (Princeton Univ.) Winter 4/1 This is not to say whiggishly that science at any juncture has been the only description of physical reality that was historically possible. 1980 Times Lit. Suppl. 25 July 837/1 Authors tend to win a place in the history of social and political thought by making what is usually, and whiggishly, referred to as a ‘theoretical contribution’. 1889 Academy 16 Nov. 311/1 Mr. Walpole has himself that trait of "Whiggishness which peculiarly fits him to paint the portrait of the chief of the Whigs. 1920 Blackw. Mag. Mar. 402/2 Johnson would have tolerated his coxcombry as little as he would have borne with his inveterate Whiggishness.

Whiggism ('hwigiz(3)m). Also 7-8 Whigism. [f. as prec. + -ism.] The principles, tenets, or methods of the Whigs; moderate or antiquated Liberalism. (Opposed to Toryism.) ? 1666 Cal. State Papers, Dom. 1666-7 0864) 415 Extract of a Scotch letter, by M. L’Estrange; whiggism and treason. 1683 Wood Life (O.H.S.) III. 6 Sept., To expell Mr. Parkinson from the University for whiggisme. 1702 De Foe Shortest Way with Dissenters 15 We can never enjoy a settled uninterrupted Union and Tranquility in this Nation, till the Spirit of Whiggisme, Faction, and Schism is melted down like the Old-Money. 1776 J. Adams Let. to Sergeant 21 July, Wks. 1854 IX. 425 But when persons come to see there is greater danger to their persons and property from toryism than whiggism, the same avarice and pusillanimity will make them whigs. 1813 W. Taylor in Monthly Rev. LXXII. 275 An account of the Kit-cat club, throws light on the history of Whiggism. 1844 Disraeli Coningsby vi. iii, I look upon an Orangeman .. as .. the only professor and practiser of unadulterated Whiggism. 1844 Punch VI. 46/1 The velocity with which Lord Brougham turns round from Whiggism to Toryism. 1880 Green Hist. Eng. People IV. ix. i. 220 The King [sc. Geo. Ill] still called himself a Whig, yet he was reviving a system of absolutism which Whiggism .. had long made impossible.

b. (with pi.) A Whiggish principle or tenet. 1830 Gen. P. whiggisms that representation.

whighen,

Thompson Exerc. (1842) I. 222 The are abroad upon this question of

obs. form of quicken sb.1

whighhie,

var. f. wehee.

whight, whi3t:

obs.

forms

of

weight

sb.2,

WHITE, WIGHT.

whigmaleery (’hwigmslisri). Sc. Also -me-, -ie. [Origin obscure.] Anything fanciful or whimsical; a fantastic notion, whim, crotchet; a fanciful ornament, contrivance, etc. Also attrib. 1730 Ramsay Man with Twa Wives 18 But Bess the whig .. Took figmaliries, and wald jump. 1786 Burns Brigs of Ayr 96 Gin ye be a Brig as auld as me,.. There’ll be, if that day come, I’ll wad a boddle, Some fewer whigmeleeries in your noddle. 1793-Lett, to Mrs. Dunlop 5 Jan., I had two worthy fellows dining with me the other day, when I.. produced my whigmaleerie cup. 1818 Scott Rob Roy xix, It's a brave kirk —nane o’ yere whigmaleeries and curliewurlies and open-steek hems about it. 1878 Mrs. Oliphant Primrose Path vii, A’ the whigmaleeries of the auld steeple.

whigwham, whiht,

variant of wigwam.

obs. form of wight.

whik(k, -en,

obs. dial. ff. quick, quicken.

whil, whilberow, while, whilch, whilde, obs. ff. while, wheelbarrow, which, wild.

while (hwail), sb. Forms: 1, 4 hwil, (1 huil), 2-5 wil, 3 hwile, (3wile, 3wyle, 3uile), 3-5, 7 whil, 4 huile, (wyel), 4 5 whyl, whylle, 4-6 whyll, wyle, 4-7 whyle, (chiefly Sc.) whill, 4-5 wile, 5 wyl, wyll, (weil, whylghe), 5, 7 whille, 6 wylle, will, (whyell, vyl, Sc. vhyle, vhill), 3- while; 3-4 quil, 3-5 quile, 4 quyl, quyle, quille, 4 6 Sc. quhile, qwhil, 4-7 Sc. quhil, (9 arch.) quhill, 4-8 Sc. quhyle, 5 qwile, qwyle, qwil, qwill, Sc. qwhile, (qwhiel), qwhill(e, quhille, 5, 6 Sc. qwyl, 5-6 Sc. quhyl, qwhyl, 6 Sc. quhyll. jS. 3 hwule, whule,

wule. [OE. hwil str. fern. = OFris. hwile, wile (Fris. wil), OS. hwil, hwila time (MDu. wile hour, moment, Du. wijl), OHG. hwil, (h)wila point or period of time (MHG. wile, G. weile), ON. hvila bed (Sw. hvila, Da. hvile repose, refreshment), Goth, hweila time:—OTeut. *Xwilo, the first syllable of which derives from Indo-eur. qwi-, represented by L. quies rest, tranquillus (= *-quilnos) quiet, OS1. pociti to rest; cf. the sense of ON. hvila and hvild rest, repose, and of the continental forms of the verb.] I. 1. a. A portion of time, considered with respect to its duration; = time sb. 1, 2, rarely 4 or 6. Now almost exclusively in certain connexions (see below), the ordinary word being time. Formerly with gen. while’s. Rarely Pi971 Blickl. Horn. 125 Hwilce hwile hine wille Drihten her on worlde laetan. 01250 Owl & Night. 1591 And swupe longe hire is pe hwile, An ek steape hire punp a mile, a 1300 Cursor M. 22161 Als symon magus in his quile Right sua sal he pe folk bigile. 1303 R. Brunne Handl. Synne 12562 Holy cherche, despyse and fyle, pat wyl y bleply, alle my whyle. 1390 Gower Conf. I. 221 He despeired for the while. 1473 Paston Lett. III. 89 They shall dwell ther I wot no whylghe. 1485 Caxton Paris V. (1868) 82 After a whyle of tyme. I533 More Answ. Poys. Bk. Wks. 1053/2 Though ye see euery man dye here for the whyle, yet I shall.. reyse them all vp.. at the last day. 1547-8 in Feuillerat Revels Edw. VI (1914) 32 During the whiles thies maskes were a makyng. 01613 Overbury A Wife, etc. (1638) 277 Have but that while’s patience, you may passe it drie-foot. 1644 Digby Nat. Bodies xv. §7. 135 The fire, in all this while of continuall application to the body it thus anatomiseth [etc.]. 01683 Oldham On Morwent Wks. (1686) 75 Thy prudent Conduct had so learnt to measure The different whiles of Toil and Leisure. 1828 Southey in Corr. w. C. Bowles (1881) 133, I am now.. stealing whiles of time for the Colloquies, which are approaching to their close. 1829 Carlyle Ess., Novalis (1840) II. 228 After short whiles, all is again swimming vaguely before them. 1841 Catlin N. Amer. Ind. liv, Filling up the while with nonsensical garrulity. 1894 in Milne Rom. Pro-consul (1911) 26 We had a capital while together.

b. with adj. expressing quantity, as good (good a. 19), great, little, long, short; also any, no, some: forming esp. advb. phr. = for a (long, etc.) time. Beowulf 146 Waes seo hwil micel. 01000 Caedmon's Gen. 486 Lytle hwile sceolde he his lifes niotan. 01175 Cott. Horn. 221 He wes to sume wile anstandende. C1200 Ormin 2392 3ho bilaef wipp hire frend 3et affterr patt summ while. c 1290 St. Dunstan 51 in S. Eng. Leg. 20 A guode 3wyle it was a-gon. a 1300 Cursor M. 3124 He began to luf him sua pat he moght na quil him for-ga. 1340 Hampole Pr. Consc. 632 Whether he lyf lang or short while, c 1450 Mankind 574 in Macro Plays 22 Ewynsonge hath be in pe saynge, I trow, a fayer wyll; I am yrke of yt. 1533 Elyot Cast. Helthe 11. xxviii. (1541) 45 To Hue lesse while than other men. 1542 Udall Erasm. Apoph. 175 b, Philippus.. had slept a great long while together. 1597 Morley Introd. Mus. 81 The shorter while you staie vpon the discord, the lesse offence you giue. 1610 Holland Camden's Brit. 1. 506 Having enjoied these honors a small while. 1711 Steele Sped. No. 33 If 1, I do not know any thing that has pleased me so much a great while. 1796 Burney Mem. Metastasio II. 201, I have not written to you a long while. 1836 Newman Lett. (1891) II. 197, I am not more lonely than I have been a long while. 1871 Ruskin Fors Clav. ii. 15 A little while since, I was paying a visit in Ireland. 1897 Flor. Montgomery Tony i, The two sat for a little while at the other end of the carriage.

c. a while (also rarely one while)', (a) as sb. phr., a time, esp. a short or moderate time (chiefly with certain preps., viz. after, for, in, \within)\ contextually = a considerable time, some time, as in quite a while (colloq.). (b) as advb. phr. = for a (short or moderate) time (see also awhile). once in a while: see once 8 c. (a) [C950 Lindisf. Gosp. Luke iv. 5 In momento temporis, in huil tides.] a 1300 Havelok 722 Ne were neuere but ane hwile pat it ne gan a wind to rise. 13 .. E.E. Allit. P. B. 1620 pe burne byfore baltazar was bro3t in a whyle. C1380 Sir Ferumb. 4573 Wypinne a wyle per wer y-dy3t, Mo pan ten pousant of Saoyns wy3t. 1470-85 Malory Arthur vii. x. 226 Within a whyle they sawe a toure as whyte as ony snowe. 1513 Douglas JEneis iv. iv. 29 Quhen Apollo list, .leif the flude Exanthus, for a quhile, To vesy Delos. 1526 Tindale John xvi. 16 After a whyle ye shall nott se me. 01533 Ld. Berners Huon lxi. 213 They were within a whyell far fro ye londes of yc .ii. admyralles sarazyns. 1561 T. Hoby tr. Castiglione's Courtyer iv. (1577) V viij b, After a whiles silence. 1621 Lady M. Wroth Urania 218 Pleasantly they passed a while together. 1718 Hutchinson Witchcraft xv. (1720) 232 After a while’s Practice. 1847 Halliwell s.v., A while’s work, work requiring a certain time. 1853 Dickens Bleak Ho. xliv, It is to be forgotten now; to be forgotten for a while. 1870 Freeman Norm. Conq. (ed. 2) I. App. YY 700 So Eadwig escapes, at least for one while. 1900 Longman s Mag. Mar. 450 She.. rather enjoyed getting wet through once in a while. 1905 Elinor Glyn Viciss. Evang. 149 It was quite a while before he elicited the facts from me. (b) 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 2352 He sede he moste wende a wule out of pis lond. a 1300 Cursor M. 1309 Quen seth a quil had loked in, He sagh .. mikel welth and win. Ibid. 3622 A wyel sco hir vmbithogt. 1423 Jas. I Kingis Q. ii, I.. toke a boke to rede apon a quhile. 1568 Grafton Chron. II. 97 The sayde league continued but a while. 1667 Milton P.L. ii. 918 The warie fiend Stood on the brink of Hell and look’d a while, Pondering his Voyage. 1733 Fielding Don Quix. in Eng. 11. xiv, My landlord and the coachman won’t overtake them one while, I warrant. 1781 Johnson L.P., Fenton, He was a while secretary to Charles earl of Orrery. 1816 J. Wilson City of Plague 11. ii, I will sit down a while. 1873

WHILE Spencer Study Sociol. vii. (1877) 148 The Smallpox epidemic, which a while since so unaccountably spread.

d. with demonstr. adj. that or this (now only with all preceding), forming advb. phr. c 1480 Henryson Robene Makyne 59 Makyne, I haif bene heir this quhyle; at hame god gif I wair. 1590 Spenser F.Q. 11. ii. 16 Her other sisters .., Who all this while were at their wanton rest. 1604 Shaks. Oth. iii. iv. 177, I haue this while with leaden thoughts beene prest. 1629 Gaule Prad. Theories Christ 355 The I ewes rested that Sabbath now; Christ rested that while in his Graue. 1711 Steele Sped. No. 51 If 8 He would see he has been mistaken all this while. i87i Smiles Charac. ii. (1876) 34 All this while, too, the training of the character is in progress.

e. with qualifying sb.: The duration of, or time needed for (what is denoted by the sb.). Obs. or arch. breathing-while, life-while, minute while, paternoster while, etc.: see the sbs. 13 .. [see twelvemonth 3]. 1377,159I tsee minutesb.} i]. c 1430 Chev. Assigne 286 To speke with hym but a speche whyle. c 1450 in Aungier Syon (1840) 274 A1 the bellys schal be ronge one Miserere whyle at leste, and than the chaptyr belle schal be ronge 00 Pater noster while. 1593, 1873 [see breathing vbl. sb. io]. 1676 Wycherley PI. Dealer iii. i, Stay but a making Water while, (as one may say) and I’ll be with you again.

2. a. the while (OE. pa hwile accus.): (a) as advb. phr.: During the time, in the meantime, meanwhile; (b) followed by conj. fthe or that, and later with ellipsis, arch. = while conj. i. b. all the while (with constructions as above): During the whole time (that), f c. to while (with constructions as above): For a time; for the time, meanwhile; for the time that, while. So per hwile, etc.: see therewhile. Obs. fd. in the while: in the mean time, meanwhile. Obs. (For in the mean while see mean while.) fe. most while (cf. most C.): on most occasions, for the most part. ff. by while: on occasion, from time to time, over while: at times. Cf. umquhile. a. (a) C960 ^thelwold Rule St. Benet (Schroer) ix. 33 Man preo raedinga raede and pry raepsas, and ealle pa jebropra pa hwile sittan. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 1273 king pe wule londone bisegede uaste. 1362 Langl. P. PL A. vii. 8 What schul we wimmen worche pe while? a 1425 Cursor M. 3889 (Trin.) pe while [Cott. to quils] holde lya in bedde J?enne shal pou rachel wedde. 1593 Shaks. Rich. II11. i. 211 lie not be by the while. 1610-Temp. iii. i. 24 If you’l sit downe lie beare your Logges the while. 1772 Mackenzie Man World 1. xi, ‘I will go,’ said she, sobbing, ‘and pray for him the while.’ 1840 Dickens Old C. Shop xx, Mr. Chuckster.. telling him he was wanted inside, bade him go in and he would mind the chaise the while. 1891 ‘J. S. Winter’ Lumley iv, Wouldn’t you like some lollipops to eat the while? (b) c888 Alfred Boethius x, Eall hie [sc. earfoSnesse] us pynca6 py leohtran 6a hwile pe pa oncras faeste bio6. 971 Blickl. Horn. 35 Swa we sceolan pa hwile pe we lifgap her on worlde. c 1175 Lamb. Horn. 7 J>is wite3ede dauid pe pe salm scop in pe saltere muchel erdpon pa wile he liuede. c 1290 St. Cuthbert 3 in 5. Eng. Leg. 359 pe 3wyle pat he was a 3ong child. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 1962 po was traen al a louerd pe wule it wolde ylaste. c 1425 Engl. Conq. Irel. 16 The whill the host was thus in Ossory. 1594 Marlowe & Nashe Dido 1. i. A4, The while thine eyes attract their sought for ioyes. 1605 Shaks. Macb. iii. ii. 32 Vnsafe the while, that wee must laue Our Honors in these flattering streames. 1633 G. Herbert Temple, Sacrifice xxxviii, I for both have wept When all my tears were bloud, the while you slept. 1650 Carstaires Lett. (1846) 68 Not the whyle I was at home with you nor since. 1820 Keats Lamia 11. 68 Beseeching him, the while his hand she wrung, To change his purpose. 1870 Morris Earthly Par. iii. 380 The while his right [hand] did shade His eyes from the bright sun. b. a 1400 Minor Poemsfr. Vernon MS. xxix. v. 49 For al pe while he was so seek, He feled neuere lisse ne lith, J?erfore hym pou3te beter legles. 1482 Cely Papers (Camden) 109 Hyt was not comen to Bregys all the whyle he wus there. 1539 Bible (Great) 1 Sam. xxii. 4 They dwelt w1 him all the whyle that Dauid kepte him selfe in hold. 1600 J. Melvill Autob. & Diary (Wodrow Soc.) 485 He remeanit in the town all the whyll. 1654-66 Earl Orrery Parthen. (1676) 685 All the while I was speaking, I was much concern’d in Statira’s looks. 1667 Milton P.L. 1. 539 All the while Sonorous mettal blowing Martial sounds. 1700 Hickes in Pepys’s Diary, etc. (1879) VI. 206 She was shut up all the while we were there. 1844 Disraeli Coningsby viii. vi, The rogue had an eye all the while to quarter-day. a 1864 Hawthorne Septimius (1872) 152 But all the while he was gone there was the mark of a bloody footstep impressed upon the stone doorstep of the Hall. c. C950 Lindisf. Gosp. Luke viii. 13 Qui ad tempus credunt, 6a6e to tid vel to huil jelefae. c 1000 Sax. Leechd. II. 348 J?onne meaht pu hine betan to hwile. c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 1104 We sulen it fren, Dor quile 6u wilt 6or-inne ben. 13.. Cursor M. 22060 (Edinb.) An angel.. To pe dragune suip he wanne,.. And in pat pitte him sperid faste, To-quile a thusande 3ier to laste. c 1330 R. Brunne Chron. Wace (Rolls) 4141 To whyle pe kyng & his cosyns In loue loken ar per lynes, Richesse pey hadde ynow to wylle. 1338 Chron. (1810) 71 To while pat he was fresch pei fond him fulle austere. d. 1542 Udall Erasm. Apoph. 77 Yet in ye while, thei would neuer the more foloe the steppes of thesame good menne. 1605 B. Jonson Sejanus 11. ii, In the while, Take from their strength some one or twaine, or more Of the maine Fautors. 01617 Bayne Led. (1634) 11 In the while, wee must labour to keepe a watch over our soules. 1760-72 H. Brooke Fool of Qual. (1809) II. 111 Mary, in the while, being frighted almost to death. e. c 1383 in Eng. Hist. Rev. Oct. (1911) 742 Neipir preestis neipir dekenis shulden ben occupied in ony seculer office in lordis courtis most whil seculer men ben sufficient to do suche seculer office.

232

WHILE f. 13.. Orfeo 8 Sum [layes ben] of happes pat fallen by whyle. c 1400 Apol. Loll. 97 He cessip to harme hem, or fendip hem ouer wyl.

3. spec. The time spent (connoting the trouble taken or labour performed) in doing something, f a. in phrases such as to quit or yield (one) his while, to repay (him) for his trouble, also ironically, to ‘pay (him) out’; to lose or spill one’s while, to waste one’s time or effort. Obs. c 1175 Lamb. Horn. 137 Mon sullSe his elmesse Senne he heo 3efe8 sulche monne pe him deS .. wiken and cherres and SencheS mid his elmesse for3elden him Seo hwile. a 1250 Owl & Night. 1020 He mi3te bet sitte stille Vor al his wile he sholde spille. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 2476 Send after help .. & icholle hor wule 3elde. c 1386 Chaucer Miller's T. 113 A clerk hadde litherly biset his whyle But if he koude a Carpenter bigyle. 1390 Gower Con/. III. 151 The proverbe is, who that is trewe, Him schal his while nevere rewe. c 1400 Rom. Rose 4392 If Ielousie doth thee payne, Quyte hym his while thus agayne. c 1430 How Good Wife taught Dau. 111 in Babees Bk., And he pat weel doo£, £>011 qwite him weel his whyle.

b. Now only in phr. worth the while (now rare or arch.), worth one’s while, worth while: often merely = worth doing, profitable, advantageous (the notion of time being weakened or lost), to make it worth (a person’s) while, to give (him) sufficient recompense. 1387 Trevisa Higden (Rolls) IV. 355 The queene. .beet Iudas ful ofte, but al for nou3t, ffor it was not worj? pe while. 1639 Ld. Digby Lett. Cone. Relig. (1651) 123, I would not think my pains lost, or study of the Fathers not worth the while. 1662 Stillingfl. Orig. Sacrae 111. i. §18 It had not been worth while for the soul to have been in the body. 1672 Marvell Reh. Transp. 1. 166 Nor is it worth ones while to teach him out of other Authors. 1755 Mrs. F. Brooke Old Maid No. 4. 24 In one word, madam, make it worth my while. 1842 Lever Jack Hinton xxvii, It is worth while being a soldier in Ireland. 1861 Mrs. H. Wood East Lynne in. xix, ‘Keep dark upon it, Bethel,’ he said; ‘I will make it worth your while.’ 1877 Huxley Physiogr. 93 It may be worth while to explain the kind of information which they give.

f4. (without article.) Sufficient or available time, leisure for doing something: = time sb. 8. a 1225 Ancr. R. 32 3if 3e habbeS hwule, siggeS f?esne psalm, ‘Levavi oculos meos’. 1387 Trevisa Higden (Rolls) IV. 87 Whanne he my3te have while he wroot fables, c 1450 Mirk's Festial 125 On Settyrday pay my3t not haue whyll. 1600 Holland Livy vi. x, If they might have had while and time as well to follow it. a 1639 W. Whateley Prototypes 1. xix. (1640) 233 He can have while to ruminate upon the evil things which Satan and the fleshe doe stirre up.

f5. a. Term or period of office; transf. office, function, ‘place’. Obs. rare. CI375 Sc. Leg. Saints xii. (Mathias) 351 Schaw quhilk of pire twa sal ve ches To supple pe quhyle of Iudas. c 1449 Pecock Repr. in. xvi. 386 Thou3 this man which now lyueth performe not the deede for his while.

b. Used in the Wycliffite Bible to render L. vicissitudo in senses of turn: (a) a service rendered (= turn sb. 23); (b) by whiles, by turns (turn sb. 28). Obs. rare. 1382 Wyclif 1 Sam. xxiv. 20 The Lord 3eelde to thee this while [Vulg. vicissitudinem hanc], for that, that to day thou hast wrou3t in me. 1388-1 Kings v. 14 So that in twei monethis bi whilis thei weren in her howsis.

II. 6. a. Time at which something happens or is done; occasion; fProPer or suitable time; fseason: = time sb. 13-15. Obs. exc. arch, or dial, (or as in e below). Mostly with qualifying word, either with prep, preceding, or with ellipsis of prep, forming advb. phr. (cf. 1 b-d, 2), e.g. that while = at that time, on that occasion, then; another while = ‘another time’, on another occasion; every while (also as one word, after everywhere), fat every time, always (obs.): every time, on every occasion (dial.). See also below, and otherwhile, somewhile. C950 Lindisf. Gosp. Matt. xxvi. 55 In ilia hor a.., in 8asm tid vel in Saere huile. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Horn. 51 J?at israelisshe folc was walkende toward ierusalem,.. and po wile was hersum godes hese. c 1375 Cursor M. 13130 (Fairf.) Seynt Iohn pis quile in prisoun lay. c 1380 Sir Ferumb. 2140 bus wyle was he on halle sittyng with is puple atte mete, pan com per an hepene kyng rydynge atte 3ete. c 1400 MS. Serm. (Tollem. MS.), We been not sufficiaunt to knowe pe tymes or pe whilis pat pe fadir of pe Trynyte hap put in his owne power. 1418-20 J. Page Siege Rouen in Hist. Coll. Cit. Lond. (Camden) 33 The Fraynysche men in the same whyle, Forthe they went with Umfrevyle. c 1440 Pallad. on Husb. viii. 3 Whete heruest now in tempur lond is while Forto conclude. 1470-85 Malory Arthur vu. v. 218 Hope ye so that I maye ony whyle stand a proued knyght. 1503 Dunbar Thistle & Rose vi, Thow did promyt, in Mayis lusty quhyle, For to discryve the Ross. 1552-3 in Feuillerat Revels Edw. VI (1914) 129 At dyuers other tymes betwene those whiles. i579_8o North Plutarch (1595) 842 The [dragon’s] taile on a time fell out with the head, and complained, saying, it would another while go before, & would not alwaies come behind. 1648 Crashaw Steps, Hymn Epiph. 30 But every where, and every while, Is one consistent solid smile. 1671 H. M. tr. Erasm, Colloq. 149 Eu. Were those women who encouraged thee with thee that while? a 1850 Rossetti Dante Circle 1. (1874) 100 What while a lady greets me with her eyes. 1884 Cheshire Gloss., Every while stitch, every now and then; at times. 1886 Stevenson Kidnapped xxii, There are whiles.. when ye are altogether too canny and Whiggish to be company for a gentleman like me.

forward. 1575 Gammer Gurton II. iii. 21 One whyle his tonge it ran and paltered of a cat; Another whyle he stammered styll vppon a rat. 1598 Sylvester Du Bartas II. i. in. Furies 450 One-while the Boulime, then the Anorexie, Then the Dog-hunger. 1664 South Serm., John xv. 15 (1697) II. 86 Those, who are one while courteous.. and obliging,.. but within a small time after, are so supercilious, sharp, [etc.]. 1744 Eliza Haywood Female Sped. v. (1748) I. 262 One while we are transmogrified into milk-maids—then into a kind of Amazonians. 1815 Kirby & Sp. Entomol. iii. (1818) I. 73 One while a silky fluid should be secreted, at another none. 1836 T. C. Haliburton Clockmaker (1837) 1st Ser. xvi. 136 You’ll search one while.. afore you’ll find a man that.. is equal to one of your free and enlightened citizens. 1852 Mrs. Stowe Uncle Tom's Cabin I. xi. 159 I’d mark him ..so that he’d carry it one while. 1897 ‘Mark Twain’ Following Equator liii. 511 If India knows about nothing else American, she knows about those, and will keep them in mind one while.

fc. With qualifying sb. (cf. time sb. 13 b), as dinner while, mass while, service while, supper while, etc.: see also the sbs. (Sometimes including the idea of duration, as in 1 e.) Obs. (or rare arch.). 13.. [see mass sb.' 7]. 1435 Misyn Fire of Love 11. x, With desire in meet qwhiel to 3erne. 1557 Machyn Diary (Camden) 148 My lord of London begane the durge, with ys myter [on] alle the durge wylle. 1597 Beard Theatre God s Judgem. (1612) 119 The gouernour of Mascon, a Magitian, whom the diuell snatched vp in dinnerwhile. a 1667 C. Hoole Accidence (1671) no Inter ccenandum, at supper while. 1868 Browning Ring & Bk. 1. 311 Be it but a straw ’twixt work and whistling-while.

d. In exclamations of grief: cf. similar use of day, time. Chiefly poet. Obs. or arch. C1402 Lydg. Compl. Bl. Knt. 244 This is the cold that wolde the fyr abate Of trewe mening; alas! the harde whyle! c 1440 York Myst. vi. 51 That we shulde haue alle welthis in walde, wa worthe pe whyle! 1513 Douglas AZneis vi. viii. 77 Alace the quhile! a 1586 Montgomerie Misc. Poems xxi. 25 O! waryit be the vhyle That euer we wer acquent! 1596 Shaks. j Hen. IV, n. iv. 146 God helpe the while, a bad world I say. 1810 Scott Lady of L. 11. xv, Woe the while That brought such wanderer to our isle! 1825- Talism. x, He conceives himself, God help the while, ungratefully treated.

e. Phr. with pi.: at whiles, at times, sometimes, at intervals, between (betwixt obs. or arch.) whiles: see between-whiles. [r 1449 Pecock Repr. n. xx. 273 Good and profitable to be had at certein whilis.] 1540 Palsgr. Acolastus v. i. X iv b, Me semeth now and than, or at whiles that [etc.]. 1647 Trapp Comm. Rom. ii. 15 Meanwhile, or, Betwixt whiles. 1717 Berkeley in Mem. (1784) 61 A sort of.. dashing (as it were) of waves, and between whiles, a noise like that of thunder. 1802 Mrs. Radcliffe Gaston de Blond. Wks. 1826 II. 62 To drive away the gloom, that yet, at whiles, hung upon his brow. 1865 Swinburne Chastelard 11. i. 66 To think what grievous fear I have ’twixt whiles Of mine own self and of base men.

while (hwail), adv. (adj.), conj. (prep.) Forms: 1-3 hwile; from c 1300 onwards as in while sb.; also 4 quel, 5 whele, Sc. quhel, 6 whel, 8 wile, 9 dial, whell; 6 vhol, 9 dial. wol(l. [As adv., OE. hwile, accus. of hwil while sb.; as conj., abbreviation of OE. phr. pa hwile pe, ME. pe while pat = ‘during the time that’ (see while sb. 2 a), = OHG. dia wila (unz) so long as (MHG. die wile while, G. dieweil while, because), Du. dewijl; similar abbreviation has given G. weil because, Du. wijl, NFris. wil. In senses A. 1 and 2, ME. while may be in some texts a reduced form of whilen, whilom.]

A. adv. (adj.) fl. At a time or times, sometimes; esp. introducing each of two or more parallel phrases or clauses: At one time ... at another time; now ...then: = whilom i. Obs. a 1000 Hymns iii. 44, 5 (Gr.) Hwile mid weorce, hwile mid worde, hwile mid jepohte pearle scyldi. c 1175 Lamb. Horn. 133 Ure helend saweS his halie word hwile purh his a3ene mu8e and hwile purh Sere apostlene muSe. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Horn. 207 E3en bihelden pat he ne sholden, wile idel, wile unnut, wile ifel. 01300 Cursor M. 7433 Quil wit gleu, and quil wit sang,.. pus he serued saul lang. 1375 Barbour Bruce 1. 338 For knawlage off mony staffs May quhile awail3e full mony gaffs, c 1425 Wyntoun Cron. (Royal MS.) 1. Prol. 32 For Romans to rede is delytabyle, Suppose that thai be quhyle bot fable, c 1470 Henry Wallace v. 611 Quhill wald he think to luff hyr our the laiff, And othir quhill he thocht on his dissaiff. . 1560 A. Scott Poems (S.T.S.) xxxi. 24 Lufe sail him hald W'in the dungeoun of dispair; Quhyle hett, quhyle cald. 1584 Hudson Du Bartas' Judith vi. 91 While vp he lifts his head, while lets it fall. 1632 J. Hayward tr. Biondi’s Eromena 184 The intellect (fixing it selfe, while on one, and while on another wonder of matter and workemanship). f2. a. At one time, formerly, once: =

whilom 2.

b. one while (adv. phr.): t(a) at one time, on one occasion, in one case (usually opp. to another while, sometimes to then, again, anon); also rarely = on some future occasion, ‘some time’ (Obs.); (b) U.S., a long time.

c 1000 Deor's Compl. 36 (Gr.) Ic bi me sylfum seejan wille, pact ic hwile waes Heodeninga scop. CI175 Lamb. Horn. 17 Ne do pu pin uuel on-gein uuel swa me dude hwile. a 1250 Owl & Night. 1016 J?e3 eni god man to horn come, So wile dude sum from rome. C1305 St. Andrew 29 in E.E.P. (1862) 99 be gywes while nome And slowe him as he worpie was. C1380 Sir Ferumb. 2580 pat god of mi3t. . Hwich of marie pat mayde bri3t while tok flechs & blode. r 1425 Wyntoun Cron. 1. Prol. 15 Thai pat set haly pare delite Gestis or storyis for to write,.. As Gwydo de Calumpna quhile.

1470-85 Malory Arthur xvi. xvii. 688 Soo wente they douneward in the see one whyle bakward another whyle

fb. as adj. That formerly existed, occurred, etc.; former, ‘late’: = umquhile B., whilom 2 b.

WHILE 1399 Langl. Rich. Redeles iii. 363 pey.. were y-dubbid of a duke ffor her while domes. £1425 Wyntoun Cron. 11. viii. 756 For honoure of his modyr qwhile. f 3. For a or the time, temporarily; at the same time, meanwhile. (See also therewhile.)

Obs.

rare. a 1500 Colkelbie Sow 828 (Bann. MS.), Thocht he wald preve the thrid penny quhyle hid, Quhilk for the tyme no fruct nor proffeit did. 1508 Kennedie Flyting w. Dunbar 428 Thow beggit with a pardoun in all kirkis,.. And ondir nycht quhyle stall thou staggis et stirkis. c 1645 Howell Lett. 1. 11. x. (1690) no Yours while J. Howell. B. conj. (or in conj. phr.) and prep. 1. a. while (that): during the time that. (Now expressed by while alone: cf. that conj. 7.) Often with ellipsis before a pple. or other predicative word or phrase, e.g. while walking, while at rest, while an infant. 1154 O.E. Chron. (Laud MS.) an. 1137 Det lastede pa .xix. wintre wile Stephne was king, c 1200 Ormin 2393 Whil patt 3ho wass Wipp hire kinn att hame. c 1275 Lay. 14873 pat we solle hatie wile pat we libbep [c 1205 pa while pa we luuien]. 13.. Cursor M. 6088 (Gott.) Ne hones noght quile 3e er etand. C1350 Will. Palerne 2537 While men hunted after hem pai han a-wai schaped. c 1400 Pilgr. Sowle (Caxton) 11. lvii. (1859) 55 While that thou and I were coupled to geders, thou madest me to lede a ful vnthryfty lyf. 1513 Douglas JEneis 1. v. 71 Quhill that of Troy and Ilion stude the ring. 1599 Shaks. Hen. V, 1. ii. 178 While that the Armed hand doth fight abroad, Th’ aduised head defends it selfe at home. 1611 Sir W. Mure Misc. Poems ii. 67 Quhil in this weak estait, ail meanes I soght To be aweng’d on him. 1667 Milton P.L. iv. 977 While thus he spake, th’ Angelic Squadron bright Turnd fierie red. 1779 Mirror No. 32 |f 6 While we were sitting together, talking of old stories,.. John entered. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. v. I. 662 Cornish was arrested while transacting business on the Exchange. 1882 Besant All Sorts xv, While he was laughing the door opened. b. With special reference (a) to the extent of the time: During the whole, or until the end, of the time that; as long as (see also 2 a); (b) to the limits of the time: Within, or before the end of, the time that. (a) c 1230 Hali Meid. 6 He wule carie for hire.. hwil ha riht luueS him. c 1300 Havelok 301 Dapeit hwo it hire yeue Euere-more hwil i Hue! eos world is whilende and ontful and swiSe lewe. a 1225 Ancr. R. 182 Vorte beon martirs efning, puruh a wilninde [v.r. hwilinde] wo. c 1230 Hah Meid. 35 For put hwilende [n.r. hwilinde] lust, a 1272 O.E. Misc. 94 bis world farcy hwilynde hwenne on cume)? an oper gop.

fwhileness. Obs. rare. [Abnormally f. while sb. + -ness.] Used to render L. vicissitudo in senses (a) = turn sb. 23 (cf. while sb. 3 a, 5 b); (b) change, variation. 1382 Wyclif Joel iii. 4, Y shal 3eelde the whilnesse to 30U on 30ur hed. -James i. 17 The fadir of li3tis, anentis whom is not ouerchaunginge, nether schadewing of whileness, or tyme.

as sb., an establishment providing such a service;

whilere (hwail'e^r)), adv. arch. [Orig. two words, while adv. 2 and ere; for the abbreviated spelling cf. wherever.] A while before; some time ago: = erewhile.

freq. (in advertisements) spelt while-u-wait. 1674 N. Fairfax Bulk Selv. 40 This time-lasting World, and every while-being thing in it. 1776 Ann. Reg., Hist. Eur. 73/1 He solemnly declared, that while-ever he sate in that house, he would not endure such language. 1878 Jas. Thomson Plenipotent. Key 19 She had had her husbands five, And would have more whilever she was alive.

a 1000 Judith 214 pa pe hwile ser elSeodigra edwit poledon. c 1386 Chaucer Can. Yeom. Prol. & T. 775 Helpeth me now as a dide yow whil eer. c 1412 Hoccleve De Reg. Princ. 1317 Whyl er, my sone, tolde I naght to pe What habundance in youth I hadde of good. C1460 J. Russell Bk. Nurture 377 Son, take py knyfe as y taught pe whileere, Kut bravne in pe dische ri3t as hit liethe there. 1590 Spenser F.Q. i. ix. 28

service that is performed immediately (as opp. to one for which the customer must leave his property and collect it later); also^zg.; also absol.

