affectionately to any middle-aged woman. "The title Bibi is in Persian the same as among us señora or doña."—Texeira: Relation de Hormuz, A.D. 1611.
Beef (Australian convicts' slang), "stop thief!" introduced by the convicts transported thither. A feature of thieves' cant, and indeed of slang generally, is its fondness for punning and rhyming, e.g., "cobbler," applied to the last sheep that is shorn, "slang-whang," and "Bolt-in-turns." Thief was canted into beef because they rhymed.
Beef—stop thief. To beef a person is to raise a hue and cry after him in order to get him stopped.—Vaux's Memoirs.
(English thieves' slang), to beef it, or to give hot beef, is to give chase, pursue, raise a halloo and cry.
I guyed, hut the reeler he gave me hot beef,
And a scuff came about me and hollered;
I pulled out a chive, but I soon came to grief,
And with screws and a james I was collared.
(Nautical), a figurative term for strength—"more beef!" more men on; (common), "beef up!" or "put your beef to it!" An ejaculation meant as a request to use one's strength, to use one's muscles to good account. (Popular), the penis; to be dressed like "Christmas beef," to be in one's best clothes.
Man's poor heart in ecstasy
Will very often beat,
When the tart is young.
.......
'Tis then he'll go and dress himself
Like unto Christmas beef,
When the tart is young!
Beef - headed (popular), stupid, dull as an ox. Beef-willed is a provincialism with a like signication. "Beef-witted," that is, dull, thick-headed; "having no more wit than an ox" is a term used by Shakspeare.
Beef it, to (provincialism). To beef it is to indulge in a meal of butchers' meat; it only occurs amongst the lower and poorer classes.
Beefment (thieves), on the beefment, on the look-out.
Beef stick (army), the bone of the meat in the day's rations. A soldier is allowed, at home, three-quarters of a pound of meat, including bone, and when the day's mess dinner is cut up, little but the stick remains for those last served.
Beef straight (American). When a man has nothing but beef for a meal, and must eat it without bread, vegetables, &c., it is beef straight. The same term is applied to any other kind of food per se.
Beef to the heels, like a Mullingar heifer. Mr. H. J. Byron says: "The expression beef to the
