DICTIONARY

OF THE

VULGAR

TONGUE.

lost games.

ACO ABBESS, or LADY Abbess, A bawd, the mistress of a

brothel. ABEL-WACKETS. Blows given on the palm of the hand

with a twisted handkerchief, instead of a ferula ; a jocular punishment among seamen, who sometimes play at cards

for wackets, the loser suffering as many strokes as he has ABIGAIL. A lady's waiting-maid. ABRAM. Naked. Cant. ABRAM Cove. A cant word among thieves, signifying a

naked or poor man ; also a lusty, strong rogue. ABRAM MEN. Pretended mad men. TO SHAM ABRAM. To pretend sickness. ACADEMY, or Pushing School. A brothel. The Floating

Academy ; the lighters on board of which those persons are confined, who by a late regulation are condemned to hard labour, instead of transportation.-Campbell's Academy ; the same, from a gentleman of that name, who had

the contract for victualling the hulks or lighters. ACE OF SPADES. A widow. ACCOUNTS. To cast up one's accounts; to vomit. ACORN. You will ride a horse foaled by an acorn, i. e. the

gallows, called also the Wooden and Three-legged Mare.

You will be hanged. See THREE-LEGGED MARE. ACT OF PARLIAMENT. A military term for small beer, five

pints of which, by an act of parliament, a landlord was for

merly obliged to give to each soldier gratis. Acteon. A cuckold, from the horns planted on the head of Acteon by Diana. B

Ас

ALL ACTIVE CITIZEN, A louse.

. ADAM'S ALE. Water. ADAM TILER. A pickpocket's associate, who receives the

stolen goods, and runs off with them. Cant. ADDLE PATE. An inconsiderate foolish fellow. ADDLE Plot. A spoil-sport, a mar-all. ADMIRAL OF THE BLỤe, who carries his flag on the main

mast. A landlord of publican wearing a blue apron, as was formerly the custom among gentlemen of that voca

tion. ADMIRAL OF THE NARROW. Seas. One who from drunken

ness vomits into the lap of the person sittjog opposite to

him. Sea phrase. Adrift. - Loose, turned adrift, discharged. Sea phrase. ADRIFT ÆGROTAT, (Cambridge), A certificate from the apothe

cary that you are indisposed, (i. e.) to go to chapel. He sports an Ægrotat, he is sick, and unable to attend Chapel, or Hall. It does not follow, however, but that he can Strum

a piece, or sport a pair of oars. AFFIDAVIT Men. Knights of the post, or false witnesses,

said to attend Westminster Hall, and other courts of jus

tice, ready to swear any thing for hire. AFTER-CLAP. A demand after the first given in has been

discharged; a charge for pretended omissions; in short, any thing disagreeable happening after all consequences of

the cause have been thought at an end. AGAINST THE GRAIN. Unwilling. It went much against

the grain with him, i. e. it was much against his inclina

tion, or against his pluck. AGOG, ALL-A-gog. Anxious, eager, impatient: from the · Italian ugogare, to desire eagerly. AGROUND. Stuck fast, stopped, at a loss, ruined ; like a

boat or vessel aground. AIR AND EXERCISE. He has had air and exercise, i. e. he

has been whipped at the cart's tail; or, as it is generally,

though more vulgarly, expressed, at the cart's a-se. ALDERMAN. A roasted turkey garnished with sausages;

the latter are supposed to represent the gold chain worn

by those magistrates. ALDGATE. A draught on the pump at Aldgate; a bad bill

of exchange, drawn on persons who have no effects of the

drawer. ALE Draper. An alehouse keeper. ALE Post. A may-pole. ALL-A-MORT. Struck dumb, confounded. What, sweet

one; all-a-mort? Shake peare. ALL HOLIDAY. It is all holiday at Peckham, or it is all ho

A M U liday with him ; a saying signifying that it is all over

with the business or person spoken of or alluded to. ALL HOLLOW. He was beat all hollow, i.e. he had no

chance of conquering : it was all hollow, or a hollow thing,

it was a decided thing from the beginning. See HOLLOW. ALL Nations. A composition of all the different spirits

sold in a dram-shop, collected in a vessel into which

the drainingsof the bottles and quartern pots are emptied. ALLS. The five alls is a country sign, representing five hu

man figures, each having a motto under him. The first is a king in his regalia; his motto, I govern all: the second, a bishop in pontificais; motto, I pray for all: third, a lawyer in his gown ; motto, I plead for all: fourth: a soldier in his regimentals, fully accoutred; motto, I fight for all : fifth, a poor countryman with his scythe

and rake; motto, I pay for all. ALTAMEL. A verbal or lump account, without particu

lars, such as is commonly produced at bawdy-houses,

spunging-houses, &c. Vide Dutch RECKONING. ALTITUDES. The man is in his altitudes, i. e. he is drunk. AMBASSADOR. A trick to duck some ignorant fellow or

landsman, frequently played on board ships in the warm latitudes. It is thus managed : A large tub is filled with water, and two stools placed on each side of it. Over the whole is thrown a tarpaulin, or old sail : this is kept tight by two persons, who are to represent the king and queen of a foreign country, and are seated on the stools. The person intended to be ducked plays the Ambassador, and after repeating a ridiculous speech dictated to him, is led in great form up to the throne, and seated between the king and queen, who rising suddenly as soon

as he is seated, he falls backwards into the tub of water. AMBASSADOR OF Morocco. A Shoemaker. (See Mrs.

