| 释义 |
▪ I. wag, n.1|wæg|
Also 6 wagg(e.
[f. wag v.]
1. An act of wagging (the tail, hand, tongue, etc.).
1589Lodge Scilla's Met. B j, When first with [printed which] fingers wagge he gan to still them. 1599B. Jonson Cynthia's Rev. v. iv, Amo. You become the simper, well, ladie. Mer. And the wag, better. 1823Scott Quentin D. Introd., There was..more..sympathy in the wag of old Trusty's tail, than if [etc.]. 1848Dickens Dombey xi, With..a scarcely perceptible wag of his head. 1870E. H. Pember Trag. Lesbos iii. 68 One wag of thy fool's tongue at her or me, And by the head of Hecate, thou diest! 1885R. Buchanan Annan Water viii, But recognising her, he gave a faint wag of the tail and sank down again to doze. 1891Field 28 Nov. 835/1 The most silent of us are apt to let our tongues wag, or to listen complacently to the wag of others.
b. Power or disposition to wag.
1851D. Jerrold St. Giles xiii. 127 The old house-dog crawled towards him, with no wag in his tail. 1881Century Mag. XXIII. 932/2 [They] stroked his [the dead ass's] long ears out of which the wag had gone forever.
†2. to hold (a person) wag: to keep at bay, defy. Obs.
c1540J. Heywood Wit & Folly (Percy Soc.) 12, I say, nay!—and wyll so envey, That I wyll hold ye wagg a nother way. 1606Warner Alb. Eng. xvi. cvii. 415 But who against that Ages Mars first Edward might hold-out? Yet twice this Lewlin held him wag.
▪ II. wag, n.2|wæg|
Also 6–7 wagg(e.
[Prob. f. wag v.
Possibly (as suggested by Wedgwood) a shortening of waghalter, applied playfully to a child or to a joker. But it may have originated from the verb in other ways.]
†1. A mischievous boy (often as a mother's term of endearment to a baby boy); in wider application, a youth, young man, a ‘fellow’, ‘chap’. Obs.
a1553Udall Royster D. ii. iv. (Arb.) 38, I will rather haue my cote twentie times swinged, Than on the naughtie wag not to be auenged. 1573–80Tusser Husb. (1878) 177 For euerie trifle leaue ianting thy nag, but rather make lackey of Jack boie thy wag. 1584Lyly Sappho v. ii. 55 [Venus says to Cupid:] Vnhappy wag, what hast thou done? 1589Greene Menaphon (Arb.) 27 Mothers wagge, pretie boy. Fathers sorrow, fathers ioy. 1596Shakes. 1 Hen. IV, i. ii. 66 But I prythee sweet Wag, shall there be Gallowes standing in England when thou art King? 1601B. Jonson Poetaster iv. iii, But if Cypris once recouer The wag; it shall behoue her to looke better to him. 1607Heywood Fair Maid Exch. H 4, Thou maist..Learne to entice the affable yong wagge. 1672Marvell Reh. Transp. i. 87 Nor was he let down till the Master had planted a Grove of Birch in his back-side, for the Terrour..of all Waggs that divulge the Secrets of Priscian.
2. ‘Any one ludicrously mischievous; a merry droll’ (J.); a habitual joker. (In early use often combined with sense 1.) Phrase, to play the wag.
1584R. Scot Discov. Witchcr. xiii. xxiii. 324 How to rap a wag vpon the knuckles. c1585Fair Em i. iii. 59 The little boy hath played the wagg with you. 1591Lyly Endym. iii. iii, Heere commeth two wagges. Enter Dares and Samias. 1604Breton Grimellos Fort. (Grosart) 9/2 Hauing wit enough, vpon a litle warning, to plaie the wagge in the right vaine. 1612Beaum. & Fl. Coxcomb v. i, Just. Go to, go to, you have a merry meaning, I have found you sir ifaith, you are a wag, away. 1635Life Long Meg of Westminster 37 The little boy, that was a wag, thought to be merry with the miller. 1640in 11th Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. App. vii. 100 Some wagg or other hath sett over the parliament doore pray remember the judges as if they had been too long forgotten. 1744M. Bishop Life 156 We were daily playing the Wag, and as jocular as ever Men were all the time we stayed there. 1745Joe Miller's Jests 61 The same Wagg..said, Taylors were like Woodcocks, for they got their Sustenance by their long Bills. 1779Mirror No. 23 ⁋3 He took in succession the degrees of a wag, a pickle, and a lad of mettle. 1787F. Burney Diary June, Colonel Goldsworthy is the wag professed of their community. 1845Ford Handbk. Spain i. 21 The inns of Spain are divided by wags into many classes—the bad, the worse, and the worst. 1849W. Irving Goldsmith i. 29 One Kelley, a notorious wag. 1855Macaulay Hist. Eng. xix. IV. 358 Some wag cried out, ‘Burn it; burn it;’ and this bad pun..was received with shouts of laughter.
