Current
mericanisms
c:
Current Americanisms
Current
Americanisms
A Dictionary of Words and Phrases
in Common Use
T. BARON RUSSELL
CA uthor of " Last ] 'car" etc.)
LONDON: HOWE & CO., Paternoster Row.
The American Language.
"Here will be an old abusing of God's patience and the King's Eng-
lish ! " — (Shakespeare) Merry Wives of ]i''md)ior.
We have everything in common with the United States, Mr.
Oscar WiUle says, "except, of course, the language." The para-
dox is daring, but not altogether extravagant. A very consider-
able number of words, phrases, and conventional metaphors are
not shared in common by the two brother nations ; and a still
larger number of such expressions have been coined in America
and gradually adopted here. It is an indisputable fact that
America is more fertile in neologisms than the old country, and in
these days of easy steamer transit, tlie importation of such words
and expressions is inevitable. IMany of them have found so hos-
pitable a welcome, that they are with dithculty recognisable as
Americanisms. Among the most potent influences which have
determined this blending of tongues, must be included tlie cur-
rency wliich American humour has obtained here. There are
literally scores of Englisli comic (or alleged comic) papers which
subsist almost entirely on the crumbs which fall from the
table of the trans-Atlantic joker ; and two American humorous
journals (Texas Siftitu/s and The Detroit Free Press J have actually
published special editions in Lomlon, though the former is now
"dead." Under these circumstances it is not very surprising that
numberless Americanisms have found their way into ordinary, if
not into educated s])eech, and it is a wise word which knows its
own fatherland. Probably ninety per cent, of the purely comic
5 ^
ICS???-!
6 THE AMERICAN LAXGUAGE.
reading matter printed in English periodicals comes from the
United States. "We are not a humorous nation, it would appear.
Of course the standard of good English is the same in both
countries, and American writers of the first rank do not write, nor
do well educated Americans speak, what is jestingly called "the
American language." Educated Americans are always more or less
indignant at the way in which the speech and accent of their country-
men are represented on the English stage. Perhaps dramatic truth
permits a little exaggeration, or dramatic convention requires it, in
this case. But, however this may be, the sjieech of an ordinary
American man or woman of average education, certainly differs
from that of well or fairly educated English people not alone in
accent, but in the use of the peculiar words and phrases which we
and they call Americanisms. Nevertheless, the two nations mix
too freely for difficulties of comprehension to occur. One of
the earliest writers on the subject, the Honourable John Picker-
ing, however, quite seriously anticipated Mr. "NVilde"s trope.
He gravely foreboded the evolution of a distinctive American
language, and conjured up ^ a fearsome picture of tlie time when
the writings of Milton, Pope, Swift, and Adilison should have be-
come unintelligible to educated Americans without a dictionary.
Americanisms have been defined by Mr. Andrew Lang as " modes
of expression which vary from the standard of good English, and
w^hich are either peculiar to America or chiefiy prevalent there."
The following definition (in The Euri/clojxrdia Americana) is less
neat, but perhaps more satisfactory: "In works by American
writers, many words may be found which are not their inven-
tion, but are taken from popular use, and wliich are either un-
known to Englishmen or used by them in a different sense. These
terms are occasionally really new words fashioned in a new country
to represent new ideas or to name new tools ; or they are old
English roots which have sent up suckers full of new meaning,
though still bearing the image of the parent stock. To these must
be added words of foreign tongues which the English of the
Americans has adopted and amalgamated with its own stock."
To the citizens of the United State?>, America is a term ordi-
narily synonymous with that great country which has had the
advantage of giving them birth. "When the encyclopaedist, there-
fore, speaks of American writers, he means writers in the States,
and I think the term Americanisms may be fairly restricted to the
•I Vocal)idar!/ ; or, Collection of Words, etc. Bo5ton, 1S16.
THE AMERICAN LANGUAGE. 7
lieculiar expressions of the United States. Nobody would dream
of calling a woid used only in Canada (say) or among English
speaking populations in the southern continent, an Americanism,
though, of course, Canada and the Argentine are just as much
parts of America as the States themselves. Even JMr. Goldwin
Smith has lent his sanction to tliis restriction of the word
"America," I find him writing that America is . . . "a continent
extending from regions almost arctic to regions almost tropical
(sic), embracing an immense variety of production, producing
nearly everything, in short, except tea and spices, with a market
of sixty-three millions."
I have not thought it desirable to exclude fiom this glossary old
English words which have survived in America tlieir obsolescence
here. No doubt sucli words are not Americanisms in any aca-
demic sense, liut then neither are any of the foreign words
which have found their way into common currency from tongues
other than English. These old English words would perhaps be
excluded on Mr. Lang's definition, as not varying from the standard
of good English- -at all events, the Americans who use them, have,
at least, an arguable case for the defence.
There are, then, jjlenty of Americanisms which were good sound
English when tiie Mcujjiowtr sailed, and have a pleasant familiar
ring on the listening ear to-day. The "American language"'
clasps in its com[)rehensive embrace the provincialisms of all Eng-
land. It is estimated by the best authorities that nine-tenths of
the expressions usually classL'd as Americanisms can be shown to
be provincial in some part or another of the mother country.
English is the language of the United States, even as it is that
of Great liritain ; and the standard of good English is the same in
both countiies. lint until comparatively recent progress bridged
the " fjeat gulf fixed " between England and America, language
may be said to have developed independently on each side, the
English of the Tudor period being their common base ; for, (as
Lowell sarcastically remarks,) the colonists " unfoitunately " had
no better language than Shakespeare's to take over with them. In
some instances, expressions lost in England have survived in the
United States, becoming thus, for all practical purposes, Ameri-
canisms : ^ for instance, "in good season " for "early" is common
1 Mr. Scheie de Vera says, " It will be seen that the number of true
Americanisms is, after all, very small, and many of these even will,
upon careful investigation, be found to be either revivals of obsolete worda
8 THE AMERICAN LA SOU AGE.
enough in America, though it wouM sound rather cumbrous
here. Such expressions as this I have not hesitated, even in the
face of Mr. Lang's definition, to include in the following vocabu-
lary, and indeed it would be mere pedantry to exclude them.
Even the peculiar pronunciation of English which we call the
American accent can be traced to the old country.
In the Tudor age, such persons as concerned themselves with
matters of the k'nd. agreed in considering the speech of the Trent
Valley the purest Saxon English of the day. It was being
softened and rounded then, from various causes, in the South,
especially through the influence of courtly refinements. The
characteristic drawl of New England closely resembles even now
the peculiar whining brogue of tlie Northern and Midland Countits,
Avhich Avas evidently carried across the Atlantic bj^ the Pilgrim
Fathers. "When that sturdy baud of pioneers set sail to seek
religious tolerance in new lands, they took with them the un-
tinctured speech of their own country, whine and all : and so it
continues even to this day. Pronunciation varies considerably,
however, within the limits of the Union. America was not
colonized from one part of England only, and the descendants
of Virginian cavalier settlers retain a distinctive accent and
vocabulary. In the South, foreign influence has left its mark also,
and, indeed, speech varies so widely tliroughout tlie States that a
well-travelled observer can usually tell from what point of the
compass a man has come. AVhat we know and wliat our actors
endeavour to imitate, as the American accent, is always the nasal
New England drawl or whine, the " peculiar high metallic ring of
the voice "' mentioned by Sir Charles Dilke. Tlie pronunciation
of the Southern American — that is, of thu flweller in the old slave
States — is very different, and has been largely tinctured by French
f nd Spanish influences. In describing a visit to the South after
long absence, Mr Samuel L. Clemens (Mark Twain) says :
"I found the half-forgotten Southern intonations and elisions
as pleasing to my ear as they had formerly been. A Southerner
talks music. At least, it is music to me ; but then I was born in
the South. The educated Southerner has no use for an r, except
at the beginning of a word. He says 'honah,' and 'dinnah,'and
' Gove'nuh,' and ' befo' the waw,' and so on. The words may lack
charm to the eye, in print, but they have it to the ear. When did
or imitations of well known terms."- Encyclopadia Americana (Art.,
"Americanisms").
THE AMERICAN LAXGUAGE. g
the r disappear from Southern speech, and how did it come to
disappear? The custom of dropping ic was not borrowed from tlie
North, nor inherited from P^ngland. Many Southerners — most
Southerners — put a // into occasional words that begin with the A'
sound. For instance, they say Mr. K'yahtah (Carter) and speak
of playing k'yahds or of riding in the k'yahs. And they have the
pleasant custom— long ago fallen into decay in the North— of fre-
quently employing the respectful 'Sir.' Instead of the curt Yes,
and the abrupt No, they say ' Yes, Suh,' ' No, Suh.'
"But there are some infelicities. Such as 'like' for 'as,' and
the addition of an ' at ' where it isn't needed. I heard an educated
gentleman say, 'Like the flag-officer did.' His cook or his butler
would have said, ' Like the flag-officer done.' You hear gentlemen
say, '"Where have you been at?' And here is the aggravated
form — heard a ragged street Arab say it to a comrade: ' I was
a-ask'n' Tom whah you was a-sett'a' at.' Tlie very elect carelessly
say 'will' when they mean 'shall;' and many of them say, 'I
didn't go to do it,' meaning ' I didn't mean to do it.' The Northern
word 'guess' — imported from England, where it used to be
common, and now regarded by satirical Englishmen as a Yankee
original — is but little used among Southerners. They say ' reckon.'
They haven't any 'doesn't' in their language; they say 'don't'
instead. The unpolished often use 'went' for 'gone.' It is
nearly as bad as the Northern ' hadn't ought.' Tliis reminds me
that a remark of a very peculiar nature was made liere in my
neighbourhood (in the North) a few days ago : 'He hadn't ought
to have went.' How is that ? Isn't that a good deal of a triumph ?
One knows the orders combined in this half-breed's architecture
without inquiring : one ])arent Northern, the other Southern.
To-day I heard a schoolmistress ask, ' "Wliere is John gone ? ' This
form is so common — so nearly universal, in fact — that if she had
iiscd 'whither' instead of ' where,' I think it would have sounded
like an affectation." '
Peculiarities of pronunciation and of spelling, however, I have
not attempted to discriminate in the following pages. " "Wagon,"
"traveler," " installmont," "honor," "color,'' "program,"'
"theater," "center," etc., are exami)les illustrating various
J From L'ife on the Mhaisn'iipi. For permission to quote this, antl a
number of illustrative extracts from works by Mark Twain and Mr. Francis
Bret Harte, published by Messrs. Cliatto & Win(i':s, my cordial acknow-
ledgments are hereby paid.
10 THE AMERICAN LANGUAGE.
types of mis-spelling wliicli American journals affect, and
with which they have partly dowered the mother country.
"When Mr. Brander Matthews asserts, however, that what
Americans call a "farm-hand," the English call an "agricultural
laborer,"" he says what I trust is not true. "We have not been very
kind to Hodge always, despite the three acres and the "lady-
bullock" which one hears of ; but I hope we still spell him a little
better than Mr. Matthews thinks. The London evening daily
called Th". Star has a friendly leaning towards such abominations
as "honor'' and "program," and is gently patronized by ]Mr.
Pitman accordingly. But, thanks to general good taste, even this
initiatory stage of the suggested spelling-reform is not likely to
make much ]jrogress, and we may hope that common orthography
will for many a kng daj continue to bear its witness to the history
of language and the birth of words.
Perhaps the distinctive religious character of the settlers may
also have something to do with the survival of archaic forms among
their descendants. The language of the then new English Bible was
constantly on their lips : we might be sure of the fact, if only from
the speech of their progeny. Thus the verb " to tarry '" is in quite
common use in its old Biblical sense, and so are the correct par-
ticiples, "liolpen," "gotten,"' and "holden."' Any kind of jug is
called a "pitcher"' ^ — even a small one — and the first day of the
week is often called not "Sunday,"' but the "Sabbath." The
Puritans had something of the Quakers" prejudice against Sun-day,
Moon-day, "Woden"s-day, etc. But perhaps the most noticeable of
Biblical Americanisms is the fine old phrase "in good season" for
" early,"' to which allusion has already been made : " Thou openest
Thine hand, and givest them their meat in due season."
To the Pilgrims the works of a mere play-actor would present no
very great attraction, and indeed they would have, no doubt, been
almost air abomination. Yet, to the general reader, Shakespeare may
often act the part of a gtiide to the archaisms of American diction.
Thus, when a door drags on its hinges, it is said to " sagg "' — an ex-
pression quite obsolete here, and one which might well be puzzling,
but for the familiar lines in Macbeth :
" The mind I sway by, and the heart I bear.
Shall never sagg with doubt nor shake with fear."
1 A jug in America means one of those narrow-mouthed stone jars, often
covered with wicker, used for holding spirits. The jug and basin of bed-
room furniture are called " a pitcher and wash-bowl."
THE A M ERIC A N LA NG UA GE. i i
The beautiful old English " fall '' for "autumn'' (used by Dryden)
is in universal use, and curiously enough, I note that ]Mark Twain
and Bret Harte constantly quote the old-fashioned pronunciation
"tetch"for "touch."' "Tetchy" for "touchy," "peevish," or
" fidgety," was familiar in Shakesi^eare's time ; Juliet's nurse
uses it.
It need scarcely be remarked that, to regard all local dialects as
corrupt defections from the well of English undefiled, is a vulgar
error. The Scotch accent and diction, for example, are not at all the
fruit of unsuccessful effort to sj)eak Englisli "as she is writ " ; and
good Scotch, so far from being the illegitimate offspring of standard
English, is rather its twin-sister. Similarly, as the provincialism
of the United States does not differ from classical English any
more widely than the provincialism of the London streets, the
name which we apply to it is simply a term of geographical descrip-
tion, and not (as Mr. Brander Matthews seemed recently to
suppose)! of reproach. Americanisms may be very good and useful
words indeed, but they are not less Americanisms on that account.
The growth of language is an evolution just like any other
organic development. New words are "sports," to borrow the
slang of natural history, and survive or die, according to their fit-
ness, in the struggle for existence. On the other haiid, however,
it must be borne in mind that in any evolution, the qualities which
determine the fate of variations may not always be those which
the tasteful observer would regard as the most desirable. Many
vulgarities and corruptions deface the English of the United
States : on the other hand, old and new expressions have often
kept or obtained currency in direct ratio to their wit, picjuancy, or
usefulness.
Broadly speaking, it may be said that neologisms are to be con-
demned in proportion to the convenience and i^recision with which
the same meaning can be conveyed by existing expressions. Thus,
even a purist can hardly object to words like "telephone,"
"phonograph," etc., the names of objects newly brought into
existence. Neither is it always possible to secure that such names
shall be the same in all English-speaking countries. New
words for new things liave often been coined independently
in England and America. Railway nomenclature differs widely.
The American rides in a "passenger car" in preference to "a
freiglit train " when he sets forth from the "depot" for an excur-
1 Haricr, July, ISO].
12 THE A M ERICA N LA XG f "A GE.
sion on the " railioatl."' The train is taken charge of by the
"conductor"' (who is a much more gorgeous iiKlividual than our
English ' ' guard"), and runs up or down "a grade," " where in England
it would perform those feats on a gradient. There are a good
many grades on an American rnilroad. Instances might be multi-
plied ad libitum. A lift in America is called an "elevator"
(■'ascending chamber" appears to be the latest Briticism for the
same contrivance). A keyless watch becomes a " stem-winder " as
soon as it crosses the Atlantic, and a stop-watch a " fly-back.''
The most interesting Americanisms of all, perhaps, are those
■which have a story to tell. Considering the shifting nature of the
population, it is curious to note how the distinctive provincial
character of different dialects in America has been preserved —
making it quite easy, for instance, to distingniyh the descendants
of the Mai/jioicer fathers from those of the Virginian cavalier
colonists, and the speech of the latter, again, from that of persons who
descend from the French settlers of Louisiana and Lower Canada.
The New AVorld, almost since its discovery, has been the great ab-
sorbent area of the globe. Foreigners of every speech throng to its
hospitable gates, which only recently have failed to open wide in
welcome to all nations. But what is most remarkable of all is the
way in which local words, among the most rtstless civilized popu-
lation in the world , mark beyond the possibility of error the history
of the districts to which they belong.
Thus the Dutchman, who was the first-comer in what is now
the State of Xew York, has still his history writ large in the land
over which he cast out his generously proportioned shoe. " Stoop,"
for the porch of a house, is readily recognisable as Dutch ;
"cookies"' are small cakes — Dutch both in name and in origin.
The now universal "boss," for a person in authority (there are no
masters in America), or, in general terms, a superior individual,
was, and is. "baas," in Holland. It has grown apace in its new
home, and has taken on adjectival functions : "Yes, sir I I've been
all around Yurrup [Europe] seeing the elephant, and I've had a boss
time, you bet I " It is also a verb — " to boss the show." If any-
thing could be consiiiered aristocratic in that intensely democratic
country, a Dutch surname (particularly with the j^refix, '" Yan ")
would be so. But as there are no aristocratic things in America (at
all events in Xew England), one must be content to record the fact
that to possess a cognomen Avith a "Van " in it is "real high-toned "
in the State of Ss'ew York. Very curiously, a Dutchman in
America means a German [dcutsche) ; the real Dutchman is called
THE AMERICAN LANGUAGE. 13
a Hollander, an expression difficult to surpass on the ground of
inelegance.
Louisiana, as its name hints, was colonized, like Lower Canada,
by the French, and the same localisms are foiind in both. ' ' IJankit "
(banquette), the footpath of a street (usually called in America tlie
"side-walk"), "bayou," and " crevasse " are instances. Tracts of
land between two rivers, over which l)oats or lumber (uusawn timber)
have to be conveyed by traction, are called in both Canada and the
Southern States of the Union "portages."
But of all civilized foreign tongues, Spanish has probably lent
most to the xVmerican language. Li all parts of the South and
South-AVest, innumerable local words betray a Spanish origin, the
long Mexican frontier exposing large surfaces to the corrupting
influence of the stranger's voluble speech. Of purely local uses,
sahe ! (whose equivalent is our own elegant "twig?"); pasear (a
short walk or excursion — also local in the Falkland Islands) ; adobe
(3 syll. — a kind of miburned clay, used for roofing in Mexico and
the South-"\Vest), and many others, have been made familiar
wherever English is spoken, and breezy rhythmic diction admired,
by the works of Mr. Bret Harte. "Lariat," "broncho," "lasso,"
"ranch," " stampede," and most expressions native to the cattle
industry, are also Spanish. " Vamoose," for ' ' go away " or "go away
from," is the pure Spanish Vamos. " Vamoose the ranch," figura-
tively, is, leave the premises. "Canon " (pronounced, and I regret to
fay, sometimes spelled, canyon) is another purely Spanish word
familiar to Mr. Bret Harte's readers. The well-known " bon-
anza " is likewise Spanish. It is applied in California to tlie dis-
covery of a ricli vein of gold or silver ; in other places (as Proctor
pointedly observes), to any big scheme by whicli, honestly or other-
wise, mucli money is made. It has furnished a name to countless
mining enterprises, and is current slang among stock-jobbers and
mining speculators ail over the States. A i)lay called "The Big
Bonanza " had a tremendous run there some years ago.
The aboriginal inhabitants of North America possess a nnmber
of dialects, rich in poetry and comprehensiveness, and generous
in loans to the invaders' speech. It is odd that the original error
of Columbus (who imagined that he had discovered the extreme east
of India) in calling the natives " Indians" should have been perpetu-
ated to our own day. I'he lied men, no longer noble, are fast being
starved, debauched, and cheated out of national and individual exist-
ence ; very soon all that will remain of them will be their mark on the
language of the exterminator. Geographical names are naturally
14 THE A M ERICA N LA NG UA GE.
the most numerous class borrowed from the aboriginal tongues,
having been first adopted locallj', and afterwards officially recog-
nised, a procedure infinitely preferable to the common and detest-
able practice in America of adopting European and Biblical proper
names, without reference to the prior use of the same names by
residents in otlier localities, often within a short distance. Erie,
Michigan, Huron, C.iuandaigua, Massachusetts, Chicago, Con-
necticut, and Chattanooga are examples of Indian nomenclature.
The names of indigenous plants and animals are, similarly, mo tly
Indian still. "Opossum"' — whence " 'possum '"("' "We'll hunt no
more for the possum and the coon"); "raccoon" ("coon"' — vide ^upra
— to which race belonged the astute quadruped which "came down"
when threatened by the settler's " shot-gun ") ; the expressive word
"skunk,"' the ai^pellaticn of an animal poetically known as " tlie
essence-peddler"'; "persimmon " (a kind of nut), "maize," "to-
bacco," " tapioca," " manioc," and "pemmican,"' are all examples
of Indian origin. The names of articles used by the Eed man
have retained their original names with more or less of accidental
corruption. " Hammock "and "moccassin"" are instances. "Canoe "
comes fiom the Caribbean Isles through the Spanish. It is hoped,
by students of comparative philology, that the phonograph may
save from ntter oblivion some of the aboriginal dialects ; and
but for its timely assistance, place-names and a few words of the
other classes above-mentioned might have been the sole survivals of
some very beautiful and copious dialects, which in not many years
will, in all human probability, have become dead languages. Mrs.
Eichard A. Proctor ("Stella Occidens"'), widow of the well-known
lecturer and astronomer, has collected and preserved with loving
hands the mythology of the tribes ; it is much to be lioped that
some competent persons may rescue from entire loss tlie languages
in which their legends were told.
As the Indian, conquered as he is, has left his mark in the
speech of his conquerors, so the Negro slave has his revenge in the
introduction of numerous grotesque words and expressions — first
humorously quoted, but at last adopted altogether, by the domi-
nant race. The Xegro"s tendency is directly contrary to that of his
quondam proprietor. The latter clips, abbreviates, and shortens ;
the Negro revels in redundancy and reduplication. His are " com-
busticatron " (for burning), "conniption-fit" (hysterics), " cata-
wamptious " (angrilj' eager), "absquatulate"' (to depart), and the
reduplicative "do-don't" — a nice derangement of epitaphs. The
erroneous use of lengthy and high-sounding wor>ls, quite in Mrs.
THE AM ERIC A yj LANGUAGE, 15
Malaprop's manner, is a standing joke at the Negro's expense, and
ladies and gentlemen of colour liave conventionalities and i)ro-
prieties all their own. Captain Marryat relates in one of his
books the incident of the modest coloured lady, whose delicacy
was outraged by the offer of a cut from tlie hraist of a turkey :
" Me take lilly turkey bosom, sah ! " Even a few Chinese i)hrases
have gained currency, usually in California only; but "first-chop "
(first-class, excellent) is universal.
Many local words liave gravitated into geneial use from political
circumstances, often owing their vogue to the same kind of hu-
morous imlulgence which gives currency to grotesque Negroisms.
Politicians in America, as with us, are expected to "stump the
country " at various times, addressing whatever hearers can be got
together by the local organizers, anil preaching the doctrines of
tlieir party. In this p:oc3ss an orator, desirous of winning the
ear and comprehension of an audience, will sometimes use local
or cant plirases to convey meanings wliich would otherwise not
easily be brouglit home to illiterate hearers. Any amusing, forcible,
or successful word or phrase which he may have adopted or devised,
will naturally impress itself upon the speaker's memory, and, b?ing
repeated in different situations, will unconsciously sidle its way
into his vocabulary, until some day it slips out in Congress or the
Senate. Being reported presently in the newspapers, it will thus,
in proportion to its fitness, survive in political and general plirase-
ology, and be adopted by journalists and speakers. The same
thing does not occur in this country, English audiences being rather
inclined to resent " talking down."
Among Americanisms of this class arise most of the false deri-
vatives which often have so peculiar an effect to an English eye.
"Donate" (verb), from "donation"; "approbate" (also verb),
from "approbation," and "obtusity" for "obtuseness" are in-
stances : "betterment " (of which the London County Council knows
somewhat) is, of course, "improvement." "Burgle" was derived
from "burglar" long before Mr. AV. S. Gilbert used it; and "to
l)eddle," from "pedlar," has taken so firm a foothold as to react:
a pedlar is usually spelled "peildler"— one who peddles— now !
Bartlett charges the clergy with this kind of iniquity, and instances
"donate" (which doea sound feasible), "doxologizo," "funeralize,"
and the shocking verb "to fellowship." For the last I can vouch
as a clerical expression : let us hope that it is a theologism
rather than a regular American word. "Reliable" for "trust-
worthy " (relyo«able) proves to have been used by Coleridge, so
1 6 THE A M ERIC A N LA NG UA GE.
that it is not (as many of us supposed) an Americanism after all, — •
even (alas Ii in the sense of being chiefly used in the United States;
and Mr. Brander ^latthews says that "scientist" was coined by
AVhewell in 1840, though I have not been able to verify the refer-
ence. "Webster refers it to Gould.
Perhaps the clergy are responsible indirectly for the numerous
euphemistic exclamations and
'• Pretty oaths by yea and nay, "
in which American speech abounds, and of which examples are
not needed. Tlie modesty of the Western hemisphere is a fear-
some thing, and one recollects the awkward position of the English
fisherman in a novel, who committed the shocking obscenity of
alluding, in polite society, to the spotted hack of a trout he had
captured. The American girl, as is well known, has nobody, even
as the Queen of Spain has no legs; a "waist" is the most one
may credit her with. Even a bodice is not a nice thing to mention
in high-toned circles (so called). The refined call it a "waist,"'
also. It is agreeable to note, however, that this ridiculous and
vulgar mock-modesty is not really as universal as some have pre-
tended, as an instance in Dr. Holmes' charming chats "Over the
tea-cups " will remind many readers. Of course, the real favt is,
that truly refined people in America, as all the world over, are
superior to those insincere pruderies, the mark of nothing more
than an intensely vulgar mental attitude. In one of the Break-
fast-table series the genial autocrat gently ridicules the "retiring
time" of the landlady's daughter. Bartlett says that "'Bull'
is 'refined' beyond the mountains, and perhaps elsewhere, into
'cowcreature," ' male-cow,' and even ' gentleman-cow " '"—the last,
surely, a supreme triumph of culchaw. One sometimes sees a
' ' lady-dog " offered for sale in England, but "male-sheep," ' ' male-
hogs," "gentlemen-turkeys," and "gentlemen-game-chickens" be-
long to the natural history of refined Boston only.
There are, of course, many other ways in which Americanisms
have been evolved, and I have not even hoped to do more than
indicate roughly how such expressions arise. Innumerable
words, phrases, and proverbs which obtain a temporary currency
originate in newspapers (as distinguished from other periodicals,
which are far less frequent sinners in this regard). It would be a
fruitless task to record these ephemeral neologisms. Mr. Farmer
has collected a large number of those indiWdualisms which chanced
to be in use when he constructed his glossary of Americanisms,
THE AMERICAN LANGUAGE. 17
Old and Nev). I have endeavoured to exclude both ephemeral,
individualistic, and local words, except where the last have been
expressions of exceptional permanence or interest. While I have
not scrupled to defend the use of expressions which appeared to me
defensible on grounds of convenience, antiquity, or precision, and
certainly have aimed at avoiding tliat "certain condescension in
foreigners" deprecated by Mr. Lowell, I hope that I may not have
apjieared wanting in reverence for the standard of correct English,
lb is hardly needrul, perhaps, as a plea for the defence, to remark
that the object has been to record rather than to criticize ; I am
not bound to take up the cudgels for every or any word defined.
It is worthy of note that the first writer on the subject, the Rev.
John "Witherspoon, D.D., LL.D., President of Princeton College,
New Jersey (who printed thei'eon three essays in a kind of periodi-
cal series called The Druid, in 1701), as well as most of his
successors in the work, speak always deprecatingly of the use of
Americanisms. "SVitherspoon Avas not of American birth, having
been born and educated in Great Britain. Though not mention-
ing the date of his emigration, he takes occasion to remark that he
was not transported. He cites several Americanisms which are still
in use, notably the distinctive use of "clever" to mean good-
natured, which Webster marks as peculiar to tlie United States. ^
He likewise notes the omission (which was only then beginning to
be general) of tlie words "to be" after the verb " to order '--" these
things were ordered delivered." He gives also "equally as good
as " (which is probably not an Americanism in any sense) : " spell,"
for a turn of work, or a short period (which he rightly thinks is
nautical)-: "chunk" (which he says meant a brand of half-burnt
wood): "mad," for "angry,"^ "considerable " in the present (Ameri-
can) use : and " tot " (now spelled tote; thought by Webster to be of
African origin) for the verb "to carry." •* The Hon. John
1 Proctor refers to the case of an English lady, tohl in America tliat a
servant was "clever, but not smart," who tliougiit slie had found just the
girl she wanted— handy but not dressy ; she found the girl kindly, but
stupid. --A'/io(/-/e'?(/»', April, 188G.
- Webster illustrates it by "A spell at the pumps."
3 Used somewhat in this sense, however, in Acts xxvi., 11.
4The collected works of Dr. Witherspoon, containing the Druid Essays,
weru published in 4 vols., Philadelphia, 1^U1. In the list of subscribers at the
end is the name of Oliver Wendell, Esciuire, of Boston— after whom, doubt-
less, the ' 'Autocrat of the Breakfast-Table" may have been christened. There
is a copy of the book in the British Museum, 'Jnd edit., 1602. Witherspoon
i8 THE AMERICAN LAXGUAGE.
Pickering, already mentioned in this introduction, i)ublished a
Vocahulary, or Collection of Words, such as we should call
Americanisms (Boston). He thinks the want of polish among
his literary compatriots due to the lack of professional authors, and,
like SVitherspoon, deprecates the use of words such as he has
noticed, quoting on his title-pago (from Cicero) the words, '' Atque,
lit Latine loquamur, rivendiim est, tit verba efferamus ea quce nemo
jure reprehendat'' (De orat.). Pickering visited London from
17!)!) to 1801, and, noting the differences of speech then existing,
commenced to collect instances of Americanisms. His final
dictum on the subject is worth quoting. He says : " As a general
rule, we should undoubtedly avoid all those words which are
noticed by English authors of reputation as expressions with
which they are unacquainted, for, althoug'n we might jjroduce
some English authority for such words, yet the very circumstance
of their being thus noticed by well-educated Englishmen is a proof
thnt they are not in use at this day in England, and, of course,
ought not to be employed elsewhere by those who would sjieak
correct English."' A letter from Xoah AVebster, the lexicographer,
to Pickering, on this subject was published as a pamphlet in 1817
(Boston), but the British ^Museum, I regret to say, does not possess
a copy, nor have I been able to refer to it elsewhere. A paper
read by Dr. T. Komeyn Beck before the Albany Institute (Albany,
State of New York) on March 18th, 1820, annotates Pickering's
Vocahularii, and gives several additional words. Beck agrees witli
Pickering in thinking accessions to the language undesirable. " If
we permit these last," he says, "we shall never arrive at a higher
honour than to be placed among those who use dialects. AVe may,
and ijrobably shall, in a few years, present the spectacle of exceed-
(who was one of the signatories to the Peclaration of Independence) claims
to have originated the word " Americanism.' He says : '" [By] American-
isms, ... I understand, an use of phrases or terms, or a construction of
sentences, even among persons of rank and education, different from the
use of the same terms or phrases, or the construction of similar sentences,
in (ireat Britain. It does not follow, from a man's using these, tliat be is
ignorant, or his discourse upon the whole ineleirant ; nay, it does not fol-
low in every case, that the terms or phrases are worse in themselves, but
merely that they are of American and not English growth. The word
Americanism, which I have coined for the purpose, is exactly similar in
its formation and signification to the word Scotticism. By the word
Scotticism is understood any term or phra-e, or indeed anything either in
construction, pronunciation, or accentuation that is peculiar to North
Britain."— L'ri<id, No. V.
THE AMERICAX LAXGUAGE. 19
ing Great Britain in numbers \yiz., in population] ; hut the pride
of this annunciation will not be heightened in the mind of any true
lover of literature by the fact that the most populous nation is in-
troducing words which are unknown to the other.'"i Among later
writers may be mentioned Seth T. Hurd ('Grammatical (^ovrector.
Pliiladelphia, 1.S47— a very small book), and B. H. Hall (CoUectioi
of CoUene Words and Customs J. Mv. Alfred L. Elwyn i^ublished
(Philadelphia, 1851)) a hopeful-looking, but very disappointing work
called A Glossary of Supposid Americanisms, jjurporting to trace
back to their original sources English provincialisms in general
American use.-
Professor Scheie De Vere, who contributes tlie article "American-
ism " to the Enciiclopa'dia Americana, lias written by far the most
readable of all the books on the subject (Amerirani-sins, New Yoik,
1872). This quality carries with it the defect (largely repaired by a
most copious and painstaking index) of a grouping, instead of lexico-
graphical arrangement.
But the standard authority in all respects is J. R. Bartlett, a
fourth edition of whose Dictionary of Americanisms was published
in 1877, which is by far tlie most comprehensive and authoritative
handbook extant. "Wherever Bartlett is referred to in the follow-
ing pages, however, the previous edition is intended, as the 1877
edition is unaccountably missing at the British IMuseum. ]5artlett
is erudite, comprehensive, and exceedingly trustworthy, despite
rather coi)ious detraction. It must be admitted that his sense of
humour (a quality highly necessary to the undertaking) is some-
what blunt. Tliis quality, liowever, was possessed in abundance
by the late Kicliard A. Proctor, who had exceptional facilities
for observation of the subject, and who commenced a most amus-
ing series of notes, chiefly founded on Bartlett (but enriched and
illustrated by numerous anecdotes, and coloured delightfully by
the interesting personality of the com])iler) in Knoivled;re. Tlie
notes terminated prematurely with the lamented deatli of I\lr.
I'roctor, in September, 1888, a death which impressed all readers
of liis writings with a sense of personal deprivation, as his vivid
1 Albany Institute Transadion-o, 1830, vol. i.
- Such words are very common, thus, to quote but one instance, "Pie "
for a fruit tart, is, I believe, East- .Vngli can ; doubtless Dr. Jessop could,
an if he would, tell sometliing about it. All fruit tarts are pies, how-
ever, in the United States, and pumpkin ])ie is lauded by its consumers
as a confection not unworthy of ixx^tic immortality, iihubarb is uni-
versally known as "pie-plant " in the United States.
2D THE AMERICAN LANGUAGE.
personality and jovial, hearty pugnacity had always impressed
them with a sense of personal acquaintanceship. Mr. Charles
Ledyard Norton has collected an interesting, but far from ex-
haustive glossary of Political Americanisms (published in London
and Xew York by Messrs. Longmans, Green & Co.).
Mr. John S. Farmer has published by subscription a very copious
glossary of Americanisms, Old and Neio (London, 1888). In-
deed this voluminous work sins chiefly in excess, as already hinted,
containing, as it does, many words, which can only be regarded as
individualismsand localisms. It is a very painstaking and compre-
hensive work, containing, I believe, every wo-rd mentioned by
Bartlett, De Vere, Proctor, and the others. Mr. Farmer's work
is especially valuable for its elucidation of cant words and i^hrases,
a subject on which his authority is supreme.
The scope of the present modest glossary is not, of course, limited
to words and exi)ressions sanctioned by standard American authors,
but it would be too much to hope that all tlie cosmopolitan slang
of the Western hemisphere could have been catalogued in the
small space here at command ; and purely cant words have been
purjjosely excluded. I have tried to set down the most common
of the words I know or have met with, which come under a very
elastic definition of the term " Americanisms,'" and to illustrate by
quotation, iihrase, anecdote, or comment those which api)eared to
need such elucidation.
Of the imperfections and shortcomings of the work I am abun-
dantly conscious, but as a guide to a class of Avords and phrases
increasingly current in English speech and literature, it is hoped
that it may supjdy a want certainly not unfelt ; while, as an indt x
to expressions whose original paternity, whether English or
American, may have become doubtful, or may not be generally
known, it may perhaps be useful to citizens of both nations. It
would be too much to hope tliat errors should not have crept in,
despite not inconsiderable pains employed to exclude them.
Eeaders, therefore, who have met with Americanisms not included
here, or who have detected shades of meaning which are not noted,
will confer a jiersonal favour by communicatirg with the author.
X
Dictionary ol Americanisms.
Aberg-oins. \ Aborigines : Indians. Simply illiterate, but
Abrogans. J sometimes used jocularly. A little humour is a
dangerous thing.
Aboard. (Prep.) Not exclusively nautical. Thus: — aboard
a train ; or even, aboard a mule. "All aboard" — complete.
Abolitionist. One who favoured the abolition of Xegro
slavery. A term of reproach or honour, according to latitude ; still
of the fonner in the South.
Aboriginal. Indian. Mr. Farmer says the word is some-
times used erroneously for "original," but cites an instance where
it certainly is not so used :
"Kobertson, equally a descendant of Pocohontas, had the Indian
eye, and the wliole cast of his countenance was aboriginal." —
Letters from the South.
About right. (Adv.) Well.
"I fell foul of the old mare, and if I didn't give it licr about
right, then there's none o' me, that's all ! " — Nero En;/Iand Stories.
Above your bend. \ These charming Americanisms
Above your huckleberry. J have for their English analogue
the not less tasteful, " Th;its before you bought your shovel,"
i.e. something which you cannot do.
Abrogans. See Abergoins.
Absquatulate. To aKscond : to go away. IJnrtlctt calls it a
"factitious" (qy. facetious ?) vulgarism, and cites the following
devotional instance :
21 fi
22 DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS.
"Hope's brightest visions absquatulate with their golden
promises before the least cloud of disappointment, and leave not
a shin-plaster behind.'" — Doic's Sermons, vol. i.
According- to Gunter. The exact equivalent of our own
"According to Cocker."' Gunter, like Cocker, w.is a well-known
arithmetician. The force of parallelism could not farther go.
Acequia and Azequia. (Spanish.) A ditch for irrigating
purposes. The main ditch is called Acequia Madre. See Zequia.
Acknowledge the corn, to. To confess to a charge or im-
putation.
Across lots. As the crow flies : the shortest way. A lot is a
piece of ground apportioned for sale or lease : thus, building lot, a
piece of ground sohl or let for building purposes. To travel across
lots, therefore, is to rush over all obstacles, in jireference to pursuing
paths and turning corners. Bartlett cites a singularly effective
use, from the saintly lips of Brigham Young, who is reported as
saying :
"I swore in Xauvoo, when my enemies were looking me in the
face, that I would send them to hell across lots if they meddled
with me." (1857.)
