Green’s Dictionary of Slang

(W.I.) a small bribe.

1996

Allsopp Dict. Carib. Eng. Usage.

see separate entry.

see draw-latch n.

see under blank n.

see separate entries.

1. to wrench off a door-knocker.

1866

Letters by an Odd Boy 163: Why, if I wrench a knocker off [which, of course, would be the last thing I should think of doing, if I had been out late], should I be said to ‘draw a tooth?’.

2. (Aus.) to extract money from a third party.

1895

Crowe Aus. Sl. Dict. 25: Draw a Tooth, to extract money.

see draw a blank under blank n.

(W.I.) to snore.

1952

cited in Cassidy & LePage Dict. Jam. Eng. (1980).

(W.I./UK black teen) to trick or connive, to mislead, to ‘pull a fast one’ on someone.

2006		D.J. Reynolds Jabari Authentic Jam. Dict. 42/1: draw card (dra k’ad): v. – to make an accusation; to use humor to reveal something secret or sensitive.
2008		Webster’s Jam.-Eng. Thes. Dict.

(W.I.) to make an advance of some sort, usu. sexual.

1995

Francis-Jackson Official Dancehall Dict. 15: Draw-down to make an approach; initial contact: u. to draw-down pon a ting/to make a sexual advance.

(US) to draw a pistol.

a.1909		press cutting in J. Ware Passing Eng. of the Victorian Era 117/1: If every person who fancied himself aggrieved by his cabman were to ‘draw iron’ the nature of the cabman’s shelter would have to be altered and made to correspond with the iron huts familiar to Irish police.
1949		Monteleone Criminal Sl. (rev. edn).

see draw a blank under blank n.

see separate entry.

see under strong adv.

of a woman, to calm a man’s passion by consenting to sleep with him.

1890–1904

Farmer & Henley Sl. and Its Analogues.

(US short order) a phr. meaning pour me a cup of coffee; thus ext. as draw one in the dark, pour me a black coffee; also as n., a cup of coffee.

1884		St Louis Post-Dispatch (MO) 20 Dec. 12/2: A strange patois that is almost [...] unintelligible. Go in and order coffee and cakes and your man roars out: ‘Three out and draw one’.
1886		Marion (OH) Daily Star 22 Nov. 3/3: ‘Draw one,’ heard every minute of the day, means ‘a cup of coffee.’ ‘Draw no,’ is coffee without milk.
1896		Ade Artie (1963) 29: Next day they had to make a hot touch for a short coin so as to get the price of a couple o’ sinkers and a good old ‘draw one’.
1897		L.A. Times 9 Apr. 5: ‘Wake up,’ he cried, ‘one brown stone front, side of a funeral; two Irish lemons with all clothes on; plate of punk; an easy smear of axle grease and draw one in the dark, cap it all off with a farmer’s alliance.’.
1902		N.Y. Trib. sect. II 27 July 2: ‘Give me some poached eggs on toast,’ you say, ‘and a cup of coffee.’ The waiter turns toward the kitchen and shouts, ‘Noah on a raft!’ Then he wheels toward the steaming, polished coffee tanks and cries, ‘Draw one!’.
1926		Maines & Grant Wise-crack Dict. 7/1: Draw one at twilight – Put a little milk in the coffee.
1933		W. Winchell On Broadway 1 June [synd. col.] A Hollywood soda-jerker forwards this glossary of soda-fountain lingo out there...‘Shoot one’ and ‘Draw one’ is one coke and one coffee.
1941		Star (Marion, OH) 19 Sept. 6/5: For years restaurant counter men and waiters have used their own language in relaying orders to busy chefs. [...] Among the favorites and best known are: ‘Draw one’, meaning a cup of coffee.
1946		De Vries & Bushkin ‘Boogie Woogie Blue Plate’ 🎵 You can hear her calling orders like this [...] ‘Draw one, draw two, get that coffee perkin’ / Draw three, draw four, hold that mayo on the chopped egg workin’.
1960, 1975		Wentworth & Flexner DAS.
1966		in Newark (OH) Advocate 21 May 3/3–4.

to borrow money from someone.

1890–1904

Farmer & Henley Sl. and Its Analogues.

1. (UK black) to challenge someone to a fight.

2019

Headie One ‘Both’ 🎵 Everyday I hear niggas tryna draw me out / Why they all want me to war?

2. (UK gang) to involve someone in gang culture.

2018-20

T. Thorne (ed.) ‘Drill Slang Glossary’ at Forensic Linguistic Databank 🌐 Drawn out – involved in gang culture, under pressure from street crime.

3. (UK black/gang) to lure a target; to render someone vulnerable.

2018-20

T. Thorne (ed.) ‘Drill Slang Glossary’ at Forensic Linguistic Databank 🌐 Drawn out - lured, rendered vulnerable.

see under straw n.

see under teeth n.

1. (Aus.) to draw enemy fire (actual or metaphorical).

