Seldom-used words - M to A

[AllardChardon]

Og, I thought when I posted that last word, you might have something to say, and you did, as yourself and as Henry VIII. Thank you very much, once again.

I almost skipped these two, but decided they needed to be added, for architecture's sake;

mortise(1) - noun a hole, groove, or slot into or through which some other part of any arrangement of parts fits or passes; specif: a usually rectangular cavity cut into a piece of timber or other material to receive a tenon

mortise also mortice(2) - vt 1. to join or fasten securely; specif: to join or fasten by a tenon and mortise 2. to cut or make a mortise in

 

[oggbashan]

1811 Dictionary:

Mort - A woman or wench; a yeoman's daughter. To be taken all-a mort: to be confounded, surprised, or motionless through fear. [Og's note: All-a mort is possibly derived from the mort of mortmain, i.e. dead, not mort as a woman.]

1961 Dictionary of Historical Slang (which includes most of the 1811 Dictionary):

Mort 1 - as above 1560-1890; 2. a harlot, or near-harlot 1565-1910 3. Yeoman's daughter late C17-C18 only.
(Mort is probably from Dutch mot as in mot-huys - a brothel)

Strolling or walking mort - a female tramp

 

[AllardChardon]

Og, I never would guess that mort was a harlot, tramp, or yeoman's daughter. I would have thought it had something to do with death. Maybe, sleeping with a harlot brings on death, but a yeoman's daughter? Can you explain that meaning to me?

Of course, my dictionary says nothing of those (slang) definitions, but has these;

mort(1) - noun 1. a note sounded on a hunting horn when a deer is killed 2. KILLING

mort(2) - noun a great quantity or number

 

[oggbashan]

Og, I never would guess that mort was a harlot, tramp, or yeoman's daughter. I would have thought it had something to do with death. Maybe, sleeping with a harlot brings on death, but a yeoman's daughter? Can you explain that meaning to me?

Of course, my dictionary says nothing of those (slang) definitions, but has these;

mort(1) - noun 1. a note sounded on a hunting horn when a deer is killed 2. KILLING

mort(2) - noun a great quantity or number

Mort, as a woman, has a different root from mort = death. Mort/death is from Latin/French. Mort (also mot) /woman is "Cant word of unknown origin" first use in print 1561 according to Shorter Oxford, and as a synonym for harlot 1567. The Dictionary of Historical Slang suggests that the cant word is from the Dutch mot. But The Times Literary Supplement suggested in 1928 that it might be a short version of the French amourette.

 

[AllardChardon]

Amourette, I like the sound of that. Thank you, Og, for the explanation of the two. The root word would make the difference and you did point that out in your first post. Please, excuse me. I have been working in the sun for several hours and am re-hydrating, as we chat.

Another odd one;

morsel - noun 1. a small piece of food: BITE 2. a small quantity: FRAGMENT 3.a a tasty dish b. something delectable 4. a negligible person

The last definition has me wondering, if you have run into morsel being used in that way?

 

[oggbashan]

...

The last definition has me wondering, if you have run into morsel being used in that way?

No. But the Shorter Oxford suggests that it can be used for 'a small piece of anything', so by transference could mean an insignificant man.

 

[AllardChardon]

Og, if I called a man a "morsel", I am sure he would think I mean a "tasty dish", or at least "delectable", instead of a negligible guy. Must be careful how I use that word.

morris chair - noun an easy chair with adjustable back and removable cushions

 

[AllardChardon]

A good Sunday wish to all. I have never seen this dance, but I bet it is a good one;

morris - noun a vigorous English dance performed by men wearing costumes and bells

I do remember Og posting a group of male dancers before, but I don't think they were morris dancers. I could be wrong, of course.

 

[NaokoSmith]

I enjoyed all of the above posts! One of the funniest depictions of Morris dancers and other 'English' things is in the scene in Bride and Prejudice where Lalita (Lizzie) imagines marrying Johnny Wickham. It's a brilliant pastiche of the way people in India think of England!