Mr. Farmer calls this instance '•' historical,"" but quotes it in-
correctly.
Addressee. The person to whom a letter or other object is
addressed.
Admire. Used not only in the ordinary English sense of to
esteem or venerate, but in the archaic sense of to wonder. Milton
curiously uses the word in the double sense in the following lines :
" The invention all arlmired, and each, how he
To be the inventor missed."
That is, all admired (esteemed) Satan's contrivance of cannon, and
each admired (wondered) how he came to miss the idea himself.
" Let none admire
That riches grow in Hell "
is another instance of Milton's i;sual employment of the word,
ivhich. however, is practically obsolete here, though common in
the United States. A third use is, " I should admire to go
to Europe,"' meaning, I should like very much to do so. Not
unknown in eastern counties of England.
DICTION A RY OF A M ERIC A NISMS. 23
Adobe. {tri-syU.)\ Sun-burned or unbaked clay, used for
Adobie. j building and roofing in the South.
Adulterer. Not onlj' an infringer of the seventh command-
ment, Ijut also one who adulterates. An American, in one of the
novels of Charles Reade (by no means conspicuously successful in his
American conversations),, s])eaks of someone breaking both the
seventh and eighth commandments in connection with an inven-
tion of his :
" He first adulterated it and then stole it." — Hard Cash.
Advise with, to. To take counsel with a person, in the
sense of obtaining advice. " Advisement,"' for " consideration " (to
" have a subject under advisement"'), is also quite common.
Advisory. (Adj.) Acting in the capacity of an adviser.
*' If tlie accomplished secretary of the A'uthors' Society really
could discover the golden secret of conducting the publishing
business without serious risk and serious losses, he could be guar-
anteed a far larger income as an advisory partner in a ])ublishing
firm than he is probably able to earn even from his successful
books." — (G. H. Wxiimxn) Forum, Sept., 1891.
Affection, to. (V.) To love or have an affection for. Used
by Judge Haliburton.
Afore. Before ;
Aforehand. Beforehand; and
Aforetime. Before. Archaisms, which still partly survive.
After night. ( Elliptical) After nightfall.
Ag-g-ravate. Used in the sense of maltreat, in addition to
the correct signification.
Aguardiente. (Spanitih.) Lit. ]]urning water. "A kind of
brandy, distilled from red wine." — BarUett. Any kind of ardent
spirit is so called, however, on the Mexican frontier.
Ahead. Forward : go ahead : forge ahead, etc. Dickens
says that when an Englisliman is satisfied he says, " All right,"
hut that au American says, " Go ahead," and that the distinction
is perhaps characteristic of the two nations.
Airly. Early. Merely a mispronunciation, like "air" for
" are."
Albany beef. Flesh of the sturgeon, wliich is largely cap-
tured at Albany, New York.
24 DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS.
Alderwoman. A female alderman, obviously. The term
was jocularly suggested by the Pcdl Mall Gazette at the time of
Miss Cons' election to the London County Council. !Mr. Farmer,
however, quotes a use of it, apparently without jocular intent,
from the Chicago Inter-Ocean, 1;>88.
Alienism. I The condition of being an alien. Given by
Alienage. J AVorcester and AVebster. Law term.
All. All summer, all winter, etc., are used (just as we say
"all night '"' for all the night), in place of all tlie summer, etc.
All-fired. That is, hell-fired: enormous: excessive. "A
low expression,"' says Bartlett, innocently.
Allot, to. To consider.
" There must have been a charming climate in Paradise. The
temperature was perfect, and connubial bliss, I allot, was real jam-
up." — (Sam Slick) Nature and Human Nature.
Allottee. One who acquires or receives an allotment.
Allot upon. To decide. An expression which has gained
ground since Pickering, writing in 181(3, described it as chiefly
used in the interior of New England and never among persons of
education. "Some use the verb 'to count upon' in the same
manner," he adds.
Allo"W. To declare, to assert, to maintain, without any sense
of admitting. Proctor says of this expression, that it is often put
by English writers into the mouth of Yarkees, but really used
only in the South and middle States.
All-possessed. (Perhaps hell-possessed.) Mad : possessed
by demons.
"P.ill Jenkins was a dreadful mean man; used to get drunk
everyday, and swore like all-possessed Avhen he got mad." — Widow
Bedott Papers.
All sorts of. Excellent : first-rate : ''' out-and-out good."
All there. Familiar with a siibject : correct.
All through the piece. Altogether. Borrowed from cloth
trade obviously, f scd by Sam Slick. See Cloth and Piece.
All to pieces and All to smash. Excessively : utterly.
"I lickel him all to pieces."
Die TIOXA R y OF AMERICA NISMS. 25
Almighty. (Adj.) Excessively great or excessively power-
ful, e.^/. " Tlie almighty dollar." (Adv.) Exce sively. A kind cf
" forcible " qualification, having some of the comforting quality
of strong language without the disadvantage of sounding unequiv-
ocally profane.
Alone. (Adj.) Sole: only. "The alone God."— P/c/eri«i/.
See Seldom.
Along-. Tse 1 redundantly and without meaning, in expres-
sions of time: "along at first," "along three weeks ago," etc.
Not to be confounded with " to be along," which means simjily to
be present, or, as Americans say, to be around.
" "We had church Sundays. Xot many there, along at first ; but
by-and-by pretty good turnouts. I've seen service stop a minute,
and everybody sit quiet— no voice heard, pretty funeral-like then
— and all the more so on account of the awful boom and crash
going on outside and overhead ; and pretty soon, when a body
could be heard, service would go on again. Organs and church-
music mixed up with a bombardment is a powerful queer combina-
tion—along at first." — (Mark Twain) Life on the M ississippi.
" A glance at these tourist books shows us that in certain of its
aspects the Mississippi has undergone no change since those
strangers visited it, but remains to-day about as it was then. The
emotions produced in those foreign breasts by these aspects were
not all formed on one pattern, of course ; they had to be various,
along at first, because the earlier tourists were obliged to originate
their emotions, whereas in older countries one can always borrow
emotions from one's predecessors." — Ihid.
Along-, to get. To get along is simply to get on, just as to
look around is to look round.
" I have a pr.judice against people who print things in a foreign
language and add no translation. When I am the rea<l<r, and tiie
author considers me able to do the translating myself, he pays
me quite a nice compliment — but if he would do the translating
for me I woul 1 try to get along without the compliment."— (Mark
Twain) A Tramp Ahrom/.
Alter, to. Euphemism for to castrate an animal.
Ambish, to. To be anxious or ambitious. False <lerivative.
A piece of newspaper slang which has obtained an immerited and
most undesirable popularity. Compare Approbate, Donate,
etc. Sometimes the verb ie " to ambition," i)ure and simple !
26 DICTIONARY OF AMEhVCAXISMS.
Ambition. (N.) Sometimes used for "spite."
AmbitiOTis. Sometimes signifies ill-tempered : violent : un-
manageable. (Georgia and Western States cnhi.) One reads of
an "ambitious" horse !
Americanism. Defined by "Webster as " a love of America
and preference of her interests." Dr. "Witherspoon claims, with
apparent justice, to have coined the use of the word as ajiplied to
distinctive American phraseology.
Amnesty Oath. See Damnasty.
Annunciator. An electric bell-pash.
Antag'onize. To convert into an enemy. A distinctive
American use, in addition to the ordinary English sense of to
oppose.
" A publication which is paid for is generally welcomed and pre-
served by the subscriber, while the calling of ladies to their doors
in order to hand them a circular is almost sure to antagonize those
whom it is desired to interest, and cause them to resent as intru-
sions the announcements thus thrust ui)on them." — Printer s Ink,
181)1.
Ante. (Spelled " anti " by Bartlett. ) To stake a sum at pok^r,
or to pay into the pool or kitty at round games. The plate for
the pool is called a buck : Avhence "ante and jiass the buck.''
Anxletude. Anxiety. Pickering says he has only once seen
this word, but omits to express the gratitude appropriate to this
circumstance. It is uncom-mon, but by no means unique.
Anxious Bench. A seat at revival meetings set aside, in the
manner of the Salvation Army, for converts : the stool of repent-
ance.
Anything- else, not. "A hj-perbolical j^hrase, denoting a
strong affirmation, which has recently spuing up," says Barllett
(ed. 18G0).
"Didn't Gen. Cass get mad at Hull's cowardice, and break his
sword ? He didn't do anything else. " — JVeirspaper, cited hij Bartlett.
Appellate. Relating to appeals : having jurisdiction in cases
of appeal. ' ' Appellate court "—an appeal court.
Appetizer. Anything which stimulates hunger.
Apple-Jack. A strong liquor fermented from ajiple juice.
•'"When good," says Proctor significantly, " veri/ good."
Die TIONA RY OF A ME RICA NISMS. 27
Applejees. A Dutch delicacy, said to be compounde 1 of fat
pork and ai)ples, which certainly soundsDutcli. [Dutch, "appeltjes").
Applicant. One who applies himself closely to his studies
(such as Eton boys call a "sap " — qy. Sapiens ?). Common in New
England.
Appreciate. A coined word from depreciate, of which it is
the antitliesis. Chiefly used of gold, in the sense of its increased
value in proportion to silver, which has for many years been steadily
depreciating. The appreciation of gold is the otlier view of the
same fact. This sense is not given in Johnson, but ^Vebster gives
"Appreciation : a rising in value."
Approbate, to. (False derivative from "approbation.") To
feel or express approbation : to a]>prove. Also, in speaking of a
minister, one who is approbated means one licensed to preach. In
this latter sense perhais a different word separately derived from
Lat. "probo,"I test or examine. Todd's Johnson gives "approbate,
adj. {obsolete), approved."
Approbated. (From "approbate.") Licensed to preach.
Arbor Day. A day set aside in the Western States for the
planting of trees and festivities connected tlierewith, a ceremony
which has proved of great service in unwooded districts. Originated
in Nebraska about twelve years ago.
Arctics. Fur-lined foot-gear.
Argufy. To argue.
" I listen to a preacher and try to be the better for his argufy-
ing."— (Sam Slick) Nature and Human Nature.
Arkansas toothpick. A bowie knife with closing blade.
Proctor had never seen an Arkansas l)owie actually used as a
toothpick ; but after what lie liad seen in that way, could believe
anything.
Armory. Not an armoury, or place where weapons are kept,
but a gun factory.
Around. Near or by. Proctor heaid a preacher speak of
Mary as "standing around the Cross." Sec At.
Arrette. A decree or proclamation. [Vrcnch, "arret.")
"In si)ite of arrettes and commands to the contrary, he found
means secretly to convoy a letter." — (Trumbull) History of the
Discovery 0/ America, 1810.
28 D/CTIOXAKY OF AMERICAXISMS.
As long- as. Because : since, " As long as you re going
there you might as well tote this along with you."
Associational. (Adj. ) False derivative from "association."
At, For '* by." " .^ales at auction," " Positively no goods at
retail," are common announcements in American warehouses. The
American use of prepositions is always worth noting. They walk,
and houses are built, on the street : they arrive, when punctual,
on time : they stand or walk around.
At that. A sort of intensifying expression, thought by
Proctor to have been abbreviated from "'added to that." (Doubt-
ful. )
Aiinty. Familiar salutation of plantation origin. The old
negresses were often tenderly attached to the children of their
owners, who addressed them as "aunty,"' "uncle," etc. "Uncle
Tom," for example.
Authoress. Pickering regards this word (and any patriotic
Briton must wish to agree with him) as an Americanism. Perhajs
manageress, tailoress, and similar abominations are so likewise —
a consolation devoutly to be wished.
Available. ~| Classed as Amedcanisms by Bartlett. Ob-
Availability, jjectionable on the same ground as " reliable " :
should be "availo/able," " availo/ability '■— if anything.
Availed of. Informed of : also, accepted.
"The members of a pojmlar government should be continually
availed of the situation and condition of every part." — Wilherspoon
(example).
"The newspapers sometimes say 'an offer' (for instance) 'was
made, but not availed of.'"— Bartlett.
Avails. Proceeds of goods sold.
A"way, Meaningless prefix to certain adverbs : as " away up,"
"away down," " away back," etc. Sometimes written, and alwjiys
pronounced, icay up, down, back, etc.
Away from the pack. Out of the common.
A"wful. Disagreeable : detestable : ugly (Xew England) : also,
excessive ("Peculiar to the West," says Bartlett. "In the
Eastern and Middle States one often hears, 'awful handsome, aw-
ful hungry,' and so on," says Proctor.) Probably a universal
DICriOXARY or AMERICANISMS. 29
vulgarism, which it is an awful pity to have imported into this
country.
Ax, to. To ask. Very old English ; common in Chaucer.
Lowell often puns upon it, as in the following example :
" I fill believe in any plan
O' levyin the taxes,
Ez long ez, like a lumberman,
I git jest what I axes.'
— Biijloiv Papers.
Azequia. See Acequia, Zequia.
Back, to talk. To answer impudently.
Backbone. Moral courage : firmness : will-power. Of poli-
tical origin.
Back down. To withdraw [a charge or accusation].
Back-house. A w.c.
Back of. Behind.
Back-out. ( V. and N.) V. To abandon a position : N.
the said abandonment. Si/non>/m — "To take the back track."
Back seat, to take a. To admit failure : to retire : to
" weaken."
" Since Clay Ewing ste])pod out of the race for the supreme
bench, Jefferson City has taken a back seat."' — (J. "NV. Beverley)
Missouri Ilcpuhlicdii, 1<S>(S.
Back teeth afloat, to have one's. Tobe (metaidiorically)
full of li(pud, either from excessive drinking or other causes.
Badg-er State. Wisconsin.
Bad lands. "Waste ground.
Bag-g-age. Passengers' luggage.
Bag-g-ag-e-car. Luggage-van.
Bagg-ag-e-smasher. A porter (erroneously) supposed to take
care of luggage. With delightful unconsciousnes.s of the humour
of it, Bai tlett defines it thus: "A man wlio transfers l>a^gage to
and from railroad cars, steamboats, etc. So cilU'd from the reck-
less manner in which those persons handle the proi)erty of tra-
vellers,"
30 DICTIOXARY OF AMERICANISMS.
Bail your own boat. To "paddle jour osvn caiioe"" : to
rely upon your own exertions.
Bake oven. Oven.
Bake-shop. ) .,1,1
Bakery. » ^"^^'^^^^^^"^^^V-
Balance. Eemainder. A mercantile term adopted into or-
dinary phraseology. Proctor heard " Peter and Andrew, with the
balance of the Twelve, stood around."' "The word is used in
Congress," says Pickeiing, "but only by the Southern members,
in the following manner : A member moves, that the first section
of a bill should be amended, and the balance of the bill struck out."
Bald eag-le. The national emblem is a bald-faced eagle, and
the term "bald eagle"" has been used as a nickname for seve'^al
political orators to whom the adjective ha^ipened to apply.
Bald-face. Common whisky ; or, as Mr. Farmer says.
" A villainous compound, which only by courtesy can be recognised
as whisky." Also called "Eed-eye whisky," a name which Bartlett
finds figurative and appropriate. "Forty rod lightning " is whisky
supposed to kill or intoxicate in the time that distance can be
traversed.
Balloon, to. To raise the price of commodities or stocks by
illegitimate means : to fraudulently inflate prices.
Ballot-box stuflang'. A form of political dishonesty, now-
rendered impossible, by which the party holding office at the poll-
ing stations was enabled to falsify or add to the electoral vote.
Bang. A curl [of hair].
Bang up. First-rate.
Bankable. Negotiable : susceptible of being received or dis-
counted at a bank [of bills, notes, etc.].
Banner. (Adj.) The best. See Banner State.
Banner State, etc. The State, city, or other political division
giving the largest number of votes to a candidate for election.
Bankit. 1 p^otpath, or " side-walk," as Americans say.
Banquette. J ^
" The young coloured population of Xew Orleans were much
given to flirting at twilight on the banquettes of the back streets."
— (Mark Twain) Life on the Mississippi.
Bar. For "bear." A mispronunciation originally.
DICTIOXARY OF AMERICANISMS. 31
Barbecue. Properly speaking, the act of cooking a pig,
sV.eep, or other animal, whole (de barbs a queue), in which sense
Pope and "Ingoldsby '' use it. A " barbecued" hog is a frequent
attraction at ]Jolitical open-air meetings in the South and West,
and a "barbecue"' has come to mean almost any out-of-door meeting.
itrteriztto. } To fulfil tl.e functions of a Fi.jaro.
Bark up the -wrong- tree, to. Hunting expression, taken
from tlie example of a dog making a mistake, and barking
against the wrong tree to attract attention to game which he
supjioses to be hiding above him.
"If you think to run a rig on me, you have made a mistake in
the child, and barked up the wrong tree." — Sam Slick.
"'I raytlier guess there's i)etticuts goes with them mud-
mashers.' The gal she flamed up at that, and says she : ' I guess
youre bavkin' up the wrong sapliu".' '' — Orpheus C. Kerr.
Bar'l. Barrel. A supply of money for purposes of corruption.
Barn-burners. A section of the Democratic party in the
State of New York, in 1842-1848, at the time of Dorr llebellion.
Barrel boarder. A tramp.
Bar-tender. Tlie attendant in charge of a public-house.
Si/nonym — "bar-keeper"; and familiar, "bar-keep'." A very
"high-toned" and gorgeous individual generally.
Bawdy. Used in the old English sense of indecent.
Bayou. The outlet of a lake.
Bay State, the. Massachusetts.
Beach-comber. A long wave ru nning in from the ocean along
the shore, "lieach-combers" are defined in Smyth's Sailors^ Won!
Book as loiterers around a bay or harbour, and "beachcombing"
as loafing about a i)ort to filch small things.
Beaker. Atumblcr. {Dutch, "beker")— arcmnantof thcDutch
influence. A glass vessel shaped somewhat like a drinking-glass is
termed a " beaker" by cliemical analysts in England : in the sense of
a tumbler the word is now obsolete except in America :
" Then fill to-night with hearts as light
To loves as gay and fleeting
As bubbles that swim on the beaker's brim
And break on the lips while meeting."
—C. F. Hoffman.
Bear State. Arkansas,
32 Die TIOXA R Y OF A M ERIC A NISMS.
Beat. To surjiass : to astonish. — Dead-beat : a wortbless
fellow, who has nothing and will earn nothing lionestly.
Beautiful. Used, as an Americanism, in exactly the same
(incorrect) manner and with the same (erroneous) meaning as
"elegant," which sec.
Bedrock. (Fi<j.) Theroot of a matter: mining term. Ve;y
graphic and forcible.
Bedspread. Counterpane : coverlet.
Bee. A gathering for a specific puri)ose, usually enlivened hy
subsequent jollity. Originally a settler's term for meetings for
one purpose and another, organised by old settlers for the benefit
and assistance of a new-comer. Familiar enough now in England
in the compound form, "spelling-bee."'
Bee line. A straight course : as the crow flies.
Beef cattle. Animals destined for the butcher, as opposed
to those used for draught purposes.
Beef dodger. A biscuit made of beef and Indian corn.
Beerjerker. A hard drinker.
Begin. "It doesn't begin to . . ."' It does not approach
the object of comparison in merit, importance, or in whatever the
ground of consideration may be.
Beg-osh. Euphemistic oath. (Negro.)
Behindments. Arrears : liabilities : deficits.
Being- as. Since : because. (Western.)
Believe, to. "I believe I will do so and so" is used where
we should say in England, " I think, etc."'
Belittle. To make little or less in a moral sense : to depreciate
in reputation. "Rare in America ; not used in England,"' says
"Webster, citing Jefferson, who is thought by Pickering, quite
erroneously, to have a monopoly of it. The passage alluded to is
in President Jefferson's Notes on Virginia, Query Gth. It is to be
noted that "belittle" means not only to make less or lower, but to
speak of thus, slanderously or iaappreciatively.
Belly bumper. A sledge for sli<ling down a snow-covered
hill in the posture elegantly suggested by the title : the fore-
runner of the toboggan. Synonyms — "belly gut," "belly plumper,"'
" belly trimbo," " belly flounder," "belly flump." All being equally
elegant, the reader is free to choose.
Die TIO.XA RY OF A M ERIC A NISMS. 33
Belly grits. Treacle toffee. (Pennsylvania.)
Belong-ing-s. Possessions. Trousers are sometimes called a
gentleman's "belongmgs " by those whose modesty is so great as to
be shocked by the gross reflections raised in their minds by the
correct api^ellation of these obscene garments. One doubts whether
in really *' high-toned " society it can be tolerable to even wear
any tiling so vulgar as "belongings/' for surely to exhibit that which
the truly modest will not even mention, is the unpardonable sin.
Bender. A spree, drunken, or otherwise, but not generally
the latter. An " unbender," as Proctor sagely remarks, would seem
more appropriate.
Bestowment. Bestowal : the act of giving : the thing so
given.
Bet, you. An intensitive of "Western origin. An American
writer describes a scene in court where the judge having asked a
question of the prisoner, receives the answer, " You can bet your
boots, your honour," which all appear to regard as a strictly regular
and respectful answer. To bet one's " bottom dollar " is to manifest
the last degree of confidence in an assertion.
Be there, to. To undergo an experience : almost solely used
in the past tense — " to have been there."
"The Japanese say, 'A man takes a drink; then the drink
takes a drink ; and next the drink takes the man.' Evidently the
Japanese have been there." — Puck, New York, l<Si)l.
Betterment. Generally plural, "betterments." The improve-
ment made in the value of real estate (which secj, by cultivation,
erection of buildings, or extraneous operations. Familiarised to
the English eye by recent use in the London County Council and
in a Parliamentary Committee (Strand Improvements Bill.)
Betw^een hay and ^ass. A term applied to what we call
"hobbedehoys," who are " neither men nor boys." Rather poetical.
Biddable. Obedient. (Irish.)
Biff. Not given in any of the dictionaries. To assault, attack,
or beat.
" There was a young fellow named Swift,
Who asked this man {with an illustration) for a lift ;
(Jreat was his sur))rise
When he opened liis eyes.
And discovered that he had been biffed."
— Tcj-asSi/linijs, ISOl.
34 Die TIOXA R Y OF A M ERIC A XI SMS.
Big-. Great: fine: excellent in quality. "B'g wliiskj'/'
"The • big horn ' for tiie last trumpet," says the guileless Bartlett,
"is almost {^k) profane. " Which is quite true. A big" thing". A
scheme likely to produce money. Much respect is felt for "big"'
things in America, which is itself a '"big"' country, and knows it.
Compare Tall.
Big drink. The Atlantic. Originally applied, according to
Bartlett. to the Mississippi.
Big dog of the tan-yard. "| A leader : a consequential
Big dog with the brass collar, -individual : a " big bug,"
Biggest toad in the puddle. J See Bug.
Blgglty. (Xcjro.J Consequential : assuming. Qy. bigoted?
Big head, to have. To have been drunk overnight.
Biled rag. A clean starched shirt.
" The Shakers axed me to go to their meetin*, as they was to have
sar vices that marnin", so I put on a clean biled rag and went." —
(Artemus Ward) Ihe Shakers.
Bilin'. \ The '" whole biling " : the "hullbilin"" : the ''hull kit
Biling. J and bilin' '"' : the whole lot. (Provincial still in Essex.)
BUI, to. To charge upon an invoice. The word '"bill "' is always
used for '"invoice.'"' A "bank-bill," however, is a bank-note; e.ij.
five-dollar bill — a very ordinary portion of the paper currency of
the States.
Billiardiot. A player at billiards.
Billy. In English slang this is used for a policeman's staff : in
America it is a strip of leather, looped for firm holding and
weighted with lead — a most murderous appliance.
Bindery. A factory for book-binding.
Biscuit. A roll, such as we eat hot for breakfast. What we
call biscuits are termed " crackers " in America.
Bishop. A bustle, i.e. a dress improver, so-called.
Bit. A coin, value one-eighth of a dollar, or twelve and one-
half cents.
Blackleg. Used as a trade union term in exactly the same
sense as that in which we have imported it. Also verb, " to black-
leg," which we have hitherto been sjiared.
DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS. 35
Black-list. (V.) To put a person in the black book, as we
say : to characterise anyone as a defaulter : to stigmatise.
Blame, 1 Equivalent to the corresponding parts of the
Blamed./ ftr6 "to damn." Euphemistic profanity.
Blanket. Indian attire. To have a father or other ancestor
who "wore the blanket,"' is to have Indian blood. There is a
great prejudice in America, by no means without justification,
against half-breeds and mixed-breeds.
Blankity. Euphemistic oath. In allusion to the blank spaces
(tlms ) used when presenting profane language to eyes polite.
" Dash," as an oath, is perhaps of Celtic origin.
Blaze. {Backicoods.) To cut tree barks with an axe in pass-
ing, so that the path taken may be retraced.
Blazes. Hell. " Go to blazes," i.e. go there.
Blind. " To go it blind" is to enter upon an undertaking or
enterprise without forethought or previous experience.
Blizzard. Figurative! fj, a poser. A violent snow or hailstorm,
with gales and extreme cold. From a long correspondence in tlie
Atheineuiii in 18!)1, the word appears to be of great antiquity in
Several parts of the United Kingdom.
Block. A mass of houses not intersected by streets.
Blooded (of cattle). Thoroughbred.
" Dr. Helmbold arrived in Washington from New York, bring-
ing with him his team of six blooded bay horses, which, in gold-
mountedliarness, were attaclied to the most expensive victoria of
that day." — Weekly Journalist, Boston, IS'JI,
Bloody chasm. ) "To bridge the bloody chasm " was an elc-
Bloody shirt. ) gant expression much affected by orators
and "tall talkers" after the war, as a delicate metaphor in con-
nection with the wonderful reconciliation which then took place.
The exact opposite is to " wave the bloody shirt," an even more re-
pulsive phrase ; jocularly rendered, " to agitate the ensanguined
undergarment," a jest which has had the fortunate effect of
rendering almost obsolete the serious use of the original.
Bloomer. Mrs. Bloomer's costume. See Chemilcon. A
short gown reaching below the knee, with pantaloons beneath, like
the costume usually worn on the stage by llosalind.
Blotter. A police station term : charge sheet.
36 DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS.
Blow. To boast : to brag : to "talk tall."
" Old man, I guess you're bio win'." — (Mark Twain) Hurhlehcrrij
Finn,
Blower. One who "blows"' (which see). A piece of sheet
iron, used to create a free draught in a fireplace or furnace.
i'atented in England as long ago as 1795, but not in general use
except in America.
Blue. Intoxicated. To " drink till all's blue," characterised by
Proctor as "an amazing expression " : the meaning is, however,
obvious, and the phrase not uncommon among the profanum
riih/us here. Blue grass State- Kentucky, from a particularly
rich meadow-grass there so-called. Blue hen's chickens. In-
habitants of Delaware.- Blue la"urs (of New Haver, etc). Severe
laws enacted by the early Puritan settlers ; the name is said by Dr.
Peters to be equivalent to sanguinary laws, blue being, according
to him, the equivalent of bloody. It is a curious fact that in
Restoration days in England, the Puritans, Dissenters, and others
who condemned the prevailing license were called " blue." A story
is nowadays said to be "a little blue," precisely when, to modern
ears, it seems to approximate too closely to the freedom of those
days. It has been also said that tlie Statute Book containing those
laws was originally bound in blue — a tradition which certainly
affords a plausible solution of this expression. A Dalziel despatch,
dated Boston, May 23rd, 189], says : — "Much amusement, and not
a little indignation, has been occasioned here by the arrest yester-
day of a prominent citizen and his wife for being guilty of viola-
ting the ordinance against kissing in the street. The coujile have
not long been married, and, happening to meet in the street after
a few days" separation, they saluted each other with a kiss. By
this act they brought themselves under one of the old Puritan
Blue 1 aws, which lias never been repealed, for the promotion of
becoming behaviour." There is a similar law in the Statute Book
of Massachusetts against smoking in the streets, but that law is
never put in force. Blue Law State. Connecticut. Blue
Hen State. Delaware.
Bluff, to. Tobluster: "poker "term. " Poker "' is a pastime
resembling the noble game of brag : to "bluff " is to stake and bet on
a worthless hand, with the object of deceiving an adversary who,
with only a fair hand of cards, will retire in face of the confidence
manifested by the enemy in staking largely.
" Oh, I can get back all right without costing me a red cent. I
don't want your money for a railroad ticket. " ""What then, whisky?"
DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS. sf
"Nope; I've had enough. Stranger, you don't know my wife.
She's been taking lessons of a travelling professor, Avho pretends to
teach mind-reading. She will be sure to try her hand on me just
as soon as I get home, and Tm a little unstrung about it. Now, if
I had a five-dollar bill I could make a big bluff with it anyway. I
would get her a pair of striped stockings and a pair of low, yellow
shoes, and with that lay-out I'd be perfectly willing to face the
music and take my chances on the mind-reading business." — Texas
Sijthnjs, 1891.
Boat, to bail one's own. To conduct one's own affairs. As
we say, " to paddle your own canoe."
Boatable. (Of rivers, streams, etc.) Navigable by boats.
Bobbery. A noise. "Generally used," says De Vere, "in a
more good-natured sense, as differing from an objectionable row."
Haldeman calls it an Anglo-Indian expression, and derives it from
the Hindu "harbari." Moor says it is used in Suffolk (it is really
common in most i^arts of England), and says it is not ancient, but
very common in India.
" You are a pair of impertinent rascals ; what do you mean by
kicking up such a bobbery at this time of night ? " — (J. C. Neal)
Charcoal Sketches.
"People who declare themselves responsible only to Nature's
God are very apt to kick up a tremendous bobbery and to make
long scolding speeches.'' — Neiv York Tribune, 1871.
Bob-tail car. A tram-car without a conductor, in which the
passengers are expected to deposit their own fares in a box provided
ad hoc.
Bogus. (N.) A liquor made from rum and treacle : con-
traction of "calibogus." f'yl(/y.^ Counterfeit. Stated by Bartlett,
on the authority of the Boston Courier (June 12, 1857), to havo
been derived from a "corrupt individual" named Borghese, who
did a large business in counterfeit bills on fictitious banks. Lowell
thinks the term French, however, and says that it originated in
Louisiana, where the worthless refuse of sugar cane, after the
juice is expressed, is certainly called " bagasse."
Bolt, to. "To bolt the candidate "of one's political party is to
abstain from voting for, or vote against liim, Perliaps a simile from
a " bolting " horse. " To bolt the ticket " is exactly the same thing.
C
38 DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS.
Bone-pit. \ A cemetery. A couple of Americanisms
Bone-yard. J characterized by even more than usual elegance,
charm, and good taste.
Boodle. Money : especially (a) counterfeit money (thieves'
slang), and (h) money used for purposes of the corruption not
quite unknown in American politics. Used by Macaulay in a
similar sense (1828). (Perhaps from i)i/^r/?, "boedel.'") SeeDiwy.
Boodle, the "whole. The whole lot or set. Sometimes ex-
panded to "caboodle."' (Old French, "hotel"; German, "beutel.")
Boom, to. (y. trans.) To cry up or puff an enterprise or
(especially) a locality. (N.) The said crying up, when successful,
is said to have created a boom, and the enterprise is then said (as
an intransitire verb) to be booming.
" The city of Paris is said to be diminishing instead of increas-
ing in population. They don't know how to boom a town over
there." — Chicago Inter-Ocean, 1888.
Boonder. A brush.
Boost. To hoist : to lift or raise by pushing.
"It is just as difficult to boost a sinner up to heaven without
corresponding effort on his part, as it would be for a child to
shoulder a sack of Turk's Island salt." — Doic's Sermons.
Boots. In America, boots are what we call "^Wellingtons —
that is, boots extending partly up the calf of the wearers leg, a
shape much more common in New England than here, on account
of the severer -winters. Ordinary boots are called simply shoes.
Boss. (N.J An overseer, or something as near a master as
the independent spirit of labouring America can tolerate. (Adj.)
Great: superlative: agreeable. (V.) To perform the functions
of a boss. [Dutch, "baas.")
Bottom. Spirit put in a tumbler preparatory to the addition
of an aerated water. "Soda and dark bottom " — soda and brandy.
A ship (Old English). Used in this sense by Witherspoon.
Compare Shakespeare and other Tudor writers, 2ittssim ; e.g. :
"Believe me, no : I thank my fortune for it,
My ventures are not in one bottom trusted,
Nor to one place."
—Merchant of Venice, i., 1.
" To knock the bottom out cf "' — to defeat or overcome.
DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS. 39
Bottom dollar. One's last coin. See Bet.
BottZ oTfmatter. the. } The authentic facts of the caxe.
Bottom lands. Kicli alluvial soil.
Bottom price. Lowest i)rice.
Bottom rock. See Bed rock.
Bounce. To expel by violence. — Bouncer. A "chucker-
oub." In an illustration of a Negro fancy-dress ball in Texas
Siftiwjs appears a notice, attached to the wall, as follows :
"Bad Characters Bjunced."
Bound. Certain : determined : obliged. See Bowery for
an illustration.
Bounty jumper. (A term dating from the Civil War.) One
who joins a regiment for the sake of the bounty-money offered,
and absconds, to repeat tlie operation elsewliere.
Bourbon. A kind of whisky, supposed to be manufactured
ia Bourbon Coimty, Ky. "The best whisky I know : if you know
any hQttex,— candid us imperii: si von, his utere mecian,'' says
Proctor, always jovially interestad in such matters. Also, a strict
Democrat (which see) in politics.
Bower. (Fi(j.) From the game of euchre, in which the
best cards are the knave of trumps (riglit bower) and the other
knave of the same coloured suit (left bower). {German, "bauer"
— a " villein" or "peasant.'')
"'What have you got there? I call,' said T., quietly, 'Two
bowers and an ace,' said the stranger, showing two revolvers
and a bowie knife." — (Bret Harte) Tennessee's Partner.
Bowery boy. \ Corresponding to our Cockney 'Arry and
Bowery gal. J Arriet. The Bowery (so-called from having
been in times long i)ast the garden of Governor Stuyvesant) is
the Whitechapel of New York, and stories of the Bowery boys
and their exploits are innumerable. It was a Bowery boy who on
hearing the tacts of the Crucifixion from a missionary, rusliod out
and violently assaulted the first Jew he could find, by way of
revenge for the horrors, the narration of which had excited his
generous indignation. "But that happened eighteen hundred
years ago," pleaded the unfortunate Israelite. "Can't hel]) that,''
was the reply, " i're only just heard of it: and I'm bound to
punish someone."
40 Die TIONA RY OF A M ERIC A A ISMS.
Boy. A male Negro of any age. [Southern States, before the
CivinVar.)
Brainy. Possessing or manifesting brain power.
Brake. See Canebrake. ('Old English.)
Eranch. A brook. '•Brancli-water " is stream as distin-
guisliecl from spring-water.
Brandy-smasli. A well-known mixed drink, in wbich brandy
is a chief ingredient, being broken (that is dilutedl by crushed ice.
Brash. Brittle: easily broken. Hence, allusively, "short-
tempered.''
" Generally quiet when sober.
Confoundedly brash when in liquor."
—(Bret Harte) Poems.
Brave. An Indian warrior.
Breakbone fever. Dengue. A disease somewhat resembling
the Russian influenza, but differentiated therefrom by various
important symptoms.
Breakdown. A riotous dance, or one in a pecnliar style, in-
troduced by the Xegroes, who, like all nncivilized peoples, are much
addicted to saltatory exercises.
Break out in a fresh place, to. To evolve a new or un-
accustomed idea. This elegant metaphor would seem to have been
borrowed from the symptomology of eru^^tive disease.
Brick in the hat, to have. To be intoxicated or, as we
say, topheavy.
Bright. Intelligent: quick. "Bright and early"'; early,
simply ; bright being an apparently meaningless addendum.
"But Hildegarde"s faith was in no wise shaken. Bright and
early she was on her M'ay up the Neckar Road as joyous as a bird."
— (Mark Twain) A Tramp Abroad.
Bring on, to. To produce. There is a story of a man who
called at houses undertaking to " kill all the cockroaches in the
house for two dollars and a square meal." He "collected" his
fee in advance, and having devoured the meal stipulated for, pro-
duced a small anvil and hammer and seated himself on the kitclien
floor, saying, " And now bring on your cockroaches."
" When I went in I was salootid with ' hear cums the benited
man' — ' hear cums the hoory-hedcd unbeleever' — 'hear cums the
skoffer at trooth,' etsettery, etsettery. Sez I, 'My frens it's
DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS. 41
troo I'm hear, and now bring on your sperrits." — (Artemus Ward)
AmoYKj the Spirits.
Bring- up, to. To stop. Steamboat term, in general use,
however, all over the Mississippi Valley in the sense of stopping.
" At the end of our fourth effort we brought up in the woods
two miles below the cut off ; all the country there was overtiowed,
of course." — (Mark Twain) Life on the Mississippi.
Broncho. (Pronounced "brontsho.") Californian native
horse.
Brokeress. See Authoress.
Bronze John. Yellow fever, ovAnglice Yellow Jack (Texas.)
Broug-htens up. Education ; upbringing.
Brung-. Brought. A mere jocosity (Negro).
BubW I -^^"^^1^^^ form of address in speaking to boys.
Buckeye. The horse chestnut. Buckeye State. Ohio.
Buck Nig-ger. A male Negro.
Buckra. (Negro.) A white man or woman. African in origin.
In the Calabar language " buckra" means " devil," and the applica-
tion of the term to slavers is not incomprehensible. S"wanga
buckra. A dandy. (Qy. perhaps the original of our own " swag-
ger" as an adjective.)
Bug-. Any kind of small insect except, generally, a beetle.
Poe, however, calls the scarahrras a bug in his tale " The Gold-
Bug.'' The lady-bird is called "lady-bug" in America: most
l)eople will agree that the English name is prettier. Cimex
Lectularius is always called in full, "bed-bug," by Americans :
" The May-bug lias his gauzy wings,
The firefly lias his flame,
The bed-bug has no wings at all,
But he gets there, all the same. "
Big bugs. Persons of consequence.
Bug juice. Bad whisky.
Bug out, to. (Ohio.) To protrude. How is it that so tasteful
an expression has not commended itself to the new journalism '!