WHILES That cursed wight, from whom I scapt whyleare. 1610 Shaks. Temp. iii. ii. 127 Will you troule the Catch You taught me but whileare? 1630 Milton Circumcision 10 He who with all Heavn’s heraldry whileare Enter’d the world, now bleeds to give us ease, a 1652 Brome Weeding of Cov.Garden 1. i, Mark how he stands, as if he had learn’t a posture at Knightsbridge spittle as we came along whileeare. 1767 Mickle Concub. 1. ii, Melodious Mulla! when, full oft whyleare, Thy gliding Murmurs soothd the gentle Brest Of hapless Spenser. 1808 Scott Marmion v. Introd. 139 My harp .. Whose Anglo-Norman tones whilere Could win the royal Henry’s ear. 1884 J. Payne Tales from Arabic I. 225 How joyous and how solaceful was life in them whilere!

whiles (hwailz), sb. (advb. gen.), conj. (prep.), adv. Obs. or arch. Forms: 3 hwihles, 3-4 wiles, 4-5 whilis, whylys, whilles, whils, 4-6 whyls, 4-8 whyles, 5 whilez, whilys, whylis, whyllys, wilis, wylys, whilis, (whels), 5-6 whilse, 6 whylse, 4whiles; 3-4 quiles, 4 quyles, quilis, quylis, qwylys, quils, qwhylles, Sc. quhillez, 4-6 Sc. quhilis, 6 Sc. quhillis, quhylis, quhyles, quhyls, 7-8 Sc. quhiles. [orig. in advb. and conj. phr., as sumehwiles formerly, oSerhwiles at times, perhwiles while, meanwhile, formed with advb. -s on sumhwile, oderhwile, perhwile (see somewhile(s, OTHERwhile(s, therewhile(s); on this type were modelled the expressions pis or pat quiles, to quiles, long whiles, a (good) whiles, etc. and the simple conj. whiles.] 1. fl. Preceded by a demonstrative adj., indefinite article, or other qualifying word, forming advb. phrases: e.g. that whiles, at or during that time; long whiles, for a long while, etc. Obs. 13.. Cursor M. 5495 (Gott.) pat quiles ras par a neu king. Ibid. 5713 Jns quilis [Fairf. alle pis quyle] was in israel pe folk ledd in mekil vnwele. CI330 R. Brunne Chron. Wace (Rolls) 10198 In pat louh ar sexti iles—In po pe dwelte longe whyles. 11430 Two Cookery-bks. 42 Lat it sepe esyli,.. a good whylys. C1450 Lovelich Merlin 9833 Thanne schal neuere kyng Arthewr. .his lond jn pes thanne non whyles holde. ci540tr. Pol. Verg. Engl. Hist. (Camden 1846) 254 In the meane whiles. 1594 R. Ashley tr. Loys le Roy 85 b, It endured but a whiles. 1607 J. Carpenter Plaine Mans Plough 233 Ye haue beene as sheepe going a great whiles astray. 1633 Prynne Histrio-m. 1. 52 All which, if our Actors . .would but a whiles consider [etc.]. 1651 H. L’Estrange Answ. Mrq. Wore. 91 Where God one whiles insinuates himself into the conscience in the language of a familiar Friend, another while reclaims it with the indignation of an incensed Judge. 1654 Gayton Pleas. Notes iv. 289 Nor have the Wardens ventur’d all this whiles, To lay, except my selfe, one in those Iles.

2. the whiles, advb. and conj. phr. = the while, while sb. 2 a, b. fAlso (rarely) in whiles as conj. a 1300 Cursor M. 3309 Bot ai pe quils he ne fan To behald pat leue maidan. 13.. Ibid. 1729 (Gott.) Bot euer pe quilis pat he [sc. Noah] wroght, pe folk to preche forgat he noght. 1375 Barbour Bruce iii. 435 The king, the quhilis.. Red to thaim .. Romanys off worthi Ferambrace. 14.. Northern Passion 430 (Camb. Ii. 4. 9) Here 3c schuln me A byde pe qwylys [v.rr. to whyls, whils] I go here be syde. 1540 Palsgr. Acolastus iii. v. Rj b, We wyll walke vp and downe .. the whyles. 1583 Stocker Civ. Warres Lowe C. iv. 4 b, All suche pointes, as thei could iustly finde them selues agreeued, and in whiles he gouerned, deminished. 1590 Spenser F.Q. n. vii. 62 The whiles my hands I washt in puritie, The whiles my soule was soyld with foule iniquitie. 1609 Holland Amm. Marcell. xix. xii. 141 Paulus all the whiles was the prompter, .of these cruell enterludes. 1632 Holland Cyrupxdia 144 Perceiving.. draught-beasts to draw other things, and feeding the whiles. 1759 Colman Ode in Prose Sev. Occas. (1787) II. 277 His heel Sparkles refulgent with elastic steel: The whiles he wins his whiffling way. 1808 Scott Marmion 1. xiii, They feasted .. The whiles a Northern harper rude Chanted a rhime of deadly feud.

f 3. to whiles, advb. and conj. phr. = 2. Also as conj., to the time that, until. Obs. a 1300 Cursor M. 1729 Ai to-quils pat [noe] sa wroght pe folk to preche for-gate he noght. Ibid. 3889 To quils haa lya in pi bedd, For-soth pan sal pou rachel wedd. Ibid. 4923 pan war paa brewer.. prisund til pe thrid morn,.. To-quils sent ioseph pe yepe Men pair harnais for to kepe. 1338 R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 220 Suilk ribaudie pei led, ..Towhils Sir Edward had seisid alle Euesham. 1357 Lay Folks Catech. (T.) 139 To whiles that his bodi lai in the graue, The saule with the godhede went untill hell, a 1400 R. Brunne's Chron. Wace (Rolls) 2645 pe while [Petyt MS. Towhils] per fader was on lyue For pe royalme gon pey to stryue. c 1400 Ywaine & Gaw. 1079, I dar yow hight, To have him her or the thrid nyght; Towhils efter yowr kownsayl send.

II. 4. conj. = while conj. 1; also with that, f as. c 1220 Bestiary 256 in O.E. Misc. 8 Dus 3c tileS Sar, wiles 3e time haueS. c 1275 Ibid. 144 We schulde.. vs ibidde nyht and day hwihles pat we libbe. e whilk in to rede blode J?an War turned with’in a whhipp. 1808 whip, in a moment. 1836 M. Dau. 65 Syne in a whip she let him in.

Jamieson s.v., In a Mackintosh Cottager's

111. Something moved briskly. f 12. A ‘spring trap’ for catching vermin, etc. 1590 M[ascall] Bk. Fishing, etc. 63 The whippe or spring trappe. This Engine, is called the whip or spring. Ibid. 85 A whippe spring, made .. to take Buzardes and Kites.

f 13. Naut. A handle attached to the tiller, formerly used in small ships: = whipstaff 2. Obs. 1611 Cotgr. s.v. Barre, La barre du timon, the whip of the Rudder (of a ship). Ibid., Molinet,.. the roll wherein the whip of a Rudders tiller goes, a 1625 Nomenclator Navalis (Harl. MS. 2301), The Whippe is that staff which the Steeres-man dooth houlde in his hand, whereby he gouernes the helme..... In greate shipps they are not vsed.

14. Each of the arms or radii carrying the sails in a windmill. 1759 Smeaton in Phil. Trans. LI. 149 note, The extreme bar is i~3d of the radius (or whip, as it is called by the workmen), and is divided by the whip in the proportion of 3 to 5. 1888 Encycl. Brit. XXIV. 599/1 In all the older windmills a shaft.. carried four to six arms or whips on which long rectangular narrow sails were spread.

15. a. A simple kind of tackle or pulley, consisting of a single block with a rope rove through it (single whip)', used on board ship, and in mining, etc. for hoisting, esp. light objects. A double whip, whip on whip, or whip and runner consists of a standing block and a running block, the ‘fall1 or

rope of the former being attached to the latter, whip and deny = whipsy-derry. 1769 Falconer Diet. Marine, Whip, a sort of small tackle, .. generally used to hoist up light bodies, as empty casks, &c. out of a ship’s hold, which is accordingly called whipping them up. 1778 Pryce Min. Cornub. 179 In this winding by the whip, a strict attention should be paid to the filling the kibbals to the brim. 1834 Marryat Peter Simple xxviii, He .. made a whip, and lowered me on deck. 1846 A. Young Naut. Diet. 367 Whip-upon-whip, or a double Whip, is one whip applied to the fall of another. 1875 Knight Diet. MechWhip and Derry, an arrangement for raising the kibble, by means of a rope merely passing over a pulley and attached to a horse. 1904 Fitchett Commander of ‘Hirondelle' xvii. 191 A whip was being rigged from the mainyard to hoist in the wounded.

b. (See quot.) 1808 Jamieson, Wheeps, the name given to the instrument used for raising, what are called the bridgeheads of a mill.

16. A fairground roundabout in which a continuous revolving chain carries a number of cars or tubs round an oval track, the tubs being pivoted so as to swing freely about their point of attachment to the chain. A proprietary name in the U.S. 1925 Wodehouse Carry on, Jeeves! vi. 152, I could hardly drag him away from the Whip, and as for the Switchback, he looked like spending the rest of his life on it. 1937 Hull & Whitlock Far-Distant Oxus xx. 277 Bridget, Anthony, and Peter went off for a ride on the ‘Whip’. 1969 L. Moody Ruthless Ones ix. 96 They went into the fun fair and tried the big dipper, the wheel, the whip. 1976 Official Gaz. (U.S. Patent Office) 8 June TM89 A. G. Mangels Co., Inc., Bay Shore, N.Y... Whip. For carnival type amusement ride... First use since at least as early as 1914. 1979 C. Wood Bond & Moonraker v. 61 ‘The Whip’ of his childhood days, but revolving at a speed that would have.. hurled it half-way across the fairground.

IV. 17. Needlework. A stitch of the kind described s.v. whip v. 18; an overcast stitch; the projecting portion of the stuff between such stitches. 1592 Greene Greene’s Vision Wks. (Grosart) XII. 226 A Stomacher of Tuft Mockado, and a Partlet cast ouer with a prittie whippe. 1706 Phillips (ed. Kersey), Whip,.. a round sort of a Stitch in Sowing. 1882 Caulfeild & Saward Diet. Needlework 519 Take up every Whip, or portion of the roll, between the stitches.

18. Weaving. (See quots.) J. Nicholson Oper. Mech. 415 In the weaving of ribands and other ornamental works, many extraneous substances, totally unconnected with the warp or weft, are thrown in... These substances are merely held in the fabric by the intersection of.. the warp and the weft, and are by the weavers denominated whips. 1863 J. Watson Weaving vi. 206 Whip is the name given to that kind of yarn which is used for making the figures in lappet weaving, and it is made by twisting together so many ends of common yarn. 1825

V. f 19. A bandage. Sc. Ohs. 1504 Acc. Ld. High Treas. Scot. II. 465 For claith to be wippes to Johne Balfouris sair leg. 1507 Ibid. IV. 15 For iiij elne Holland clath quhilk wes wippes to the Kingis arm that wes hurt.

f20. A wreath, garland. Sc. Obs. 1513 Douglas JEneis xn. iii. 19 Thar hedis dycht In wyppis of the haly herb vervane.

whip (hwip), v. Pa. t. and pple. whipped (hwipt), whipt. Forms: 3 wippen, hwippen, 4 wippe, wype, 4-6 wyppe, whippe, 5 whype, 5-6 whyppe, 6 quip, wyp, Sc. quhip(pe, quhyppe, 8-9 Sc. wheep, 9 Sc. and dial, wip, 8- Sc. and U.S. dial, whup, 6- whip. [The early history of this verb and its related sb. is uncertain. The senses of both no doubt represent several independent adoptions or formations. With the earliest uses of the vb. cf. (M)LG., Du. wippen to move up and down or to and fro, swing, oscillate, leap, dance, = MHG. wipfen to dance; from LG. are app. derived early Da. vippe to raise with a swipe, clip coin, also fhvippe to move quickly, leap, beat with a whip (?), Da. vippe to toss, see¬ saw, Sw. vippa, G. wippen to rock, tilt, see-saw, strappado, WFris. wippe, wipje to move quickly. The base wip- is also represented by forms cited s.v. whip adv., and by several compounds, as (M)LG. wipgalge, Du. wipgalg, early Da. vippegalge strappado, Du. wipbrug, early Da. vippebrygge drawbridge, Du. wipplank see-saw, wipstaart wagtail, wipvisite flying visit, (M)LG. (G.) wipper money-clipper, LG. wipwap see¬ saw; and prob. G. wipfel tree-top, summit; Goth, wipja ‘crown’ represents a sensedevelopment (‘wind or bind round’, branch III below) which is more extensively exemplified by the form derived from the variants weip-, waip(Goth. waips wreath, crown, weipan to crown, ON. veipr head-dress, OHG. weif bandage; cf. wipe). Cf. the parallel szu-formations s.v. swepe sb.1, swip v., swope. The spelling with wh was presumably adopted as being symbolic.] I. To move briskly, etc. 1. intr. fa. To flap violently with the wings. a 1250 Owl & Night. 1066 (Cotton MS.) J»i song mai bo so longe genge pat pu shalt wippen [v.r. hwippen] on a sprenge. ruh, pe is wiSuten ihwited, and wiSinne stinkende. 1377 Langl. P. PI. B. in. 61, I shal keure 30wre kirke..Wowes do whitten. c 1430 Pilgr. Lyf Manhode 11. exxii. (1869) 121 As the snow embelisheth and whiteth a dong hep with oute. 1534-5 MS. Rawl. D. 777 If. 72 b, Pargyttyng and whyttyng the Stayers. 1572 Ludlow Churchw. Acc. (Camden) 149 For lyme, to make an end of whittinge the churche. 1599 Nashe Lenten Stuffe 23 A farthing worth of flower to white him ouer and wamble him in. a 1625 Fletcher Bloody Brother iv. i, Thou .. Whit’st over all his vices. 1631 Widdowes Nat. Philos. 25 As it were Lead whited with silver. 1777 Brand Pop. Antiq. 270 note, At Oxford, at this Time, the little Crosses cut in the Stones of Buildings, to denote the Division of the Parishes, are whited with Chalk. 1823 Scott Quentin D. xxviii, When he had thus cleared his conscience, or rather whited it over like a sepulchre. 1833 Loudon Encycl. Archit. §235 The ceilings.., as well as the pediment in front of the house, to be lath laid, set, and whited. Proverb. 1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. II. 373 That at anes, as vses to be said, tha wil quhite tua walis. 1629 H. Burton Babel no Bethel Pref. Ep. 19, I doe in this Booke .. as the Proverbe is, white two walls with one brush. c. To bleach; to blanch: = whiten v. i c. 1530 Palsgr. 457/1, I bleche, I whyte clothe. 1541 Act 33 Hen. VIII c. 15 § 1 The said lynnen yarne must lye wloute ... for .. one half yere to be whyted. 1611 Bible Mark ix. 3 His raiment became.. exceeding white as snow: so as no Fuller on earth can white them. 1658 Evelyn Fr. Gard. (1675) 208 The manner of whiting it [sc. lettuce] under earthen pots. 1714 Fr. Bk. of Rates 128 Wax, bleached or whited in Foreign Parts, and imported. 1972 E. Wigginton Foxfire Bk. 181 And it was the sulfur that whited the apples, and they had a little sulfur flavor.

d. pa. pple. Of a horse: see quot. 1737. 1737 Bracken Farriery Impr. (1757) II. 5 He is.. called well Whited if his Hinder Feet be both White. 1760 Heber Horse Matches ix. 147 He is a compleat strong horse, well whited. 1870 Daily News 6 June, Mr. Robson’s His Majesty, in addition to being badly ‘whited’, had unpleasing action.

e. Printing. To space out (matter) with ‘white’. 1892 A. Oldfield Man. Typogr. i. 15 Reglets for whiting out bills and placards are made of wood.

f. to white out: to obscure or cover with something white, esp. a white fluid used by typists. Also fig. 1975 J. Butcher Copy-Editing iii. 25 If you want to cancel an underlining for italic, white it out, or put two or three short lines through it, not a wavy line. 1978 M. Duffy

WHITEBOARD

273 Housespyvi. 141 Its long shop window was whited out. 1982 R. Leigh Girl with Bright Head xi. 74 There’s also a couple of places where she has had to white out mistakes and type over them. 1983 j le Carre’ Little Drummer Girl xiii. 224 She drove with her mind whited out and her thoughts deliberately foreshortened. 1984 Times Lit. Suppl. 13 July 771 /3 The embarrassed printer explained that he’d whited the little dot out, thinking that it was a dust spot.

g. To make up (an actor) to look white. *977 R- Barnard Death on High C's xv. 148 He was already ‘whited up’ for the part of the Duke of Mantua... He must look odd, with his deadly white colouring and negroid lips.

white, v2 Sc. and n. dial. Also 6 Sc. quhite, 7 whyt, 9 dial. whit, [north, variant of thwite. Cf. whang.] trans. To cut slices off (a stick, etc.) with a knife or other sharp instrument; to pare; to whittle. 1567 Gude & Godlie B. (S.T.S.) 72 Stock and stane.. Quhilk men may carfe or quhite. 1662 in W. Hunter Biggar & Ho. Fleming (1862) 4 Elf-boyis, wha whyttis and dyghtis thame [sc. arrow-heads] with a sharp thing lyke a paking neidle. 1799 J. Robertson Agric. Perth 267 Boys, who white a stick.. until it be so worn down that it become useless. 1890 Service Notandums ix. 62 Ye can be whitin’ a stick.

white: see quit, weight, wight, wit, wite. white acre. Also whit(t)aker, witacre. fl. Law. An arbitrary name for a particular parcel of ground, distinguished from another called black acre, q.v. Obs. 1642 tr. Perkins' Prof. Bk. viii. §561 If a man seised in fee of white acre and black acre devisable, and deviseth white acre unto I.S. [etc.]. 1698 [see black acre].

2. A local name for white quartz. 1796 Marshall Rural Econ. W. Eng. I. 16 A species of crystal, or quartz—provincially ‘whittaker’; which, in colour, is mostly white, sometimes tinged with red. 1839 De la Beche Rep. Geol. Cornw., etc. xv. 473 note, Quartz is commonly known.. as whiteacre in eastern Cornwall and part of Devon.

white ant, sb. [f. white a. + ant.] 1. A very destructive social insect of the

fish, caught in large numbers in the estuary of the Thames and elsewhere, and esteemed as a delicacy. Formerly reckoned by some as a distinct species, but now proved to consist of the fry of various fishes, chiefly the herring and sprat. 1758 Descr. Thames 227 A young Herring is by some termed a Yaulin, or a White Bait. 1763 in Priv. Lett. Ld. Malmesbury (1870) I. 93 We got back to Greenwich to dine. We had the smallest fish I ever saw, called whitebait; they are only to be eat at Greenwich, and are held in high estimation by the epicures. 1831 Peacock Crotchet Castle vii, As delicate as whitebait in July. 1836 Mollard Cookery 38 To dress White Bait. This is a fish peculiar to Greenwich and Blackwall. 1862 Miss Braddon Lady Audley xxxiv, There are people who dislike salmon, and whitebait, and spring ducklings, and all manner of old-established delicacies.

b. attrib. whitebait dinner: a dinner at which whitebait was eaten, held annually at Greenwich and attended by cabinet ministers from early in the 19th century till 1894. For the origin of the dinner see Encycl. Brit. (ed. 11) XII. 554. 1836 Disraeli Let. to Ld. Glenelg 12 Mar., His Majesty’s Ministers may then hold Cabinet Councils to arrange a white-bait dinner at Blackwall. 1840 Marryat Poor Jack viii, Whitebait parties at the Ship. [1859 Lever Dav. Dunn xxxvi, The Irishman that has soared to the realm of whitebait with a Minister.] 1902 C. J. Cornish Natur. in Thames 201 White-bait shoals swarmed in the Lower Thames and the Medway.

c. Applied to other small fishes in different parts of the world resembling this and used as food. e.g. The Chinese and Japanese fishes of the family Salangidse, various N. American species of silversides, and various fishes of Australia and New Zealand (see quots.). 1882 Tenison-Woods Fish N.S.W. 85 Count Castelnau states that it [sc. Engraulis antarcticus] is very common in the Melbourne market.. and goes by the name of ‘White-bait’. 1883 Royal Comm, on Fisheries of Tasmania p. iv, Retropinna Richardsonii, whitebait or smelt. Captured in great abundance in the river Tamar, in the prawn nets. 1886 Sherrin Handbk. Fishes N.Z. 141 Together with the young of Retropinna Richardsoni, they [sc. Galaxias attenuatus] are called whitebait.

Neuropterous order, also called Termite.

whitebeam ('hwaitbiim).

[c. 1328,1713: see ant 3.] 1684 Locke Jrnl. 17 Nov. in K. Dewhurst Locke (1963) 265 Told me of a sort of white ants that there mightily infests them. 1699 Dampier Voy. 127 Abundance of Ants of several sorts, and Woodlice, called by the English in the East Indies White Ants. 1729, etc. [see ant 3]. 1849 Eastwick Dry Leaves 86 The never-to-besufficiently execrated white ants, who, if they had their will, would reduce all created things to impalpable dust. 1908 E. J. Banfield Confessions of Beachcomber 1. vii. 227 The ‘white ant’ (which is not an ant).. would literally eat us out of house and home. 1928 R. Campbell Wayzgoose i. 20 White-ants and borers, turning boards to dust. 1938 X. Herbert Capricornia (1939) viii. 102 The white-ants have eaten the wheels of my buck-board. 1974 D. Stuart Prince of my Country v. 40 The wind and the rain and the white ants will level the camps.

white-beam. [Of uncertain origin.

2. In pi. With allusion to the supposed destruc¬ tion of the brain by white ants, implying loss of sanity, sense, or intelligence. Austral, slang.

1600 Hakluyt Princ. Navigations III. 6 The soile is barren in some places,.. but it is full of white beares. 1823 Canad. Mag. I. 394 The great white bear takes refuge in the most icy climates, i860 P. H. Gosse Romance Nat. Hist. 62 The white bear, seated on a solitary iceberg in the Polar Sea. 1953 W. B. Mowery Tales of Mounted Police 149 [He had] several livid weals across his left cheek where a white bear had once clawed him.

1908 H. Fletcher Dads & Dan: between Smokes 64 It wants a fool or a very sane cove indeed ter live in ther lonely bush an’ keep ther white ants out o’ his napper. 1926 L. G. E. Gee Bushtracks Goldfields 65 And so he rambles on .. and in the unsteady glance of his honest, old eyes and his disconnected speech, I read the mark of the Australian solitudes—‘white ants’ they call it up north. 1938 H. DrakeBrockman Men without Wives 27 ‘“Get the white ants?” What do you mean?’ ‘Go ratty. Mad.’ 1948 V. Palmer Golconda vii. 49 They had a definite respect for Christy. He might have a few kinks.. but there was something dinkum about him, and if there were white ants behind his forehead they had a lot of work ahead of them. £71951 E. Hill in Murdock & Drake-Brockman Austral. Short Stories (1951) 292 My brownie days are over... I reckon I’ve got white ants.

white-'ant, v. Chiefly Austral, [f. prec.] trans. To destroy in the manner of termites or white ants; to undermine, eat away, or sabotage. 1925 Glasgow Herald 14 Nov. 9/6 The extremists, .have deliberately ‘white-anted’ the Labour movement.. and squandered the funds of the wealthy unions. 1952 L. Overacker Austral. Party System vi. 182 The Communists have ‘white anted’ the unions, elected their members to offices in the Miners’ Federation, the waterside workers’ and ironworkers’ unions, and developed ‘shop committees’ as basic units in the factories. 1962 R. Wallis Point of Origin 96 After hearing.. about me .. he decided he’d have to do his duty as a gentleman and tell Rockdale he was being white-anted. 1968 D. Ireland Chantic Bird xi. 102 Television had white-anted their audiences, and they had to use the place for other things besides films.

Hence white-'anted ppl. a., white-'anting vbl. sb. 1936 F. Clune Roaming round Darling xx. 205 The piece of the boat is five feet long and is made of soft wood, badly white-anted. 1945 Baker Austral. Lang. xiv. 245 Whiteanting. 1950 D. Cusack Comets Soon Pass in Three Austral. Three-Act Plays 11. ii. 55 Dr. John. Each man must find his own pole to swing to. I have found mine. Mrs. EllingtonBrown. I think that’s too wonderful, so mystic. Talbot. White-anting society! Jack Smith. Too mystic for my taste, Doc. I think you’ve got to get out and fight for things. 1973 Sydney Morning Herald 30 Aug. 6/4 We are promised largesse in the form of harbour-side parks in the same breath as the white-anting of a remote scenic gorge is sanctioned.

whitebait ('hwaitbeit).

Formerly white bait, white-bait. [f. white a. + bait sb.- so called from its former use as bait.] A small silvery-white

Also white beam, Perhaps an alteration of whitten on the analogy of quicken and quickbeam.] A small tree, Pyrus Aria, having large leaves with white silky hairs on the under side. Also whitebeam-tree (incorrectly white beam-tree: see beam-tree). 1705 S. Dale Pharmacol. Suppl., Index, The WhiteBeam-Tree, Aria. 1770 Phil. Trans. LXI. 388 Of all soils this is the most favourable to beech, white-beam, [etc.]. 1800 [see beam-tree]. 1902 C. J. Cornish Natur. in Thames 152 The hawfinch is seen .. picking up white-beam kernels.

white bear. Chiefly N. Amer.

a. = polar bear

s.v. polar a. b.

b. A grizzly bear (Ursus horribilis) in a lightcoloured phase. 1791 J. Long Voy. Indian Interpreter 95 The large white bear, commonly called the grizly bear, is a very dangerous animal. 1852 J. Reynolds Hist. Illinois 172 He was destroyed there [in the Rocky Mountains] by a white bear. 1952 J. Jennings Strange Brigade (1954) 105 There were also red deer or biche, and white bears and white partridges.

whitebeard ('hwaitbiod). 1. An old man with a white beard. fAlso as quasi-proper name: in quot. 1450 probably in allusion to the representation of God the Father as an aged man. 1450 Sir J. Fastolf in Paston Lett. I. 131 They shall be quyt by Blackberd or Whyteberd; that ys to sey, by God or the Devyll. 1593 Shaks. Rich. II, iii. ii. 112 Whitebeards [mispr. White Beares] haue arm’d their thin and hairelesse Scalps Against thy Maiestie. 1829 Scott Anne of G. xii, ‘If she were worth twenty crowns,’.. said the old whitebeard.

2. Name in Australia for the plant Styphelia ericoides, from the white hairs on the corolla. 1898 Morris Austral Engl.

white-'bearded, a. [white a. 12c.] Having a white beard, a. Of a man. 1596 Shaks. r Hen. IV, 11. iv. 509 Falstaffe, that old whitebearded Sathan. 1914 D. H. Lawrence Widowing of Mrs. Holroyd III. 81 A little stout, white-bearded man.

b. Of wheat. 1788 G. Washington Diary 8 Sept. (1925) III. 417 Also sowing.. one bushel of the White bearded Wheat sent me by Beale Boardlv. 1850 Rep. U.S. Comm. Patents 1849: Agric. 132 The white-bearded wheat, a valuable kind less liable to total failure than any other; not very popular with millers. C- fig■

1920 E. Sitwell Wooden Pegasus 100 And, mourners too, white-bearded seas Walk slowly by them as they come, i960 Farmer & Stockbreeder 19 Jan. (Suppl.) 1/1 Waves came solid green and white-bearded, like frost giants racing.

whiteblowe, obs. var. whitlow. whiteboard (’hwaitboad). blackboard.]

[f. white a. after A white surface for use like a

WHITE-BOTTLE blackboard but accepting felt-tipped pens and wax crayons. 1966 ‘W. Cooper’ Mem. New Man n. v. 160 He.. went to the blackboard. (Actually it was an up-to-date plastic white¬ board, on which one wrote with a coloured wax crayon.) 1977 Times Educ. Suppl. 21 Oct. 28/1 (Advt.), They are whiteboards that stay white, year after year. 1978 J. McNeil Consultant ix. 106 They came to a meeting room... The walls were bare except for a white-board. 1985 Times Educ. Suppl. 19 July 20/5 We should also bear in mind that partially-sighted pupils often fare better if a white-board is used rather than a blackboard. white-bottle. Obs. exc. dial. [See bottle sb.*] fa. The ox-eye daisy, Chrysanthemum Leucanthemum. b. The bladder campion, Silene inflata (Treas. Bot.). a 1400 Alphita (Anecd. Oxon.) 45 Consolida media,.. habet.. florem album latum et durum, similem camomille sed maiorem.. ace. whit-bothel uel seynt Mary maythe. 1651 French Distill, ii. 56 Take.. White-bottles, Scabius, Dandelyon,.. of each one handfull. white boy, 'whiteboy. Also 7 white-boy. 1. A favourite, pet, or darling boy: a term of endearment for a boy or (usually) man. Cf. white a. 9, and white son (white a. 11 e). 1599 Porter Angry Worn. Abingt. (Percy Soc.) 69 Whose white boy is that same? c 1600 Timon 1. iii. (1842) 10 Gelas. .. What speake the virgines of me?.. Paed. They terme you delight of men, white boye, Noble without comparison. 1639 Fuller Holy War 1. xiii. 20 The Pope was loth to adventure his darlings into danger; those white-boyes were to stay at home with his Holinesse their tender father. 1690 C. Nesse O. & N. Test. I. 377 Joseph.. was not only his earthly fathers white-boy, but his heavenly’s also. 1821 Scott Kenilw. xvi, Were war at the gates, I should be one of her [sc. Q. Elizabeth’s] white boys. 1919 T. S. Eliot Let. 9 July in Waste Land Drafts (1971) p. xvii, The small public which I could bring to it [sc. the Egoist] now reads the Athenaeum every week. There I am a sort of white boy; I have a longish critical review about three weeks out of four. f 2. A surpliced choir-boy. Obs. nonce-use. 1691 Mrs. D’Anvers Academia 32 The Organs set up with a ding, The White-men roar, and White-Boys sing. 3. (usually with capital.) A name adopted by or applied

to

the

members

WHITE-COLLAR

274

of

various

illegal,

Treas. Bot., Mushroom.

White-caps,.. Agaricus

arvensis.. Horse-

3. A white-capped or crested wave; a breaker. 1773 Phil. Trans. LXIV. 458 None, or very few whitecaps (or waves whose tops turn over in foam) appeared. 1838 Asa Gray Lett. (1893) I. 71 We had a strong head wind .. the surface of the lake was covered with white-caps. 1883 Harper's Mag. Aug. 375/1 Numerous reefs.. marked by white-caps where the ebb tide rushed over them.

4. A person wearing a white cap; spec, one of a self-constituted body in the United States who commit outrages upon persons under the pretence of regulating public morals. 1891 Tablet 13 June 941 The Lynchers in such cases are usually called white-caps, regulators, &c. 1894 Westm. Gaz. 23 May 2/3 A White Cap .. disguises himself and performs his errands at night.

So 'white-capped (-kaept) a., wearing a white cap or caps; capped with foam, covered with white-crested waves. 1880 ‘Ouida’ Moths iii, White-capped old women looked on. 1895 Outing (U.S.) XXVI. 447/2 A white-capped sea. 1899 Scribner's Mag. XXV. 75 The whitecapped cavalry were caught unawares by French’s brigade.

'whitecap,

v. U.S. [f. the sb., sense 4.] trans. To commit an outrage upon (a person) in the style of the whitecaps. Chiefly as 'white¬ capping vbl. sb. Also 'whitecapper. 1895 T. Roosevelt in Century Mag. Nov. 72/2 The law¬ breaker, whether he be lyncher or whitecapper, or merely the liquor-seller who desires to drive an illegal business. 1900 M. Nicholson Hoosiers 45 The milder form of out¬ lawry, known as ‘white-capping’, has also been practised in Indiana occasionally. 1904 N. Y. Even. Post 28 Jan. 9 The Mississippi has voted Gov. Vardaman a special appropriation to enable him to suppress the ‘white cappers’. 1908 D. G. Phillips Old Wives for New iv. 68 If he wasn’t such a wonderful doctor he’d have been white-capped long ago—tarred and feathered and railed out of town. 1943 A. G. Powell I can go Home Again 167 During the short time I served as county judge, a series of ‘whitecappings’, directed against Negroes, occurred in the lower part of the county. 1970 [see Ku-Klux 1 a].