3. to play (the) wag: to play truant. slang. Also, to hop the wag: see hop v.1 6 a.
1851–61Mayhew Lond. Labour III. 87 Used by school⁓masters for the correction of boys who neglect their tasks, or play the wag. Ibid. 197 They often persuaded me to ‘hop the wag,’ that is, play truant from school. 1889Jerome Three Men in Boat xvii. 284 A boy, when he plays the wag from school. 1900‘H. Lawson’ Over Sliprails 154 Oh! why will you run away from home, Will, and play the wag, and steal, and get us all into such trouble?
▪ III. wag, n.3 Archæol.|wæg|
[ad. Gael. uamhag, dim. of uamh cave, hollow: cf. weem.]
In Caithness, an Iron-age galleried structure set partly below ground-level (see quot. 1963).
[1776A. Pope in T. Pennant Tour in Scotl. 1769 (ed. 4) 338 Figures 2 and 3 are what are styled forest or hunting houses... They consist of a gallery, with a number of small rooms on the sides..made with the vast flags [stones] this country is famous for... Their length is from fifty to sixty feet. These buildings are only in places where the great flags are plentiful. In Glen-Loch are three, and are called by the country people Uags. ]1911A. O. Curle in Proc. Soc. Antiquaries Scotl. 11 Dec. 89 To the galleried structure the name ‘wag’ in former times was evidently applied and still remains in use, though now transferred from the structure to the place or site, e.g. ‘Wag-more rig’, ‘Wag-burn’ and ‘the Wag’. 1921Ibid. 10 Jan. 93 Interesting as the discovery of these post⁓holes is in the elucidation of the broch construction, the interest it evokes does not stop here. The arrangement at once recalls the plans of the wags or galleried dwellings in Caithness. 1963Field Archaeol. (Ordnance Survey) (ed. 4) 63 In Caithness there is the local variant structure known as a wag... The dwelling part is represented by a strongly-built hut circle of ordinary plan, but to this is added an oval stone-built chamber about twice as big as the hut with its floor excavated somewhat below the general ground level. 1972E. M. Mackie in Dark Ages in Highlands 16 One site at Forse..could well be a pre-broch defensive structure... This is the so-called ‘wag’ or ‘prehistoric cattlefold’ excavated by Alexander Curle.
▪ IV. wag, v.|wæg|
Inflected wagged, wagging. Forms: 3–7 wagge, 4, 6 wage, 6–8 wagg, 4– wag.
[ME. wagge-n, f. root of OE. waᵹian (ME. waȝe-n) to oscillate, shake: see waw v.
The verb may be regarded as an iterative or emphatic form of waᵹian waw v., which is often nearly synonymous; it was used, e.g., of a loose tooth, and (ME.) in the proverb 4 c. Parallel formations from the same root are ON. vagga wk. fem., cradle (Sw. vagga, Du. vugge), (M)Sw. vagga to rock a cradle, early mod.G. waggen (mod.HG. dial. wacken) to waver, totter. Cf. waggle v.]