"Now only look at that ! " cried he ; " my goodness. Triangle,
whit would they say to it in Ohio? Wouhln't thuir eyes bug out
to see 'em handled like that — wouldn't they, tliough?"
43 Die TIOXA RY OF A M ERIC A NISMS.
Bulge, to have the. To have obtained an advantage over
anyone.
"Well, youve rather got the bulge on me. Or maybe we've
both got the bulge, somehow.'" — (Mark Twain) Innocents at Home.
Bull. A mistake or blunder of any kind.
Bulldoze. To bully, or humbug with more or less overbearing.
Bullion State. Missouri.
Bully. Good: excellent. "Bully for you," — well done I
Hensleigh Wedgwood thinks the word identical with the High
German '"buolej^'a substantive, meaning brother, spouse, or part-
ner in dancing. It was in common use as an adjective in late Stuart
(Restoration) period — especially "bully host" for the proprietor
of a tavern. The Scotch form, " billy,"' is given by Jamieson.
" The rose is red,
The violet's blue.
Carnation's sweet
And buliy for you 1 "
—Orpheus C. Ken:
' ' This was versiff erusly applauded by the company, and as I make
it a pint to get along as pleasunt as possible, I sang out, ' Bully
for you, old boy.' "" — (Artemus "Ward) Amonrj the Spirits.
Bummer. I A worthless fellow : a " dead-beat"" (which see).
Bum. J — Bum-\rork. Useless labour, or unpaid exer-
tion. An advertisement appeared for mariy weeks in Printers'
Ink; Xew York (a journal for advertisers), with the heading, "No
Buil-AYORK. I write ads."
Buncombe. (Originally) obstruction in Congress. A member
for the county of Buncombe, Xorth Carolina, being charged with
irrelevant s]ieechifying, answered that he Avas talking for Bun-
combe, not for the house.
Bionko. Bobbing or cheating. C V.J To rob or cheat.
Bunko-steerer. An exponent of this noble art.
Bureau. A desk : a chest of drawers : an oflBce.
Burying". A funeral. This word is used in a quotation
illustrating the definition of "chores."
i-ll, BushTvhacker. A clophopper : in politics an independent
member, a non-party man. Said by Saumarez de Havilland
{Gentleman's Manazine, 1888, i. 438) to be men who, during the
war, had been alternately traitors to either side.
Die TIONA RY OF A M ERIC A NISMS. 43
Button up. To become suddenly reticent. (Wall Street.)
Buzz sa^w. (Onomatopoesis.) A circular saw.
" That an amputation might be performed with a buzz saw
should surely not be a just cause for asserting that no skill was
needed in surgery."— i\''ei(; York Medical Journal.
By and ag-ain. Now and then.
By and larg-e. (Southern.) On the whole.
" From Paris I branched out and walked through Holland and
Belgium, procuring an occasional lift by rail or canal when tired,
and I had a tolerably good time of it, by and large." — (Mark Twain)
A Tramp Abroad.
"The recent announcement of Mr. Wanamaker that he will
retire from public life at the end of President Harrison's term and
return to the management of his private business, confirms the
report that the President is more or less weary of him. Taken
by and large, "Wanamaker has been the heaviest of the many
burdens that the Harrison Administration has placed upon the
country."— iVewj York Evening Post, April 16, 1892.
Cache. (^.) A place of concealment (generally for pro-
visions, which are buried, when traversing the prairies, to avoid
carrying them over long distances) : the act of concealing. (V.)
To conceal.
Cachunk. See Kerslap.
Caesarist. A term of reproach applied to persons who
favour the re-election to the Presidency of a candidate who has
held office more than once previously.
Cain. To "raise Cain," or to "raise pertickler Hell," or
" pertickler Xed," is to make a fuss, to run amuck.
Cake. To "take the cake." The Negroes have an institution
called a Cake-walk, young darkies of both sexes promenading in
competition for a cake, in couples. The most "elegant" and
" high-toned " couple " take the cake " of course.
Calculate. Used quite correctly, with the meaning of to
weigh circumstances and decide in accordance with them. It is
only an Americanism in the sense that it is used with considerable
frequency there, and lias become a vulgarism.
" The woman who ' calc'lates ' is lost." — Holmes.
44 Die TIOXAR Y OF AMERICANISMS.
Caliber.) Capacity. " Calibre " means properly the internal
Calibre, r measurement of a tube, though it originally applied
to weight. [Latin, " qua libra"'.) Americans speak of the calibre
of anything conceivable, however — even the calibre of a person's
mind, a use of which Webster accuses Burke. A thoroughly cor-
rupt word, even in its proper sense.
"Minds of moderate calibre ordinarily condemn everything
which is beyond their range." — Texas Siftinys, 1891.
Calico. The use of this word differs from its English em
ployment only to this extent, that calico in America always means
a printed cotton fabric.
Call. An invitation to a Church minister to occupy the pulpit
of a given i^lace of worship as its regular pastor. The loudness of
the call is, of course, in direct ratio to the emoluments proposed.
Bartlett quotes the following ludicrous example :
" Let the good work go on 1 I hope to coax a few more such
sheep into my fold before I preach my farewell sermon ; and that
may be pretty soon, as I have had a loud six-hundred-dollar call
elsewhere."' — Doic's Sermons.
Callus. A corn or hard piece of skin on the hand, from hard
work of some sort.
" When I have established a pair of well-pronounced feathering
calluses on my thumbs, when I am in training so that I can do my
fifteen miles [sculling] at a stretch without coming to grief in any
way, when I can perform my mile in eight minutes or a little less,
then I feel as if I had Old Times head in chancery, and could give
it to him at my leisure.'"— (Dr. O. W. Holmes) The Autocrat of
the Breakfast-TaUe.
Calumet. A tobacco pijie used by the Indians in the cere-
monials of peace-making. Hence, to " smoke the calumet "'" or the
pipe of peace. The word is Old French.
Washington Irving thus describes The Calumet, or "pipe of
peace," of the Sioux Indians : — '" The bowl was of a species of red
stone resembling por]>hyry ; the stem was six feet in length, de-
corated with tufts of horse hair dyed red. The pipe bearer stepped
within the circle, lighted the pipe, held it towards the sun, then
towards the different points of the comjiass, after which he handeil
it to the principal chief. The latter smoked a few whiffs, then,
holding the head of the pipe iu his hand, offered the other end to
their visitor, and to each one successively in the circle. When all
Die riONA RY OF A ME RICA iXISMS. 45
had smoked, it was considered that an assurance of good faith
and amity had been interchanged."
CaSpSre. i ^^^^V^'^'- -^ ^"^^^ corruption.
Camp Meeting-. A sort of religions pic-nic, often lasting for
several days. "An American way of advertising religious char-
acter," says Proctor, who regarded all American institutions of
the kind with great disgust,
" They're holding Camp Meeting in Hickory Swamp,
Oh, let my people go ;
De preacher's so dark, dat he carry um lamp,
Oh, let my people go.
De brudders am singing dis jubilee tune,
Oh, let my people go ;
Two dollars a year for de U'eeMij Tribune,
Oh, let my people go I "
—Orpheus C. Kerr.
Can. (I^.J A tin for preserving meat, vegetables, etc. (y.)
To preserve in that way. The word " tin " is never applied in
this sense. See Cannery.
Canada. (Pronounced "canyada.") A small gorge or ravine.
(Sjmnif-h.)
Candidate, to. (^'-J To be a candidate.
Candle-lighting-. Evening. Rather a pretty expression.
" Locking up my Kangaroo and wax wurks in a sekure stile, I
took my departer for Paldinsville, 'my own, my native Ian,'
which I got intwo at early kandle litin on tlie follerin nite, and
just as the seller-brashun and illumernashun ware commcnsin." —
(Artemus Ward) Celebration at Baldinsville.
Candy. Any kind of sweetstuff.
Canebrake. A thicket of canes.
" His nails was longer than de cane in tlie brake.
He had no eyes for to see,
He lost all his teeth a eatin' lioe cake,
So was forced to let de hoe cake be."
— Negro Song.
Caney. Made of cane. Given by Scheie de Vere as an
Americanism. It is used by Milton [Paradise Lost) :
" Where Chineses drive
With sails and wind their cany wa;:gons light,"
46 DICTIONARY OF AMERICA XISMS.
Cannery. A factory where tinned (which Americans call
'•' canned '") goods are put up.
Cant, to. To tilt up.
Canon. (Pronounced, but only very erroneously spelled,
" Canyon.") A narrow gorge or ravine in mountains.
Cantankerate. (V.) (From "cantankerous."') To become
(inti-ans.) or to make someone else (trans.) disagreeable, ill-
humoured. (Annlo- Norman, "contek," says Farmer.) — Cantan-
kersonae : cantankerous.
Canuck. See Kanuck.
Canvas-back. A kind of wild duck, chiefly found in Chesa-
peake Bay and the neighbouring streams, and so called from the
colour of the back. '• Highly esteemed for the delicacy of its
flesh,'" says Bartlett. " Somewhat overi)raised in America," re-
plies Proctor.
Canvass. The ofiicial counting of votes after an election.
Never used for the solicitation of votes beforehand. The latter is
called in America, I believe, " bribery,"' or, at least, that appears
to be the method in vogue.
Cap all, to. 1 To surpass everything.
Cap the climax, to. i ' ' The AVestern hunter, when he
wishes to cap the climax of braggadocio with respect to his own
prowess, says, ' he can whip his weight in wild cats.' " — (Thorpe)
Backicoods. (In which connection see Bon GauUier Ballads.)
Capper. A piece of medico-ethical slang, meaning the same
as " steerer,'" which see.
Caption. Title heading in a newspaper. The selection of
these sensational headings is considered very important, and the
results are certainly startling. For example, the execution by
electricity of a batch of criminals was thus announced in a New
York daily : —
" DOWN THEIR DAJIXED SPINES
FLASHES THE
LURID LIGHTNING'S
EARTHLY PEER."
Captivate. To take prisoner. Given by Pickering, and
Bartlett, following him, as an Americanism. Lord Brougham is
cited by the latter. "The word captivating will be reckoned an
Americanism, but it has undoubted English authority." — (States-
DICriOXARY OF AMERICANISMS. 47
vien of George III. ) In the original draft of the Declaration of
Independence, prepared by Mr, Jefferson, the enslaving of Negroes
is spoken of as " captivating and carrying them into slavery in
another hemispliere." This use of the word appears to have become
obsolete, and is not noticed by Proctor. It is, of course, used, as
with us, in the sense of charming or delightful. It 'is, however,
given in the other sense by Johnson and Webster. The Edinhuryh
Review (1810) calls this use a Gallicism, as Beck points out.
Carlicues. See Curlicues.
Carom. (Billiards.) A cannon.
Carpet-bagger. Originally, a Western term for a fraudulent
or "wild cat" banker (which see). Applied later to numberless
Northern speculators who overran the South after the war, and
were looked upon with abhorrence by the Southerners, whose im-
poverished and ruined condition, nevertheless, compelled them to
receive the new-comers in business relations.
Cars, on the. On the railway, " railroad carriages " are
called "cars," and, indeed, the same name is applied in England
to carriages built on the American plan, viz. " Pullman cars."
Casket. A coffin.
Casten. Cast. (Old Enfjlish.) See Gotten.
Catawamptious. Eager. (Negro.)
Catch on to, to. " To catch on to " an idea is to understand
(grasp) it.
Caucus. A private society of politicians for party purjioses,
especially wire-pulling and what is euphemistically called " man-
ipulation '' ; we call it " l)ribery " here. A very old word, said to
be of Indian derivation, useil as early as 1724. AVebster derives
it from "calker," a nautical term for a man whose work is to
.stop the leaks in the seams of a ship, the analogy being that the
caucus is supposed to strengthen weak places in party organisa-
tion. Proctor says that a caucus is generally formed for some
rascality, and that the word has a consequent unpleasant sound in
American ears. It is, of course, thorouglily acclimatised in Eng-
land now, and is chietiy used in an injurious sense.
Cave in. ( V.) To give way : to collapse : to break in.
Navvies' word.
" Sez he, ' Tliat's all very well fur you to say ; but I tell you, old
man, that that Judas Iscarrot can't show Lisself in Utiky with
48 DICTION AR Y OF A .1 lERlCANISMS.
imi:)unerty by a darn site ! ' with which observashun he kaved in
Judassis hed. The young man belonged to 1 of the first famerlies
in Utiky. I sood him & the Joory brawt in a verdick of arson in
the 3rd degree." — (Arteraus Ward) High-handed Oiitva'jc at Utica.
Cavort, To caper about.
Centennial State, the. Colorado (admitted in 1876 — 100
years after the Declaration).
Chained lightning-. Forked lightning. (Western.) Also
' ' bad whiskey. " (Fi'j. j
Change. (V-) To alter or correct anything written. To
change an invoice is not to exchange it for another, but to make
some alteration in its tenor.
Chaw. To chew. (Good English, and found in Johnson's
Dictionary. Used by Spenser and Dryden.)
Chaw up, to. To utterly demolish or defeat.
Check. A cheque : a ticket. (Baggage check is a numbered
ticket given to the owner of luggage conveyed by passenger train,
a system much superior to the haphazard want of system in vogue
here. Luggage is said to be checked when it is booked through.)
A counter at cards : at the conclusion of a game, gamblers return
their counters and receive money for them. At the end of the
game of life the dying American ''passes in his checks."
Checkers. The game of draughts, and also, of course, the
draughtsmen. The board accordingly is termed a " checker-
board. "
Chemiloon. The article of female underwear known to
effete Europe as a combination garment. America and Dr. Mary
"Walker have given it a local habitation and an appropriate com-
bination-name—the title being compounded from "cAf/uise" and
"panta?oo/j." Proctor heard this lady in lecturing, say, "I wear
suspenders, and I feel awful good in my chemiloon."'
Chestnut. An old story. Farmer quotes from the Phila-
delphia Press a plausible legend of its origin. It is attributed to
Mr. W. Warren, a veteran Boston comedian :
" It seems that in a melodrama, but little known to the present
generation, written by AVilliam Dillon, and called The Broken
Hu-ord, there were two cliaracters, one a Captain Xavier, and the
other the comedy part (sic) of Pablo. The Captain is a sort of
Baron Munchhausen, and in telling of his exjiloits, says : ' I entered
DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS. 49
the woods of Collowaj', when suddenly from the thick boughs of a
cork-tree—' Pablo interrupts him with the words : 'A chestnut,
Captain, a chestnut. ' ' Bali I ' replies the Captain ; 'Booby ! I say
a cork-tree.' 'A chestnut,' reiterates Pablo; ' I should know as
well ae you, having heard you tell the tale these twenty-seven times. '
"William "Warren, who had often played the part ot Pablo, was at
a stag dinner, when one of tlie gentlemen present told a story
of doubtful age and originality. 'A chestnut,' murmured Mr.
AVarren, quoting from the play : ' I have heard you tell the
tale these twenty-seven times.' The application of the lines
pleased the rest of the table, and when the party broke up each
helped to spread the story "and Mr. AVarren's commentary."
'"The Nexc York Herald has for months past had the following
paragraph in its editorial columns [here follows the j)aragraph,
which is unimportant] : —
" For a leading journal to Avaste so much space does not tend to
elevate it in the opinion of business men ; and instead of this very
stale chestnut, we will offer the Herald a ])aragraph.'' — Advertiser's
Guide, 1891.
"Not a Soap Ad. — Smith: 'Good morning. Do you use — '
Brown: 'Oh, come now! That's played out. Awful chestnut!'
— Smith : ' Beg your pardon. I was going to say, do you usually
get to town so early in the morning ? ' " — Art in Advertising/, 18'Jl\
Chewallop (or Kerwallop). A bow-wow word (onomato-
poesis) to exjiress the sound of a falling body. Generally spelled
with " ker " ; but the other has the authority of Judge Haliburton.
Chewing'-guin {or Cha^wing-g-uni). A compound which
ministers to the apparently innate craving of young America for
something to chew : a substitute for tobacco. It api^ears to be
made of india-rubber (often called, without qualification, gum, in
the States,) incorjiorated with sugar and other flavouring material.
The latter, dissolving, leaves a viscid mass of moist india-rul)ber in
the mouth, which, like the widow's cruse of oil, does not waste,
and which may be chewed indefinitely, greatly enhancing the
facial charms of the o]Krator. It is not swallowed, and would
lirobably cause intestinal obstruction if it were ; but the effect on
the digestive organs is, in any case, serious, as the excitation of the
alimentary tract by the chewing leads the stomach, meta[)hori-
cally, to expect food and tlirow out gastric juice, which is thus
wasted. An obscure paralysis of the jaw is distinctly traced to
the same practice, aiul has been termed by physicians addicted to
new names, "gum chewers' disease."
50 Die TIOXA RY OF A^ /ERICA XI SMS.
Chicken-fixing'3. A chicken "fixed'' in an '''elegant''
manner. See Fix and Eleg-ant. Bartlett says "fricassee," but
the derivation is obviously needless. In a figurative manner the
term is used for any kind of fare regarded as luxurious, in opposi-
tion to common-doings, or ordinary food.
"I guess I"ll order supper. AVhat shall it be? Corn-bread and
common doins, or nheat-bread and chicken-fixings?" — Sam Slick.
See " Corn " for an explanation of the last phrase.
Child, this. 3Iyself : I.
Chinee. A marble (child's toy).
Chinch. A bug (in the English sense). (Southern.)
Chink, to. To fill up the interstices between the logs in a
log-hut or cabin, usually with clay.
Chin-music. Talk. Proctor reports a conversation which
annoyed him at a theatre, which began thus : — "'Them girls in
tights is having a good deal of chin-play." '"What in Hades [he
was more monosyllabic, says the reporter] is it all about, any way ?
(A pause.) That little one ain"c got no manners — not to saij
manners— she ain"t." '"'
Chip-in, to. To subscribe money : to intervene in a con-
versation, fight, or transaction.
Chipper. Brisk : lively : frivolous. Used by Legree in Mrs.
Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cahin.
" The German word for hell — ' Htille ' — sounds more like helly
than anything else ; therefore, how necessarily chipper, frivolous,
and unimpressive it is. If a man were told in German to go there,
could he really rise to the dignity of feeling insulted ? " — (Mark
Twain) A Tramp Abroad.
Chirk. (Adj.) Lively: comfortable: in good spirits. (V.)
To enliven : to inspirit : or to become lively. (Anglo-Saxon,
" cercian."")
Chock, to. To fill to overflowing : to choke.
Chock-full. Ke])lete: full-up : choke-full.
Choke off, to. To dissuade from anything: to forcibly obstruct.
Chop. Quality. First-chop. First quality : excellent.
(Chinese.)
Chore. (Pronounced " Tshoro.") A piece of domestic labour.
(sing, and Plural). Akin to the English " charwoman."
DICTION A R V OF A M ERICA NISMS. 5 1
**I giv my collar a hitch, and sez I, 'I'm Mister Smith, one of
the Smitheses of this decstiict, an always -svillin for a female in
distress.' Then she made a curtsey, and was goin to say somethin,
when Bob Tomkins steps np, and sez he, ' Thers goin to be anotlier
buryin in this settlement if some folks dont mind their own chores,
and quit foolin with other folkses company ! ' This riled me right
up, an sez I, 'There's a feller in this deestrict that hain't had a
spell of layin' on his back for some time : but he's in immediate
danger of ketching the disease bad.' Bob took a squint at the
width of my chist, and then he turned to Sal, who was shakin like
a cabbage leaf in a summer gale, and sez he, ' Sal, lets marvel out
of bad company before it spoils our morials ! ' "With that he
crooked one of his smashin' machines, and Sal was jest hookin on,
when I put the weight of about one hundred pounds under his
ear, and sez I, 'Jest lay there. Bob Tomkins, until your parients
comes out to look for your body.' He went down as if he had
been took with a suddint desire to examine the roots of the grass,
and Sal screamed out that I'd murdered the rantankerous critter.
Sez I, ' The tombstun that's for his head aint cut yet ; but I calki-
late it'll be took out of the quarry if he comes smellin round my
heels again.'" — Orpheus (J. Kerr.
Chouse, to {aho Chousle, Chowzle). To cheat, or de-
ceive. (English.)
Cho^wder. A (reputed) delicacy of varying composition, in
which the fundamental ingredients appear to be lish, pork, onions,
and biscuits, boiled together, either with or without cider and
champagne —though, surely, without these two, this fearful com-
pound would not attain its full atrocity. (French, " chaudicre.")
One is irresistibly reminded of the ^N hite Knight's pudding (which
saddened him with a fear that it never would be cooked, perhaps
not unjustly). " It began," he said, "with blotting paper." "That
wouldn't be very nice, I'm afraid," said Alice. "Not very nice
alone," said the White Kniglit, who proceeded to ejiumerate var-
ious other incongruities.— — Clam-chowder. A chowder whose
horrors have been enhanced by tlie addition of clams (a kind of
Bhellfish).
Christian Scientists. Tlie faith healers, better known here
as the " Peculiar People" — a name/w//^ justified.
Chromo. Achromo-lithographed picture : regarded as a term
of admiration or disgust, according to taste. Chromo-civili-
zation, a term invented by tlie late J. R. Dennett, is, perhaps,
52 Die TIONAR Y OF A MERICANISMS.
best defined by the mongrel word "parvenuism : " — piuchbeck re-
finement — tawdriness.
Chunk. A small piece of anything. In ^Vitherspoon's
essay, however, it is explained to mean a brand of half-burned
wood, and as being peculiar to the Middle States. It is now uni-
versally used in the sense first above given.
Chnnk-y, Thick : stout : thick-set.
Chute. An inclined plane, used for lowering merchandise by
sliding: a shoot. (Pure French.) See also Take a Chute.
Cider. " All talk and no cider " : •'' much cry and little wool " :
vox et pratcrea nihil. Said, by Scheie de Vere, to have originated
at a party in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, which was convened to
drink a barrel of cider, as a bait to a political meeting, when the
malcontents withdrew, saying it was a trap into Avliich they had been
lured — "All talk and no cider. " Cideris ingreat favour in theUnited
States, where it is prepared largely, and is of excellent quality.
Cinch. A tight hold. Used by Kipling and Balestier in
The A'aulahka.
Cincinnati oysters. Pigs' feet.
Cipher, to. To estimate or consider a subject, not necessarily,
or indeed generally, in an arithmetical sense. See Figure.
Circumstance. A trifle. Not a circumstance. A
thing of no account.
"I never saw so lean a gal as Miss since 1 was raised.
Pharaoh's lean kine warnt the smallest part of a circumstance to
her. I had to look twice before I could see her at all." — Sa}n Slick:
" ' I wish thar was winders to my sole,' sed I, ' so tliat you could
see some of my feelins. There's fire enuff in here,' sed I, striking
my buzzum with my fist, ' to bile all the corn beef and turnips in
the naberhood. Versoovius and the Critter aint a circumstans.' "
— (Artemus "Ward) The shoicnuuis Courtship.
Citess. Citovcnnc: citizeness. Almost obsolete; used during
the French Revolution as a translation of citof/enne. Webster
gives " citess" — "a city woman,"' in which sense the word occurs in
JJryden.
City. Almost any collection of dwellings large enough for its
inhabitants to despise the name of village. City is appended to
the name of a town to disthiguish it from that of the State
when identical. City of Brotherly Love. Philadelphia.
(^iko; alo.io;). City of ChuTches. Brooklyn. City of
Colleges. Toronto. City of a Himdred Hills. San Fran-
DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS. 53
Cisco. City of Magnificent Distances. Washington. City
of Notions. Boston.— City of Soles. Lynn. City of
Spindles. Lowell. City of the Straits. Detroit City
of Witches. Salem. Cream City. Milwaukee. Crescent
City. Xew Orleans. Elm City. Newhaven, Conn, Em-
pire City. Xew York. Falls City. Louisville, Ky.
Federal City. "Washington. Park Mountain City. Green-
ville. Quaker City. Philadelphia.
Claim, to. To assert : to state as a new fact.
Claim. (N.) A piece of land marked out by a settler,
Claim-jumper : a land-grabber.
Clam. Acertain shell-fish. (For "clam-chowder," see Chow-
der.) "Happy as a clam," or "as a clam at high-water " : contented.
Old clam. Term of reproach, " fool." The acme of abuse in
this groove is, however, " Oh, you're a sardine I " -Clam-bake.
A pic-nic, at which the .staple delicacy is a dish of clams baked on
the spot.
Clarity. Clearness : precision (in diction).
Clawhammer. A dress coat.
Clean thing;, the. What is right. Called by Bartlett a
"low expression," a criticism from which Proctor most properly
dissents.
Clear. [Adj. ) In speaking of liquids the word "clear " is often
used to mean " undiluted," just as we speak of si)irits " neat."
"Bathe the parts with the Pain-killei: clear," — Patent Medicine
Advertiaenient.
Clerg-ywoman. A female minister : also, sometimes, a
district visitor. See Authoress,
Clerk. (N.) A shop assistant, rr,j To perform the duties
of a clerk.
Clever, Kindly : agreeable : good-natured : also honest (of
persons only). Purely American in origin and use.
Climb down, to. To retract,
Clomb. Past tense of climb, (Old Emjlish.)
Cloth, out of the whole. A thing is said to bo " made out
of the whole cloth " when it is quite beyond any chance of sophis-
tication.
" And, mind you, emotions are among the toughest tilings in
the world to manufacture out of whole cloth. It is easier to
D
54 Die TIONA RY OF A MERICA NISMS.
manufacture seven facts than one emotion.-' — (Mark Twain) Life
on the Mississippi.
Clothes, in. A man is said to have money or any other
article "in his clothes," in the same way as we say that he has
money "about him." (Western.)
Coast, to. To slide down a frozen or snow-covered hill in a
"sled" or "toboggan," which see. Used here by cyclists in the
same sense.
Cobbler. (1) A drink consisting, or supposed to consist, of
wine, sugar, lemon, and powdered ice (not rice, as Proctor's type-
setters have made him say) : (2) a kind of open fruit tart.
(Western.)
Cocktail. A drink composed of spirit (and the particular
variety employed gives the name to the compound, as " gin
cocktail," "whisky cocktail," etc.), Angostura bitters, sugar,
and ice, with a suspicion — very vague — of water. ]S'ever known,
even in the most refined cu'cles, as a "rooster-tail," which seems
strange.
Cold. As ' 'the cold truth," /. c. the exact, or, as we say (a little
analogously), " the naked truth."
"There is a popular notion that the habit of prevarication goes
along with warmth, or with a debilitating atmosphere, and that
cold is a tonic, a sort of stimulant for truthfulness. "We have, in-
deed, in the phrase, 'the cold truth,' a recognition of this." — (C. D.
AVarner) Harper, July, 1891.
" Furthermore, it would appear that every jiublisher owes it to
himself to see to it that in the case of a competing journal all
attempts at fraudulent circulation ratings are exposed and made
known, not by innuendo, but by evidence — the production of cold
facts."— PW»fers' Ink, 1891.
To "Have anyone 'cold'" is to have found out their little
games beyond all denial — even as little Miss Jenny "Wren detected
the shortcomings of her parent. Had she been born in Xew
England, " I know your tricks and your manners " would have be-
come " I've got you cold, and don't you forget it : yes, .S'«r / "
"As schoolboys say, you've got me cold." — (J. Kendrick Bangs)
Hai'per, June, 1891. [Allusion perhaps to roasted chestnuts,
which can only be "got," i.e., handled, with impunity when com-
paratively cold.]
DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS. 55
Cold day- Used in a manner which can only be explained
by example, "It will be a cold day when such and such a
thing occurs," means that the event in question is very im])ro-
bable. Why a "cold " day is not very apparent, since cold days
are not rarer, except in the South, than hot ones, and the expression
does not apjiear to be of Southern origin.
Collect, to. To receive money, without any connotation of
gathering together. A man who calls for a single account is said to
collect it— if successful. Now imported by us, as a commercial ex-
pression. (See Bring" on.)
Combination Lock. A keyless lock opened by turning a
dial or dials in succession to various numbers on a vernier.
Combine. (N.) A combination of persons for a common
object : a trade union.
Come to stay, to. To obtain a permanent vogue.
" Year after year has since rolled by,
And now her hair is grey ;
Yet I love her still because I know
My love lias come to stay."
—Clarence Stetson.
Committee of one. A dictatorship.
Complected. Having a certain com])lexion.
Coniposulst. A writer, or a com])oser of music. College
slang, given by I'ickering, and now sometimes, though but rarely,
found in newspapers.
Conclude, to- Americans often say "conclude" for "de-
cide."
Confidence, to. To confide in : also, to play the " confidence
trick. "
Conflrmate. To confirm.
Conflagrate. To burn. (False derivative from "conflagra-
tion." — ( .\e<iro.)
Congress. The American Legislature, which consists of a
Senate and a House of Keprcscntatives.
Conniption fit. An attack of hysterics, or of temper
{feminine). Kxi)ression of Negro origin.
Consequentious. Proud : conceited.
Consider. "I do not consider myself equal to this task,"
for "as equal." Said by Witherspoou to be "unloubtedly an
56 Die TIOXA RY OF A MERICA XI SMS.
Americanism." If so, it is only such in respect of its origin, as it
is now quite as common in England as in the States.
Considerable. A good deal : "pretty considerably." Men-
tioned by Witherspoon as a Xortliern Americanism [viz., a Yan-
kejism) : "he is considerable of a surveyor"; "considerable of
it may be found in the country." Dr. Beck cites a somewhat
similar employment in the Quarterly Revieiv.
Consociate. To unite, or associate with anyone. (Xegro
originally.)
Consociation. Union or fellowship of churches.
Consternated. False derivative from "consternation."
""When it was found that General Hampton was not at St.
Regis, his place of rendezvous, all ranks were consternated." —
(Letter from an ofKcer in General Wilkinson's Army, ISIS, quoted
by Pickering.)
Consumpted. Consumed : also, "to be consumpted "—to
have i)hthisis, or consumption of the lungs.
Continental. (Adj.) Frequently used for "colonial" in the
early days of Independence. "The Continent," in America, is
often used, as with us, to mean Europe. Continental. ( X.)
Elliptical for "Continental damn." A little obscure at first
sight ; but easily understood. A French (or Continental) centime,
which the untra veiled American would be a])t to regard as a cent
of his own money, or the hundredth part of a dollar, is really
worth only one-fifth of the American cent. Hence, a woi'thless
tbing would be thought not worth a " Continental cent." In course
of time the less seemly " Continental damn"" obtained currency by
its analogy, and the latter portion is sometimes omitted for ears
polite. Buck Fanshaw's executor omitted it in the presence of
the clergyman whom he requested to inter that eminent citizen.
Contraption. Contrivance : device : anything new-fangled.
Contrive. Used elliptically. "I wish we could contrive it
to Philadelphia," — the words "to carry it," or, "to have it con-
veyed," being elided. "It is a defective construction," says
■\Vitherspoon (who alone notices it), " of which there are but too
many that have already obtained in practice, in spite of all the
remonstrances of men of letters." (Commercial.) Compare
Ordered brought, and the like. See Order.
Cookey. Asmallcako. (Xew York.) {Dutch, ''koekje.'')
DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS. 57
Cool off. To cool, simply.
Coon. A member of the old "Whig party : also a Raccoon, q. v.
Coon's age. A long time.
Cord. Strictly, a solid measure, equal to 12S feet cubic,
used for wood or other coarse materials, and so called from a conl
or line formerly used in measuring the length and breadth of
matter to be thus estimated. ( Old En[iU»h. ) Often used for an
indefinite, but large quantity. Tom Sawyer speaks of " cords of
money." [For an illustration see Stiff.]
Cordiiroy road. A track made by felling trees and laying
them crossways, iu the rough.
Corn. Indian corn or maize, to which alone tliis word is
ever applied. Wheat is called either wheat, distinctively, or
grain. Corn alioays means maize. [For an illustration see
Chicken-fixing's. ]
Corn-cob. The stalk or core upon which maize grows. The
Negroes cut these cones in half, and, hollowing them out, affix a
hollow cane, and make beyond all comparison the best tobacco
pipe in the universe. Experto crcdc. These articles were extremely
difficult to obtain in England, but are now cheap and common.
Their only fault is that they burn rather easily, without, however,
impairing the flavour of the tobacco.
Corn cracker. A Kentuckian. Corn cracker State-
Kentucky.
Corn-dodger. A kind of biscuit.
Corn-juice. "Whisky. The number of synonyms for this
fluid is truly startling.
Corner. An artificial scarcity in any commodity, created for
purposes of gain by brokers and dealers. In Stock Exchange par-
lance, the purchase of a larger amount of stock than is really iu
the market.
Corral. (N.J A circular enclosure into which cattle arc
driven. ( I^.J To drive horses or cattle into such an enclosure for
safety or otherwise. Fi(jur(divchi in any analogical sense. Farmer
says that a "Western parson, i)erforming the marriage ceremony,
will ask if any cause is known why the couple before him
"shouldn't make the play,'' and will bid the bystanders " sipieal
right at that stage of the game, or corral their jaws for evermore.''
"The Prince of Wales . . . is royally fond of good living, the
58 Die TIOXA RY OF AME RICA XISMS.
turf, aud all sorts of si:)orts ; is a gi'eat slaughterer of jiigeons, and
once shot a corralled elephant."'— (Grace Greenwood) in 8t. Louis
Glole Democrat.
Cosouse. See Kersouse.
Cot-betty. A man who meddles in female affairs.
Cotch, to. To catch. (A^egro.)
Cottonocracy. A term applied to manufacturers and
brokers who have acquired wealth in the cotton trade.
Count, to. To suppose, or expect.
CoTV. Any sort, or either gender of bovine quadruped,
Coxrboy. A herdsman.
Co\^-catcher. An attachment in front of a locomotive, in-
tended to remove obstacles from the track.
Cowhide [or Rawhide). (X.) A whip of undressed leather.
(V.) To beat anyone Avith a whip of that, or (,ii(l.) any kind — a
chastisement sometimes applied to offending editors and libellers.
Cracker. A biscuit : (ii<j.J a joke : a squib.
Cracker State. Georgia.
Cradle. ( X. ) A wire net basket, used to wash crushings at
the gold fields. ( I'.) To Avash ore with a cradle.
Crank. A fanciful or eccentric person : a person enthusiastic
in furtherance of any object : an enthusiast.
Crash. A kind of coarse linen, used for making towels.
(Gei'man, "Creas."')
Crawl through a knot-hole. To elude a difficulty.
Crazy. Mad. Seldom or never used in the sense of un-
steady or crooked, except in the compound forms — "crazy-work,"
"crazy-quilt," etc. "Crazy-work" is what we call "patch-work."
Crazy-bone. The funny-bone (that part of the arm over
which the ulnar nerve passes).
Creation, to beat, or lick. To be very extraordinary.
Creature (or Crittiu"). Any animal. In the South, accord-
ing to Bartlett, a horse is called a "crittur,"' the other animals
being termed stock.
"A 'possum, sir, is not a crittur, but a varmint." — (Gosse)
Letters from Alahama.
Die TIONA RV OF A .1 [ERICA XI SMS. 59
Creole. Originally, a white person having Negro blood. Now
anyone born in the Soutliern States or West Indies of European
blood : in Louisiana a person of pure French extraction.
Creole State. Louisiana.
Crook. A swindler : one who indulges in crooked practices —
in "ways that are dark and in tricks that are vain." Frequently
used in newspaper and police reports.
Crooked whisky. Illicitly distilled spirits.
Cross lots. See Across lots.
Crossties. The American name for railway sleepers : the
logs of wood laid in the permanent way under the rails to hold
the sockets in which the latter are laid. I'sed only technically in
England. A "sleeper, "in American railroad slang, is a sleeping car.
Crow, to eat. To eat dirt or humble pie : to retract one's
utterances.
Crowd. (^.) Company : assemblage. " Two is company,
three's a crowd." (V.) To squeeze or crush. " ]Move up, An-
anias ; don't crowd the form," is a polite (?) way of casting doubt
upon any statement.
Crower. A cock-a- doodle-do. (Euphemism.)
Cunning'. Pretty : small : pleasing. Used in the same way
as we say in England " a knowing little thing." (Feminine. )
Curious. Particularly fine: "curious whisky," or "big
whisky " would mean, equally, whisky of high quality. [A term
quite common in the London tea trade, to signify, I believe, the
degree of excellence immediately below that distinguished as
" choicest." One even sees " cui'io-choicest."]
Curlicues. (Qy. Curly-queues?) Pranks: capers. Sometimes
Carlicues.
" It is generally supposed that Nature is perfect in all her works,
— except when she gets odd freaks in her head, and cuts up carli-
cues by way of experiment.'' — Doio's Sermons.
Curve. Habit : metier.
Cuspidor. Spittoon. (Spanish, "Ecns^'idor.'^)
Cuss. Short for curse. " Don't care a cuss " : don't care a
curse. [This, however, is obi English — " Cers,"=a rush.] Cuss-
words. Oaths : expletives, " Cuss your (or my) picture," a sort
of vicarious curse used in the "Western States.
6o DICTIOXARY OF AMERICAXISMS.
*' ' "We air well,' she solumly sed. ' "Whars the old man ? ' sed I,
in a soft voice. ' Of whom dost thow speak — ]'.rother Uriah ? ' 'I
inean the gay and festive cuss who called me a man of sin.
Shouldn't wonder if his name 2ras Uriah.' 'He has retired.'"' —
(Artemus "Ward) The Shakers.
"My show at consists of three moral ^ Bares, a Kangaroo
(a amoozin little Raskal — 'twould make you larf yerself to deth to
see the little cuss jump up and squeal), wax figgers of George
"Washington, General Taylor, John Bunyan, Captain Kidd, and
Dr. AVebster, in the act of killin Dr. Parkman, besides several
miscellanyus moral wax statoots of celebrated piruts and mur-
derers, etc., ekalled by few and excelled by none." — (Artemus
"Ward) A Business Letter.
Cute. Acute. Also in the same sense as " cunning," which see.
Blafet^ta: ,^^ euphemistic oaths and ex-
Dadsnatched, etc. etc. ) P^etives of the semi-pious kind.
Daisy. First-class : out of the common. Applied to all sub-
jects, but most to the physical attributes of woman. " You bet
she's a daisy, boy I "
Damflno. An expression of ignorance, easily resolved (if
desired) into its component words. See Farzino, Fortino.