1918		Brisbane Courier 13 Apr. 6/: A.I.F. Slang [...] Whilst the infantryman has every respect for the artillery, they are sometimes accused by the former of ‘drawing the crabs,’ or enemy shell fire, on a comparatively quiet front.
1927		(ref. to 1918) Smith’s Wkly (Sydney) 10 Dec. 19/2: A.I.F. troops [...] hurriedly informed the Yanks that their enthusiasm would draw all the ‘crabs’ on the front their way before the night was out.
1932		L. Mann Flesh in Armour 260: The Tommy captain lit a cigarette and I lit my pipe. The young wench reckoned we would draw the crabs [i.e. bombs]. She was annoyed [ibid.] 279: The [tank] which had been nearest them had too frequently drawn the crabs.
1943		J. Devine Rats of Tobruk 86: [He] could not help thinking what a good artillery target this black clump of humanity made and wondering whether it would ‘draw the crabs’.
1952		T.A.G. Hungerford Ridge and River 142: ‘Think we’d better snaffle this bunch an’ scram! We don’t want to draw the crabs!’ ‘Shh,’ Malaise held up his finger .
1966		A.R. Chisholm Familiar Presence 54: There was often a trench-mortar installed just near our post, and at distressingly frequent intervals it would go off with an ear-shattering bang, until it ‘drew the crabs’ and was removed to another spot.
1978		H.C. Baker I was Listening 169: What were you trying to do— draw the crabs on the camp?
1989		J. Hughes Aus. Words and Origins.
2001		McKay & Nicholas Jungle Tracks 190: If I started to give orders a lot I would draw the crabs. The enemy will tend to zero in on people talking.

2. to attract unwelcome attention; to face criticism.

1932		Queensland Times 21 Apr. 3: From some quarters I daresay I’ll ‘draw the crabs’.
1959		Bulletin (Sydney) 23 Dec. 16/1: Most shearers are [...] down on men who ‘draw the crabs’ through bringing excessive grog to the huts.
1963		W.E. Harney To Ayers Rock and Beyond 23: My mate, who was proud of the fact that he had the inside knowledge on Sunday drinking, whispered into my ear that I should wait for him on a fixed spot at a certain time one Sunday afternoon. ‘Don’t make it too conspicuous [...] we don’t want to draw crabs on the publican.’ [AND].
1974		Bulletin (Sydney) 16 Mar. 17/2 n.p.: When Prime Minister Whitlam [...] told rural members of the Federal Parliamentary Labor Party that they should have expected the abolition of the superphosphate bounty because it was ‘in the Coombs report’, he really drew the crabs.
2001		D. Hewett Baker’s Dozen 99: Whadda they want to do, draw the crabs and put a man inter the coppers?

(Aus.) to come off worst, usu. in a share-out or division of spoils, labour, prizes etc.

1944		L. Glassop We Were the Rats 113: That poor bloke drew the crow.
1963		(con. 1944) L. Glassop Rats in New Guinea 107: Some poor jokers’ve probably drawn the crow.

(Irish) to pursue a profitable activity.

1993

O’Reilly & Sixth Class Over the Half Door n.p.: Any kid going to school could make a man’s wages ‘footing’ turf. So when you’re young and fit – to hell with the training, ‘draw the twine’ [BS].

to have influence.

1908		Denton (MD) Journal 24 Oct. 1/7: Slang of the Sailor [...] A sailor who draws more pay ‘draws more water.’.
1939		R. Chandler ‘Trouble Is My Business’ in Spanish Blood (1946) 185: The old man’s a little tough. They say he draws a lot of water.

(US) a general excl. expressing incredulity or derision.

1856		Spirit of the Times (N.Y.) 5 Apr. 87: Don’t be hard on a poor ole man. Draw it easy [HDAS].
1910		A. Laut Freebooters of the Wilderness 114: ‘Draw it easy,’ drawled Bat. ‘If you’re sick of it, it’s dead easy to get out. I guess the kid is doing the same.’.

see separate entry.

(US gay) the foreskin.

1972		B. Rodgers Queens’ Vernacular.
1979		Maledicta III:2 218: Canadian = uncircumcized, with draw drapes or lace curtain = foreskin (uncut appearing as a feature in sex advertisements).

1. to engage in homosexual activity.

c.1925

R. McAlmon Miss Knight (1963) 50: He’s one of them kind that tell you they’re real men until they get into bed with you, and then they sez, ‘Oh dearie, I forgot, I’m queer.’ Whoops dearie! What us bitches will do when we draw the veil. Just lift up our skirts and scream.

2. to pull back the foreskin.

1972

B. Rodgers Queens’ Vernacular 123: draw the blinds to pull back the foreskin.

3. to fellate an uncircumcised penis.

1972		B. Rodgers Queens’ Vernacular 203: sucking an uncircumcised cock [...] draw the drapes.
1988		H. Max Gay (S)language.

(UK Und.) to create counterfeit banknotes.

c.1786		Grose Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue ms. additions n.p.: Drawing the Kings Picture. Coining.
1788, 1796		Grose Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue (2nd, 3rd edn).
1811		Lex. Balatronicum.
1823		Egan Grose’s Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue.