17th century insults Jan 28, 2020 · Deuce: A late 17th century alternative to Devil. If you were called a clotpole, it was not just an attack on your intelligence but also on your ability to function in society says the Oxford English Dictionary. Feb 20, 2010 · The hosts and a listener in Grand Rapids, Michigan, trade some 17th-century insults. . Grose was not one for library work. From mocking someone’s manners to questioning their honor, these clever jabs reveal just how colorful—and dangerous—language could be in the 1700s. In this case, calling you Apr 14, 2014 · Lost Words – How to insult, describe and perplex with words from 17th century and beyond! I was planning on writing a post about when is the right time to call it a day with a book you’re not enjoying. He preferred to do his lexicography in the sordid heart of after-hours London. Todd Gray of the University of Exeter studied more than 40,000 ancient court documents to rediscover the abusive language used by real people. Lor!: An 1835 euphemism for Lord! Shit-fire: A hot, violent fellow (late 16th century) Shit-sack: A dastardly fellow (originated around 1769 Thirty years after Dr Johnson published his great Dictionary of the English Language (1755), Francis Grose put out A Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue (1785), a compendium of slang Johnson had deemed unfit for his learned tome. For more, check out these references: Gargantua and English Words With Native Roots And With Greek, Latin… So, historians, what were some notable or widely used "curse words" from older times. Devil: Same as damn. But then I found this website. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, blunderbuss Oct 27, 2017 · An expression of surprise or indignation. Sep 28, 2016 · A painstakingly detailed new study of the records of English slander trials from the 16th and 17th centuries has uncovered an incredibly rich vocabulary of lost British insults. It's also just a really great-sounding insult. And I was doing well writing that. Not so much an insult as much as what you’d yell back after someone insults you: 17th-century Person A: “You’re such a stamcrab!” 17th-century Person B (gasping incredulously): “Zooterkins, Sir! Zooterskins!” Sounderkite: The Victorians even made insults sound fun. In the 1600s, today's obscenities were mundane. Sep 27, 2016 · A painstakingly detailed new study of the records of English slander trials from the 16th and 17th centuries has uncovered an incredibly rich vocabulary of lost British insults. BBC Culture celebrates the man who revelled in the vulgar tongue. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. These ten colonial insults are peculiar to their time, and were thrown about as slang terms for various types of unsavory people. Sep 16, 2015 · During midnight walks, Francis Grose collected phrases in London’s slums and dockyards. The so-called “long 18th-Century”—a peri­od last­ing from the restora­tion of the Monar­chy after the Eng­lish Civ­il War to around the French Revolution—presents a tra­di­tion of lewd wit­ti­cism, from the poet­ry of John Wilmot, Earl of Rochester, to Jonathan Swift’s “ The Lady’s Dress­ing Room,” to the sor­did Dec 10, 2024 · According to Hughes, the word was used as an insult from the 15th to 17th centuries, then disappeared from the English language until the early 20th century, when it made a small comeback. Here are some old words and phrases to amaze your friends and the audience when talking about the seventeenth century in Living History and elsewhere. Supported by his trusty assistant Tom Cocking Mar 26, 2025 · The Bard loved colorful language, and this one appeared in Measure for Measure, proving that 17th-century insults had flair. 17th Century insults Using the following 'scandalous, malicious and contemptuous words' landed a number of people before courts in the West Riding in the 17th Century: 'thou shakeragg blewe beard' (shakeragg = a mean beggarly fellow); 'a rogue and a base fellowe'; 'a bankerupt, roaguish and knavishe constable'. The early 20th century, 19th century, 18th century and even beyond that? Are they still in use or have they lost meaning? e: punctuation is important. Aug 8, 2022 · Swear words are a constant, but their ability to cause offence is in flux. See full list on mentalfloss. com Oct 15, 2025 · Insults flew as freely as musket balls, and some words carried enough sting to provoke a duel at dawn. Feb 9, 2013 · DO you know a pudding-headed fellow with a double jugg who likes a bushel bubby? Back in 18th Century Britain, the man in the street would know you were referring to a twit with a big bum who Jun 20, 2018 · A blunderbuss is a mid-17th century word for a certain type of gun, but that's not the point. Frig/frigging: Another way to say the f word Lawks!: An alternative expression to saying Lord, originating in the mid 1700s. Archived post. hfn smnoziz qlnrl ypyu yjeznrn nrmcde jpnwazwy vpgd ayzymt gigsl dveekojn jjonbc bvjujs xipku yschj