boat – 1. transport; 2. transport a prisoner; 3. to go in with, as in “to boat with another”: “to be his partner in the same boat—in the same scrape”; 4. to go to sea. Sources Barrère, Albert and Charles G. Leland. A Dictionary of Slang, Jargon, and Cant. [London]: The Ballantyne Press, 1889. Matsell, [...]
boarding-house – city prison, the Tombs (New York City prison). boarding-school – penitentiary. Sources Barrère, Albert and Charles G. Leland. A Dictionary of Slang, Jargon, and Cant. [London]: The Ballantyne Press, 1889. Farmer, John S. and W. E. Henley. A Dictionary of Slang and Colloquial English. Abridged from Slang and Its Analogues. London: George Routledge [...]
Wednesday, February 9, 2011 blunt – money. blunted – in possession of money. blunted crib – a house with money in it. blunt ken – a bank or broker’s office. Sources Barnes, Daniel R. “An Early American Collection of Rogues’ Cant.” The Journal of American Folklore 79 no. 314 (Oct.-Dec., 1966), 600-607. Barrère, Albert and Charles G. Leland. A [...]
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Wednesday, February 2, 2011 bludgeoner – a bully, pimp, ponce. “A fellow who passes off some well-dressed woman as his wife. She goes out in search of a gallant, and entices her victim into some unfrequented place. The bludgeoner waits outside until she gives him a signal that the man is robbed, when he rushes in with a knife, [...]
Wednesday, January 26, 2011 blowen – 1. a woman; 2. a thief’s mistress; 3. a prostitute; 4. a strange woman. blowen, a fine – lady. blowen of the ken – mistress of the house. blowen spenie or blowen mush – a thief’s girl. blowen, to do him of his – to rob him of his wife. Sources Barnes, Daniel [...]
Also filed in | Tagged Theft | Wednesday, January 19, 2011 blow a cloud – smoke a cigar or pipe. Sources Farmer, John S. and W. E. Henley. A Dictionary of Slang and Colloquial English. Abridged from Slang and Its Analogues. London: George Routledge and Sons, 1912. Grose, Francis and Egan Pierce. Grose’s Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue. Revised and Corrected. London: Printed for Sherwood, [...]
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Wednesday, January 12, 2011 blackleg – 1. a gambler; 2. someone who bets without intending to pay his losses; 3. a swindler, a criminal. The term derives from criminals and swindlers who had black bruises on their legs from sitting in the stocks or from wearing fetters. Another possible origin comes from the black color on the legs of [...]
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Wednesday, January 5, 2011 Image via Wikipedia black ointment – pieces of raw meat (“It soothes dogs and men.”). Sources Barrère, Albert and Charles G. Leland. A Dictionary of Slang, Jargon, and Cant. [London]: The Ballantyne Press, 1889. Farmer, John S. and W. E. Henley. A Dictionary of Slang and Colloquial English. Abridged from Slang and Its Analogues. London: [...]
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Wednesday, November 24, 2010 bit – 1. the old Spanish “real” coin and then a dime; 2. money of any kind; 3. a share of the booty; 4. outwitted; 5. a prison sentence. Sources Barrère, Albert and Charles G. Leland. A Dictionary of Slang, Jargon, and Cant. [London]: The Ballantyne Press, 1889. Matsell, George W. Vocabulum: Or, the Rogue’s [...]
Wednesday, November 17, 2010 bingo – whiskey, brandy, or other strong drink; liquor. bingo-boy – a drunken man; a drunkard. bingo-mort – a female drunk. Sources Barrère, Albert and Charles G. Leland. A Dictionary of Slang, Jargon, and Cant. [London]: The Ballantyne Press, 1889. Grose, Francis and Egan Pierce. Grose’s Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue. Revised and Corrected. [...]
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