Green’s Dictionary of Slang

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Death of an Irish Town choose

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[Ire] J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 21: A rager blone – four horses and two sprassies. Wide with the makes. Still. (In translation: ‘A country woman – four half crowns and two sixpences ... she’s careful with her money’).
at blone, n.
[Ire] (con. 1930s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 23: Many young men joined up and the first were the sons of ‘Bolshie families’ who would find themselves on the parade grounds with the sons of Blueshirt families.
at blueshirt (n.) under blue, adj.1
[Ire] (con. 1930s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 23: Many young men joined up and the first were the sons of ‘Bolshie families’.
at bolshie, adj.
[Ire] (con. 1940s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 26: The ‘ignorant bosthoon of a spalpeen’ who told you ‘put your money where your mouth is’ in too many arguments.
at bosthoon, n.
[Ire] (ref. to 1940s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 68: ‘Galloping consumption’ was the fear of those 1940 days: when you heard someone had ‘the buck’ it seemed almost a death sentence.
at buck, n.8
[Ire] (con. 1930s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 21: The ‘townie’ felt superior to the countryman, ‘the buffer’. He was better dressed: he wore leather shoes or boots to the countryman’s serviceable clogs.
at buffer, n.3
[Ire] (con. 1940s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 47: The young boys, who were destined for John Bull-land, were now without a school.
at John Bull, n.1
[Ire] J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 11: The big ‘cat’ and its trailer stopped outside Harrisons.
at cat, n.6
[Ire] J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 8: You remember Jimmy Foley, the baker, who was always good for ‘the odd clod’ to make up fourpence.
at clod, n.2
[Ire] (con. 1950s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 57: Say, kid, how come a smart cookie like you don’t come out here?
at smart cookie (n.) under cookie, n.1
[Ire] (con. 1950s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 53: He will merely go home to a drab digs in Camden Town.
at digs, n.1
[Ire] (con. 1940s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 31: I was standing there idly listening to the Chairman giving it down the banks to Fianna Fail.
at down the banks (n.) under down, prep.
[Ire] (con. 1940s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 51: He came home at Christmas dressed to the nines.
at dressed (up) to the nines, phr.
[Ire] (con. 1940s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 31: They were to be a flash in the pan, people said...
at flash in the pan, n.
[Ire] (con. 1950s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 56: I [...] listened to the gee-whiz voices of earnest and proud Americans.
at gee-whiz, adj.
[Ire] J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 42: This is the Beat Generation. The Pepsi kids. Get with it, kiddo.
at get with it! (excl.) under get with, v.
[Ire] J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 21: A rager blone – four horses and two sprassies. Wide with the makes. Still. (In translation: ‘A country woman – four half crowns and two sixpences ... she’s careful with her money’).
at horse, n.
[Ire] (con. 1940s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 31: Bernie Commons came into Charlestown on Fair and Market Day and let rip with fiery speeches which ‘the rager shams’ loved.
at let rip, v.
[Ire] (con. 1930s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 42: So what’s a hero today, mack?
at Mac, n.1
[Ire] J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 21: A rager blone – four horses and two sprassies. Wide with the makes. Still. (In translation: ‘A country woman – four half crowns and two sixpences ... she’s careful with her money’).
at make, n.1
[Ire] (con. 1940s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 26: The ‘ignorant bosthoon of a spailpeen’ who told you ‘put your money where your mouth is’ in too many arguments.
at put one’s money where one’s mouth is (v.) under money, n.
[Ire] (con. 1940s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 18: Himself, with the reins in hand and ‘nicely’, called out: ‘Come on, woman’.
at nicely, adv.
[Ire] J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 43: Not to worry that some snot-nosed kid in Charlestown will pester the life out of a parent for a Batman suit.
at snot-nosed, adj.
[Ire] (con. 1930s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 59: There was great appeal about those Irish lads who carried their innocence as clearly as their lack of passion-pit sophistication.
at passion pit (n.) under passion, n.
[Ire] (con. 1930s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town in Irish Times n.p.: We went back to the doss house and there was a meal. I couldn’t peck it, cove; anyway I had a rake of sandwiches me mother made me and I pecked them and went to bed [BS].
at peck, v.1
[Ire] (con. 1950s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 56: The ubiquitous lawn-sprinkler piddled on grey-brown grass.
at piddle, v.
[Ire] (con. 1930s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 20: They were, in the current slang of the town, ‘the buff shams’, ‘rager coves’.
at rager, n.
[Ire] (con. 1930s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town in Irish Times n.p.: We went back to the doss house and there was a meal. I couldn’t peck it, cove; anyway I had a rake of sandwiches me mother made me and I pecked them and went to bed [BS].
at rake, n.3
[Ire] (con. 1930s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 19: ‘The shades! Screw the shades,’ was the dialect to warn the combatants that the guards were here.
at shade, n.1
[Ire] (con. 1930s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 20: They were, in the current slang of the town, ‘the buff shams’.
at sham, n.3
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