'whitecapping, a.

rare-1, [f. as whitecap sb. +

-ing2.] Covering with or as with a white cap.

rebellious, or riotous associations, a. Eng. Hist. 1644 {title) The Devills White Boyes: or, A mixture of malicious Malignants. 1684 Dryden tr. Maimbourg's Hist. League Postscr. 47 When a Body of white Boys was already appearing in the West. [.Footnote by Sir W. Scott, White was the dress affected by those who crowded to see Monmouth in his western tour.] b. Irish Hist. A member of a secret agrarian

1912 J. London Son of Sun v. ii. 175 Their long slopes.. were broken by systems of smaller whitecapping waves.

association formed in 1761: for the reason of the

01700 B. E. Diet. Cant. Crew, White-chappel-portion, two torn Smocks, and what Nature gave. 1785 Grose Diet. Vulgar T., Whitechapel breed, fat, ragged, and saucy. Whitechapel beau, who dresses with a needle and thread, and undresses with a knife, i860 Slang Diet., Whitechapel, or Westminster Brougham, a costermonger’s donkey-barrow. 1863 Dickens Uncomm. Trav. xxv[ii], What is termed in Albion a ‘Whitechapel shave’ (and which is, in fact, whitening, judiciously applied to the jaws with the palm of the hand). 1865 Slang Diet., Whitechapel fortune, a clean gown and a pair of pattens.

name see quot. 1762. Also attrib. 1762 Ann. Reg., Chron. 84 Rioters.. called Levellers., likewise called White Boys, from their wearing shirts over their other cloaths, the better to distinguish each other by night. 1808- [see Right boys], 1842 Madden United Irishmen I. 25 The Whiteboy disturbances.. had no more connection with religious controversy than with the disputes between the Scotists and Thomists. Whiteboyism was an association against high rents and tithes. 1842 S. C. Hall Ireland II. 79 Ambrose Power Esq., was murdered on his own hearth by a party of Whiteboys. 1881 Dillon in Standard 25 Jan., It was.. a relic of the Whiteboy days. c. transf. 1768 H. Walpole Let. to Strafford 25 June, Those black dogs, the whiteboys or coal-heavers, are dispersed or taken. 1825J. Neal Bro. Jonathan III. 290 Who knows but you are one o’ the tories yourself; or one o’ the whiteboys—or cow boys—or skinners. Hence whiteboyism, the principles or practices of the Irish Whiteboys (see 3 b). 1778 Phil. Surv. S. Irel. 313 Till some step is taken in favour of tillage and the poor Whiteboyism will probably remain. 1842 [see 3 b]. 1893 Times 2 Oct. 3/6 Five men who had been sentenced at the Kerry Assizes in 1888,—for moonlighting and whiteboyism. white bread. [Cf. MHG. wizbrot, G. weissbrot, LG. witbrod, Du. ivittebrood.] colour,

made

from

fine

Bread of a light

wheaten

flour,

as

distinguished from brown bread. 13 .. in Engl. Gilds (1870) 354 Euerych bakere of pe town .. sholde make whitbred. c 1450 Customs of Malton in Engl. Misc. (Surtees) 62 No bakar yl bakys qwhytte brede schall bake brown brede.. nor he yl bakys brown brede schall bake no qwhyte brede. 1523-34 Fitzherb. Husb. §34 Polerde wheate .. is greatter corne, and wyll make whyte breed. 1598 Epulario D j b, Putting vnto it crums of Whitebread. 1605 Sylvester Du Bartas 11. iii. Law 836 Thou, that from Heav’n thy daily White-bread hast. 1794 Stedman Surinam (1813) II. xxv. 248 The white bread, fruit, and Spanish wines.. I received as a present. whitecap,

white-cap

('hwaitkaep),

sb.

[cap

tfe.1] 1. Name for several birds having a white or light-coloured patch on the head (see quots.). 1668 Charleton Onomast. 78 Passeres.. Montanus.. the White-Cap. 1874 T. Belt Nat. Nicaragua 138 The whitecap (Microchera parvirostris, Lawr.), the smallest of thirteen different kinds of humming-birds that 1 noticed around Santo Domingo. 1885 Swainson Prov. Names Birds 13 Redstart... The male is called ‘whitecap’ in Shropshire, from its white forehead. Ibid. 22 Whitethroat.. (from its grey head).. Whitecap. 2. pi. Local name for species of mushroom. 1818 Withering’s Brit. PI. (ed. 6) IV. 282 Ag[aricus] Georgii... Gathered in abundance for the London markets, where they are sold as Mushrooms, but by the more discriminating country people called White caps. 1866

2. (With capital initials.) The name of a town in New South Wales, used attrib. to designate opals mined there. 1911 C. E. W. Bean ‘Dreadnought' of Darling xxv. 222 The Wilcannia banks live on the White Cliffs opal. 1936 H. P. Whitlock Story of Gems x. 127 The White Cliffs opals are not unlike those from Hungary, but they show broader flashes of colour. 1975 R. Webster Gems in Jewellery xi. 57 The White Cliffs opal is cream in colour and found in seams in sandstone.

whitecoat ('hwaitkaut). Also white-coat, white coat. 1. a. A soldier wearing a white or lightcoloured coat: cf. buff-coat 2. (Also attrib.) Obs. exc. Hist. 1555 in Arb. Garner VIII. 60 A certain Band of White Coats .. sent unto them from London. 1562 in Archaeologia XLVII. 221 Yt apeareth a greate differens.. betwene the excercised souldior and the rawe white coat. I571. RBannatyne Mem. (Bann. Club) 91 Thare began flyting, .. ‘Away blewcoate!’ ‘I defy the whyteoite!’ 1605 Heywood If you know not me C 2, Enter three white-cote souldiers. 1631 - Engl. Eliz. 113 For her guard two hundred Northern White Coates were appointed.. to watch about her lodging. 1644 in Rushw. Hist. Coll. ill. II. 634 The Marquess of Newcastle’s Regiment of White Coats were almost wholly cut off for they scorned to fly. 1662 A. Cooper Stratologia vi. 115 In the main battail do our white Coats stand. 1840 Hor. Smith Oliver Cromwell II. 159 Newcastle with all his whitecoats.

b. In modem times, an Austrian soldier. 1861 Meredith Let. to Mrs. J. Ross 19 Nov., Verona, . is now less a City than a fortress. You see nothing but white coats—who form the majority of the inhabitants.

2. A young seal, having a coat of white fur; also the fur itself. 1792 G. Cartwright Jrnl. Labrador III. p. x, Whitecoat, a young seal, before it has cast its first coat, which is white and furry. 1892 Daily News 28 Mar. 6/2 The skin of the small pup seal.. is of small value, being known as ‘White¬ coat’.

3. A doctor or hospital attendant who wears a white coat. 1911 [see schmerz]. 1932 ‘Jock’ Dartmoor from Within vi. 134 He makes straight for the tub, and ‘White Coat’ alters his course to cut him off. 1980 Brit. Med. Jrnl. 29 Mar. 934/2 We roar into the hospital. White coats run out.

Whitechapel

('hwait,tjaep(3)l). [Name of a district in the East End of London, traditionally one of the poorer parts of the capital.] 1. a. In various slang uses, mostly attrib. (see quots.).

b. attrib. or absol. Applied to certain irregular or unskilful methods of play in whist and billiards: see quots. colloq. 1755 Connoisseur No. 60 If 5 They know no more of the game [sc. whist] than what is called White-Chapel play. 1847 Halliwell, Whitechapel-play [ = Bungay-play, a simple straightforward way of playing the game of whist, by leading all the winning cards in succession, without endeavouring to make the best of the hand.] 1866 N. & Q. 3rd Ser. IX. 372/2 The Saying at Whist, when you play ace and king of a suit—‘That is Whitechapel play’. Ibid. 440 All billiard players know, that when an adversary ‘pockets’ your ball, it is called ‘Whitechapel play’, the act of doing so being considered anything but etiquette. 1899 A. Mainwaring Cut Cavendish 12 Avoid the hateful ‘White-chapel’, i.e. the lead from a single card.

2. Whitechapel needle', some particular make of needle; in quot. 1828 allusively. U.S. 1774 Pennsylv. Gaz. 10 Aug. Suppl. 2/2 Whitechapel and Glovers needles. 1828 Lights & Shades II. 188 He had pricked his fingers with ‘Gammer Gurton’s needle’, in buying a Whitechapel one. Note, A cant phrase for a counterfeited copy of this old play.

3. In full Whitechapel cart, a kind of light two-wheeled spring cart. 1842 J. Aiton Dom. Econ. (1857) I29 For a minister with a family, a whitechapel is, upon the whole, the best of the open conveyances... It carries six. 1859 Carriage Builders' Artjrnl. 1. 26/2 A light Whitechapel Cart, suitable to the use of a country gentleman. 1875 Hints to Yng. Tandem Drivers 6 Whitechapels (from the fact that the passengers sit inside them instead of outside) are dangerous to get out of in any emergency. 1900 Gunton Patent Specif. No. 1332 Improved seat-shifting fittings for Dogcarts, Whitechapels or any other vehicles.

4. as adj. Low, vulgar. 1901 Scotsman 11 Mar. 7/5 The humiliation of the party by the Whitechapel scene of Tuesday.

white cliffs,

sb. pi. [f. white a. + cliff.] 1. Chalk cliffs; spec, those of Dover, regarded as a symbol of Great Britain.

1879 [see CLIFF I b]. 1902 Kipling Just-So-Stories 7 Take me to my natal-shore and the white-cliffs-of-Albion. 1940 N. Burton {song) There’ll be blue-birds over the white cliffs of Dover. 1940 R. S. Lambert Ariel & All his Quality iii. 84 Full of a mystic vision of Empire .. inspired by the sight of the white cliffs of Dover. 1978 M. Kenyon Deep Pocket xiv. 181 You’ll be deported, you’ll never see the White Cliffs again.

white-collar, sb. and a. orig. U.S. A. sb. a. (As two words.) A white collar regarded as characteristic of a man engaged in non-manual work. 1919 U. Sinclair Brass Check xiii. 78 It is a fact with which every union workingman is familiar, that his most bitter despisers are the petty underlings of the business world, the poor office-clerks.. who, because they are allowed to wear a white collar.., regard themselves as members of the capitalist class. 1976 M. Hinxman End of Good Woman i. 9 Tom emigrated to Canada. Dick put on a white collar and became a bank clerk.

b. A person engaged in non-manual work. 1930 A. P. Herbert Water Gipsies iv. 39 That family over there.. come here every Thursday of their lives for a little family reunion, and white collars, too, all of them. 1938 W. Smitter F.O.B. Detroit 32 It wasn’t long before the whitecollars up front began taking notice of what was going on on the floor. 1954 E. Pangborn Mirror for Observers (1955) 1. i. 19 A residential backwater for factory workers, whitecollars, transients. 1962 ‘K. Orvis’ Damned & Destroyed i. 12 A pair of white-collars from a near-by St. James Street brokerage office pounded the bar for fresh drinks. 1971 W. J. Burley Guilt Edged i. 5 [The] passenger ferry .. had made only two return trips, one for the workers at seven-thirty and one for the white-collars at eight-thirty.

B. adj. a. Of a person: engaged in non-manual, esp. clerical, work. 1921 Ladies' Home Jrnl. May 98/4 Urban chain restaurants have accustomed white-collar boys and girls to tasty viands, albeit in limited amounts. 1924 W. McDougall Ethics & Some Mod. World Probl. iv. 125 The strata of brain-workers made up the white-collar class or middle classes. 1937 Atlantic Monthly Dec. 750/1 Proletarian literature .. has been accompanied by books on the white-collar worker, the storekeeper.. the scientist, and the millionnaire in situations equally disastrous or degrading. 1948 Chicago Tribune 3 Apr. 11. 1/4 The modern white collar girl wants a job which not only offers opportunities but advances as well. 1959 [see blue-collar s.v. blue a. 13]. 1969 Times 30 Apr. 26/6 The first strike action by manual workers against the British Steel Corporation’s new policy of white collar union recognition broke out yesterday. 1982 D. Gorham Victorian Girl ii. 29 Teachers and nurses.. were of less importance numerically than [female] ‘white collar’ workers.

b. Of work or an occupation: not manual or industrial; spec, clerical. 1926 Amer. Speech II. 96/2 The uneducated and uneducable found a new field opening to them, and rushed in, to take advantage of the ‘white-collar’ work. 1937 ‘G. Orwell’ Road to Wigan Pier xi. 205 The typical Socialist.. is either a youthful snob-Bolshevik .. or, still more typically, a prim little man with a white-collar job. 1962 Auden Dyer's Hand (1963) 123 He has a dingy white-collar job. 1979 T. Benn Arguments for Socialism i. 41 The definition of a worker is extended to include all wage and salary earners and paves the way for the extension of trade unionism into the realms of clerical white collar, scientific and technical and managerial work.

c. (See quot. 1937.) U.S. 1932 [see dirt farmer s.v. dirt sb. 7d]. 1937 Amer. Speech XII. 105 The adjectives suitcase and bonanza and whitecollar are applied in recently developed wheat-farming areas to large owner-farmers who live outside the community and appear during the sowing and harvesting seasons.

WHITE-COLLARED d. Applied to a person who takes advantage of the special knowledge or responsibility of his position to commit non-violent, often financial, crimes; also to the crime itself. 1^932 E. H. Sutherland in Publ. Amer. Sociol. Soc. Aug. 6o The financial crimes of the white-collar classes.] 1934 Pnttc. Criminol. ii. 32 These white-collar criminaloids • • ai;e by JaL.the most dangerous to society .. from the point of view of effects on private property and social institutions. 1964 M. Argyle Psychol. & Social Probl. v. 65 Older middle-class people are tempted to commit offences other than theft or violence, and the various kinds of ‘white collar crime are hard to detect—income-tax avoidance, bogus expense claims and complex business illegalities. 1977 Wandsworth Borough News 7 Oct. 5/3 Dangerous drivers and white-collar criminals are far more likely to receive lenient treatment than the petty habitual thief. 1984 Daily Tel. 12 Nov. 20/2 White-collar crime like fraud is.. on the increase .., and the computer has opened enormous vistas of extra opportunity.

white-'collared, a. [-ed2.] 1. Wearing a white collar; also fig. , .I932 H. G. Wells Work, Wealth & Happiness of Mankind vii. 237 The black-coated, white-collared clerk. 1947 J. Mulgan Report on Experience 18 Ten millions of the rest, bowler-hatted, white-collared, moved in monotonous rhythm. 1951 D. Glover Sings Harry 41 It’s plain hard hazardous work To work with the white-collared wave. 2. = WHITE COLLAR a. a. 1933 Sun (Baltimore) 14 Apr. 4/6 Hands blistered and backs sore from hard physical labor, so-called ‘whitecollared men’ of West Virginia are calling for more and yet more work. 1947 Hist. ‘The Times' III. v. 117 That public was the great and growing, vigorous ‘white-collared’ lowermiddle class. 1959, 1967 [see blue-collared adj. s.v. blue a. I3]« x977 M. Green Children of Sun (rev. ed.) x. 460 Lucky Jim.. described a new class on the British scene, the whitecollared proletariat, trained technicians but not educated gentlemen.

whited ('hwaitid), ppl. a. Now rare or arch.

.1

I. [f. WHITE V

+ -ED1.]

1. Covered or coated with white; spec. (a) plastered over with white, whitewashed, as a wall, building, etc.; now chiefly in the biblical phr. whited sepulchre (Matt, xxiii. 27) used allusively; f (b) of metal, tinned or silvered; also occas. gen., e.g. of land covered with snow. 1340 Ayenb. 228 Huo pet is yhol of bodie and uoul ine herte is ase pe berieles yhuited. 1388 Wyclif Acts xxiii. 3 Thanne Poul seide to hym, Thou whitid wal, God smyte thee. 1552 Huloet, Whyghted or paynted with white leade, cerustatus. 1645 Milton Hot. Ep. 1. xvi. 40 in Tetrach. 39 But his owne house, and the whole neighbourhood Sees his foule inside through his whited skin. 1669 Sturmy Mariner's Mag., Penalties e 3wderward, bote as pe wind blew, a 1300 Cursor M. 1246 ‘kou most now ga To paradis... ’ ‘Yai, sir, wist i wyderward pat tat vncuth contre ware.’ 1303 R. Brunne Handl. Synne 5916 3eueJ? gode tent, Whederward hat Pers ys went, c 1386 Chaucer Frankl. T. 782 He.. asked of hire whiderward she wente. c 1425 Wyntoun Cron. vi. xviii. 2008 For til wit.. qwej?irwart pe thayne of Fiff pat tyme past. 1470-85 Malory Arthur vn. xiii. 232 Whether ward ar ye way ledyng this knyghte? 1540 Palsgr. Acolastus V. v. Aaiv b, Whytherwarde take I my iourneye? or whyther warde am I goynge? 1614 W. Browne Sheph. Pipe 1. 510 Forth of auenture his way is went, But whither-ward he draw, he conceitlesse Was. 1801 Southey Thalaba v. xiii, Unknowing whitherward to bend his way. 1851 Carlyle Sterling 1. xi, Whitherward to turn for a good course of life, was by no means too apparent, i860 Trollope Framley P. xiii, As one goes on pleasantly running down the path— whitherward? 2. rel. a. as compound relative: Towards the place that; usually in generalized or indefinite sense: Towards any place that, whithersoever. c 1205 Lay. 9994 Whudereward pa ferde heore flsem makeden, pe eorles heom si3en to. a 1225 Ancr. R. 168 Uorte .. uoluwen pe hwuderward so pu euer wendest. a 1300 Cursor M. 21228 O sant mathu pe gospel-bok Quider-ward sumeuer he scok .. wit him he bar. c 1350 Will. Palerne 2830 Whiderward as pei went al wast pei it founde. c 1375 Cursor M. 23523 (Fairf.) Quidder-wart [Trin. Whiderward so] an wil loke pa\ loke al. 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xix. cxxix. (1495) nnijb/i A way by the whyche a man maye goo whytherwarde that he woll. 1845 Carlyle Cromwell I. 294 Shall he.. conduct the King whitherward his Majesty wishes? b. as simple relative: Towards which. 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xiii. iii. (Bodl. MS.), )?e wel springe and pe finalle ende whederward hit [sr. the river] rennep. 1582 Allen Martyrdom Campion (1908) 7 Whitherwarde by longe and great travail he came, going about by Rome .. and by Remes. 1597 Beard Theatre Cod’s Judgem. xix. (1612) 353 Bombadilla.. was called home againe into Spaine: whitherward .. as hee imbarked himselfe ..there arose., a horrible.. tempest. 1895 Sat. Rev. 21 Sept. 374/1 Four guns are sent..to advanced posts up the nullah, whitherward they make their way by forest routes. 3. sb. (nonce-use). Place towards which one goes. 1877 Blackie Wise Men 325 Athens hath no clew To track his whitherward. So 'whitherwards adv. 13.. K. Alis. 955 (Laud MS.), Who so wolde, he mijth ryde .. Whiderwardes so he wolde. c 1320 Sir Beues (A.) 2037 At pe kni3t he askede po ‘Whider-wardes is Mombraunt?’ 1909-10 Sir W. Butler Autobiog. xii. (1911) 186 Signs .. indicating the whitherwards of coming events. whiting (’hwaitii)), sb. whitynge,

(5

wytenge,

Forms: 5-6 whytynge, -yng),

6 whyting,

-yng,

whityng, -inge, 7 whytting, Sc. quhiting, quhittine, 8 whitting, Sc. whyten, 8-9 Sc. whiten, 6- whiting, [ad.

(M)Du.

wijting,

also

fwittingh,

whitleather

abundant off the coast of Great Britain,

and

highly esteemed as food. 14.. Nom. in Wr.-Wiilcker 705/23 Hie glaucus, a whytynge. c 1425 Voc. ibid. 642/8 Hie clamitus, wytyng. M33 Stonor Papers (Camden) I. 49 In xij podryd [ = powdered] wytyng, viijd. /. a. b].

2. a. To move swiftly with or as with such a sound. 1591 Harington Orl. Fur. ix. lxix, The shot, gainst which no armour can suffice,.. Doth whiz, and sing. 1601 Shaks. Jul. C. 11. i. 44 The exhalations, whizzing in the ayre, Giue so much light, that I may reade by them. ci6ii Chapman Iliad xxii. 123 The Hauke comes whizzing on. 1697 Dryden JEneis xi. 1169 When the Jav’lin whizz’d along the Skies. 01721 Sheffield (Dk. Buckhm.) Wks. (1723) II. 8 Both of us sitting together on the quarter-deck, heard a bullet whizzing over our heads. 1814 Wordsw. Excurs. vn. 741 How the quoit Whizzed from the Stripling’s arm! 1853 Hawthorne Eng. Note-bks. (1883) I. 423 The small, black steamers, whizzing industriously along. 1914 ‘Ian Hay’ Knt. on Wheels xiii. §2 Watching for the motors that whizzed .. along the straight white road.

b. fig. To have a sensation of such a sound. 1797,1854 [see whizzing vbl. s6.]. 1865 Darwin in Life & Lett. (1887) III. 34 Reading makes my head whiz. 1898 [see WHIZZING vbl. sb.].

3. trans. To cause to whizz; to hurl, shoot, or convey swiftly with a whizz; spec, in technical use, to dry hy centrifugal force in a rapidly revolving apparatus (cf. whizzer b). 1836 W. Irving Astoria xlv, He was on the point of whizzing a bullet into the target. 1880 Meredith Tragic Com. vii, A Balearic slinger about to whizz the stone. 1882 Crookes Dyeing & Tissue-Printing 228 Enter at 1120 F., raise to a boil in three turns, wash well, whiz, and dry. 1884 W. S. B. McLaren Spinning (ed. 2) 39 Most of the wool is ‘whizzed’ after drying.

4. intr. To urinate,

WHO

288

slang.

1929 D. H. Lawrence Pansies 24, I wish I was a gentleman As full of wet as a watering-can To whizz in the eye of a police-man. 1976 R. B. Parker Promised Land vii. 37, I wondered if anyone had ever whizzed on Allan Pinkerton’s shoe.

whizz, whiz, int. and adv. An exclamation imitating the sound described under whizz sb.1 and v.- as adv. — with a whizz. Cf. GEE whiz(z int., whizz-bang int., sb. and a. 1812 H. & J. Smith Rej. Addr., Fire & Ale, The water., bubbled and simmer’d and started off, whizz! 1818 Scott Br. Lamm, xx, Whiz went the bolt. 1869 Browning Ring & Bk. xii. 347 When whiz and thump went axe.

whizz-bang ('hwizbaer)), int., sb., and a. slang. Also whiz-bang, without hyphen, and as two words, [f. whizz, whiz v. or int. + bang S&.1] A. int. Expressing a whizzing sound that ends with a thud or explosion, such as may be heard as a bullet or shell strikes a target. 1836 Dickens Pickw. (1837) ii. 9 Fired a musket.. rushed into wine shop.. back again —whiz, bang. c 1838 C. Mathews in M. R. Booth Eng. Plays of igth Cent. (1973) IV. 133 She called in a farmer.. Who loaded his blunderbuss.. Whizz, bang! Lord, I thought I was murdered outright. 1920 Lipscomb Staff Tales 59 Whizzbang! Something grazes parapet.

B. sb. 1. colloq. The shell of a small-calibre high-velocity German gun, so called from the noise it made. 1915 ‘Ian Hay’ ist Hund. Thous. xviii, A whizz-bang is a particularly offensive form of shell which bursts two or three times over, like a Chinese cracker. 1918 W. Owen Poems (1920) 16 What murk of air remained stank old, and sour With fumes of whizz-bangs. 1923 Kipling Irish Guards in Gt. War I. 143 Three men killed in the line by a single whizz-bang. 1968 J. R. Ackerley My Father & Myself vi. 51 In 1918, just before the Armistice, he was killed by a whizz-bang. 1979 S. Wilson Vampire 11. 56 Those guns. Those ever present guns. Eighty-eights. Whizz-bangs. None of us need to be reminded of the names.

2. A resounding success; a marvel. 1916 in Amer. Speech 1972 (1975) XLVII. 116 Masson is a whizbang at getting up the kind of food that makes the troops want to fight. 1944 T. H. Wisdom Triumph over Tunisia 182 The raid was a whizz-bang, the R.A.F. expression denoting something highly successful. 1978 M. Puzo Fools Die xvi. 169 These were the sharpest kids in America, the future business giants, judges, show business whizbangs. 1983 Listener 14 July 37/1 George Stevens., knew how to make box-office whizz-bangs but not very interesting movies.

3. A firework that jumps around making a whizzing noise and periodic bangs.

1960 J. Lodwick Asparagus Trench 53, I carried .. whizzbang fireworks, harmless but disconcerting pyrotechnical trivia these, by reason of their strange gyrations. 1983 D. Lambert Judas Code iii. 55 He lit three more firecrackers —Whizz Bangs they were called.

C. adj. a. Excellent, b. Fast-paced, very lively; spectacular. 1959 I- & P. Opie Lore & Lang. Schoolch. ix. 161 Other superlatives currently in favour are:.. swell, whizzing, whiz¬ bang, whizzo. 1963 Economist 5 Jan. 28/1 Americans are often the first to admit that sometimes a whiz-bang quality about their methods tends to upset their friends. 1965 Listener 16 Sept. 431/1 I’m not suggesting that programmes on the arts should be as whizz-bang as The Dick Van Dyke Show, but I do suspect that Drama and Light Entertainment could teach them a lot. 1967 Spectator 8 Dec. 725/2 A sculptor whose inventions .. are made for prolonged contemplation when much work is made for whizzbang impact. 1972 National Observer (U.S.) 27 May 20/5 Bernstein inclines to brisk tempos; it would be interesting to see a regiment actually try marching to his whiz-bang ‘Stars and Stripes Forever’. 1984 Listener 5 Jan. 8/3 As for home¬ grown, whizzbang, laugh-a-line comedy—Channel 4, where are you?

Hence as v. trans., to shoot whizz-bangs at; whizz-banged ppl. a. 1918 G. Frankau One of Them ix. 66 How oft, in some wild Western whizz-banged dug-out.. Has my soul flown from Staff-emitted paper To the glad days, when from my purse I’d lug out That last fat stake. 1919 King's Royal Rifle Corps Chron. igi6 139 This line was whizz-banged heartily. 1928 Blunden Undertones of War iv. 35 Some of us were just in time, when next the enemy gunners whizzbanged here, to jump down from the fire-step into a dugout stairway.

whizzer (’hwiz3(r)). [f. whizz v. + -er1.] 1. Something that whizzes; spec. a. a toy that makes a whizzing noise when whirled round; b. a machine for drying various articles by the centrifugal force of rapid revolution; a hydro¬ extractor. Cf. spin-drier, -dryer. 1881 Tylor in Academy 9 Apr. 265 A toy mechanically curious and called in England a ‘whizzer’ or ‘bull-roarer’. 1887 Pall Mall Gaz. 6 July 14/1 The whizzer .. dries clothes in 1,000 revolutions a minute. 188. Sci. Amer. (N.S.) LVIII. 178 (Cent. Diet.) Ritchie’s Steam Whizzer.—A machine for treating musty grain.

2. Something or someone extraordinary or wonderful; a ‘stunner5, slang. 1888 E. L. Dorsey Midshipman Bob 1. x. 93 ‘Fore-top¬ gallant studdingsail-boom-tricing-line~block strapthimble.’ Ain’t that a whizzer? 1947 *N. Blake’ Minute for Murder v. 98, I must say she was a whizzer in those days. 1976 Zigzag Apr. 28/1 ‘She’s long5 features Bill’s best guitar solo (despite many other whizzers). 1977 ‘J. Gash’ Judas Pair viii. 95 It’s a whizzer... I’ve found a cased set.

3. A pickpocket, slang. 1925 N. Lucas Autobiogr. Crook vii. 108 The stalls of theatres at matinees are sometimes patronized by ‘whizzers’. 1941 V. Davis Phenomena in Crime xiv. 195 There are a score of girl ‘whizzers’ in London who can get a man’s pocket wallet..with conjuring skill. 1974 R. Edwards Dixon of Dock Green 17 It was also a right place for ‘whizzers’—pick-pockets.

4. cm a whizzer: on a drinking spree. N. Amer. slang. 1910 B. Edwards Best of Bob Edwards (1975) v. 104 He was only off on a little bit of a whizzer. 1936 Univ. Texas Stud, in Eng. XVI. 51 A number of phrases with go refer to the act of ‘getting drunk’: one may go on. .a whizzer.

whizziness: see after whizzy a. whizzing ('hwiznj), vbl. sb. -ING1.]

[f. whizz v. +

1. a. The action or sound denoted by whizz. 1607 Topsell Four-f. Beasts 11 Of the Cynocephale or Baboun... Their voyce is a shrill whizing. 1631 Anchoran Comenius' Gate Tongues 110 For feare the hinges should make some noyse (or whizzing). 1710 Luttrell Brief Rel. (1857) VI. 623 His horse, being frighted by the whizzing of a cannon ball, threw him. 1797 T. Morton Cure for Heartache 1. ii, Such a whizzing and spinning in my head. 1832 Ht. Martineau Manch. Strike vi. 65 The incessant whizzing and whirling of the wheels. 1854 Miss Baker Northampt. Gloss., She complain’d of such a whuzzing in her ears. 1884 W. S. B. McLaren Spinning (ed. 2) 49 The whizzing in the hydro-extractor is sufficient. 1898 Allbutt's Syst. Med. V. 818 Whizzings in the head.. are complained of.

b. attrib. whizzing-stick = whizzer a. 1890 Amer. Anthrop. III. 258 The ‘whizzing-stick’ or ‘bull-roarer’ on the West Coast of Africa.

2. Pick-pocketing, slang. 1925 N. Lucas Autobiogr. Crook vii. 98 My pals went in for every known form of getting other people’s property... ‘Drumming’, ‘parlor jumping’, ‘whizzing’. 1941 V. Davis Phenomena in Crime xv. 209 Nearly all classes of ‘whizzing’ take place on the ‘shove-up’ principle.

'whizzing, ppl. a.

[f. as prec. + -ing2.] 1. a. That whizzes: see the verb.

1589 A. F. Virg. Bucol. vii. 1 Daphnis.. sat him downe vnder a whizzing holme. 1592 R. D. Hypnerotomachia (1890) 3 A stopping hinderance to their current and whuzing fall. 1622 Drayton Poly-olb. xx. 231 When the whizzing Bels the silent ayre doe cleaue. 1638 W. Lisle Heliodorus ix. 152 A whizzing cloud of arrowes dimd the Sun. a 1769 Falconer Shipwr. 111. 734 My stun’d ear tingles to the whizzing tide. 1812 H. & J. Smith Rej. Addr., Tale Drury Lane 165 Still o’er his head, while Fate he braved, His whizzing water-pipe he waived. 1840 Thackeray Paris Sk.-bk. xix. (1869) 284 A whizzing, screaming steam engine. 1870 Thornbury Tour rd. Eng. I. ii. 27 [We] sweep on with whizzing wheels past broad nursery gardens.

b. Of a sound: Of the nature of a whizz.

1621 T. Williamson tr. Goulards Wise Vieillard 183 The heauens shall passe away, with a whizzing tempestuous noyse. 1664 S. Taylor in Evelyn's Pomona 50 Which evaporates with a sparkling and whizzing noise. 1748 tr. Vegetius Renatus' Distempers Horses 183 He makes a whizzing Noise in his Breast. 1829 Good Study Med. (ed. 3) I. 563 Whizzing voice. The voice accompanied with a whizzing or hissing sound. 1835-6 Todd's Cycl. Anat. I. 232/2 A peculiar whizzing sound,.. perceptible on applying ..a stethoscope to the tumour. 1891 Smiles Mem. J. Murray xx. II. 3 A whizzing sound in his ears.

2. Excellent, ‘smashing5, slang. 1953 [see knock-out sb. 4]. 1959 [see whizz-bang a.].

Hence 'whizzingly adv. In recent Diets.

'whizzle, v. dial. Also 6 whizle, whyzle. whizz v. -1- -LE.] 1. intr. To whizz or whistle.

[f.

1582 Stanyhurst JEneis 1. 93 Rush do the winds forward through perst chinck narrolye whizling. 1901 Daily News 1 Apr. 5/4 The nagaikas whizzled, and the students were falling to the ground row after row.

2. trans. To obtain slily. 1787 Grose Prov. Gloss., Whizzle, to get any thing away slily. 1847 Halliwell, Whizzle, to obtain anything slily. 1894 Bridges Nero 11. 1. ii. 319, ’Twould be guessed whence I whizzled it.

whizzo, wizzo ('hwizau, 'wizau), int. and a. slang, [f. whizz, whiz sb.1 + -o2.] A. int. An exclamation expressing delight. 1905 in Engl. Dial. Diet. 1943 Penguin New Writing XVI. 28 WTizzoh! No night fighters! 1954 D. Ames Crime, Gentlemen, Please xxi. 123 ‘It’s really a little surprise for the kiddies.’ ‘Whizzo!’ cried Anna, grabbing it. 1959 J. Verney Friday's Tunnel xxviii. 269 Friday.. yelled, ‘Oh, whizzo!’