I have sneaked cheatingly in with this pic of a rose, as it's called the Molyneux. It has little flecks of red in it this year, perhaps in celebration of them winning the whatever-it-was and going up to some other superior league. (Football, Allard - or rather, soccer.) Or maybe it means the club is going to be bought by a Malaysian owner!

That red rose behind it is the delectable Gloire de Hollande, which smells heavenly. And speaking of heavenly smells - at last the honeysuckle I planted several years ago is flowering! I had almost given up on it and was considering rooting it out and hurling it in the bin in high dudgeon.

 

[AllardChardon]

Naoko, for you, there can be no sneaking in here, for you are always welcome, with or without a word, or even the right letter at the right time. The picture of the roses is wonderful and I am so glad you gave your honeysuckle time to bloom and fill the air with heavenly scents. I will have to watch Pride and Prejudice again, it is one of my favorites.

Here is the word that defines the way words change;

morphology - noun 1.a. a branch of biology that deals with the form and structure of animals and plants b. the features comprised in the form and structure of an organism or any of its parts 2.a. a study and description of word formation in a language including inflection, derivation, and compounding b. the system of word-forming elements and processes in a language 3.a. a study of structure or form b. STRUCTURE, FORM 4. the external structure of rocks in relation to the development of erosional forms or topographic features

 

[NaokoSmith]

Bride and Prejudice! Gurinder Chadha's hilarious Indian musical remake of the story.

Piglet has got very into watching Pride and Prejudice. We have both the tv series: the Fay Weldon and the Davies ones. We like the Fay Weldon adaptation. (I was at school with one of her sons!) Piglet and I watch them over and over and knit while we watch. Then she talks like a Regency heroine, which makes a pleasant difference from when she's with her friends going: "Swag."
LOL

 

[BonBon1976]

about-sledge (plural about-sledges)

The largest hammer used by smiths.


Acock

Adverb[edit]
acock (comparative more acock, superlative most acock)

In a cocked or turned-up fashion.
defiantly



BB

 

[AllardChardon]

Naoko, I thought Bride and Prejudice was a typo, LOL. Thanks for setting me straight.

Very nice, BonBon. Acock is a great word for LIT!

I must add this one;

Morpheus - noun the god of dreams in Greek mythology

Off to the gardens, before it gets any hotter. I will check in, later. Have a lovely day or evening, as the case may be.

 

[oggbashan]

I have been adding words to the General Board's Thread Your Word Of The Day.

http://forum.literotica.com/showthread.php?t=1034502

 

[oggbashan]

A good Sunday wish to all. I have never seen this dance, but I bet it is a good one;

morris - noun a vigorous English dance performed by men wearing costumes and bells

I do remember Og posting a group of male dancers before, but I don't think they were morris dancers. I could be wrong, of course.

They were Coconutters. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNbGYRSsV8g

That is a form of Morris Dancing. There are various Morris Dance traditions, many only invented in the 1960s.

This is the Loose Women: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_2MIx1OeCU

Women NEVER danced traditional Morris.


Morris (from 1811 Vulgar Dictionary) - Come, Morris off! - Dance off!, or Get you gone! [= Fuck off!] Allusion to Morris i.e. morisco, or Moorish dancing.

 

[oggbashan]

Acock

Adverb[edit]
acock (comparative more acock, superlative most acock)

In a cocked or turned-up fashion.
defiantly



BB

Acock reminds me of a UK Engineering Company: Accles and Pollock.

Their 1960s advertising campaign was full of innuendo and double-entendre about miss-spellings of Accles and Pollock.

And the first German song my uncle taught me: My Hat It Has Three Corners. It was a three-cocked hat. On each repeat you leave out words, and sometimes swap hats like musical chairs:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WdJCaF5Nsy4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GoRg5_orttg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ej7voCQabm8

Edited for: Now my wife and I have got Mein Hut Er Hat Drei Ecken as an ear-worm. It was used to teach students of German the conditional form...

