Flat cap and passport packed? Then all you need now is this extract from an 1830’s guide to Morley dialect by Norrisson Scatcherd, and no-one will know you’re not a Morleian born and bred!
| A |
ADDLE, to earn by labour. Agate, doing or performing work. Akin, related, or of kindred. Arr, a spot or freckle Arrand, a spider. |
| B |
BARNS, children, as old as Chaucer’s time Bauk, to disappoint. Beck, a rivulet. Bell, to bellow or roar. Bid, to invite, Blink, to evade. Boggle, to take fright. Boon or Booining, a gratuitous assistance or service. Brackens, ferns. Braids, resembles, assimilates. Brat, a child’s apron or “pin-a-fore.” Bray, to beat or hammer. Breward, the brim of a hat. |
| C |
CAFT, the same as daft (i.e. intimidated.) Call, to abuse or scold. Cant, healthy or vigorous for one’s years. Capper, a puzzler, or a most excellent person or thing, (from caput, the head) Capt, posed or puzzled, thus, “I am capt” is “I am puzzled, or amazed.” Causey, (causeway) a flagged/paved footpath. Clammed, parched with thirst. Clarty, splashy or sticky. Click, to snatch at Clout or Clart, to pelt, to beat, also to daub. Clungy, sticky, adhesive. Cluther, to collect and crowd together. Cowk, cinder, or the core of fruit Cowl, to scrape or collect together, hence cowler or cowlrake. Cowlady, the ladybird. Crack, to boast Cronk is to croak or sit in an idle posture. Cross-grained, ill-tempered or perverse. Crumpled, tumbled, ruffled, twisted. Cuddle or Huddle, to embrace ardently Cute, smart, neat, clever. |
| D |
DAFT or Dafted, timid, frightened. Differ, to quarrel, or to “fratch.” Din, a noise. Dither, to tremble or shake with cold. Dizzy, giddy, stupified, Doff, to pull off one’s clothes. Don, to put them on, or dress oneself Down-it-mouth, dejected, dispirited. Dulberhead, a blockhead or stupid fellow. Dule, devil Dunnock, or a “Dicky Dunnock” is a hedge sparrow. |
| E |
EGG-ON, to “egg one on,” is to urge one on. Endways, forwards, thus “to come endways” is to hasten the step. |
| F |
FANTICLES, freckles on the skin. Favor’d, featured as to countenance, to be “ill favor’d” is bad looking. Feel, to smell Fend, activity, or to bestir oneself, also to defend oneself. Fettered, entangled, from feltrare. Fettle, condition or state; eg “in good fettle” Fettle, to clean or make neat Fey, to clear away, Flacker, to flutter or tremble, Flay, to frighten. Fligged, just feathered. A fligger is a kite without bow. Flit, to remove or quit one’s dwelling. Flite, to scold. Foist, bitter, brackish. Fond, silly, foolish, amorous. Fondling, one of a servile or sycophantic nature. Foreend, early part of (e.g) the day, or of one’s time. Foul, ugly. Fram, fragile, easily broken. Frame, to set about doing a piece of work – “now, frame.” Fratch, to quarrel Fresh, to be tipsy, to be drunk, Frump, affront or to rebuke sharply. |
| G |
GAIN, near, ready, convenient. Garth, a yard or other inclosure. Gaumless, idiotic, senseless. Gawky, is awkward Girn, to grin. Glee, to squint. Glent, a fleeting view or hasty sight. Glore, a bold, impudent stare, Greck, the last of a progeny, e.g litter of pigs |
| H |
HAGGLE, to cut awkwardly, or attempt to lower bargain. Hagues, the fruit of the hawthorn. Halsh, to tie or fasten, also a noose or knot. Hankled, entangled, incumbered. Hap, to wrap or cover up warmly. Hask, dry, parched. Hee, high, Saxon, “heah,” Heps, the fruit of the briar. Hide, to beat soundly. Hippins, clothes or wrappers for the posteriors of children. Hitch or Itch, to move quick, “come hitch” is “come move” Hobble, a difficulty or state of perplexity. Hocker, to stammer or hesitate, when about to tell a lie. Huddle, to embrace ardently, with arms folded. Hug, to carry. Huggans, the hips, from the Saxon “hogan,” a bearer of the body |
| K |
KEELER, a cooler, Saxon “celan” to be cold. Keive, to heave up or overthrow. Kensback, of crooked or perverse disposition. Kist, a chest, ancient English word. Kittle, crafty, wary, or to tickle. Knague, to gnaw. Knowl, to toll (e.g a bell) Kuss, a kiss, but kuss was the ancient pronunciation |
| L |
