Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. to bully, to intimidate; thus bullocking n.

1716		M. Davies Athenae Britannicae I 272: Upon the evidence of that bullocking Fryer Campanella [F&H].
1749		Fielding Tom Jones (1959) 43: And then you have charged me with bullocking you into owning the truth. Is it very likely, an’t please your worship, that I should bullock him?
1764		Foote Mayor of Garrat in Works (1799) I 183: I am a man of authority; she shan’t think to bullock and domineer over me.
1785, 1788, 1796		Grose Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue.
1806		G. Colman Yngr John Bull IV i: The head bailey he began a bullocking at the old man.
1812		‘Hector Bull-us’ Diverting Hist. of John Bull and Brother Jonathan 70: You must not expect to bully me with your bullocking way, for I care not a bull-rush [...] for all the bulls in the world, not excepting John Bull himself.
1823		‘Jon Bee’ Dict. of the Turf, the Ring, the Chase, etc.
1838		‘Paul Pry’ Oddities of London Life I 22: DEFENDANT—‘The handerchief—’ COMPLAINANT—Don’t bullock me; it wasn’t sent, I say. DEFENDANT—Away!
1900–10		see sense 2.

2. (Aus.) to perform heavy manual labour.

1888		‘Rolf Boldrewood’ Robbery Under Arms (1922) 47: It would have paid us better if we’d read a little more and put the ‘bullocking’ on one side.
1894		Truth (Sydney) 11 Feb. 7/2: But we weren’t fit for bullocking, and said we were not on.
1900–10		Stephens & O’Brien Materials for a Dict. of Aus. Sl. [unpub. ms.] 31: BULLOCK, BULLOCKED, BULLOCKER: 1. – to bullock, to work hard and persistently. Bullocked, a similar meaning. A boss who bullocked his men would always be urging them to greater efforts either with oaths or curses.
1928		V. Palmer Passage 45: Good old plugger, Lew [...] Puts his head well down and bullocks away.
1936		(con. 1830s–60s) ‘Miles Franklin’ All That Swagger 347: Had he listened, he would now have been in a comfortable school instead of having bullocked himself into an early grave.

3. (Aus.) lit. or fig., to push through.

1950		V. Palmer Passage (1957) 5: Fred was tough as tarred canvas, able to bullock his way anywhere.
1957		V. Palmer Rainbow-Bird 92: The only way to bullock through these air-joumeys is to get a good reed inside you before you take off.