B. adj. Excellent, wonderful. 1948 R.A.F. Rev. Jan. 20/2 I’ts whizzo when you get a fried egg sunny-side-up for tea. 1948 I. Brown No Idle Words 97 A father who told his son that he had.. arranged for the boy to visit Norway received the following answer: ‘Absolutely wizard, flash, whizz-o, grand, lovely to beetle up to Norway.’ 1955 M. Allingham Beckoning Lady xiii. 185, I wanted to look at some wizzo lettering on.. the Tomb. 1968 Listener 19 Dec. 810/3 The Squadron-Leader and I decided to give a party—what the Squadron-Leader called a proper whizzo party with marks on the ceiling.

whizzo ('hwizsu), sb. slang, [f. whizz, whiz sb.2 + -o2.] = whizz, whiz sb.2 1. 1977 Daily Express 29 Mar. 20/3 Keyboard whizzo Keith Emerson uses his [side of an album] for a neo-classical piano concerto, accompanied by the London Philharmonic Orchestra. 1981 Sydney Mirror 2 July 8/4 Electronics whizzo Dick Smith .. aims to become the taxman’s friend in another way.

whizzy ('hwizi), a. rare. [f. whizz sb.1 or v. + -Y1.] Characterized by whizzing; fig. (dial.) dizzy, giddy. Hence 'whizziness, quality or state of whizzing. 1839 Thackeray Leg. St. Sophia of Kioff xvm. 42 The swift arrow’s whizziness causing a dizziness. 1866 Thornbury Greatheart lviii, I felt all whizzy and sleepy like.

who (hu:, unemph. hu), pron. (sb.) Forms: 1-3 hwa, (1 hua), 2-3 hwo, hwoa, 2-4 wa, (2 wua, 3 whae, wae, wea, wah, hwoo, 3wo), 3 5 hoo, 3-6 wo, 3-5, 6- Sc. wha, (4 huo), 4-6 ho, whoo, 4, 9 dial, whe, 5 woo, (Sc. vho, 5 -9 dial, how, 6 hou, Sc. vha), 6-7 whoe, (9 Sc. whae), 3- who; 3-5 quo, (3 quuo), 4 qwo, qwa, 4-5, 6 Sc. qua, 4-8 Sc. quha, 5-6 Sc. quhay, 5 7 Sc. quho, (6 Sc. qwha, quhe). [OE. hwa = OFris. hwa, OS. hwe, hwie (MDu., Du. wie), OHG. hwer, wer (MHG., G. wer), ODa. hwa (Da. hvo), Goth, hwas, fem. hwo:—OTeut. *xwaz, *xwez:—Indo-eur. *qv‘os, *qwes. For oblique forms see whom, whose. For the vocalism cf. TWO. Indo-eur. qwo~, qwe~, q^a- are represented outside Germanic by Skr. ka, fem. ka, neut. kad (what), Zend ko, ka, kat, Lith. kds, OS1. ku-to (Russ, kto), Gr. TTortpos, Ionic Korepos, etc., L. qut, quse, quod, Umbrian poi who, Oscan pod what, OIr. cia, ce, cad, ca-ch any one, ca-te, co-te what is, W. pwy who, pa what, paup any one, Gael, co who; the variant (fi- is represented by Skr. kis (interrog. particle), cid (indef. particle), kim what, how, why, etc., Zend cil, Gr. tis, ti (:—*tIS), L. quis, quid, Umbrian sve-pis if any one, Oscan pis, pid, OS1. ci-to what (Russ, chto), Ir., Gael. ciod. For the stem-types as represented in derivative formations in English see when, where, whether, which, whither, whon, why, and how adv.]

I. Interrogative and allied uses. 1. a. As the ordinary interrogative pronoun, in the nominative singular or plural, used of a person or persons: corresponding to what of things (what A. i). Formerly sometimes with partitive of, where which is ordinarily used (which 3 b). c 1000 ^Elfric Gram, xviii. (Z.) 113 Quis hoc fecit? hwa dyde Sis? c 1200 Ormin 9755 Wha tahhte juw To fleon & to forrbujhenn J>att irre patt to cumenn iss? c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 359 Quo seide Se Sat Su wer naked? c 1300 Harrow. Hell (L) 63 Who ys pat ych here pore? c 1375 Cursor M. 3725 (Fairf.) His fader asked him qua art pou, And he onsquared pi sone esau. c 1375 Sc. Leg. Saints ix. (Bertholomeus) 40 Quha is pat, we pray pe. 1382 Wyclif Gen. xlviii. 8 Who ben thes? .. My sones thei ben. 121400-50 Wars Alex. 834* (Dubl. MS.) Whyne ert pou & who St what makys pou here? 1526 Tindale Matt. xii. 48 Who is my mother? or who are my brethren? 1600 Shaks. A. Y.L. in. ii. 198 Nay, but who is it? 1663 Killigrew Parson’s Wedd. in. v, Corel. How can that be? Joll. It is the Scrivener at the Comer. 1667 Milton

WHO

289

P.L. 1. 33 Who first seduc’d them to that fowl revolt? Th’ internal Serpent. 1703 Rowe Fair Penit. IV. i. G 2 b Who of my Servants wait there? f 1800 Jock o' the Side xvi. in Whitelaw Bk Sc. Ballads (1857) 380/1 Whae’s this kens my name sae well.. ? 1863 Miss Braddon Aurora Floyd xxx, Who can it be, dear?’.. ‘at such a time too’. 1865 Kingsley Herew. x, And he is killed?' ‘Who? Hereward?’ 1004 Weyman Abb. Vlaye iv, And who—who does she say dared to commit this outrage?

b. With intensive additions, as who the devil, who on earthy etc. c 1470 Henry Wallace v. 743 Quha dewill thaim maid so galy for to ryd? 1525 Ld. Berners Froiss. II. ii. Aiij, Some therat dide murmure and .. sayd: Who the deuyll hath sent for theym? 1749 Fielding Tom Jones xv. v, Why, who the Devil are you? 01849 H. Coleridge Ess. (1851) I. 255 Who upon earth could ever paint the bare sea?

c- In pregnant or emphatic sense, referring to a person’s origin, character, position, or the like; cf. what A. 2. In rhetorical questions often approaching or merging with 2. *382 Wyclif Rom. xiv. 4 Who art thou, that demest anothir [■v.r. anothris] seruaunt? 1526 Tindale Acts xix. 15 Jesus I knowe, and Paul I knowe: but who are ye? 1548 IJdall, etc. Erasm. Par. Matt. xv. 16 Who saye ye that I am? 1611 Bible Exod. v. 2 Who is the Lord that I should obey him?-Isa. lxiii. 1 Who is this that commeth from Edom? 1840 Browning Sordello 11. 635 Who were The Mantuans, after all, that he should care About their recognition? 1898 Belgravia Aug. 462 ‘Who is he?’ ‘Mr. Legge—Eustace Legge.’ ‘Yes. But who is he?’ ‘I don’t know.’ d« Substituted for the name of a person in asking for explanation: cf. what A. 4 b. 1749 Fielding Tom Jones xvi. ii, ‘I am come..by the Command of my Lord Fellamar.’ ‘My Lord who?’ 1837 Dickens Pickw. xx, ‘I heerd ’em laughing, and saying how they’d done old Fireworks.’ ‘Old who?’ said Mr. Pickwick. 1841 S. Warren Ten Thou. 1. ii, ‘What’s your names?’ ‘Mr. Tittlebat Titmouse,’ answered that gentleman .. ‘Mr. who}' exclaimed the old woman. 2.

In

a

rhetorical

question,

suggesting

or

implying an emphatic contrary assertion. e.g. who would.. ? = No one would ..; who would not.. ? — Any one would ..; who knows.. ? ~ No one knows ..; who but.. ? — No one but, no one else than ..; etc. See also who not in 4 b. (Cf. what A. 3, where 4.) a 1000 Boeth. Metr. xxviii. 5 Hwa is moncynnes pset ne wundrie? c 1000 /Elfric Gen. xxi. 7 Hwa wolde gelyfan, pset Sarra sceolde lecgan cild to hyre breoste.. on ylde? a 1300 Cursor M. 454 Qua herd euer a warr auntur? 13.. E.E. Allit. P. A. 427 pe croune fro hyr [sc. Mary] quo mo3t remwe, Bot ho hir passed in sum fauour? c 1386 Chaucer Knt.'s T. 601 Who koude ryme in englyssh proprely His martirdom? for sothe it am nat I. 1526 7’ indale Rom. viii. 35 Who shall seperate vs from goddes loue? 1633 G. Herbert Temple, Quip iv, Then came brave Gloria puffing by, In silks that whistled, who but he! 1735 Pope Ep. Arbuthnot 213-14 Who but must laugh, if such a man there be? Who would not weep if Atticus were he? 1782 Cowper Gilpin 113 Away went Gilpin—who but he? 1840 Dickens Old C. Shop Ixxiii, Of course he married, and who should be his wife but Barbara? 1855 Tennyson Maud 1. xii. ii, Where was Maud? in our wood; And I, who else, was with her. 1914 Kipling For all we have and are 39 Who stands if freedom fall? 3. In a dependent question, or clause of similar meaning, fin early use also with that (that conj.

6). For the distinction between the dependent interrogative and the relative, cf. note s.v. what A. I.**. Beowulf 52 Men ne cunnon secgan.. hwa J?aem hlaeste onfeng! 01175 Cott. Horn. 231 To under3eite wa an alle his cynerice him were frend oSer fend. £1200 Trin. Coll. Horn. 159 LusteS nu wich maiden pat is.. and hware he was fet and hwo hire ledde and wu and hwider. a 1240 Lofsong in O.E. Horn. I. 211 Ich..nabbe hwoa me froure. 01250 Owl & Night. 1195 Ic wot hwo sal beo anhonge. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 985 Wan a child were ibore & me in doute were Wo were pe fader. 13 .. Northern Passion 803 (Camb. Gg. 5. 31), Tell vs now who smate pe. 1340 Ayenb. 264 Me him acsej? huo he ys. c 1350 Will. Palerne 2733 pe werwolf went |?er-to to wite ho were J?ere. o 1400 R. Glouc. Chron. (1724) 40 (MS. B.) Among hem .. stryf me my3te se, Wuchc mest maistres were, & hoo schulde lord be. 1423 Jas. I Kingis Q. lvii, Maist thou noght se Quho commyth 3ond? o 1450 Le Morte Arth. 47 That ladyes.. might se Who that beste were of dede. 1469 Paston Lett. Suppl. (1901) 129 If he happed to dye, how shuld come after hym ye wote never. 1563-7 Buchanan Reform. St. Andros Wks. (S.T.S.) 13 The examinatouris .. sal declair to the rectour.. quha ar worthy of promotion. 1595 Shaks. John 11. i. 400 Shall we .. lay this Angiers euen with the ground, Then after fight who shall be king of it? 1611-Wint. T. iv. iv. 612 They throng who should buy first. 1617 S. Collins Epphata to F. T. 374 It might put him in minde of who had beene there sometime. 1677 Ravenscroft Wrangling Lovers v. i. 67 Did he know who I was? a 1700 B. E. Diet. Cant. Crew, Highjinks, a Play at Dice who Drinks. 1800 Lathom Dash of Day v. i, Tell the young gentleman.. a gentleman wishes to see him immediately; don’t say who, but bring him hither directly. 1803 G. Rose Diaries (i860) II. 56 Not having a guess of who he was. 1822 Besant All Sorts xxiv. (1898) 167 What her obligations were, and who this lady was, belongs in no way to this history. 4. Phrases, a. who is who (chiefly in dependent clause): who is one and who is the other; who each of a number of persons is, or what position each holds. (Cf. what A. 8 a, which 4 b.) f who and who are (or who's) together: who is allied with or engaged to whom. Who's Who, the title of a reference manual of contemporary biography, issued first in 1849, and in a new and enlarged form in 1897, and now updated annually; also transf. and fig. you and who else?: a contemptuous expression of incredulity, conveying scepticism about a person’s ability to do some past or threatened deed, esp. of violence.

C1386 Chaucer Reeve's T. 380 She saugh hem bothe two But sikerly she nyste who was who. a 1500 [see what A. 8 a]. 1700 T. Brown tr. Fresny's Amusem. 70 Let’s take a Trip into the Land of Marriage, and see Who and Who are together. 1709 Steele Tatler No. 35 P3 A general Knowledge of who and who’s together. 1712-13 Swift Jrnl. to Stella 4 Jan., I showed the Bishop, .at Court, who was who. 1720 Mrs. Bradshaw in C'tess Suffolk's Lett. (1824) I. 50 Pray let me hear a little how your court goes, who and who are together, i860 Emily Eden Semi-attached Couple ii, Though she could not distinguish who was who, yet she had a right to say she had seen ‘the marquess’. 1902 Eliz. L. Banks Newspaper Girl 76 With the exception of those persons of art and letters who were celebrated in my own country as well as in England, I knew nothing of ‘who was who’ in London. 1917 Wells Fargo Messenger V. 183/2 The Messenger is no ‘Who’s who’. 1917 National Police Gaz. (U.S.) 18 Aug. 2/4 We don’t believe that Ed W. Dunn’s latest effusion would win a place for him in the poet’s ‘Who’s who!’ corner. 1918 Nat. Geogr. Mag. XXXIV. 64 Those whose names would be in history’s ‘Who’s Who’. 1929 ‘E. Queen’ Roman Hat Mystery xviii. 260 ‘Forget, and I’ll dip you into the East River.’ ‘You and who else?’ breathed Djuna. 1929 Times Lit. Suppl. 18 Apr. 308/2 First he [sc. the biographer] gets out of the way the ‘Who’s Who’ of Wallace Williamson’s career in a terse opening chapter. 1951 P. Branch Lion in Cellar iii. 38 *’Oo creased ’im?’ he asked... ‘I did,’ he said firmly... ‘You an’ ’oo else?’ he jeered. 1962 W. Nowottny Lang. Poets Use ii. 34 Whilst using obituary or Who's Who language, it [sc. the diction] subtly detaches itself from the social attitudes such language is normally associated with. 1971 A. Morice Murder in Married Life xiii. 124 Julian: ‘Then I'll throw you out.’ Murderer: ‘You and who else, ha ha.’ 1974 Advocate-News (Barbados) 19 Feb. 12/1 The list of batsmen to come is straight out of the ‘who’s who’ of attacking cricketers. 1981 Country Life 16 July 205/4 Women in History. .is a sort of Who's Who and Who Was Who of women who.. should be known,

b. Phrases used as sbs., etc. / know not (mod. I don't know) who, Lord knows who, etc.: some person or persons unknown, or of unknown origin, status, etc. (cf. 1 c): so and I don't know who all (colloq. rare: cf. what A. 8 b), = ‘and various other persons unspecified’; wha-do-you-think (f who-dost-think), substituted for the name of a person to be guessed; who not (cf. 2 above and what-not i): any one whatever, any one and every one, all kinds of people (now rare or obs.); who does what{?): which person will do which task; esp. (in a demarcation dispute) members of which trade union will do a certain job; who-say (now dial.): a vague report, a rumour; in quot. 1583, a pretended excuse; also who's-afraid adj. phr., defiant, swaggering. 1583 Leg. Bp. St. Androis 789 Half way hameward vp the calsay, [He] Said to his servandis for a quha say: ‘Alace! the porter is foryett’. anne hi ne mo3e ine one yere y-hol.] 1362 Langl. P. PI. A. 11. 6 Seo wher he stonde)?!.. and al his hole Meyne! c 1369 Chaucer Bk. Duchesse 554 To make yow hool I wol do alle my power hool. 1390 Gower Conf. II. 121 Ye knowen al min hole herte. 11400 Destr. Troy 6852 Menelay the mighty, & the mayn Telamon, So sturnly withstod with paire strenkyth holl. Ibid. 13492 To hit into havyn with his hoole flete. c 1400 Maundev. xvi. (1919) I. 86 pei fasten an hool moneth. c 1449 Pecock Repr. Prol. 2 The clergie of Goddis hool chirche in erthe. c 1449 The hool al werk [see all A. 10]. 1491-2 Rec. St. Mary at Hill (1904) 181 The clarkes wages for an oull yere iiij s iiij d. 1523 Wolsey in St. Papers Hen. VIII, VI. 205 Either for the hoole wynter or at the lest for a season, a 1532 Rem. Love xliii. Chaucer’s Wks. 368 Eche letter an hole worde dothe represent. 1553 {title) The true and lyuely historyke pvrtreatvres of the woll bible. 1556 Olde Antichrist 8 Al hole Germany.. euery where cruelly vexed. 1597 Hooker Eccl. Pol. v. liv. 114 To be the peace of the whole world. 1610 Shaks. Temp. 11. i. 315 The roare Of a whole heard of Lyons. 1613-Hen. VIII, 1. i. 12 All the whole time I was my Chambers Prisoner. 1616 R. C. Times' Whistle v. (1871) 66 The lease .. For a whole hundred yeares is good in lawe. 1654 H. L’Estrange Chas. I (1655) 186 That Parliament from which the hole Kingdome expected a Reformation. 1667 Milton P.L. ii. 353 An Oath, That shook Heav’ns whol circumference. 1678 Moxon Mech. Exerc. iv. 73 Should workmen hold the Blade of the Paring Chissel in their whole hand. 1709 Steele Tatler No. 78 jP8 Hippocrates, who visited me throughout my whole Illness. 1756 Toldervy Hist. Two Orphans I. 169 In all the whole enlightened system. 1784 Cowper Tiroc. 225 The stout tall captain,.. upon whom they fix Their whole attention. 1845 M. Pattison Ess. (1889) 1. 2 The whole .. manner of looking at things alters with every age. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. vii. (1858) II. 462 The whole Anglican priesthood, the whole Cavalier gentry, were against him. c 1850 Arab. Nts. (Rtldg.) 632 He related his whole adventure from beginning to end.

(b) with numeral, as the whole three (\the three whole), two whole (f whole two). a *375 Joseph Arim. 340 3if vchon haue a godhede I graunte, bi him-selue, I seie pat on is also good as pe J?reo hole. C1380 Sir Ferumb. 4631 Charlys pe Citee J?o gan asayle, Two dawes hole. 1577 Hanmer Anc. Eccl. Hist. 80 Lying whole six dayes vnburied. 1597 Beard Theatre God's Judgem. x. (1612) 41 A.. pestilence, which lasted whole tenne yeares. 1611 Bible Acts xxviii. 30 Paul dwelt two whole yeeres in his owne hired house. 1641 J. Jackson True Evang. T. 1. 32 The fourth Persecution.. wherein the Church had no breathing for whole twenty yeares together. 1796 Eliza Hamilton Lett. Hindoo Rajah (1811) II. 311 He . .staid whole ten days. 1827 O. W. Roberts Voy. Centr. Amer. 228, I brought the whole three to the ground at one shot.

(c) with pi. sb. (the, my, etc. whole...): now chiefly Sc. (replaced ordinarily by the whole of the ... or all the ...); formerly also without article (now only as in c). 1516 in Leadam Sel. Cases Star Chamb. (Selden Soc.) II. 115 Theseid decrees.. shalbe .. obserued .. by the hole Burgesses and inhabitauntes of the same Towne. 1521 Ld. T. Dacre in Ellis Orig. Lett. Ser. 11. I. 279 Not doubting.. but ye shalbe.. recompensed of your hool dueties with th’arreragies. 1596 Edw. Ill, 1. i, All the whole dominions of the realm. 1650 Earl Monm. tr. Senault's Man bee. Guilty 89 There be whole intire Nations which approve of Incest.

1680 in Proc. Soc. Antiq. Scot. (1911) XLV. 233 All the whole ministers are content to be ordered by the enemies of Christ. 1764 Goldsm. Hist. Eng. in Lett. (1772) H- 203 The French .. having reduced almost the whole Netherlands to their obedience. 1798 Monthly Mag. Dec. 436 My whole friends are against me; all my friends. 1808 Jefferson Writ. (1830) IV. 112 We shall get our whole sea-ports put into that state of defence. 1831 Carlyle Sartor Res. i. 2 His whole other tissues are included. 1895 Times (weekly ed.) 26 Apr. 324/1 A third of the whole inhabitants of India.

■\(d) with sing, sb., without article: All, the whole of. Obs. 1535 Coverdale j Esdras viii. 7 He taught whole Israel all righteousnes & iudgment. 155* T Wilson Logic (1552) 165 b, As though whole religion stoude in these pointes onely. 1591 Savile Tacitus, Agricola 242 The figure..of whole Britannie, by Liuy.., is likened to a long dish or two edged axe. 1657 W. Rand tr. Gassendi's Life Peiresc. Ep. Ded., Not only whole Europe, but Asia also .. had their Eyes .. fixed upon this Province. 1826 Southey Vind. Eccl. Angl. x. 455 note, All creatures stand astonished, whole Nature is amazed.

f b. In phr. whole and some (cf. ‘all and some’, all A. 12 a), rarely full and whole, following a plural or collective noun or a plural pronoun: The whole number or amount, ‘the whole lot’, all; in all, altogether. Obs. c 1374 Chaucer Anel. & Arc. 26 For which the people blisfull hole and somme .. crydon [etc.]. ? a 1400 Arthur 424 And all peire power hooll & soom. C1430 Hymns Virgin (1867) 49 Alle to-gidere, boJ?e hool & some, To teer him from pe top to pe toon. 1542 Udall Erasm. Apoph. 243 b, He made all the people full and whole to gase on hym. Ibid. 281b. encC £etg£edere bion, jehal, untodaeled? forSaem gif hit todaeled bi5, ponne ne biS hit no hal. [c 1000 [see yhole]. 01240 Sawles Warde in O.E. Horn. I. 251 Iteilede draken grisliche ase deoflen pe forswolheS ham ihal.] 1375 Barbour Bruce vi. 78 He saw the brayis hye standand, The vattir holl throu slike rynand. 1382 Wyclif Prov. i. 12 Swolewe wee hym.. hoi as the descendende in to the lake. 11430 Two Cookerybks. 9 Take pe pertryche, an stuffe hym wyth hole pepir. 1484 Caxton Fables of JEsop v. ix, Pulle the skynne fro the body.. & kepe it hoole. 1513 Bk. Keruynge in Babees Bk. 279 The goos & swanne may be cut as ye do other fowles yf haue hole fete. 1530 Palsgr. 833 By retayle, as men sell wares that they sell nat hole [i.e. wholesale: cf. B. 3 b] or by great. a 1533 Ld. Berners Gold. Bk. M. Aurel. let. iii. (1535) 105 b, We ete dyuers thynges by morsels which if we shulde eate hole, wolde choke vs. 1597 Hooker Eccl. Pol. v. lvi. 126 A deede must either not be imputed .. or.. they which haue it by imputation must haue it such as it is whole. 1617 Moryson I tin. 1. 14 The walles being all of whole trees as they come out of the wood. 1648 Bp. Hall Rem. Wks. (1660) 198 For the paschal Lamb it must be set on all whole. 1677 Moxon Mech. Exerc. ii. 32 Which will neither way be so strong as the Worm cut out of the whole Iron. 1709 T. Robinson Vind. Mos. Syst. 32 Moses., makes Fish and Fowl Congenial.. From their manner of feeding, being both Swollowers hole, a 1756 Eliza Haywood New Present (1771) 197 One pint of whole oatmeal. 1806 A. Hunter Culina (ed. 3) 215 To a pint of strong gravy, put two small onions sliced, a little whole pepper. 1842 Loudon Suburban Hort. 687 In the manner of gooseberries and apples .. baked whole in a dish. 1859 Tennyson Marr. Geraint 318 Here had fall’n a great part of a tower Whole, like a crag that tumbles from the cliff.

fb. Undivided in allegiance or devotion; loyal, faithful, steadfast. (Cf. whole-hearted, -souled, in D. 2 d.) Obs. 13.. E.E. Allit. P. B. 594 )?ere he fyndez al fayre a freke wvth-inne pat hert honest & hoi. C1374 Chaucer Troylus iii. 1001, I.. shal.. Ben to yow trewe and hoi with al myn herte. 1451 Paston Lett. I. 208 The Sheriff is noght so hole as he was, for now he wille shewe but a part of his frendeshippe. 1535 Coverdale Ps. lxxvii[i]. 37 Their herte was not whole [1611 right] with him, nether continued they in his couenaunt. 1553 Bradford in Coverdale Godly Lett. (1564) 344 Gods deare chyldren, whose hartes are whole wyth the Lorde.

fc. Not unanimous.

divided

in

opinion;

united,

1451 Paston Lett. I. 183 The Kyng, by the hole advyse of all the greet Councell of Ingland,.. send hider his said Commission. 1540-1 Elyot Image Gov. iii. 3 b, By the hole consent of the Senate and people, a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. VI185 To whome they, with a whole voyce, aunswered nay, nay.

d. Math. Of a number: Denoting a complete and undivided thing, or a set of such things (not a part of a thing); integral, not fractional. fin first quot., Composed of three prime factors: = solid a. 2 b {obs.). CI430 Art of Nombryng ix. (1922) 46 Of nombres one is lyneal, ano^er superficialle, ano)?er quadrat, ano^er cubike or hoole. 1557 Recorde Whetst. Aij, Some are whole nombers... Other are broken nombers, and are commonly called fractions. 1608 R. Norton Stevin's Disme A 3 b, A Whole number is either a vnitie, or a compounded

multitude of vnities. 1842 Gwilt Archit. 229 A product.. is generated by the multiplication of two or more numbers. All whole numbers cannot result from such a multiplication.

e. Coal-mining. Applied to a portion of a coal seam which has not yet been worked, or is in the earlier stage of working: see quots. i860 Engl. & For. Mining Gloss, (ed. 2) 67 Whole, where the coal has not been previously worked. 1883 Gresley Gloss. Coal-m., Whole or Whole Mine (N[orth of England]), that portion of a coal seam being worked by driving headings into it only, or the state of the mine before bringing back the pillars, or what is called working the broken, commences... Whole Stalls (S[outh] Wfales]), two or more stalls having their faces in line or on a thread with one another.

9. Constituting the total amount, without admixture of anything different; full, unmixed, pure. In various connexions: often opposed to half. a. whole blood: see blood sb. 9. So whole brother or sister, a brother or sister of the whole blood, i.e. a son or daughter of both the same parents (as distinguished from a half-brother or half-sister). 1377 Langl. P. PI. B. xvm. 375 Ac alle pat beth myne hole bretheren in blode & in baptesme. c 1420 Chron. Vilod. 711 Twey sones he had .. Edwyge and Edgar, his hole brother. 1444 Rolls of Parlt. V. 104/2 No maner Walssh man of hole blode, ne half blode on the fader side. 1544 trLittleton's Tenures 1 Hys next cosyn collaterall of the hole blode. 1697, 1810 [see blood sb. 9]. 1826 J. F. Cooper Last of Mohicans viii, As for me, who am of the whole blood of the whites.

fb. Said of a person who has the whole of some possession, charge, or function, not sharing it with any one else: = sole a. 5 b. Obs. c 1420 Chron. Vilod. 3281 Knoude was made hole kyng of alle Englonde. 1455 Rolls of Parlt. V. 312/2 Hole heire in the taylle to the said Thomas. 1530 Rastell Bk. Purgat. 1. xv, One hye hole ordener of al thyngs. 1540 Barnes in Foxe A. & M. (1583) 1199/2 His grace is made a whole kyng, and obeyed in his Realme as a kyng. 1628 in Engl. Hist. Rev. (1918) Jan. 35 My.. Nephew Thomas., whom I make my whole and onelie Executor.

c. Bookbinding. Forming the whole of the cover: opp. to half- II. j. 1839 J. R. Smith's Catal. Second-hand Bks. Dec. 8/1 Whole calf. 1879 in Cassell's Techn. Educ. IV. 87 The whole-binding.. means that the whole of the cover of the book is covered with the same leather.

d. whole holiday: a day the whole of which is observed as a holiday (opp. to half-holiday 2 c). 1839 Ld. Houghton Barren Hill iii. Poet. Wks. 1876 II. 109 Whole-holidays of joy. 1895 K. Grahame Golden Age 8 With us it was a whole holiday; the occasion a birthday.

e. Of a team of horses: All of the same colour, ‘whole-coloured’. 1892 Daily News 31 May 6/1 Sir John, who used always to have a whole team, has now got one brown horse as wheeler.

B. sb. 1. a. The full, complete, or total amount; the assemblage of all the parts, elements, or individuals (of). With def. art. (rarely with possessive); the whole of = all. fin early use occas. (as in A. 7) qualified by all. 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xvii. i. (Bodl. MS.), A tree .. hap no meuynge of hit silfe, noper al pe hole no]?er parties hereof, c 1440 Jacob's Well 201 3yf t>ou 3yue counseyl to takyn..wrongfully oj>eres good,..& be pi counseyl pat wrong is don in-dede, J?ou art bounde to restore pe hole. 1582 N.T. (Rhem.) Matt. xiii. 33 Leauen, which a woman tooke and hid in three measures of meale, vntil the whole was leauened. 01586 Satir. Poems Reform, xxxv. 9 Quhy sould the hoill, for thair desert, That faine wald haue that fact withstand,.. beir the blame? 1593 Shaks. Lucr. 1159 They that loose halfe with greater patience beare it, Then they whose whole is swallowed in confusion, c 1600 Sonn. cxxxiv. 14 He paies the whole, and yet am I not free. 1615 E. S. Brit. Buss in Arber Engl. Garner III. 636 The very First Year’s herrings only, may bring in to the Adventurer or Owner; all his whole both of Stock and Charges of £934 5s. 8d. aforesaid. 1709-29 V. Mandey Syst. Math., Arith. 6 A number that measures the whole, and that which is taken away, will also measure the remainder. 1759 Johnson Rasselas xxviii[i], The good of the whole, says Rasselas, is the same with the good of all its parts. 1823 Cobbett Rur. Rides (1885) I. 273 In the whole of my ride, I have not seen much finer fields of wheat. 1840 Thackeray Barber Cox Mar., The whole of the gentlemen of the hunt. 1853 Soyer Pantroph. 185 Thicken with flour, and pour the whole on the deer when roasted. 1889 H. W. Picton Story of Chem. 296 We now define a salt as an acid having the whole or part of its hydrogen replaced by a metal.

b. U.S. the Whole = the Whole House (see COMMITTEE 3). 1840 Congressional Globe 5 May 364/2 The House then resolved itself into Committee of the Whole.

c. In a charade, my whole denotes the complete word of which the syllables, called my first and my second, are the parts. C1789 Encycl. Brit. (1797) IV. 341 /i My first is equally friendly to the thief and the lover... My second is light’s opposite... My whole is tempting to the touch, grateful to the sight, fatal to the taste. Night-shade. 1836 Penny Cycl. VI. 489/1 My first makes use of my second to eat my whole [French chiendent]. 1844 G. S. Faber Eight Dissert. (1845) II. 262 If in the process, the actual Dissyllable itself, in that species of amusement technically called my whole, should evaporate into thin air.

2. Something made up of parts in combination or mutual connexion; an assemblage of things united so as to constitute one greater thing; a

WHOLE

293

complex unity or system. art.; also in pi.

Usually with indef.

1697 tr. Burgersdicius' Logic 1. xiv. 43 A Whole is that which consists in the Union of any things, or Parts. 1725 Watts Logic 1. vi. §7 All Parts have a Reference to some Whole. 1732 Pope Ess. Man 1. 267 All are but parts of one stupendous whole. 1791 W. Gilpin Forest Scenery II. 62 All together the view is picturesque. It is what the painter properly calls a whole. There is a fore-ground, a middleground and distance—all harmoniously united. 1821 Shelley Hellas 776 This Whole Of suns, and worlds, and men, and beasts, and flowers,.. Is but a vision. 1833 Tennyson Pal. of Art 58 Full of great rooms and small.., All various, each a perfect whole, i860 J. Brown Hors Subs. Ser. 11. (1861) 229 A child begins by seeing bits of everything;.. it makes up its wholes out of its own littles. 1865 Tylor Early Hist. Man. i. 1 The complex whole which we call Civilization. 3. Phrases in senses 1 and 2.

a. as a whole

(sense 2): as a complete thing (not in separate parts); as a unity; in its entirety, all together. So, in reference to a pi. sb., as wholes. 1828 Carlyle Misc., Goethe (1857) I. 192 The beauty of the Poem as a Whole. 1852 Mrs. Stowe Uncle Toni's C. xix, I must sustain his administration as a whole, even if there are, now and then, things that are exceptional. 1865 Lecky Ration. (1878) II. vi. 210 How readily nations, considered as wholes, always yield to the spirit of the time. 1912 Engl. Hist. Rev. Oct. 697 A close division in the committee might be reversed on appeal to the cabinet as a whole. fb. by the whole: = wholesale i. Obs. 1592 Greene Upstart Courtier Eivb, If the Currier bought not Lether by the whole of the Tanner, the shomaker might haue it at a more reasonable price. c. in (the) whole, (a) To the full amount, in full, entirely, completely, wholly. (Usually, now always, without the: opp. to in part.) c 1440 Jacob's Well 202 J>ou art bounde to restore £>at thefte in pe hole. 1553 Bradford Serm. Repentance (1574) C v, They .. which .. wil prate, our merites or workes to satisfy for our syns in part or in whole. 1802-12 Bentham Ration. Judic. Evid. (1827) II. 118 They may have been spurious in the whole, or incorrect in every part. 1826 Southey Let. to H. Taylor 31 Aug. in Life (1850) V. 266 Collecting my stray letters, and selecting such, in whole or in part, as may not unfitly be published. 1855 Neil Boyd's Zion's Flowers Introd. 8 This Work ought to be printed in whole. 1913 Act 3 & 4 Geo. V, c. 20 §123 Any creditors whose claim he has rejected in whole or in part. (b) In total amount, all together, all told, in all. (Almost always with the.) Now rare. 1551 Sir J. Williams Accompte (Abbotsf. Club 1836) 24 White plate, of course broken siluer.., ccc oz. amountinge in thole. 1552-3 in Feuillerat Revels Edw. VI (1914) 108 Mowldes for the feltmakers to mowlde hattes vpon at xvjd the pece in the hole ij8 viijd. 1600 Southampton Crt. Leet Rec. (1906) 11. 336 The expence of powder..wch charge in the wholle cannott amount vnto lese then.. fyfty pownds yerely. c 1720 De Foe Mem. Cavalier (1840) 255 They were .. twice our number in the whole. 1754 in Nairne Peerage Evid. (1874) 48 Making up in whole. .the sum of nine thousand merks. 1815 Coleridge Let. to Lady Beaumont 3 Apr., Three poems, containing 500 lines in the whole. 1918 Act 8 9 Geo. V, c. 27 § 1 Any.. sums not exceeding in the whole the sum of one million pounds. d. on or upon the whole: (a) on the basis of the affair as a whole; considering the whole of the facts or circumstances; all things considered; ‘taking

it

all

together’.