Damnasty Oath. The amnesty oath, administered to sup-
l)osed sympathizers with the Rebellion after the war.
Dander. (D anger, according to Brewer, Dictioneiry of
Phrase and Fable. Other writers, including Bartlett, regard it as
short for Dandruff.) To raise anyone's " dander " is to provoke him
to great wrath. 2sever quite satisfactorily explained.
Dandy. See Daisy. The meanings are identical.
Dark and bloody ground. The State of Kentucky, which
is the Belgium of America, having been the theatre of battle, first
between conflicting tribes of Indians, and afterwards between
Indians and whites. "Dark and bloody" is sometimes quoted
humorously.
"A dark and bloody editor on one of the Dailies." — (Mark
Twain) The Innocents at Home.
1 A hit at Earnum's " Moral Show."
DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS. 6i
Darky. A Negro,
Darn. Euphemistic oath, whence " darnation, " "tarna-
tion,'' etc.
Darn please, to. To please, with emphasis— usually thus:
" I shall do as I darn please."
"Theres a artikil in the Constitooshun of the United States,
which sez in effeck that everybody may think just as he darn
pleases, and thems my sentiments to a hare." — (Artemus "Ward)
Amonr/ the Sjnrits.
Darsent. Dare not. Indeclinable.
Dead-beat. A worthless fellow: a humbug: a "dead-
head" (q.v.)
Deadhead. One who goes to theatres, etc., without paying,
by obtaining gratuitous tickets on one pretence or another : a
sponger.
Deal. A transaction of any kind.
Declension. ) . _pf,,„„i
Declination. I ^''^*"^^'-
Deed, to. To convey a property to another by legal docu-
ment.
'Deed and 'deed and double 'deed. Indeed. Deedy.
Short for indeedy. (Ncijroism.J (Also Adj. Provincial in Easb
Anglia still, and common in America for "attentive" or " fussy.")
Democrat. The Democratic party in American politics is
that most nearly akin to our Conservative party. The Democrats
opposed the abolition of slavery and maintained the rights of the
South as against the republic, at tlie time of the war. The Demo-
crats conseipiently fell under a cloud after the war, and never ac-
quired political ascendancy until Mr. Cleveland's election to Ills
first term of office in 18S4. General Harrison, defeating Mr. Cleve-
land, became president in 18^8, but was himself beaten in 181)2. The
present (181)3) American administration is therefore Democratic.
Demoralized. Destroyed : injured : worn-out. The word
was originally apidied to soldiers who had lost their nerve or steadi-
ness (without any direct .suggestioji of misconduct), and is so used
in England as a kind of military technicality. In America, the
national genius for extension of meaning applied it metaphorically
to inanimate objects deemed to be the worse for wear.
Demnition. Damnation. Farmer innocently gives, as an
62 DICTIOXARY OF AMERICAXISMS.
Americanism, Mr. Mantalini's famous "going to the Jemnition
bow-wows."
Department. A government or municipal staff : especially
fire department. When small glass bombs containing chemical
fluids for extinguishing fire were first brought to England from
America, I saw a notice paper in connection with them which
read : ''Don't expect one grenade to do the work of a fire depart-
ment." Departmental, rertaining to a department.
Depot. (Pronounced " deepo.") A railway station.
Deputize, to. (V. trans.) To appoint as a deputy. (In-
trans.J To act as a deputy. (Used in the same sense by actors,
etc., here.) " A mere vulgarism," says Pickering.
Derail, to. fl^. trans, and intrans.) To throw a train off
the track, or (of train) to be so tlirown off.
Dern or Durn. See Darn.
Despatch. A telegram.
Despisement. Contempt. (False derivative from "despise.")
Devil, to whip the, all round the stump. To enjoy the
fruits of wickedness while still evading the penalty.
Diamond State. Delaware.
Dicker. To barter or bargain.
Dickey. Shirt collar, not " front " as with us. A "dickey, "as
known in England, or detachable "front," would be called an
"extra shirt bosom" in America.
Didoes. Capers: pranks. To "cut didoes" — to be frolicsome,
to " cut capers," to jjlay the fool.
Difficulted. Perplexed. ( Lowland Scotch.) T\\q verb "to
difficult '■' is in Jamieson's Scottish Dictionary.
Dig", (y.) A diligent student. To Dig- out. ( V.)To abscond
or escape.
Dig-gings. Lodgings : quarters. Miners' word.
Dime. A coin — value, fivepence sterling.
Dime novel. A "penny dreadful," as we say. As a
"dime" is five pennies, one sees by this the superior status of
American literature.
Dip. "Dipping " is chewing snuff, which is picked up with a
DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS. 63
small piece of cane, and thus worked into the interstices of the
teeth. A delightful practice, said to he mostly indulged in by the
fair (?) sex.
Diploma mill. A sham university, worked by swindlers, for
the issue of licenses in medicine and other professions. This is
one of the few slang expressions originating with the medical
profession.
Dirt, on top of. On this side of the grave. Charming !
Disfellowship, to. Antithesis of " to fellowship " {q.v.).
Disgruntle, to. To disconcert.
Disremember, to- To forget. (False derivative. Irish.)
Divide. A ridge of elevated land which separates rivers
flowing in different directions.
Diwy on, to. To receive a share in anything. (From
*' dividend.")
"They fear," says Mr. Foreman, "that they may 'advertise
A. Frank Kichardson,' and they cannot understand the motives
which prompt Mr. Kichardson to work for the general good
without having a ' boodle ' somewhere in the fight ; and they want
to 'divvy on the boodle.'" — National Advertiser, 1891.
Dixie's land. Heaven. (From the name of a kind-hearted
slaveowner, before the war. Negro.)
Dobie. Sec Adobe.
Dod dern. Euphemistic rendering of a very hideous oath.
" His face turned red with passion ; he made one bound, hurled
me across the house with a sweep of his arm, sjmn the wheel down,
and began to pour out a stream of vituperation upon me whic'i
lasted till he was out of breath. In the course of this s])eech he
called me all tlie ditferent kinds of hard names he coidd ihiuk of,
and once or twice I thought he was even going to swear — but lie
had never done that, and he didn't this time. ' Dod dern ' was the
nearest he ventured to the luxury of swearing, for he had been
brought up with a wholesome resjiect for future fire and brim-
stone."— (Mark Twain) Life on the Mississippi.
Do don't. (Negro reduplicative. ) Don't.
Dog. In combination with various words, "dog" forms the
64 Die TIOXA RY OF A MERICA N ISMS .
basis of innumerable euphemistic oatlis, perhaps from the fact that
it spells the name of the Almighty backward.
Dog'gei'y. A low public-house.
Donate. To give, usually for public, political, or religious
objects.
Done. "With past tense, as " he clone fetched it," etc.
(Negro.) Quite meaningless.
Do tell ! (Interj.) Meaningless. Query — "Do-you-tell? '
i.e. " Why, you don't say so ! "
Dough nut. A ball of light dough with a dab of jam in the
middle, fried in butter or lard, and well worth making acquaint-
ance with, (yev: England.)
Dove. Past tense of rcr^ "to dive." Pronounced to rhyme
with rove.
Doxologize. To sing the doxology.
D. Q., on the (= Dead quiet). On the strict " q. t. "
Dra"v^ a bead, to. To take aim with a gun or pistol, from
the fact that the fore-sight is often bead-shaped.
Dreadful. Excessive. Akin to "awful," and over-worked in
the same w-ay.
Drive. In cattle districts a "drive" is a gathering of herds for
branding, or other i^urposes.
Drop. To "get the drop" on anyone is to obtain an advantage
over him, more especially, in such a way as to have an opportunity
of shooting him.
Drummer. A commercial traveller.
Dry Party. ■) The Prohibition, or Total Abstinence, Party
Drys, the. i" in i^olitics.
Duberous, or Dubersome. Doubtful.
Dug-out. A canoe made by hollowing the trunk of a tree.
Dump, to. To unload any rough material by tilting a cart up.
Du m ping-ground. Land on which rubbish may be thrown.
Durn, or Dern. See Dam.
Duster. A light coat, or overcoat.
" A haughty Southern rearljuster
"Wrapped in his pride and linen duster."
—(John Hay) Dream of Ericahrac.
DICTIOXAR Y OF A MERICANISMS. 65
Dutch. " It beats the Dutch" — it is astonishing : it "beats
cockfighting," " Dutch " is often incorrectly used for " German,"
(deutsche.)
Dutiable. Subject to import duty. (Commercial.) Fretty
much everything is '* dutiable '' in America.
Eag-le. Gold coin, value ten dollars.
Ear, on one's To "get on one's ear " is to become angry or
excited.
East, down. In the Eastern part of the United States.
Eat. (V. trans.) To supply with food. (Western.)
Ebony- A Negro.
Egg, to. ( y. trans.) To pelt with eggs. (Political experi-
ence, not unknown in uncultured districts.)
Egg-nog". A drink composed of eggs, cream, and brandy.
Elect, to. To choose : prefer : or be in favour of.
Electoral College. In the Presidential election each State
elects a deputation equal in number to the Members of Congress
sitting for that State. These deputies, meeting together, consti-
tute the " Electoral College," whose vote, taken under certain con-
stitutional restrictions and precautions, elects President and
Vice-President for the ensuing term.
Elegant. An Adj. which signifies anything admirable, in
no matter what respect. An "elegant landscape": an "elegant
lady " (very common in newspapers): "elegant food": "elegant
attire," etc., etc., are all elei/mit expressions— in America.
"The novelty of 1S91 — Embossed Trade Cards. Entirely new
and original. 12 businesses now ready. Pronzed ! Illustrated !
Chaste ! Intensely elegant, and specially suited for fastidious
trade. Big Button (you press) for printers and specialists. Full
line samples, with particulars, for 5 two-cent stamps." — Adver-
tisement.
Elephant. Anything extraordinary. "To see the elephant "
— to see the sights of a place. (Com])are our own " do the lions.")
" ' Wall,' replide I, 'in regard to perlittercal cllerfants I don't
know as how but what they is as good as any other kind of eller-
fants. But I make bold to say thay is all a ornery set and un-
pleasant to have round.' "— (Artemus Ward) The Octoroon.
66 Die riONA R Y OF A M ERIC A AY5.1 TS.
Elevator. A passenger lift.
Else, "Without. Business letters are sometimes made to con-
clude with this strange contraction, as, "Without else by this
mail— Ees])ectf ally, Smith & Co." "Kespectfully," "truly," "faith-
fully," are often used without the pronoun in this way.
Empire State. New York. Empire City. New York
city.
End. To be at a loose end is to have nothing to do, an
analogy evidently drawn from the winding of a skein of thread.
"To be on end '' sometimes means to be indignant in New England,
and is used in that sense in the Bvjlov: Papers.
Endorse, to. To support a statement or an opinion : to
recommend anytiiing.
Energ-lze, to. To impart energy.
Enquiry, or Inquiry. Usually pronounced "' ink'wirry.''
Ensang-uined iindergarment. See Bloody shirt, for which
this is a humorous euphemism,
Ensmall, to. To condense, (False derivative, on the model
of enlarge.)
Enthuse, to. To become enthusiastic. (False derivative.)
Erring- sisters. See Wayward. The Soutliern States.
Essence peddler. The skunk. — Lov:cU.
Eternal, or 'Tamal. Euphemistic expletive.
Ethical. In accord with professional etiquette, (Medical
slanfj.)
Euchre, (y.) A card game, fl''.) To defeat or obtain au
advantage over anyone. In the game of Euchre a person is said to
be " euchred "' who has lost a certain number of points.
" 'You see, friend Hessian,' says the master turning to me, ' how
much superior Southerners are, even as children, to the de^jraved
Yankee. In my teaching experience I have known scholars only
sis 3'ears old to play "poker " like old members of the church, and
a pupil of mine euchred me once in ten miautes.''' — Orpheus C.
Kerr.
European. It is not the case (as I have seen it stated) that
this is always called " Euru'pian.'' One hears the latter occa-
sionally. I have met with only one American who used it habitu-
ally — an extreme Yankee, who gave the irritating inflection which
Die riOXA R Y OF AMERICA XI SMS. 67
many English peo])le erroneously suppose to be universal, to words
like "do," " you "' — dcic, yhew, etc. Curiously, he was an alleged
doctor, but perhaps not an "ethical" one. Oa the other hand,
advertlse'ment is a jironunciation which is almost universal.
Evening". In the South West. Any time after noon.
Eventuate. To happen.
Everlasting-. Used in the same way as "almighty," " eter-
nal," etc., which see.
Evidence, to. To bear witness : to evince.
Excelsior State. New York.
Exctirsb, Exciu't, to. To go on an excursion. (Fahe de-
rivative.)
Executive City. "Washington.
Exercised, to be. To be disturbed in mind : to feel anxious.
Exercises. Public proceedings, especially religious.
Expect, to. To intend.
Experience religion, to. To become converted to the
Christian life.
Express. (X.) A system for delivery of small parcels, in
which sense alone the word is used. (^.J To send or convey by
express.
Eye-opener. Something astonishing : also the name of a
truly astonishing fluid, supposed to be imbibed in hours of de-
pression.
Eyes, to keep skinned. To keep one's "eyes skinned" is an
elegant metaphor to convey the sense of kecpmg wide awake.
Face the music, to- To meet an emergency : to " come
up to the scratcli." "Probably," says Proctor, "the exceeding
atrocity of most American bands accounts for the special signifi-
cance of tlie expression." An illustration will be found under the
word Blutt.
Factory cotton. Unbleached calico of American manu-
facture.
68 DICTIONARY OF AMERICA XISMS.
Fair ofiF, to. 1 (Of the weather.) To brighten up, or become
Fair up, to. I finer. (Southern and South-Western States.)
"He quitted the boat at Xatchez, moved to the North, and
whenever he see a fog risin", took to ]us bed and kept it till it
fair'd off," — Western Tales.
Fair shake. A legitimate or honest bargain.
Faith Cure. A movement akin to the propaganda of what we
call "The Peculiar People, •■ not without reason, seeing that their
main tenet is, that in cases of sickness all medical aid is sinful as be-
traying lack of trust in the Almighty. See Christian Scientists.
Fakir. One who " fakes " : a swindler. '"Fake " is certainly
in no sense an Americanism ; but '"fakir " (a jocular spelling now
universally adopted) quite as certainly is. The allusion is obvious.
Fall. The time of falling leaves : Autumn. Used by Dryden ;
but now practically an Americanism. Beck is somewhat needlessly
concerned to repudiate the American origin of this singularly
beautiful and jDoetical expression.
'■ If you were coming in the fall,
Id brush the summer by
With half a smile and half a spurn,
As housewives do a fly."
— Emily Dickinson's Poems.
" In the Faul of 1856, I showed my show in Utiky, a trooly grate
sitty, in the State of New York." — (Artemus Ward) The Shakers.
Fall, to. To feU [a tree]— Worcester. Often used in the
United States.
"For the purpose of co operating with the continental troops in
breaking up the bridges, falling trees in the roads, etc."— (Marshall)
Life of Washington.
" Fall '"' in this sense is probably not a corruption of "fell" {Awjlo-
Saxon, " fyllan ''), as some have supposed, but the use of "fall," as
a trans, verb for "let fall,'' e.g. :
' ' Draw together ;
And when I rear my hand, do you the like.
To fall it on Gonzalo." — Tempest, ii., 1.
See also Merchant of Venice, 1^ 3.
Falls City- Louisville, Ky.
Fancies. Gambling stocks.
Fandango. A dance : properly speaking a kind of step-
dance, but now used to mean a rather riotous kind of dancing-party.
{Southern States.) The word is pure Spanish.
Die TIONA R Y OF A M ERIC A NISMS. 69
Fan out. To pass an examination or scnitiny of any kind in
a successful or creditable manner. Proctor opines that the expres-
sion is borrowed from the winnowing of corn ; and Mr. Farmer
adopts the theory, with an approving "Probably." Bartlett says,
" to make a show at an examination " (which seems to be explain-
ing obsrurum 2^er obsciwius), " alluding, probably, to a peacock
spreading his tail." Both explanations are unsatisfactory, and
that favoured by Proctor is palpably absurd, since it is the worth-
less part of tlie grain whicli is fanned out in winnowing. The
expiession originated at "West Point, tlie Military Academy of the
United States. It may therefore well be an allusion to the spread-
ing of shot when fired from a gun, or of grape-shot from a cannon,
which are said to " fan out well" when they act in a satisfactory
manner. Or it may i^erhaps simjily be a corruption of ' ' pan
out," which sec.
Faro. A game of chance, played extensively in the South-
west.
Farzino. So far as I know. See Fortino and Damflno.
Merely a vulgar contraction in speech. (A'cw England.)
Feature, to. To make prominent. (A^eic'ipaper slang.) Tlie
regular departments in the space of a paper are called "features,"
and anything new added to the number is said, in English news-
paper offices, to be "made a feature of"; in America, to be
" featured."
Federal City. "Washington.
Feed. (N.) Food: a meal. Also used for "fodder."
Square feed. A full meal. (V.) To give as food, as to
feed crumbs to the birds. Sometimes the subsequent "to" is
omitted : " What do you feed the baby?" is an advertisement of
a certain artificial food.
Feeze. An attack of the fidgets : a state of excitement.
Fellowship, to. To hold communion with. A technical
word, used by religious workers to denote the fusing of relationship
between two or more religious bodies.
Female help. A maid-servant. The word " servant " is
highly offensive to the American ear. See Hired girl.
Fence. A state of uncertainty or "trimming." A states-
man is said to be "on the fence " wlien he is awaiting the turn of
events or of public opinion, in readiness to cast himself into tho
7o DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS.
scale on either side, an attitude which accords well with other
things which one hears of American politics. "To be on the
fence" is, in short, the exact counterpart of an old English verh^
"to trim," which ^Macaulay defines. The allusion to a person
balancing on a palisade is, of course, obvious. See also Nig^ger.
Fence politician. 1 One who habitually or frequently
Fence rider. J adopts the procedure described in the
last definition. "Not to be confounded,'" says Proctor wittily,
"with rail rider, though a fence rider not unfrequently ends his
career by becoming a rail rider."
Fetch up. To stop.
Few, a. A little : rather.
"A solum female, lookin somewhat like a last year's beanpole
stuck into a long meal-bag, cum in and axed me was I athirst and
did I hunger? to which I urbanely ansered, 'a few.' She went
orf, and I endevered to open a conversashun with the old man." —
(Artemus "Ward) The Shakej'S.
F. F. V. First families of Virginia. A satirical expression,
coined during the Civil AVar. The South was proud of its aristo-
cracy and " First Families " — a pride much"disapprobated " in the
Free States. The letters are still sometimes met with, and are, of
course, very puzzling to English readers.
" I grasped the document, my boy, and found on it inscribed
the following efficacious effusion :
' Floyd,
Felonious Floyd far famed for falsifying,
Forever first from Federal forces flying,
From fabrications fanning fortune's flame
Finds foul Fugacity facticious Fame.
Fool 1 facile Fabler I Fugitive flagitious I
Fear for Futurity, Filcher fictitious I
Fame forced from Folly finding fawners fled,
Feeds final failure — failure fungus-fed.
—' Bn Captain ViUiam Broirn Eskevire.'
'TTell, my juvenile Union blue,' says Villiam, smiling like a
successful cherubim, ' what do you think of that piece of American
intelleck ? ' 'I think,' says I, ' that it's Avorthy of an F. F. V.' " —
Orpheus C. Kerr.
Fiend. Always in combination, as "opium-fiend," "cigar-
ette-fiend," etc. One enslaved by an objectionable habit — a highly
idiomatic development.
Figure on, to- To calculate : to count upon. See Cipher.
Die TIONA R V OF A MERICANISMS. 7 1
FilibTister, to. In politics, to obstruct a motion in Con-
gress : a practice one seems to have heard something of in our own
Parliament.
Fill the bill, to. To fulfil a requirement : to give satisfac-
tion : to answer to a description, as goods correctly invoiced cor-
respond with an account. Proctor absurdly prints it (perhaps
misprints ?), " fill the bin." The expression is, of course, borrowed
from the shop.
A man who holds an official position is said to " fill " that office.
Find. (N.) A discovery.
Finding's. Sundry odds and ends required in any trade or
for any purpose — as "druggists' findings," but where we should
say "druggists' sundries : " but
Finding-store. A shop for shoemakers' sundries and tools,
called technically in England, "grindery and kit."
Fine. Small. To " cut it fine " is to allow very little margin.
Finger. An expression confined to drinking saloons : the
(juantity of spirits which, if poured into a tumbler, will rise to the
diameter of a finger.
Fire, to. To "chuck out": to expel by force. Sometimes
"fire out : " but now, more commonly, simply " fire." See Bounce.
"'I understand that you want some painting done.' Editor:
' Yes ; I wish a sign painted at the foot of the stairs. It is for
poets to read after I fire them out ; and as they generally alight
on their heads you had better paint it like this :
—New York Truth, 1891.
Fire bug. An incendiary,
Fisticate. To fight with fists : to box.
Fix. To do anything conceivable to anything in the world, is
to "fix " it in Amenca. To arrange : to fix : to unfix : to tighten :
to loosen: to do anything, in short. Also to "fix up," same
meanings. See iUustrations : —
Speaking of his first acquaintance with LoJienarin, INfark Twain
snys : "The racking and pitiless i)ain of it remains stored up in my
memory alongside the memory of the time that I luid my tctth
72 DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS.
fixed," — by which he means, not that he used artificial teeth, but
that he once had some teeth "stopped." (See also American Notes
byDickeus, and Helen's Babies.) An American who could not open
a drawer in his desk, sent for a carpenter to '"fix it,"' — meaning, of
course, to i?//fix it. There is a certain amount of reaction now,
the word having become vulgarized by constant overwork.
Fix, in a. In difficulties.
Flxing-s. Delicacies— as chicken-fixings, etc.
Flag", to. To signal by means of flags. To signal a train in
any way. (Verb, trans, and intrans.)
Flambustious. Sliowy : gaudy. (A'cfjro.J
Flap-jack. A pancake cooked on a griddle.
Flat side of the earth. On this side of the grave. See
Dirt, top of.
Flier. A venture : an exi:)loit, foolhardy or otherwise : a
statement of doubtful veracity. There are a good many fliers in
some American publications.
Flies. To "have no flies on one'' is to be wide-awake ; al-
lusion obvious.
Flirtatious. Adjectival derivative of verb " to flirt."
" There is no doubt that we unbend in summer ; moral reforms
relax ; the city churches are closed ; society falls into a flirtatious
way."— (C. D. Warner) Heirpcr, July, 1891.
Floater. An elector of uncertain principles : a doubtful
voter.
Floor, to hold or have the. To be in possession of the
house [of Parliament], as we say. Originally used in Congress.
Floor-walker. The superintendent of a '"store" or shop;
namely, the official called in England a " shop-walker."
Flummux. ( V. intreins. ) To collapse, faint, or give in.
The word is a common vulgarism in England, but used in the sense
of "to overwhelm,'" transitively.
Fly aro\ind, to. To act or move quickly.
Fly-back watch. A stop watch.
" AVashington Jefferson : ' Dat ar fly-back watch what yer sold
me ain't no good.' Jeweller: '"What ails it?' Washington Jef-
ferson : ' Hit's been stole m'n fo' days, and hain't flewed back
yet.'"— Texas Siftinys, 1891.
DICTION A RY OF AMERICANISMS. 73
[The redundant h in "it " is a Negioism ; but extra aspirates are
believed in America to characterize all " British " speech. Thus,
in another issue of Texas Siftings, an imaginary conversation be-
tween Her Britannic Majesty and the Heir Apparent is recorded.
Tlie Prince of AVales says: ".Ma, why don't you abdicate?" and
the Queen urbanely replies : "I\ot this trip, Halbert Hedward."
Americans justly jiride themselves on their correct pronunciation
of the letter h, and are characteristically ready to observe and
condemn the shortcomings of other nations in this respect.]
Fly off the handle, to. To lose one's temper.
Folks. People: folk: also "company" {i.e. visitors to a
family). To " be folks," to behave ceremoniously.
" I'd rather be as lonesome as a borryed pup, than see a piece of
caliker as big as a pancake. What's womin but a tarnation bundle
of gammon and petticoats. Powerful ! Be you married folks,
stranger?" — Orpheus C. Kerr.
See also illustration to Footstool.
Foodooism. A kind of Negro witchcraft. Said to be a cor-
ruption of French '' Vaudois."
Fool, to. To act unwisely, or in an imbecile manner.
Footstool. The earth. An allusion to Isaiah Ixvi., 1.
" No man on this footstool can rise and get up and say I ever
knowinly injered no man or wimmin folks." — (Artemus Ward)
Courtship.
For. To " name for." A child is said to be " named for " a
relative, or any other person, when it is baptized or otherwise
furnished with the same name — just as we say "named after," in
fact.
Forenst or fornenst. Opposite : over against. (Old Scotch.)
Fork, two-prong-ed. A man. "That's the kind of two-
pronged fork [or 'fork' simply] so-and-so is." An elegant piece
of slang, for which the "advanced" woman must be thanked — or
otherwise. See Hair-pin.
Fortino. For aught I know. See Farzino and Damflno.
Fi'actional Currency. Small coins.
Fraud. A disappointment, not necessarily with the sugges-
tion of bad faith.
Free. (Adj.) Gratuitous. In every possible combination.
74 DICTION A RY OF A ME RICANISMS.
Free lunch. In American public-bouses (called "saloons'") it
is customary to proWde, gratuitously, under this name, small saacks
of food for all wbo choose to partake of same when drinking.
Free of. Free from. As, "free of odour," "free of expense,"
etc.
Free States. Those States in wbicb slavery was abolished
before the War. The others are still occasionally called "Slave
States '•'; a list of them will be found under tbat beading.
Freeze to, to. To take possession of anything. Also, to take
a fancy for anyone.
Freight. (Conveyance of mercbandise : the charge made for
sucb conveyance. The term is used for inland carriage, instead of
being confined (as bere) to ocean transport. Compare Mail.
Freig-htag-e. Charge for carriage of mercbandise.
Freight train. A goods train.
Freih. Overbold : cbeeky.
Freshet. An inundation, or overflowing of a river from beavy
rain, or more often from tbe melting of snow. Used by 3Iilton
to mean fresb water [Paradise Ber/ained, Book II., line 345), but
by other autbors in tbe (now) American sense.
Front-name. A Christian name ; wbicb term (infant -baptism
being less usual in America than witb us) is little used. See
Given-name.
Fhmeral. Any kind of business or affair. Proctor unneces-
sarily accounts for this use by mentioning the importance attached
to funerals in tbe States ; but the use is probably jocular only.
The facetious American of tbe lower sort always regards the grave
as a highly eligible subject for jesting.
Funeralize, to. To bury, or officiate at the religious cere-
monies of an interment.
Gal-boy. Tom-boy. OVeio Enrjland.)
Gall. In America tbe Englisb figurative use for bitterness of
mind or speech is not common, but tbe word is used to mean a
sort of malignant impudence.
" In Brooklyn there is a firm of druggists wbo employ a glib-
tongued clerk, wbose sole duty is to engage tbe refractory customer
DICT/ONAR V OF AMERICANISMS. 75
who seems inclined to resist the ordinary blandishment put forth
by the ordinary clerk. A quick wink, and the struggling customer
is landed in the toils of this brassy mountain of gall, and the
situation becomes positively dangerous for the timorous citizen,
who persists in his refusal to be hoodwinked." — Art in Advcrtis-
inrj, 1891.
Gallowo. (Pronounced " gallus.'") Showy : dashing.
Gallowses. (Pronounced "galluses.'') Braces. An elegant
figure of speech peculiar to the South and "West. The usual name
of these articles in the States, it should be observed, is "suspender,"
a much more accurate one than "braces."
Galoot. A young person. Defined erroneously by Proctor
as "a common fellow, a low class person." The word is not ex-
clusively masculine, and there is no necessarily depreciative mean-
ing in it.
Galumph, to. To bump along.
Gamble on, to. "You can gamble on that," means, of
course, "You can bet on it"; — also a very familiar expression
(and act) in America. Indeed, the commonness of the latter
phrase has probably led to the invention of the former, as a kind
of (much needed) relief.
" He [Captain Sellers] never printed another paragraph while he
lived, and he never again signed ' Mark Twain ' to anything. At
the time that the telegraph brought the news of his death, I was
on the Pacific coast. I was a fresh new journalist, and I needed a
nam de [/verve, so I confiscated the ancient mariner's discarded one,
and have done my best to make it remain what it was in his hands
— a sign and symbol and warrant that whatever is found in its
company may be gambled on as being the petrified truth. How I
have succeeded it would not be modest in me to say." — (Mark
Twain) Life on the Mississippi.
Gambrel roof. A roof, the slope of which is broken by an
obtuse angle. A mansard, or curb roof.
" ' Gambrel ?— gambrel ? '—Let me beg
You'll look at a horse's hinder leg, —
First great angle above the hoof,
That's the gambrel ; hence gambrel roof."
— (O. W. Holmes) Autocrat of the Breakfast Tabic.
Garden. In America, always a " market garden." The gar-
den attached to a house is always called a " yard," which see.
76 Die TIONA R Y OF A MERICANISMS.
Garden City. Chicago. Aho, Savannali, Georgia.
Garden State. Kansas.
Garmentvire. Dress.
Garrison. A fortified place, as well as the defenders, some-
times receives this name, especially in the "Western States.
Gate City. Keokuk, Iowa (where the navigable portion of
the Mississippi commences}.
'Gator. An alligator. (Originally .\'wro only; now common.)
Gaudy. Good: excellent: enjoyable. "A gaudy time"
means a pleasant experience.
GaiiTQ, to. To smear. [Query for the erudite reader : Is this
at length the explanation of Mr. Peggotty's desire to be "gormed '" ?]
There is an old word '"'gawm, ' meaning to " understand,'^ whence
" gumption" (^gi/osi " gawmshun') ; but the likeness would seem
accidental.
Grentleman turkey. A turkey cock. Also, "gentleman
chicken " for a " cock-a-doodle-do," A modest expression.
Grerrjrmander, to. To arrange the political sub-divisions of
a State in such a way as to give an unfair advantage to one part.
The verb "to gerrymander,'' as perhaps few English readers are
aware, is older than "Waterloo. Governor Gerry of Massachusetts
s gncd a bill in 1811. readjusting representative districts in such a
way as to give a factitious advantage to the Democratic party, and
enable it to swamp the Federalists, although the latter polled a
large majority of actual votes. A fanciful resemblance, in a map
of the districts thus manipulated, to a salamander, led one Stuart,
an artist, to add a few lines with his pencil and complete the like-
ness, saying to the then editor of the Boston Ccntinel (sic) :
" That will do for a salamander."' " Call it a gerrymander," was
the reply, and the epithet soon became a Federal war-cry, Stuart's
caricature being i ublished everywhere as a campaign document.
The Pall Mall Gazette denounced the " geirymandeiing " of the
first London County Council over the question of its election of
aldermen, using the word in quite another sense.
Get (sec Git). To go away : to make haste and take oneself off.
Gret religion, to. To become a convert to pious opinions or
practice. Proctor remarks, with a sneer, that there is all the
difference in the world between a man getting religion and religion
Die TIONA RY OF A MERICANISMS. 7 7
getting a man. " In the East and South," he also observes, " this
ghastly liypocrisy is almost unknown," though why it is necessarily
a ghastly hypocrisy he does not tell the anxious reader.
Get so, to. A peculiar expression illustrated in the following
passage :
" When I get so that I can do that, I'll be able to raise the dead,
and then I won't have to pilot a steamboat to make a living. I
want to retire from tliis business. I want a slush-bucket and a
brush ; I'm only fit for a roustabout. I haven't got brains enough
to be a pilot ; and if I had, I wouldn't have strength enough to
carry them around, unless I went on crutches." — (Mark Twain)
Life on the Mississippi.
Get the mitten, to. To lose a situation or post, usually that
oi prcuK chevalier to a lady : to "get the sack.''
Get there. To achieve a given purpose : to be successful.
For an illustrative quotation of great elegance and beauty see Bug-.
"If you only saw his foot, you'd take him to be nineteen feet
high, but he wasn't ; it was because his foot was out of drawing.
He was intended to be nineteen feet high, no doubt, if his foot
was made first, but he didn't get there ; he was only five feet ten.
That's what lie was, and that's what he is. You take the lies out
of him, and he'll shrink to the size of your hat ; you take the
malice out of him, and he'll disappear." — (Mark Twain) Life on the
Mississippi.
Gilt-edg-ed. Desirable : splendid. Repeatedly used of quite
abstract tilings, such as opportunities, evidence, etc.
Gin mill. A drinking place. Gin sling". A mixed drink
of great seductiveness and uncertain composition. Gin sling'er.
A dram drinker, with an especial delight in the spirit named.
Git. C4o away : begone. Equivalents are — " travel," "put,"
and " vamoose the ranch." See also Get.
Give away. f^V.) An exposure, usually of weakness or
foolishness rather than of misconduct. (KJ To so expose.
Given-name. A Christian name. See Front-name.
" ' Wliat's his other name? ' * He didn't have any other name :
Kings don't have any but a given name.' "—(Mark Twaui) Ruckle-
herry Finn.
Give out, to. To fail, or to be exhausted. A man's money
has " given out " when he lias spent it all.
7S DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS,
Givy. Pliable. AVe say, ourselves, that a material "gives"
a litfle, meaning that it gives way slightly to pressure. It was
reserved for America to coin the adjective.
Glare ice. Ice having a smooth shining surface.
Glimpse, to. To discern : to catch a glimpse of anything.
" I finally got to imagining I glimpsed small flitting shapes here
and there down the columned aisles of the forest."' — (Mark Twain)
A Tramp Abroad.
Go, to. " To go one better "' — terra derived frora the game of
poker, to defeat or excel. "To go for anyone," is to assault
him — "And he went for that Heathen Chinee " — not necessarily
with the sense of having to traverse any distance to do so.
"To go it blind'* (see Blind). "To go your pile,"' is to stake
everything you have on a particular contingency. " Go East,
West, etc.,"" to go towards the quarter indicated, usually in search
of one's fortune. A State or City is said to "Go Republican," or
" Go Democrat," according to the political opinions it manifests in
an election. "To go the whole figure," "the big figure" —
to strive to the fullest extent for the attainment of a given object ;
in fact, to " go the whole hog.' "To go through the mill" — to
acquire practical experience. "To go in swimming" — to take a
morning bath, either in the sea, in a stream or lake, or in a bath.
"To go to see a man" — to take a drink: a kind of formal
or conventional excuse (see Irrigate). The synonyms for tlis
rare practice are, strange to say, too numerous to be qvioted.
Go-aheadativeness. Progressive spirit. A vulgarism of
somewhat aged disrepute.
" xV favourable opportunity o])ens for the natural activity and
go-aheadativeness of our American business men." — Neio York
Times, 18.55.
Goatee. A small tuft of beard grown on an otherwise shaven
chin.
Go back, to. To "go back " on a person is to forsake him iu a
difficulty, or to betray him. "To go back on your hash," is to
desist from any task undertaken, as when a man leaves a meal
unfinished. " Hash " is a great institution in New England.
Gobbler. A turkey.
Going to, to be. A formation of the future tense much
favoured in America. Even the fastidious Dr. Holmes sometimes
uses it, so it may be regarded as goiny to become classical.
DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS. 79
" It is extremely onerous, and is soon going to be impossible, for
me to keep up the wide range of correspondence which has become
a large part of my occupation." — (Holmes) Over the Tea Cups.
Golden Gate. San Francisco.
Golden State. California.
Golflred. Euphemistic expletive.
*' Your'n a stranger, and ain't married folks ; but I don't mind
tellin ye about a golfired rumpus I got into down in Salsbury when
I took to a gal that stuck out all around like a hay stack, an' was
a screamer at choir meeting and such like." — Orpheus C. Kerr.
Gone-by. (Adj.) Kotten : putrefied. " A gone-by egg."
Gone coon.) Also, "gone goose," "gone gander," "gone
Goner. j'gosling," "gone beaver," gone ani/thinrf. One
in a hopeless case. " Goner " is a favourite word with Tom Sawyer
and Huck Finn — credentials sufficient for any elegance.
Good, to feel. To feel well, comfortable, or agreeable. For
an illustration, see Clieniiloon.
Goodself, your. Namely, yourself. (Commercial. J
Goose and the Gridiron, the. The American Eagle and
the fl.ig of the United States. A burlesque term.
Goose hang's high, the. Everything goes well.
Gospel mill. A church.
Gospel-sharp. A minister of religion. ( Western.) Used by
Buck Fanshaw's executor in that memorable interview with the
new clergyman — ^" Air you the duck that runs the gospel mill next
door?": and again, "Air you the head clerk of the doxology-
works yonder?" (the latter exi)ression is, I believe, peculiar to the
l)icturesquc vocabulary of the immortal Scotty Briggs ; but "gospel
mill " is not uncommon) : and finally, " What we want is a gospel-
sharp, pard— a parson . "
Gotham. New York. — ( Washington Irvinr/.J
Gothamite. An inhabitant of New York city ; especially a
New York " Cockney," if such a being can be imagined by the
English student.
Gotten. The correct perfect participle of the verb " to get.'
Rare in England ; quite usual in the United States.
Gouge, to. To thrust from its socket the eye of an adversary
during a fight. See the Bon GauUier Ballads (American sec-
So Die TIOXA RY OF A ME RICA NISMS.
tion), passim, for examples of this and other Americanisms quite
correctly employed.
Governmental. Relating to Government. The employ-
ment of the word '" government " for the political party in power is
not usual in America ; "government"' means the constitutional
machinery for carrying on the business of the country. The other
is called the " Administration. ''
Grab game, the. C^y.J Stealing, or any kind of swindling.
Grade. A degree in rank or quality : also, a step or degree
in any ascending [or descending] series. — Wehstrr : gradient (on a
railroad). Graded, Grading-. As participles from a supposi-
titious or obsolete rc?'b " to grade" — to arrange in order of some
sort. " To grade "' is given by "Webster.
Grain. "Wheat ; rye : oats, etc. See Corn for a differentia-
tion of the English and American uses.
Grandaciou3. Superlative of grand. Also, "grandiferous."'
