paw-paw adj.
naughty, improper; thus paw-pawness n., naughtiness, impropriety.
| , |  | implied in paw-paw tricks |
![[UK]](/static/img/flags/uk.png "United Kingdom") | ‘Two Parsons’ in Poetical Vagaries 115: What would become of all the fie-fie Ladies? And all the Proprietors of paw-paw Houses? And all the learned Proctors,—whose grave trade is Parting, from bed and board, the paw-paw Spouses? | |
| Pierce Egan’s Life in London 14 Aug. 230/1: [of adultery] Miss Anne Howard presented Mr. Jonathan Pope with a pledge of their ‘paw paw’ coalition, in the shapeof a little girl [...] and a very nice little girl she is. | |
| Eng. Spy II 220: Don’t you remember the ducking ould Mother Macguire, the bum-boat woman, received, for bringing paw-paw articles on board, when we came in to refit? | |
| Tom Bowling I ii: The report came that John had run out his cable along with the paw-paw nigger-women, and died in the hospital. | |
| Meerut Universal Mag. I 404: [note] Did the poor man fancy there was something very paw-paw in the term ‘My Uncle’? if so, he must have a prurient imagination. | |
![[US]](/static/img/flags/us.png "United States") | Eve. Star 8 Feb. 2/3: On Saturday night the officers broke up a lot of Paw-Paw gambler of the thimble-rig breed. | |
| Life in Boston & N.Y. (Boston, MA) 28 June n.p.: Probably some of the paw-paw players can go there [i.e. a new club], and be done Brown! | |
| Wise-crack Dict. 12/2: Paw Paw Indian – Petter. |
In compounds
1. any form of naughty, childish trick; orig. used by nurses to children; [Grose (1788) suggests Fr. pas, pas].
| , | | Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue (2nd, 3rd edn) n.p.: Paw paw Tricks. Naughty tricks: an expression used by nurses, to children. |
| Satirist 3 348: Mr Homespun himself is a harmless being enough; he will never set fire to the thames, Sir, nor do paw-paw tricks in virtuous or any other houses. | |
| Lex. Balatronicum. | |
| Pierce Egan’s Life in London 26 Sept. 4/3: Master Neddy Stockman [...] promised [...] to leave off all paw-paw tricks in the future. | |
| Memoirs & Adventures of a Man of Fashion 82: Know you’ll like her; but none of your foreign touches; no making love to a friend's wife, hey, George! paw paw tricks; — won't do in old England, ha . |
2. masturbation.
| Sl. and Its Analogues. |