Hence

f (b)

as

the

upshot, or summing up, of the whole matter; as a final result, ultimately, in conclusion, in fine, in

sum;

(c)

in

respect

of

the

whole,

notwithstanding exceptions in detail; in general, for the most part. The construction with of (quot. 1771) is rare and obs. 1698 Collier Immor. Stage 126 Shakespear’s Sr. John has some Advantage in his Character... But the Relapser’s business, is to sink the Notion, and Murther the Character, and make the Function, despicable: So that upon the whole, Shakespear is by much the gentiler Enemy. 1771 Goldsm. Hist. Eng. III. 392 Upon the whole of this treaty, it was considered as inglorious to the English. 1780 Cowper Adjudged Case 21 On the whole it appears.. that the spectacles plainly were made for the Nose. 1852 Dickens Bleak Ho. lx, Still, upon the whole, he is as well in his native mountains. 1887 Ruskin Praeterita II. v. 179 [I] determined that the Alps were, on the whole, best seen from below. (b) 1711 Steele Sped. No. 4 fi Upon the whole I resolved.. to go on in my ordinary Way. 1719 De Foe Crusoe 11. (Globe) 328 We came up with them, and in a word, took them all in, being.. sixty four Men, Women, and Children... Upon the whole, we found it was a French Merchant Ship. 1768 Goldsm. Goodn. Man Pref., Upon the whole, the author returns his thanks to the public for the favourable reception which ‘The Good-Natured Man’ has met with, a 1774-Hist. Greece II. 246 Upon the whole he was unanimously sentenced to die. (c) 1797-1811 Jane Austen Sense & Sensib. xlii, She liked him .. upon the whole, much better than she had expected. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. iii. I. 327 The clergy were regarded as, on the whole, a plebeian class. 1878 Hutton Scott iii. 34 She made on the whole a very good wife. 1920 Times Lit. Suppl. 29 Apr. 266/2 We only have [in King John] the text of the first folio of 1623, but that upon the whole is admitted to be good. 4. Coal-mining. A seam or portion of coal not yet worked, or in the earlier stage of working: see A. 8 e. 1747 Hooson Miner's Diet. G 3, If the Wholes be too Soft, that we think it will let the Forks settle when they come to be weighted, we put a Sill under them. 1883 [see A. 8e]. C. adv. a. Wholly, entirely, fully, perfectly. Obs. exc.

in nonce-use in explicit or implied

opposition to half (and, like that word, sometimes hyphened to the word it qualifies). 1338 R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 279 Now is Scotland hole at our kynges wille. c 1374 Chaucer Anel. & Arc. 310, I myght als weele kepe Aueryll from Rayne As holde yow trewe and make yowe hoole stedfaste. 1390 Gower Conf. I. 136 A1 the world in Orient Was hoi at his comandement. c 1400 Rom. Rose 2068 That ye haue me susprised so And hole myn herte taken me fro. a 1500 Chaucer's Dr erne 5 With her mantle whole couert. 01533 Ld. Berners Gold. Bk. M. Aurel. xiii. (1535) Gijb, I am hole ignorant of this yonge mans lyuynge. 1535 Coverdale Jer. xlii. 15 Yf ye be whole purposed to go in to Egipte. 1585 T. Washington tr. Nicholay's Voy. 1. viii. 8 b, Mayden slaues.. being commonly whole naked, a 1586 Satir. Poems Reform, xxxv. 26 Mortounis race To covatice wes hoill Inclynde. 1656 Cowley Mistr., Innoc. Ill iii, The ills thou dost are whole thine own. 1784 Cowper Task 1. 608 War and the chase engross the savage whole. 1815 Scott Guy M. xliv, Laying a half-dirty cloth upon a whole-dirty deal table. 1854 R- S. Surtees Handley Cr. xxvii, The half-dressed groom would whole-dress the horse. 1905 F. T. Barton Sporting Dogs 204 A black-and-tan sire and dam produce a whole-red puppy.

t b. Pleonastically emphasized by all; occas. = In all, altogether. Obs. This may often be construed as adj.: cf. A. 7. I39° Gower Conf. II. 157 Ytaile al hoi thei overcome. c 1400 Rom. Rose 2363, I.. comaunde thee That in 00 place thou sette all hoole Thyn herte withoute halfen doole. c 1450 Merlin 317, I putte me all hooll in youre ordenaunce. 1481 Caxton Godfrey x. 33 Alle the peple hool fledde to fore hym. Ibid. lvi. 97 This bataylle endured wel an houre al hoole. 1509 Hawes Past. Pleas, viii. (Percy Soc.) 31 As after this shall appere more openly, All hole exprest by dame Phylosophy.

f c. Qualifying a following adv., forming advb. phr. (in which whole may sometimes be construed as adj.), as whole out, throughout; whole together, all together (occas., altogether, entirely). a 1425 Cursor M. 13303 (Trin.) Twelue were pei to telle in dole Whenne pei were to gider hole. C1430 Freemasonry (1840) 15 Alle the masonus.. Wol stonde togedur hoi y-fere. 1535 Coverdale j Esdras vi. 28 Also, that they shall buylde the house of the Lorde whole vp. 1551 Turner Herbal 1. Kj, Some call it wylde succory: but it is hole together smaller. 1562 Ibid. 11. 50 b, The bark, pill, or shell of the Citron, is dry and hote in the thyrde degre hole out. 1677-8 Marvell Corr. Wks. (Grosart) II. 595 The Commons were yesterday taken up .. in hearing the cause.. which not having.. heard whole out, they orderd for to-morrow.

D. Special Collocations and Combinations. 1. The adj. qualifying a sb., forming phrases used in special senses: whole caboodle: see caboodle; f whole cannon, f whole culverin, a cannon or culverin of the full size, as distinguished from a demi-cannon or demiculverin (also fig. and attrib.); wholefood, unrefined food containing no artificial additives; an article or kind of such food; whole hog, in the slang phr. to go to the whole hog (see HOG sb.1 11b): also (usu. with hyphen) attrib. as adj., thorough-going, out-and-out; hence noncederivatives, as whole-hogger, -hoggery, -hoggism, -hoggite; whole-hogging adj. = whole-hog adj.; whole kit and boiling, etc.: see kit sb.1 3; whole meal, meal or flour made from the whole grain of wheat, etc. (sometimes including the bran); also attrib.; also (colloq.), a wholemeal loaf; whole milk, milk from which no constituents have been removed; also attrib.; whole-moulding Ship-building, name for an old method of forming the principal parts of a vessel, now used only for boats; cf. quot. c 1850 s.v. whole-moulded in 2 d; whole nine yards U.S. colloq., everything, the whole lot; also as adv., all the way; whole note Mus., t(fl) a whole tone or major second, as distinguished from a ‘half note* or semitone; (b) a semibreve, as the longest note in ordinary use (now U.S.); whole plate Photogr., see plate sb. 5 c; also attrib.; whole shift, in violin-playing (see shift sb. 15); whole silk [tr. med.L. (h)olosericum, ad. Gr. oXoorjpiKos, f. oAos whole + orjpLKos of silk], stuff consisting entirely of silk; whole-stitch Lace-making, a stitch in which the threads are woven together as in cloth; whole tone Mus. = whole note (a); whole-tone scale (see quot. 1928); freq. with reference to compositions based on this scale, particularly those of Debussy; whole wheat, wheat which has not been deprived of some constituents by sifting; usu. attrib. (with hyphen or as one word), designating flour or foodstuffs made from this. See also whole cloth, WHOLESALE. 1666 Lond. Gaz. No. 65/2 Designing the building of twelve new Ships,.. intending they shall carry a hundred Brass Guns a piece, and the lower Tyre *whole Cannon. 1723 E. Stone tr. Bion's Math. Instrum, v. iv. (1758) 147 Ordnance .. an Eight-Pounder, a Demi-Culverin, a TwelvePounder, a Whole-Culverin, a Twenty-four-Pounder, a Demi-Cannon, Bastard-Cannon, and a Whole-Cannon. 1598 Marston Sco. Villanie 1. iv. D3, With *whole culuering raging othes to teare The vault of heauen. 1647 Ward Simple Cobler (1843) 85 Ye talke one to another with whole Culvering and Canon. 1723 [see whole cannon], i960

WHOLE Mother Earth Oct. 341 We should like to hear from further growers who may have available supplies of *wholefood, especially winter salads, parsnips [etc.]. 1971 It 2-16 June 23/3 (Advt.), The Country Bizarre is a little seasonal magazine on traditions, crafts.. whole food culture, poetry, drawings. 1978 Peace News 25 Aug. 19/3 (Advt.), If you are interested in wholefoods, running a shop collectively and a political awareness of food please contact us. 1980 Times 21 Feb. 12/3 The longest lunch queues in London now are for wholefood... Vegetarian restaurants and health food shops are not new. What is changing is their style. 1829 Virginia Herald (Fredericksburg) 28 Mar. 2/3 Of late he has shown a disposition to become ‘a *whole hog man’. 1830-1876 Whole hog [see hog sb.1 n b]. 1855 I. C. Pray Mem. J. G. Bennett 141 James Gordon Bennett., is a thoroughgoing, ‘whole-hog’ Jackson man. 1935 Planning 23 Apr. 8 Once you start planning you cannot stop half-way, and whole-hog planning means tyranny. 1956 N. Pevsner Englishness of Eng. Art iii. 61 In the architecture of about 1900 there is in England the fresh yet friendly and human style of Voysey, not the whole-hog throwing overboard of all traditions as in Frank Lloyd Wright in America. 1977 Rolling Stone 30 June 69/2 My guess is that few white Rhodesian soldiers out there in the bush are wholehog white supremacists anymore. 1903 Daily Chron. 14 Oct. 4/4 The Chamberlainite party of ‘*whole hoggers’. 1904 Daily Chron. 28 July 5/6 The country is sick of the whole-hoggers, the half-hoggers,.. and the whole lot of them. 1907 E. Nesbit Enchanted Castle xi. 333 Your ancestors were whole-hoggers. They have done the thing as it should be done—every detail attended to. 1920 D. H. Lawrence Women in Love xxix. 438 He is such a whole-hogger. 1923 R. Macaulay Told by Idiot 1. xvii. 60 Stanley was like that—enthusiastic, headlong, a deep plunger, a whole-hogger. 1966 Listener 26 May 749/1 In the matter of theatre censorship, I am a whole-hogger. 1834 Southey Doctor Interch. xvi, The *Whole-hoggery in the House of Commons. 1934 C. Lambert Music Ho! v. 301 He [sc. Berg] cannot be described as a *wholehogging atonalist. 1943 Wyndham Lewis Let. 24 Nov. (1963) 370 He is a whole-hogging Thomist. i960 Guardian 27 June 7/2 Whole-hogging festival visitors. 1838 Carlisle Patriot 18 Aug. 2/5 The quaint version which the Times gave the other day of ‘*whole hoggism’. 1848 Blackw. Mag. July 54 Purge the land of moderatism and anti-whole-hog-ism. 1906 Westm. Gaz. 23 Jan. 7/2 A Balfourite with leanings towards ‘whole-hoggism’. 1840 *Whole-hoggites [see hog sb.1 11 b]. 1620 Venner Via Recta i. 18 Bread is also wont to bee made of the *whole meale, from which the bran is not separated. 1828 Keightley Fairy Mythol. II. 182 A nice half griddle of whole-meal bread. 1903 Ld. W. B. N[evill] Penal Serv. xv. 211 Neat little brown wholemeal loaves. 1904-5 Civil Service Supply Price-list 60 Whole Meal.. per 7 lb. bag, 1/4. Ibid. 128 Biscuits, Cabin, Navy, and Whole Meal. 1967 Wholemeal [see Hovis]. 1983 A. T. Ellis Other Side of Fire xvi. 102 Small white, small wholemeal and a couple of croissants. 1970 Kenya Farmer Feb. 9/2 We send no gallons *whole milk per day to Eldoret and separate all the rest for rearing stock. 1977 Lancet 19 Feb. 388/1 Sensitivity to cow’s whole milk was investigated in six patients. 1982 P. Rance Great Brit. Cheese Bk. 1. v. 97 These wholemilk cheeses, traditional in this area, vary considerably. 1797 Encycl. Brit. (ed. 3) XVII. 405/1 Of the Method of *Wholemoulding.. used by the ancients, and which still continues in use among those unacquainted with the more proper methods. C1850 Rudim. Navig. (Weale) 159 By whole¬ moulding, no more is narrowed at the floor than at the main breadth. 1970 Word Watching Apr. 7/2 * Whole nine yards, the entire thing. 1981 Washington Post 16 Jan. (Weekend sect.) 20/3 A Japanese disaster film, Virus, goes the whole nine yards, showing the city as a deserted freeway underpass. 1983 Aviation Week 7 Mar. 46/2 The Army came out and gave us the whole nine yards on how they use space systems. 1597 T. Morley Introd. Mus. Annot. ^jb, A *whole note is that which the Latines call integer tonus, and is that distance which is betwixt any two notes, except mi & fa. 1698 Phil. Trans. XX. 250 The Difference of [a Fourth and Fifth] they agreed to call a Tone; which we now call a Whole note. 1890 Science-Gossip XXVI. 18/2 Printing from *whole-plate negatives. 1876 Rock Text. Fabr. 9 The first emperor who wore *whole silk for clothing. 1882 Caulfeild & Saward Did. Needlework, * Whole Stitch, a name sometimes applied to the Cloth Stitch of Pillow Lace. 1897 J. S. Shedlock tr. Riemann's Did. Mus. 863/1 *Whole-tone, the larger of the two progressions by tone within the fundamental scale. 1928 Melody Maker Feb. 209/3 The *Whole Tone Scale .. is composed entirely of intervals of a Tone, thus having only seven degrees between its Tonic and its Octave. It has only come into use quite recently and is employed by the school devoting itself to.. ‘futuristic’ harmony. 1934 [see eleventh sb. 2]. 1935 G. Abraham Stud. Russ. Mus. iv. 77 Dargomizhsky’s fondness for the sharpened fifth of the scale, for the augmented triad which is, so to speak, the ‘common chord’ of the whole-tone scale. 1952 B. Ulanov Hist. Jazz in Amer. (1958) 284 The augmented chords and whole-tone melodies reveal their Debussyan source more clearly. 1977 Time 21 Mar. 62/3 His inclusion of Russian folk music, Turkish airs, even the whole-tone scale from the Orient (more than half a century before Debussy) suggests that he was exceptionally curious and openminded. 1903 *Wholewheat bread [see peanut butter s.v. peanut 3 a]. 1946 Sun (Baltimore) 14 Feb. 14/1 As everybody knows, whole-wheat bread is more nutritious than white bread. 1971 Times 11 Sept. 10/4 The distinction between galettes (made from buckwheat or wholewheat) and crepes. 1980 Sunday Times (Colour Suppl.) 20 Jan. 57/1 The most basic, natural loaves of all, contain 100 per cent whole wheat flour.

2. a. Combinations formed of phrases like those in 1 used attrib. or as adjs., in sense ‘Consisting of, made with, relating to, comprising, or occupying the or a whole ... as whole-arm, -body, -cane, -day, -fruit, -grain, -house, -width, -word, -world; (in sense A. 9) whole-leather, -worsted. (See also whole-colour, etc. in d.) 1410 Rolls of Parlt. III. 637/2 Lesquelles sount appellez an Hol-worsted bed. 1820 Lamb Elia Ser. 1. Christ's Hospital, The haunting memory of those whole-day leaves. 1866 Howells Vend. Life xvi. 246 A grand, whole-arm movement. 1903 Westm. Gaz. 9 Oct. 6/3 A whole-leather

WHOLE boot could not be honestly purchased under 7s. 1 id. 1904-5 Civil Service Supply Price-list Index p. cii, Whole Fruit Jam. 1910 Encycl. Brit. II. 28/1 {Angling), A light wholecane rod of stiff build. [Cf. split-cane, quot. 1890, s.v. split ppl. a. 2.] 1920 Cornh. Mag. Nov. 533 A whole-day tramp across country. 1947 Radiology XLIX. 283/1 To determine whether a daily dose of whole-body irradiation when given over a period of several hours produced the same injury as when given within minutes. 1952 Archit. Rev. CXI. 212/2 The Radiation ‘whole-house’ warming system, i960 Farmer Stockbreeder 15 Mar. (Suppl.) 10/1 Second-class protein .. is found in whole-grain cereals, nuts, lentils and soya beans. 1961 Lancet 7 Oct. 784/2 Modification.. would require interference with the normal whole-body response to injury. 1964 P. A. D. MacCarthy in D. Abercrombie et al. Daniel Jones 157 This in turn facilitates the recognition of whole-word patterns. 1983 P. Niesewand Scimitar xx. 566 Lyle and Ross were .. subjected to everything from lumbar punctures and sperm tests to whole body scans. 1975 Language for Life (Dept. Educ. & Sci.) xxvi. 521 Word recognition is not merely a matter of learning unique wholeword forms. 1976 National Observer (U.S.) 19 June 8 (Advt.), Your Trane Comfort Corps consultant is a full¬ time specialist in whole-house air conditioning. 1976 Woman’s Day (U.S.) Nov. 158/2 Unleavened whole-grain bread should be served generously to assure that your family fills up on fat- and cholesterol-free foods. 1977 Times 10 Sept. 2/1 Patients from several London hospitals are being sent to BUPA’s medical centre to be X-rayed by their EMI whole-body scanner. 1980 Redbook Oct. 220/1 Most important, the teaching of beginning reading was dominated by the ‘whole-word’ or iook-say’ method, in which children learned to recognize entire words, rather than by the method of ‘phonics’ in which they learned to sound out letters and groups of letters. 1985 N. Y. Times Mag. 6 Jan. 6/4 Popular among runners of marathons who stuff themselves with whole-grain pasta before trotting off to the day’s race.

b. Parasynthetic comb., in various senses of the adj., as whole-backed, -bodied, -headed, -maned, -skinned, -skirted adjs. (See also whole-chested, etc. in d.) 1607 Topsell Four-f. Beasts 288 The Istrian Horsses are of good able feete, very straight, *whole backt, and hollow. 1577 Harrison England hi. xii. m/i in Holinshed, Flies.. whether they be cut wasted, or ♦whole bodyed.. are voyde of poyson. 1844 H. Stephens Bk. Farm II. 660 If the carts are whole-bodied, the steward proceeds after the backboard is removed, to hawk out the dung; but if they are tilt or coMp-carts [etc.]. 1611 Cotgr., Ail masle, the ♦Whole¬ headed Garlicke. 1776 Withering Bot. Arrangem. 503 ♦Whole-leaved Water hemp Agrimony. 1685 Lond. Gaz. No. 2069/4 A bright bay Gelding.. ♦whole maned unless cut since. 1523-34 Fitzherb. Husb. §56 If thou bye kye or oxen to feede,.. loke well.. that he .. be ♦hoole-mouthed, and want no tethe. 1776 Da Costa Elem. Conchol. 209 (Jod.) The first genus, which he calls ‘wholemouthed’.. is my genus of ‘turbo’ among the.. snails. 1624 Fletcher Rule a Wife 1. i, He is *whole skin’d, has no hurt yet. 1683 Lond. Gaz. No. 1910/4 A new ♦whole skirted Black Saddle having the Seat of Velvet and the Skirts of Hogs skin.

c. Advb. comb., as whole-bred (see d); see also C. d. Special Combs.: whole-bred a. [cf. A. 9 a], of pure breed (opp. to half-bred i); f wholechase boot (see quot.); f whole-chested a., having a sound chest or breast; fig. loyalhearted; whole-colour, -coloured adjs. [A. 9], of the same colour throughout, concolor; whole-eared (-iad) a., (a) having the ears whole, i.e. not cut; (b) listening ‘with all one’s ears’, i.e. intently; so whole-eyed (-aid) a., gazing intently; whole-earther colloq., somebody who is actively concerned about the protection and wise use of natural resources and wildlife; whole-feather [A. 9], a variety of pigeon having all the feathers of one colour; so wholefeathered (-ad) a.; whole-hearted a., (of a person) having one’s whole heart in something, completely devoted (orig. and chiefly U.S.); (of an action, etc.) done with one’s whole heart, thoroughly earnest or sincere; hence ■whole¬ heartedly adv., whole-heartedness\ wholehoofed (-hu:ft) a. [A. 8], having undivided hoofs, solidungulate; whole-length a., (a) of a portrait, etc. representing the whole human figure, usually standing; also ellipt. as sb. a whole-length portrait or statue; (b) gen. extending through the whole length; exhibited at full length; whole-life a., pertaining to or designating an insurance policy for which the premiums are payable until the death of the insured person; whole-minded a., giving one’s whole mind to something, completely interested; hence whole-mindedness; wholemoulded a. Ship-building, see quot. c 1850, and cf. whole moulding in 1; whole-number rule Physics, the empirical law that the atomic weights of the elements are mostly close to being whole numbers; whole-pull Change-ringing, see quots. (opp. to half-pull, half- II. n); whole rock a. Geol., designating the use of a complete rock sample in an analytical procedure, as distinct from the individual minerals composing it; whole-sail a., said of a wind in which a ship (esp. a yacht) can carry full sail; whole-seas humorous nonce-wd., quite drunk (after half-seas, short for half-seas-over 2); whole-souled

WHOLE-FOOTED

294 (-ssuld) a. orig. U.S. — whole-hearted', f wholesteal nonce-wd., ‘wholesale’ theft; f wholestone a., (of lime) unslaked; whole-time a., occupying the whole of some particular time, esp. of the working time; (of a person) employed during the whole time; whole-timer, = fulltimer; whole-working Coal-mining, see quot., and cf. A. 8 e, B. 4. 1846 J. Baxter’s Libr. Bract. Agric. (ed. 4) II. p. xxi, A •whole-bred Southdown fat wether 1656 Blount Glossogr., • Whole-chase Boots, are whole hunting, or large riding Boots. 1603 J. Davies Microcosmos 37 We are •whole-chested, and our Breastes doe hold A single Hart, that is as good, as great. 1633 Massinger Guardian iv. i, A well timbred youth .. he’s whole chested too. 1896 Westm. Gaz. 2 Dec. 1/2 The collection includes a series of ‘wholecolour porcelain and soft paste blue and white. 1857 T. Moore Handbk. Brit. Ferns (ed. 3) 42 Scales •wholecoloured or indistinctly two-coloured. 1907 R. Leighton’s New Bk. Dog 429 The litter will consist of some wholecoloured blacks, and some whole-coloured whites. 1681 Lond. Gaz. No. 1633/4 A large light Brindle Mastiff Dog, .. ‘whole-Ear’d. 1975 Times 5 Aug. 12/7 The ‘amenity lobby’.. includes a new wave of ‘‘whole earthers’: notably the Conservation Society founded in 1966 .. and Friends of the Earth. 1980 Blair & Ketchum’s Country Jrnl. Oct. 67/1 It includes.. neo-Jeffersonians, back-to-the-landers, whole-earthers, communists, and neopioneers seeking to revive old country ways. 1918 W. J. Locke Rough Road xv, The village turned out to listen to them in ‘whole-eyed and whole-eared wonder. 1879 L. Wright Pigeon Keeper 118 A Splash.. may often be mated to advantage with a ♦Wholefeather. 1683 Lond. Gaz. No. 1799/4 A large black Mayled, ♦whole Feathered, and thorough mewed Falcon. 1840 Channing Let. to Miss Aikin 18 July, What a ♦whole¬ hearted man! as we Yankees say. 1855 Pusey Doctr. Real Presence Notes 366 The most perfect and whole-hearted repentance. 1901 Scotsman 14 Mar. 6/4 The whole-hearted support of British policy by the Canadians. 1893 in Barrows World’s Pari. Relig. I. 534 Socially, we unite ♦whole¬ heartedly and without reservation with our non-Jewish fellow-citizens. 1854 Faber Growth in Holiness iv. 60 The great lesson of the Crucifix is ♦whole-heartedness with God. 1882 Farrar Early Chr. iv. xxii. II. 43 A wavering disposition,.. a want of whole-heartedness, a dualism of life and aim. 1601 Holland Pliny vm. xxi. I. 206 In India, there be found boeufes *whole hoofed, with single homes. Ibid. xi. xlvi. 351 In some parts of Sclavonia, the Swine are not cloven-footed, but whole houfed. 1677 Plot Oxfordsh. 187 The Quadrupeda, whereof some are fiovwwxa, wholehooft, such as Asses, Mules, Horses. 1835 [see soliped fur das Stud. d. neu. Spr. CXXI. 46 Willende & nellende, on jesundfulnysse & on pan halnesse. [1340: see yholnesse.] c 1374 Chaucer Boeth. v. pr. iv. 127 (Camb. MS.) }?ou weenyst pat it be diuerse fro the hoolnesse of science, pat any man sholde deme a thing to ben oother weys thanne it is it self. 1435 Misyn Fire of Love 11. xii. 103 Holnes.. of mynde, redynes of wyll,.. in holy saules, suffyrs pamenot dedly to synne. 1443-9 Pecock Donet x. (1921) 154 Jjilk hool [3rd] comaundement in his ful hoolnes is reuokid, 3he, and forboden. 1450-1530 Myrr. our Ladye 229 Neyther the godhed was mynysshed in the sonne ne the holenesse of the maydenhod in the mother, c 1460 Oseney Reg. 30 To be holde and to be had,.. with all the integrite or hoolenysse in the which William of Saynte John .. all pe foresaide thynges had and holde. 1883 H. Drummond Nat. Law in Spir. W. (1884) 336 Holiness, that is. .wholeness. 1885 American IX. 229 Rossa has too much regard for the wholeness of his skin to run that kind of a risk.

2. The character of having nothing wanting, or of having all its parts in due connexion; completeness, perfection; unbroken or undi¬ vided state; the quality of constituting a com¬ plex unity. (ME. all hoolenesse is f. all hool 4- nesse.) 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xix. cxvi. (1495) mmjb/i All hoolenesse [orig. totalitas] and perfightnesse longyth to one & vnite. 1432-50 tr. Higden (Rolls) V. 279 The thynges seide. .be seyde by anticipation, that the hollenesse of the story may be conservede. 1550 Veron Godly Sayings Diij, He dydde both geue vnto vs an wholsom refection of his body, and of his bloud, and also did brieflie assoil that hard question of his wholnes. 1581 Marbeck Bk. Notes 95 The wholenesse and substaunce of Baptime doth consist in two things,.. the Word and the Element. 1674 N. Fairfax Bulk & Selv. 108 Those bedightings or affections that belong to it, as having parts; of which the wholeness .. was one. 1744 Harris Three Treat. 11. ii. (1765) 64 note, As far as Perplexity and Confusion may be avoided, and the Wholeness of the Piece may be preserved clear and intelligible. 1830 W. Taylor Hist. Surv. Germ. Poetry I. 265 A book of tales,.. without drift or wholeness of design: all is episode. 1849 Rock Ch. Fathers I. iii. 246 The unbroken wholeness of this stone was a symbol of the unbrokenness of the Church. 1877 Tennyson Harold 1. ii. 114 Peace-lover is our Harold for the sake Of England’s wholeness. 1886-Locksley Hall 60 Yrs. After 101 Sweet St. Francis of Assisi.. He that in his Catholic wholeness used to call the very flowers Sisters, brothers.

b. The totality or total amount of something (obs.); something complete or unified (rare): = whole sb. 1, 2. a 1340 Hampole Ps. cxxxvi. 8 Of pe & in pe.. is pe hoolnes of my ioy. 1678 Cudworth Intell. Syst. Pref. A 4, These Three.. taken all together, make up the Wholeness and Entireness of.. The True Intellectual System of the Universe. 1856 Hawthorne Engl. Note-bks. (1870) II. 191 What shapeless and ragged utterances Englishmen are content to put forth, without attempting anything like a wholeness.

wholer ('h3uta(r)). local, [f. whole a. or sb. + -er1.] (See quot.) 1633 Terrier of Swinton in N. & Q. 6th Ser. (1885) XI. 366/1 The inhabitants of Swinton as likewise the Lands are partly Wholers and partly Halfers to the Churches or Parsonages of Wath and Mexborough. Wholers are they that paye their Tythes wholy, bothe predial and personal, to one of the foresaide Churches onely, viz*. to Wath onely or Mexborough onely.

wholesale ('haolseil), sb., a., adv. I. 1. Orig. two words, whole a. and sale sb.2, in phr. by whole sale (also f by the or fin whole sale), now usually ellipt. as adv., qualifying sell, buy, or words of similar meaning: In large quantities, in gross (as opposed to by retail). a 1417 York Memorandum Bk. (Surtees) I. 183 To sell any girdeles by retaile or holesale. 1579 Wilkinson Confut. Fam. Love 41 Those men which sell by whole sale haue a quicker dispatch. 1593 Nashe Christ's T. 53 If seates of justice were to be solde for money, wee haue them amongst vs that would buy them vp by the whole sale. 1617 Moryson I tin. in. 95 Great Merchants disdaine to sell, otherwise then by whole sale. 1731-2 Norwich Merc. 19-26 Feb. 3/2 William Steele .. selleth the following Goods either by Wholesale or Retail. 1824 Southey Sir T. More (1829) I. 135 Purchasing articles for the community in wholesale. 1866 Chamb. Encycl. VIII. 691/1 These pegged goods [sc. shoes] are disposed of wholesale in boxes. 1883 Law Times Rep. 9 Feb. 727/1 Inviting the public to come and buy, both wholesale and retail.

f3. Sale in gross; fig. dealing in a large way or in big quantities; indiscriminate or unlimited disposal (opp. to retail). Obs. 1622 Mabbe tr. Aleman's Guzman d'Alf. 11. 166 Take them out of their tracke, put them from their whole-sale, and turne them to retayle... I will not giue a button for the best of them. 1667 Decay Chr. Piety i. §6 To which his ravra ■navra 001 Scoacu all this will I give (could he make such a whole-sale) can bear no proportion. 1788 Picken Poems 57 Merchants shops, For halesale or retailin’.

II. attrib. or adj. 4. a. Selling a commodity by wholesale. c 1645 in Archaeologia LII. 135 A hosyer & whole saleman for narrow wares. 1711 Addison Sped. No. 64 P3 A wholesale Dealer in Silks and Ribbons. 1724 De Foe Tour Gt. Brit. I. 124 It being frequent for the London Wholesale Men to carry back Orders from their Dealers. 1773 Life N. Frowde 5 Mr. John Neville, a Wholesale ironmonger. 1812 Sir J. Sinclair Syst. Husb. Scot. 11. 22 The farmer at a distance from markets .. may be compared .. to a wholesale merchant. 1876 F. S. Williams Midi. Railw. 637 Drugs from the wholesale houses for country druggists.

b. Pertaining to sale in gross; used for a commodity sold by wholesale. 1724 De Foe Tour Gt. Brit. 1. 130 When the great Hurry of Wholesale Business begins to be over. 1848 Dickens Dombey iv, Pickles.. in great wholesale jars. 1867 J. Laing Theory of Business ii. 15 The retail price of ‘13’, we take to mean that shopkeepers received this amount of money for their stocks; and the wholesale price of ‘ 11 ’, shows that they pay to warehousemen ‘2’ less than they received. 1896 L. L. Price Money vi. 174 Greater friction prevails in the retail than in the wholesale market. 1902 Builder 5 Apr. p. xix, Clerk and Traveller required for a Wholesale Country Business.

c. As sb., a wholesale dealer or organization. 1851, 1884 [see RETAIL sb.' (and a.) 3]. 1928 Daily Express 29 May 7/4 The ability of the wholesales to adopt methods of mass production .. must be lessened.

5. fig. Having an extensive application; unlimited or indiscriminate in range; doing something, or done, largely, profusely, or in great quantities. 1642 Fuller Holy & Prof. St. ii. xvii. 116 But how long shall I be retailing out rules to this Merchant?.. Take our Saviours whole-sale rule, Whatsoever ye would have men do unto you, do you unto them. 1664 Butler Hud. 11. iii. 809 Those whole-sale Criticks, that.. cry down all Philosophy. 1838 Lytton Leila 1. v, The Moors had treated this unhappy people with a wholesale and relentless barbarity. 1842 Lover Handy Andy xlvii, Slaughtering lions in a wholesale way like rabbits. 1842 Dickens Amer. Notes iii, I am by no means a wholesale admirer of our legal solemnities. 1843 Scudamore Grdfenberg 27 It is a sort of wholesale theory, and equally serves for all persons, and for every known disorder. 1863 H. Cox Instit. 1. vii. 73 A wholesale creation of peers for the purpose of obtaining a majority. 1880 Mrs. Lynn Linton Rebel of Family xxii, ‘Would you go to the colonies with the man you loved?’.. ‘I would go into the desert!’ she answered in her passionate wholesale way.

Hence 'wholesale v. traits., to sell wholesale (in quot. intr. for pass.); also absol.; hence 'wholesaling vbl. sb. and ppl. a.; 'wholesalely adv., in a wholesale way, extensively, profusely; 'wholesaler, one who sells goods wholesale (to retailers), a wholesale dealer; 'wholesaleness, wholesale quality, profuseness, indiscriminate¬ ness. 1800 M. L. Weems Let. 17 Dec. in M. L. Weems: Wks. & Ways (1929) II. 152 But for this I wd instantly ‘wholesale my books & quit the business forever. 1837 Dickens in Bentley’s Misc. Oct. 413 We have been prevailed upon to allow this number of our Miscellany to be retailed to the public, or wholesaled to the trade, without any advance upon our usual price. 1881 Oregon State Jrnl. 1 Jan. 7 We are prepared to Wholesale and Retail Cheaper than any place in this city. 1885 Harper’s Mag. Jan. 289/1 English ladies’ shoes, wholesaling at 81.50 per pair. 1962 R. B. Fuller Epic Poem on Industrialization 134 ‘Science News Service’ An industrial syndicate Wholesaling to publishers Reported thirty thousand technical innovations. 1972 Vogue Jan. 12/2 They wholesale to many shops. 1984 Listener 23 Feb. 9/2 There is the jobber, wholesaling shares and making money out of the margin. 1906 S. E. Sparling Introd. Business Organization xi. 254 In the trade jobbing is virtually synonymous with ‘wholesaling. 1926 N. S. B. Gras in Crump & Jacob Legacy of Middle Ages 440 Although many merchants might prefer the wholesale trade, they were not allowed to be exclusively wholesaling merchants. 1975 ‘E. Lathen’ By Hook or by Crook xiv. 137 Gregory takes care of the wholesaling in this country. Paul runs the retail stores. 1982 Electr. Wholesaler Sept. 40/1 He started a general electrical wholesaling firm. 1887 J. D. Hooker in Life (1918) II. 295 The supposed facts..are •wholesalely unreliable. 1892 Graphic 24 Dec. 758/2 The very ‘wholesaleness of the present charges of corruption. 1857 Tooke & Newmarch Hist. Prices V. 375 Nor..is it

necessary.. that the whole quantity.. should be in the hands, either of the ‘wholesalers or the retailers. 1888 E. Bellamy Looking Backward 146 The manufacturer sold to the wholesaler. 1907 Times 2 Oct. 3/6 In the bakery trade .. between the wholesaler and retailer the expression ‘bushel’ .. was a measure of weight.

wholescale (’haulskeil), a. [f. whole a. + scale sb.3, influenced by wholesale sb., a., adv.] = wholesale a. 5. Cf. full-scale. i960 B. Bergonzi in F. Kermode Living Milton x. 168 Leavis’s case.. is not a mere critical reappraisal of Milton, but a whole-scale demolition. 1983 M. Edwardes Back from Brink v. 76 If we were going to run into this sort of problem over £22 million of investment in one factory, how could we contemplate a wholescale modernisation and new product programme across BL, running into hundreds of millions of pounds in dozens of locations? 1984 Amer. Banker 5 June 3/1 For middle-level executives, there will be some ‘shifting, but not on a wholescale scale’, he said.

fwholeship.