(Negro.)
Granite State, the. New Hampshire.
Grass, to hunt. To fall down. Not " to decamp," as has
been stated.
Graven imag-e, hungry as. Very hungry indeed, (Meta-
2)horicaL) From the supposeJ savagery and rapacity of heathen
divinities, perhaps.
Grease dlig-htning, like. (Hyperbole.) Very rapid.
Greaser. A ^Mexican or low class Spanish American.
Great Scott. Euphemistic oath of uo great force, and very
uncertain origin.
Greenback. The legal tender (paper currency) of the United
States. So called from an engraved design in green ink on the
back.
Green Mountain City. Montpelier, Vermont.
Green Mountain State. Vermont. (" Vert Mont.")
Gripsack. A handbag.
Grocery. In the South-"West, a drinking saloon (perhaps
corrupted from " groggery '"). Elsewhere, a grocer's shop.
Gubernatorial. Relating to the office of governor, not to
the Government. (From Latin, "Gubernator.")
DICTION A RY OF AMERICANISMS. 8 1
Guess. To judge: to calculatj roughly: to believe, sup-
pose, think. "AVe thus sec," says Bartlett, after citing Chaucer —
' Her yellow hair was braided in a tress
Behind her back, a yarde long, I guess — '
"that the legitimate, English sense of this word is to 'conjecture ';
but with us, and especially in New England, it is constantly used
in common conversation instead of 'to believe,' 'to suppose,' 'to
think,' 'to imagine,' 'to fancy.' It is even used to make an
emphatic assertion ; as 'Jem, wouldn't you like a julep to cool yon
off this sultry morning? ' ' If/uess I would.' From such examples
as the words 'to fix' and 'to guess,' it will be seen that" we have
a "passion for coining new and unnecessary words," etc, — The
American use of "guess" is not incapable of defence. In the in-
cident suggested by Bartlett, "I believe I will" (certainly not
"I believe I vjoirt,") would be a far more usual, as it would
be a more accurate, expression. The American "guesses,"
quite correctly, when he states an opinion not based on ex-
haustive evidence. He has no occasion to "guess" as to his
own future acts, though he may bc/icve that circumstances will
prompt a given action. He "calculates," (also correctly, or at
least more properly than would at first appear) when, weighing all
circumstances discoverable, he arrives at a conclusion. An edu-
cated American "judges " more frequently than he either " calcu-
lates " or "guesses." The Americanism is not in an erroneous use
of " guess " and "calculate" (almost never used together in the
way some English imitators have supposed), but in a somewhat
lavish employment of these verbs.
" The woman who 'calc'lates ' is lost."
— Holmes.
Shakespeare constantly uses "guess" in what is now called the
American sense.
Gum. fN'J, India-rubber. See Chewing'-gum. Any-
thing made of india-rubber, but especially an overshoe, a kind of
skeleton golosh slipped over the boot in wet weather. The well-
known joke about the visitor who was "in the hall, wiping his
gums on the mat," will occur to every reader. -Gum-tree.
Usually the Liqiiidnmhar ati/rarijfua, favourite haunt of tiie
opossum and the raccoon, whence the proverbial '' 'possum uj) a
gum-tree. " Gum-game. A trick, or piece of humbug : whence
Gum (y.), to deceive.
82 DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS.
Gumptious. Possessing "gumption " (which is not a current
Americanism in any sense, though used somewhat freely by Sam
Slick): intelligent: "smart."
Habitan. A yeoman farmer. {French, "habitant.") Con-
fined to French settlements in Louisiana, and used also in Lower
Canada.
Hack. A cab. Abbreviation of hackney-carriage, which is
the legal expression in England, and may be seen on the enamelled
iron notice-plate of every such vehicle in London.
Hadn't ought. Ought not.
Hail, to raise. See Cain. To make a fuss. To " raise
hail'" must certainly demand pretty energetic action, so the ex-
pression is perhaps graphic, if not very refined. Probably a cor-
ruption of "to raise Hell."'
Hail Coltimbia. To "give anyone Hail Columbia " usually
means to astonish or violently attack him.
Hair, to raise. To defeat, alarm, or astonish an adversary.
From the Indian practice of scalping.
Hairpin, the sort of. " Thafs the sort of hairpin he is — "
that is, the kind of person he is. See Fork.
Half-saved. Half-witted. {Herefordshire: common all
over New England.)
Half-shell, on the. A metaphor from the oyster saloon. To
"have ■ anyone " on the half-shell ' is to "have them on toast," as
we say (the latter expression may not improbably have originated
with Ingoldsby. See .-1 L^i/ of St. Medard.)
Hammock. A s^vinging bed, usually made of net-work and
supported at each end, the net being kept open by two curved
wooden fittings called spreaders. The word "hammock'' is of
S^uth American native origin, coming to us through the Spanish
J'ttmaca and the Carib a;nofca. Also, " a piece of ground, thickly
waoded, whether a prairie or a hi'.l, and distinguished from the
• DICTION AR Y OF AMERICANISMS. 83
immense forests of thinly scattered pines." — (Southern). — North
American Eevieic.
Handle, to. To handle any particular merchandise is to do
business in it. (Compare German, "Handlung.")
Hands, to throw up one's. ( V.) A western desperadoes'
command, especially used by "road-agents" (highwaymen). The
victim is required to hold up his hands as a safeguard against his
resistance, since that posture makes it impossible for him to take a
weapon from his pocket.
Hands and feet. Used as an oath (too odiously blasphem-
ous to require explanation).
Handy as a pocket in a shirt. (Prov. Familiar enough
in Essex.) Very convenient. The American loves pockets, and
usually has a couple made in the inside lining of his waistcoat.
Hang- around, to. To loiter : to hang about.
Hang-ing bee. See Bee.
Hang of a thing-, to get the. To acquire the knack of per-
forming a given feat : to become " slick " at it : also, to become
familiar with any facts or experience.
Hang up yo\ir fiddle, to. To desist from any action : to
leave off talking. (Negro.)
Happen in. To call at a house or store (especially of the
"grocery" kind) without any definite oliject — " permiskus like."
An old expression in the "West of England.
Happenings. Events : occurrences. (Neivsjxiper slany.)
Happen upon. To " come across " anyone.
Happify. To make happy.
Happigram. A felicitous expression ; a successful jest.
Jocular imitation of " epigram " perhaps.
Happy as a clam. .See Clam. The beatitude of the fair,
the chaste, the unexpressive clam is a piece of intuition peculiarly
American and inexplicable. The full simile, I believe, is, "As
happy as a clam at high water."
Hard. Often used in combination, and liaving the sense of
bad or undesirable.
84 DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS.
Hard coal. Antliracite.
Hard money. Hard casli : specie, as opposed to paper
currency.
Hard pan. {Fi<jurative : from Geology.) The bottom of
anything. "To strike the hard-pan," is to get to the bottom of a
" controversy."
Hard row to hoe. A difficult matter to accomplish : a hard
life to lead.
" ' Is he a gentleman? ' ' Lucy, my dear ! ' said her aunt. Mrs.
Simmonss eyes flashed. ' Maybe a farmer can't be called one. I
hope you may have a chance to see for yourself, Miss Lucy.' ' Sho,
sho, now ! '' spoke grand'ther ; ' you know what the poet said —
" A mans a man." Put all them things together, George has had a
hard row to hoe."' — (Elizabeth Stoddard) "A "SVheatfield Idyl,"
Harper, Sep., 1891.
Hard run, to be. To be hard pressed.
Hard-shell. A piece of religionistic slang. The Hard-shell
Baptists, esteemed more strict in doctrine and life than a rival
sect called the Soft-shells. {Metaphorical, perhaps from hard and
soft-shelled almon^ls, though there are in America also hard and
soft-shelled crabs.] Adopted into politics in 1854. The Hard-
shell Democrats (often called simply Hards) favoured the Fugitive
Slave Laws and certain arrangements affecting the distribution of
offices, which the Soft-shell party opposed.
Hash. A great dish with Xew Englanders, especially at
breakfast, (See also Go back.)
Hat. Any kind of female head-gear. The only kind of
bonnet which has that name is a sun bonnet, specifically so defined.
-" To talk through your hat." To bully or bluster.
Hatch, to. (Also, Hetch.) To ponder (hatching thoughts
or ideas). Mr. Farmer says, "to wonder" (query ^fo pomlerj.
He quotes the following from the Detroit Free Press, 1888.
" Dawson took me to the main trail by a short cut, and as we
sat down on a rock to have a last smoke together, he said : ' I've
been hetchin'.' 'What about?' ' ^Vall, we saw ^-ou comin' up
the trail that day behind us, an' took you fur a spy. ' You did ?
DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS, 85
* Did you hev any pacooliar feeliri' jist then ? ' ' No.' 'No trem-
blin' or shakin' ? ' ' No.' '
The meaning " to reflect or ponder " fits the sen&e of the above
just as well as, or better than, " to wonder."
Hatchet. The burial of a war hatchet is one of the Indian
customs incidental to making peace ; hence, metaphorically, to
bury the hatchet (or, with extra refinement, tlie bloody hatchet) is
to withdraw from hostilities of any sort.
"They buried the hatchet and sued for peace." — (Trumbull)
History of the Discovert/ of America, 1810.
"The savages were yet unwilling to bury the bloody hatchet,
although the Americans proposed a peace with them on the most
just and equitable terms. " — Ibid.
Hate out, to. To boycott.
Have, to. The auxiliary verb "to have'* is used by Americans
in a manner which is also common in Essex and Suff'olk, and not
unknown in other provincial dialects — namely (1), in the sense of
" to cause " (or, more accurately, " to cause by influence," in the
sense of the first "faire" in the French "fairefairequelquechose"),
and (2) in the sense of "to permit " or " tolerate." Tims we get
(1) "I will have the servant wake you in good season "; and (2)
" He was very fond of reading to my daughter, nights, and she
liked well enough to have him do so." In the sense of " to possess,"
the verb "to have" has one distinctively American inflection,
namely this — "I do not have, thou dost not have," etc., for "I
have not, thou hast not," etc. ; and so on in the other tenses.
This is almost universal, and in his interesting book on the speech
of monkeys, I find ]\Ir. Garner asking a keeper for something
" which, however, he did not have, " which shows that the expression
cannot justly be classed as a vulgarism. Also, in a still stranger
way, "to have " anything happen is to undergo the experience of
such a thing.
" See that his buttons to his shirts adhere,
As Trojan Hector to the walls of Troy ;
And see that not, Achilles-like, appear
Rents in his stocking heels ; but be your joy
To have his wardrobe all your thoughts employ."
— Orplieus C. Kerr.
Hawkeye State. Iowa.
Hay, to. (J^^.J To make liay.
P
86 DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS.
Hay-pitcher. ) A country joskin. Term of good-hnraoured
Hayseed. j contempt.
Hay rack. A hay stack.
Haze, to. To play practical jokes, or indulge in any kind of
riotous horseplay ; especially applied to the tricks played on fresh-
men at college.
Head. To have " a big (or swelled) head "' is an expression used
to define the matutinal discomforts of a drunkard. To " put a
head on " anyone is to attack him physically with violence. To
" head off ' a fugitive of any kind, human or otherwise, is to stop
or intercei)t him.
Heap. A great many : a great deal. Used in connection
with nouns which could not possibly be disposed in heaps. ' ' AVe've
got heaps of time,'' etc. Also used adverhiaUii, " I like So-and-So
a heap."
Hearty as a buck. Very hearty, (ffunter's jihrase, grown
into common employment.)
He-biddy. Another "high-toned" expression for what the
" refined " call also a " gentleman chicken " — to wit, " a cock."
Heft. (f^-J To estimate the weight of an object by poising
it in the hand. (N.J Weight.
" Constitooents are handy to help a man in,
But afterwards dont weigh the heft of a pin."
— ;Loweil) Biglov: Papers.
Hefty. Heavy.
Heifer. Familiar term of greeting. (yVestern.J
Hello ! Term of greeting or salutation, to which the correct
answer appears to be, "Hello yourself.'
Help. A servant of any kind. As there are no masters in
America, so also there are no servants, each term being deemed
derogatory and opposed to the true principles of democracy.
Hen-biddy. A hen chicken.
Hen-fruit. Eggs.
Herb. This word means in America exactly what it means
here ; but is always pronounced with silent h — " "erb."
Herring pond. The Atlantic.
DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS. 87
Hessian. (Political.) A mercenary person. Hessian troops
were employed by the British Government during the war of
American Independence ; a fact which excited great indignation.
Het. Past tense of rerh "to heat." Spelled properly it should
be "heat." Shakespeare and Chaucer both used the word "heat" for
"heated," though there is nothing to show that they pronounced it
" het." The latter is a not uncommon spelling and pronunciation in
America now. A building is said to be " all het up " when it has
fires all over, warming the entire house, either directly or by the
unhealthy hot-water pipe system much in vogue.
" Mrs. Simmons does not like us late, and consequently to have
* vittles het over.'" — (Elizabeth Stoddanl) " A Wheatfield Idyl,"
Harper., September, 1891.
Hetch. See Hatch.
Hickory. Name of a tree (Carina) noted for its tough and
flexible timbers. The name is stated to be of Indian origin
(Paiccohicora) : and Proctor remarks, with his usual ingenuity,
that the Greek name of the genus {n xxpua.) is almost identical
with it, overlooking, apparently, the first two syllables.
Hig-hbinder. A traitor, or any kind of scoundrel. Origin-
ally, a Chinese detective.
Hig-h falutin'. Bombast. (Perhaps Z)«<r^, " verlooten.'')
Also called " spread-eaglism," when of a patriotic nature : and a
good many American patriotic speeches do contain a certain
soupron of "high falutin'."
Hired girl. | ^ domestic servant of the variety respec-
Hired man. r^-^gi indicated.
Hired woman, j
Hist. [Loiuj 1.) IMispronunciation of "hoist."
Hitch together. To agree well : to enter into partnership
or brotherhood : to marry.
Hither and yon. Here and there. Very old (noticed by
Pickering l.SKi), and still not uncommon.
Hoe. "A long row to hoe," is a difficult task to accomplish.
See Hard row.
Hoe cake. A rough cake grilled or baked on a hoe :
" He lost all his teeth a' eatin' hoe cake
So was forced to let de hoe cake hi."— Negro Song.
Hoe one's row, to. To do one's work. (Negro. J
S8 DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS.
Hog. A pig. Pigs are alflrays called "hogs ■ in America, e» en
when named figuratively. Children do not speak of a ''greedy pig,"
but a '"greedy hog," when rebuking each other's rapacity.
Hog", to. To behave greedily.
Hog in togs. A low person expensive'y attired. Hog-
tight. fAilJ.j (Of a fence) strong enough to resist the passage of
pigs. Hog wallows, are depressions in the ground of the
prairies, fancifully supposed to have been grubbed out by pigs ;
also called "buffalo wallows." Hog and hominy. Slang
term for "Western fare, which among country people consists
mainly of pork and Indian corn. Hog-wash. Bad whisky, or
any unpalatable fluid.
Holden. Past participle of verb '"' to hold."' See Holp.
Hold over, to, "To hold over anyone/' is, at the ignoble
game of poker, to have better cards.
Hold up, to. To rob by violence.
Holp. ). Past tense and participle of "help."' Compare
Holpen. ) jBooA." of Commun Prainr; "He remembering his
mercy hath holpen his servant Israel : ' and Lidie i., 54. A survival
of the desirable sort.
Home. " Home "" often means Great Britain, even now,
according to Proctor. "Home "'is also used elliptically to mean
a' home : "I breakfasted home,'" etc. "Toliome" (pronounced,
and spelled sometimes "to hum '"), at home. " "When is a bee like
charity "? "" asks Dr. O. "V\'. Holmes ; and the answer is, ""When it
begins to hum."'"
Homely. Plain in appearance : unattractive : as nearly as
possible, ugly. The sense of "domesticated" does not attach to
the word in America.
" • It"s kinder singler,' sez I, puttin on my most sweetest look
and speakin in a winnin voice, ' that so fair a made as thou never
got hitched to some likely feller.' (X.B. — She was upwards of
40, and homely as a stump fence, but I thawt I"d tickiJ her.)'" —
(Artemus "Ward) The Shakers.
Hominy. A preparation of Indian corn, the kernels being
stripped and sometimes roughly crushed [Indian word, " aupu-
minea " ; accented on the second syllable. ) Elwyn quotes an old
slang dictionary, undated, published in London, as giving " homine ''
= Indian corn.
DICTION AR V OF AMERICANISMS. 89
Honest Injun ! A sort of miW oath— one would naturally
swear by anything so very unusual, as an honest red-man seems to
be. It is used constantly by Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn,
as an asseveration of good faith.
Honey. Terra of affection, like Artemus "Ward's "old
sweetness. "
"I said if Bill Tomkins, who was onct my partner in the show
bisniss, was sober, I should like to converse with him a few periods.
' Is the speret of W. Tomkins present?' said one of the long-haired
chaps, and there was 3 knox on the table. Sez I, ' "William, how
goes it, old sweetness?' 'Pretty rutf, old boss,' he replide." —
(Artemus "Ward) Among the Spirits.
iSSIy fuf |ie,°to. } To bamboozle or cheat.
Hoodlum. A rough. Also, a costermonger.
Hook, to. To steal.
Hoople. A child's hoop. " To roll hoople " is to bowl a
hoop. (Neio York State. Dutch, "hoepel.")
Hoosier State. Indiana.
Hooter. Nothing at all : the smallest thing conceivable.
Bartlett ingeniously derives it from "iota," the smallest letter in the
Greek alphabet, used by the Saviour as an image of smallness —
" jot [i.e. " iota "] or tittle." The tittle is a small accent.
Hope, to. To hope for. (Elliptical.) ""We may hope the
assistance of God." Given by "Witherspoon as an Americanism,
and still in occasional use. It is, however, archaic, and is pro-
vincial in some parts of England.
Used in the South for " help.'' It is not exactly a misiironuncia-
tion of " help," but of "holpen.''
Hopping- mad. In a great rage.
Horn. A measure for drink. "To crawl out of the little
end of tlie horn " is to look small, especially after making big
pretences.
Horn bug. A stag beetle.
Hose. Stockings. The latter a highly offensive term to
"modest '• ears, though "long socks " is permitted.
Housekeep, to. A new nrh oF obvious signification.
Hove. I'ast tense of "to heave."
90 DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS.
Ho"W? For "what?" Said by Dr. Holmes to be pronounced
" haow," much to his disgust.
Howdy, Form of salutation. How do you do ?
How's that for high? ""What do you think of that as an
achievement ? " Said to be an expression borrowed from a card game
called " old sledge. •'"
Hig-h old time. A period of great enjoyment.
Hub of the universe. Sarcastic term applied to Boston,
Mass., on account of the alleged arrogance of its inhabitants.
Huckleberry. "Whortleberry. A word dear to all lovers
of humour as tlie sobriquet of Mark Twain's most charming of boys
— Huckleberry, or Huck, Finn, an outcast, the envy of all the boys
in the village, who were forbidden on awful penalties to play with
him. — Toz/i Saicyer ; also. The Adventures of Huckleherry Finn.
Hiill. ( N.) The husk of corn : the green and stalk of "a
strawberry. ('F.^ To remove those parts. Hull. ( Adj . ) ^h.o\Q.
fJIisjrron unciation . )
Hum. Home {q. v.) : " to hum "—at home. , A'ew England.)
Hum, to make things. Illustrative metaphor to signify
great activity, as a wheel will hum when caused to revolve at a
high speed.
Hump, to. To hurry.
"The assistant added a few suggestions, words, and figures to
the schedule ; then he looked up and remarked : ' The artist will
have to hump himself if we are going to get the plate in time for
the midsummer. That comes out the last week in July, and here
we arc, near the end of May. All the other cuts are done ; at
least they told me yesterday they expected the last one in to-
day.'"* — (Brander Matthews) "The Story of a Story," Century,
Oct., 1891.
"Hump yourselves, hump yourselves you petrifactions, snail
bellies, pallbearers 1 Going to be all day getting that hatfvd of
freight out ? "— (Mark Twain) Life on the Mississipj^i.
Hung. The j^ast tense of " hang " : even when the subject of
the hanging is a human being.
"In England, beef is hung, gates are hung, and curtains are
hung, but felons are hanged : in Canada [and the same is true of
the United States] felons, beef, gates, and curtains, are all treated
the same way." — (Rev. A. C. Geikie) Canadian Journal, 18.57.
Die TIONA RY OF AMERICA NISMS. 9 1
Hunkey. Capital : good. A term of approbation meaning
almost anything.
Hunkidorum. Anything very desirable indeed.
Hurricane. Though thoroughly established in all English-
speaking countries now, it would seem that this word is really an
Americanism in origin. It is not given in any Fnglish dictionary
earlier than 1720, and is undoubtedly derived through the Spanish,
from a word native to the Carribbean language.
Hurryment. (Southern.) Haste.
Hurry up, to. To make haste.
Hustle, to. To hurry : to be in haste : to hurry anyone else :
to bustle ; to be conspicuously energetic.
Hypothecate, to. To pledge or mortgage. (German. ) ^^ The
trouble heretofore has been — I am quoting remarks of planters and
steamboat-men— that the planters, although owning the land, were
without cash capital ; had to hypotliecate both land and crop to
carry on the business." — (Mark Twain) Life on the Mississippi.
Ice-boat. A small yacht fitted with steel runners and pro-
pelled along a smooth surface by the wind. The mean tempera-
ture of New England is substantially the same as that of
Great Britain, but the summers are much hotter and the
winters far more severe. In consequence of the latter fact, all
arrangements for pastimes into which ice enters are much more
perfect than with us, since the cold weather can always be relied
upon, and is pretty sure to last long enough during any winter to
render somewhat extensive arrangements worth making.
Idea-pot. The head.
I know it. Americans say " I know it " when acknowledging
the truth of an assertion, where we should say simply, "Yes, I
know." The difference is trifling and rather subtle, but it is too
distinctive an Americanism to omit. .See Know.
lie, to strike. See Oil, to strike.
111. Vicious : ill-tempered : immoral. (South-west only.)
Illy. 111. Is found in Southey and Strype, but now obsolete
in England, though still met with in America. Used by Henry
Clay, 1877.
Immense. Excellent. (Theatrical slang oriijinaUy.)
92 DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS.
Importunacy. Importuuity.
Improvement. That part of a sermon which is sometimes
called iiiEuglaud the '•application "' ; namely, that portion intended
to enforce and apply to practical life the doctrines previously set
forth.
Inaugural. Contraction of inaugural address. See, and
compare, Valedictory.
Incident. Subject or liable, f Witherspoon. )
Inculpate, to. An imitation of " exculpate," having, of
course, the exactly opposite signification.
Indeedy. Indeed. (Orir/inaJh/ a Xenroism.)
" In the old times, the barkeeper owned the bar himself, 'and
was gay and smarty and talky, and all jewelled up, and was the
toniest aristocrat on the boat ; used to make $2,000 on a trip. A
father who left his son a steamboat bar, left him a fortune. Now
he leaves liim board and lodging ; yes, and washing, if a shirt a
trip will do. Yes, indeedy, times are changed. Why, do you
know, on the principal line of boats on the Upper Mississippi, they
don't have any bar at all 1 Sounds like poetry, but it's the petri-
fied truth.' "^(Mark Twain) Life on the Mississippi.
Independence Day. July 4. The anniversary of the
Declaration of Independence (1770). A national holiday; the
occasion of gi-eat celebrations anel much oratory.
Indian. The aboriginal inhabitants of America. See
Abrog-ans.
Indian g-ift. A present designed to secure some favour in
return, as we say, "A sprat to catch a mackerel." From the
national dealings with the red man, to whom trifling gifts have
sometimes been " donated " in no spirit of true generosity.
Indian liquor. This is another detestable wrong in-
flicted by the greeel of the white man on the unfortunate Indians.
" Indian liciuor " is the worst whisky procurable (and America
is said to be capable of some very bael things indeed in this line),
diluted with water and raised to the desired pungency by the
addition of capsicum, bad tobacco, and an indigenous bitter.
Supplied to the natives by the benevolent gentry known as Indian
agents, not without an eye to the personal enrichment of the
latter.
DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS. 93
Indian reservation. Tracts of country reserved for the
aborigines to starve on under the paternal supervision of the
agents above mentioned.
Indian summer. A short spell of warmer and finer weather,
which generally sets in at the end of autumn.
Infract, to. To infringe. (False derivative from "in-
fraction.')
Injunct, to. To issue an injunction. (Legal slang.)
Ink-slinger. A journalist or ])rofessional writer. A term of
contempt, about equivalent to our own "penny-a-liner."
Inquiry. See Enquiry.
Inside of. "Within [time). " Inside of three hours," etc.
Inside track. To have the inside track of a subject is to
understand it thoroughly. The inside of the curve on a race-
course is, of course, the most desirable position.
Institution. A practice or habit. "A flash word of recent
introduction, " says Bartlett, in his edition of 1 860. Quite common
now on both sides of the Atlantic.
Insurrect, to. C^-) (False derivative from " insurrec-
tion.") To revolt.
Interfere, to. In the "West, to interfere with a person often
means to maltreat him with rough violence.
Intervale. Alluvial soil on a river bank.
Interview, to. To obtain an interview with a person in
order to publish a report of the conversation, with or without em-
bellishment. A torture of American origin and invention.
Involvement. State of behig involved : entanglement.
Inwardness. The inwardness of a subject is manifestly that
aspect of it which lies beneath the surface.
Iron City. Pittsburg, the Sheffield of America.
Irrigate, to. To take a drink ; for which not infrequent act
the number of synonyms is amazing.
I should smile. ( Interjec.) An expression of sur, rise or
incredulity.
Item. In newspaper slang, a portion of news or literary
matter. " To give an item," among cardsharjiers, is to signal in-
formation to a confederate unfairly.
54 DtC TIONA R Y OF A .y ERIC A NISMS.
Itemize. To divide a total into its constituent parts. (Com-
mercial. J
Jab. (Pronounced "job.") To stab or pink with a pointed
weapon.
Jacket, to. To enclose a document or paper for reference
with others relating to the same subject.
Jail, to. To cast into prison.
Jeenainy. (Interjec.) Perhaps " Gemini " ('Xa^^/zj — "the
twins," viz. "Castor and Pollux."
Jerked meat. Meat cut into thin slices and dried in the
sun, or artificially, to preserve it.
Jesse. I rp^ g^yg anyone " jesse " (" jessie " or " jessy ") is
J essie. |-^^ inflict severe penalties or unpleasantness upon him.
J essy. J
Jibe, to. To "jibe " with anyone is to agree well with him :
to live in harmony.
Jig--water. Bad wJiisky.
Jim-jams. Delirium tremens.
Johnny Rebs. One of the names by which soldiers on the
side of the South were called by those in the Northern army.
Judge of the plains. An official whose business it is to
settle disputes between different cattle owners. (California.)
Jug-ful. "Not by a jugful" means "not by a long chalk,"
which is the exact equivalent in English slang. A "jug " means a
stone bottle, such as is used to hold whisky in quantities of a
gallon or so. Any other kind of jug is called by Americans a
"pitcher'' or " ewer."
Julep. An intoxicating drink of varying composition, ac-
cording to the prefix (as " mint julep "). Brandy or whisky, sugar,
and powdered ice are essentials. A "mint julep' is said to resemble
"a torch-light jirocession passing down your throat." Analogy
not vouched for by present writer.
Jumper. See Claim. "Jumper' is used in combination with
various other words, as "claim-jumper," "bounty-jumper," etc.,
always with a sinister sense.
Jtimper, A very crude form of sledge.
Die TIONA RY OF AMERICANISMS. 95
Junk-shop. A "marine store," as we term it : a shop where
ohl bottles, bones, etc., are purchased in small quantities. ^Yaste
of this kind is called "junk " in America.
Kanaka. A native of the Sandwich Islands.
Kanuck. A Canadian. Strictly speaking, a French Canadian.
Karimption. A crowd of people. (Western.)
Kedg-e. In good health and spirits : brisk.
Keel over, to. To come to grief : to collapse.
Keep, to. To dwell. "I keep with So-and-so," means, "I
live at So-and-so's house."
Keep a stiff upper lip, to. To be firm : to exhibit pluck.
Graphic and expressive.
Kerchunk. \ A fanciful onomatopoiisis, to express the
Ke. slap, etc. J sound of a body falling into water, and after-
wards to mean (thougli hardly to e.xpress) any kind of falling.
Second syllable accented.
"He sed they was Shakers and all was ekal. They was the
purest and selectest peple on the yearth. Other peple was sinful
as they could be, but Shakers was all right. Shakers was all goin'
kerslap to the Promist Land and nobody was goin' to stand at the
gate to bar 'em out ; if they did they'd git run over." — (Artemus
AVard) The Shakers.
"I pitted the Octoroon from tlie inmost recusses of my hart
and hawled out 50 dollars kerslap and told her to buy her old
muther out as soon as posserbul.'' — (Artumus Ward) The Octoroon.
" So into the water he fell, keislosh,
And tliat was the end of .Joshuosli."
—( ApocrnpliaO Negro Melody.
Kersouse or Cosouse. Splash ! An onomatopoetic word
for the sound of a heavy body falling into water.
Kerwallop. See Chewallop.
Kettle. Often used, especially in New England, for a "tin
pail." A "sugar kettle " is an open boiling-pan, used in the old-
fashioned process ; now entirely superseded.
Keystone State. Pennsylvania.
Kick, to. Used in the Southern States in exactly the same
sense as our word "to jilt."
96 DIC7I0XAR Y OF A MERICANISMS.
Kindling's. Firewoo'l. (Also. Kindler?.) The verb '"' to
kindle, "" for the act of lighting a fire, is quite generally and correctly
employed. A fire is first huHt and then kindled : in England, it is
first laid and afterwards lighted. "Kindlings," however, for fire-
wood, is good Suffolk.
Kind of— Kinder. (Adv.) Eather : in a manner : to some
extent.
Kink. A metaphorical extension of meaning. A " kink " is,
correctly, a hitch in a rope or cord, not caused by a knot, but
occasioned by the substance of the cordage being bent up and then
twisted, so that it does not readily straighten out. Hence, a
"hitch ' in any undertaking.
Kinky. (Adj. From "kink.") Troublesome: eccentric.
Knickerbocker. A Xew Yorker of Dutch descent.
Knig-hts of labour. An organization of working-men, not
confined to any single trade, but aiming at a general confederation
of labour.
Knocked-up. " Knocked-up " means always enceinte, and is
never on any occasion used to mean fatigued.
Know enoug"li, to. To have sufficient sense.
" You ought to know enough not to expose yourself needlessly
to draughts.'"— (Holmes) Over the Tea Cups.
"You don't know enough to pilot a cow down a lane." — Mark
Twain.
Know it, I. In intimating previous knowledge of any an-
nouncement, if an American does not say, " I guess that's a
chestnut," he is pretty sure to say "I know it," — where |we
should say simply " I know." The American iisage is, of course,
the more correct one. See I know it.
Know^-notbing politicians. Members of the "American
party," which had an immense but transitory success in 18.53.
Their principles may be summed up in the phrase, ' ' America for the
Americans" : they "knew nothing "of any other political dogma.
The party collapsed when its leaders began to propose impractic-
able and extreme measm'es.
Ku Klux Klan. A secret semi-political society, instituted
at Pulaski, Tennessee, in 1866, primarily as an only half serious
relief to the depression following the war. The name is said to
have been coined from the Greek xCxkas—si band or circle,
DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS. 97
"klan " being merelj'a factitious corruption of "clan "for allitera-
tion's sake. It was charged with numerous outrages on Negroes
and "carpet-baggers " (which sc^), but certainly had a large sliare
in preserving order during the anarchic period. It was disbanded
voluntarily in 1809. For a full history (by Mr. S. de Havilland),
see Gcntleidcin's Ma<iazine, London, May, 1888, and the Century,
New York, July, 1884.
Lady. A woman of any station. A manufacturer, writing
to me from New York, mentioned his " forelady ; "' and "sales-
ladies" are quite plentiful in that city.
Lady bug. The insect much more prettily known in Eng-
land, though perhaps less correctly, as the "lady6n'c/. "
Lj-^'niappe. A gratuity of the given-away-with-a-pound-of-
tea kind as explained in illustration. (Ncio Orleans.)
" \Ye picked up one excellent word— a word worth travelling to
New Orleans to get ; a nice limber, expressive, handy word —
' Lagniappe.' They pronounce it ' Vemny- yap.' It is Spanish— so they
said. AVc discovered it at the head of a column of odds and ends
in the Picayune, the first day ; heard twenty people use it the
second ; inrpiired what it meant the tliird ; adopted it and got
facility in swinging it the fourth. It has a restricted meaning, but
I think the people spread it out a little when they choose. It is
the equivalent of the thirteenth roll in a 'baker's dozen.' It is
something thrown in, gratis, for good measure. The custom origi-
nated in the Spanish quarter of the city. When a child or a
servant buys something in a shop — or even the mayor or the
governor, for aught I know — he finislies the operation by saying, —
'Give me something for lagniappe.' The shopman always re-
sponds ; gives the child a bit of li(j[Uorice-root, gives the servant a
cheap cigar or a spool of thread, gives the governor — I don't know
what he gives the governor ; support, likely." — (Mark Twain) Life
on the Mis^iissippi.
Lake State. Michigan.
Lam, to. To thrash anyone. (Yorkshire.)
Lambastate. To thrash anyone. Probably an elaboration of
the I'erh " to lam," of which the simple form, given above, is alone
provincial in this country.
Lame duck. A defaulting stockbroker ; hence, a defaultjr
98 Die TIONA R V OF A MERICANISMS.
of any kind. (Compare English proverb, "to help a lame dog over
a stile."")
Langnishment. A decline in health, and especially, phthisis.
Large. A "large" man or woman is a stout i)erson. (Ntvo
Enrjland.J
Lariat. A lasso; a rope made usually of leather thongs
plaited, but sometimes of grass. The word, like many kindred
expressions originating in the Mexican frontier and peculiar to the
cattle industry, is Spanish, "la reata." See also Riata.
Larrup. To beat. Usually classed as an Americanism, but
really a sailors' word. (From "lee-rope," the instrument of
castigation.) It is given in Smyth"s Sailors' Word Book as "an
old word, meaning to beat with a rope's end, strap, or colt."
Lasso. (^y.J A rope, or strip of undressed leather, with a
noose, employed with great skill by cowboys in catching and
" corralling "((/.?•.) cattle. Spanish, "lazo." (^K.^ To catch with a
" lasso " ; ./7'r/., to catch or detain anyone : to obtain possession of
any article.
Lathy. Slender : flexible. (From "lath.")
Latter-day Saints. The Mormons. A self-bestowed eulogy.
Lawyer. The bird Hirnantopus nigricollis (the "black-
necked stilt ■') is sometimes called the " lawyer," doubtless on ac-
count of its long bill.
Lay. Terms or conditions of a bargain : a share in any en-
terprise. Given by Admiral Smyth as a sailors' word : " ' By the
lay.' "When a man is paid in proportion to the success of the
voyage instead of by the month. This is common in whalers."
Lay for, to. To set an ambush for anyone : to attack.
Lay out. A hand of cards when displayed, in the game of
"poker": hence, metaphorically, anything kept in reserve for a
time and finally exhibited. A good illustration of this use occurs
under the word "bluff," which sec. Also the provisions prepared
for the entertainment of a company. (Compare the English vul-
garism, " spread.")
Lay out, to. "To lay an adversary out" is to completely
overpower him, a simile elegantly adopted from the vocabulary of
the " undertaking profession."
Lean to. (Pronounced sometimes "linter.") An outhouse
or addition, with sloping roof.
DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS. 99
Left, to be. To fail in any enterprise : to be distanced by
one's competitors : to be left behind.
Leg drama. A ballet. Not euphemized to "limb perform-
ance," strange to say. A theatre where dancing and ballets form
the staple attraction is contemptuously called a "leg shop."
Legislative, the. ( N.) The Legislative Chambers, the
adjective (as in the case of our "executive") being made to do
double duty.
Leg stretcher. Any drink. Derived by Bartlett from the
practice of passengers by coach, who were accustomed to get out
" to stretch their legs " at each stoppage, with a little refreshment
of the fluid kind, as a natural concomitant. ( J'ermont.)
Let be, to. ( I', usually in the imperative). To let alone : to
abstain from hindrance. A thoroughly good old English expression,
which occurs at least once in the Bible. It is, however, so
much commoner in America than here (where indeed it is obsolete)
that it must needs be classed as practically an Americanism.
Let on, to. To pretend.
"The chaste and innocuous ' Godey's Ladies' Book,' with painted
fashion plate of wax figure women, with mouths all alike— lips
and eyelids the same size — each five-foot woman with a two-inch
wedge sticking from under her dress and letting on to be half of
her foot." — (Mark Twain) Life on the Misaissippi.
Let up, to. To disclose or betray a fact. " To let up " on
anyone is to betray him. " To let up " on a practice is to abstain
from it.
Letup. (N.J A release : an excusing.
Leve ! (y. imperative only.) 'Equiva\ent to Levez-vous, "Get
up." An emphatic or urgent call to action. (Louisiana. J
Level best. "To do your level best " is to exert your powers
to the full.
Lewer. A lever. Always so pronounced, and sometimes so
spelled.
Liberty pole. A tall mast surmounted by a cap, in com-
memoration of "William Ttll's doubtful history. These " liberty
poles " are said to exist still in several American cities.
Lick. (y^.J To chastise by beating or thrashing : to defeat
in any way. [Very old English, dating Lack to the Tudor peri«»d,
and perhaps much earlier. It is given under an archaic spelling
loo DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS.
in Harmau's Canting Dictionary, temp. Elizabeth.] (A\) A stroke
or stripe. "Big licks" {adverhiaUit), vigorously. " Licks " (A.),
efforts.
" The publisher of a new journal always puts in his best licks
for the first tliree mouths. "'^ — Printers' Ink, 1891.
Lie low, to. To adopt a policy of concealment.
Lise the book. (Adv.) Thoroughly.
Likely. (Adj.) Prepossessing. Also used adverbially for
"probably."
Limb. Like the Queen of Spain, modest Americans have no
legs. When these indelicate organs must needs be alluded to, the
refined disguise tiieir grossness beneath the euj^hemism, " limbs."'