I. Intransitive uses.
1. To be in motion or activity; to stir, move. Now colloq. (chiefly in negative context), to stir, move one's limbs.
a1225Ancr. R. 374 Þis wrastlunge is ful bitter to monie þet beoð ful uorð iðe weie touward heouene; for þe ȝet fondunges..waggeð oðer hwules. c1460Towneley Myst. xxx. 226 Vnethes may I wag, man, for wery in youre stabill Whils I set my stag, man. c1480Henryson Test. Cress. 196 Ane horne he [sc. Mars] blew..Quhilk all this warld with weir has maid to wag. c1532G. Du Wes Introd. Fr. in Palsgr. 939 To brawle or to wage, bransler. 1582C. Fetherstone Dial. agst. Dancing A 4 b, The wofull wayling of the widowe doeth not once make him [the rich man] wagge. 1585― tr. Calvin on Acts i. 4. 6 Warlike discipline requireth this, that no man wagge, vnlesse hee be commaunded by the captaine. 1587Turberv. Trag. Tales 52 [He] did feele a thing by happe, Within her wombe to wagge, and beat against her brest. 1593Bilson Govt. Christ's Ch. 289 Binde them fast to their chaires that they shall not wagge. 1631[Mabbe] Celestina xix. 189 Our unfortunate Master is falne from the ladder, and neither speakes nor wagges. 1636Featly Clavis Myst. xxiii. 297 Driven to fly with her heavie burden with which she is scarce able to wag. 1650T. B[ayley] Worcester's Apoph. Ep. Rdr. 2 Some..field-Chaplains..envying that a loyall pen should wagge, where they [etc.]. 1653H. Cogan tr. Pinto's Trav. xxiv. 91 Which gave us such an alarum, as not daring scarce to wag we got out again with all secrecy. 1692R. L'Estrange Josephus, Antiq. vi. v. (1733) 138 The miserable Distress of their Condition drew Tears and Pity wherever they came, but not a Creature durst so much as wag to help them. 1860G. J. Whyte-Melville Market Harb. xii, I've a hack here at Welford... He's short of work, poor devil! and could hardly wag coming up the hill.
†2. To totter, stagger, be in danger of falling.
c1340Nominale (Skeat) 166 M[an] sliduth vp-on hyse, W[oman] waggi[t]h [Fr. ercule; error for croule] and falluth lowe. 1377Langl. P. Pl. B. xviii. 61 Þe wal wagged and clef and al þe worlde quaued. c1440Gesta Rom. (Harl. MS.) 110 Þey [sc. two beasts] gnowe at the Rote of the tree..to throwe it downe, in so muche that the wrecchid man felte it wagge. 1470–85Malory Arthur vii. xvii. 238 And thenne they stode wagyng and scateryng [1529 stakerynge], pontyng, blowynge and bledynge.
3. To oscillate, shake, or sway alternately in opposite directions, as something working on a pivot, fitting loosely in a socket, or the like. Of a boat or ship: To rock.
1377Langl. P. Pl. B. viii. 31 Þe wynde and þe water and þe bote waggynge Maketh þe man many a tyme to falle and to stonde. c1386Chaucer Reeve's T. 119 Yet saugh I neuere, by my fader kyn, How that the hopur wagges til and fra. c1394P. Pl. Crede 226 His chyn wiþ a chol lollede..þat all wagged his flesh as a quyk mire. 1398Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xvii. xlv. (Bodl. MS.) Iuce þerof hette wiþ vynegre fastene[þ] teþe þatt waggen. c1440Promp. Parv. 513/1 Waggon', or waveron', or stere be hyt selfe as a thynge hangynge, vacillo. c1520Skelton Magnyf. 1821, I sawe a wethercocke wagge with the wynde! a1572Knox Hist. Ref. Wks. 1846 I. 147 Syd gounis mycht have bene sein wantonly wag from the one wall to the other. 1640Wilkins New Planet v. (1707) 196 It could not wag with the least kind of Declination. 1654Whitelocke Swed. Ambassy (1772) II. 371 Mar. She wagges! she wagges!.. My lord, uppon my life the ship did wag; I saw her move. 1725Bradley's Family Dict. s.v. Tunnel, There should be a Stick..to keep up the Head and Tail [of a stalking horse], which last should be at some distance from the Body, that it may wag in moving. 1818Scott Rob Roy xviii, Better a finger aff as aye wagging.
†b. Of leaves, corn, reeds, etc.: To waver, shake. Obs.
1398Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xvii. vii. (1495) 607 A rede..wagyth wyth the wynde. c1400Laud Troy Bk. 8968 As levis wagges with the wynde. 1423Jas. I Kingis Q. lx, Bot blawe wynd, blawe,..That sum twig may wag, and mak hir to wake. 1568Grafton Chron. I. 7 The little boye espying the bush to wag,..imagined that there lay some wilde beast. 1658tr. Porta's Nat. Magic iv. i. 113 Binde [the Vines]..with strings or thongs, that they may be surely stayed from wagging up and down. 1663Patrick Parab. Pilgrim xxxvi. (1687) 457 If a leaf wagged, it was by the sweet breath of those Musicians which sate among the branches. a1722Lisle Husb. (1757) 243 No grass of any other kind did wag.
Proverbial phrase.1596J. Melvill Autob. & Diary (Wodrow Soc.) 362 The King..lyked of nan that wald nocht wag as the bus [= bush] waggit.
†c. fig. To waver, vacillate. Obs.
1387Trevisa Higden (Rolls) VII. 321 Robard, waggynge as a reed, assented anon. 1566Drant Horace, Sat. i. i. A v, Thy mynde it waues and wagges.
†d. To dangle on the gallows, be hanged. Obs.
c1430Pilgr. Lyf Manhode iii. xvii. (1869) 144 It is þe hand þat maketh the feet to wagge [Fr. baller] and þe eres to be kitte. 1547Boorde Brev. Health §151 Let them beware of wagging in the Galowes. 15..A pore Help 256 in Hazlitt E.P.P. (1866) 261 Your happe may be to wagge Upon a wodden nagge.
4. Of a limb, the head or tail, etc.: To be moved briskly from side to side.
1484Caxton Fables of æsop iii. xvii, [The ape said to the fox] What auaylleth to the soo long a taylle, hit doth but wagge. 1601Holland Pliny ix. x. I. 241 The Troglodites have among them certaine Tortoises, with broad hornes like the pegges in a Lute or Harpe, and the same will wagge and stirre so, as in swimming they helpe themselves therewith. 1602Shakes. Ham. v. i. 290 Why I will fight with him vppon this Theme Vntill my eielids will no longer wag. 1693Humours Town 92 Their Elbows wag faster than their Tongues. 1830Scott Demonol. i. 15 A humourist, who planted himself..with his eyes riveted on the..bronze lion that graces the front of Northumberland-house.., and having attracted the attention of those who looked at him by muttering ‘By Heaven it wags!’ [etc.].
b. Of the tongue, † lips: To move briskly in animated talk: often with an implication of foolish or indiscreet speech.
1590Tarlton's Newes Purgat. 24 When her tung could not wagge, she heaued her hands aboue water. 1599B. Jonson Cynthia's Rev. v. iii, For the solemne Addresse, two Lips wagging, and neuer a wise word. 1604Breton Grimellos Fort. (Grosart) 13/1 Being one that loued to heare a tongue wagge, either her owne, her Gossips, her Maides, or her Pyes. 1828Scott F.M. Perth ii, ‘Daughter,’ said Simon, ‘your tongue wags too freely.’ 1863Geo. Eliot Romola x, Boys whose tongues were used to wag in concert at the most brutal street games. 1883F. M. Peard Contrad. xxvii, I know you will be careful not to set tongues wagging.
c. Proverb.
[13..: see waw v.] c1550Disc. Common Weal Eng. (1893) 138 It is a common proverbe, it is mery in hall when beardes wagges all. 1562J. Heywood Prov. & Epigr. (1867) 129. 1573–80 Tusser Husb. (1878) 126. 1597 Shakes. 2 Hen. IV, v. iii. 37. 1731–8 Swift Pol. Conversat. 170.
d. To sway the body from side to side; (of a dog) to walk with a swaying movement.
1726Garretson Sch. Manners 36 Run not hastily in the street, nor go too slowly: wag not to and fro, nor use any antick or wanton posture either of thy head, hands, feet or body. 1868J. Kavanagh Dora xxi, They all left the inn.., Eva as usual clinging to Dora's side, and Fido wagging slowly behind her.
†5. To move about from place to place; to wander. Also, to drift (in water). Obs.
c1325Poem Times Edw. II 190 in Pol. Songs (1839) 332 He wole wagge aboute the cloistre and kepen hise fet clene in house. 1382Wyclif Job xxxviii. 41 Who maketh redi to the crowe his mete, whan his briddis crie to God, hider and thider waggende [Vulg. vagantes]. c1400Destr. Troy 13542 Thus I skope fro the skathe with skyrme of my hondes, And with wawes of the water wagget to bonke. c1555Harpsfield Divorce Hen. VIII (Camden) 251 The head thus being above, the body beneath in water, wagging and removing to and fro.
†6. To move, budge from a place. Obs.
c1400Laud Troy Bk. 5875 Thei myght onethes a-wey wagge With siluer and gold. 1585C. Fetherstone tr. Calvin on Acts xvi. 27. 402 Though his bands wer loosed, he did not once wag from his place. 1589Puttenham Engl. Poesie iii. xix. (Arb.) 240 It is said by manner of a prouerbiall speach that he who findes himselfe well should not wagge. 1609C. Butler Fem. Mon. (1634) 9 As many [bees] as are stricken, within an hour after, will not be able to wag out of the place. 1666Glanvil Consid. Witches (1667) 20 The separated souls of the wicked..cannot possibly wag from the place of their confinement. 1675Wycherley Country-Wife iv. iv, Mrs. Pin. Sir go we'l follow you. Spar. I will not wag without you. 1715Hearne Collect. (O.H.S.) V. 133, I cannot wag out of Oxford till the Term is ended. 1730Fielding Rape upon Rape iii. xi, I'll not wag without you.
7. To go, depart, be off. Now colloq.
1594Lyly Mother Bombie ii. i. 58 But let mee bee wagging. 1598Shakes. Merry W. i. iii. 7 Discard (bully Hercules) casheere; let them wag; trot, trot. 1599― Much Ado v. i. 16 If such a one will smile and stroke his beard, And sorrow, wagge [read Bid sorrow wagge], crie hem, when he should grone. 1601W. Percy Cuckqueanes & Cuckolds Errants iv. i. (Roxb.) 47 My gentleman, let him wagge, whither he please, in the name of Jehoua. 1652A. Ross Hist. World ii. iv. 64 He [Heliogabalus]..never would wag any where without 60 Chariots. 1779Cowper Yearly Distr. 50 Come, neighbours, we must wag.
b. To travel or make one's way; to ‘jog along’. lit. and fig.
1684Bunyan Pilgr. ii. 183 They made a pretty good shift to wagg along. 1798J. Jefferson Let. to Boucher 23 Feb. (MS.), People in Hampshire not only wag the head or hand,..but they wag out, when they take a walk.—It always puts me in mind of a Duck. 1840Longfellow Sp. Stud. iii. vi, Thus I wag through the world, half the time on foot, and the other half walking. 1903McNeill Egregious Engl. 28 So he wagged along and helped to build up the commercial greatness and probity and honour of his country.
c. In proverbial phrases with ‘the world’ as subject. how the world wags: how affairs are going. to let the world wag (as it will): to regard the course of events with unconcern. (For other expressions analogous to these, see the quots.)
a1529Skelton Sp. Parrot 90 In flattryng fables men fynde but lyttyl fayth: But moveatur terra, let the world wag. 1538Latimer Let. to Cromwell Serm. & Rem. (1845) 396 By this bill inclosed your lordship can perceive some⁓thing, how the world doth wag with Warwick college. 1550Crowley Epigr. 361 Let the worlde wagge, we must neades haue drynke. 1575Gascoigne Glasse Govt. Wks. 1910 II. 63, I warrant thee wee two will live howe soever the world wagge. 1600Shakes. A.Y.L. ii. vii. 23 Thus may we see (quoth he) how the world wagges. 1611Cotgr. s.v. Gallere, Vogue la gallere, let the world wag, slide, goe how it will; let goe a Gods name. 1637Sanderson Serm. (1681) II. 73 Solomons sluggard,..who foldeth his hands together, and letteth the world wag as it will. 1700T. Brown Amusem. Ser. & Com. 130 Let us then go and see how the World wags in the City Circle. 1702Secret Mercury 2–9 Sept. 2/1, I retir'd to my Lodgings and let the World wagg for that Night. 1790Gouv. Morris in Sparks Life & Writ. (1832) II. 105 Let the world wag as it may. 1791F. Burney Diary July, I shall not, I hope, be forgetful, when the world wags ill, [etc.]. 1823Scott Quentin D. xxv, ‘I will have a rouze with Dunois,’ said Crèvecœur, ‘wag the world as it will.’ c1845C. Brontë Professor i, But you shall hear.. how the world has wagged with me. 1861Congressional Globe 18 Feb. 967/3 But I believe the world has wagged along about the same after as they did before the resolutions passed. 1877W. Black Green Past. xlii, Let the world wag on as it may.
†d. To ‘get on’, associate with. Obs.
c1560A. Scott Poems (S.T.S.) xxxiv. 89 Ȝe wantoun wowaris waggis With thame that hes the cunȝe. 1562J. Heywood Prov. & Epigr. (1867) 90, I with ale, and ale with me wag away.