Obs. In 3 hal-, holsc(h)ipe.

[f.

WHOLE a. + -SHIP I.] = WHOLENESS I. C1230 Hali Meid. 7 Ilich him in halschipe, vnwemmet as he is. a 1240 Ureisun in O.E. Horn. I. 189 O muchele menske to beon moder of swuche sone mid holscipe [Cott. MS. (p. 203) iholschipe: see yholschipe] of maiden.

wholesome ('haulssm), a. (sb.) Forms: see whole; also 4-6 (with normal shortening) holsum, -som, 6-8 wholsom(e. (For north, dial, and Sc. forms see halesome.) [OE. *halsum, corresp. to OS. *helsam (implied in adv. helsamo), MLG. heilsam, Du. heilzaam salutary (dial. = healthy), OHG. (MHG., G.) heilsam, ON. heilsamr: see whole a. and -some suffix'. The northern form (reinforced from ON.) is represented by halesome.] 1. Conducive to well-being in general, esp. of mind or character; mentally or morally healthful; tending or calculated to do good; beneficial, salutary. c 1200 Vices Gf Virtues 111 3if 6u luuest Sine a3ene wille alre mast, panne is fie swifie holsum fiat Su pis ofri Sine louerde god. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Horn. 103 penne risefi ure helend on his heorte, and techefi him holsum lore. 1382 Wyclif 1 Tim. vi. 3 The., holsum wordis of oure Lord Jhesu Crist. 1430-40 Lydg. Bochas iv. xxiii. (MS. Bodl. 263) 252/2 It is nat holsum with goddis to pleie. 1535 Starkey Lett, in England (1878) p. xvii, Holsome ceremonys of the church. 1566 Stapleton Ret. Untr. Jewel I. 22 It is manifeste .. that we .. do celebrate the memoriall of that One and holsome Sacrifice. 1600 Marston, etc. Jack Drum's Entert. 1. (1601) A 4 b, So great a masse of coyne might mount from wholsome thrift. 1607 Shaks. Cor. 11. iii. 66 You’l marre all.. Pray you speake to em .. In wholsome manner. 1610 Holland Camden's Brit. 1. 695 A good example of wholsome severity. 1632 Brome North. Lasse 1. iv, They are wholsomer company. 1711 Addison Spect. No. 10 If 5, I will daily instil into them such sound and wholsome Sentiments, as shall have a good Effect on their Conversation. 1749 Fielding Tom Jones 1. vi, Wholesome Admonition and Reproof. 1824 Southey Let. to G. C. Bedford 24 May, To enjoy better air, keep better hours, and employ herself in quieter and wholesomer pleasures. 1839 Thirlwall Greece xlvii. VI. 117 Thebes was destroyed.. that the example of its fate might strike the rest of Greece with a wholesome awe. 1879 Froude Caesar ii. 12 The sober and wholesome manners of life among the early Romans had given them vigorous minds in vigorous bodies. 1892 Kipling Lett. Trav. (1920) 62 It is wholesome and tonic to realise the powerlessness of man in the face of these little accidents.

2. Promoting or conducive to health; favourable to or good for health; health-giving or health-preserving; salubrious. c 1374 Chaucer Troylus 1. 940 bdke ground pat bereth pe wedys wykke, Bereth eke pese holsome herbes. 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. ix. xi. (Bodl. MS.), Marche water is not full holsom to drinke. c 1400 Beryn 2877 It is holsom to breke our fast be-tyme. c 1400 Pilgr. Sowle (Caxton 1483) iv. ii. 58 No holsome, ne lusty fruyte, but bytter and vnsauoury. e giue of eche lif.. he giueS mid pe holi husel, panne man it understondeS rihtliche and holsumliche. 1549 Coverdale, etc. Erasm. Par. Rom. vi. 1-7 This bodye of synne is then in vs effectually and holsomely slaine. 1622 A. Court Constancie 11. 109 Afflictions., happen to vs wholsomely. 1650 S. Clarke Eccl. Hist. 1. (1654) 47 What was wholsomly advised, .that he willingly assented to. 1797 Burn's Eccl. Law (ed. 6) I. 250 note, He was a good man, and wholesomely governed the church committed to him. 1879 M. Arnold Mixed Ess., Democr. 24 That which operates noxiously in the one, may operate wholesomely in the other.

2. So as to promote health; in a way favourable to health; fremedially, medicinally (obs.); healthily (rare). 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xvm. xxviii. (Bodl. MS.), Auctours comaundep to take such whelpes holsomliche a3ens venemous bitinge of houndes. 1546 J. Hey wood Prov. (1867) 9 The meate good and holsome and holsomly drest. I557 Order of Hospitalls Gij, That their Linnen be wholsomly and cleanly washed. 1611 Speed Theat. Gt. Brit. 1. 47 b, This Citty.. standeth holsomly and sweetly, as it were vpon a hill. 1634 T. Johnson Parey's Chirurg. ix. x. (1678) 222 Those things which do wholsomly and moderately nourish. 1859 All Year Round No. 32. 127 Paraguay tea.. adulterates the real souchong wholesomely. 1870 Echo 15 Nov., A sufficiency of wholesome, and., wholesomely cooked food.

wholesomeness (’hsulsamnis). [f. as prec. + -NESS.] The quality or condition of being wholesome, in any sense. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Horn. 103 On pat wise liS ure helende on his heorte, alse on sepulcre, and swi3e6 of holsumnesse lore to3enes him, forte pat on pen pridde dai, pat is heorte be liht. c 1380 Wyclif Wks. (1880) 239 3if pei loueden treupe of god .. as moche as pei louen helpe of here body & holsumnesse of here bodily mete. 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. vi. xxi. (Bodl. MS.), Water pat renneth.. vpon cleere stones oper grauel hap secunde holsumnes. 1547-64 Bauldwin Mor. Philos. (Palfr.) 94 b, In meats the wholsomenesse is as much to be required as the pleasantnesse. 1553 T. Wilson Rhet. 16 b, The holsomnesse of the ayer in other countries. 1616 Purchas Pilgrimage v. vii. (ed. 3) 588 This yeeldes not to any Indian Region, in goodlinesse and wholesomenesse. 1796 Morse Amer. Geog. I. 375 Malt liquor is not so frequently used, as its wholesomeness deserves. 1807 Southey Let. to G. C. Bedford 4 Oct., The bitterness of the cup will have passed away, and you will then perceive its wholesomeness. 1857 Toulmin Smith Parish 333 Not only to the repair of the roads themselves, but to.. the safety, wholesomeness, and comfort of the passage along them. 1906 Lit. World 15 Nov. 517/2 The general wholesomeness of Dr. Gladden’s position is .. beyond cavil.

wholewise ('hoolwaiz), adv. nonce-wd. [f. whole a. or sb. + -wise.] As a whole, completely, all at once. Also as quasi-ad;'. 1674 N. Fairfax Bulk & Selv. 107 If you ask,.. Whether it touches secundum se totum or not? Whether wholewise or piecewise? 1880 Lanier Hymns of Marshes 1. 147 The.. searim sinks. . wholewise. 1937 Mind XLVI. 252 The wholewise working of the organism is further illustrated by the ‘privileged postures’ which we take up as a convenient background to various performances.

WHOM

296

wholey, wholie, obs. forms of wholly. wholism ('h3oliz(3)m). [Alteration of holism, after whole sb.] The doctrine or belief that wholes must be studied as such, and that the parts can only be understood in relation to the wholes to which they belong; the doctrine that evolutionary forces tend towards the forming of new and more complex wholes; = holism. 1939 J. E. Boodin Social Mind. p. vii, Two conceptions .. have recently been emphasized in philosophy and social theory, namely creative synthesis or emergence and wholism or gestaltism... Wholism means that.. events can be understood only as figuring in a whole or gestalt. 1941 Mind L. 394 Boodin is fully justified in claiming both that he thought and wrote in the spirit of ‘creative synthesis’ and ‘wholism’, before these terms had been invented or had, at any rate, become popular. 1962 R. & H. Hauser Fraternal Soc. 9 The keynote of their work is ‘Wholism’. 1981 Amer. jfrnl. Clin. Biofeedback IV. 33 The biofeedback experience also highlights the concept of wholism.

Hence 'wholist a. who'listically adv.

and

sbwho'listic

a.,

1941 Mind L. 397 As everyone knows who has studied the use of the concept of ‘creative synthesis’, and, in general, all ‘wholistic’ types of philosophy, thinkers of this school are not content to describe the Universe merely as making and unmaking wholes of various sorts. 1956 J. S. Bruner et al. in J. S. Bruner Beyond Information Given (1974) ix. 163 We shall refer to the ideal strategy just described as the wholist strategy. 1962 R. & H. Hauser Fraternal Soc. 11. ii. 121 As wholists we ask, is not all this .. activity .. useless. Ibid. iv. 181 Our approach to the problems of violence is wholistic. 1964 F. H. Blum in I. L. Horowitz New Sociol. 166 Being concerned with the totality of the human situation, he [sc. Mills] dealt with them [5c. key problems] wholistically. 1972 L. S. Hearnsaw in Cox & Dyson 20th-Cent. Mind I. vii. 232 Between the wars a new brand of psychology was born, the psychology of personality, wholistic in its presuppositions. 1974 H. J. Klausmeier et al. Conceptual Learning & Devel. iii. 67 We rarely receive information in a nice sequence of positive instances so that we may adopt a wholist strategy. 1980 R. Herink Psychotherapy Handbk. 698 Wholistic therapy.

strynght and goodnesse, all holely to come to vche man. c 1440 York Myst. viii. 22 \>a\ shall be.. for-done hoyly, hyde and hewe. 1550 Crowley Last Trumpet 551 Do thy selfe wholly addres To walke in thy vocation. 1568 Grafton Chron. II. 270 The Archers of England shot so wholy together, that the Frenche men were faine to geue place. 1600 W. Watson Decacordon (1602) 355 Amor & dilectio (both loue in English) were the words most, & all wholy in request. 1611 Shaks. Cymb. 11. ii. 10 Sleepe hath ceiz’d me wholly. 1630 Prynne Anti-Armin. 104 Mr. Bradford makes wholy for our present Tenet, a 1708 Beveridge Thes. Theol. (1711) I. 8 As he [sc. God] is not divided., in Himself, so neither let him be in your Affections; but love Him wholly, and wholly Him. 1833 Ht. Martineau Tale of Tyne i. 5 We were wholly at a loss what to do. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. iii. I. 358 The great majority of the houses.. have.. been wholly, or in great part, rebuilt. 1918 Cornhill Mag. June 636 His words.. were wholly admirable and true.

b. Entirely, so as to exclude everything else; hence practically equivalent to ‘exclusively, solely, only, without exception’. C1425 Cast. Persev. 598 in Macro Plays 95 Goddys seruyse pou must forsake, & holy to pe werld pee take. 1551 Udall Erasm. Par. Luke xxii. 24-30 Neither shall he take the laude and praise vnto himselfe, but referre the same entierly and whollye vnto God. 1603 G. Owen Pembrokeshire (1891) 47 Inhabited wholelye by Welshmen. 1651 Hobbes Leviath. 11. xxx. 180 The Instruction of the people, dependeth wholly, on the right teaching of Youth. 01708 [see 2]. 1710 Prideaux Orig. Tithes ii. 67 They shall give up themselves wholy hereto without entangling themselves with the World. 1847 C. Bronte Jane Eyre xvii, My ear was wholly intent on analyzing the mingled sounds. 1859 Tennyson Marr. Geraint 441 A creature wholly given to brawls and wine.

3. Comb.: wholly-owned a., applied to a company all of whose shares are owned by another company. 1964 Financial Times 11 Feb. 12/1 The directors.. have decided to give the holders of Ordinary shares the opportunity of acquiring an interest in the wholly-owned subsidiary. 1972 Accountant 21 Sept. 360/1 The UK company is a subsidiary—although not wholly-owned. 1976 Scotsman 20 Nov. 3/2 The plan is recommended by the boards of all the companies, who will become wholly-owned subsidiaries of the new Malaysian group.

wholl, wholie, obs. forms of whole. whollop, var. wallop sb. and v. wholly ('haulli, 'hsuli), adv.

Forms: a. see halely. jS. 4-5 hollich(e, 4-6 hoolly, holy, holly, 5-6 hooly, 6-8 wholy, (4 hoolliche, holiche, holyke, holilich, holi, hooli, 5 hoolich, holych, holli, holely, hoyly, 6 hol(l)ye, hoolye, holie, whol(l)ye, whol(l)ie, 7 wholelye, whollily), 7-8 wholey, 7- wholely, 6- wholly. [ME. hol(l)iche, iholliche, repr. OE. type *(5e)hallice: see whole a. and -ly2. For the northern form see halely. The normal development of OE. (*%e)hdllice was (y)hglliche (i4th-i5th c.), giving ultimately holly ('holi), which survives dialectally. But, by the influence of the adj. hpl whole, a type with a long root-vowel was differentiated, holliche', this type, with ll retained or with simplification to l (which appears to have taken place as early as the 14th cent.), is represented by the modern pronunciations (’haolli) and ('hauli). The current spelling wholly descends from the ME. holliche, and has ultimately prevailed over the once common wholely and wholy, which would more normally denote the resultant standard pronunciations. (For the simplification of ll to / cf. early forms of foully, fuli, fouly, fowlye, and solely, sooly, soly.)]

In all senses formerly sometimes pleonastically joined with ally full, or fully: cf. whole A. 7. 1. As a whole, in its entirety, in full, throughout, all of it; fformerly also (in ref. to a pi. or collect, sb.), all of them, all together, in a body. Now rare. a 1300 [see halely]. C1330 R. Brunne Chron. Wace (Rolls) 1737 Al holyke [v.r. All holy] com per flote In Dertemuthe. Ibid. 14357 Pre 3er holy was he kyng. 1338 -Chron. (1810) 34 Alle pe regne holy was pat tyme in his hand. 1377 Langl. P. PI. B. xvn. 25 Abraham . .seigh holy [v.r. hoolly] pe Trinite, Thre persones in parcelles departable fro other. 1395 E.E. Wills {1882) 8 To parfourne holelich and trewlich this .. testament. ? a 1400 Morte Arth. 3368 They heldede to hir heste alle holly at ones. C1450 tr. De Imitatione ill. xxxv. 103 To restore all pinges, not only holy, but also abundantly & ouerhepid. 1512 Act 4 Hen. VIII c. 18 §1 As yf all the., purporte of the same Commission ware in this present acte holly and particularly rehersed. 1597 Hooker Eccl. Pol. v. Iv. §7 That infinite word.. could not in part but must needes be wholie incarnate. 1611 Bible Lev. vi. 23 Euery meat offering for the Priest shal be wholly burnt: it shall not be eaten. 1681 Flavel Meth. Grace xxxi. 536 Non omnis moriar, I shall not wholly die; there is a life I live, which death cannot touch. 1711 Steele Sped. No. 158 fP4, I would have a Spectator wholly writ upon Good-breeding. 1824 Scott Redgauntlet let. xi, He..took off the brandy wholely at twa draughts. 1856 Ruskin Mod. Paint. III. iv. vii. §3 A man who can see truth at all, sees it wholly, and neither desires nor dares to mutilate it. 1915 D. H. Lawrence Rainbow xii. 327 Then, and then only.. could he act wholely, without cynicism and unreality.

2. a. Completely, entirely, to the full extent (so that there is no deficiency); altogether, totally, thoroughly, quite. [01300, etc.: see halely. C1315, 1340: see yholliche.] 01325 MS. Rawl. B. 520 If. 56 Ant 3if ani his ipult out of suuche entre, sal he recoueren his seisine of him pleinliche ant holliche ase he pe opere les? 13.. E.E. Allit. P. B. 104 J>at my hous may holly by halkes by fylled. C1350 Will. Palerne 495 Nis he holly at my hest in hard & in nesche. 1390 Gower Conf. 11. 4 Sche.. dede al holi what he wolde. c 1400 tr. Seer. Seer., Gov. Lordsh. 105 Y desire welfare, helth,

wholve, sb. dial. Also 5 wolve, whulve, (7 hulve, hull), 8 whoulve. [Variant of wha(u)ve.] A short arched or covered drain under a path. 1395 (4 June) View of Frankpledge Gt. Waltham (MS.), Johannes Hereward de jure reparat quemdam Wholue juxta Stonfeld. 1466 Birchanger Court Roll, Vnum wholve non scuratum apud Grouchemede. 1469 Maldon, Essex, Liber B. fol. 18 (MS.) Le whulve atte crosse. 1637 Maldon, Essex, Docts. Bundle 161. No. 3 (MS.) We present Abell Hawkes.. for.. not laying of a hull against his gate for the passing of the watter. 1712 Maldon, Essex, Borough Deeds, Bundle 114, No. 17 (MS.) We present Mr. Kemp for not laying a whoulve at ye great avingnilk-well mead. 1903 (Essex dial.) I’ve been opening a wolve.

t wholve, v. Obs. rare. [Variant of wha(u)ve.] = WHELVE V. I. 14.. Voc. in Wr.-Wiilcker 614/42 Supinus, wholuyd [printed wholnyd].

Wholy, obs. form of Hoolee. 1622 in Foster Engl. Factories Ind. (1908) II. 76 Eighteen rupp[ees] at once given in pane to certayne banyans at the feast of Wholy.

wholy, obs. form of holy, wholly. whom (hu:m), pron. Forms: a. i hwaem, 1-3 hwam, 3-5 warn, 3-5, 8-9 Sc. wham, 4-5 whame, whaym(e, worn, 4-7 whome, (3 3wam, whaem, Orm. whamm, 4 huam, whaam, whaime, 5 wome, hom(e, whem, waim, 6 hoom. Sc. vhom), 3whom; north, and Sc. 3-4 quam, 4-6 quham, 4-6, 8 quhome, 4-7 quhom, (3 quuam, 4 quaym, quem, quhowm, 5 qwhom(e, qwom(e, qhom). j3. 1 hwone, hwane, hwaene, 2 hwen, 2-3 hwan, 3 whaen, wan, 3wan, wanne, 3-4 whan. [Whom represents formally OE. hwam, later variant of hwaem (:—*xwaimi), dat. of hwa who, hwset what, corresp. (with variation of inflexion) to OFris. hwam (WFris. warn, waam, NFris. hum), OS. hwem(u), OHG. (h)wemu, -o (MHG., G. wem), ON. hveim (MSw. hwem used as dat. and acc., early Da. also hwam), Goth, hwamma. In its usage whom combines the functions of OE. hwaem and OE. hwone, hwane, hwaene, acc. masc. of hwa, corresp. to OFris. hwane, hwene, OS. hwena (MDu., Du. wieri), OHG. (h)wenan, wen(en (MHG., G. wen), ON. (eastern) hwan, Goth, hwana. The history of OE. hwone, ME. (h)wan is therefore illustrated under this heading in order to exhibit the merging of the original acc. and dat. under the forms of the latter. (The form-history is complicated in the 12th and 13 th centuries by the fact that in weak positions (h)wam often became (h)wan, and the latter when neuter is indistinguishable from WHON1.)

The earliest instance here recorded of the use of the dat. form as an acc. or direct object is in the indef. relative swa hwam swa swa whom soever (Laud Chron. an. 1123): see sense 6. By 1200 this shift had extended to the relative

WHOM

297

WHOM

and dependent interrogative uses, but examples

the

of the independent interrogative use are hardly

confusion with the Latin acc. and inf.). [c 1000 Ags. Gosp. Matt. xvi. 13 Hwaene secgeaS menn past sy mannes sunu?] 1526 Tindale Matt. xvi. 13 Whom do men saye that I the sonne of man am ? Ibid. 15 But whom say ye that I am? [So 1611; R. V. 1881 who.] C1530 Ld. Berners Arth. Lyt. Brit. x. (1814) 20, I cannot thinke whome it should be. 1592 Shaks. Rom. & Jul. 1. i. 205 (Qo. 1) Tel me in sadnes whome she is you loue. 1654-66 Earl Orrery Par then. (1676) 574 The Horse seem’d to know whom ’twas he carri’d. 1817 Beloe Sexagenarian II. 227 Whom is it you mean? 1861 Mrs. H. Wood East Lynne 111. i, Not having the least idea of whom Afy might be. II. Indefinite (non-relative) use.

earlier than 1300: see sense 1 b.] The objective case of who: no colloquial speech,

longer

current

1. In an independent question,

in

natural

a. as indirect

object (dative) or as object of a preposition (or after than). c 1000 Ags. Gosp. John vi, 68 Drihten to hwam ga we? a 1300 Cursor M. 8353 O mi kingrike quat redes pou? Quam sal i giue it for to ledd? a 1400-50 Wars Alex. 463 To quam has pou pe tane till, tell me pe sothe. 1535 Cqverdale Ezek. xxxi. 2 Whom art thou like in thy greatnesse?-Isa. xl. 18 To whom then will ye licken God? 1539 Bible (Great) Isa. xxviii. 9 Whom then shal such one teach knowlege? 1591 Shaks. Two Gent. n. i. 153 Speed. To be a Spokes-man from Madam Siluia. Val. To whom? 1603 Dekker & Chettle Grissil iv, i. (Shaks. Soc.) 52 Seek’st thou a better nurse? A better nurse than whom? 1780 Warner in Jesse Selwyn & Contemp. (1844) IV. 369 For whom in the world do you think that I was kept so long kicking my heels? 1842 Ruskin Lett, to a College Friend (1894) 129 To whom should I write if not to the only one of my friends whom I cannot see? 1866 Le Fanu All in Dark viii, I played to-day.. two rubbers of fives; with whom do you think? b. as direct object (accusative). 971 Blickl. Horn. 45 Hwane manap God maran gafoles K>nne pone biscop? ciooo Ags. Gosp. John xviii. 4 Hwsne sece $e? a 1300 E.E. Psalter xxvi[i]. 1 Wham sal I drede? 11320 Cast. Love 206 Whom mai he to helpe crauen? 1382 Wyclif Matt. xvi. 15 Whom seien 3e me to be? Ibid, xxvii. 21 Whom of the two wolen 3ee to be left? c 1450 Holland Howlat 69 Quhom sail I blame? 1513 Douglas JEneis 1. vi. 38 Bot, O thou virgine, quham sail I call the? 1535 Coverdale Isa. vi. 8 Whom shall I sende, and who wilbe oure messaunger? x539 Bible (Great) Ps. lxxiii. 25 Whom haue I in heauen but the? i7°4 Taverner Faithf. Bride in. 27 Whom wou’dst thou injure with a Villains Name? 1855 Tennyson Maud 1. vi. ii, Whom but Maud should I meet? 1870 Morris Earthly Par. III. 489 Whom think you she has seen? 2. In a dependent question, or clause of similar meaning, a. as indirect object or as object of a preposition. The prep, regularly precedes, but often followed in obs. Sc. use (cf. 10); in mod. use it occas. appears at the end of the clause, but in such cases in colloq. speech who is commonly substituted (see who 5). a. Beowulf 1696 Swa waes .. jemearcod .. hwam past sweord geworht.. aerest waere. c825 Vesp. Ps. xxxviii[ij. 7 [6] Thesaurizat et ignorat cui congregat ea, goldhordaS & nat hwaem gesomna6 Sa. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Horn. 145 pe holi gost pe him dide.. to understonden pat ure drihten wolde man bicumen and ware and wanne and of warn ben boren. c 1200 Ormin 12612, I sahh cumenn Godess Gast Inn aness cullfress like, & I sahh uppo whamm he comm, c 1205 Lay. 11404 pe king.. bsed heom raeden him rsed whaem [C1275 wan] he mihte bi-taeche al his kine-riche. 13.. Cursor M. 10718 (Gott) Thoru his prophete sal 3c se Til quham pe may sal spousid be. 1338 R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 93 Ne he ne wist to wham pat he mot mak his mone. 1362 Langl. P. PL A. 1. 43 Tel me to whom pat Tresour appended? Ibid. 47 He asked.. whom pe ymage was lyk, 1375 Barbour Bruce iv. hi, I wat nocht for quhat enchesoun, Na quham with he maid the cowyne. 1448 Marg. Paston in P. Lett. I. 69,1 fell hym so disposyd that he wold.. asett to morgage all that he hath, he had nowth rowth to qhom. c 1470 Gol. & Gaw. 259 Quha is lord of yone land,.. Or quham of is he haldand, Fayne wald I wit. 1504 C’tess Richmond tr. De Imitatione iv. v. (1893) 267 Se from whom this mysterye is gyuen vnto the. 1513 Douglas JEneis xi. xiii. 133 Thar sail thou knaw onone, Quhamto this wyndy glore, voust, or avantis, The honor, or, with pane, the loving grantis. C1560 A. Scott Poems (S.T.S.) xxiii. 42 Tak heid Quhomefor thow suffer pane. 1600 Fairfax tr. Tasso vm. liii, To spie at whom to aske we gazed round. 1671 Milton Samson 1088, I.. am come to see of whom such noise Hath walk’d about. 1748 Richardson Clarissa (1768) VIII. 189 They let me go.. They little thought with whom. 1848 Dickens Dombey vi, Not that he cared to whom his daughter turned, or from whom turned away. 1859 Sporting Mag. Feb. 77 When he found Gemmy knocked down to him (he knew not whom for). 1905 Blin. Glyn Viciss. Evang. 203 Getting a note, she did not tell me whom it was from, or what it was about. p. c897 /Elfred Gregory’s Past. C. xliv. 331 Ac 6u findst wi$ hwone 8u meaht flitan. a 1200 Moral Ode 326 in O.E. Horn. I. 179 We scolden .. us bi-penche.. hwet we beS, and to wan we sculle and of wan we come, a 1250 Owl & Night. 1509 3ef he bipencp bi hwan [v.r. hwam] he lai, Al mai pe luue gan a-wai. 1393 Langl. P. PI. C. xiv. 158 Ich hadde wonder at wham [v.r. whan] and wher pat pe pye Lernede legge styckes pat leyen in here neste. b. as direct object. a. c 1205 Lay. 27487 i>eo at pan laste nuste nan kempe Whaem [MS. whae] he sculde slaen on [c 1275 warn he solde smite] and wham [MS. wha; c 1275 wan] he sculde sparien. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 6417 bo bed he pe court., rijt vnderstonde Wat vorewarde per were ymad.. Bituene him & king edmund .. & wan [v.rr. warn, wham] edmond made is eir. a 1352 Minot Poems (ed. Hall) xi. 4 Haue minde of pi man, pou whote wham I mene. c 1380 Wyclif Sel. Wks. I. 348 Crist axide his disciplis whom pei seiden him to be. 1526 Tindale Luke xii. 5, I will shewe you whom ye shall feare. -John xiii. 18, I knowe whom I have chosen. 1535 CoverdaleJWi. xxiv. 15 Chose you this daye whom ye wyll serue. 1582 N. Lichefield tr. Castanheda’s Conq. E. lnd. I. ix. 22b, He..coulde not tell whom he might trust. 1610 Shaks. Temp. I. i. 20 Remember whom thou hast aboord. 1693 Congreve Old Bach. v. xv, I suppose you know whom I have got—now. 1737 Pope Hot., Epist. 1. vi. 102 Hire a Slave.. To .. Tell at your Levee .. To whom to nod, whom take into your Coach. Mod. I don’t know whom to ask. ft. r 1175 Lamb. Horn. 127 pe deofel.. gets abutan .. sechinde hwen he ma3e fordon. c 1275 [see c 1205 in a]. H 3. Used ungrammatically for the nominative who, esp. as predicate in a dependent clause (being erroneously taken as object of the verb in

principal

clause;

sometimes

app.

from

f4. The indefinite use of OE. hwd (hwxm, etc.) ‘some one’ did not survive, but, on the analogy of OTHERWHAT, somewhat, ME. has sum oper wham = some one else. (Cf. somewho.) 1303 R. Brunne Handl. Synne 6694 pan preyde pe ryche man Abraham, pat he wide sende Lazare, or sum oper wham, To hys brepryn. III. Relative uses. Also formerly with that following (see that conj. 6). 5. As compound relative, or with ellipsis of antecedent (= he, him, those, etc. whom), of a person or persons: as direct object, or object of a

preposition,

arch.

(Cf.

who

8.)

Often

approaching the indefinite sense 6. [C950 Lindisf. Gosp. Luke x. 22 Films et cui uoluerit filius reuelare, se sunu & huaem waelle se sunu aedeaua.] c 1200 Ormin 12888 Ne parrf 3uw nohht nu fol^henn me, Her iss whamm 3uw birrp foll3henn. 13.. Eufrosyne 424 in Horstm. Altengl. Leg. (1878) 179/1 Whom he louep, he wol chastise. c 1400 Apol. Loll. 70 Warn pat 30 pus bynd, schal be bound, and warn pat 30 bring out of synne, pe peyn schal be for3euen hem. 1507 Regis tr. Aberdon. (Maitl. Cl.) I. 352 And shuld present nain therto bot quhom that pleiss the said Mr. Alexander. 1526 Tindale John xvii. 3 That they myght knowe the that only very God; and whom thou hast sent Iesus Christ. 1579 Fulke Heskins’ Pari. 347 There were there, to whom Christe sauoured better in their heart, then Manna in their mouth, a 1600 Hooker Eccl. Pol. vi. iii. § 1 We are by repentance to appease whom we offend by sinne. 1713 Addison Cato il v, I’ve offer’d to..gain you whom you love at any price. 1810 Crabbe Borough iii, A common bounty may relieve distress, But whom the vulgar succour, they oppress. 1820 Byron Juan iv. xii, ‘Whom the gods love die young’ was said of yore. 1842 Tennyson Sir Galahad ii, How sweet are looks that ladies bend On whom their favours fall! 1876 Swinburne Erechtheus 1315 Shall the sea give death whom the land gave birth? b. with correlative in following clause. Cf. who 6 a. arch. c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 1768 Dat is min red, WiS quam Su is Andes, Sat he be dead, c 1275 Passion our Lord 103 in O.E. Misc. 40 Hwam ich biteche pat bred .. He me schal bitrave. 1382 Wyclif Matt. xxi. 44 Vpon whom it shal falle, it shal togidre poune hym. ? a 1400 Morte Arth, 770 Whayme that he towchede he was tynt for euer! c 1400 [see 5 above]. 1526 Tindale Luke vii. 47 To whom lesse is forgiuen, the same doeth lesse loue. 1539 Bible (Great) Rom. viii. 30 Whom he appoynted before, them also he called [1611 Whom he did predestinate, them he also called]. 1883 Whitelaw Sophocles, Oed. Col. 1332 Unto whom.. Thou shalt be friend, the victory is his. 6. In general or indefinite sense: Any one whom, whomsoever. Cf. who 6. arch. or literary. fAlso with the indefinite sense indicated by ever following: see also whomever. att [etc.]. 13.. E.E. Allit. P. A. 131 pe wy3, to wham her wylle ho waynez. c 1386 Chaucer Frankl. T. 258, I wol been his to whom pat I am knyt. a 1400 Relig. Pieces fr. Thornton MS. (1914) 27 If pou will be of lange lyfe, it es reson pat pou honoure thaym of whaym pou hase pe lyfe. c 1400 Rule St. Benet (Prose) 17 Yef it fallis yu ani time, On waim pe for-getilnes es on-long [etc.]. 1428 Munim. de Melros (Bann.) 519 Til all & syndry to quham pe knawlage of pir present lettris sail to cum. 1452-3 Paston Lett. Suppl. (1901) 47 The personez quom thei laboryd fore.

1526 Tindale Luke xiii. 4 Those xviij. apon whom the toure in siloe fell. 1539 Bible (Great) 1 Sam. ix. 17 This is the man, whom I spake to the of. 1600 Shaks. A. Y.L. 11. ii. 8 The roynish Clown, at whom so oft, Your Grace was wont to laugh. C1730 Ramsay Eagle & Robin 60 By sic with quhome they ar opprest. 1829 [see such B. 12]. 1840 Marry at Poor Jack xix, The boy with whom I had fought. 1882 Besant All Sorts xix, Here was a woman the like of whom he had never imagined.

b. As direct or indirect object. c 1200 Ormin 6521 He ma33 wel bitacnenn himm whamm he stod inn to folbhenn. c 1400 Apol. Loll. 68 pe disciplis lowsid him liuing, warn dead pe maister had reisid. c 1420 Prose Life Alex. 46 He sail be my helpere, wham in dremez I sawe appere vn-to me. 1507 Reg. Privy Seal Scot. I. 227/2 3e and ilk ane of 30W quham it efferis. 1582 N. Lichefield tr. Castanheda’s Conq. E. Ind. 1. ix. 22 b, Those whom he gaue license to enter aboorde his ship, a 1600 Montgomerie Sonn. lvii. 2 Vha wald behold him vhom a god so grievis? 1632 Milton L’Allegro 124 To win her Grace, whom all commend. 1680 in Proc. Soc. Antiq. Scot. (1911) XLV. 233 These men quhom blesed King Jesus delighteth to honour. 1751 Johnson Rambler No. 178 ]P 9 Knowledge is praised and desired by multitudes whom her charms could never rouse from the couch of sloth. 1850 Gladstone Glean. (1879) II. 65 He was one of the most extraordinary men whom this century has produced. 1871 ‘Mark Twain’ Lett. (1920) 112, I think I shall call it ‘Reminiscences of Some Pleasant Characters Whom I Have Met,’ (or should the ‘whom’ be left out?).

