A GLOSSARY OF LINCOLNSHIRE WORDS & PHASES.

Argufy. To matter, be of importance. “It does not argufy at all,” i.e. “It does not signify,” or “It makes no difference.”

Bab. A sort of dredge, with hooks below it, to clear out fen drains of the weeds.

Bage. A paring of turf formerly used for fuel.

Bandy-ball. The game of hockey, also called shinty or shindy.

Banker. A navvy employed in digging or repairing fen drains.

Bat. A small bundle of straw or grass.

Battle-twig. An earwig.

Baulk. Hiccough.

Bealto. To squeal, or bawl, used of a child screaming.

Beastlings. The first milk drawn from a cow after calving, which is specially rich.

Beck. A brook. Reed’s beck, Odd’s beck.

Bested. Beaten. “He will best you,” i.e. get the better of you.

Bevering-time. Luncheon time. Compare “Beverage.”

Blowns. Exclamation of surprise. Compare “Zounds,” (supposed to be a contraction of “God’s wounds.”) Blowns probably a contraction of “blood and wounds,” i.e. of Christ.

Boon, to. To repair the roads. The road surveyor was called the boon master.

Bran in the face. Freckles.

Brat. A child. Term of contempt, “Take that tiresome brat away.”

Breed. Each separate line of walk when a party is shooting through a wood.

Breer. The strip of grass between a ditch, and the ploughed land of a field. 3d. per chain was paid for cleaning out a ditch and mowing the breer.

Brock. Sheep dung dried to be used as fuel.

Brog. To pierce holes with a stick, &c. “Brog him in the ribs,” i.e. poke him.

Bub or bubbling. A young bird, a fledgling.

Bule-ding. The common pronunciation of “building.”

Bully. The sloe, wild fruit of the black thorn. Bullace cheese is made from it.

By-name. A nick-name. Compare by-word i.e. ill-repute.

Causey. Causeway. Commonly used of the brick paved yard of a cottage.

Cazzlety. Fickle and uncertain in temper.

Chickering. Chirping of the cricket on the hearth, or of a chicken.

Chittapag. A woman fond of using fine words.

Chuck, to. To throw. Chuck-penny, to play at pitch and toss.

Clagged. Draggle-tailed with mud and dirt. Of an untidy woman.

Clatty. Dirty. Of roads after rain.

Clegg. Matted wool on hedges, &c.

Clout. A cloth, dish-cloth, &c.

Clout. A knock or blow, as “Fetch him a clout on the head.”

Connyfogled. Cheated, outwitted.

Crizzle, to. To crystalize or freeze. “The window is crizzled.”

Daking. A dyke or ditch.

Dither. To shudder with alarm or dislike. To shiver with cold.

Dythe. Cow dung dried for fuel.

Fell. Hurtful or fierce. “The flies are very fell this close weather.”

Frit. Frightened, affrighted.

Gabblick. A crowbar.

Gallous. Frisky or lively (of youth).

Glegging. Glancing slily. “That sly girl’s glegging eye.”

Glib. Smooth (of ice). Smooth and ready of tongue.

Gout. A sluice by which water passes from one drain to another.

Gozny. To look. To look stupid.

Grizzley. To shade with grey. “The evening is grizzling.”

Hag’s place. A situation of hard work and drudgery. Fit only for a poor hag.

Hap up, to. To wrap up, in shawl, paper, &c.

Harr. A fog. An old writer says “The air of the fens was crass, and full of rotten harrs.” A “sea-harr” is a fog coining inland from the sea.

Heppen. Handy at work. Helpful.

Hing, to. To hang. This gate hings well.

Hirpling. Limping in gait.

How. Way or mode of acting. “Do it i’ that how, and you’ll be right.”

Hug, to. To carry. “Hugging about a big load.”

Ill-convenient. Inconvenient.

Keck. A large plant of the Hemlock species.

Kid. A faggot.

Lamb-toe. The plant “Lady’s fingers,” Lotus corniculatus.

Lap up, to. To wrap up.

Leather. A ladder.

Leathering. A beating. “If you don’t keep quiet I’ll give you a good leathering.”

Letten. Perf. of to let. “He has letten ’em go,” i.e. allowed them to go.

Lig, to. To lie, down, &c.

Lug, the ear. The plant Mouse-ear (Myosotis Arvensis) is called mouse-lug.

Lick, to. To beat, “Give him a licking.” To be beyond anyone’s power. “It licks me how they can do it,” i.e. I cannot understand.

Lug, to. To drag. “Why are you lugging (i.e. dragging) that bairn about?”

Marguery. The herb Mercury, also called “Good King Henry.”

Mithered. Muddled, dazed, stupid.

Mizzlings. The measles.

Moiling. Working hard, toiling.