8. slang. To play truant. Also to wag it. Cf. wag n.2 3.
1848Dickens Dombey xxii, ‘My misfortunes all began in wagging, Sir; but what could I do, exceptin' wag?’ ‘Excepting what?’ said Mr. Carker. ‘Wag, Sir. Wagging from school.’ ‘Do you mean pretending to go there, and not going?’ said Mr. Carker. ‘Yes, Sir, that's wagging, Sir.’ 1901W. S. Walker In the Blood i. 13 They had ‘wagged it’ from school, as they termed it, which..meant truancy in all its forms.
II. Transitive uses.
†9. To set in movement, cause to quiver or oscillate; to shake or stir by force. Obs.
1377Langl. P. Pl. B. xvi. 41 And þanne fondeth þe fende my fruit to destruye, With alle þe wyles þat he can and waggeth þe rote. 1387Trevisa Higden (Rolls) I. 189 Centauri, as it were an hundred wynde waggers: for þey wagged wel þe wynde faste in hir ridynge. 1387–8T. Usk Test. Love i. Prol. 90 Ouer that he had power of strength to pull vp the spere, that Alisander the noble might neuer wagge. c1425Cast. Persev. 1943 in Macro Plays 135 Þis worthy, wylde werld, I wagge with a wyt. 1471Caxton Recuyell (Sommer) 212 Than he began a lityll and a lityll to wagge the ston and to seke the Ioyntures that helde hit. 1508Fisher 7 Penit. Ps. vi. Wks. (1876) 18 The lefe that with a lytell wynde is wagged and blowen doune. 1582N. Lichefield tr. Castanheda's Conq. E. Ind. i. ix. 25 b, They adiudged that the gabell [i.e. cable] had bene wagged or shaken by a kinde of Fish called a Tunnie. 1587Turberv. Trag. Tales 14 But how much more the louer made his mone,..The more shee sate vnmoued, like the stone, Whom waues do beat, but wag not from his place. 1609C. Butler Fem. Mon. (1634) 51 The Place..must be kept close and quiet; free from noise and noisome cattel, that may either wag or wake them. 1612Selden Illustr. Drayton's Poly-olb. i. 16 So great, that many men's vnited strength cannot remoue it, yet with one finger you may wagge it. a1677Barrow Serm. xiv. Wks. 1687 I. 202 A small transient pleasure, a tickling the ears, wagging the lungs, forming the face into a smile [etc.].
†b. To nudge. Obs.
1377Langl. P. Pl. B. xix. 199, I wondred what þat was, & wagged conscience, And was afered of the lyȝte.
10. To brandish (a weapon). Also, to wave (something) defiantly, as a signal, or to attract notice. Obs. exc. in jocular use (cf. flag-wagging).
c1300Havelok 89 He was te beste knith at nede, Þat heuere micthe..wepne wagge, or folc vt lede. 1535Coverdale Isa. x. 24 Be not afrayde for the kinge of the Assirians: He shal wagg his staff at the,..But [etc.]. 1577–87Harrison England ii. ix. 181/1 in Holinshed, The other..wagging a scroll which he had in his hand before the iudge. 1596Spenser F.Q. iv. iv. 18 So these two champions..in their hands their idle troncheons held, Which neither able were to wag, or once to weld. 1806Scott Health Ld. Melville vii, While there's one Scottish hand that can wag a claymore, sir.
11. To move (a limb or part of the body attached by a joint) to and fro, up and down, or from side to side: usually implying rapid and repeated movement. † Also, to blink repeatedly with, ‘bat’ (the eyes).
