This working glossary was originally appended to Broadside Ballads from the Pepys Collection: A Selection of Texts, Approaches, and Recordings, edited by Patricia Fumerton (Tempe, AZ: Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies, 2012). We have adapted it here, and occasionally update it with new words found in ballads.
In composing this glossary we have relied on numerous sources including various dictionaries, encyclopedias, and history books, in addition to our own expertise. The two most referenced sources are the Oxford English Dictionary Online and the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography Online. We hope scholars, students, and the general public will find this glossary a usefulresource; however, as with any work of this magnitude, mistakes likely and inevitably have crept in. The often obscure topicality of the ballads, the difficulty of dating them, the profusion of alternate spellings, and the occasional difficulty of deciphering the ballad texts themselves all increase the chances of error. We would be grateful for any suggestions and corrections that astute readers may notice as they use the glossary.
To use this glossary, be sure to consult first the spelling you find in the ballad, and then look around that same spelling in the alphabetical listing for words that sound similar. We compiled the glossary from the different categories Pepys employed and in each case the first spelling we list is the one from the ballad suggested by the editor or the category compiler. However, words appear in different ballads with different spellings. If the definition is to be found under another spelling (and alphabetical letter) entirely, we indicate that.
Oxford English Dictionary Online. Ed. John Simpson. Oxford University Press, 2008. Accessed June 2008. http://dictionary.oed.com
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography Online. Ed. Lawrence Goldman, Brian Harrison, and Colin Matthew. Oxford University Press, 2008. Accessed June 2008. http://www.oxforddnb.com
Find the original PDF here.
A
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Abidos, Abydos: city on the Hellespont opposite Sesto
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Acteon: mythological figure turned into a stag and hunted as punishment for seeing Diana naked
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Aeneas: Trojan who founded Rome
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almes, alms: gifts of money to the poor
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ambling: moving with smooth pace
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angell: gold coin
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annoy: ennui
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antick: mad
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Apollo: god of the sun and fine arts
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asperse: to spatter with damaging reports
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ayl: ail
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B
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Babylon’s whore: Roman Catholic Church, pejorative
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band: that with which the person is bound
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bane: that which causes ruin
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banks: ridge of dirt
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barley breake: country game
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barley corne, barley corn: grain from which malt liquor is made
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barns: babies
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Bashaw, Pasha: Ottoman officer of high rank
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beadle, beetle: herald or crier especially for the law
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beareward, bearward: bear keeper
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beeson: besom, broom
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Belloniaes, Bellonia: Roman goddess of war
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bereft: lacking
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Bewdly: small town in Worcestershire
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bide: remain
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billat, billet: thick piece of wood
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billows: big wave
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bisses: fine linen
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Blackwall: dock and center of ship buildng in the east end of London
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blithe: kind
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boatswain, bowson, bosun, quartermaster: officer on ship in charge of the sails, rigging
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bodkin: dagger
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boltsprit, boltsprite, boultspret: bowsprit, large broom on stem of vessel
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Bonner: Edmund Bonner, d. 1569, bishop of London under the reign of Queen Mary I; imprisoned under Queen Elizabeth I; nicknamed Bloody Bonner for his zealous persecution of heretics
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Boras: Boreas, god of the north wind
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bousse, bouse: drink, liquor
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bowzer: bouser, drunkard
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brangling: squabbling
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Bridewell, Brid-well: house of correction
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broad-pieces: coins
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brooke: to withstand, to endure
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Buckingham, duke of: Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, helped Richard III to the throne, but later defied him unsuccessfully, executed in 1483; see also Banister
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budget: pouch or bag
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bumper: full glass or mug
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bung: brewer; pickpocket
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buntlin, buntline: signaller; swelling of sails
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C
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calenture: sailor’s disease
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cambricks, cambrick: fine white linen; handkerchiefs
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cant: dialect of rogues and gypsies
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capon: castrated cock
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carbonado: to cut, to slash
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carowse, carouse: to drink freely and repeatedly
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Catch also Ketch, John (Jack): public executioner, d.1686
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cavalier, cavillera: horse-soldier, knight; royalist during English Civil Wars, 1642–1649
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chapman: buyer or seller of petty wares
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chincke; chink: money
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chouse: trick
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chyrurgion: surgeon
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claret: type of wine
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clowne, clown: rustic, peasant
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clyster pipe: tube for administering enemas; contemptuous name for medical man
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cogging: cheating (cogs at dice)
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coleworts: cabbage plants
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collogue: to flatter
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commode: toilet
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Commons: house of parliament
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conceit: idea, opinion, imagination