Mort. A large quantity. “Working a mort of hours,” i.e. many hours. “That tree has a mort of blossoms.”

Mud or mun. Must. “I mun (or mud) do it or I shall be wrong.”

Nag-nail. A corn on the foot.

Nautling. Towering up, a steeple or tall tree.

Neb. A bird’s beak.

Nobby. Handy, clever, ready of resource.

Nowt. Nothing. Worth nowt means worthless, good-for-nothing.

Overset, to. To overcome or surmount trial. “He’s been very badly (i.e. ill) and cannot overset it,” i.e. get over it.

Owry. Dirty, of roads after rain.

Pad. Path. A footpad is a footpath.

Pedigree. A long story, as of some grievance.

Petty. An outside W.C.

Pig’s-paut. Pig’s foot, a trotter.

Pismire. An ant.

Plasens. Places. “I’ve seen many plasens but this licks ’em all.” (See lick.)

Posy. A bunch of flowers, bouquet.

Pry. Name of a field. Pry-close (from praie, coarse grass.)

Puddock. A kite or buzzard.

Purr. A poker. “Purr the fire,” i.e. poke it.

Quirking. Nimble, active, as a monkey.

Ramper. The highway (probably rampart).

Remble, to. To move a thing out of the way. “Remble that chair,” &c.

Ratle or Reightle. To set to rights, arrange in order. “Lassy, ratle them things.”

Screeved. Split up on the ice. Cattle in former frozen fen floods were thus ruptured and killed.

Shale, to. To walk awkwardly, shuffle along.

Shan. Shy. Of horses or cattle frightened at an object.

Shift, to. To move anything to another place.

Shiv or Shiver. A splinter of wood. “I’ve got a shiv in my finger.”

Shout! A flat-bottomed fen boat.

Shove, to. To push anything along, or out of the way.

Shugh! An expression of disbelief. Shugh! Nonsense! I don’t believe it.

Shut. Rid. To get shut (i.e. rid) of anything not needed, or a nuisance.

Sicker, to. To soak, as water oozing through a rotten bank.

Sidle. To walk aside, or indirectly, towards anyone. “Sidle up to her quietly.”

Sile, to. To pour. “It siles wi’ rain.”

Skelp, to. To empty a cart by tilting it.

Skirth. A fen drain.

Slape. Slippery, as roads after frost.

Slappy or sloppy. Muddy and moist.

Slither, to. To slide on ice.

Slive, to. To slip or creep slowly on. “The night slives on.”

Slosh. Aslant, as a path running slosh across a field.

Sloven. The stump of a tree.

Smock-raffled. Taken aback, puzzled.

Smower, to. To pour over. “Yon tree smowers over wi’ fruit.”

Snitchy. Bad tempered, irritable.

Soodle, to. To daudle.

Soodly. Idle.

Sooth. Soft, gentle, of whispers, winds, &c.

Souse, to. To soak in water, &c.

Spank. To strike with flat hand. “Spank the tiresome bairn.”

Splats. Leggings or gaiters.

Spry. Lively, full of spirit.

Squarls. Quarrels.

Stang. A pole. Only used in eel-stang, a long pole with iron prongs at the end, thrust into the mud to catch eels; and in “riding the stang,” in the old custom of “rantanning,” to serenade with beaten tins and kettles the wife-beater, when a figure was carried disguised as the offender, sitting astride of a long pole.

Stilted. Daubed with dirt (stockings, &c.)

Struttle. A runnel, small stream between stepping stones.

Suthering. Sighing, as the wind in the trees.

Swads. Bean pods.

Swail. Shade. “Left in the swail,” away from the sun.

Swingle. A flail.

Teem, to. To overflow or be full. “He teems wi’ jokes.” “It teems wi’ rain.”

Thruff. Pronunciation of “through,” compare “enough,” Linc. enew.

Tidy. A pinafore. “Put on your tidy, my bairn.”

Tray. A hurdle.

Trig. Trim, neat, as trim as a pin.

Tue or tew. To fret, chafe impatiently, tire oneself out.

Undernean. Underneath.

Wakken. Wide-awake, sharp, noticing everything.

Wankling. A weak child, also wreckling.

Ware, to. To spend. “Are you going to ware anything on me at the fair?”

Wath. A ford. “Kirkstead Wath,” “Shearman’s Wath.”

Werrit, to. To worry or fidget, in needless anxiety.

Wopper. Anything unusually large. “That bairn of yourn is a wopper.”

Yocks. The two chains on which buckets are hung from the shoulder board, when carrying water from the well.

Yon. Yonder. “Look at yon boy, what is he up to?”

Yow. Ewe, a female sheep.

Yow-necked. Of a horse with neck too thin.

Yuck, to. To jirk. “Yuck the reins to check the horse.”