13..E.E. Allit. P. B. 1484 As þay with wynge vpon wynde hade waged her fytheres. 1530Palsgr. 770/1 Do you nat se hym, he waggeth his hande at you. 1542Brinklow Lament. (1874) 111 What a blyndnes is it to thynke my sinnes forgeuen me, when a prest..hath wagged two or thre fyngers ouer my head? 1574Withals' Dict. 67 b/2 Pætus, he that waggeth the eyes. 1594Marlowe & Nashe Dido ii. i. 324 Achates, see King Priam wags his hand, He is aliue, Troy is not ouercome. 1597A. M. tr. Guillemeau's Fr. Chirurg. 3/3 When the patient may easylye wagge his lower chawe bone. 1611Cotgr., Gambayer, to wag the legs in sitting, as children vse to do. 1611Coryat Crudities 229 They wagge their hands vp and downe very often. 1768Tucker Lt. Nat. I. ii. xxviii. 202 Nothing can be more harmless than wagging your finger considered in itself, yet if the finger rest against the trigger of a loaded musket and a man stand just before, you cannot do a wronger thing, and why? 1802Southey Ballad St. Antidius 35 He wagg'd his ears, he twisted his tail, He knew not for joy what to do. 1853Kane Grinnell Exp. xxxvi. (1856) 326 [He] had to wag his leg half an hour by the dial.
transf.1596Shakes. Merch. V. iv. i. 76 You may as well forbid the Mountaine Pines To wagge their high tops.
b. (Chiefly in negative context, typifying the minimum of exertion.) To move, stir (a limb, finger, etc.). Now colloq.
1596Spenser F.Q. v. i. 22 He found him selfe, vnwist, so ill bestad, That limb he could not wag. 1660F. Brooke tr. Le Blanc's Trav. 181 Travelling on the sands his hoof will burn and cleave, so as 'tis impossible to get him wag a foot. 1671Blagrave Astrol. Pract. Phys. 149 For some hours she would be as seemingly dead, and could wagg neither arm or leg. 1697R. Pierce Bath Mem. i. vi. 125 He told me (with great joy) that he could wagg one of his Toes. 1855J. R. Planché tr. C'tess D'Aulnoy's Fairy Tales (1858) 16 I'll wager, now, that this idle beauty hasn't wagged one of her ten fingers. 1861C. Reade Cloister & H. lxxi. (1896) 207 Had it been any but you, believe me I had obeyed you and not wagged a finger. 1898F. Harrison Autob. Mem. (1911) II. xxx. 150, I most positively declined to ask him or anyone to wag a finger to get me there.
c. To shake (the head); to move (the head) from side to side.
a1340Hampole Psalter xxi. 6 Þai spake with lippes and wagid þe heued. 1393Langl. P. Pl. C. xiii. 19 ‘Owh! how!’ quaþ ich þo and myn hefd waggede. 1470–85Malory Arthur xix. ix. 787 And thenne the quene wagged her hede vpon sir Launcelot, as though she wold saye slee hym. a1513Fabyan Chron. ccxxiii. (1533) 147 When Robert had harde that message to the ende, he wagged hys hedde, as he that conceyued some doublenesse in thys reporte. 1526Tindale Matt. xxvii. 39 They that passed by revyled hym, waggynge [Gr. κινοῦντες] ther heeddes. 1540Palsgr. Acolastus Prol. B iv, Why waggest thou thy heed, as though thou were very angry. 1576Fleming Panopl. Epist. 277 These extreme passions of mynde,..when Democritus had heard,..he..wagged his head too and fro: wherein he had some meaning. a1618Sylvester Funeral Elegy Wks. (Grosart) II. 291 O! Who so constant, but would grieve and grudge (If not a Christian) at th' All-ordering Judge; And wag his head at Heav'n,—weak earthly worm! 1815Scott Guy M. ii, The poor parents were encouraged to hope that their bairn, as they expressed it, ‘might wag his pow in a pulpit yet.’ 1840Thackeray Barber Cox June, We were introduced instantly..: the little lord wagged his head, my wife bowed very low, and so did Mr. Coddler. 1841― Gt. Hoggarty Diam. vii, Tidd at this looked very knowing; and, as our host sunk off to sleep again,..wagged his head at the captain. 1863Geo. Eliot Romola vi, When once a man is obliged to do something besides wagging his head. 1871Longfellow Wayside Inn ii. Cobbler of Hagenau 92 The cobbler..wagging his sagacious head, Unto his kneeling housewife said: [etc.].
d. To move (the tongue, † lips) in animated speech: esp. with implication of indiscretion or malignity. Also of the tongue: To utter (words).