Linguister. An interpreter. Called by Bartlett with much
probability a sailors' term. It is not in Admiral Smyth's glossary,
however.
Liquor, to. To take a drink in company with another person.
Little Rhody. The State of Khodc Island, which is the
smallest iu the Union.
Live. Energetic : lively.
*' Starretfs fine tools. Skilled mechanics prefer them. Live
dealers sell them. Send for Catalogue." — Advertisement, 1891.
" "Western merchants have the reputation of being live business
men ; some of them think, therefore, they must yell aad shout,
even in print, to give an air of prosperity to their business." —
Printers' Ink, 1801.
An electric-light cable is said to be "alive " when it is conveying
current. Thus :— " The Reporter's Lot.— City Editor ; ' The street
is all excitement. An electric-light wire has blocked traffic, and
no one knows whether it is a live wire or not.' Editor — 'Detail
two reporters to go to the wire immediately ; one to feel of it and
the other to write up the result.""— A^ez'; York Weekly.
Loaf, to. To lounge about idly.
Loafer. One who loafs.
Loan, to. To lend. Obsolete in England, but really a very
old word, and not, as has generally been thought, a mere corrup-
tion. It is used as a verb by Chaucer.
Lobby, to. To frequent the ante-chamber of the legislature,
usually with some rascality in view, so that the word has an un-
l^leasant sound in American ears. Nearly always significant of
corruption in one form or another.
Die TIONA RY OF A M ERIC A NISMS. i o i
Locate to. To place : to set in a particular s])ot or posi-
tion. — Wchsttr Located. Situated. To locate one's self.-
To assume a given situation.
" The mate, having located himself opposite to me, began to
expostulate." — (Gilliam) Tvareh in Mexico.
Also to remember or recollect anything. "I know your face,
but I cannot locate you," means, " I recognise you, but cannot
recall your name."
Location. "The act of placing or of designating a place;
the place where something spoken of is located or permanently
fixed.'' — Webster. A place.
Loco-foco. An old term for the Democratic party in politics
(1835). Lucifer matches were called " loco-focos " when first in-
vented. (Spanish "loco " — mad ; and " foco " — a spark or flash.)
Log rolling-. An expression from the backwoods, where
settlers are accustomed to lend each other a hand in rolling felled
trunks of trees, a very laborious piece of work. First adopted
as a piece of journalistic slang, applied to what in England we
call "puffing." When a newspaper writer contrives to introduce
an expression favourable to some act or scheme of a friend, he is
said to "roll a log," and the practice is considered reprehensible.
In politics, members of the legislature are said to be " log-rollers "
when by the exchange of promises they assist each other's fads, A
voting for B's scheme (for which he, A, cares nothing) on condition
of B afterwards voting for A's pet fad.
Lone Star State. Texas. The Texan flag bears a single
star.
Long- sauce. Vegetables such as carrots, parnsips, etc ;
potatoes, turnips and the like are called "short sauce." (New
England.)
Longshort. A short petticoat, worn by women in doing
house\vork.
Long sugar ). Treacle. Usually called '' molasses "
Long sweetening. > in America.
Loo, to. To defeat. (From the game of " loo.")
Lot. A piece of land. See Across lots.
Love, to. To like. (Feminine.)
Lovely. Pleasing in any way. " A lovely pie," etc. etc.
(Feminine.)
G
1 02- Die TIOXA RY OR A MR R I CAN IS MS.
Low doun. (^.-^rfy. and Adv.) Term of degradation. To
"play it too low down on the boys/" means to attempt a mean or
shabby piece of sharp practice in dealing with one's associates.
" AVay down" and "way back'' are also adjectives of similar
import.
Lumber. Timber, sawn or split for sale.
L™blrman. I" ^ "'^^ employed in the timber trade.
Lumber State. Maine.
Lyceum. A lecture hall : a literary association.
Lynch law. An irregular and revengeful species of justice,
administered by the pojjulace or mob, without any legal authority
or trial. "The will or decree of a mob or multitude, as a substitute
for the common or the civil law." — Worcfstcr. The origin of the
name is not definitely known, and it would be a thankless task to
judge between some half-dozen exi)lanations which have been set
forth. It has been supposed that the term is of great antiquity,
one account dating it back to 1498. A writer in JSotcs and Queries
refers it to a Judge Lynch sent to America to repress piracy in
1687 ; but it is a remarkable fact that the name appears neither
in ^Vitherspoon nor Pickering.
Ma'am. For "mother" in the vocative case: more rever-
ential than the latter. Also as an adj. " Ma'am school "—a dame
school. A '■ school ma'am," of course, is a schoolmistress, and the
term does not convey the satirical or contemptuous sense which is
rather suggested by it to the English eye.
Machine. (Adj.) Mechanical. Political— & "machine
voter," one who votes blindly in accordance with loarty instructions.
fN.J a fire engine.
Mackinaw blanket. A heavy coarse blanket. Mackinac,
pronounced as " Mackinaw," was formerly the centre of trade and
barter with the Indians, who are great users of blankets.
Mad. Angry.
" Jeeminy I fellows, I was so enormous mad, that the new silk
handkercher round myjieck lost its colour." — (Rohh) Squatter Life.
Pickering calls this use of " mad ' a "low word, " and "Witherspoon
says it is perhaps an English vulgarism. It is certainly common
Th Ireland, and is, as a matter of fact, good Elizabethan English.
^'ee Acts xxvi.. 11. . -
Die TIONA R V OF AMERICA NISMS. 103
" Afy lady would have the last word, and Sir Murtagh grew
mad." — (Miss Edgworth) Castle Rackrent.
More often used for irritated : vexed : annoyed.
" ' Wiltist thou not tarry hear in the Promist Land ? ' sed several
of the miscrabil critters. ' He see you all essenshally cussed be4
I wiltist ! ' roared I, as mad as I cood be at their infurnal non-
cents." — (Artemus Ward) Visit to Briyham Young.
Mad, to. To make angry. "A mere vulgarism," says
Pickering.
Madam. In his book of travels, Kendall says : "Here [Ply-
mouth, Mass.] and in some neighbouring places it has been, and
still is, the practice to prefix to the name of a deceased female of
some consideration, as the parson's, the deacon's, or the doctor's
wife, the title of Madam." "This practice," adds Pickering, " (like
that of giving magistrates the title of 'Sijuire), prevails in most
of the country towns of New England ; but is scarcely known at
the present day in the sea-]iort towns." It is defined by Halliwell
( Dictionarjj of Archair and Provincial Words) as "a title used
in the provinces to women under the rank of Lady, but moving in
respectable society."' Kendall was evidently in error when he
thought the term applied only to deceased persons, and Pickering
in classing it as of American birth. The expression in this sense
is old-fashioned in both countries. Tom Brown's mother was called
"Madam Brown." There is, however, a distinctive and useful
American usage mentioned by Sir Cliarles Lyell, namely tliis — the
mother of a married man is called " Madam So-and-so," which
removes the inconvenience and confusion which otherwise often
arise in the circumstances.
Maidenland. Land wliich a man gets with his wife, and
surrenders at her death should slie predecease him. Confined to
Virginia— a curious coincidence, or sort of accidental pun.
Mail. For " post." " Mail ' and "freight " are in England used
generally with the connotation of ocean passage : a "mail " means
an ocean mail, and "freight," ocean carriage. In America both
are used without this implication. Formerly, the "bag" in whicli
letters were conveyed [French, "malle"); and, before that, any
sort of bag, as
" No I'envoy, no salve in the male, sir."
—Love's Labour's Los'. Act iii. Sc. 1.
This passage has been rather necllossly amended by tlie com-
mentators, as the old use of mail or male = Lag makes (juite clear
104 DICIIONARY OF AMERICANISMS.
the reading of the second, third, and fourth folios. In the quartos
and first folio there is by accident a second " e " misprinted in the
definite article : but all quartos and folios give "male."'
In America ones "mail" means the letters one receives. "Give
me my mail," to a clerk at the ''poste restante," would be equiva-
lent to "give me my letters. ' To '-mail " a letter or parcel is to
post it. The head of the Postal Depaitrneiit is not, iiowevcr,
called the Mail-Master General, but bears the same title as our
own — Post-.Master General.
Mailable. Suited for conveyance by post.
Maine law. A stringent code of legislation for the sup-
pression of the liquor tratfi--.
Mango. No relation to the trojjical fruit, but applied to
"cantaloupe,"' or musk-melon, when pickled.
Manicure. The care of the hands. An art in which a largo
number of persons are engaged in America. Special instruments,
called •'manicure appliances," are sold for trimming, smoothing,
polishing, and tinting the nails, etc.
Manners, to make. To bow or salute a superior : to do
obeisance.
Maple sugar. A sugar crystallized from the sap of the sugar
maple, and esteemed as a great delicacy.
Marooning- party. A seaside pic-nic. (Southern States.)
Marvel. To go away or depart. Sometimes, but more
rarely, ''marble." ( Pennsyh-ania.) For an illustration see
Chores. An old word.
Maryland end. The small end of a ham. The other ex-
tremity is called the " Virginia end."
Mason and Dixon's line. The boundary which formerly
divided roughly the free from the slave-holding States, being about
twenty miles south of latitude 40'. Surveyed in 1760 by two
Englishmen, Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon. It was intended
to mark the boundary between Pennsylvania and ^Maryland.
Massa. Sometimes "Mars' "or " Mas' ". !Master ; a Xegro vo-
cative for any white man. It is interesting to note that one form,
'' Mas","' is a very old En.dish colloquialism, though the fact has no
probable relation to the Negro use. Ben Jonson uses the word
more than once. See The New Inn, iii. 1 : —
Die TIONA R Y OF AMERICANISMS. 1 05
" Mas Bartolmew Burst,
One that hath been a citizen, since a courtier,
And now a gamester."
Match. (V-) To kindle or set fire to.
Materialize. To be forthcoming. Borrowed from tlie
sjnritualists, one of whose prodigies is tlie production by occult
means of tangible articles, quite in Malame ]ilavatsky's best
method, and considerably in advance of her alleged performances
of this kind.
Matter. "That's what's the matter with me." "That is
the kind of person I am " : or, "that is what I want," according
to context.
Maybe. Perhaps.
Meadow. Applied only to damp grass land. J]tymologi-
cally, of course, a '"meadow" is any land which can be mowed.
(Anglo-Saxon, "mawan," to mow; Old German, " meidan,''
whence A mjlo- Saxon ; " maedewe,' or more ordinarily, "mjed," a
meadow.) "Meadow grass" is the name of inferior hay, and tlie
term " meadow" has always an implication of inferiority i 1 America.
Mean. Unworthy : poor in character or quality ; as " mean
wliites, ' — term of reproach apjdied to non-slaveholilers in the
►South before the war. "JNIean" does not convey any necessary
sense of stinginess, but is a term of general contempt, which is, of
course, the correct usage. " Mean enough to steal acorns from a
blind hog ' is a proverb in common use.
Medicine. Indian expression often without meaning, when
joined with an adj., as "good medicine" or "bad medicine" for
anything good or bad. The "medicine-man" was, of course, the
tribal sorcerer.
Meech, to. To sulk. Originally very old English, and used
l)y Shakespeare, lieaumont and Fletcher, and otiier p]lizabethan
writers in the same sense, and also in that of " to act by stealth,"
usually with a connotation of illicit courtship or im])ropriety ; see
the use of " JVIiching malicho " {Hamlet, iii. 2.) and
" Sure, she has
Some meeching rascal in her house."
(Beaumont and Fletcher) The Scornful Lady, v. 1.
Mr. Hensleigh AVedgwood compares it to a (I'ri.sons word " miit-
schar " or " mitschar " — to slip away ; and tlie Suisa ' ' schmauchen "
— to do in secret (whence "smouch.") Used in New England : un-
To6 DICTION A RY OF AMERICANISMS.
common, but not obsolete, ''Meech" in Somersetshire is com-
mon, and means to "slink away." [Compare also the French
slang word michet or miche.] There is no ground that I have been
able to find for tlie definitions " to pilfer, ' "to lay in wait for : ''
" to lurk."' The quotation from Bigloii' Papers —
" But I ain't of the meechin' kind, that sets and thinks for weeks.
The bottom's out o' th' Universe, 'cos their own gillpot leaks," —
would be justified by the definition given above — "to sulk."
Meeting--house. A church. In America, "The church"
always means the incorporated fraternity of the congregation, and
not the building in which divine service is celebrated. A relic of
Puritanism.
Merchandise, to. f^^-) To enter into commerce or busi-
ness. Merchant, to. (l''-J Like " to merchandise " : to enter
into commerce or business.
Metate. A kind of rude mortar, of oblong shape, used by
the Mexicans for grinding cocoa, etc. (Mexican, "metatl.")
Ivjilea^e. A distance traversed. Also, the allowance made
by the United States Government to members of the legislature for
travelling expenses. A " mileage ticket " is a kind of season ticket
issued on American railroads. The passenger purchases a ticket
entitling him to traverse a certain number of miles ; the ticket is
available at any station, and the number of miles travelled is
signified on the ticket, either by endorsing the number upon it, or
by removing a portion, if the ticket is divided up, its coupons re-
presenting so many miles each. A convenience highly appreciated
and largely used. The tickets are transferable.
"I extract this beautiful passage from the forthcoming speech
of a fat Congressman, who is a friend to the human race, and
charges the Administration with imbecility and mileage." — Orpheus
C. Kerr.
Militate, to- To act. Used in America in the sense of co-
operation — to militate with, as well as, in the opposite sense, to
militate against. The former use is an Americanism purely.
Milk ranch. A dairy farm.
Mill. (J^^-J One of the few distinctive terms in the cattle
trade, not of Spanish origin. Cattle when confused will often
crowd together in a mass and tear round and round at a great
speed, each trying to reach the centre with his horns— a vagary
Die TIONAR V OF AMERICANISMS. toy
infinitely injurious and dangerous to the beasts, and proportionately
vexatious to tlu cowboys. "NVlien cattle commence milling, it is a
very difficult operation to quiet them.
Mill, to g-o throug-h the. To undergo any experience :
chiefly in the past tense—" to have been through the mill."
Million. A melon. (Xegroism.)
Mint stick. Peppermint rock.
Miscegenation. The mingling of "White and Negro blood.
Miscegenationist. One who advocated or approved the
mingling of AVhite and Negro blood, as a number of people did just
after tiie war, hoping to solve the Negro question by absorption.
So far as it can be said to have been attempted, it was an utter-
failure, and a very good thing too, for the White race.
Misceg"ene. A person descended from both AVhite and Negro
ancestry. Tiiere are names for every degree of hybridism in this
regard, which are too numerous and too technical to be given.
Misery. A pain.
Missing-, to turn up. To be absent. (Jocular.)
Missionate. To perform the services of a missionary. J^
very old abomination, called by Pickering, with ample justifica-
tion, "a low ecclesiastical word."
Miss lick. A stroke which misses its mark. (Western.)
Misrecollect. ) To forget— also " Disremember," which
Misremember. j is common in Ireland.
Mistress. " I\Irs. '' is sometimes so pronounced in full in the
Southern States.
Mitten, to. To "give the mitten." See Get the mitten.
Mobility. (Short o.) Used in precisely the same sense as
Mobocracy. A grotesque piece of word-coining of obvious
purport : government by " mob law."
Mob Town. lialtimore. Always rather noted for the active
quality of its " rowdies."
Moccassin. An Indian shoe, of soft leather, the sole not
stiffened.
Molasses. Treacle. A perfectly correct word, but one now
rarely heard except in America.
I c 8 Die TION'A RY OF AMERICA NISMS.
Molly Cotton-tail. A rabbit : (not peculiar to Uncle Remus.)
JIL^ Molly MagTJ.ires. An unlawful society in Pennsylvania,
broken up in IS"", after causing much anxiety and committing
several atrocious murders.
Monkey, to. To play about: to toy with anything. Not
recessarily to play malicious tricks.
Monroe doctrine. The doctrine condemning the extension
of European power in the "Western Hemisphere, and the inter-
ference of the United States in the affairs of the Old "World. Pro-
pounded by James 3Ionroe, in his presidential message, 1823.
Monte. (2 siiU.) A game of pure chance, played with cards.
The Spanish Americans are much addicted to it, as indeed to
every pastime affording a reasonable chance of gambling.
Monumental City. Baltimore.
Mortal. Excessive : also, as an adverb, excessively. (Pro-
vincial in Eastern Counties of England, especialhi Essex. )
Mosey, to. To go away. (.S}ja?2is7<, "vamos.") See Vamoose.
Bartlett refers it to a defaulting postmaster named Moses, but
Bret Harte's use of the word seems to favour the Spanish deriva-
tion.
" And whereas, and seein', and wherefore,
The times bein" out o' jint,
The nigger has got to mosey
From the limits o' Spunky Point."'
—John Hay (Banty Tim).
Most. For "almost." Very common.
Mother of Presidents. A name applied oratorically to the
Stati of Pennsylvania.
Mouse, to. To wander about here and there without ap-
parent object, like a mouse. Not connected in any way with
"iMosey," which has the definite connotation of departure, and
never means anything else.
Moving day. ^lay 1.
" In the Spring the housewife's fancy
Lightly turns to thoughts of move.'
Movy stars. Bad lands : uncultivable soil. {French,
" mauvaises terres.")
Mudsill. Railway term. A sleeper. Also called correctly,
as in technical English, a "cross-tie."
Die TIONA RY OF A iMERICANISMS. 1 09
Mugwump. An independent politician, especially a de-
serter from his party. "What used to be called in English politics
a " cave man " or Adullamite. Traced by Mr. C. L. Norton to the
IinlianapoUs Sentinel, 1872 ; but admitted to be of much older
colloquial use. It is said to be an Indian word, and occurs in
Indian translations of the Bible, in the form " JNIukquomp," for
the word "duke,' in Gen. xxxvi. 40, and for "mighty man,"' in
2 Sam. xxiii. 8. — (Dr. Hammond Trumbull) A'civ York Critic, Sept.
6, 1884.
Murth. An abundance. Related to the Suffolk word
''mort,'' which is used by Kichardsou in Pamela. "Murth,"
plenty, is given by Halliwell as provincial in the North.
Mush. Crushed maize boiled in water as a sort of pudding,
and eaten with syrup or molasses.
Music, to face the. See Face.
Muslin. Sometimes used for "calico."
Muss. Corruption of mess. A muddle, mess, or state of
confusion. A feminine colloquialism.
Mustang. A wild prairie horse. The horse was unknown in
America until introduced from Europe, and the Mexicans on
seeing Cortes' horsemen, imagined that man and horse were one
monstrous animal. — Prescott. These wild horses or "mustangs"
are all, therefore, of European descent.
Mustang grape. The fruit of an inferior native vine, indi-
genous to Texas. Comijare our " Horse chestnut."
Nail to the counter. (V.) "To nail anything to the
counter " is to expose it as a fraud, beyond appeal.
Naked possession. The undisi)iited occupier of land for an
extended period is called in Texas a "naked possessor "if ho hohls
his tenure only on the strength of such occupancy and without
definite title-deeds. The security of sucli persons is especially
l)rovided for in the laws of the State of Texas, and the term
"naked possession" is emi)loyed in the Statutes. Pickering
quotes the term "An act of naked trust," from a collection of
tracts published in New York in 180.3, but had not met the term
elsewhere. The citation becomes interesting in view of the facts
here set forth just above it, however.
1 1 Die TIONA RV OF A MERICANISMS.
Nan. AMiat ? eh? (Welsh.) Perhaps akin to the Irkh
"anan ' (see Latham's Johnson).
Nary. Not any. A corruption of " ne'er a."
'Nation. D — nation. An economical blasphemy.
National. In its distinctive sense, this word serves to dif-
ferentiate the attributes of individual States and the Federation at
large. The first "a is usually pronounced long in Xew England,
thus " Xaytional. '
Navigation. A collective noun used for a number of ships.
Obsolete in England, though used by Shakespeare. Quite common
in America still.
Ned. To "raise particular (or promiscuous) Ned," like to
'• raise particular Hell,"" is to make a fuss, or a disturbance. See
also To raise Cain.
" It'll break up the Union, this talk about freedom,
An' your fact' ry gals (soon ez we split) '11 make head,
An' gittin' some Miss chief or other to lead 'em,
"11 go to work raisin' promiscoous Ned."
■ — (Lowell) Biglov: Papers.
Needcessity. Need : necessity — from which two words it is
of course constructed. ( Xegroisia. )
Neig-hbourhood. ' ' In the neighbourhood of," means about :
"It cost in the neighbourhood of five dollars," etc.
Nervy. Having strong nerves. Compare Erainy.
Netop. A friend. Not quite obsolete, but nearly so. It is
an Indian word, and was already old when Pickering wrote. "A
friend informs me [that it] is still used, colloquially, in some
towns in the interior of Massachusetts to signify a ' friend ' or (to use
a cant word) a ' crony,' " he says. Now rare.
New and novel. Xew, simply. For some reason the re-
dundant expression, " new and novel,"' is rather affected by com-
mercial writers, though it is happily not met with in literature.
New Soutti. The Southern States after the war.
Newsy. Abounding in news. (Journalistic argot.)
N. G. Xo good. Canting abbreviation. Compare the an-
tithetical expression, " O. K."
Nifty. Smart, in the English sense : quick : intelligent.
DICTIONAR Y OF AMERICANISMS. 1 1 1
Nigger. An agreement is said to " have a nigger in it ' when
there are facts, known to one side only, disadvantageous to
the other side, or when there is any element of unfairness or dis-
honesty. The full phrase (which has the authority of a dialect
story-teller in Scrihner), ajipears to be "a nigger in the fence."
Nigg-ers' heaven. The gallery of a theatre.
Nigger out. f Agricultural tej-m. J To cultivate land for what
it will produce, without making any sacrifices to secure its con-
tinued fertility, a method once pursued largely in the planta-
tion States
Nigh-upon. Nearly.
Night-key. The latch-key of a dwelling-house.
" And now, my boy, the march for Mannassas commenced,
being timed by the soft music of the band. This band, my boy, is
sui (jeneris. Its chief artist is an ardent admirer of Rossini, who
performs with great accuracy upon a night-key pressed closely
against the lower lip, the strains being much like those emitted by
a cart-wheel in want of grease." — Orpheus C. Kerr.
Nip and tuck. (Sportiwi expression. ) " Neck and neck."
Nippent. Impudent : impertinent.
No account. (Adj.) Worthless : undervalued : unre-
specteil. A person or thing " of no account " is old English, and
as common in Europe as in America ; but the adjectival use, as
" a no account man," is an Americanism.
Nooning. The middle of the day.
Non-committal. (Adj.) Reticent. A "non-committal"
policy is one which enables a politician to change sides with ease
and impunity at any moment most convenient to himself.
"The time has now come when a man may see himself, his
friends, and the human race, with another's eyes, as in the case of
the one who had his own defective orbs replaced by the beautiful
brown ones of a rabbit. If some intelligent animal's brain were
now to be substituted for his own, we might obtain a very accurate
idea of the manner of our appearance to the reserved and non-
committal brotherhood." — Texas SiftiiKjs, 18t)l.
Nop. {Lonn 0.) iSo. Used in west of England but with a
difference, as having a playful inflection of meaning. An illustra-
tion of the American use occurs under Bluff.
Norther. A severe north wind which blows at certain
1 1 2 Die TIONA RY OF A MERICANISMS.
seasons in the Gulf of Mexico, and is extremely trying on the
lirairies.
Nothing else. See Anything" else.
Nothing to noboly. Nobody's business. — 8am Slick.
Notify. To give notice, or information, to. In English,
"Witherspoon justly observes, we do not "notify" the person of
the thing, but "notify" the thitig to the person. ( Chieliy legal
and commerciaL) .Johnson gives: "to declare," "to make
known," "to i^ublish," with several examples in that sense
only.
Notional. Fantastic : fastidious. "The Bostonians are very
notional." — Address on Beauties of Libert y (Adams), 1773.
Notions. Small wares.
No two ways about it, there's. There is no doubt of the
fact. Usually following the inevitable " that's so.'''
Numerosity. The quality of being numerous, or abundant.
" Yit as a faitliful historian I must menshun the fack that on
rainy dase white peple cant find thier way threw the streets with-
out the gas is lit, there bein such a numerosity of cullerd pursons
in the town.'" — (Artemus Ward) Oherlin.
Numerous. Belonging to a large class. A new vulgarism,
apparently coined to supply a converse to "seldom" (which see),
in the sense of rare,
" The man who can run a newspaper to suit everyone went to
Heaven long ago. But Hell still yawns for the numerous indi-
vidual who thuiks he can run it just that way." — Quoted from an
"Exchange" in Texas Siftinr/s.
Nutmeg State. Connecticut, said to be the home of the
ligneous nutmeg, as of the sawdust ham.
Oath, to take the. To take a drink. One of the many
synonyms for this act. It seems almost an individualism of
Orpheus C. Kerr (Mr. R. H. Xewell), who constantly uses it ; at
least I have not met it in any other works than his.
Oheah. See Oheyah.
DICTION A R Y OF AMERICANISMS. 1 1 3
Obeyah-man. ) xV sorcerer of a particular kind. The
Obeyah-wom an- I word appears to belong to some African
language, and is still used in the dark continent.
Obligate, to. Given by "Webster, and defined as "to brirg
under obligation : to hold by a constraining motive : to bind or
firmly hold to an act." The word is also sanctioned by Worcester,
and appears in Johnson. It is reproved by Pickering, wlio
quotes The British ( ritic, which characterizes it as " a low collo-
([uial inaccuracy." Much more common in the past tense than
the present.
Obligement. Obligation. An archaism, which, though de-
scribed as " antiquated " in 1810, is still not at all uncommon. It
is usod by Milton, but not provincial in any part of Great Britain,
so far as I can ascertain.
Obstination. Prejudice.
" .She thought of running after him, but of what use would that
be, seeing his obstination against treating diseases on the mortal
plane?" — (Edward Eggleston), "The Faith Doctor," Ctntum, Au-
gust, 1891.
Obtusity. Obtuseness. (A false derivative, evidently of the
would-be elegant kind.)
Occurrings. Occurrences. {Journalistic slany.) Comimre
Happening's.
Offal. A dish of such parts as the liver, kidneys, etc., is
called in America "'offal," with a shocking effect on European
ears.
Offen. Off. (Negroism.)
Ofiace-hunter. ) A hanger-on of politicians. Term of re-
Ofiace-seeker. (proach. In the United States tlie whole
civil service is changed with a change of administration, and the
adherents of the incoming party who look for personal advantage
become office-seekers. Even the country post-offices change hands
on these occasions.
Offset. To settle accounts by contra.
Off the handle, to go. To die. The allusion is to the head
of an axe flying off. See Fly off the handle.
Oil, to strike. To invent a lucrative scheme : to have a
stroke of luck. Owners of land on which oil springs were unex-
1 1 4 Die TIONA R V OF A ME RICAiVlSMS.
pectedly discovered often became suddenly very rich — as in the
case of Gilead P. Beck, in The Golden Buttevily.
O. K. Right: authorized. For "oil korrect," said by De
Vera to have been the spelling ascribed to General Jackson :
and he adds that "]Major Jack Downing" had no difficulty in
convincing his readers that the President favoured this spelling.
Sometimes (but rarely) used as a verb. Farmer quotes the following
astounding pronouncement on the subject, which appears, as an
answer to a correspondent, in tbe Missouri Republican, 1888 : —
*' The expression ' Please O. K. and huiry return of my account,"
is grammatically correct. The noun "account" is governed by
the preposition '"of," and is also the object of the active transitive
verb, "O. K. "
Old Abe. Abraham Lincoln. An affectionate nickname.
Old bread. Stale bread.
Old CoTintry, the. An affectionate term, shared by Ameri-
cans with almost all British emigrants, for Great Britain. Tbe
use of such phrases is a pleasant reminder tliat blood is, after all,
thicker than water, and that the old relationship of the two
nations is still well enough remembered to be perhajis some day
revived in some great confederation of the English-speaking
world.
Old Dominion. Virginia .
Old Hickory. General Jackson. (Of O. K. fame. See
O.K.)
Old Line State. Maryland. The only State which had
regular troops "of the line '' at the time of the Revolution.
Old man so-and-so. A common colloquialism not confined
to any particular district.
" Old man Barnum used to say : ' I don't care what thought is
expressed, what verdict is given ; all I ask is that the newspapers
shall not forget me, that they shall keep my name constantly
before the community.' " — Printers' Ink; 1891.
Old North Stats. North Carolina.
Old rye. Rye whisky.
Old sledg-e. A card game.
Old South. The Southern States of the Union before the war.
On. In many ways used where we should use "in."' "On
DICTIOXAR V OF AMERICANISMS. 115
time," "on the street," " on the raih'oad car." "To catch on"
has been defined under Catcla. "To be on hand" is equivalent
to " to be aroand." "To be on it," is to be acquainted with a
subject, or an adherent of a theory.
" My desire was to exhibit my grate show in Salt T^ake City, so
I called on Brigliam Young, the grate Mogull amung the Monnins,
and axed his permishun to pitch my tent and onfurl my banner to
the jentle breezis. He lookt at me in a austeer manner for a few
minits, and sed : 'Do you bleeve in Solomon, Saint Paul, the im-
maculateness of the Mormin Churcli and the Laiterday K e vela-
shuns ? ' Sez I, 'I'm on it.' "--(Artemus "Ward) A Fisit to
Briyhani Youn(j.
On eend. In a rage : astonished. See End.
One horse. (Adj.) Small, or poor, or in a small way. "A
one-horse little town " is a small place. If it submits to being
called a town the reader may safely class it as a " one-horse show."
Nearly every town is a " city " in America.
Operate, to. To conduct any piece of business. Thus a
stock-jobber is said to "operate" in stocks, a type-writing expert to
' ' operate " a writing machine, etc.
Orate, to. To deliver an oration, an exercise of which
Americans are very fond. Correctly derived, and given in Annan-
dale, and Whitney. The lat+er quotes from Fortnvihtly Beviciv :
but it is so much commoner in America than here that I include it.
Order. *' Such and such a thing is ordered done," — with the
auxiliary "to be " omitted. Given by Witherspoon only, but cer-
tainly an Americanism of the purest blood. (Chiefly commercial. J
Compare Contrive, (q. v.)
Ornery. Contraction of ordinary. Ill-looking : worthless :
shabby.
Ouch ! Au interjection, expressive of disgust or annoyance.
(Southern Hatei:)
8Stl?.} O^^^^f- (^^'<^Oroism.)
Outfit. Everything belonging to any particular pursuit, as
" a shooting outfit," which would include not merely clothing, etc.,
but guns, ammunition, shooting bags, dogs, and the like.
Outside o". Except. A contraction evidently meaning
" outside the category of."
1 16 DICTIONAR V OF AMERICANISMS.
Over. (Adv.) For "over again." "Het over," re-heate«].
'•Madeover'"(dressmakers'word), re-made or "turned "for economy.
Over a signature. A curious piece of journalistic American-
ism. A man is said to " write over liis signature " when his name
is printed beneatli an article, a strange reversal of the order of
facts, since the affixing of the signature obviously follows the
writing of the article.
Overly. Very.
Overture, to- To make overtures : to open negotiations.
Paas. (Pronounced "pa wee.") Easter. (Dutch, "paasche,"
akin to our " paschal," and French, " paques.")
Painted box. Tasteful synonym for a coffin.
Painter. A panther. (Mispronunciation simply )
Palmetto State. South Carolina.
Panama. A hat made of fine grass. (Southern.)
" "Neath a lagged Palmetto a Southerner sat,
A twisting the band of his I'anama hat,
And trying to lighten his mind of a load
By humming the words of the following ode :
' Oh I for a nigger, and oh I for a whip ;
Oh ! for a cocktail, and oh '. for a nip ;
Oh ! for a shot at old Greeley and Beeclier ;
Oh I for a crack at a Yankee school teacher ;
Oh : for a captain, and oh I for a ship ;
Oh I for a cargo of niggers each trip ; '
And so he kept oh-ing for all he had not,
Not contented with owing for all that he'd got."
— Orpheus C. Kerr.
Pan out, to. "To see how a thing pans out " is to ascertain
what it is good for. A gold digger's expression, from the washing
of auriferous earth in a pannikin, which allows the metallic grains
to sink to the bottom, after vigorous agitation.
Pants. Trousers. Not, as with us, under-drawers, but the
external garments which are still exhibited to the public eye,
though not always mentioned to the modest ear. See Belongings.
Pap, Pop, or Poppa. Father.
Pard. ) Partner, literally, and often so used ; but also
Pardner. ) a term of kindly address not confined to those ia
that relation to the speaker. Originally a digger's word.
DICTION A R V OF AMERICANISMS. 1 1 7
Paris of America. Cincinnati.
Parlor. Parlour : a reception-room. The oflSces of mani-
curists, spiritualists, etc., are also so called in the advertisements
with which some American newspapers are crowded.
Parole, to. To release on bail.
Parquet. The pit of a tlieatre. (French.)
Passage"way. A passage, or aisle.
Passenger, to wake up the ■\Arrong'. To mistake one's
man: "to get the wrong ])ig by the ear" (as Henry VIII. said).
Passengers in a sleeping-car who are awakened in error have, it
seems, been sufficiently resentful to furnish the language with a
proverb.
Pass, to. To decline an offer. Jiorrowed from the game of
draw-poker.
Patentable. Susceptible of being patented.
Patented. An article for whose manufacture a legal monopoly
is secured by the inventor is usually said in America to fce
" patented," not simply " patent," as with us.
Patent outside. A term of journalistic introduction. The
country newspapers of America are very numerous, and many are
in a chronic state of struggle. A "patent outside " is a great help
to such : it consists of half a paper (printed on one side only) con-
taining general news, stories, etc., and supplied to various news-
paper offices daily by wholesale firms in different centres. Tlie
local printer adds the local news, matching the type of the "patent
outside " as best he may.
Patrolman. A constable.
Paw the ivories, to. To play the piaiio. A charming piece
of realistic description.
Peach butter. Stewed peaches mashed together.
Pea nut. The ground- or earth-nut (Arachis hypogcva).
These delicacies are roasted and sold in large quantities at street
stalls, etc. Pea nut tricks. Underhanded proceedings (espe-
cially in politics). The pea nut grows underground. ( See i\ho\'c.)
Peart. Prisk : lively. This is the very old English word
" peark "—brisk r I^^e/-"*^' , "pert" — smart, dapper, tine, pretty.)
"Pert " (impertinent) is the old French "apert " = ready, over-con-
fident, nimble; usel in this sense by Chaucer : "And she was proud
H
Il8 DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS,
and pert as is a pie " (i.e. , " magpie "). " Peart " and the modern
"pert" are evidently not identical. (Chaucer uses "peart" else-
where in the exact American sease. Moreover, the arctiaic form
" perk " was known to Pickering. It is provincial in various parts
of England, and given by Halliwell in his Dictionary of Archaic
and Provincial. Words. The Avord occurs, but is spelled " piert,"
in Silas Marner, chap. xi.
Peculiar institution, the. A term applied to Southern
slavery before the war :— " the peculiar domestic institution of the
South." Mr. Norton finds it in the Aexi; York Tribune, Oct. 10,
18.54, but says it had been used about two years earlier in the South
Carolina Gazette.
Peddle, to. To sell anything peripatetically, in small quan-
tities. Verb formed from ' 'pedlar." Peddler. One who peddles.
The American verb " to peddle " seems to liave been first manu-
factured from the correct English "pedlar," and the present sub-
stantive then re-formed from the factitious vtrb. Our own Star,
which rather affects the worst kinds of American corruptions in
language and spelling, seems to have ado^jted permanently this
barbarous derivative.
"Peddlers and some unscrupulous grocers will tell you 'this
is as good as," or ' the same as Pearline.' It is False — Pearline is
never peddled, and if your grocer sends you something else in place
of Pearline, do the honest thing— send it back.'' — Advt.
'' All day we swung along down the river, and had the stream
almost wholly to ourselves. Formerly, at such a stage of the
water, we should have passed acres of lumber rafts^ and dozens of
big coal barges ; also occasional little trading-scows, peddling Stlong
from farm to farm, with the pedler's family on board ; possibly, a
random scow, beari»g a humble Hamlet and Co. on an itinerant
dramatic trip." — (Mark Twain) Life on the Mississippi.
Pedicure. As "manicure" {g. v.) is to the hands, so is
" pedicure " to the feet.
Pelican State. Louisiana.
Pemmican. Buffalo beef, dried and pounded roughly.
Pen name. X nom-de-[jl>.'.me. (Literally translated.)
Penny. A cent, the hundredth part of a dollar. Thus the
American penny is worth about a halfpenny sterling.
Percy-and. An ampersand (the sign *' & "). (Corruption.)
DICTIONAR V OF AMERICANISMS. 1 19
Pernicketty. Fastidious.
*' The grammarian, the purist, the pernicketty stickler for trifles,
is the deadly foe of good English, rich in idioms and racy of the
soil." — (Brander Matthews) "Briticisms and Americanisms,"
Harper, July, 1891.
Persimmon. A nut tree. (Diospyros virginiana.) The
nut is greatly relished by the Negroes, and has given rise to numer-
ous proverbs of obvious signification. To rake up the Per-
simmons. To secure the spoils of victory, whether in business,
or at the gaming-table, or elsewhere. (Neijrohm.)
Persuasion. For " class." Jocularly adopted from the legiti-
mate religious use, as "persons of our persuasion," Vi^hich means
persons of the same belief as ourselves, the speakers.
Pesky. Plaguy : an intensitive expression, connoting a
sense ot annoyance or disapproval.
" The S(|uires wife didnt jine in the festiverties. She sed it was
the Tarnulest nonsense s!;e ever seed. Ses she to the Squire,
' Cum into the house and go to bed, you old fool, you. Tomorrer
you'll be goin round half ded with the rumertism, & wont gin us a
minit's peace till you get well.' Ses the Squire, 'Betsy, you little
appresiate the imjiortense of the event which this nite I commcm-
erate.' Ses she '(Jommemerate a cats tail — cum into the house
this minit you pesky old critter.' ' lietsy,' said the Squire waivin
his sword, 'retire.' " — (Artemus AVard) Cdehration at Baldinsvillc.
