1893. Emerson, Signor Lippo, 48. The quilts have to be changed once a moon.
2. (American).—A large, round biscuit.
1883. S. Clemens ('Mark Twain'), Life on the Mississippi, 460. I spent my last ten cents for two moons and cheese.
3. (old).—A wig. Also half-moon.
1608. Middleton, Mad World, iii. 3. To wear half-moons made of another's hair.
1663. Killigrew, The Parson's Wedding [Dodsley, Old Plays (1874), xiv. 456]. Score a Sack of Score in the half-moon [Note, i.e., put a quart of sack into your head at my expense].
Verb. (colloquial).—To wander or lounge as in a dream.
1856. Miss Yonge, Daisy Chain, xxi. 'There! that bet is lost!' exclaimed Larkins. 'I laid Hill half-a-crown that you would not see me when you were mooning over your verses!'
1863. C. Reade, Hard Cash, i. 39. The silence continued till it was broken by—a fish out of water. An undergraduate in spectacles came mooning along all out of his element.
1871. Standard, 14 April. 'Italy.' The press in vain raised its voice against this tomfoolery, which gives us an excuse for indulgence in our favourite occupation of mooning at street corners, and of losing as much time as we can.
1871. London Figaro, 6 Mar. 'French Refugees in London.' Some of the Frenchmen still look wretched. The other day I saw two of them in blouses, mopingly mooning along Broad-street.
1873. Black, Princess of Thule, xxvii. Spend their time in mooning up in that island of theirs.
1877. Besant and Rice, Golden Butterfly, xvi. I might have mooned away the afternoon in the Park and dined at the club.
1884. W. C. Russell, Jack's Courtship, xiii. All this hoping and moping and mooning has made your heart too battered a thing to offer to the next peerless creature ye may happen to light on.
1888. Rolf Boldrewood, Robbery Under Arms, xli. Well, I kept dark, you be sure, and mooned about.
1889. Mrs. Oliphant, Poor Gentleman, xliv. He went mooning along with his head down in dull and hopeless despondency.
To make believe the moon is made of green cheese, verb. phr. (common).—To hoax.
1562-3. Jack Juggler [Dodsley, Old Plays (1874), ii. 154]. To believe and say the moon is made of a green cheese Or else have great harm, and percase their life lese.
1640. Wit's Recr. [Hotten], 114. The way to make a Welch-man thirst for blisse, . . . Is, to perswade him, that most certain 'tis, The moon is made of nothing but green cheese.
1670. Ray, Proverbs [Bohn (1893), 171]. Tell me the moon's made of green cheese.
1846. T. Mildenhall, Sister and I, sc. ii. Aye, you'd better ask why the moon is made of green cheese?
A blue moon, subs. phr. (common).—An indefinite time; never; Greek kalends (q.v.); Tib's eve (q.v.).
1528. Roy and Barlow, Rede me and Be nott Wroth, p. 114. Yf they saye the mone is belewe, We must beleve that it is true, Admittynge their interpretacion.
1876. B. H. Buxton, Jennie of the Prince's, ii. 140. 'Does he often come of an evening?' asks Jennie. 'Oh, just once in a blue moon, and then always with a friend.'
Minions of the moon. See Moonman.
Man in the moon. See Man.
To shoot (or bolt) the moon, verb. phr. (general).—To clear a house by night to evade distraint or payment of rent; to do a moonlight flitting. Hence moonshooters.