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conjuration: conjuring, invoking spirits
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constant: faithful
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copper nose: red nose from drinking too much; acne rosacea
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cornelian, camelian: variety of chalcedony, reddish quartz
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correl: toy dildo
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cot-quean: housewife; scolding woman
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Cow-crosse, Cow-cross: lane in Clerkenwell
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coxcombe: fool’s hat
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cozen, coozen: to cheat
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Crispin: patron saint of shoemakers
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crony: friend
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crue: crew; group
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cucking-stool: chair used to punish women and cheats by dunking in water
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cudgel: club; to club
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currell, curril: to curl
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cutless, cutlass: curved sword
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D
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dandle: to move up and down playfully
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Demi-Gorgon: demon; pagan deity that created the world
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deportment: manner
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descry: discover
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Diana: goddess of moon and chastity; see also Cynthia
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dil doul: dildo, penis
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distafe: a staff used in spinning wool
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ditty: short simple song
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dragel’d-tayl’d, draggle-taile, draggle-tail: woman whose skirts drag in mud; slut
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dray: cart
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dropsy: edema, swelling caused by accumulation of fluids
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dunch: deaf, blind, heavy, or dull
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E
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Edward: Edward IV, king of England, r. 1461–1483
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Elinor, Queen: Eleanor d. 1204, queen of England, consort of Henry II, allegedly murdered Henry’s mistress, Rosamund Clifford; see also Rosamond Clifford
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emblem: moral fable often shown in picture
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even: evening
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extirpation: total removal, destruction
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F
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fagot, faggots: bundle of sticks
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fancy: to like
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farthing: quarter of a denomination of money
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Feather: tavern in parish of Lambeth
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fervent: burning
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fig: worthless thing
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filching: stealing
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flitches: side of an animal, now only of a hog, salted and cured
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forespeake, forespeak: to predict, prophesy
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Fortune: playhouse on north bank of Thames
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frail: basket
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frizzell: to curl hair in small curls
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fundament: buttocks
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G
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gall: bitterness; bile
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gallard, galliard: lively dance
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gamester: player at any game; gambler
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geld: to castrate
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gentle craft: shoemaker
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gillian: girl
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glass: mirror
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Golden Legend: collection of lives of saints
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gorgets: piece of clothing covering the neck and breast
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Gothland: southernmost of the three old provinces of Sweden
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Gourney: town in Normandy
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grantum: pomegranate
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Greenewitch: Greenwich, down the Thames from London
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groat: coin, four pence
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gudgin, gudgeon: small fish
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guinea: gold coin
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H
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hackney: horse used for riding; horse for hire
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Hambleton, Marquesse: Alexander Hamilton d. 1733, East India Company seaman and trader
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harrow: farming implement used to break up and stir the soil
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hawe, haw: fruit of the hawthorn
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heaping: piling or gathering in heaps
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hedging: building hedges or barriers
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Hellespont: strait connecting Aegean Sea with Sea of Marmara
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helm: wheel to steer ship
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hen-roost: place for birds to roost at night
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Hezekias: Hezekiah, biblical king of Judah who abolished idolatry among the Israelites
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High Spaniola: Hispaniola, first Spanish colony founded in New World (currently Haiti and the Dominican Republic)
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Hoglaine: Hog Lane in London
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hone: to whine, to pine
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horning, horns: mark of a cuckold
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hose: nose
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house keeping: management of household; hospitality
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humour: temperament
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Hymeneal, Hymen: god of marriage; related to marriage
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I
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importunity: annoying persistence
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injoy: to experience with delight (also sexual)
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J
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jacke, jack: winch
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Jacks: Jacobite, supporter of James II and his family after revolution of 1688
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James: James I, king of England, r. 1603–1625; James, duke of Monmouth, bastard son of Charles II, led unsuccessful rebellion against James II in 1685, executed in 1685; James II, king of England, r. 1685–1688
