Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. a mendicant villain, the 11th rank of the canting crew n. and thus marginally less influential than the upright man n., distinguished by his short cloak, similar to that of the Grey Friars.

c.1561		Awdeley Fraternitye of Vacabondes in Viles & Furnivall (1907) 4: A Curtall is much like to the Vpright man, but hys authority is not fully so great. He vseth commonly to go with a short cloke, like to grey Friers, & his woman with him in like liuery, which he calleth his Altham if she be hys wyfe, & if she be his harlot, she is called hys Doxy.
c.1566		Harman Caveat for Common Cursetours in Viles & Furnivall (1907) 37: There bee of these Roges Curtales, wearing shorte clokes, that wyll chaunge their aparell, as occation seruethe.
1592		Greene Quip for an Upstart Courtier E3: I [...] haue played many madde pranckes, for which cause, you may apparently see I am made a curtall, for the Pillory.
1608		Dekker Belman of London C4: Some of this broode are called Curtals, because they weare short cloakes: their company is dangerous.
1665		Head Eng. Rogue I 38: The rest in order thus [...] Curtals, Irish toyle.
1674		Head Canting Academy (2nd edn) 4: Nor will I suffer him [...] to be abused by any strange Abrams, Rufflers, Hookers, Palliards, Swadlars, Irish Toyls, Swig-men, Whip-Jacks, Jark-men, Bawdy-baskets, Dommerars, Clapperdogeons, Patricoes, or Curtalls.
1688		R. Holme Academy of Armory Ch. iii item 68b: Give me leave to give you the names (as in their Canting Language they call themselves) of all (or most of such) as follow the Vagabond Trade, according to their Regiments or Divisions, as [...] Curtals.
c.1698		B.E. Dict. Canting Crew n.p.: Curtals c. the Eleventh Rank of the Canting Crew.
1749		B.M. Carew ‘The Oath of the Canting Crew’ in Farmer Musa Pedestris (1896) 51: No swigman, swaddler, clapperdudgeon; / Cadge-gIoak, curtal, or curmudgeon.
1785, 1788, 1796		Grose Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue.
1811		Lex. Balatronicum.
1823		Egan Grose’s Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue.

2. a general insult; also attrib.

1540		D. Lyndsay Satyre of Thrie Estaits IV vii: A curtill quene, a laidlie lurdane, Off strang wesche sheill tak a jurdane.
1596		S. Gosson Pleasant quippes for upstart newfangled gentlewomen 13: Fiest, a simple swaine that nothing knowes; / next, curtaile-flurt, as rank as beast.
1604		Dekker Honest Whore Pt 1 I iv: What? you pyed curtal, what’s that you are neighing?

3. a penis.

1613

Beaumont & Fletcher Coxcomb II ii: I’m glad to hear your curtal’s grown so lusty; / He was dry-founder’d t’other day; weehee.

4. a prostitute.

1568		‘Cambridg Libell’ in May & Bryson Verse Libel 336: A Laurance lane their dwelleth she, / The Curtall care for rhetorick still, / A broyling gridiron might she be.
1573		‘Cambridg Libell’ in May & Bryson Verse Libel 336: I am a post in haste with speede, / My Jade is almost tyred, / But when this failes at Cambridge stewes, / A Curtall soone is hyred.
1611		R. Cotgrave Dict. of Fr. and Eng. Tongues n.p.: Caignardiere, a hedge-whore, lazie queane, lowsie trull, filthie curtall, Doxie, Morte.
1619		H. Button Follie’s Anatomie 14: Cut a caper, neatlely prance, / And with his curtail some odde galliard dance.
1621		Beaumont & Fletcher Thierry and Theodoret I i: Your old and honord Mistresse, you tyr’d curtals, Suffers for your base sinnes.
1706		E. Phillips New World of Words (6th edn) n.p.: Curtail, a Drab, or nasty Slut.

5. a thief who cuts off pieces of silk, cloth, linen etc hanging from shop windows.

1725		New Canting Dict. n.p.: curtails the Eleventh Rank of the Canting Crew; so called from their Practice to cut off Pieces of Silk, Cloth, Linen or Stuff, that were hung out at the Shop-Windows of Mercers, Drapers, &c. as also sometimes the Tails of Womens Gowns, their Hoods; Scarves, Pinners, &c. if richly Lac’d: Nor do they stick at cutting off as far as they can reach, leaden Water-pipes, Gutters, and Spouts, or any thing, either in Whole or in Part, they can lay their Hands on: Also a Species of Cut-purses. Hence the Word.
1737, 1759, 1760, 1776		Bailey Universal Etym. Eng. Dict. [as cit. 1725].
1785, 1788, 1796		Grose Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue n.p.: Curtails, thieves who cut off pieces of stuff hanging out of shop windows, the tails of women’s gowns.
1811		Lex. Balatronicum.
1823		Egan Grose’s Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue.