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1823. W. T. Moncrieff, Tom and Jerry, Act iii., Sc. 3. Mace:. . . Vhen ve've had the liqvor, ve'll kick up a reel, and all go to our dabs.
3. (river-side thieves').—The drowned corpse of an outcast woman.
4. (old).—A trifle.
1745. Walpole to Mann, ii., 53. The Count may have procured for her some dirty dab of a negotiation about some acre of territory more for Hanover.
Adj. (colloquial).—1. Clever; skilled; expert.—See subs., sense 1. Fr., avoir le ponce long, or rond, i.e., 'to have a long or round thumb.'
2. (back slang).—Bad. A dabheno, a bad market, day, or sale, Doogheno = a good day, etc.; dab tros = a bad sort.
1877. Diprose, London Life. I've been doing awful dab with my tol (lot) or stock, have'nt made a yennep (penny).
Rum-dabe, subs. (old).—The same as dab, subs., sense 1. [Rum (q.v.) is Old Cant for 'good.']
Dab down, verbal phr. (common).—To pay; hand over; to 'post' or 'shell out' {q.v. for synonyms).
To dab it up [with a woman], verbal phr. (old).—To pair off; to agree to cohabitation.
Dabster, subs. (colloquial).—An expert or dab (q.v.).
1877. J. Greenwood, Dick Temple, ch. iii. 'Not in the least like the performance of an amateur dabster,' remarked Jack Mallet, admiringly. 'Much more like the work of an old master for style and finish.'
Dace, subs. (old).—Two-pence; in America, two cents. [From 'deuce.']
Dacha-Saltee, subs. (thieves' and vagrants').—A franc; or tenpence English. [From the Italian dieci soldi.]—See Saltee.
1861. Reade, Cloister and Hearth, ch. lv. What with my crippledom and thy piety, a wheeling of thy poor old dad, we'll bleed the bumpkins of a dacha-saltee.
Dad-Binged (also -Blamed, -Fetched), -Gasted, -Goned, -Rotted, or -Snatched, ppl. adj. (American).—Half veiled oaths; 'whips to beat the devil round the stump.' [Dad is a corrupted form of 'God,' which, with other forms, (Dod-, Dog-, etc.), is found in various combinations, as above.] For synonyms, see Oaths.
1887. Scribner's Magazine, 'Dadgum ye!' cried Jeff, irritably, 'whut—by grabs, hit's a human critter!'
1888. S. L. Clemens ('Mark Twain'), Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, p. 122. A chile er two, mo 'er less, warn't no consekens to Sollermun, dad-fetch him. Ibid. 'Why, Mars Tom, I doan want no rats. Dey's de dad-blamedest creturs to 'sturb a body . . . I ever see.'
Dad-Dad, Mum-Mum or Daddy-Mammy, subs. phr. (military).—beginner's practice on the drum.
Daddle, subs. (common).—The hand; or fist. To tip the daddle, to shake hands. For synonyms, see Bunch of fives, to which may be added the following lists:—
English Synonyms. Chalk-farm; claw; clutch; cornstealer; duke; fam; famble; feeler; fin; flapper; flipper; forceps; forefoot; fork; grappling-iron or