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Jesuit: member of the Society of Jesus, Roman Catholic religious order
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Joppa: Jaffa, ancient port city of Israel
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journey men, journey man: person who has finished his apprenticeship
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Judeth, Judith: Jewish widow, beheaded the Assyrian general Holofernes
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juggling: magic, trick
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K
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kawed: to chew
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kibe: chilblain
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King o’th’ Poles: King John III Sobieski, king of Poland, grand duke of Lithuania r. 1674–1696
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kite: bird of prey
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L
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lading: to draw water; to load
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lark: early rising bird
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lawen: laws
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Leander: lover of Hero, drowned swimming the Hellespont
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loon: crazy person
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Lords: upper house of Parliament
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louse: small wingless parasite
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lubber: inexperienced sailor
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Lucretia: legendary Roman woman who was raped, compelled the men in her family to take revenge, and then committed suicide
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lurch: to keep someone from getting her/his share of food or other necessity
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M
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mad: filled with enthusiasm
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mansey, mamsey, mamsy, malmsey, malmsie: strong sweet wine
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marke, mark: monetary unit equivalent to two-thirds of a pound sterling
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Mary, Queen: Mary of Modena, queen consort to James II, r. 1685–1688; Mary Tudor or Mary I, Queen of England and Queen Elizabeth I’s half-sister, known as Bloody Mary for her prosecution of Protestants, r. 1553–1558
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mass-monger: Roman Catholic (especially a priest), pejorative
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mastiff: breed of large dog
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maultman: makes malt for a living
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mavis: songbird
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merry men: companions or followers
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Methusalem, Methusela: very old or long-lived person
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milke-wife: woman who sells milk; wetnurse
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mome: fool, dolt
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mortar: cement
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mountebanke: traveling charlatan
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moyle, moil: toil
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Munford, Simon, Earl of Leicester: Simon de Monfort, leader of reform movements and rebellion, instrumental to 1264 council of nine to supervise Henry III, had control of government, killed in battle at Evesham in 1265
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muskadine: wine made from muscat
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myter: priest’s headdress
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N
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nappy: foaming
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neat: ox, cow
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New Prison: prison located in the Clerkenwell area of central London
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niggard: cheap
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nimming: exacting
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Ninivie: Nineveh, capital of Assyrian empire, ruin foretold in Old Testament
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noble: gold coin worth half a mark
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noddies: fools
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nonce, for the: for the particular purpose
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nuke: nook
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nut of India: coconut
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O
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obdurate: stubbornly impenitent
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Old Jury: Old Jewry, street in London which was part of the Jewish ghetto before Jews were expelled from England in 1290
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Olympus: mountain that was home to the Greek gods
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ore: fine wool; sheep
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ostler: one who receives guests (as in a hostel)
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P
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paean: solemn chant addressed to Apollo
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Pan: Greek god of flocks and herds
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pap: breast
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paragon: outstanding person
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pate: head
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pavior: person who lays paving
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pence: penny
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perry: pear cider
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Petre: Edward Petre, influential Jesuit, implicated in 1678 Popish Plot
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phifes, fife: instrument like a flute usually accompanies drums
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Phoebus: god of the sun
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pike-staffe: walking staff
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pillory: device for punishment
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pinser, pincer: metal tool for pinching
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pitching: to cover with pitch
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plaint: complain
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pleace: fish
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point: unit of counting used in competition or sport; unit of credit
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Polish Van: Polish king, John Sobieski III’s advancing military force, r. 1674–1696
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Pontifex: bishop of the Roman Catholic Church; the Pope
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poop: stern of boat
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pot: cup for alcoholic beverage
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pouler: barber, pejorative
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prancer: highwayman, horse thief
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prelacy: office of high-ranking clergyman
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presbiter, presbyter: elder in the Christian Church
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pricklouse, prick-louse: tailor, pejorative
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privateer: vessel crewed by private citizens or the owner of such a vessel
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procure: obtain, find prostitutes
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professor: one who openly professes religion, esp. Christian
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promoter: one who promotes
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punching: hole made by pincers