1569J. Sandford tr. Agrippa's Van. Artes lxii. 91 b, They drawe deepe sighes from the harte: and wagging their lippes doo faigne to saie prayers. 1613Shakes. Hen. VIII, i. i. 33 No Discerner Durst wagge his Tongue in censure. 1657Trapp Comm. Ps. cix. 2. II. 860 There is nothing more easie, than to wag a wicked tongue. 1820Scott Monast. iv, The faithful Tibb and Dame Elspeth, excellent persons both, and as thorough gossips as ever wagged a tongue. 1827― Jrnl. 10 Mar., It is brave to see how he wags his Scots tongue. 1840Thackeray Paris Sk.-bk. (1869) 36 Not a tongue was wagged in his praise. 1871Dixon Tower III. xviii. 196 Every one who owed him grudge would eagerly begin to wag his tongue. 1894J. Davidson Random Itin. 160 When they spoke, they simply left their mouths ajar, and allowed their tongues to wag the maimed words of an unknown dialect.
e. Of an animal: To move (its tail) from side to side: in dogs usually an indication of pleasure; in cats often a sign of anger.
c1410Master of Game (MS. Digby 182) xiii, And whan þei se her maister þei wole make hym chere and wag hir tayles vpon hym. 1545Elyot Dict., Agere caudam, to wagge his tayle. 1599Marston Ant. & Mel. iii. (1602) F 2, Tis an old horse can neither wighy, nor wagge his taile. 1620J. Taylor (Water P.) Jack a Lent C 2, All the Dogges in the Towne, doe wagge their tailes for ioy. 1661Lovell Hist. Anim. & Min. 88 They [sc. lambs] wagge the taile whilest sucking. 1710Steele Tatler No. 231 ⁋2 The poor Cur looked up and wagged his Tail. 1774Goldsm. Nat. Hist. V. 245 Pozzo..asserts, that it [a toucan] leaped up and down, wagged the tail, and cried with a voice resembling that of a magpie. 1791Cowper Odyss. x. 264 They..Paw'd them in blandishment, and wagged the tail. 1863Kingsley Water-Bab. iv, And there..lay five or six great salmon,..wagging their tails, as if they were very much pleased at it. 1865H. Kingsley Hillyars & Burtons lxii, The dog came wagging his tail.
† f. To flap (the wings). Obs.
1496Cov. Leet Bk. 577 Litell small been, Þat al aboute fleen, They waggen their whyng. 1584R. Scot Discov. Witchcr. xi. vii. 195 Birds..in what sort they wag their wings. 1596Spenser Hymn Heav. Love 24 Ere flitting Time could wag his eyas wings About that mightie bound.
†g. To sway (the body) about. Obs.
1665Sir T. Herbert Trav. (1677) 191 After the Eastern mode they wagg'd their Bodies, bowing their heads [etc.].
III. 12. Combinations: † wag-feather, a swaggering coxcomb; † wag-pasty, a mischievous rogue; † wag-string = waghalter; wag-tongue, a malicious chatterer; † wag-wanton, a wanton; † wag-with [? with n.] = waghalter. Also wag-at-the-wall, waghalter, wag-leg, wagstart, wagtail.
1611Cotgr., Coqueplumet,..a *wag-feather.
a1553Udall Royster D. iii. ii. (Arb.) 40 A little *wagpastie, A deceiuer of folkes, by subtill craft and guile. c1563Jack Jugler (Roxb.) 28 Truelye this wage pastie is either drunken or mad. 1622Mabbe tr. Aleman's Guzman d'Alf. ii. 278 That souldiers boy, who playd the wagge-pasty with his Masters pasty;..opened the lid of the pastie,..and supt vp all the sirrop.
1578H. Wotton Courtlie Controv. 301 The boy..bethoughte hym of a knauerye fitte for a *wagstring. a1591H. Smith Serm. (1637) 223 [We say,] when we see a gracelesse boy, Thou wilt prove a wagstring, if thou live to be elder. 1633Heywood Eng. Trav. iv, Oh thou crafty Wag-string.
1902C. Headlam in Macm. Mag. Oct. 466 A chatterbox she is, and worse,—a regular woman *wag⁓tongue.
1601Deacon & Walker Answ. Darel 72 Euery little childe that playeth *wag-wanton. 1604Breton Grimellos Fort. (Grosart) 8/2 Thou wouldest neither carrie a ring, clawe a backe, plaie on both hands, be no wagge⁓wanton, with thy mistresse, nor Iudas with thy maister.
1611J. Davies (Heref.) Panegyr. Verses Coryat's Crudities i 3 b, While he most like a *Wag-with Tooke of his Grapes as much as he could wag-with. |