Peter out, to. To become exhausted : to trickle away.
Philadelphia lawyer. To show one's self as " smart as a
Philadelphia lawyer " is to exhibit a very great deal of cunning.
Picayune. (N.) Anything ])eculiarly small and contemp-
tible. Formerly the name of a coin (the Spanish " demi-real ").
(Adj.) Mean : pitiful.
Pickaninny. A baby : a little cliild, with a sort of a friendly
connotation. ( Necjroism. )
Pick-me-up. A stimulating tonic drink ; generally bitters of
some kind.
Pie. All fruit tarts are " pies " in America, as in old English,
and in Essex and Suffolk now.
Pie-plant. Khubarb.
Piece, the whole. Same as " the whole cloth " (q. v.)
1 20 Die TIONAR V OF AMERICANISMS.
Pile. One's stock of money. A " pile" = a fortune.
Pillow sham. A pillow-case.
Pinch, to. To arrest.
Pine Tree State. Maine.
Pink tea. "Whisky.
Pirate, to- To perform an act of infringement : to infringe
an invention or a copj'right, the latter a proceeding greatly
favoured by some Ameiican publishers, and not undefended in
high places. It must be admitted that English publishers and
editors reciprocating the attention are not wanting. There are
dozens of papers published in London which are made up almost
entirely from cuttings, illustrations, and stories, extracted from
American journals.
Pitcher. Any jug, even a small one.
Placer. A locality where alluvial gold is found. {Spanish,
" plaza. ■■)
Plain folks. This does not, as it would with us, signify
persons lacking in personal attraction (who would be called
'■ homely ''), but simply w liite men and women as opposed to
Negroes and Negresses. The antithesis is between "plain"' and
" coloured."
Planter. Formerly, in the South, a slaveholder : the owner
of a plantation. Also, on the Mississippi, a piece of timber or a
tree trunk imbedded in the bed of the river and reaching to or
near the surface ; a very dangerous obstruction. See Snag".
Platform. The principles, religious or political, on wliich a
public man takes liis stand. The metaplior ■nill be obvious.
Played out. Exhausted : concluded. [From the card table.)
" By this the torches was plared out,
And me and Isrul Parr
Went off for .some wood to a sheepfold
That he said was somewhat thar."
—(John Hav) Little Breeches.
Plenty. (ArJj.J Abundant : plentiful.
"The General of the Mackerel Brigade hastily wiped his mouth
with a bottle, and then says he : ' Madam, if sandwiches are not
plenty where you come from, it aint for the want of tongue.' " —
Orpheus C. Kerr.
DICTIONAR V OF AMERICANISMS. 121
Plug. A " chew " of tobacco.
Plug- hat. A tall hat.
Plum. (Adj.) Perpendicular. From a "plumb line."
(Aih\) Exactly. Plum in the middle : right in the centre of
anything.
Plunder. Sometimes used for luggage, or personal effects
when packed for carrying. A very old English word, as Disraeli
shows.
Pocket-book. A purse.
Pocket veto. The President has a direct "veto," which is
freely employed in all legislative measures. But as a " bill " need
only be signed or rejected by him within ten days, he can virtually
cancel an enactment at the end of the session if the legislature is
allowed to rise while the "bill" is still unratified. First devised
by President Andrew Jackson about 1830.
Point. A piece of practical information : a hint. (Also,
Pointer.) "To be able to give anyone points" — to be superior.
(Borrowed from the slang of billiard rooms and card tables.)
"To get anything down to a point" (or, "a fine point") is to
define its exact conditions and limitations.
Poison. Any kind of beverage, if intoxicating. A euphemism
chosen with admirable regard to the appropriateness of things.
Poker. A card game resembling brag.
Pokerish. Gruesome: frightful. {Old Danish, " pokker "
— the devil, according to De V'ere.)
Pone. IMaize-meal bread.
Pony up, to. To jiay up.
Pool, to. To combine with another for commercial purposes :
to agree on a common tariff, either for self-protection or to coerce
a common rival, as in the case of the Cable war of a year or two ago.
Poor folksy. In the manner of a poor person. (Southern. )
Pop, o/- Poppa. (Sec Pap.) Father.
Popular. In New England this word is used for " conceited,"
though the other meanings are well understood in combination,
as in " popular rights," etc.
Porkopolis. Cincinnati— the centre of tlie pork-packing
trade.
1 22 Die TIONA RY OF AMERICANISMS.
Portage. A piece of land between two navigable waters,
over which boats and canoes have to be conveyed by read.
(Louisiana and Loioer Canada.)
Posse. A body of men, especially if armed and bent on
active proceedings of some kind. The police escort of a sheriff is
officially so called.
'Possum. The opossum.
Postal. A post-card. This improper expression, "post-card,"
is never used by Americans. "Postal-card,"' which is, of course,
the correct word, is common, but it is more frequently contracted
to ' ' postal " simply.
Posted. Well informed,
"lie spoke eight languages, and seemed to be equally at home
in all of them ; he was shrewd, prompt, posted, and punctual ; hn
was fertile in resources, and singularly gifted in the matter of
overcoming difficulties."— (Mark Twain) A Tramp Abroad.
Prairie State. Illinois.
Pre-empt for, to. To claim a right to anything. (From the
Law of Pre-emption in landed property, now superseded.)
Premium. A small "present," on the " given-away-with-a-
pound-of tea '' principle, offered by periodicals as an inducement
to subscribe and obtain other subscribers. Most periodicals are in
America sent direct to the readers by "mail" or otherwise, and
paid for by the year, the more prosperous kind in advance, the
others whenever the money or any sort of equivalent (all the way
down to water melons), can be wrung oat of tlie subscriber.
Presidential message. The exact counterpart of the
"Queen's speech,'" except that a "presidential message" maybe
uttered at any time, and not only at the beginning or end of a
session of Congress.
Pretzel. A kind of biscuit, much beloved of the German-
American. It is like any other biscuit, but has an incrustation of
salt upon it. "Pretzel bread" is the name of small round rolls,
with the salt incrustation and a few caraway seeds on the crust.
Supposed to excite thirst and minister to the great German
capacity for the consumption of lager-beer.
Proceosion. Any proceeding or act. The Americans are
DICTIONAR V OF AMERICANISMS. 1 23
great at "processions," and (as in the case of "funeral") the
word gets lent, as it were, to other uses.
Pronouncement. A statement of opinion : a decree.
{Spanish, " pronunciamento.")
Prospect, to {or To go prospecting)- To set out, more or
less at random, in search of gold or silver, trying various localities
on chance.
Publishment. Publication, especially of banns of marriage.
Pull. A profit— of the kind which is not without honour in
America, where success in business or industry is very properly
and sensibly valued far more highly than the inheritance of
wealth.
Pull, to. To fire on anyone, viz., to pull trigger.
"They'd shoot one another down, right in the presence of the
family. They didn't hunt for each other, but when they happened
to meet, they pulled and begun. Men would shoot boys, boys
would shoot men." — (Mark Twain) Life on the Missitssipjji.
Pull do'WTiyo'ur vest! Make yourself easy! don't excite
yourself ! A slangy adjuration to anyone wlio is observed to be
growing angry, and one admirably calculated; it may be sujiposed,
to aggravate further an increasing choler. One of the " grievous
words " wliich " stir up anger."
"They craned their necks and laughed at me (for a raven can
laugh, just like a man), they squalleil insulting remarks after me as
long as they could see me. They were nothing but ravens — I
knew that, — what they thought about me could be a matter of no con-
sequence, — and yet when even a raven shouts after you, ' AVhat a
hat !' ' O, pull down your vest ! ' and that sort of thing, it hurts you
and humiliates you, and there is no getting around it witli fine
reasoning and pretty arguments.'' — (Mark Twain) A Tramp
Abroad.
Pull-foot, to. To make haste.
Pumpkins, some. Sec Some pumpkins.
Pumpkin-squash. \ ^ ■,■ ■, r ^ , ■
^ . . , } A tlisli of i)rei>ared pumiikin.
Punkm-squash. ) 1111
Put! Go! An urgent exhortation to immediate departure,
not without a certain threatening sound. Sec Git.
Put up the money, to. To pay in advance, ;.
1 24 DICTION A RY OF AMERICANISMS.
Put it there I Shake hands ! (the speaker holding out his
hand and indicating by the words quoted his desire to enclasi) that
of his interlocutor).
Quaker City. Philadelphia.
Quarter. A twenty-five cent piece, or \ dollar.
"Too much affected to speak, I drew a coin from my pocket
and handed it to him. The dying man clutched at it convulsively,
and stared at it feverishly. 'This,' said he, 'is the first quarter
I've seen since the fall of Sumter ; and, had I wounded you, I
should have been totally unable to give you any quarter. Ah !
how beautiful it is ! how bright, how exquisite, and good for four
drinks! but I have not time to say all I feel.' The expiring
soldier then laid down his gun, hung his cap and overcoat on the
branch of a tree, and blew his nose. He then died." — Orphtiis C.
Kerr.
Queen City. Cincinnati.
Queer. Never used in America in the sense of " not very
well,"' but always in that of insane or crazy.
Quite. An adverb, meaning "distinctly," but not "very."
In continual use.
Raccoon. In the Eastern States the Procyon lotor : in the
South (where it is much esteemed by the Negroes) and "West the
Procyon Hennandezii : a carnivorous animal, something like a
small bear in the face, but having a bushy tail carried like a fox's
brush. Name often sliortened to " Coon," and used as a type of
craft and artfulness of any kind, though I have not been able to
ascertain that the animal is itself remarkable for sagacity, though
it certainly shows (like other animals) a decided aversion to being
killed.
Rag-s. Paper money.
" ' Say $100, and Til take it with my eyes shut.' * It's yourn,'
says I, 'give us the rags.'" — Orpheus C. Kerr.
Raid, to. To make a raid on.
Rail. A piece of timber, cleft, hewn, or sawn, used in
feajing. Not necessarily a round piece, as with us.
DICTION AR Y OF AMERICANISMS. 125
Rail, to ride. A mob punishment. The victim of popular
resentment or elementary justice is carried round for purposes of
exhibition, seated on a thin pole, preparatory to being ducked,
tarred and feathered, or otherwise pleasantly dealt with.
Railroad. Eailway. Railroad track. The permanent
way on a railroad.
Raincloak. A macintosh or waterjiroof garment.
Rain or shine. In any event. Used of the weather, in the
literal sense, but also, figuratively, of other circumstances.
Ra^.se To breed cattle (or, formerly, Negroes): to grow crops :
to fraudulently increase the amount of a cheque : to stake a higher
amount than your ojiponent at cards.
Raise Cain, to. ^ To make a fuss or dis-
Raise Hell, to. rinrbancP
Raise particular Hell, to, etc. J ^"^i^ance.
Rake, lean as a. Very thin indeed.
Ranch. A cattle farm. Hence, almost any kind of estab-
lishment ; often compounded very amusingly, as in "milk-ranch "
for a dairy, etc.
Range. The ground over which cattle are allowed to ])asture.
This is not a corruption of "ranch," but a distinct word.
Rantankerous Perverse : malicious : piobably a mere
corruption of cantankerous, wliich appears to be English and has
the authority of Goldsmith, Sheridan, and Thackeray, thougli the
rer}), "to cantankerate,'' is an Americanism.
Rare. (Ofhicatattahlc.) Underdone. Probably a delicate
mispronunciation of "raw." I once heard a clergyman (piote the
psalm thus : "So let indignation vex him, even as a thing tl)at
is ' rare.' "
Rat. A "blackleg," in the trade unionist's sense of that
word : a workman who deserts the common cause, from cowardice
or otherwise, and accepts lower wages or less advantageous condi-
tions than his fellows hold out for.
Rating. The estimated wealth of a person as stated in
Bradstreet's or any of the Commercial Enquiry Companies' Lists :
the estimated circulation of a journal in the American Newspaper
Directory, etc.
Rats ! Interjection of contempt.
1 26 DICTION AR V OF AMERICANISMS.
Rattle, to. To confuse or muddle anybody.
Rawhide. Undressed leather. Also, a whip. (^F.^ To whip.
Real estate. Used everywhere in its correct le?al sense of
"land," "house property,'" and the like- A very convenient
and comprehensive term, which has the advantage of being good
legal English accurately employed.
Reata. See Lariat. (La reata.)
Rebs. The confederates. (Civil War.) Also Johncy
Rebs. fq. V.J A sort of tolerant and familiar designation.
Reckon, to. To calculate : to form a judgment after con-
sideration. See Guess, for some remarks on this group of words.
Recommend. (N.J A recommendation.
Reconstruction. The policy of recuperating the resources
of the country which had been so terribly exhausted during the
Civil War.
Record. (Pronounced "rek'kud.") The known actions of
a public or private individual. In sport or athletics a man i.s
said to make a " record " when he achieves a higher success in any
particular pursuit than has previously been authenticated. Such
authentication is therefore called " record"" also, and anyone who
surpasses it "breaks the record." Ihus, as the A>it" York World
ingeniously remarked, in a passage quoted by 3Ir. Farmer : "It is
one of the most curious facts in regard to sporting events, that when
a man breaks the record he makes the record."
Red. "To paint the town red " means to indulge in some
particularly boisterous jollification : the less creditable the spioe,
the "redder"' the town is held to be painted. Tiiis is probably
the only connection in which an American "city" would alluw
itself to be called, without protest, by the humble name of " tovvn."
Red cent. Sometimes abbreviated to "red" simply. To
be worth not a "red cent'" is to be utterly worthless, the cent
(called red to distinguish it from a nickel or silver coin) being the
smallest coin current. For an example see under Bluff.
Red eye. Yet another synonym for whisky.
Red man 1 A North American Indian, sometimes de-
Red skin- I risively called " noble " by those who have done
whatever lies in human power to divest him of the last remnants
of his once reputed nobility.
Die TIONA RY OF A MERICANISMS. 1 2 7
Regret. A note declining an invitation.
Releasement. ( ^.) Release. A very old Americanism.
Used by A. Bancroft. Pickering mentions having noticed it in the
Index to Smollett'' s History, but it is not given even in the old
dictionaries, and has certainly never been as common in England
as it still is in American speeoh and literature.
Rent, to. f^-) To hire a house or premises. "For rent,"
in announcements of land agents, etc., is used where we should say
(of a house or property) " to let."
Reportorial. Belonging to the functions of a reporter.
(Jo H ma list ic si a ivj. )
Representatives, House of. The Lower House in the U.S.
Congress, corresponding to our House of Commons. It has a
Speaker, and its procedure is very much like that of the latter
institution.
Resolute, to. (Last syllable accented.) To pass a resolution
— as at a public meeting.
Resurrect, to. To revive or bring to light a second time.
Riata (or Reata). A " lariat," which see.
"There was a stake driven near its summit, with the initials,
L. E. S. Tied half way down was a curiously worked riata. It
was George's." — (Bret Harte) The Luck of Itoari)i(j Camp.
Ride, to. To carry. When a man is punished in the manner
described under Rail, he is said to "be ridden on a rail."
Right away. Immediately. Noticed by Dickens.
Right here. At once : on this very spot.
Rile, to.
Rile up, to.
" 8ez I, ' When Sal and I is married we'll drop a tear for the
early decease of an individual who never would liave been born if
it hadn't been for your |)arients.' This riled Bob up awful, and he
came right at me like a mad bull at a red shawl.' " — Ovjthcus ('. Kerr.
Rile up, to. (V.intrans.) To become angry. Literally, to
render any fluid turbid by stirring or sliaking up its sediment.
Ring. A trade combination of merchants or manufacturers —
called, when openly organized, "a trust " — to raise prices or secure
- (V. trans.) To annoy, or exasperate.
128 DICTIONAR V OF A MERICANISMS.
other advantages. Also a political combination. Term of mild re-
proach as American politics go.
Rip. To let anything "rip" is to let it take its natural
course without interference. It is not easy to trace the origin of
the expression. Mr. Farmer quite gravely accepts Cuthbert
Bede's farcical conjecture that it may have been derived from the
letters, R.I. P., on tombstones. Can it be, "let it ripe" — that is,
let it mature itself naturally ?
Rip around, to. To rage and swear, and make a fuss generally
"Rap and rend and pilfer" occurs in Hudibras, "To rap and
rend," is to seize and destroy. (Latin, "Rapuere.")
Roach. A cockroach.
Road agent. A highway robber ; particularly a coach
robber. ( Western. )
Roasted ears. Half-ripened cobs of Indian corn, roasted
and eaten with butter ; a dish much beloved in America, and re-
garded as " elegant doings.''
Robber. Any kind of thief : no necessary connotation of
violence, as with us.
Robustious. Hardy : robust. (Xee/roism.J
Rock. (X.J A stone (even if a small one). V. to stone.
Rocker. A rocking chair ; which fidgety contrivances are
very much in vogue among Americans.
Rolling country. Undulating lands.
Rolling prairie. A stretch of undulating country.
Room, to. To occupy a room. (College term.)
Rooster. A male fowl.
Rope in, to. To tie up a horse or other animal. Hence,
fiijuratively, to get a hold on anyone, or of anything.
Rostrum. A palpit, or place for speechifying of any sort.
Rot-gut. Bad whisky.
Rounder. A man of low moral character and habits.
Round up. A periodical stock-taking and inspection on
cattle ranges.
Rouser. Anything startling or abnormal.
Roustabout. A common labourer : a doer of odd or un-
Die TIONA RY OF A M ERIC A iV/SMS. 1 29
skilled jobs. An illustrative use of the word will be found under
Gret so. (q. V.)
Rubber. India-rubber.
Rubbers. Any garments made of India-rubber ; used in the
same way as Gum, which see.
Ruination. Ruin. (Negroism.)
Ruinatious. Ruinous. (Negroism.)
Rum. Generic term for intoxicants of any kind.
"The difficulty is, that the alcoholic virtues don't wash ; but
until the water takes their colours out, the tints are very much like
tliose of the true celestial stuff. ... A 2^€^'so)i at table
asked me whether I 'went in for rum as a steady drink?' — His
manner made the question highly offensive, but I restrained my-
self, and answered thus : — ' Rum I take to be the name which un-
washed moralists apply alike to the product distilled from molasses
and the noblest juices of the vineyard. Burgundy, " in all its sun-
set glow," is rum. Champagne, "the foaming wine of Eastern
France," is rum. Hock, which our friend the Poet speaks of as —
'' ' " The Khine's breast-milk, gushing cold and bright,
Pale as the moon, and maddening as her light,"
ia rum. Sir, I repudiate the loathesome vulgarism as an insult to
the first miracle wrought by the Founder of our religion.' " — (O. W.
Holmes) Autocrat of the Breakfast Table.
Rum-bud. A pimple, carbuncle, or outbreak of acne, sup-
posed to be caused by excessive drinking. A " grog-blossom."
Rum-sucker, A habitual drunkard.
Run, to. (Intrans.) To stand for election to congress or to
any elective office. (Trans.) "To run" a newspaper or other
enterprise is simply to conduct or manage it, with a slightly con-
temptuous connotation.
Rustle, to. To behave energetically : to rise to an occasion.
Rustler. X\\ energetic or capable person.
Rye. AVhisky distilled from rye. Very common expression.
See also Old rye.
" I beheld a sight to make the muses stare like the behemoth of
the Scriptures, and cause genius to take another nip of old rye."
— Orpheus C. Kerr.
130 DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS.
" At Ann Arbor, bein seezed with a sudden faintness, I called for
a drop of suthin to drink. As I was stirrin the beveridgeup a pale-
faced man in gold sjiectacles laid his hand upon my shoulder &
sed, ' Look not upon the wine when it is red ! ' Sez I, ' This aint
wine. This is Old Kye.' ' It stinfjeth like an odder and hiteth like
a serpent,^ sed the man. ' I guess not,' sed T, ' when you put sugar
into it. That's the way I allers take mine.'" — (Artemus Ward)
On the Wing.
Sabe? n^- inter. J Do you know ? f^V.) Common sense.
Sag. To swerve : to warp : to sink. Used especially of a
door which drags its hinges out of i^lace. The word is good old
English and occurs in Macbeth (Act v., sc. 3) :
" Shall never sag with doubt nor shake with fear."
In commercial use it means " to fall in price."
" It seems to be more a matter of tendency than anything else.
Is she sagging towards Eealism or rising towards Idealism ? Is
she content to be the woman that some of the novelists, and
some of the painters also, say she is, or would she prefer to ap-
j)roach that ideal which all the world loves ? It is a question of
standards." — (Charles Dudley "Warner) Harper, 1891.
Sag-e Brush State. Nevada.
Salamander safe. A fireproof safe.
Saloon. A public-house.
Salt lick. A vein of rock-salt on the surface of the ground.
Salt River. A politician who has been defeated is said to
"have been rowed up Salt Kiver." Salt Kiver, a tributary of the
Ohio, was once a stronghold of ])irates, and property which was
rowed up Salt River was not often recovered. Similarly, a poli-
tician who has navigated the unpropitious stream is not expected
to reappear.
Sambo. Any "man of colour." Correctly, the child of a
full-blooded African and a mulatto.
Sand, to have. Equivalent to our expression, "to have
gr-it," to which it is closely allied.
Sap head. A soft-headed person ; a "mollycoddle."
Die TIONA RY OF AMERICANISMS. 1 3 r
Saratoga trunk. A large travelling box. From the popular
watering place.
Sardine. Term of reproach. A dullard. See Clam.
Sauce. For some reason, or none, vegetables, when eaten
with meat, are sometimes called " sauce."
Sauce marketer. A market gardener or greengrocer.
Save, to. To hit one's game in shooting : meaning, perhaps,
that the ammunition is saved and not wasted.
Savvy- See Sabe, with which it is identical in meanings.
"Savvy '■ is the French " savez-vous."
Sawbuck. A sa wing-stool.
Sawyer. The trunk of a tree which has by some natural
convulsion been torn from its roots and thrown into a river, sub-
sequently becoming loosely embedded in the bed or bank of the
stream, so as to move in the current in a " sawing"' manner. A
source of much peril to rapid craft, esi)ecially on the Mississippi.
Say! Interjection. Sometimes used for " Do you say? "'or
" What do you say?"' but quite as often meaningless, save as an
interjection calling for attention.
" My river runs to thee :
P.lue sea, wilt welcome me?
My river waits reply.
Oh sea, look graciously !
I'll fetch the brooks
From spotted nooks, —
Say, sea.
Take me 1 " —(Emily Dickinson) Poems.
Scab. A non-unionist workman ; a blackleg.
Scads. Current coin.
Scalp, to. The Indian warlike practice of removing the hair
and scalp of a fallen foe is described by this rcrh, which hence
means, X'/-, to defeat, to anniliilate, etc. It also means to capture.
" "\V. H. Haskell to-day gave H. E. Elliston formal notice that
he was carrying a knife for that gentleman's political scalp." —
(Atchison) Globe, 181»1.
Scart. Scared. (xMso called, and written in dialect nar-
ratives, "skeert.")
Scat ! Equivalent to " put I "' (<y. v. J
132 DICTION A R Y OF AMERICANISMS.
Scatter gun. A giin for small shot — an obvious and
graphic piece of descriptive nomenclature.
School ma'am. A schoolmistress. Often applied by "the
young fellow whom the boarders call John," to the charming
sclioolmistress in The Autocrat of the Breakfast Table.
Schooner. A large tumbler used exclusively for beer.
Scoop. To obtain an advantage: to defeat anyone — "scoop
the pool."
Scoot. To run away, with a slight connotation of fear.
Scow. A lighter, or flat-bottomed sailing barge. [Dutch
schouw). The term is used on the northern rivers of Germany,
where it means a flat-bottomed boat.
Scrawny. Exactly equivalent to our word "scraggy."
Lean and bony.
Screamer. A humorous story : a tall man or woman.
Season, in good. Early : punctually. An old English
survival.
Second - class matter. Printed papers, entitled to be
carried at newspaper rates, as distinct from letters, are called in
American post-oSice regulations, " second-class matter."
Section. Neighbourhood : region : vicinity.
Sectionary. Belonging to a section : local.
Seep, to. To ooze: to percolate. "Seepage"" is mud or
slush, as shown in the following :
" In its normal condition it is a pretty town ; but the flood (or
possibly the seepage) iiad lately been ravaging it ; whole streets of
houses had been invaded by the muddy water, and the outsides of
the buildings were still belted with a broad stain extending up-
wards from the foundations." — (Mark Twain) Life on the Missis-
sippi.
Seepy (of land). Sodden : wet.
Seine. A net. [Pure French. Used in Louisiana and in
Lower Canada.]
"He tlircw open a window, thrust his head out, and such an
irruption followed as I never had heard before. The fainter and
farther away the scowmen's curses drifted, the higher Mr. Bixby
lifted his voice and the weightier his adjectives grew. When he
DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS. 133
closed the window he was empty. You could have drawn a seine
through his system and not caught curses enough to disturb your
mother with."— (Mark Twain) Life on th'i Mississippi.
Seldom. (Used adjeetivolhi.) Rare. See also Alone.
"The theatre goer who will not take a drink between acts, is
one of the most seldom men ever seen." — Texas Sif tings, 1800.
Senate. The Upper House in the American legislature. It
is elected by the separate State legislatures — tvvo members by each
State — and one-third of the members retire every two years.
Send-oflF. A start in life. (From the push-off given to a
boat when starting.) Any kind of assistance.
"A Classical Anecdote — 'Fine words butter no parsnips,' was the
terse remark of the late Sophocles when the Athens Daily Helene-
hlat gave the first performance of ' Philoctetes ' a two-column
send-off. 'What I want to collar,' said that great poet, 'is not
gush, but gate-money ! ' " — Puck, 1891.
Serape. (3 syU.) A kind of blanket used by men as a
shawl, in Mexico. (Spanish.)
Served up, to be. To be made ridiculous.
Set back. (N.) A disaster or misfortune.
Setup. (Adj. J Arrogant: self-assertive: conceited.
Seven up. A card game.
Sewing-bee. A meeting of women and girls, generally in
connection with a meeting-house or Sujiday School, for the purpo.se
of doing needlework in company, often for chaiitable objects.
Shadbelly. A Quaker, from the fashion of the coats which
they affect, and which are fancifully thought to resemble the
"shadfish " in shape.
Shadow, to. To watch, after the manner of a detective.
Shake, to. To shake hands. (Kare.) A more common mean-
ing is that employed by the eulogist of I>nck Fanshaw, who
said that that worthy "never shook his mother. ' In this sense,
"to shake," means to abandon or discard.
"He said he was the son of an English nobleman — either an
earl or an alderman, he could not remember which, but believed
was both ; his father, the nobhunan, loved him, but his mother
hated him from the cradle ; and so while he was still a little boy
1
134 DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS.
he was sent to ' one of them olJ, ancient colleges' — he couldn't re-
member which ; and by and by his father died and his mother
seized the proj)erty and 'shook" him, as he phrased it. After his
mother shook him, members of the nobility with whom he was
acquainted nsed their influence to get him the position of 'loblolly-
boy in a ship."' — (Mark Twain) Life on the Mississippi.
*'Peneloi:)e — I hear you are engaged to Miss Dingbatts at last.
Eeginald — Yes ; she refused me six times, but I persevered. Pene-
lope — Then you were well shaken before taken.'' — Brooklvn Life,
1891.
Sban3"tiai, to. ( V.J To drug a drunken sailor for the pur-
pose of carrying lum off unwillingly to serve on board ship, when
hands are scarce.
Sbank, the. The residue : in fact, '" the balance '' of any-
thing (which see).
Shape. Used in athletic sporting parlance in the same sense
as our own sporting word, '• form."
Shave, to. To discount a security with the implication of
extortion, or illegal interest. The States have various usury laws
which forbid interest abo\e certain rates, on a penalty of fines,
forfeiture, and sometimes even imprisonment (which punishments
vary in different States).
Shebang-. Any establishment or place. There is no satis-
factory explanation of the word in the published glossaries, De
Yere's suggestion that it may be the French "cabane*' (which
would require a good deal of corruption) being obWously untenable.
"\Yith diffidence, I have not the least doubt that it is the Irish
" shebeen '" — a grog shop.
Sheep-skin. A college diploma.
Shenanegan. Blarney : bounce. Xo satisfactory etymology
has been suggested. It sounds like a sailor's word, bat is not given
by Smyth. •' Cinan '" in Analo-Saxon is " to gape open," but this
can hardly be a derivative. Possibly Celtic.
Shilling". A twelve and a half cent piece ; value in English
money about G^d.
Shimmey. " As interesting as a shimmey {i.e. a chemise]
in a wash tub." A simile for "very interesting indeed." Used
in Dole's Sermons, and pretty common still.
DICTION A R V OF AMERICANISMS. 135
Shin, to. To climb. To " shin " up a tree is to climb up it.
Also, to walk.
Shin-dig-. A rough country dancing-party.
S-iine. " To take a shine "' is to take a fancy.
Shingles. "Wedge-shaped pieces of wood, used instead of
tiles for roofing. A shingle is often a plank, and especially a sign-
board, of any kind. " To swing your shingle," is to set up in busi-
netis. The word shingle, for beach pebbles, is given by Webster,
but is apparently not in ordinary use. Fvjiirativehj, " To bs short
of a shingle,"' is to be crazy — in fact, to "have a tile loose."
Sbinner. A tradesman in difficulties, who is rushing about
to borrow the means of meeting liabilities.
Shinplasters. Paper money. During the war, the Con-
federate paper currency deteriorated to such an extent as to be a
byword, and it was said (I hardly think on any trustworthy
authority) that the soldiers dressed their wounds with bank
notes, as being cheaper than other paper, that commodity be-
coming very scarce and expensive in the South towards the close
of the war. Newspapers printed upon wall paper are extant.
Shoes, ^ee Boots.
Shoot, r^ .^ A shooting-party.
Shootist. An adept in shooting.
Shoot the rapids, to. To go over a waterfall in a boat
Fqiurativebi, to successfully encounter a difficulty.
Short metre. (Adv.) Quickly.
Short sauce. See Long sauce. (New England.)
Shot-gun. A fowling-piece, as distinct from a rifle for
bullets.
Shouting-member. A religious terra, meaning a church
member who takes a prominent part in leading the service of
prayer and music. Tlie peculiar elegance and suital)ility of tlie
expression will commend it to every tasteful reader.
Show. ( •^') An opportunity to exhibit one's powers. An
importation from the stage, " show "' being theatrical slang for a
diamatic or other performance.
Shuck. The "shock" or husk of corn: the cob on which
Indiin corn grows. i^i^Mraftre/?/, anything worthless. (Esp. j)lura\)
1 36 Die TIONA RY OF A MER ICA \ 'ISMS.
Shucks, oh ! An interjection of contempt.
^'' A shuck, aiiusk or shell, as bean-shucks, bean shells,"' — (Bailey
English Dialects.
Shut one's head, to. To be silent. Elegantly derived from
the closure of the lips.
Shyster. A worthless fellow ; a blackguard. Applied
mostly to dishonest lawyers. De Vore offers an amazing etymo-
logy ; he says that these " shyster" lawyers are so called because
they "fight shy " of their clients. The wo; d is probably the Avglo-
,Sixon, Middle E mjUsh, smd Old French '"cliiche" ('"parsimoni-
ous ''), which occurs in the Romeiunt of the Rose, etc. " Chiche " is
also found at least twice in "Wyclitfe's Bible. *' Chiche,"" with the
suffix ster (which had sometimes a sinister sense, as mentioned by
Skeat, who instances " gamester," J/er;7/ Wives iii., i. 37) would
make a word very like " shyster."' An old Australian digger tells
me that a shaft sunk without result was called a '" shyster " at the
gold-fields, and he derived the name from a use to which these
worthless holes were often j)ut. I must own to a preference for
the older derivation. " Shyster " is a term of opprobrium rather
affected by Jews, though without apparent cause.
Sick. Ill, without any connotation of nausea. "To feel
%\ck,'\li(jurativehi means to be disgusted with one's self, usually on
account of some supposed lack of acuteness ; a ground, however,
on which the native American seldom has occasion to feel sick.
Sideline, to. To tie a cord from the fore to the hind leg of
a horse, thus hampering the animaUs movements enough to jjrevent
straying.
Sideling-. A railway siding.
Side-^valk. The foot pavement of a street.
Sign. A signboard. Also, a spoor or trail. "Buffalo-sign,"
"bear-sign," etc. (Wedern.)
Signalize, to. In addition to the ordinary use this often
means in America " to make signals."
'Simmon. »Same as Persimmon ('q. v.)
Singist. An adept in singing.
Sir. "Sir "is constantly being dragged into conversation as
a kind of resting word or interjection, as though it served to help
the speaker on with his talk. It is es^^ccially used thus by
i
DICTION A R Y OF AMERICANISMS. i y]
Southerners, and the practice has been characterized by an
American writer as a graceful and respectful English usage. So
far as I know, only commercial travellers, and \ erhaps snobs,
interlard their conversation with "sir," however. One's barber
usually infuses a good deal of " t-ir " into his unescapable re-
marks, it is true, but tliis hardly makes the practice an English
one and nothing can make it graceful. The South, doubtless,
learned it from the Negroes.
Siree. "Yes, siree," "no, siree," (accented on the last
syllable). Yes, or no, sir. Emphatic only.
Sit up, to. To be startle<l, or to be impressed with the im-
portance of anything. It sounds easy to catalogue the vagaries of
transatlantic (fiction, but when you take the task in hand it
makes you " sit up."
Six-shooter. A revolver. Literally, of course, one with six
chambers, but in ordinary usage, any repeating-pistol.
Size. "That's about the size of it." Equivalent to "that's
so, " which Hte.
" ' Have you considered, sir, what would be the inevitable result
of such a meeting [a duel] as this ? ' ' AVell, for instance, what
would it be ? ' ' Bloodshed ! ' ' That's about the size of it,' I
said. ' Now, if it is a fair question, what was yimr side proposing
to shed? ' "—(Mark Twain) A Tramp Abroad.
■' That is my size," ineans. That suits me.
Size up. To measure, estimate, or appraise. "To size any-
one up " is to take anyone's measure.
" You can't size up an orator by the dimensions of his mouth."
—Texas Siftiiifjs, 1801.
Sizzling" hot. An object is said to be " sizzling hot " when a
drop of lifjuid ]ilaced upon it will make the sound on which this
onomato[)<)etic expression is founded.
Skedaddle. To run away. Never very satisfactorily e\-
jdained. " Skedaddle " is said by De Vere to be a north country
word meaning "to sjtill," evidently from the .hKilo-Sa.-cnn
" sceadan," to steal, to separate. Elwyn, who ]»rofesses to point
out the provincialism in England of alleged Americanisms, is a
broken reed, passing the word by altogether, and Farmer contents
himself with reporting Dc Vcre's observations. A too ingenious
antif^uary attempted to connect it with the (T-xsSawj/^i (aorist
I sS DICTION A R V OF AMERICAXISMS.
ffx'CBttffa) used, by Homer. Probably the exact history of the word
will never be fully ascertained. It seems to date from Bull Run,
and even Ireland has claimed it, " sgedad-ol " occurring in an old.
Irish Bible. It is not given in O'Reilly'.s Dictionar// nor even in
*' the great suj^plement " of O'Donovan, and I cannot find but what
it means.
Slseert. See Scart.
Skin, to. To rob anyone (figuratively) of their very skin 1
A '"skin,'' or "skinner" (X.), is a thief or sharper. "To skin
one's own skunk " means to do one's own dirty work, a singularlj-
picturesque and expressive colloquialism, as anyone familiar with
the genus "essence-peddler" must agree. "To skin out" is to
depart secretly — perhaps from the skin-casting of snakes and other
reptiles.
Skip, to. To go away.
Skipper. A cheese mite.
Skippery. Cheese in an advanced condition of what we call
in England "ripeness."
Skimk. The mephitis Americana, deservedly so called. Ai\
exceedingly ill-smelling variety of the weasel tribe, called by Mr.
Lowell "the essence-peddler."' Hence, fi 'jurat iveh/, a mean, un-
worthy person, usually with the prefix, "darned," or " derned,"
i.e., theologically condemned. {Abenaki, "segauku.")
Skyscraper. This astonishing word is applied to anything
lofty, — such as a lofty chimney, a flagstaff, or even a tall man.
Given by Smyth as a sailors word, meaning a triangular topsail.
Slantingdicular. Oblique (as opposed to "perpendicular ").
Called in Hotten's Slang Dictionary an Americanism. Spelled by
Sam Slick, " Slantendicular."
Slap-jacks. Pancakes. Also "flap-jacks," which is old
English.
Slave States. The Slave States, namely, the states whose
laws permitted the ownership of Negroes before the war, were—
Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky,
Louisiana, :Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, the North and South
Carolinas, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.
Sleeper. A sleeping-car, on the railway.
Slick. Really "sleek/' that is, smooth, slippery, and well
Die TIONA RY OF AMERICANISMS. 1 39
adapted for slipping rapidly along. It is \ised to mean " dexterous, "
"acute," " quick."
Slide, to. To go away. Past participle often " slud.''
Slide, to let. To let anything pass.
Sling-. (N.) See Gin-sling-.
Sling-, to. (^-j To wield or use (contemptuous). Nearly
always in composition witli some other word. "Leg-slinging" is
dancing ; " ink-slinging" is writing (particularly journalistic).
Slouch. A fool or sleepy-headed person. Usually in the
negative form of "no slouch." Bill Nye mentions an eminent
Roman historian, whose name for the moment has escaped his
memory, who stated that Julius C;iesar was " no slouch.'
" ' Can you read ? ' ' Yes, — middlin.' ' Cipher ? ' ' Not good
enough to keep store, I don't reckon, but up as fur as twelve-times-
twelve I aint no slouch. 'Tother side of that is what gits me.' "
— (Mark Twain) A Tramp Abroad.
Slugger. A prize fighter or bully.
Slumgullion. Any poor or unsatisfactory kind of drink.
Slump. (^.J A fruit pudding sweetened with treacle.
Slump, to. (V-J To sink or fall into water or mud : 10 walk
through mud or melting snow. Obvnously an onomatopoesis.
"And this in an age, too, when everything depends upon clothes ;
when, if we do not keep up appearances, the seeming solid frame
of this universe, nay, your very God, would slump into Himself,
like a m.ockery king of snow, being nothing, after all, but a pre-
vailing mode." — (Lowell) Condescension, in Forei;/ncrs.
