M. Mail'd, clothed or covered as with armour. Malicho, a wicked act, a piece of iniquity. Span. Malhecho. To Mammer, to hefitate, to ftand in fufpenfe. The word often occurs in old English writings, and probably takes its original from the French M'amour, which men were apt often to repeat when they were not prepared to give a direct answer. A Mammet, a puppet, a figure dressed up. Mammuccio, the fame as Mammet. Ital. Mammuccia. Manour or Mainour or Maynour, an old law-term, (from the French mainaver or manier, Lat. manu tracture) fignifies the thing which a thief takes away or steals: and to be taken with the manour or mainour is to be taken with the thing stolen about him, or doing an unlawful act, flagrante delicto, or, as we fay, in the fact. The expreffion is much used in the foreft laws. See Manwood's edition in quarto 1665, p. 292, where it is fpelt manner. Mappery, the art of planning and designing. To Mate, to confound, to overcome, to fubdue. Spen. A Maukin or Malkin, a kind of mop made of clouts for the use of fweeping ovens: thence a frightful figure of clouts dreffed up: thence a dirty wench. A Mazzard, a jaw. Fr. Mafchoire. A Meacock, an uxorious or effeminate man. Meed molt frequently ftands for reward: but it is fometimes used for merit See also Minshew. Meered, relating to a boundary: Meer being a boundary or mark of divifion. A Meiny, a retinue, domeftick fervants. Fr. Mefnie. To Mell, to mix, to mingle. Fr. Mêler. Mephofiophilus, the name of an infernal fpirit in the old fabulous hiftory of Dr. Fauftus. A Micher, a lazy loiterer, who fculks about in corners and by places and keeps out of fight: a hedge-creeper. Miching, fecret, covered, lying hid. A Minnow, the fmaileft of fishes. Mifprifed, fometimes it fignifies mistaken, from the French verb mefprendre: fometimes undervalued or difdained, from the French verb mépriser. A Milprifion, a mistake. Modern, common, ordinary, vulgar. A Moldwarp, a mole. A Mome, a dull ftupid blockhead, a ftock, a poft. This owes its original to the French word Momon, which fignifies the gaming at dice in masquerade, the custom and rule of which is, that a strict filence filence is to be observed: whatever fum one ftakes, another covers, but not a word is to be spoken: from hence alfo comes our word Mum! for filence. Mull'd, foftened and difpirited as wine is when burnt and sweetened. Lat. Mollitu. A Mummer, a masker. Mummerie, masquerading. Fr. Momerie. A Mure, a wall. Lat. Murus. Murk, darknefs. Murky, dark. A Mufket, a male hawk of a small kind, the female of which is the fparrow-hawk: fo that Eyas Musket is a young unfledged male hawk of that kind. Fr. Mouchèt. A Mufs, a fcramble. N. Nayward, "to th' nayward," to the fide of denial, towards the saying nay. A Nay word, the fame as By-word: a word of contempt; also a word fecretly agreed upon, as among foldiers, for the diftinguishing friends from foes. A Neafe or Neife or Neive, a fift. A Neb, the bill or beak of a bird. Nick, jest, mockery. Thence the word Nick-name, from the Brit. Niq. fee Diction. de Trevoux. A Nole, a noddle. Oeiliads, glances. Fr. Oeillades. 0. An Opal, a precious stone reflecting almost all colours. Fr. Opale. Lat. Opalus. Orgillous, (Prol. to Tro. and Creff.) proud. Fr. Orguilleux. Orts, fcraps, fragments, leavings. Ofprey, the fea-cagle; of which it is reported, that when he hovers in the air, all the fish in the water underneath turn up their bellies and lie ftill for him to feize which he pleases. One of the names of this bird is Offraga, from which by corruption is deduced Ofprey. See Gefner, and William Turner. The name in Pliny is Haliaetos. An Oftent, a fhow, an outward appearance. Lat. Oftentus. To Overween, to reach beyond the truth of any thing in thought: especially in the opinion of a man's self. Ouphe, the fame as Elfe, from which it is a corruption, a fairy, a hobgoblin. Ouphen, elfish, of fairy-kind. An Ouzle, a blackbird. Owches, boffes or buttons of gold. The word is mentioned in an old ftatute Statute of Hen. 8. made against excels in apparel; it is alfo used by Chaucer and Spenfer. To Owe is very frequently used for, poffefs; to be the owner of: efpecially where the author would imply an absolute right of property in the thing poffeffed. A Paddock, a toad. P. Palabras, o' my word. Span. Do Palabra. Pocas Palabras, few words. A Palliament, a robe. Ital. Paliamento. A Pantaloon, a man's garment anciently worn, in which the breeches and stockings were all of a piece. Fr. Pantalon. A Pantler, the officer in a great family who keeps the bread. Fr. Panetier. To Paragon, to compare. Fr. Paragonner: also to equal. A Paragon, a complete model or pattern. A Parator, the fame as Apparator or Apparitor: an officer belonging to the fpiritual courts, who carries fummonfes and ferves proceffes. To Parget, to daub or plaifter over. Partlet, a name given to a hen: the original fignification being a ruff or band or covering for