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London Guide for Strangers

London Guide for Strangers - VOCABULARY.

VOCABULARY.


Blow-up, an exposure.
Bob, to start off.
Bose, to run away with.
Bowled out, discovered.
Bon Ton, high life women.
Botanical Excursion. Botany Bay, ag.

Canister, the head.
Carney, softening talk, common in Ireland.
C'est toute autre chose, French, quite a different sort of thing.
Cove, a man: thus, Mace Cove, Ding Cove, are 1. a cheating
fellow; 2. a robbing fellow.
Caress, female cheat, bawdy-house keeper, old trull.
Cull, the dupe of prostitutes.

Dead Nail, one who cheats, preserving appearances.
Ding, to carry off hastily. See Cove
Dire, to enter the pocket.
Dodge, to follow at a distance.
Down, to be knowing of a fact.
Drag, cart, or heavy coach.
Draw, an entrapping question: to pick a pocket.
Drops, glasses; gin generally.

Felo-de-se, Latin. Self-murderer.
Flash, to be knowing, to brag.
Flashman, preferred man.
Fib, to batter the head.
Fine-draw, to get at a secret.
Fence, or Hedge, receivers of stolen goods.
Flesh market, a resort of bad girls.
Foreign Ports, transportation generally.
Floor, to knock down.

Gallimaufry, odd mixture, revelry; from Gallimatia probably: see Amelia, B. 7. ch. 4.<4>
Game, verb, to wink at or encourage theft.
Gob, the mouth.
Grab, to snatch up.
Gumption, knowingness.
Hum-Gumption, a pretending to the same.
Gusto, Italian, taste, feeling.

Had-Up, to be, police examination.
Harridan, worn out strumpet.
Havidge, collection of bad characters' dwellings.
Hempen Habeas, a halter.
Hygeia, Greek for health.

Item, hint or sly notice.

Kedge, to live upon precarious means.

Lag, transportation.
Lay, dishonest course of life.
Let in, at gambling, a betraying.
Massacree, vulgar for massacre, murder.
Mealy-Mouthed, backwardness of speech.
Mizzle (to) to get away slily.

Natives, silly people.
Nutty, amatory.

Outre Cela, French, beyond the mark or pitch; Pron. "outray slang."
Opaque, dull, stupid, senseless.
Open, (to) scold loudly.

Pads, street robbers.
Patter, examination before magistrates, &c.
Penchant, French, love, attachment.
Plant, cheaters, planned beforehand.
Pound (to) to lay pounds in a wager.
Put up, to acquaint thieves what robbery to undertake.
Reader, a pocket book.
Roost, bed.
Sanctum Sanctorum, Latin, inner or sacred place.
Scamps, ragged street thieves.
Seedy, shabby dress. No money.
Slang, covert language of thieves.
Snuffy, drunkish.
Snoozing Ken, a sleeping house.
Spar, fighting demonstrated.
Spree, fun.
Spill (to) to betray.
Stag (to) to look hard at; as stags or deer do on all intruders.
Sweet, kind, concilating.

Take in, a cheat.
Take it in, to swallow a lie.
Thing, (a) a robbery.
The things, stolen articles.
Toggery, clothing.
Touting, eyeing the women, generally.
Town, London; Upon the Town, street walkers, men or women.
Trade, (the) smuggling.
Transmogrify, to change.
Turned up, ruined.
To have Turnips (turn-ups) a refusal or denial.
Twig (to) to eye one particularly,

Vestal, ironical for an incontinent person.
Verbum sap. Latin, means—" a word to the wise is enough."

Whop, a blow or slap.

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