Smart. Quick : intelligent : shrewd : clever : or active.
Never used for "elegant in dress." Smart Chance. A good
deal : a considerable quantity of anything. {See illustration under
Ugly.)
Smearcase. A soft kind of cheese which is spread on bread,
like camembert. (Dutch, " smeer kaas.")
Smile, to. To take a drink. None of the lexicographers
profess to have any theory to account for this extraordinary word.
"To smile" in the North is "to ferment," as beer, etc. ; but
the American use is hardly old enougli to be a survival of any
English provincialism, as neither Witherspoon nor Pickering gives
it, and Bartlett in his edition of 18 JO, calls it " a cant word of
1 40 Die TIONA RY OF A ME RICA A ISMS.
recent introduction. " Probably it is a simple corruption of " smell."
AVhatever its origin, it is very common in a jocular use.
Smoke stack. A chimney : tlie funne! of a steamship.
Smoky City. Pittsburg.
Smouch, to. To steal. In Pennsylvania, to steal a kiss.
"Smouch," or " smoucher,'"' for a loud, sounding kiss, is very old
English and provincial in various counties. Given by Halliwel',
who quotes an old use of it.
'Smorning-. This morning. Originally introduced to save a
word iu telegraphing.
Snatible, to. To snatch.
Snag. A partly-sunken tree in the bed of a river.
Snake, to. To act deceitfully : also, in the South, to beat
or flog. A thing is said to be a caution to snakes when it is
very remarkable or dangerous. A "snake-story, ",/?V/«ra^/re^'y, is an
improbable narrative of the sea-serpent kind : .there are a good
many "snake-stories" in the average American newspaper. To
" 'waken snakes " is to " raise the very devil " — used quite correctly
by Boa Gaultier :—
" Oh, waken snakes and walk your chalks,
In wrath young Fixings cried."
Snap. A little piece of anything : a snack : a short period as
applied to weather, as a " warm snap," for a spell of mild weather,
etc. A "soft snap '"' is a good thing.
Snap-jacks. Same as Slap-jacks (q. v.)
Sneak-thief. A pilferer.
Snide. Spurious : deceptive. Usually applied to catch-
penny goods, or a class of disreputable literature and pictures.
Snippy. Over-dressed (from " snip," the slang name for a
tailor) : foppish : finicky. Also, Sniptlous, which has the same
meaning.
Snoop, to. To pilfer delicacies after the manner of some
domestics, who do not {as an American catechism might say)
"kejp ttieir hands from snooping and stealing, and their tongues
from evil speaking, blowing, and slandering." [Dutch, "snoepen.")
Snore. A top-string, [Boys' word in New York State, and,
Die TIONA RY OF A ME RICA NJSMS. 1 4 1
like many words peculiar to that part, of Dutch origin— "snoer,"
a string.]
Snub post. ) A post to which horses and cattle are
Snubbing- post. )' tied up.
Snuflf-d-ipping-. The practice of chewing snuff.
Snug". Close together. Often used in mechanical treatises
to express the close fitting and correspondence of two articles.
" I have a translation by Garnliam, Bachelor of Arts, in the
Lejend of the JJiine, but it would not answer the purpose I men-
tioned above, because the measure is too nobly irregular ; it don't
fit the tune snugly enough ; in places it hangs over at the ends too
far, ami in otlier places one runs out of words before he gets to tho
end of a bar." — (Mark Twain) A Tramp Abroad.
Socdolager. A crushing blow : a conclusive argument.
Said by Bartlett (and Professor Ue Vere lends his own undoubted
authority to this suggestion) to be an imitation of doxology, which
sounds rather impossible. It looks like a Dutch word, but does
not ai)pear in a Lexicon of that language : it may have been cor-
rupted enough to throw the investigator off the track, however. It
may be remarked, as supporting the " doxology " theory, that as a
doxology concludes Divine service, so a "socdolager" winds up a
fight, and from this pleasing and reverent analogy the word may
have been coined.
Soft coal. Ordinary coal, such as is used in houses, as
op])osed to anthracite, which is also employed largely in the States,
and is called " hard coal."
Solicitor. One who solicits orders : a canvasser. Never a
lawyer.
"Live Advertising Solicitor having extended experience with
technical magazines desires to represent Eastern paper in territory
west of liutfalo on commission basis. Address 'SoLiciTOU,'
care Prixtkks' lsis.."—Adrertisement, 1801.
" Hl' will listen with absolutely unmoved features while the ad-
vertising solicitor tells Ins little story ; no matter how tiresome it
may be, he will be heard all the way through.''— (Fulkerson) Art
ill AdcerUsinij., 1802.
So long- as. See As long as.
Sombrero. A wide brimm'jd hat, (Spanish.)
142 DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS.
Some! (^Emphaticalhj.) A gooJ deal. Especially: —
Some Pumpkins. Something good. Especially used as a
metaphor to ex])ress a mau"s good ojnuion of himself.
Son of a gun. A slightly contemptuous cpitliet carrying
with it a mild hint of bad faith on the part of the person so called.
Given as a sailors" word by Admiral Smyth, and said by him to
have been " originally applied to boys born afloat, when women
were permitted to accom]>auy their husbands to sea." One
admiral declared, adds Smyth, that he was literally thus cradled,
under the breast of a gun carriage.
Soph. ) A freshman. (College i-lang.) Said bv
Sophomore. ; p^of. Goodrich to be compounded of (to^'o; and
Sort o' I ^^^^ adverbially in the natural sense.
Sot. Vulgarly used as the past tense of the verl to set.
So, to be. To be true. " That's so ! "' That is true. "The
thing which is not so," an untruth.
Sovereign people. The citizens of that "great country,'"
the United States of America.
Span. A pair of horses, with a connotation of good match-
ing, in size and colour.
Sparking. Courtship.
Spat. A petty squabble : a trifling disagreement.
Special partnership. A usage unknown to English law, by
which an investor may furnish funds to a trading concern, receiv-
ing a share of profits, but committing himself thereby to no
general partnership nor to any liability beyond the amount of such
investment.
Spelling-bee. A public contest in spelling— familiar enough
in England not long ago.
Spider. A frying-pan with legs.
Spindle City. Lowell, Mass.
Spit-curl. A lock of hair curled down on the forehead or
temple, after the manner of the late Lord Beaconsfield, Some-
times called a "soap-curl." The allusion is in either case obvious.
DICTIONAR Y OF AMERICANISMS. 143
in the former truly "elegant." The Boston Transcript has an ex-
pression quoted by Bartlett, appropriately used in a poetical
extract, which caps it, however.
" You may prate of your lips, and your teeth of pearl,
And your eyes so briglitly flaslung ;
My song shall be of that saliva curl
Which threatens my heart to smash in."
Splurg-e. A dash or display of elegance. To cut a
" sjilurge " is precisely to cut a dash.
Spoils system. The system under which all offices of the
Civil Service are held by political supporters of the party in power.
The expression is stated to have originated with the Hon. "NV. L.
I\Iarcy, who, in 1832, declared in the United States Senate, that
" To the victors belong the spoils of the enemy."
Spondoolicks. Money. (Sometimes Spondulicks.)
Spook. A spirit : a ghost. Dutch, " spook " ; German,
" spuk." Perhaps allied to ■4'tJX'^ oi" to our own pixie.
Spread. To "spread one's self " is to assume airs, to lay one's
self out for admiration. An allusion to the way in which a
peacock spreads his tail.
Spread-eag-lism. Arrogance, especially in diplomacy —the
correlative of wliat we call " jingoism."
Spry. Nimble : brisk : quick in action : sprightly.
Square. Honourable : ample : upright. A very old and
rather fine expression.
"Can an honest man — a square man, find any work on God's
green earth? " — Advertisement in Neio York Daily.
Squash. A vegetable like our own vegetable marrow.
Squatter State. Kansas.
Squa'W-naan. A white man who has taken a wife — or
wives — from the Indians. A ruffianly class.
Squeeze. To embarrass. (Htock Exchange term.)
Squirm. To writhe about, as in pain.
Stag- Dance. A rough kind of dancj by men only. (Bartlett.)
Stag Dinner. 1 A dinner or party for men exclusively.
Stag Party, j For an example see Chestnut.
1 44 Die TIONA R Y OF A M ERICA NISMS.
Staging". The scaffold in front of a building.
Stalled.. Stuck in the mnd. (Applied to a waggon or horse.)
Stampede. (2^.) A panic among horses, cattle, or human
beings, resulting in a simultaneous rush. A herd in this predica-
ment is said '■ to stampede,'" or "to be stampeded." (Sjxiniyh,
" estampado," a stamping.)
Stay, to come to. To be a p3rm;inent institution.
Steep. High in jirice : difficult to believe : almost anything
that '' tall ■' means in American slang.
Steerer. A gambler's decoy. Also a doctor's tout, the
employment of whom is, of course, a grave offence against profes-
sional etiquette.
Stem-winder. A keyless watch.
Stick, to. There is a peculiar use of the verb "to stick."'
which is found in one phi'ase only — "it won't stick" — which is
applied to any plea, claim, or argument, and means that it is dis-
credited, or (as we say) " wont go do.vn.'" "To stick anyone with
an expense,"' is to saddle him or her therewith.
Stiff. A corpse. Could anything be more elegantly allusive ?
" Thev piled the stiffs outside the door ;
They made, I reckon, a cord or more ;
Girls went that winter, as a rule,
Alone to spellin" school."
— (John Hay) Mystery of Gilgal.
Stock. Domesticate 1, or half tamed, cattle.
Stock, lock, and barrel. Altogether : the whole.
"Take it by and large, lock, stock, and barrel, and its a dandy."
— Sam Slick.
Stool. (^y.J A decoy duck. iT.J To shoot wild ducks by
the aid of a decoy.
Stoop. Door-step of a house. (Dutch, stoep.) Chiefly
used in New York.
" I boarded exclusively on a front stoop on Pennsylvania Avenue,
and used to slumber, regardless of expense, in a well-conducted
aiihhox.''—07'pheus 0. Ken-.
Store. A shop of any kind.
Die TIOXA R Y OF AMERICA X/S VS. 1 45
Store clothes. Clothe? not made at home, as a good many
garments are in the unsophisticated West, but purchased.
"I brandished my new sixteen-dolkir huntin cased watch round
considerable, and I was drest in my store clothes. & had a lot
of sweet-scented wagon greese on my hair. I am free to confes
that I thawt I looked pretty gay." — (Artemus "Ward) On the
Wing.
Straight. " A straight drink " is an uncompounded spirit, as
opposed to mixed liquors, the generic name of those seductive and
mysterious compounds in which thirsty America takes delight.
Streak. A flash of liglit or of lightning.
" P'rom the frequent addition of a new upper room here, a new
dormer window there, and an innovating skylight elsewhere, the
roof of the mansion had gradually assumed an Alpine variety of
juts and peaks somewhat confusing to behold. Local tradition
related that, on a certain showery occasion, a streak of lightning
was seen to descend upon that roof, skip vaguely about from one
p ak to another, and finally slink ignominiously down tlie water
pipe, as though utterly disgusted with its own inability to deter-
mine, where there are so many, which peak it should particularly
perforate.'" — Orpheus C. Kerr Papers.
Streaked. Alarmed
Stripe. (X.) Kind or pattern. Two men who resemble
each otiier in character are said to be of the same "stripe," just as
we should say, " of the same stamp."
Study, to. To consider. (Intrans.) Also <ra/is., to examine.
Stump. The stump of a felled tree, often used as a plat-
form by political and otlier speakers, has enriched the language
with a number of words. Thus, a statesman seeking suffrages is
said " to stump,' or "to be on the stump " : an extemporaneous
speaker is called a "stump-orator," his rhetoric a " stump-speech,"
etc.
Succotash. Green maize and beans boiled together into a
kind of stew. (From a Xarra(junset Indian word " msicquatash.")
Sucker. A drunkard : also a greenhorn, or des])icablc
person, etc.
"A sucker is born every minute." — Populr Proverb.
" "WANTED, — 1,000 young men with small capital : can make a
146 DICTIONAR V OF AMERICANISMS.
big thing at home or abroad; business new, easy, and honorable;
certain profit. Apply, enclosing stamp, to Box , Troy, N. Y.,
for information.
'•'Now,' said the dealer in old letters, ' the people that write
and send money in answer to such advertisements are what we in
our business call " suckers," and there is an old but very true
saying in vogue among us, that a new one is born every minute.
This you will believe when I show you some of the samples
which are among the most valuable of my collection.' "—Printers'
Ink, 1891.
Suicide, to. To commit suicide. It is difficult to see, etymo-
logically, why "suicide" should not be a verb, just as Avell as a
noun, save that it is unauthorized.
Suit of hair. Ahead (or as ^Macbeth says, a "fell'") of hair.
" Tlie most magnificent suit of hair ever seen flowing down
woman's fair iihoiildeTcs.''—ItichmG7id Enquirer, 1858.
Summeriug'. Spending the summer. Imitated from the
common expression, "wintering.''
Sun up. Sunrise.
Sure. Surely: for certain. "If you fool around like that
you'll lose your way, sure " (with emphasis).
S are-en oug-li. (Adj.) Genuine.
Surprise party. An assembly, unannounced and uninvited,
of a number of persons at the house of a common friend, some-
times in the latter's absence. Latterly, a new kind of " surprise
party " has been devised, for which invitations are duly issued as
for an ordinary entertainment, and some solemn foolery prepared
for the occasion by the host, or, to be just to the male American,
more often by the hostess. See the following quotation :
"These gatherings are always expected to embrace some playful
little novelty designed to take the guests by surprise, and one to
which I was bidden yesterday so far ecliissd all predecessors that,
on the eve of my departure for Long Branch, I can't resist tel-
ling you something about it for the amusement of your readers.
The invitation, wliich was engraved and written in red ink,
came on a bright green card, enclosed in an envelope made of
coarse brown paper, and was couched in the following remarkable
terras : —
DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS. 147
" * Mrs. Susan Blank will be pleased to mourn her approaching
departure in the society of
Miss ManhaUan
at half after four on Monday. E.S.V.P.
(N.B. — The guests will warble.) '
"I was received by a coloured butler in his shirt sleeves.
Arrived in the parlour, I was amazed by the apparition of a carpet-
less floor, on which were airily disposed three large trunks,
labelled as for the railroad, and each surmounted by a hearthrug.
There were no antimacassars over the chairs, but one or two em-
broidered pillow cases were hung on their lower rails. The sofa
was concealed by a brown linen loose cover, but tastefully decorated
with vases, ferns, and a looking-glass. It was, in fact, a topsy-
turvey afternoon tea, and such of IMrs. Blank's guests as had
arrived appeared to be entering heartily into the joke perpetrated
u]ion them by our hostess. I have since learned that the idea was
suggested by a crazy-work tea given by a lady during the ])re\ious
week, at which all the decorations were of wliat you call patch-
work, that is odd pieces of various materials sewn together with
niore or less disregard to pattern. On that occasion tea commenced
with ice-cream and cake, and concluded with sandwiches, a
novelty which I think Mrs. Blank did well to honour rather in
the breach than in the observance. The custom promises to be-
come fashionable. I daresay you will hear more of it." — American
Correspondence of The Home Circle, London, 1890.
Suspenders. Braces. Also called, with elegant symbolism,
'* galluses."
Swanga. Well-dressed or conceited. (A A'egroism.) Com-
pare our own " swagger."
Swear off. To give up a habit : to reform, generally, and
abandon one's evil ways, whatever tliey may happen to be.
''The Wife — You know you promised to swear off to-morrow.
The Editor — How much whisky is left in the jug ? The Wife — O,
about three quarts. The Editor — Heavens ! have I got to drink
three quarts of liquor before daylight?" — Atlanta Constiluiiou,
1801.
Switch. Shunting-rails, on a railway.
Switch, to. To shunt. (Railwaij.)
Systemize, to. To reduce to a system: "to systematize."
A very old Americanism, noticed by Pickering.
148 DICTION A R V OF AMERICANISMS.
Tablespread. A table-cloth. Compare Bedspread.
Take a chute, to. To run away.
Tall. Good : excellent: also, Ligli-sounding. '• Tall whisky,"'
" tall ^.hooting,"' "tall talk, ' are examijles wnich illustrate these
meanings.
Tammany society. A branch of the Democratic party in
.American politics, having its headquarters at Tammany Hall,
Xew York. A kinl of ci^ucus, manipulating the vote of New
York State. "Tammany " is said to have been the name of an
Indian chief of the Delaware tribe.
Tangential. ) Crotchety in temper : apt to ''fly off at a
Tangent y. i' tangent.''
Tangle-foot. Strong whisky. Often used as an adj. —
" tangle-foot "■ whisky.
Taps, to be on one's. To be active : to be ready for busi-
ness. Contraction of " tapaderos," which means slippers in
Mexico.
Tarheeler. A North Carolina man.
'Tarnal. Eternal.
'Tarnation. Exidetive adj., used very much in the way
"damnation" is employed adjectivalbi, with as little respect for
grammar, it may be added, as for propriety.
Tarry. (X.) Time of tarrying. Colloquialism. Old English,
and obsolete here, but occasionally used by Americans.
" The Duke of Wellington was on his arrival received by a guard
of honour, and the band of the eighty-eighth [regiment] continued
to play during his grace's tarry." — London Courier, .July 7, 1817.
This use is exactly analogous to our "stay " ('Ji'j.
Tarry, to. f^.J To remain: to stay. In exactly the
biblical sense. Obsolete in England, and perhaps old-fashioned,
but still quite common, among Americans.
Tax, to. To charge. As " how much will you tax me for
these cigars? " meaning, what is the price of them ?
Team. An assemblage of people for any object. First
adupted by athletes (always iibtral contributors to slnng), as "a
base-ball team,"' etc. Afterwards developed as a colloquialism.
To say that a man is "a team in himself," or "a Lull [whole]
team," is a compliment.
DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS. 149
Tear. (Ehyming to "where.") A spree: a "high ohl
time," (q.v.)
Teeter, to. To play at see-saw. Also, "to fidget about.''
Children call the game of see-saw " teeter-tawter," wliich seems
to be an onomatopoesis, from the double sound of a plank balanced
on a square-cornered block.
Tell g-ood-bye, to. To bid farewell.
Tenderfoot. In the West, a new arrival : a greenhorn.
Tend, to. To give attention to anything : " tend store," etc.
Also to frequent a place, as " tend meeting," " tend lectures," etc.
Tendsome. llequiring attention or care ; usually applied to
fidgety children.
Tenement house. A house let out in single rooms.
Terrapin. A salt-water turtle much esteemed in New York.
Tetchy. Irritable : fractious. (Of children.) Almost ob-
solete in England, though still sometimes used in the AV^estern
Counties, and perfectly orthodox ; Juliets nurse uses it.
That's so. Yes. Such is the case. The expression is an
ordinary one enough, and the only American characteristic it
possesses is its constant use in every possible connection. One
wonders why a people so ingenious in abbreviation should continu-
ally say " that's so ' when " yes " would do just as well.
There, to g-et. To accomplish one's object.
There, to he. To fulfil a promise ; to keep an appointment :
to accept an invitation.
Thin. A deception which is easily seen through is pic-
turesquely said to be " thin."
Thousand of bricks, like a. A simile now thoroughly ac-
climatized in Great liritain ; it, of course, means "very lieavily."
Not generally known as an Americanism, though an undoubted
one.
" Sweet is the melting fall of music, but not such music as
nightly comes down upon us like a thousand of bricks from the
balconies of museums, nor as we sometimes hear at the opera." —
Doio's Hermons, vol. i.
Through. "I am through with that job " — I have com-
pleted that undertaking.
K
1 50 DICTION A R V OF AMERICANISMS.
' ' The Shakers then danced & sung again k arter thay was
threw one of em axed me what I thawt of it." — (Artemus "iVard)
The Sh(d-crs.
Ticker. A tape telegraph receiver.
Ticket. The list of candidates for election. A voter is said
to " Vote the Eepublican (or Democratic) ticket '" according to the
side he favours.
Ticket Scalper. A dealer in the unused portions of mileage
tickets and the second halves of return tickets, which are in
America, very reasonably, transferable, as they should be every-
where. See Mileage. The holder of a season-ticket is called a
"commutor."
Tie up, to. To remain anywhere. Fiyurative idiom, from
the tyiug-up of one's horse, a necessary preliminary to a visit.
" But in the Spring of 18 — I got swampt in the exterior of New
York State, one dark and stormy night when the winds Blue
pityusly, & I was forced to tie up with the Shakers."*— (Artemus
Ward) The Shakers.
Tig-lit place, in a. In difficulties.
Tight squeeze. A difficulty.
Time. "To have a good time" is (as everyone knows) to
enjoy one's self; and, conversely, " to have a bad time " is to under-
go an unpleasant experience. It is "serious times " for you when
there is a probability of your having a bad time : and if you are an
unfortunate person, you will be spoken of as having a bad time all
the time. Time is, in fact, a sadly over-worked word, which is in
use nearly all the time.
Time, a higli old. A " spree."
Time, on. A punctual American always arrives "on time,"'
never in time.
Toboggan. A kind of sledge used for coasting, or sliding
down-hill by gra\-ity alone. See Coast.
Tod. A nip of spirits (toddy).
" If its a temperance community tell em I sined the pledge
fifteen minutes after I'se born, but on the contery ef your people
take their tods, say Mister "Ward is as denial a feller as we ever
met, full of conwiviallity, k the life and Sole of the Soshul
Bored." — (Artemus Ward) A Business Letter.
Toe the mark, to. To act up to one's obligations.
Die TIONA R V OF AMERICANISMS. 1 5 1
Tombs, The. The common prison in New York City, so
called from its lugubrious architecture.— -A Tombs Lawyer is
alow-class attorney, who practises among the criminal classes, like
Mr. Jaggers, in Great Expectations.
Tom dog-. A male dog : a fanciful imitation of tom cat.
Toney. Possessing good style : high-toned.
Tony over. (N.) The name of a ball game ])layed by boys
— a kind of catch-ball, played over a wall or low building. Some-
times "Antony over."
Tooth carpenter. A dentist.
Top notch. The highest point in a career. Also used as an
aJjectirc "Top notch whisky" would be a stimulant much
" approbated " by its eulogizer.
Top of dirt, on. On this side of the grave. American
allusions to the tomb are characterized by universal elegance and
taste : thus a graveyard is sometimes called a " bone pit " : a corpse
is said to be "planted," etc.
Tote, to. To carry.
Toug-h. (J^.J A rougli : a boisterous, vulgar person: a
rowdy. Also used aa an adjective to specify the qualities connoted
by the noun, as above.
Track. The spoor or footmarks of a man or any animal : a
road or path ; the permanent way on a railroad. To "have the
inside track " is to be in possession of all available information on a
given subject. To "cover up one's tracks ' is to adopt measures of
concealment.
Tracks, to make. To depart : run away.
Trade, (l-^. trans.) To exchange or sell an article: as to
trade a horse for a cow. (^.J A bargain.
Trail. The spoor or footmarks of any animal.
Transpoose, to. To wander about in an aimless manner.
Treed, to be. To be cauglit in a difficulty. Sporting meta-
phor. An animal is said "to be treed " when driven to take refuge
in a tree.
Truck. Any kind of raw material; as garden "truck," for
vegetables, etc.
1 5 2 Die TIONA RY OF A ME RICA NISMS.
Trust. A comLination of merchants or manufacturers in the
same line of business, who, by agreeing not to compete with one
another either in buying or selling, are enabled to control the
markets both ways.
Turner. A gymnast — viz.^ one who turns somersaults.
Twistical. Perverse : tortuous : shady in character.
Type-sticker. A compositor.
" He was born way down east in the town of "Waterford, Me., in
1836. When quite young he entered a i)rinting-office, and in a
short time was considered a first rate type-sticker, but getting
tired of seeing the same old faces every day, he determined to
scart on a travelling tour." — Nexo York Paper, quoted by Hotten
in Preface to Artenius Ward, His Book.
Typo. A compositor.
Ug'ly. Ill-tempered : vicious. Certainly i^rovincial in many
parts of England in tliis sense, though, strangely enough, not given
by Halliwell. I have often heard it myself in Essex, and am
assured that it is quite common there and in Suffolk. A good
Anglo-Saxon word, originally meaning always fearsome or
frightful.
"They [elephants] air powerful heavy eaters, and take up a
right smart chans of room, k besides, tliay air as ugly and re-
vengeful as a Cusscaroarus Injun with 13 inches of corn whisky in
his stummick." — (Artemus "Ward) The Octoroon.
Uncle. A semi-affectionate prefix, originating in the planta-
tions, before the war, to the name of an elderly Negro. Slaves
were often very tenderly attached to the children of their owners,
and the latter were accustomed to address them as "uncle" and
"aunty."
Uncle Sam. The United States (U.S.) Government. Frost,
in his Naval Histor>/ of the Uiuted States, tells a circumstantial
story of its having originated with a contractor, one Samuel
Wilson, called "Uncle Sam" by his associates, the initials
"U.S." for United States on a barrel of provisions being thus
jocularly interpreted. The story is generally believed, and may, or
may not, be true.
Die TIONA RY OF A MERTCANISMS. 1 53
Underground railway. Smuggling : any surrejititiovs
method of prjcedure. Originally an organized system by which
fugitive slaves were assisted to escape.
Underpinners. Legs.
Unfellowship, to. To " unfellowship " a person is, in Puritan
theological practice, almost equivalent to excommunication or the
major anathema,
Uppertendom. Fashionable or rich people. (Journalistic
slanri. )
Upset price. The reserve price of merchandise in an auction.
Up-to"wn. The fashionable part of any city. (Provincial in
Essex, England.)
Use, no. " To have no use for anything " means not to like
it, or, not to be in the habit of using it. Two i)erfectly distinct
meanings, each as common as the other.
Valedictory. Contraction of ''valedictory address." An
instance of the American tendency to make the most of a long
word, by obliging it (after Humpty Dumpty's famous method) to
do as much work as possible. The American has a commendable
distaste for long words at all times, though he manifests no particular
objection to " tall talk."
Valise. (Pronounced "valeez'.") Any kind of hand-bag,
" Baldinsville was trooly a blase of glory. Near can I furget
the surblime speckticul which met my gase as I alited from the
staige with my umbreller and verlise." — (Artemus Ward) Celebra-
tion at BahUnsviUe.
Vamoose. To go away. (Spanish, ^^ ws^mos.") "Vamoose
the ranch," i^uit the house. (Imperatire,)
Variate. To vary. A rare word, but a very old one, being
noticed by Pickering, who attributes it to the clergy, quoting
a prayer, "Variate of Thy mercies according to our circum-
stances and wants," a strange form of approach to the Throne of
grace,
Vigilarce committee. A combination of citizens to carry
out magisterial duties wliere neglected by the constituted authori-
ties. Also called "vigilantes."
154 DICTIONARY OF AMERICANISMS.
Vim. Energy; spirit. {Qj. Latin, ''\is," accusative, "vim,"
strength ?)
Virg-inia end. The large end of a ham. The other is called
the "iNJarylaud end. "
Vital statistics. Statistics of births and deaths.
Wad. 3Ioney, ?/-., a "wad of paper currency." "Shoulder
your wad of greenbacks and come to the fields of peace."
"Wain. A waggon (which the Americans, by the way, spell
" wagon.") " "Wain ' is very old English, Tennyson's May Queen
calls the Great Bear " Charles' "Wain," and the constellation is
certainly more like a waggon than a bear. This is the old popular
designation of this constellation.
Waken snakes, to. To make a fuss. See Snakes.
Wake up the wrong passeng-er, to. See Passenger.
Walk on yotir shoe-strings, to. ) To be "way down,*'
"Walk on j'our uppers, to. ) that is to be so poor that
your shoes are sujipostd to be worn dowii to the extent indicated,
before you can affora to have them renewed.
Wal! "Weill (Interjection.)
"Walking papers. To take " ones walking papers '' is to re-
ceive one's con[/i — to be dismissed. Also, " walking tickets."
Walloper. Term of contempt, mostly \ised in combination
— as "box-walloper," an itinerant agitator or low-class preacher:
"dock-walloper," an idle longshoreman, etc. Compare English
slang, "pot-walloper," for a poor, ignorant voter, nsed by Carlyle.
Wall Street. The centre of Xew York financial business.
"Want. (N.J A small advertisement of a personal require-
ment, such as a demand for a servant, or for a situation, an an-
nouncement of a loss, etc.
"Most wants, most circulation, most advs. ^an Francisco
Call \G3ii\.s.'— Advertisement, ISDl.
Want to know, I. An expression of surprise, purely. An
elegant equivalent is " Wal, bust me up a gum-tree backards ! "
DICTIONAR Y OF AMERICANISMS. 155
War-path, to be on the. To be active : to liavc business
in hand.
Washerlady. A washerwoman. There are no "women " in
some parts of America : the saleswomen are salesladies : even the
forewomen are foreladies.
Waterwitch. A person, of either sex, claiming a power of
divination exercised by means of dijiping-rods, which are sui^posed
to indicate subterranean springs.
Way back, \ Often written ' 'away back," etc., but always
Way down, V pronounced as above. Back, down, or up,
Way up, etc. j as the case may be, with an intensitive
sense.
Ways. Distance. "When way is used for distance in Ame-
rica it is usually made plural, thus : —
"Ten cents worth of humor goes a great ways." — Printers^
Ink, 1891.
Wayward sisters. A term still sometimes applied to the
Southern States. "When the secession was first mooted (1801),
some politicians were in favour of allowing tlie disruption to take
])lace, rather than undertake the war which was otherwise seen to
be inevitable. The expression originated in a correspondence
between General Winfield Scott and Mr. W. H. Seward, in which
the former wrote : " Say to tlie seceder States, ' Wayward sisters,
depart in peace.'" The expression is so entirely beautiful and
appropriate that it at once took classical rank, and is even now
sometimes met with.
Weaken, to. To grow weak : to give way.
Welconiely. Adrcrh from welcome. Very commonly used,
even by writers who ought to, and in fact do know, better ; as in
the following instance : —
" Mr. Putnam's interest in the cause of International Copyright
is as clearly a matter of inheritance as his interest in the publish-
ing house that brings out this book, for his father was one of the
earliest and most active workers for the result so tardily though so
welcomely achieved." — New York Critic (!), 1891.
Well. (Adj.) Healthy. Not only, as we use it, thus — "I
am quite well," "I hope you are well," etc. — but also "A well
man," etc.
156 DICTIONAR Y OF AMERICANISMS.
Whiflaetree. The crossbar of a vehicle, to whicli the traces
are attached.
Wliip, to. To beat (literally) without any connotation of
instrumental assistance : to defeat or surpass in any respect.
Whip the devil all around the stump, to. To palter
with one's conscience — viz., by making excuses to one's self for
wrong doing.
Whisky mill. A spirit shop. (Western.)
WTiite. Used as synonymous with "good " when applied to
persons. This has generally been understood as a fling at the
Negro race, a white man being a good person, as opposed to the
despised black. As a matter of fact this use is much older, and is
doubtless derived from the irhite of an archery-butt, which was
the ring immediately surrounding the pin, or buirs-eye. Thus a
white man would be a man who always shot straight, and,
fiyurativehi, a straightforward man. A "white boy" is used to
mean a darling, of- favourite, as in Ike Knight of the Burning
Pestle, "What says my white boy?" etc.; and" in The Tico
Lancashire Lorers (1G40) : " AVill such a brave spark as you, that is
your mother's white boy, undo your hopes?" A " white man " is
(1) a good man, (2) an ordinary person, as distinct from anyone
peculiar in any way. The two meanings are illustrated respectively
by the two following quotations : —
""When he knew a fellow was very dry, he'd just set the
decanter afore him and managed to be called outer the room on
business. Xow Bob Hushbrook's bout as white a man as that." —
(Bret Harte) A Mcecenas of the Pacilic Slope.
" The Shakers is the strangest religious sex I ever met. I'd
hearn tell of 'em, and I'd seen 'em, with theer broad brimmed hats
k long wastid coats ; but I'd never cum into immejit contack
with 'em, and I'd sot 'em down as lackin intelleck, as I'd never
seen 'em to my show — leastwaz if they cum they was disguised in
Avhite peples close, so I didnt know 'em.'' — (Artemus "Ward) The
Shakers.
"Whittle, to. To cut a chip with a knife. At one time, Ameri-
cans are said to have had a fidgety trick of continually notching
anything which might be handy. This detestable practice was
called "whittling." ""Whittle," for "a knife," is good English,
DICTIOXARV OF AMERICANISMS, is?
and is used by Macaulay (Virginia) ; and before him by Shake-
speare and Dryden.
Whole cloth, made out of the. ) n^„„;.,^ q^^ /-n^+v.
Whole piece, made out of the. } Genuine. See Cloth.
Wild-cat. (Adj.) "Worthless. From a Michigan bank,
whose notes, which became discredited, bore an engraving of a
panther.
Wipe off, to. To wipe, simply. (T)'ans. verb.) ""Wipe off
that table " is simply 2oipc it. not necessarily remove anything from
it. Purely American, and almost exclusively colloquial.
Wipe out, to. To kill or utterly annihilate anyone.
Wolverine State. Michigan.
Word g-o, from the. A senseless expression, meaning alto-
gether, entirely, or in one operation.
" There now, smell them, taste them, examine the bottles, in-
spect the labels. One of 'm's from Europe, the other's never been
out of this country. One's European olive oil, the other's Ameri-
can cotton-seed olive oil. Tell 'm apart? 'Course you can't.
Nobody can. People that want to, can go to the expense and
trouble of shipping their oils to Europe and back — it's their
privilege ; but our firm knows a trick worth six of that. "We turn
out the wliole thing— nlean from the word (io—\n our factory in
New Orleans : labels, bottles, oil, everything. Well, no, not
labels: been buying them abroad — get them dirt-cheap there." —
(Mark Twain) Life on the Mississippi.
Workingman. I note a new practice of printing this as a
single word, just as lovingkindness is joined in the Pible.
Worrisome. Annoying : tiresome.
Worst kind. The strongest variety of anything. Tlic
" worst kind of a licking "' would mean the severest beating
possible, etc.
Yank, to. To jerk or hoist.
Yankees. Tlie inhabitants of the New England States.
Said to be a corruption of " English " by the Indians. It is only
158 DICTIONAR Y OF AMERICANISMS.
foreigners -who call all Americans " Yankees '" : among themselves,
the term is confined strictly to Xew Eriglanders.
Yard. The garden attached to a house, whether in front or
behind, is always called in Xew England a "yard." The follow-
ing extract, from a pathetic little story called "The Front
Yard,'' illustrates the way in which "yard'' completely displaces
our word garden, even when a flower-garden is expressly meant.
"And now when at last, after thinking of it for sixteen years,
she was free to begin to save daily and regularly, she saw as in a
vision her front yard completed as she would like to have it : the
cow-shed gone : ' a nice straight path going down to the front gate,
set in a new paling fence ; along the sides currant bushes ; and in
the open spaces to the right and left a big flowerin' shrub— snow-
balls, or Missouri currant ; near the house a clump of matrimony,
perhaps ; and in the flower-beds on each side of the path bachelor's-
buttons, Chiny-asters, lady's slippers, and pinks ; the edges bor-
dered with box.' She heaved a sigh of deep satisfaction as she
finished her mental review. But it was hardly mental after all ;
she saw the gate, she saw the straight path, she saw the currant
bushes and the box-bordered flower-beds as distinctly as though
they had really been there." — (Constance Fenimore "NVoolson)
'•The Front Yard," Harper, Christmas, 1888.
Yep. "Yes." See Nop.
Youans. ) Ye or you, plural. Continually used by ^Iv.
You 'uns. J Bret Harte's heroes.
" I've heern the tale a thousand ways,
But never could get through the maze
That hangs around that queer day's doins,
But I'll tell the yarn to youans."
—(John Hay) Mystery of Gilgal.
Ti. The last letter of the alphabet is called Zee and not Zed
by Americans.
Zequia. Corrupt Spanish. An irrigation ditch. See
Acequia.
" As the mustang sprang over the zequia." — (Mayne Reid) The
War Trail.
Uniform in Size and Price with "AMERICANISMS."
MERRY MINSTRELSY
Everybody's Book of Humorous Poetry.
Edited by W. SPEXCER JACKSON.
320 pp., Cloth, Bevelled Boards, Gilt Edges, 2s. 6d.
The Glasgoio Herald. — "There is not a line of misery in the book, but
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The selections have been judiciously made."
EVERYBOI3Y'S
Book of Wit and Humour.
Compiled by W. H. HOWE.
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This Book comprises Volumes 5, 0, and 7 of " Everybody's Series," and
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This Hook will be found to be a genial companion in loneliness, or for
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HOWE & CO., Paternoster Kow, LONDON, £.0,
Lord Tennyson
and
The Bible,
By GEORGE LESTER.
CONTENTS.
Part I. — Lord Tennyson's Knowledge and Use of the Bible.
(1) Not a New Idea— (2; Previous "Workers — (3) The Allusions
of various kinds— (4) Not a Creed — (5) Value of the Allusions— <6)
Devout Use of Scripture— (7) An Atmosphere Eather than a
Phraseology^S) Scope of the Present Enquiry : Tennyson's Limi-
tations— (9) Elements of Popularity -(10) Guarantee of Lasting
Fame.
Part II. — The Bible in Tennyson.
(1) The Old Testament— <2) The New Testament: (a) The
Birth and Infancy of our Saviour ; (h) Our Lord's Public Ministry ;
(c) Our Lord's Passion, Death, and Eesurrection.
Part III. — A ppendix.
(1) Passages containing Biblical Allusions, not now included
in Tennyson s Works— (2) Magazine Articles on the subject— (3)
Index of' Poems from which Quotations are given.
The following letter has been received from Mr. Gladstone
by the author of '* Lord Tennyson and the Bible" : —
"Dear Sir, — 1 thank you for the work you have kindly sent me. I
have examined it with sincere pleasure. In my opinion it does honour to
the poet by showing how his mind is anchored in the Christian faith, and
it may dogood to some who are tempted to doubt about the Bible, by
indicating how largely it supplies mental food to the choicest and richest
spirits.— Yours very faithfully,
"W. E. GLADSTONE."
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