the neck. A Pafh, to kifs. Span. Paz. La Paz de Judas is a phrase with the Spaniards, by which they exprefs treachery. To Pah, to dath. A Pelt, a fkin or hide. Lat. Pellis. Pelting, (a pelting village, a pelting farm) has the fame fenfe as beg garly. There is a rot among theep, particularly called the pelt rot; >which is, when the theep from poverty and ill keeping first lose their wool and then die. Perdy, an oath. Fr. par Dieu. Periapts, amulets: charms worn as prefervatives against diseases or mifchief. Gr.wɛgiánłw, pro amuleto appendo. Steph. A Pet, a lamb taken into the house, and brought up by hand; a cadelamb. A Petar, a kind of little cannon filled with powder, and used for the breaking down the gates of a town, and for countermining. Fr. Petard. Picked, tharp, fmart. Fr. Piqué. Pight, pitched, placed, fixed." A Pilcher, a furred gown or cafe, any thing lined with fur. Pin, a horny induration of the membranes of the eye. A Pix, a little cheft or box wherein the confecrated hoft is kept in Roman Catholick countries. Planched Gute, a gate of boards. Lat. Pixis. To To Plash, to reduce into order the largest and mosft riotous plants in a hedge by cutting deep into their bodies to make them bend down, and then interweaving them with the lower parts of the hedge. The original and true word is to Pleach, by vulgar ufe pronounced Plafh. To Pleach, to twift together, to interweave. Point-device, exact to the greatest nicety. Fr. A points devifés: the expreffion is used by Chaucer. Poll'd, thaven. Pomander, a little round ball of perfumes. Fr. Pomme d'Ambre. A Precifan, one who profeffes great fanctity; a ghoftly father, a spiritual guide. Prime, prompt; from the Celtique or British Prim. *Primero, a game at cards. Span. Primera. A Prifer, a prize-fighter. Proface, much good may do you! Ital. Profaccia. To Propend, to lean more, to incline more favourably. Lat. Propendeo. Properties, a term much ufed at the playhouses for the habits and implements neceffary for the repréfentation; and they who furnish them are called Property men. This feems to have arifen from that fenfe of the word Property, which fignifies a blind; a tool, a stalkinghorse. A Puttock, a kite. A Quab, a gudgeon, (Gobio capitatus. Skin.) and a gudgeon is often ufed in a figurative fenfe for a soft eafy fool ready to swallow any bait laid for him. To Quail, to droop, to languish, to faint. Quatch, fquat or flat. Queafy, fickish, nauseating. A Quell, a murderous conquest. In the common acceptation, to quell fignifies to fubdue any way, but it comes from a Saxon word, which fignifies to kill. A Quern, a churn; also a mill. Quefts, lamentations. Lat. Queftus. A Queftant or Quefter, one who goes in queft of any thing. Quill, (deliver our fupplications in quill.") This may be fuppofed to have been a phrase formerly in ufe, and the fame with the French en quille, which is faid of a man, when he ftands upright upon his feet without ftirring from the place. The proper fenfe of Quille in French is a nine-pin, and in some parts of England nine-pins are still called Cayls, which word is ufed in the ftatute 33 Hen. 8. c. 9. Quille Quille in the old British language also fignifies any piece of wood fet upright. Quillets, quibbles, querks, fubtleties. Quips, gibes, flouts. A Quintain, a post, or the figure of a man fet up in wood for the purpofe of military exercifes, throwing darts, breaking lances, or running a tilt against it. Fr. Quintaine. To Quote, to understand, to interpret, to rate, to estimate. R. Rabato, an ornament for the neck, a collar-band or kind of ruff. Fr. Rabat. Menage faith it comes from rabattre, to put back, because it was at first nothing but the collar of the fhirt or fhift turned back towards the fhoulders. The Rack, the course or driving of the clouds. Raied, blotted, stained, fouled: the fame as Beraied, which is the term more known of late days. Fr. Rayé. Raught, the fame as reached. To Ravin, to fnatch or devour greedily. A Raze of ginger; this is the Indian word for a bale, and must be dif tinguished from Race, which fignifies a fingle root of ginger. Rear-mice or Rere-mice, bats. A Recheate, a particular leffon upon the horn to call dogs back from the fcent; from the old French word Recet, which was used in the fame fenfe as Retraite. Rechlefs or Reckless, regardless, negligent. To Reck, to regard, to care. Reechy or Reeky, fmoky or foiled with smoke; thence also sweaty or filthy with fweat. Reed, leffon, doctrine, counfel. Reguerdon, recompence. To Renege, to renounce. Span. Renegár. Ribaud, debauched, abandoned, prostituted. Fr. Ribaud. Ribi, drink away! Italian. The imperative mood of Ribêre, which is the fame as Ribevere, to drink again. Riggish, wanton. Rigol, a circle from the Ital. Rigolo, which fignifies a little round wheel or trundle. Roifting, bluftering, fwaggering. A Rood, a crofs. A Roufe, the fame as a carowse. Roynish, mangy, fcabby. Fr. Rogneux. ARunnion, |