 

[Handley_Page]

A good Sunday wish to all. I have never seen this dance, but I bet it is a good one;

morris - noun a vigorous English dance performed by men wearing costumes and bells

I do remember Og posting a group of male dancers before, but I don't think they were morris dancers. I could be wrong, of course.

Try this section, Allard.
LINKY.

There are almost as many different modes of morris dance as there are regions in the countryside. It can get tricky when your team in West Yorkshire show the Essex dances.

 

[NaokoSmith]

I've found a word!

Gangster's moll, from molly meaning a whore or prostitute.

Apparently another term was 'gun moll', coined not from gun as in weapon, but from the Yiddish word meaning 'thief', so sort of thief-whore. Multi-tasking in the criminal world.

 

[oggbashan]

I've found a word!

Gangster's moll, from molly meaning a whore or prostitute.

Apparently another term was 'gun moll', coined not from gun as in weapon, but from the Yiddish word meaning 'thief', so sort of thief-whore. Multi-tasking in the criminal world.

The 1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue is brief:

Moll - A whore

But adds:

Moll Peatly's Gig - A rogering boat [Og's note - a floating brothel]

The Dictionary of Historical Slang has more:

Moll - 1. A harlot C17th to 20th. 2. A unmarried female companion of a criminal or a tramp. From about 1820 in the US gun-moll - a woman who carries a revolver for her 'man'. 3. A girl from about 1835, hence 4. sweetheart from about 1890.

Moll verb Molling - to go, going about, with women, or to act in an effeminate manner.

Moll-buzzer - A pickpocket specialising in stealing from women.

Moll-sack - A Lady's handbag.

Moll-slavey - a maidservant

Moll Thompson's mark - M.T. = empty

 

[AllardChardon]

What a wonderful set of words and definitions I came back to, as well as explanations of morris dancers. Thanks, contributors, you are the best.

Moll reminds me of The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders.

My mother used to like this word;

morose - noun 1. having a sullen and gloomy disposition 2. marked by or expressive of gloom

 

[CarlusMagnus]

What a wonderful set of words and definitions I came back to, as well as explanations of morris dancers. Thanks, contributors, you are the best.

Moll reminds me of The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders.

My mother used to like this word;

morose - noun 1. having a sullen and gloomy disposition 2. marked by or expressive of gloom

[Enter Tongue-In-Cheek Mode] That one's always made me wonder. Is someone who isn't sullen, isn't of a gloomy disposition, and is neither marked by nor expressive of gloom less-ose? [Exit TICM]

 

[Handley_Page]

[Enter Tongue-In-Cheek Mode] That one's always made me wonder. Is someone who isn't sullen, isn't of a gloomy disposition, and is neither marked by nor expressive of gloom less-ose? [Exit TICM]

[TCIM ON]
The antonyms are listed in my little Oxford as Cheerful, Joyful, Merry.
Buy you'd think that there should be a "less-ose"
[TCIM OFF]

 

[oggbashan]

[TCIM ON]
The antonyms are listed in my little Oxford as Cheerful, Joyful, Merry.
Buy you'd think that there should be a "less-ose"
[TCIM OFF]

I can't find morose or less-ose in my slang dictionaries, but there is:

Lemoncholy as a Cockney synonym for melancholy.

 

[NaokoSmith]

Perhaps if you are especially cheerful, you become loss-ose, or lose-hose, quickly shedding your nether garments .

Magrigal - an unaccompanied song for a number of voices. Also, apparently a short poem about love.

 

[oggbashan]

Perhaps if you are especially cheerful, you become loss-ose, or lose-hose, quickly shedding your nether garments .

Magrigal - an unaccompanied song for a number of voices. Also, apparently a short poem about love.

Oops! Madrigal

Here is one from Gilbert and Sullivan's Ruddigore:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ae7MIURg9q0

And from The Mikado:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rEfELF_jCk