Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. having prominent, staring eyes [SE after 17C].

1515		Cocke Lorelles Bote Biii: And pers peuterer that knocketh a basyn, With gogle eyed tomson shepster of lyn.
1545		R. Ascham Toxophilus (1761) II 157: He that is gogle eyde, and lokes a squintre, hath both his countenaunce clene marred.
1599		Jonson Every Man Out of his Humour V iv: The whoreson strummel-patch’d, goggled-eyed grumbledories.
1672		J. Phillips Maronides (1678) V 89: Hippocoon his goggle eyes / Casting a thousand times to the skies.
1675		T. Lupton Thousand Notable Things 269: Take a Description of an illfavoured Woman, yet exceedingly doted upon by a fond foolish Lover: Her skin and Face pimpled; pale; Yellow; Tanned; Tallow-fac’d; a swoln Juglars; [...] Goggle-eyed; Blear-eyed; Squint-eyed.
1680		M. Stevenson Wits Paraphras’d 85: I have observ’d [...] / How you’d turn up your goggle Eys.
1781		Hicky’s Bengal Gaz. 23-30 June n.p.: Master Leaveland Goggle Eye of Bogale hall.
1796		Hants. Chron. 16 June 3/3: No ladies of the name of Carrotty Bess, Bumping Moll, Goggle-eyed Nan, or Draggle-tail Jenny were of the party.
1812		J. Bell Jr. (ed.) Rhymes of Northern Bards 46: Jack [...] wad danced wi’ goggle-ey’d Mally-o.
1828		‘A Flat Enlightened’ Life in the West II 13: [H]e could get no backers, on account of the cross he fought with ‘goggle-eyed Sawney’.
1834		Examiner 8 June 2/1: Crooked, dry, bald, goggle-eyed [...] with staring eyes, sparrow-mouthed.
1850		Glasgow Gaz. 2 Nov. 1/2: The eyes of this interesting fiddler were goggled.
1857		Paul Pry (London 15 Aug. n.p.: The goggle-eyed ugly skinny jeweller, not to sit in a certain; house near Greek-street, making remarks.
1858		Yorkville Enquirer (SC) 22 Apr. 4/2: We do not wish to pollute our columns with such trash [...] snaggle-tooth — box-ankled — goggle-eyed — nigger-lipped — soft-headed — long-eared [etc].
1889		Nat. Police Gaz. (NY) 28 Dec.3/2: Prior to her marriage to the goggle-eyed Loy, Blanche’s subsequent name was Wilson.
1924		Dover Exp. 17 Oct. 3/3: The members of the Government were googly-eyed Bolshies.

2. (US) wearing spectacles; thus goggle-eyes n., a nickname for a spectacle wearer (see cit. 1953).

1700		N. Ward Rambling Rakes 7: We took Notice of a Goggle-Eyd Jew [...] whose Habitation is not far from the Synagogue.
1834		Ely’s Hawk & Buzzard (NY) 15 Mar. 2/1: I wonder whether she has those spectacles yet that she stole from me [...] I would adviser her not to be squinting through her gogley eyes.
1835		‘A Blow-Out Among The Blowen’ Secret Songster 14: I’ll sing you an out-and-out chaunt, if you like, / About blear-eyed Molly, and goggle-eyed Mike.
1860		T. Haliburton Season Ticket 194: His eldest daughter who is goggle-eyed, is known as ‘Stare Case’.
1880		H.L. Williams Darkey Sleep-Walker 3: Doddering booktionaries and goggle-eyed geologists.
1881		Manchester Courier 25 June 5: A Texas Mother-In-Law [addressing a policeman] To think of this peaky, little, worthless, spindle-shanked, goggled-eyed whelp getting clear off.
[1915		Hull Dly Mail 22 July 2/5: We are called the ‘goggle-eyed Army’ owing to our wearing goggles to protect our eyes from the fierce rays of the sun] .
1920		H. Wiley Wildcat 55: He was a goggle-eyed mulatto product.
1929		(con. WWI) R. Graves Goodbye to All That (1960) 164: A new gas-helmet, popularly known as ‘the goggle-eyed booger with the tit.’.
1953		(con. 1912–13) A.C. Inman diary in Aaron (1985) 94: You were ‘four eyes’ and ‘goggle eyes’ and what not.
1958		Willans & Searle Complete Molesworth (1985) 62: We shall all be a google eyed ant society.
1999		Guardian G2 8 July 9: It is a little disappointing to be taken for a goggle-eyed harridan with big teeth.
2005		P. Howard Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nightdress 12: He had the actual cheek, roysh, to ring me up [...] – the goggle-eyed freak.
2013		F. Bill Donnybrook [ebook] ‘Yeah! Get you a handful, goggle-eyes!’.

3. (US, also goggle-eyed drunk, goggly, google-eyed, googly-eyed) drunk.

1875		Cambria Freeman (Edensburg, PA) 22 Oct. 1/7: The word Drunk is incomparably richer in synonyms than any other word [...] to this we may add: steaming it, goggle-eyed, have a brick in his hat, balmy, o be joyful.
1899–1900		C.L. Cullen Tales of the Ex-Tanks 330: He was google-eyed and spiflicated.
1916		Sun (NY) 9 Apr. 10/7: [List provided by a doctor in the alcoholic ward at Bellevue — terms from ambulance drivers] [...] ginny, google-eyed, lushy, off one’s trolley, slushed.
1921		Dos Passos Three Soldiers 77: An’ the captains says, ‘Fine,’ and the sergeant would have said, ‘Fine,’ but he was so goggle-eyed drunk he couldn’t.
1921		Ethel Waters ‘At the Jump Steady Ball’ 🎵 Everybody in the hall was google-eyed; / They started serving me gin and wine, / And everything in wood alcohol line, / Chicago pop and all.
1929		J.B. Priestley Good Companions 422: In he comes wi’ that chap, Finnegan – both on ’em a bit goggly.
1939		Howsley Argot: Dict. of Und. Sl. 21: googly eyed [...] hilariously drunk.

4. (also google-eyed) dazed.

1900		Marvel 15 May 13: Don’t sit there like a goggle-eyed phantom of a polecat.
1902		Ade Girl Proposition 6: It made him google-eyed and he walked off the Curb.
1919		W.H. Downing Digger Dialects 26: goggle-eyed — dazed.
1920		Ade Hand-made Fables 104: Even if you pump up a genuine interest, you will be google-eyed after you have studied some 200 Masterpieces.
1920		R. Lardner Big Town 144: The rest of the guests stared at us goggle-eyed.
1928		J. Callahan Man’s Grim Justice 286: I read it until I was google-eyed.
1934		H. Roth Call It Sleep (1977) 415: De goggle-eyed yid an’ his red cock?
1943		E. Pyle Here Is Your War (1945) 273: We had looked all day goggle-eyed at more Germans than we have ever expected to see.
1960		G. Marx letter 19 July Groucho Letters (1967) 239: I’m goggle-eyed from watching the convention.
1971		B. Short Black and White Baby 65: [I] sat in the front row, jubilant and goggle-eyed as the spectacle unfolded.
2015		L. McInerney Glorious Heresies 276: [H]e goes a bit googly-eyed because he thought I was talking out my hole.

5. (US) squinting, cross-eyed.

1929		W. Winchell Your Broadway & Mine 2 Mar. [synd. col.] Several beautiful actresses who frequently reveal ‘eye defects’ (ritz for googly-eyed) on the screen.
2018		(con. 1963) L. Berney November Road 240: ‘That goggle-eyed bean-eater’.