And yourself on the shelf a neglected old maid, Troth, your conscience will sting you, I'm greatly afraid.
Bedder, subs. (Cambridge University).—A
charwoman; one who
makes the beds and performs
other necessary domestic duties
for residents in college.
Bed-Fagot, subs. (familiar).—1.
Applied contemptuously to a
woman; Cf., 'hussy,' 'witch,'
etc.
2. Synonymous with prostitute. For full list of analogous terms, see Barrack-hack.
Bedfordshire, subs. (familiar).—humorous
term for bed.
There are several other phrases
of a kindred character; as, for
example, Sheet Alley (q.v.);
Blanket Fair (q.v.); The
Land of Nod (q.v.), etc.
1665. Cotton, Poet. Wks. (1765), 76. Each one departs to Bedfordshire. And pillows all securely snort on. [m.]
1738. Swift, Polite Conversation (conv. iii.). Lady Ans. I'm sure 'tis time for all honest folks to go to bed. Miss. Indeed my eyes draw straws (she's almost asleep) . . . Col. I'm going to the Land of Nod. Ner. Faith, I'm for Bedfordshire.
1845. Hood, Miss Kilmansegg. The time for sleep had come at last, And there was the bed, so soft, so vast, Quite a field of Bedfordshire clover.
Bed-House, subs. (common).—A
place of assignation where beds
can be hired for a longer or
shorter period as required—hence
the name. For synonyms
generally, see Nanny shop.
Bedoozle, verb (American).—To
confuse; to bewilder. Probably
a corrupt form of the
old English verb 'bedazzle,'
used by Shakspeare in Taming
of the Shrew, iv., 5, 46. [1593.]
Bedpost. In the twinkling of
a bedpost, phr. (familiar).—Instantaneously;
with great
rapidity. Originally in the
twinkling of a bedstaff.
This phrase has given rise to
not a little speculation; first, as to
what use the bedstaff was put;
and, secondly, as to its possible
connection with rapidity of
motion. The generally received
explanation is that the staff
referred to was, as Johnson
puts it, 'a wooden pin stuck
anciently on sides of the bedstead
to hold the cloaths from
slipping on either side.' Dr.
Murray, however, points out
that the great lexicographer
gave no authority, and also that
'no corroborative evidence has
been found.' Still it seems
certain that bedstaffs were used
and kept near beds for some
purpose by our ancestors.
Bobadil, in Every Man in his
Humour [1596], uses one to
display his skill with the rapier,
and the following explanation
has been suggested by Mr.
Thomas Boys [Notes and Queries,
2 S., vi., 437]. The bedstaff
was an upright peg, fixed into
the side of the bedstead after
the manner of a pin, and projecting
upwards to keep the
bed clothes in their place. Consequently,
as offering the means
of exhibiting the use of the
rapier, the wooden bedstaff
may have afforded a very
available as well as harmless
implement. Suppose then the
bedstaff to have been an upright
peg or pin fitting into a
hole or socket in the side of