LACE, to beat. Lake or Laike to play, hence the ancient “laikins” , playthings. Leathering, an ancient term for beating. Lecks, droppings, hence “Leccages” or Leakages. Leet, to happen or fall out, also to alight, to “leet on” is to meet with. Lick, to beat or thrash. Lieve or Lief, to prefer, an ancient word. Lippen, to expect or depend on. Locker or Lockyer, an appendage to a box, also a cupboard. Loo or Low, red, on a glow , ancient word, ” lilly-low”, a. bright flame. Lops, fleas. Lubberhead, a stupid fellow. Lubberwort, that which makes idle or stupid. Lug, to pull one’s hair. Lurden, lazy. |
| M |
MACKS, sorts, all macks = all sorts. Maddle, to talk incoherently, maddled -stupified Marrow, a pair, fellow to, correspondent to. Matter, to disprove of, as “I don’t matter him” Maunder, a low grumble or talking to oneself. Meeterly, tolerably well Mell, to meddle or interfere with. Melsh, warm or mild, with an inclination to moisture. Mence or Menceful, decent, cleanly, respectable. Middling, tolerably well. Mittins, strong leather gloves having a thumb-socket but no fingers. Mizzle, to rain slightly or dew. Moskered, decayed. Mouldewarp, a mole. Muck, dirt. |
| N |
NANPIE, a magpie. Nash or Nesh, fragile. Naup, to strike one on the head. Nazzald, an insignificant lad Neb, a point, beak, or bill, as on a hat or bird. Nengnails, corns on the feet. Nifle, to steal by a little at each time. Nudge, to jog with the elbow, especially to beckon. |
| O |
ONELY, lonely, solitary. Ouzell or Ouizle, a blackbird. |
| P |
PARKIN, a cake made of oatmeal and treacle. Pause, to kick. Pick, an emetic, also to vomit, to throw down Piggin, a small pail with one handle, all of wood. |
| Q |
QUANDARY, a difficulty , or state of amazement Quarrel, a small diamond pane of glass. Quishin or Wishin, a cushion |
| R |
RAFFLE-COPPIN, a loose, vagrant, turbulent fellow. Raggabrash, ragamuffins, or despicable folk. Rannal or Raddle, to ruffle or rub up the hair. Raps, news , “what raps?” Rapscallion, much the same as raffle-coppin Ratch, to stretch , hence also to tell a lie or exaggerate. Reckon, to suppose. Reek, smoke Roar, to weep (roaring is crying). Roupy, hoarse Rumbustical, noisy, overbearing. Run-the-rig, to make a butt of anyone. |
| S |
SACKLESS, simple, helpless. Said, to be “soon said” is to be soon quieted Sam, to collect, Scraffle, to quarrel, to scramble, to be industrious. Scrat, scratch, the itch; hence “Old Scrat”, the devil Seck or Sack, a bag, Shot, an account or sum owing Shunt, to give way, or not preserve the original position. Shut, to get rid of, also to spend extravagantly Skellered, shrunk or bent. Sken, to look askance. Skill, to know or understand. Skuft, the “skuft of the neck” Slack, slow, loose- also a flat low piece of ground. Slart, to splash. Slatter, to spill or slop. Sleck, a small coal Sludge, mud. Smittle, contagion , v. to infect. Snape, to check. Snavvle, to speak through the nose. Sneck, the latch of a door. Snert, to snear at, or laugh to scorn. Snig, to cut off Snod, smooth. Soft, simple. Spelk, a splinter, or stick pointed for thatching Spice, sweetmeats. Stalled, wearied, surfeited, disgusted. Stee, a ladder. Steik. to latch (e.g a door) Steil, a handle. Stir, a disturbance or commotion. Store, estimation or regard “to set store by.” Storken, to stiffen, or get cool Stub, to break, or become ruined Sturdy, sulky and obstinate. Stutt, to stammer. Swarm, to climb with the knee (e.g up a tree) Sweal, to melt rapidly. Swelt, to sweat or perspire profusely. Switch, a twig, also to beat lightly. |
| T |
TASTRILL, a knave or mischievous fellow. Taws, marbles. Teng, to sting. Tent, to hinder to take, to take care of. Tew, to work well together or blend Thoil, to bestow without grudging. Threap, to maintain vehemently. Thropple, the throat. Tigg, to touch, also a game Tussel, to strive, or wrestle with. Twiney, fretful, perverse. Twinge, an earwig. |
| U | URCHIN, an hedgehog. |
| W |
WACKERING, shaking, trembling. War, worse. Ware, to expend or lay out Wark, work (ancient word) also to ache. Watter, water, anciently pronounced watter. Wearing, a consumption or decline. Whap, to beat soundly. Whapper, anything of extraordinary size. Whittle, a large knife Wisht, a command to be silent, or silence. Wither, a quick motion, accompanied with sound. Wizzened, withered. |