8. Introducing an additional statement; thus sometimes = ‘and him (her, them)’: cf. who io. -[-Formerly occas. preceded by the (cf. the which, which B. 13). a. As direct or indirect object. a 1300 Cursor Al. 10 Kyng arthour.. Quam non in hys tim was like. 1382 Wyclif Gen. xxii. 2 Tak thin oonli gotun sone, whom thow louest. C1386 Chaucer Friar’s T. 103 Witnesse on lob whom that we diden wo. c 1420 ? Lydg. Assembly of Gods 854 Grace was the guyde of all thys gret meyny. Whom folowyd Konnyng with hys genalogy. ? 1472 Stonor Papers (Camden) I. 125, I trust to alle myty Jhesu to know more to my hertes ese than I do now, horn I beseche to preserve [you]. 1526 Tindale i John iv. 20 Howe can he that loveth nott his brother whom he hath sene, love god whom he hath not sene? 1556 Lauder Tractate of Kyngis 95 The kyng had.. The rewle of hunders and thousandis, Quhome that he sufferit.. To tyne and perysche. 1566 W. P. tr. Curio’s Pasquine in Traunce 108 Peter Luis.. whom all men say to be a moste filthy Sodomite. 1645 Row Hist. Kirk (1842) p. xxx, Otheris had gon out befor, quhom we thocht now to be slain. 1667 Milton P.L. 1. 438 Astoreth, whom the Phoenicians call’d Astarte. 1681 Dryden Abs. & Achit. 580 The Rascal Rabble.. Whom Kings no Titles gave, and God no Grace. 1781 Cowper Retirement 742 Grant me still a friend in my retreat, Whom I may whisper—solitude is sweet. 1793 Burns Scots! wha hae 2 Scots! wham Bruce has aften led. 01849 H. Coleridge Ess. (1851) II. 84 Warburton (whom I presume to have been the annotator).

b. As object of a preposition (usually preceding, occas. following after the verb); also after than (see than 2 b). See also 10. As to details of construction see note s.v. which B. 7 a. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Horn. 179 For eues gulte to wan ure drihten sede. In dolore paries filios. Ibid. 181 For adames gulte, to hwam ure drihten seide:.. On pine nebbes swote pu shalt pin bred noten. c 1200 Ormin 1976 Allmahhti3 Godd, purrh whamm 3I10 wass wipp childe. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 220 Ascayn bi3et silvi, of 3wan pe brut com. a 1300 Cursor M. 736 A messager he send, Wit quam best to spede he wend. Ibid. 5342 Eue, o quam we al began. Ibid. 9530 Doghtres four.. To quam ilkan he gaf sum-thing, c 1325 Metr. Horn. 17 This Symond, of quaym I spak are. C1380 Wyclif Sel. Wks. III. 99 pe Holy Gost, to wham is apropryed love, c 1400 Rule St. Benet (Prose) 19 To god, of whaim pat al pe gude cumis. c 1400 tr. Seer. Seer., Gov. Lordsh. 88 Oon god, ffro whem ilke merueylouse werk descendys. c 1460 Metham Wks. (1916) 96 Yt sygnyfyith that.. that persone schuld haue a frend vpon home he schuld trost, the qwyche schuld dysseyve hym qwan he hath most nede. 1537 Latimer Let. to Cromwell in Facs. Nat. MSS. (1866) 11. xxxi, The byrth of our prynce, hoom we hungurde for so longe. 1548-1876 [see than 2 b]. 1611 Shaks. Wint. T. iv. iv. 539 Your Mistris; from the whom, I see There’s no disiunction to be made. 1667 Milton P.L. v. 468 His wary speech Thus to th’ Empyreal Minister he [sc. Adam] fram’d. Inhabitant with God [etc.] .. To whom the winged Hierarch repli’d. 1796 H. Hunter tr. St. Pierre’s Study Nat. (1799) I. 433 His neighbours, the number of whom is restricted to four or five, according to the extent and form of his domain. 1872 Tennyson Gareth Lynette 878 Haughtily she replied. ‘I fly no more...5 To whom Sir Gareth answer’d courteously, ‘Say thou thy say, and I will do my deed.’

9. a. Used in reference to a thing or things: orig. dative of what (sense C. 7), later as a general objective case of which (sense B. 7 or 8). Obs. exc. with personification: cf. who i i c. With the examples in cf. whon1. a. c 1x75 Lamb. Horn, izg Dis is sunfulla monna leddre purh hwam ure drihtan teh to him al moncun. Ibid. 153 p»is beoS pe fif 3eten purh hwam kimS in deSes wurhte. c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 696 Ydolatrie Sus was boren, For quuam mani man is for-loren. c 1320 Cast. Love 1086 Algate he hap misdon, J>orw whom he is in my prison. 1390 Gower Conf. III. 3 It is the cuppe whom he serueth, Which alle cares from him kerveth. 11400 tr. Seer. Seer., Gov. Lordsh. 106 My lawe & my fayth, yn whom y am norshyd. 1432-50 tr. Higden (Rolls) I. 27, I haue studiede that hit schal be called Policronicon of the pluralite of tymes whom it dothe conteyne. 1448-9 Metham Amoryus & Cleopes 1263 A ston .. The name off home serpentyne ys. 1513 Douglas JEneis vii. vii. 89 The round top of tre,.. Quham childer drivis byssy at thair play. 1535 Stewart Cron. Scot. (Rolls) II. 334 He.. left the way in quhome he first began. 1551 Turner Herbal 1. Kv, We haue no herbe in Englande that I knowe to whome all thes hole descriptions do agre. 1562 Ibid. 11. 81 Peplis whome som call wild porcellayn. 1608 Dekker Dead Tearme C 3, What a rare inuention .. was pen and Incke, out of whom (as streames from a Fountaine) flow all these

WHOM wonders. 1611 Speed Theat. Gt. Brit. 11/1 Redrith and Frensham .. betwixt whom are extended thirty foure miles. 1648 tr. Senault's Paraphr. Job 163 Those trees, whom the thunder hath beaten down. 1770 Luckombe Hist. Printing 466 The vowels .. are seventeen in number; five of whom are pronounced long. B. c 1200 Vices & Virtues 127 Tach me godnesse Surh wan ich god mu3e bien. £1275 Lay. 7220 He makede pane kalender bi wan geop al pe 3er. Ibid. 7633 pat ilke swerd .. porh wan his bane he hadde. c 1290 St. Brandan 580 in S. Eng. Leg. 235 Fewe goddedes ich haue i-don of 3wan ich noupe may telle. 01300 Leg. Rood (1871) 24/72 An vaire welle Of wan alle pe wateres pat hep anerpe cornel?.

b. Used in reference to a number of persons collectively: cf. who 11 a. c 1230 Mali Meid. 10 Al is nawt l?et ti folc—of hwam i spec J?ruppe—biheten l?e to ifinden. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 1315 pe kunde blod of ]?is lond of warn we bol?e come. 1592 Kyd Sp. Trag. hi. i, The world, With whome there nothing can prenaile but wrong. 1606 G. W[oodcocke] Hist. Ivstine xxx. 102 The very same Army whom he had there standing in battell arraye. 1608 Shaks. Per. 1. iv. 22 A Cittie on whom plentie held full hand. 1671 Milton Samson 1100 The unforeskinn’d race, of whom thou bear’st The highest name for valiant Acts.

c. Used in reference to animals: cf. who 11 b. 1340-7° Alex. & Dind. 793 Tri-cerberus J?e tenful of wham i tolde haue. 1456 Sir G. Haye Law Arms (S.T.S.) 85 His gude hors, in quham he traistis sa mekle. 1667 Milton P.L. iv. 184 A prowling Wolfe, Whom hunger drives to seek new haunt for prey. 1770 Goldsm. Des. Vill. 93 A hare whom hounds and horns pursue. 1783 Johnson in Boswell (1904) II. 478, I have had cats whom I liked better than this. 1849-52 Todd's Cycl. Anat. IV. 11. 833/2 In the Horse, in whom the supra-renal corpuscles are yet richer in nerves.

110.

With a preposition immediately following, the two being often written as one word, forming compounds like those with where- (where 15 b), but used in reference to persons (occas. to things). Obs. (chiefly Sc.). c 1375 Sc. Leg. Saints xxxi. (Eugenia) 300 pe abbot of l?at abbay, Quham-of before 3c herd me say. 1461 Rolls of Parlt. V. 477/1 William Lord Bonvile, and Sir Thomas Kiryell,.. whom to he made feith and assurans.. to kepe and defend theym. 1508 Dunbar Gold. Targe 85 May, of myrthfull monethis quene,.. Quham of the foulis gladdith al bedene. 1526 in M. A. E. Green Lett. Royal Ladies (1846) II. 7 His grace’s lieges .. whom at the said earl.. has displeasure. 1551 Robinson tr. More's Utopia 11. (1895) 253 For them, whomewyth they be in wayges, they fyghte hardelye. 1583 Rot. Scacc. Reg. Scot. XXI. 560 Samekle thairof to ather of thame quhomunto it appertenis, 1660 Nicholas Papers (Camden) IV. 252 The saide Sir Rob. Walsh, whome concerning I haue giuen sufficient precautions.

Hii. Used ungrammatically for the nominative WHO, as subj. or pred. in the relative clause, esp. (in later use only) when erron. taken as obj. of a verb of which the whole clause is really the obj.: cf. 3. 1467 Stonor Papers (Camden) I. 96, I schall se..yow.. with Godes Grase, whome evyr preserve yow and yowrs for his mersy. £1540 tr. Pol. Verg. Engl. Hist. (Camden 1846) 271 Certayne of them .. (whome mie minde geeveth mee are to bee folowed). 1557 North Gueuara's Diall Pr. iv. xix. (1568) 169 b, I counsel, .all wise.. men, that they doo not accompany wyth those whom they know are not secret. 1603 Dekker & Chettle Grissil iv. ii. (Shaks. Soc.) 65 Let him be whom he will. 1653 Walton Angler 30 Comparing the.. humble epistles of S. Peter, S. James and S. John, whom we know were Fishers, with the glorious language.. of S. Paul, who we know was not. 1752 Mrs. Lennox Female Quix. vii. ii, Are they yonder Knights whom you suppose will attack us? 1837 D ickens Pickw. xxix, A strange unearthly figure, whom Gabriel felt at once, was no being of this world. 1906 R. H. Benson Richard Raynal 81 He saw the man whom he knew must be the King.

If 12. In irregular constructions, a. With pleonastic personal pronoun in the latter part of the relative clause; often also with anacoluthon, whom serving as apparent obj. to a verb whose real obj. is a dependent clause of which the pron. is subj. (cf. 11). b. Preceded by redundant and: cf. who 12 b. 1556 Chron. Grey Friars (Camden) 46 The erle of Angwyche.. whome the kynge had kepte hym with his brother and dyvers other here in Ynglond. 1567 Painter Pal. Pleas. II. 92, [He] asked..what hee shoulde doe to a woman, whome hee suspected that she hadde falsified hir fayth. 1606 G. W[oodcocke] Lives Emp. in Hist. Ivstine Kk 2, Otho the third .. was crowned Emperour by Gregory the fifth, his kinsman,.. and whom he had preferred to the papacy. 1608 Topsell Serpents 23 Caelius Rhod .. termeth the great deuill Ophioneus, whom both holy Scripture, and auncient Heathen say, that hee fell out of Heauen.

If 13. with genitive inflexion: whcrmes = whose. [Cf. (M)Du. wiens, WFris. hwiens.] Obs. rare. c 1489 Plumpton Corr. (Camden) 83, I purpasse to persew the law against him in their names, whomes cattell he heretofore helped to stele.

whom, obs. form of hum sb.1 0i529 Skelton Bouge of Court 191 Wyth whom and ha, and with a croked loke.

whom, whome, obs. forms of home sb.1 whomble, whomel, var. whemmel.

WHONESS

298

relative, or with correlative in principal clause (with constructions as in whoever 1): Any (one) whom. c 1330 Arth. & Merl. 4811 Worn euer hat he hitt, pe heued to pe chinne he slitt. C1375 Sc. Leg. Saints i. (Petrus) 17 To bind and louss quhowm-euer t’lju will. fi47° Henry Wallace VII. 825 Quhom euir he hyt to ground brymly thaim bar. 1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. I. 181 He maist cruellie murtherit quhomeuir he knew weil fauoured. 1750 Carte Hist. Eng. II. 775 Fear of death made him accuse whomever they pleased of treason. 1830PUSEY Hist. Enq. II. 270 Whomever these men once brand with this mark of shame, is regarded by the people as a denier of God. 1883 R. W. Dixon Mano 11. v. 80 Will ye not to that man some pity give Whomever dark temptations do assail? 1920 Max Beerbohm And Even Now 189 To impose his will on whomever he sees comfortably settled.

If Misused for whoever as subject of relative clause preceded by a preposition. c 1380 Wyclif Sel. Wks. III. 347 Cursing for sacrilegie in whomever pat revep pis rente. £1449 Pecock Repr. 11. xi. 215 Y dare putte this into iugement of whom euer hath seen the pilgrimage doon.

b.

Introducing a qualifying whoever 2): No matter whom.

clause

(cf.

1762 in Tytler Mem. H. Home (1807) II. 7 They freely pursue the truth,.. whomever she may oppose, whomever she may countenance. 1845 Newman's Lives Eng. Saints, Stephen Langton v. 69 John would have been glad to have been aided by the strong arm, to whomever it might belong.

whomp (hwomp), sb. colloq. (orig. and chiefly U.S.). [Echoic.] a. A heavy, low sound, b. A heavy blow; also fig. 1926 Blackw. Mag. May 595/2 Ever think of Piccadilly in the evening, and the ‘whomp’ of an orchestra starting up in some theatre? 1970 J. H. Gray Boy from Winnipeg 145 We got some special whomps just in case we had sneaked anything. 1977 R. L. Duncan Temple Dogs 1. iii. 104 Corbett realized that he had heard a sound, a kind of muted whomp and the Colonel had been shot. 1979 Washington Post 4 Oct. A15/2 Liberal and conservative journals are good at least once a year for a whomp at the fat, spoiled, arrogant and pricey world they believe the average bureaucrat to live in. 1983 Ibid. 16 Oct. G4/4 He recruited bassist Tony Butler and drummer Mark Brzezicki. The massive and dramatic rhythmic whomp they provide reflects their studio work.

3. With loss of relative force: Any one at all (now rare or obs.); also qualifying the preceding word (now usually replaced by whatever): cf. whosoever 3 a, b. 1584 in Cath. Rec. Soc. Publ. V. 87 To take parte with the Catholike Church against whomesoever. 1609 Sir E. Hoby Let. to T. H. 6 To answere you, or any Fugitiue Romified Renegado whomsoeuer. 1641 Milton Reform. 1. 33 He counts it lawfull in the bookes of whomsoever to reject that which hee finds otherwise then true. 1856 Hawthorne Engl. Note-bks. (1870) II. 114 Overjoyed at seeing anybody whomsoever. 1881 Spedding Even, with Rev. I. 130 A true soldier, prepared to defend his position against whomsoever, friend or enemy. Used ungrammatically for whosoever,

chiefly by attraction to the case unexpressed antecedent (him, etc.).

of

the

1560 Whitehorne tr. Machiavelli’s Art of War 84 Thei.. punished with death, whom so euer obserued not the same order. 1621 Bp. Mountagu Diatribes 98 In him, whomsoeuer he be, that shall abet, maintaine, or broach them. 1631 Heylin St. George 170 A man that saw as cleerely, as any whomsoever. 1768 Tucker Lt. Nat. (1834) II. 437 The literal sense ought not to be countenanced,.. in whomsoever is susceptible of the other. 1877 Ruskin Fors Clav. lxxiv. VII. 37 They shall not be impeded by whomsoever it may be.

whomp (hwomp), v, colloq. (orig. and chiefly

f'whomsome, pron. Obs. rare-1. In 4 quamsum. [See -some.] The objective case of whosome: = prec. So f whomso'mever.

U.S.). [f. the sb.] i. trans. a. To defeat decisively, b. To strike (a person) hard, to hit, thump.

01300 Cursor M. 8379 Giue it to quam-sum pou will. 1502 Arnolde Chron. M iv, The childe of whom sumeuer or husumeuer, wherof they knowen not who is fader nor moder.

1952 Britannica Bk. of Year 667/1 Whomp, to defeat decisively. 1973 ‘D. Shannon’ Spring of Violence xi. 194 If you did something wrong at school you got whomped. 1979 D. Anthony Long Hard Cure ix. 79 He had a history of whomping women. 1984 New Yorker 1 Oct. 1x3/1 Tuggle keeps whomping us on the skull.

fwhon1, interrog. and rel. pron. Obs. Forms:

2. trans. With up. a. To produce quickly, with little preparation or planning.

1-3 hwon, hwan, 3 whan, wan. [OE. hwon, used as instrumental case of hwaet what.] In dependence on a prep. = What, which; esp. in for whon = because of what or which, why, wherefore.

*955 T. Taylor Grand Inquest ix. 241 This procedural paraphernalia was, to borrow Al Capp’s apt expression, stricly ‘whomped up’. 1957 New Yorker 23 Nov. 67/1, I remember the agreement very well. The two of you whomped it up the day after Bob got his overseas orders. 1961 J. Steinbeck Winter of our Discontent 190 Wives whomping up a last-ditch dinner. 1980 Christian Sci. Monitor 22 May B-16/3 When people ask questions about things I really don’t know the answer to .. the temptation is to put on my sage mantle and whomp up something.

£950 Lindisf. Gosp. Matt. vi. 31 Quo operiemur, of huon we biSon wrijen. c 1000 Guthlac 244 Bi hwon scealt 6u lifjan? 0 1122 O.E. Chron. (Laud MS.) an. 1104 He wiS pone cyng jeworhte, for hwan hine se cyng ealles benaemde. C1200 Trin. Coll. Horn. 191 J»e ne hauen mid hwan hie hem werien. £ 1205 Lay. 2679 Maidene castel he wes icleoped, nat ich for wan it was swa idon. 01250 Owl & Night. 716 Wostu to hwan man wes ibore? To pare blissi of heue[n]ryche. c 1275 Passion our Lord 49 in O.E. Misc. 38 Mvchel volk hym vulede, wyte ye for hwon.

b. To arouse or stir up (feeling, a disturbance, etc.). 1961 in Webster. 1970 Daily Colonist (Victoria, B.C.) 5 May 1/3 Antiwar groups held rallies at dozens of colleges and universities.. to whomp up student interest in a national student strike during the closing weeks of the academic year. 1975 M. Amis Dead Babies xv. 74 To his hopelessness and grief, Philboyd could not act immediately; time was—when there’d have been enough tubby little rednecks like himself still living in Tara—they could have pitched right in there and whomped up a storm.

3. intr.

To fall with a ‘whomp’.

i960 New Scientist 14 Apr. 933/1 The Sunday edition of the New York Times.. whomped to the floor outside my apartment door.

whomso ('huimssu), pron. arch., chiefly poet. (In early use as two words.) [Early ME. swa hwam swa swa (quot. a 1154 s.v. whom 6): see whom and so adv. 17 d.] = next. £120° Vices & Virtues 85 Hwam swo Sin wille was te senden Sis loc to ofrien, he was 3eherd of his niede. c 1205 Lay. 18384 He mai wham swa he wule wurScipe bitachen. 01225 Ancr. R. 184 Ne bet he nenne mon bute hwamso he luueS. 13 .. Cursor M. 8379 (Gott.) Giue it to quham-so 3c will. £1375 Ibid. 4007 (Fairf.) Quam so god helpis. 1596 Spenser F.Q. v. xii. 36 Her cursed tongue. .Appear’d like Aspis sting, that closely kils, Or cruelly does wound whom so she wils. 1632 Lithgow Trav. iv. 169 His Daughters.. are giuen in marriage to any Bassa, whom so they affect. 1837 Carlyle Fr. Rev. in. v. v, They say to whomso they meet, Do; and he must do it. 01850 Rossetti Dante & Circle 1. (1874) 61 Whomso thou meetest, say thou this to each. 1

whomsoever (hu:ms3u'eva(r)), pron.

literary. Also poet, whomsoe’er (-'E3(r)). The objective case of whosoever. (More freq. than

whomever.)

whomever (hu:m'ev3(r)), pron. literary. Also poet, whome’er (-'ea(r)). [Orig. two words, whom and ever adv. 8e.] The objective case of whoever; as direct obj., or obj. of prep. (Less frequent than whomsoever.) a. As compound

Bible (Great) Gen. xxxi. 32 With whome soeuer thou fyndest thy goddes, let hym dye. 1812 Byron Ch. Har. 1.1, Whomsoe’er along the path you meet Bears in his cap the badge of crimson hue. 1856 R. A. Vaughan Mystics (i860) I. vi. iii. 170 Whomsoever the electors choose they will have acknowledged rightful emperor. 1867 tr. C'tess HahnHahn's Fathers of Desert 62 Whomsoever men serve, by him will they be guided. 2. = WHOMEVER b; cf. WHOSOEVER 2. 01631 Donne Serm. Ixxxviii. (1649) II. 64 Whomsoever he washed first of his Apostles, he washed them all. 1667 Milton P.L. ix. 1068 O Eve, in evil hour thou didst give eare To that false Worm, of whomsoever taught To counterfet Mans voice. 1790 Cowper Let. to S. Rose 30 Nov., The zeal and firmness of your friendship to whomsoever professed. 1832 Lewis Use Sf Ab. Pol. Terms x. 117 A national government is when the sovereign power, by whomsoever exercised, extends over the whole country-

1. = whomever a (with or without correlative): cf. whosoever i. c 1450 Godstow Reg. 606 pe seyde Roger 8c hys wyfe & hys heyrys sholde haue power to.. gyfe pe seyde londe to whomso-euyr pey wolden. 1523 Ld. Berners Froiss. I. cccxxv. 206/1 Whome so euer he hytte full, wente to the erthe. 1539

fwhon2, sb. and a. Obs. Forms: 1 hwon, huon, 3 whon, wan, 4 qu(h)on(e, 4-6 quhoyn(e. [OE. hwon, the instrumental case of which, hwene, is represented by wheen. After c 1200 the word is exclusively northern.] Few, a few. Construed in OE. (i) as a sb. or an adv. with dependent genitive, (ii) as an adj. (indeclinable), in ME. as an adj. and absol., (iii) as an adv. = a little, a little while (see b, c). £950 Lindisf. Gosp. Mark p. 3/18 De septem panibus et paucis pisciculis, of seofa hlafum & hwon lytle fiscas. c 1000 Sax. Leechd. II. 32 Senim pipor.. & hwon sealt. Ibid., Do huniges hwon to. 0 1300 Cursor M. 17285 p»aa quon pat heild wit pe pair-witt. Ibid. 19495 O quoner pan o thre, Mai na biscop sacrid be. 13.. Ibid. 19782 (Gott.) He bad pa men be all vte-done, J?at in pat hus left bot a quone [Cott. a fon]. CI375 Sc. Leg. Saints xxiv. (Alexis) 265 Certis, now are fundine quhon J>at in pat manere wald haf done. 1375 Barbour Bruce xi. 49 We ar quhoyne agayne sa fele. 1513 Douglas JEneis x. i. 38 A few wordis on this wys Jupiter said. Bot nocht in quhoyn wordis him answer maid The fresch goldyn Venus.

b. nazvhon ( = OE. nateshwon, na to pass hwon), not at all. c 1205 Lay. 13203 Nusten pa Bruttes na whon whait Vortiger haefde idon.

c. a litel wan (= OE. lythwon): a little while. £ 1200 Trin. Coll. Horn. 69 J>ole me louerd alitelwan pat ich bimurne mi sor, er ich wite to pe pestere wunienge.

whon, obs. form of

when, var. wone.

whon, whone, obs. forms of

one. 1482 Cely Papers (Camden) 103 He sent whon of hys clarkys. 1530 Tindale Lev. xv. 18 Yf a woman lye with soche a whone.

whonde, var. whone, whence.

wond v. Obs., to hesitate.

whon(n)ene,

var.

whenne

Obs.,

whoness (’huims). rare. [f. who pron. (sb.) + -ness.] a. That which makes a person who he is. b. The state of being an isolated individual.

WHONNE

299

1922 [see whenceness], 1931 Times Lit. Suppl. 28 May 422/4 A crisis of spiritual rebirth in which the personal will submit only after long struggle to an ineluctable impersonal destiny .. thus escaping from the anguish of 'whoness'.. into the peace of ‘wholeness’.

whonne, obs. pa. t. and pple. of win

v.

whoo (hwu:), v. [Cf. next.] fl. tram., and intr. To hoot.

Obs.

J 599 Porter Angry Worn. Abingt. H 4, He is gone vp and downe, whoing like an Owle for thee. 1614 Breton I would & I would not xx, All the Beggers in the streets would whoo me.

2. intr.

To utter the sound denoted by whoo.

1872 Darwin Emotions ix. 232 A booing or whooing noise. 1891 Hardy Tess ix, Pouting up that pretty red mouth to whistling shape, and whooing and whooing,.. and never being able to produce a note.

whoo (hwu:), int. Also whooh, woo. [Variant of hoo int.] An exclamation of surprise, grief, or other emotion; occas. an imitation of an owl’s hoot (cf. tu-whoo). Also repeated and in WHOO-WHOOP. 1608 Middleton Mad World ill. ii. E2, Wife. Will you but heare a word from mee? Curtiz. Whooh. a 1658 Cleveland Content Poems, etc. (1742) 248 The chattring Sembriefs of her [sr. the owl’s] Woo hoo, hoo. 1683 Villiers (Dk. Buckhm.) Rehearsal v. i. (ed. 4) 49 Smi. I had rather be bound to Fight your Battel, I assure you, Sir. Bayes. Whoo! there’s it now: fight a Battel? there’s the common error. 1770 J. Collier (Tim Bobbin) Wks. (1862) 365 On hearing the news of his landlord’s death, [Abraham] only cried out, Whoo-who, whoo-who, whoo—. 1787 Grose Prov. Gloss., Whoo, whoo, an interjection, marking great surprize. 1796 Mme. D’Arblay Camilla III. v, ‘Pray, can he really read?’ ‘Whoo!’ says I, ‘why he does nothing else.’ 1908 Weyman Wild Geese xviii. 282 He heard .. the ‘Whoo! hoo! hoo!’ of owls beginning to mouse beside the lake. 1915 Mrs. Stratton-Porter M. O’Halloran xv, Whoohoo it’s so good, Mickey!

So whoo sb., an utterance of this exclamation, or a similar sound, a hoot. 1845 C. Wilkes Narr. U.S. Expl. Exped. II. 199 At the end of each dance they finished with a loud whoo, or screech. 1851 Mayne Reid Scalp Hunters xviii, An owl hovered around our heads uttering its doleful woo-hoo-a. 1863 Reade Hard Cash I. vii. 217 Down came the gale with a whoo.

whoo, obs. dial. f. hoo, heo, she. 1688 Shadwell Sqr. Alsatia in. i, Whoo kisses daintily; And whoo has a Breath like a Caw.

whoo: see who pronwho int. and sb.y whoa, woe.

whoobub, whood(e, whoof, obs. ff. hubbub, HOOD, WOOF.

whoof (hwuif, hwuf), int. (sb.y v.).

Also 8 whuph. 1. Imitation of a gruff abrupt cry or noise. So whoogh (also as exclamation of exultation, etc.). .2] 1. a. An act of whooping; a cry of ‘whoop!’, or a shout or call resembling this; spec, as used in hunting, esp. at the death of the game, or by N. American Indians, etc. as a signal or war-cry (see also war-whoop); occas. the hoot of an owl. 1600 W. Watson Decacordon (1602) 3 All with one voyce, .. with whoopes, whowes and hoobubs, would thrust them out. 1620 Quarles Feast for Worms § 6 When all thy laughter shall be turn’d to Doole;.. Thy whoops of loy, to howles of sad lamenting. 1622 Fletcher Beggars' Bush v. i, I’ll use My wonted whoops, and hollows, as I were A hunting for ’em. 1672 Villiers (Dk. Buckhm.) Rehearsal v. i, Ere a Full-pot of good Ale you can swallow, He’s here with a whoop, and gone with a holla. 1675 in I. Mather K. Philip's War (1862) 246 They signified their sense of his approach by their whoops or watchwords, a 1700 in W. King Usef Trans. Philos. (1709) 44,1 must acknowledge my Happiness, who in a Manuscript found the following Verses,.. Boys, Boys, come out to play, The Moon doth shine as bright as day; Come with a Whoop, come with a Call, Come with a good will or not at all. 1775 Adair Amer. Ind. 276, I put up the shrill whoop of friendship. Ibid. 277 Instead of sounding the usual whoop of defiance, I went on slowly. 1808 Skurray Bidcombe Hill 9 O’er hedge and ditch we fly, ’Till the loud whoop proclaims the ended chase. 1831 Scott Cast. Dang, xi, Something resembling the whoop of the night-owl. 1840 Dickens Old C. Shop xxv, With a joyous whoop the whole cluster took to their heels.

b. The characteristic sonorous inspiration following a fit of coughing in whooping-cough. Also applied to similar sounds (see quot. 1899). 1873 A. Flint Princ. Med. (ed. 4) 240 A long and labored inspiration then takes place, giving rise to a crowing sound evidently due to spasm of the glottis; this is the whoop which enters into the name of the affection. 1897 Allbutt's Syst. Med. II. 239 When the whoop appears his power of communicating the disease begins to decline. 1899 Ibid. VII. 452 Occasionally the impediment is aggravated by the occurrence of associated sounds with the stutter, the patient emitting unpleasant little whoops, grunts, or whimpering sounds during his efforts to speak.

c. Slang phrases (orig. and chiefly U.S.): a whoop and a holler (and varr.): a short distance; not to care a whoop (and varr.): not to care one bit; to be indifferent. [1753 C. Gist Jrnl. 27 Dec. (1893) 85 We grew uneasy, and then he said two whoops might be heard to his cabin.] 1815 Scott Let. 19 Jan. in Lockhart, We are much nearer neighbours, and within a whoop and a holla. 1904 Baltimore American 30 Aug. 6 The voting public as a whole doesn’t care a whoop about the question. 1908 J. London Let. 27 Oct. (1966) 268, I don’t care a whoop in high water whether you get married .. or not. 1920 E. H. Jones Road to En-Dor (ed. 2) xxvii. 313, I don’t believe Enver Pasha cares two whoops whether I’ve had syphilis or not. 1924 Wodehouse Bill the Conqueror vii. 141 ‘It isn’t as if she cared a hang about him.’ ‘Doesn’t she?’ ‘Not a whoop.’ 1936 E. B. White Let. 24 Dec. (1976) 145, I don’t give a whoop about dignity. 1951 L. Craig Singing Hills 155 They lived in a cabin which Miriam said was three whoops and two hollers away. 1957 J. Agee Death in Family 11. x. 157, I wouldn’t give a whoop if you got blind drunk, best thing you could do. 1974 D. Sears Lark in Clear Air i. 14 A string of hounds.. were only a whoop and a bellow behind father.

2. A form of the game of hide-and-seek. Also whoop-hide. (In first quot. allusively.) 1798 in Windham Papers (1913) II. 77 He will not now be dodging with the world and playing at whoop with all his friends. 1861 Miss Yonge Stokesley Seer, ii, I thought they were to have a great game at whoop-hide. 1869 Latest News 26 Sept. 16 He was playing at whoop .., and to avoid being discovered by a companion he got upon some new coping, which gave way.

whoop (hu:p, hwu:p), v. Forms: 4-7 whope, 5 whowpe, 5-6 whoupe, 6 whoup, whooppe, whup, 6-7 whoope, 6- whoop. [Parallel with whoop int.-, cf. hoop a.2] 1. a. intr. To utter a cry of ‘whoop!’ or a loud vocal sound resembling this; to shout, hollo (as in incitement, summons, exultation, defiance, intimidation, or mere excitement). ou be pat wille pi-self safe se. a 1400-50 Wars Alex. 3362 Qua-sum-euire in pat ilk his ymage behaldis, pe face is to pe fold-ward, pe fete to pe firment. 1429 m 15th Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. App. viii. 10 Tyll the for said lorde of Drumlanryge, or tyll hys assygneis or speciale deputis qwa sumewer. £1460 Metham Wks. (1916) 119 Ho-ssumeuer yt be that owyth this fygure, he be hys dysposycion ys a leccherus man. 1502 Husumeuer [see whomsomever]. 1526 Tindale Matt. xiii. 12 Whosumever hath to him shall hit be geven. a 1592 Greene Alphonsus 133 Nere to vnfold the secrets of my heart To any man or woman, who some ere Dwels vnderneath the circle of the skie. 1606 Shaks. Tr. & Cr. 11. i. 70 Who some euer you take him to be, he is Aiax.

whosshe, obs. f. whost,

wash v.

var. whust v.

Obs.

whot(e, whott(e, obs. ff. whot(e: see

hot.

wit v.

whou, whough(e, whouh, whow(e, variants of HOW, HOWE int.1 [£1425 Quhow: see whew int.] 1542 Udall Erasm. Apoph. 314 Whough, saieth he, half my brothers bodye is more then the whole. 1598 R. Bernard tr. Terence, Phormio ill. iii, How much money need you? speake. But thirtie poundes. Thirtie! Whow. 1615 Brathwait Strappado 129

Whou Billie whou, what faire has thou bin at? 1627 W. Hawkins Apollo Shroving 11. iv. 33 He answered me nothing but whough, pugh. 1815 Scott Guy M. xiv, ‘Eh whow! Eh whow!’ ejaculated the honest farmer, as he looked round upon his friend’s miserable apartment.

So fwhowb(e (in quots. as sb.; cf. howbub, hubbub). 1600 W. Watson Decacordon vii. x. (1602) 217 They hissed him out with whoubs & hoo-bubs. Ibid. ix. viii. 327 [see how, howe int.1].

whou(3, whough, whow(e, obs. ff. how adv. whoule, whowl(e, obs. ff. howl. whourliburly, obs. f. hurly-burly. fwhowball. Obs. [f. who(w), variant of ho int.2 + ball sb 2 2, a typical proper name of a horse (see Plowman’s T. 402 my hors Ball, and quot. a 1697 below), of a sheep (Promp. Parv. 22/1), of a dog (Privy Purse Exp. Henry VIII 43), and of a cow (see quot. 1785). 01697 Aubrey Lives, Fleetwood (1898) I. 253 [Highwaymen] brought him under the gallowes, fastned the rope about his neck and on the tree,.. and then left him to the mercy of his horse, which he called Ball. So he cryed ‘Ho, Ball! Ho, Ball!’ and it pleased God that his horse stood still.]

(See quots.) John Whoball: app. a typical name for a yokel. 1598 R. Bernard tr. Terence, Andria 17 Se deludi facile haudpatitur. You cannot easily make him a foole. He is none of Iohn whoballs children. 01700 B. E. Diet. Cant. Crew, Whow-ball, a Milk-maid. 178s. Grose Diet. Vulgar T., Whow-ball, a milkmaid, from their frequent use of the word whow, to make the cow stand still in milking; Ball is the supposed name of the cow.

who-whoop: see whoo-whoop. fwhowse, v. Obs. [Echoic. Cf. whush v.] intr. To make a rushing noise. 1620 T. Granger Div. Logike 66 The sea roareth, the winds whowse.

whoys, obs. form of whose. whr-: see words in wr-. f whrine, v. Sc. Obs. In 6 quhryn(e, whryne. [a. OScand. *hwrina (ON. hrtna, Norw. rina; ENorw. and Swed. dial. vrina\ with normal disappearance of w in West and h in East Scand.).] intr. To whine; to squeak. 1508 Dunbar Testament 87 War I a dog and he a swyne, .. I suld ger that lurdane quhryne. 1513 Douglas ZEneis v. Prol. 32 Thairon aucht na man irk, complene, nor quhryne. 1549 Compl. Scot. vi. 39 The suyne began to quhryne. 16.. Montgomerie's Flyting 440 (Harl. MS.) As they could they maid it whryne.

