the knucks will say to each other, the cove is slour'd up, we must unslour him to get at his kickseys.—Grose.]
Unspeakable, adj. (colloquial).—general intensive: extremely bad. Thus an unspeakable ( = outrageous) fool; an unspeakable ( = 'rotten') play; the unspeakable ( = cruel) Turk. [A Carlyleism.]
1831. Carlyle, Miscell. 'Nibelungen Lied.' That unspeakable Turk, King Machabol. Ibid., Letter to George Howard (24 Nov. 1876). The unspeakable Turk should immediately be struck out of the question and the country left to honest European guidance.
Unsweetened, subs. (common).—Gin: i.e. unsweetened gin.
Unthimble, verb. (old).—To unthimble, to rob, or otherwise deprive a man of his watch. UNTHIMbled, robbed of one's watch.
UNTHRIFT, subs. (old).—A prodigal, spendthrift, wastegood (q.v.).
1590. Goldinge, Cæsar, fol. 76. A great multitude of unthrifts and cut throtes.
. . . Taverner, Adagies, A. 8b. Unthryftes do gather together with Unthriftes, and good fellowes, with such as be good fellowes, and so forthe.
1596. Jonson, Ev. Man in His Humour, iii. 7. If he were an unthrift, a ruffian, a drunkard, or a licentious liver, then you had reason.
1597. Shakspeare, Richard II., ii. 3. My rights and royalties Pluck'd from my arms perforce, and given away To upstart unthrifts. Ibid. (1598), Sonnets, ix. Look, what an unthrift in the world doth spend, Shifts but his place, for still the world enjoys it.
Unto. To go in unto, verb. phr. (conventional).—To copulate: see Greens and Ride.
Untrimmed. See Trim.
Untwisted, adj. (old).—Undone, ruined (B. E. and Grose).
Unwashed (or Great-unwashed), subs. (common).—The mob, the rabble: orig. the artisan class. [First used by Burke, popularised by Scott.]
1889. Pall MallGaz., 18 Oct., 6. 2. Was it not time . . . that the great unwashed should declare that the great unpaid were no longer at liberty to oppress them?
1892. Watson, Wops the Waif, III. iv. It is only when we have paid our 'tuppence' and ascended to the gallery just under the roof . . . that we begin to understand what is meant by the lowest classes, the great unwashed.
Adj. (old colloquial).—Vulgar, filthy. Unwashed bawdry (B. E.) = rant, errant, fulsome, bawdry.
1596. Shakspeare, King John, iv. 2. 201. Another lean, unwash'd artificer.
1605. Jonron, Volpone, Ded. Such foul and unwashed bawdry as is now made the food of the scene.
Up, verb, adv., prep., and subs. (old).—1. In various elliptical and colloquial senses. As verb, generic for action: cf. Down. Thus TO up with one's fist, a stick, etc. = to raise the hand, etc., for striking a blow; to up with the standard = to bear aloft the flag; 'Up guards, and at 'em' = 'Stand and charge the enemy,' and so on. Adverbially in many connections: as (1) out of bed; (2) on one's legs (ready to speak); in the saddle; under repair (of streets); advanced in rank, position, value, etc.; in revolt, a commotion, or the like; in progress or taking place (as a hunt); adjourned, at an end (as a sitting