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purloyned: stolen
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pye: coat
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Q
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queane: ill-behaved woman; prostitute or whore
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quil, quill: small pipe to administer medication
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R
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ranting: boisterous
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repayre, repair: to go
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repose: rest
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revelling: disorderly merry-making
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Richard, King: Richard III of England, r. 1483–1485, known as a usurper of the throne
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rigge, rig: wanton woman
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roaring boyes: riotous men
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rooke, rook: cheat
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Rosamond: Rosamond Clifford, Henry II of England’s concubine c. 1174–1176; see also Elinor
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round boy: honest boy
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royster: noisy reveller
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Rump, the or the Rump Parliament: remnants of the Long Parliament after purges by the New Model Army in December 1648–April 1653 and May 1659–February 1660
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rundelay: short rondeau
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S
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sack, sacke: wine
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saw: jagged like a saw
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Schomberg: Williamite marshal Frederick Schomberg, commander of King William’s Irish campaign of 1689
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scold: to argue loudly; one who argues loudly, of women pejorative
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seditious: inciting to revolt
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Sestos: city on the Hellospont opposite Abydos
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shaving: swindling
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ship money: tax levied by Charles I without Parliament’s consent
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sholes, shoals: shallow water
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Shrove Tuesday: Tuesday before Ash Wednesday, a time of merriment
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sisers: scissors
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sithe: scythe
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sledge: sled with runners used for conveying condemned persons to execution
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Smithfield barres: area near Clerkenwell in central London
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sot: drunkard
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sow-gelder: one who spays sows
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spark: foppish young man
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spittle: place for reception of the indigent
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sprizen: principal sail on the mizzen-mast of a ship
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stammell, stammel: coarse woolen cloth
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stares: starlings
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stoate: ermine; of persons treacherous
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strappadoes, strappado: type of torture to elicit confession
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succour: assistance
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swain: young man
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Switzer: Swiss
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T
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tane: taken
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tanner: one who converts hides into leather by tanning
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tar-box: box used by shepherds to hold tar for sheep
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Teague: Irishman, pejorative
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teene: injury, harm
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tester, teaster: sixpence
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thrum: tassle
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tinder: dry flammable material
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tipple: drink
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top-knot: knot or bow of ribbon worn on the top of the head by ladies
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touse, touze: commotion
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trice: instantly
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Tripe-man: prepares and sells tripe
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truoch: truth
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Tryton, Triton: sea deity, son of Poseidon and Amphitrite
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turney: tournament
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twatling, twattling: chattering
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Tybourne, Tyburne, Tyburn: place of public execution in Middlesex
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U
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Ulisses, Ulysses, Odysseus: Greek king of Ithaca and hero of Homer’s epic
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ure: money
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V
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vapored: make a show, show off
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ver: springtime
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verily: truthfully
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victual’d: provisioned with food
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Vine Folk: fine folk
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Virginny: Virginia
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vrow: frau, goodwife
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W
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walled: wallet
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wamble: nauseate
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Wapping: area in East End of London on north bank of River Thames, where big ships would dock; largely inhabited by those associated with seafaring
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washballs, wash-ball, washing-ball: ball of soap; sometimes vulgar
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wayne, waine, wane, wain: wagon, cart
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weed: clothing
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well-a-day: exclamation expressing sorrow
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wherry: ferry
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whiggish: rebellious
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White-hall: Whitehall Palace, London seat of royalty
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wight: person
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William: William of Orange, assumed throne in 1689 to become William III of England, r. 1689–1702
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Winsor: Windsor Palace, royal palace on Thames
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wispe: twisted bundle of hay used to wipe something
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woodcocks, woodkocke: easily trapped bird
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wrastle: wrestle
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Y
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yeoman: servant or attendant in royal or noble household
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Z