Clarke's Examination.) AMBIDEXTER. A lawyer who takes fees from both plaintiffand defendant, or that goes snacks with both parties

in gaming AMEN CURLER. A parish clerk. Amen. He said Yes and Amen to every thing; he agreed to

every thing. AMINADAB. A jeering name for a Quaker. AMES ACE. Within ames ace; nearly, very near. TOAMUSE. To fling dust or snuff in the eyes of the person

intended to be robbed; also to invent some plausible tale, to delude shop-keepers and others, thereby to put them

off their guard. Cant. AMUSERS. Rogues who carried snuff or dust in their poc,

B2

kets,

A PO kets, which they threw into the eyes of any person they intended to rob; and running away, their accomplices (pretending to assist and pity the half-blinded person)

took that opportunity of plundering him. ANABAPTIST. A pickpocket caught in the fact, and punish

ed with the discipline of the pump or horse-pond. ANCHOR. Bring your a-se to an anchor, i. e. sit down. To let

go an anchor to the windward of the law; to keep within

the letter of the law. Sea wit. ANGLERS. Pilferers, or petty thieves, who, with a stick

having a hook at the end, steal goods out of shop-windows, grates, &c.; also those who draw in or entice unwary per

sons to prick at the belt, or such like devices. ANGLING FOR FARTHINGS. Begging out of a prison win

dow with a cap, or box, let down at the end of a long

string. ANKLE. A girl who is got with child, is said to have, sprained

her ankle. ANODYNE NECKLACE. A halter. ANTHONY or TANTONY PIG. The favourite or smallest pig

in the litter.– To follow like a tantony pig, i. e. St. Anthony's pig; to follow close at one's heels. St. Anthony the hermit was a swineherd, and is always represented with a swine's bell and a pig. Some derive this saying from a privilege enjoyed by the friars of certain convents in England and France (sons of St. Anthony), whose swine were permitted to feed in the streets. These swine would follow any one having greens or other provisions, till they obtained some of them; and it was in those days considered

an act of charity and religion to feed them. TO KNOCK ANTHONY. Said of an in-kneed person, or one

whose knees knock together; to cuff Jonas. See Jonas. APE LEADER.. An old maid; their punishment after

death, for neglecting increase and multiply, will be, it is

said, leading apes in hell. A FOSTLES. To maneuvre the apostles, i. e. rob Peter to

pay Paul; that is, to borrow money of one man to pay

another. APOSTLES. (Cambridge.) Men who are plucked, refused

their degree. APOTHECARY. To talk like an apothecary; to use hard or

gallipot words : from the assumed gravity and affectation of knowledge generally put on by the gentlemen of this profession, who are commonly as superficial in their learn

ing as they are pedantic in their language. À POPHECARY's BILL. A long bill.

APOTHECARY'S

ARS APOTHECARY's, or LAW LATIN. Barbarous Latin, vulgarly

called Dog Latin, in Ireland Bog Latin. APPLE CART. Down with his apple-cart; knock or throw

him down. APPLE DUMPLIN SHOP. A woman's bosom. APPLE-PYE BED. A bed made apple-pye fashion, like what

is called a turnover apple-pye, where the sheets are so doubled as to prevent any one from getting at his length between them : a common trick played by frolicsome country lasses on their sweethearts, male relations, or

visitors. APRIL FOOL. Any one imposed on, or sent on a bootless

errand, on the first of April; which day it is the custom among the lower people, children, and servants, by dropping empty papers carefully doubled up, sending persons on absurd messages, and such like contrivances, to impose on every one they can, and then to salute them with the title of April Fool. This is also practised in Scot

land under the title of Hunting the Gowke. AFRON STRING Hold. An estate held by a man dur

ing his wife's life. AQUA PUMPAGINIS. Pump water. Apothecaries Latin. Arbor VITÆ. A man's penis. Arch DUKE. A comical or eccentric fellow. ARCH Roque, Dimber DAMBER UPRIGHT Man. The

chief of a gang of thieves or gypsies. ARCH DELL, or Arch Doxy, signifies the same in rank

among the female canters or gypsies. ARD. Hot. Cant. ARMOUR. In his armour, pot valiant: to fight in armour;

to make use of Mrs. Philips's ware. See C--D--M. ARK.

A boat or wherry. Let us take an ark and winns, let us take a sculler. Cant. ARK RUFFIANS. Rogues who, in conjunction with water

men, robbed, and sometimes murdered, on the water, by picking a quarrel with the passengers in a boat, boarding it, plundering, stripping,and throwing them overboard,&c.

A species of badger. Cant. . ARRAH NOW. An unmeaning expletive, frequently used by

the vulgar Irish. ARS MUSICA. A bum fiddlle. ARSE. To hang an arse; to hang back, to be afraid to ad

He would lend his a--e,and sh-te through his ribs; a saying of any one who lends his money inconsiderately. He would lose his a--e if it was loose ; said of a careless

person. A--e about ; turn round. ARSY VARSEY. To fall arsy varsey, i. e. head over heels.

ARTHUR

vance.