Hence f whrine sb., whining, querulous cry. 1513 Douglas ZEneis vn. i. 36 The birsit baris and beris in thair styis Roring all wod with quhrynis and wyld cryis.

fwhrinny, v. Obs. rare. prec.] intr. = whinny v.

[Imitative.

But cf.

*432-50 tr. Higden (Rolls) III. 179 Whose horse made noyce firste, or did whrynny, he scholde be electe in to theire kynge.

whucche, var. whitch, chest, coffer. whuch(e, obs. ff. which. whudder, var. whither sb.1 and v. dial. whuff (hwAf), v. [Imitative; cf. whuff, dial. var. whiff (see Eng. Dial. Diet.).] intr. To make a sound as of a forcible blast of breath or wind; trans. to utter with such a sound. Also as int. imitating such a sound. Hence whuffing vbl. sb. So whuffle ('hwAf(9)l) v., intr. in same sense; trans. to drive by blowing forcibly. 1896 H. G. Wells Wheels of Chance xix, He whuffed a contemptuous laugh. 1906 ‘John Oxenham’ Giant Circumstance ii, One of the horses.. woke up enough to whuffle the flies out of its nose. 1907-Carette xxxiii, The water began whuffling against the rock walls. 1919 J. J. Bennett Dover Patrol 172 ‘Whing! Whuff!’ and another muffled burst comes a minute or so later.

whuist, obs. f. whist int.1 whulc, whulch, obs. ff. which. whule, obs. f. weevil, whewl, while. whum(m)el, whummle, var. whemmel. whump (hwAmp), v. Also wump. [f. as next.] 1. intr. To make a dull thudding sound; to move with a ‘whump’; to bang or thump; to strike (with a thud). 1897 E. Terry Let. 5 Feb. in Ellen Terry & Shaw (1931) 126 Not a single speech do I know yet, and my head is thumping and wumping. 1928 Blackw. Mag. Jan. 5/1 The look-out sentry.. whumped twice, briskly, on his handgong. 1939 Life 11 Dec. 26 Taft of Ohio sturdily whumped at the New Deal’s ‘insane deficit policy’. 1981 B. Granger Schism xi. 89 The windshield wipers whumped, whumped slowly across the streaky glass.

2. trans. To strike heavily or with a ‘whump’. 1974 D. E. Westlake Help (1975) iii. 20, I would then adjust the rubber stamp.., wump it onto the stamp pad,

306

WHUMP wump it onto the envelope. 1976 National Observer (U.S.) 24 Jan. 19/3 What had been lost at Waterloo and Sedan could be won back by whumping mud forts in the Sahel. Hence 'whumping vbl. sb. and ppl. a. 1928 Blackw. Mag. Jan. 2/2 The occasional whumping and booming of war-gongs. 1977 P- Dickinson Walking Dead 11. viii. 206 There was a slow, wumping explosion. whump (hwAmp), sb.

(and int.) Also wump. [Echoic: cf. bump, thump, etc.] A dull thudding sound, as of a body landing heavily. Also int. Cf. WHOMP. 1915 D. O. Barnett Let. 6 May (1915) 130 Then there was a wump over beyond, and a young howitzer shell went zip over my trench. 1922 Chambers' s Jrnl. 7 Oct. 707/1 The globe suddenly swung in a long arc across some hidden gully in the bottom and fetched up with a stunning ‘wump’ on the slope of the other side. 1926 Galsworthy Escape 1. ii. 32 Still—up on the ladder and down with a whump—it hits ’em [$r. gentlemen] harder than it does the others. 1930 C. R. Samson Fights Flights 11. iv. 181 'Wump' fell a second bomb. 1967 Boston Herald 1 Apr. 20/2 (caption) Whump! 1976 New Yorker 8 Mar. 106/2, I heard this funny sound: a kind of whummpp. whun, -stane: see whin1, 2, whinstone. whunk (hwAnk), sb. (and v.) rare. Also whonk.

[Echoic.] A dull hollow sound, as of a bullet striking something. Also as v. intr., to strike with a ‘whunk’. App. only in the work of Hemingway. 1935 E. Hemingway Green Hills Afr. 11. iii. 53 We had both heard the whunk of the bullet. Ibid. II. iv. 76, I heard the whonk of the bullet. 1936-in Hearst's Internal. Sept. 168/1 He heard a whunk that meant that the bullet was home. Ibid. 170/3 Hearing the bullets whunk into him. whunt, obs. dial. f. quaint a. c 1425 Non-Cycle Myst. Plays (1909) 23 She is both whunt and slee. whup,

whuph,

whur:

see

whoop,

whoof,

1555 Phaer JEneid 11. (1558) C iij b, They whusted all, and fyxt with eyes ententiue did behold. 155^ Ibid. iv. (1558) Lj, Than was it night.. Whan whust is euery felde. 1573 Twyne JEneid xi. (1584) Rij, When whust was once proclaimed, & men were bid not silence breake. 1582 Stanyhurst JEneis 1. (Arb.) 29 Thee murther he whusted. Ibid. II. 51 Thee Greeks.. al softlye be whusted. 1583 Melbancke Philotimus Eeiijb, It were good for me to bee whust in these matters. 1586 J. Hooker Hist. Irel. in Holinshed 11. 81 All should be related, and nothing whusted. 1589 Nashe Pasquill & Marf. 26 Seeing Martins matters begin to be whust. 1611 Florio, Quetare, to quiet, to whost. 1614 Gorges Lucan v. 193 The whusted guards.

whut (hwAt), U.S. dial and Black English var. of what pron. 1909 Dialect Notes III. 387 Whut, what. A common pronunciation. 1929 W. Faulkner Sanctuary (1981) viii. 94, I couldn’t tell and wouldn’t even keer whut I was eatin. 1936 M. Mitchell Gone with Wind v. lix. 996 Miss Melly, you know whut he done? 1961 J. Jahn in A. Dundes Mother Wit (1973) 101/1 Whut makes yore head so red. 1973 Black World July 62/2 Well, so whut.

fwhute, v. Obs. rare. [Imitative.] To whistle. Hence f whuting ppl. a. So f whute sb. c 1600 in W. Fowler's Wks. (S.T.S.) I. 340 The Robin, Wraine, & whutinge quaill. 01663 Robin Hood & Curtal Friar xxix. in Child Ballads (1888) v. 125 Give me leave to set my fist to my mouth And to whute whutes three. Ibid, xxx, xxxi.

whuther, var.

whither sb.1 and v. dial.

whutter (’hwAt3(r)), sb. [Imitative; cf. flutter.'] The sound of the flapping of the wings of a large bird or a flight of birds. So 'whutter v., whence 'whuttering ppl. a. 1831 J. Wilson in Blackw. Mag. XXIX. 4 A sound like the whutter of wild-fowl on the feed along a mud-bank. 1870 Pall Mall Gaz. 12 Aug. 10 The startling of the wary cock, whose whuttering pinions will summon out of reach pack after pack of birds.

whutterick, whutthroat, whuttorock, var.

WHIRR. whup (hwAp), Sc. and U.S. colloq. and dial. var.

WHITRET.

of WHIP v.

whuz, obs. or dial. var.

fwhurl, v.

fwhuzsh. Obs. rare-1. ? =

Obs. Also 5-6 whorle, 6 whyrle, 7 wherl. [Imitative.] intr. To make a roaring or rumbling noise; to purr, as a cat; to snarl or growl, as a dog. (Cf. wharl v., whirr v. 3, 3 b.) Hence fwhurling vbl. sb. and ppl. a.; also fwhurl sb. = wharl sb. 1495 Trevisa's Barth. De P.R. xi. ii. (W. de W.), In ye eeres wynde makith whystlyng and whorlinge [Bodl. MS. trongelinge] and ryngynge. 1530 Palsgr. 781/2 This wynde whorleth so I can nat here. 1553 Brende Q. Curtins v. 81 b, Ye vse of the eares could not serue for one to receiue counsel .. at an other, the wynd whyrlid so amonges the leaues. 1555 Eden Decades (Arb.) 112 The sea raged and rored.. with a horrible whurlinge. 1607 Tourneur Rev. Trag. iv. ii. G3, He whurles and rotles in the throate. 1608 Topsell Four-f. Beasts 105 How [the cat] whurleth with her voyce. 1611 Cotgr., Gronder, to whurle, whurre, yarre, like a dog that is angrie. 1625 in Foster Engl. Factories Ind. (1909) III. 51 The flying shoot.. macking such a wherling noyse in the ayere. 1797 Encycl. Brit. (ed. 3) XIII. 112/1 The commonalty are .. distinguished by a kind of shibboleth or whurle, being a particular way of pronouncing the letter R, as if they hawked it up from the wind-pipe, like the cawing of rooks. whurl(e, whurr, whurra, whurry: see whirl, WHIRR, HURRAH, WHIRRY. whurt, obs. form of whort. whush, v. Now dial. [Imitative: cf. whish v.1]

intr. To make a soft rushing sound, as wind, flowing water, waves, etc.; to move with such a sound. (Cf. hush v.3) Chiefly in vbl. sb. and ppl. a. 1581 A. Hall Iliad 11. 23 When as the westerne winde doth meete a field of graine,.. & cause the eares to whush. Ibid. iv. 72 As the waues within the sea.. yeelds whushing noise. 1856 Dickens An Ordeal vi. in Househ. Wds. 12 Apr. 299/2 A ‘whushing’ music, as of distant waves. 1861 ‘Holme Lee’ Adv. Tuflongbo i. 3 The whushing and whispering amongst the trees.

.3

whush, Sc. var. hush sb

.1

whush, obs. or n. dial. var. hush a. and v 1548 Udall, etc. Erasm. Par. John xxi. 12-15 The disciples sate downe, but all whusht and spake no wordes. whusht,

obs.

var.

husht

int.1

and

a.

(cf.

whisht); pa. t. and pple. of whush, obs. var. hush v (see under whush). 2557 Tottel's Misc. (Arb.) 202 The audience ceased.., and euery thing was whusht. 1581 A. Hall Iliad v. 101 All for dread are whusht. 1598 Florio, Citto, a word to bid children holde their peace, as we say whusht, husht.

.1

whuss (hwAs).

U.S. (chiefly Black English) colloq. abbrev. of ‘what is .. ?’ 1935 Z. N. Hurston Mules & Men (1970) 1. iii. 74 Whuss de matter, Jack? 1938 C. Himes Pork Chop Paradise in Black on Black (1973) 174 Whuss yo’ name? 1977 Rolling Stone 16 June 11/2 Whuss happnin’? whussle, whustle, Sc. and dial. ff. whistle. fwhust, sb., a., v. whist sb.2, a.1, v

.1

(Also 7 whost.) Variant of

whizz v.

hush sb.2 2. 1600 W. Watson Decacordon i. vi. (1602) 15 [The Jesuits] lull babies a sleepe with a blacke Sanctus in a whuzsh of whispering foolish noyse.

whwte,

variant of whoot.

why (hwai), adv. (sb., int.) Forms: 1-3 hwy, (1 hwij, hwie), 1-4 hwi, (3 hwui, wee, 3wi), 3-4 wi, 3-6 whi, wy, (4 Kent, hue, 4-6 whye, 5 whyghe, 6-7 whie), 4- why; 3- 5 qui, 4- 5 quy, qwy, quhi, 5 qwi, Sc. qwhy, 5-6 (8 arch.) Sc. quhy. [OE. hwi, hwy instr. case of hwset what, governed by to or for (see forwhy) or used simply as adv., corresp. to OS. hwi used with preps, (bi hwi, te hwt) and simply = why, wherefore, ON. hvi used as dat. of hvat, and as adv. = why (MSw., Da. hvi):—OTeut. *xzvi: — Indo-Eur. *qwei, locative f. *qwo- who; cf. Gr. (Doric) irei where.] I. 1. a. In a direct question: For what reason? from what cause or motive? for what purpose? wherefore? c 1000 Ags. Gosp. Matt. xvii. 19 Hwi ne mihte we hyne utadrifan? c 1000 Apollonius (1834) 2 Hwig eart pu..swa gedrefedes modes? 01175 Cott. Horn. 221 Hwi wolde god .. him forweme? c 1200 Ormin 2407 Whi 3aff 3ho swillc anndswere onn3aen, pa Godess enngell se33de patt 3ho wipp childe shollde ben? c 1250 Kent. Serm. in O.E. Misc. 33 Wee bie ye idel? 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 2757 Sire king wi lete 3c mi moder & me biuore pe lede? a 1300 Cursor M. 1128 Sir cayn, Wy has pou pi broiper slain? Ibid. 16295 Qui smites pou me? 1340 Ayenb. 47 And hue is hit uoul dede zeppe hit is kendelich? 1362 Langl. P. PI. A. xi. 66 Whi wolde God .. suffre such a worm.. pe wommon to bigyle? c 1470 Henry Wallace 111. 361 Quhi, Scot, dar thow nocht preiff? 1526 Tindale Matt. xxi. 25 He wyll saye vnto vs: why dyd ye not then beleve hym? 1606 Shaks. Tr. & Cr. 11. iii. 71 Patroclus is a foole positiue. Pair. Why am I a foole? 1683 Prior Pastoral to Dr. Turner 3 Why dost thou sigh, why strike thy panting breast? 1776 Trial of Nundocomar 60/2 When you came from Patna, why did you bring this paper with you? 1837 Newman Par. Serm. III. iii. 37 Why was Saul thus marked for vengeance from the beginning? 1883 D. C. Murray Hearts ix, Why don’t you learn Italian?

b. Implying or suggesting a negative assertion ( = ‘there is no reason why..’); hence often expressing a protest or objection (esp. with should). c 897 /Elfred Gregory's Past. C. xxxvi. 250 5if he Saem jehiersuman mannum naefde jetiohhad his e6el to sellanne, hwy [v.r. hwie] wolde he hie mid aenjum ungetaesan laeran? a 1000 Caedmons Gen. 282 Hwy sceal ic aefter his hyldo Seowian?.. ic maej wesan god swa he! c 1200 Vices is aungel.. neuend peter by name, a skill I tel yow qwy. 01380 St. Aug. 137 in Horstm. Altengl. Leg. (1878) 64/1 Heo.. asked hire J?e cause whi pat heo was so sori. 139° Gower Conf. I. 148 Sche sih hire fader sorwe and sike, And wiste noght the cause why. 1483 Acta Audit, in Acta Dom. Cone. II. Introd. 133 Quhill the said William.. schew uther lauchfull cause quhy scho suld nocht have the said thrid. 1521 Acts Parlt. Scot. (1875) XII. 39/1 We se nane appearance quhy 3oure grace suld belieff [etc.]. 1548 Udall Erasm. Par. Luke xxiii. 13-25 What hath this man committed or offended why he should dye? 1581 Parsons (title) Reasons why Catholiques refuse to go to Church. *599 Shaks. Hen. V, v. ii. 34 If I demand.. what Impediment there is, Why that the naked, poore, and mangled Peace.. Should not., put vp her louely Visage? 1606-Ant. & Cl. iv. xiv. 89 Eros. My sword is drawne. Ant. Then let it do at once The thing why thou hast drawne it. o 1721 Prior Female Phaeton vi, I’ll have my Earl, as well as She, Or know the Reason why. 1846 Greener Sci. Gunnery 26 We can perceive the reason why a small proportion of carbonic oxide is always formed during the decomposition of nitre by charcoal. 1908 R. Bagot A. Cuthbert xxviii. 372 It would be useless to deny that your life is in grave danger... But that is no reason why you should surrender it without a struggle.

fb. For which reason, wherefore. Obs. rare-1. e candele sene, pe wueke wiSinnen unsene, and J>e fur on boSe. 1377 Langl. P. PI. B XVII 204 As wex and a weke were twyned togideres. *393 Ibid. C. xx. 178 Of a torche \>e blase beo blowen out 3ut brennep pe weke. c 1440 Promp. Parv. 520/2 Weyke, of a hchmius. c 1450 Lydg. Life Our Ladv lxxxii. (1484) Mijb, The waxe bytokeneth his manhede, The weke [ATS. ■Ashm. 39 wyke] his sowle, the fyre his godhede. c 1485 Digby Myst. I. 490 In yone tapir therbe thing iij', wax, week and light. 1513 State Papers Hen. VIII No. 4101 (P.R.O.) Item m torche weke and taper weke iiij** v li. 1570 Levins Manip. 2°6/45 Y' Weak of a candle, lichnus. 1590 Spenser F.Q. ii. x. 30 When the oyle is spent, The light goes out, and weeke is throwne away. 1604 E. G[rimstone] tr. D'Acosta’s Hist. Indies II. vii. 99 In candles of tallow or waxe, if the wike be great, it melts the tallow or the waxe. 1626 Bacon Sylva §37° Triall was. .made of seuerall Wiekes; As of Ordinary Cotton; Sowing Thred. a 1691 Boyle Hist. Air (1692) 247 The Smoak that issues out of the Weik of a Candle newly blown out. 1707 N. Blundell Diary (1895) 54 Mr. Plumb tryed his Lamp with two Weaks. a 1728 Woodward Nat. Hist. Fossils (1729) I. 1. 76 A small Piece of [English talc].. serves very well for a Wiek to a Lamp. 1875 Lane. Gloss., Week.. the wick of a candle or lamp. ft- *393 Langl. P. PI. C. xx. 205 As pe wicke and pe warme fuyr wol make a fayr flamme. c 1450 Alphita (Anecd. Oxon.) 99 Licinum,.. mecche uel wyk. 1555 Eden Decades (Arb.) 230 The wycke or twyste of hempe. 1583 Stubbes Anat. Abus. II. (1882) 50 As for the wiekes within them [sc. the candles], they are of hurds, rope ends, and such other good stuffe. 1784 Cowpeh Task in. 164 The little wick of life’s poor shallow lamp. 1815 J. Smith Panorama Sci. & Art II. 316 The candle or lamp used with the blowpipe should have a thick wick, which should be snuffed clean. 1840 Thackeray Catherine iii, The candles were burning dim, with great long wicks. 1903 Thurston Circle 1. xv, She.. raised the wick of the lamp. b. Collectively, without article, as the name of a substance: = wicking. 1391 Earl Derby's Exp. (Camden) 67 Clerico speciarie.. pro wyke per ipsum empto .. pro torches faciendis .. xxxj s. 1404 Durham Acc. Rolls (Surtees) 395, vj libri de weke pro torgis. 1529 Burgh Rec. Edin. (1871) 6 That thai mak thair candill.. of gud and sufficient stuff baith weyk and tallone. 1571 S'hampton Crt. Leet Rec. (1905) 76 The Channdelrs.. doo mak their candels wth grat torch weack and yll tallowe. 1602 Shaks. Ham. iv, vii. 116 (Qo, 2) There liues within the very flame of loue A kind of weeke or snufe that will abate it. 1883 Century Mag. Feb. 585/2 He carried too much wick for his candle. c. Used as a tent or dressing in surgery. (Cf. G. wieke, etc.) 1658 A. Fox Wiirtz* Surg. 1. iii. 9 Some., take grosse strong weeks, and thrust them to the bottom of the wounds. Ibid. vii. 27 Of the abuses which are committed with wicks, tents, lints, muliipuffs, &c. 1906 Brit. Med.Jrnl. 13 Jan. 72 A.. glass drainage tube was placed in the pelvis, another in the right loin.. and gauze wicks were placed in the tubes. d. In fig. phr. to turn the wick up (or down), to open (or close) the throttle of an engine; to accelerate (or decelerate), colloq. 1948 [see throttle sb. 4b]. 1965 Priestley & Wisdom Good Driving iii. 28 The gas pedal can be likened to the wick of an oil lamp. Turn it up and you get more light... Indeed it is a simile much used by motor cyclists who talk of ‘turning the wick up’ as a more graphic and descriptive way of saying ‘I accelerated’. 2. a. to get on (one’s) wick, to irritate or annoy (a person); to exasperate; to get on one’s nerves (nerve sb. 8e). colloq. It is sometimes suggested that both this and the next sense derive from (Hampton) Wick, rhyming slang for prick sb. 17. See Partridge and wick sb.2 2. 1945 Penguin New Writing XXVI. 56 Parades and bullshit get on his wick. 1958 K. Amis I like it Here 32 But I wish he wouldn’t think he’d got the right to knock the English. That’s what really gets on my wick. 1961 ‘B. Wells’ Day Earth caught Fire iv. 54 ‘Strewth, these licensing laws get on your wick, don’t they,’ they grumbled. 1977 K. Benton Red Hen Conspiracy iii. 22 The way you talk about Pat gets on my wick. 1984 B. Francis A A Car Duffer's Guide 6/2 Gets on my wick, she do. b. to dip (one’s) wick: of a man, to engage in sexual intercourse, slang. *95» J Carew Black Midas vi. 96 ‘Come on!’ Santos bellowed. ‘If every time you dip your wick you going to fall in love, then God help you!’ Belle jumped out of bed and pulled on her dress. 1969 D. Niland Dead Men Running iv. 159 When you’re starved for a woman dip your wick, and the starvation’s gone. 1971 B. W. Aldiss Soldier Erect iii Di asked, ‘You don’t feel like a bit of a bunk-up this evening, Stubby, by any chance?’ ‘A bit of what?’ ‘Dipping your wick, man!’ 1981 R. Barnard Sheer Torture xiii. 137 None of your barmaids or local peasant wenches for Pete. He’s very calculating where he dips his wick. 3. attrib. and Comb., as wick-holder, -screw, -spout, -trimmer, -yam. 1498 in Compotus Rolls Obedientiaries St. Swithun's Winch. (1892) 388 In xij lb. Wekeyorne,.. iij s. 1756 W. Owen's Bk. Fairs (1788) 54 Bridgenorth.. horned cattle, horses, sheep, hops, cheese, wick-yarn. 1840 Civil Eng. & Arch. jfrnl. III. 175/2 A sudden blaze as if the wick-screw had been raised a turn, c 1865 J. Wylde in Circ. Sci. I. 304/1 A cap.. fits over the wick-holder. 1875 Knight Diet. Mech., Wick-trimmer, a shears for trimming wicks. 1911 J. Ward Roman Era in Brit. xii. 210 The typical Roman lamp .. has.. a covered wick-spout or nozzle (nasus, rostrum). wick (wik), sb.2 Now only local. Forms: 1-3 wic, 3-4, 7 wilce, 4 wik, 4-5 wyk, 4-5, 8-9 wyke, 6-7 wicke, 7 week, 7- wick. [OE. wic m., f. = OFris,

wik f., OS. wic m. dwelling-place, house, MLG. wik f., n. town, place, MDu. wijc m. district, (Du. wijk f. quarter, district, ward, WFris. wyk), OHG. wich str. m. dwelling-place, town, MHG. wich in wikbilethe civic rights, wichbilde (G. weichbild) precinct and jurisdiction of a town, wichgrave recorder; app. ad. L. vtcus row of houses, quarter of a city, street, village (cognate with Gr. oikos house, etc., Goth, weihs village).] f 1. An abode, dwelling, dwelling-place (in general). Obs. Beowulf 1125 Sewiton him Sa wigend wica neosian. c900 tr. Baeda’s Hist. iv. iii, J>a jelomp sume dseje, pact he waes in pxm foresprecenan wicum mid ane breSer wuniende, |?aes noma waes Owine. a 1000 Caedmon’s Gen. 1812 Daer nesbora prase siSSan wicum wunode & wilna breac. c 1200 Ormin 8512 Josaep .. baerenn ure Laferrd Crist.. Fra land to land, fra tun to tun, Fra wic to wic i tune, c 1205 Lay. 7786 In to France he wende & sette his wike. a 1250 Owl & Night. 604 Ich can loki monne wike & mine wike beop wel gode. a 1300 Cursor M. 2090 Asie to sem, to cham affrik, To Iaphet europ, pat wil-ful wike. CI300 Harrow. Hell 177 Louerd god, 3ef vs leue,.. To faren of pis lope wyke To pe blisse of heueneryke.

2. A town, village, or hamlet. Obs. or dial. (Survives as an element of place-names in both forms, -wich and -wick, the local distribution of which presents difficulties.) 971 Blickl. Horn. 77 He cwaep: ‘Gal? on pa wic pe beforan inc stondeS.’ c 1000 Ags. Gosp. Mark viii. 23 & pa sethran he pses blindan hand & lsedde hine butan pa wic. c 1205 Lay. 31960 His biweddede wif weore on pere ilke wike. a 1300 Cursor M. 7917 bar was wonand wit-in a wike, Tua men a pouer and a rike. C1350 in Rel. Ant. II. 93 The toun Off Cauntyrbery, that noble wyke. 1600 Holland Livy xxxiv. xxii. 866 The rest abandoned the warre, and slipt.. into their owne wiekes and villages. [1885 E. Law Hampton Crt. Pal. 12 note, As a popular equivalent for the word village, the expressions ‘going to the Wick’ [i.e. Hampton Wick], and ‘living at the Wick’, being constantly heard among the older inhabitants.]

3. A farm; spec. a dairy farm. Now local. 1086 Domesday Bk., Berks. 58 b, Wica de .x. pensis caseorum ualentes .xxxii. sol. & .1111. den. 1467-8 Rolls of Parlt. V. 585/1 A dayery, otherwise called a Wyk, called Dangebrigge. 1594 [see dairy sb. 3]. 1598 Stow Surv. 171 In diuers countries, Dayrie houses or cottages, wherein they make butter and cheese, are vsually called Wiekes. 1607 Camden Brit. 318 Caseos ouillos conficere in casearijs illis tuguriolis quse ibi [i.e. in Essex] Wiches [sic] vocant, vidimus. 1628 Coke On Litt. 5 A fearme in the North parts is called a Tacke, in Lancashire a Fermeholt, in Essex a Wike. 1641 Surv. Plesheybury Manor, Essex fol. av (MS.) Berwick quasi Berrywick, for it is supposed that auntiently it was a dairy wick or ferme to High Ester Bury. 1701 Kennett CoweVs Interpr., Wica, a Country House or Farm, of which many a one is now call’d the Wike, and the Wick. a 1825 Forby Voc. E. Anglia, Wick,.. A few instances may be produced in which it means a farm. There is one at a short distance from the town of Watton, commonly called Watton-wick, but by the inhabitants, simply the Wick. 1879 Jefferies Wild Life in S. Co. 126 Wick Farm—almost every village has its outlying wick—stands alone in the fields.

f 4. An enclosed piece of ground, a close, local. 1301 Rolls of Parlt. I. 259/2 Apud Lex[eden] in Wyka que vocatur Arnodynes Wyk. ? a 1461 Stonor Papers (Camden) I. 55 3e have yn Bysschopyston the iij part of a close callyd Bondmannys Wyke, and yn on othere callyd Hanketes Wyke. 1631 Terrier of Masworth Rectory (MS.) A close of pasture ground called ye Parsonidge Wick. 1635 Survey of Masworth Parish (MS.) The close called Three Wicks. 1680 Terrier of Masworth Vicarage (MS.) One other close or wick ..called Blockwicks.. a wick called Pound Wick. 1811 Masworth Parish Enclosure Award (MS.) An old enclosure called Meadow Wick.

|5. Comb.: wick-master, ? a mayor or burgomaster; wic-reeve, modernization of OE. wtc&erefa, a town-reeve. 1587 Fleming Contn. Holinshed III. 1337/2 Behind them went the bodie of the citie, that is to wit, the *wickemasters, the wardens, the ancient magistrate, the masters of the wardes, the boroughmasters [etc.]. 1853 J. Stevenson Ch. Hist. Eng. I. 233 Beornulf, *wic-reeve of Winchester.

wick, wike, sb.3 Now only dial. Forms: 4-5, 7 wyke, 6, 8-9 wike, 7 weeke, 8- week, 9 wick, Sc. weik. (a. ON. vik, as in munnvik (Da. mundvig) corner of the mouth; f. wik- to bend (cf. week sb., wick sb,4, woke).] 1. A corner of the mouth or eye. 13 .. Gaw. & Gr. Knt. 1572 pe frope femed at his mouth vnfayre bi pe wykez. 13.. E.E. Allit. P. B. 1690 Faxe fyltered, & felt flosed hym vmbe, pat schad fro his schulderes to his schyre wykes. 1483 Cath. Angl. 417/2 A Wyke of ye eghe .., hirquus. 1570 Levins Manip. 122/24 Ye Wike of the eye, hirquus. 1607 Markham Cavel. 1. 82 To make some expert Horse farrier, to slit vp the weekes of your Horses mouth, equallie on both sides .. with a sharpe raysor. 1641 Best Farm. Bks. (Surtees) 14 A greate parte of theire meat, whiles that they are chewinge of it, workes forth of the wykes of their mouthe. 1709 M. Bruce Soul-Confirm. 18 (Jam.) We will let them ken that we will hing by the wicks of the mouth for the least point of truth. 1721 W. Gibson Dieting Horses viii. (1726) 128 If the Bit be too long or too short, it will injure the Horse’s Mouth, and cut his Weeks. c 1730 Ramsay Fables xviii. 14 To weed out ilka sable hair.. Frae crown of head to weeks of mouth. 1787 Grose Prov. Gloss., Wikes or Wikers (of the mouth), corners of the mouth. 01835 Hogg Tales, Hunt of Eildon (1837) III. 14 [He] now and then cast a sly look-out at the wick of his eye.

2. In full wick-tooth: see quot. 1726. 1726 A. Monro Anat. Bones 171 The Two inferior [Canini] are named angular or Wike-teeth, because they support the Angles of the Mouth. 1759 H. Walpole Let. to

Earl of Strafford 13 Sept., This noble summer is not yet over with us—it seems to have cut a colt’s week [cf. colt sb. 8 b]. Hence wicking (wyking), comer of the mouth. 1604 Mem. in N. & Q. 3rd Ser. III. 445/2 Her eyes stod in the wykinges of her mouth. 1886 S.-W. Line. Gloss., Weekin, s., the corner of the mouth. wick, sbf Sc. and dial. Forms: 7 weeke, 8 wike, 9

wick,

wik,

(occurring

in

wyck,

wyke.

place-names,

[a.

ON.

but

not

vik fern, usually

distinguishable in form from wick sb.2), whence app. also MLG. wik (LG. wiek, wicke), MDu. wijck, Fris. wik bay; f. OTeut. wik- to bend, as if = a bend.] A creek, inlet, or small bay. [1610 Camden Brit. i. 326 From hence the Tamis goeth to Green-wich, that is, the Green Creeke, for the creeke of a river in the old English tongue was called Wic, a place in times past famous for the Danish Fleet that lay there often at Rode.] 1664-5 Patent Roll 16 Chas. II, Pt. 8 (MS.) (Charter of the Royal Fishing Company) The greate Plentie of Fish wherewith the Seas Estuaries or Inletts Creekes Armes of the Sea Publick Rivers Weekes and Lakes of Our Dominions.. doe abound. 1753 Scots Mag. Aug. 417/1 We have as many [herrings] come into our wike as would fill 300 barrels. 1821 Scott Pirate xix, By beach and by cave,— .. By air and by wick. 1846 Brockett N.C. Gloss. (ed. 3), Wik, Wyck, or Wyke, a crook or corner, as in a river or the sea shore. 1878 R. D ick Geol. & Bot. viii. 85 Between this and Rough Head is a wick or bay. wick, sb.5 Sc. Curling and Bowls,

[f. wick v.2]

1. An act of wicking: see wick v.2, and cf. INWICK sb. 1823 Jas. Kennedy Poems 29 (E.D.D.). 1842 Chambers's Inform. People No. 84. 539 A player stepping aside to take a brittle (or wick), or other shot, shall forfeit his stone for that end. 2. = port sb.3 3 b. 1824 [see inwick ».]. wick, sb.6 ? dial.

[Related to wicker.] Wicker;

a wicker basket or creel. 1802 C. James Milit. Diet. s.v. Calote, Calotes are usually made of iron, wick, or dressed leather. 1821 Clare Vill. Minstrel II. 102 A captive fish still fills the anxious eyes, And willow-wicks lie ready for the prize. wick, a.1

Obs. exc. dial.

Forms: [2 wicci], 3-5

wicke, wikke, wik, 4 wic, wyc, 4-5 wycke, wykke, wyk, 5 wyke, (wekke), 4-5, 8-9 dial. wick. [orig. wicke, wikke, app. adj. use of OE. wicca wizard (of which the fern, is wicce witch); but perhaps an alteration of early ME. wicci (?:—*wicci$, f. wicca), of which the following is the only known instance: — 1154 O.E. Chron. (Laud MS.) an. 1140 t»t' king him sithen nam in Hamtun purhc wicci raed.] 1. = wicked a.1 i a, b. C120O Ormin 6185 3iff patt iss patt ^ho iss all wittlaes, & wac, 8c wicke. c 1220 Bestiary 593 He speken god-cunhede, and wikke is here dede. C1290 S. Eng. Leg. I 203/119 feondes lupere and wicke. c 1325 Metr. Horn. 28 Thair wike dedes. Ibid. 51 Sin and wik dedis. 13.. Cursor M. 2777 (Gott.) pe foule feluns wid wic entent. c 1386 Chaucer Pars. [P355 (Egerton 2726), The fende seith I woll chace and pursue man by wyk suggestion, c 1460 Towneley Myst. xxi. 262 Was ther neuer man so wyk bot he myght amende. £21500 Hist. K. Boccus & Sydracke (? 1510) /j, A..sowle synful and wycke Is also blacke as eny pycke. 1901 Sutcliffe Mistr. Barbara Cunliffe i, She’s just her maister ower again—same wick’ look o’ th’ devil about her. 2. a. = wicked a.1 2 a, b, c. a 1225 Ancr. R. 104 (MS. T.) Of swati hattre oSer of wikke air, a 1300 Cursor M. 27877 O glotori and o drunkenhede Fele wick branches se we sprede. 1340-70 Alex. e helle-hound.. Bope wakrong & wikke.