September 2, 2008
The scoundrels’ dictionary
For all you pickthanks, thatch-gallows, and slug-a-beds out there, have I got a book for you: the 1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue: A Dictionary of Buckish Slang, University Wit, and Pickpocket Eloquence (Digest Books, Inc.).
Originally compiled by Captain Frances Grose in 1785, this lexicon captures the bawdy side of late 18th- and early 19th-century England. Just a quick skim gives you a feel for the thievery, cheating, and debauchery that was prevalent in that society.
Here are some of my favorite entries:
Angling for farthings: Begging out of a prison window with a cap, or box, let down at the end of a long string.
Bufe nabber: A dog stealer.
Cod’s head: A stupid fellow.
Cropsick: Sickness in the stomach, arising from drunkenness.
Dub the jigger: Open the door.
Figging law: The art of picking pockets.
Jolly nob: The head.
To milk the pigeon: To endeavour at impossibilities.
Pickthank: A tale-bearer or mischief maker.
Puff guts: A fat man.
Slug-a-bed: A drone, one that cannot rise in the morning.
Soul case: The body.
Thatch-gallows: A rogue, or man of bad character.
Woolley crown: A soft-headed fellow.
Filed by rebecca at 4:37 pm under For the love of words
This is awesome!! I love it, and I would totally buy it! Puff guts?? LOL!! I’m going to resurrect some of these! They’re all great!
Thanks for bringing it to my attention.
PS. I’ve been a slug-a-bed lately. Ugh!
Steph: Slug-a-bed is my favorite! I thought of you (and Lucy) with “bufe nabber” … guess there were a lot of dog thieves back then? How awful.
Now get that jolly nob of yours to work!
after a night out with thatchgallows, I’m a cropsick slug-a-bed.
on our trip, did you say i couldn’t spell? you pickthank you?!
Rebecca - Well, all right then. Off to milk the pigeon!
Jamie: Get that hung-over soul case of yours out of bed!
Tess: I’m a total pickthank.
But it’s better than being a woolley crown like that man of yours!
Heheh, these are awesome! That’s probably a great book to use for inspiration. Long live slang!
Rebecca, these were hysterical. I tweeted and shared on FriendFeed, much too good not to share! Thanks for the new terms. I am not going to milk the pigeon. lol
Thanks, Melissa! It’s funny how a lot of the same slang terms have lasted over the centuries. Did you know that they called policemen “pigs” back in the late 1700s?!
Hi, Karen -
Thanks so much for the “tweet” and FriendFeed share! I’m glad you got as much of a kick out of these terms as I did. (I knew you weren’t a cod’s head)
My dad owned a puddle-jumper when I was little. In other words, he owned an MG Midget. I was too small to say puddle-jumper, so for some reason I called it a dumpy-dump. Image the look of confusion on the Urbane Lion’s face when he told me he owned an MG and I jumped for joy and said “Hurray!!! You have a dumpy-dump!”
Urban Panther: You two must have a blast cruising the wildlands in your “dumpy-dump”!
@Rebecca - well……the Lion has a dumpy-dump, but um, it’s not exactly in any shape to take anywhere at the moment. When he proudly unveiled it for me, I didn’t exactly manage to keep the horror off of my face. Let’s see, it needs: a front grill, headlights, a dash, seats, back bumper, all new tires, a paint job. Seems he got excited one day, took it all apart, and then realized it wouldn’t be quite as fun to put it all back together. But SOMEDAY we will have a blost cruising the wildlands in our dumpy-dump.
this was an interesting list. it’s fun to look back on words and read what they meant back then and what they mean now.
Jolly Nob - very interesting. lol
even today, who would have thought the word W00T would be in the dictionary.
OMG, I am laughing SO hard right now. That is the best thing ever. LOL
Urban Panther: Sounds like the Lion has his work cut out for him!
Natural: Thanks for dropping by! And good call on “W00T” — wonder what people 200 years from now will think of our society when they read terms like that one and others like “facebook” …
Amy: So glad to make you laugh. The cover of the dictionary gets me everytime
I LOVE fun word books. I just purchased two volumes of “Grossman’s Glossary of Every Humorous Word in the English Language.”
exenterate: to remove one’s bowels
exoculate: to remove one’s eyes
expapillate: to expose one’s breasts
exungulate: to clip one’s nails
Hey, Beth -
That sounds like a hilarious book! I’ll have to get me a copy. (Would glass eyes be involved in the exoculating process? We’ll have to ask a pirate …)
one of these days we are going to milk the pigeon so you can get your soul case out to see me and my wooley crown “ferby” HA!!
LOVE YOU, PICKTHANK
XOXO
Ferby IS a woolly crown! LOL. Love you, mom. I’ll stop being a cod’s head and get there soon