| 释义 |
Irish, a. and n.|ˈaɪərɪʃ|
Forms: 3 Irisc, Irreisc, Iriss, Yriss, 4 Irisch, (Yrisch, Hyrisch), Iris, 5 Yrissh, -yssh, Iressh, Hiressche, 5–6 Irysh, 6 Irishe, (Sc. -isch(e), -eshe, Yris(c)he, -esshe, 3– Irish.
[f. Ir-, stem of OE. I′ras (ON. I′rar) the inhabitants of Ireland (OE. and ON. I′rland) + -isc, -ish: cf. ON. I′rskr. The stem ír- is no doubt from OIr. Ériu Erin (see Hibernian); but the phonological relation is not clear.]
A. adj.
1. Of persons: Of, belonging to, or native to Ireland; orig. and esp. used of the Celtic inhabitants.
c1205Lay. 18060 Þa iseȝen Irisce men þat Brutten wes an eornest. a1250Owl & Night. 322 Thu chaterest so doth on Irish preost. a1300K. Horn 1290 Horn gan to schupe draȝe Wiþ his yrisse felaȝes. c1330R. Brunne Chron. Wace (Rolls) 8834 Þe Irisch kyng gadered his host. 1422tr. Secreta Secret., Priv. Priv. 166 Consydyr ye that youre yrysshe enemys ne hare auncestres..was trewe to you. 1596Spenser State Irel. Wks. (Globe) 637/2 Other greate howses there be of the old English in Ireland, which..are nowe growen as Irish as O-hanlans breeche. Ibid. 647/2 Benefices..of soe small profitt in these Irish countreyes, through the ill husbandrye of the Irish people which inhabite them. 1672Petty Pol. Anat. xii. in Tracts (1769) 363 The priests are chosen for the most part out of old Irish gentry. 1763Hume in Rep. on Ossian (1805) 7 A very ingenious Irish gentleman. 1855Macaulay Hist. Eng. xvii, Scattered over all Europe were to be found brave Irish generals, dexterous Irish diplomatists, Irish Counts, Irish Barons.
†b. Belonging to the Scottish Highlands or the Gaelic inhabitants of them. Obs.
1548W. Patten Exp. Scotl. in Arb. Garner III. 63 Four thousand Irish archers brought by the Earl of Argyle. 1652Rec. Dingwall Presb. (Sc. Hist. Soc.) 247 The contributione allotted to the Irishe boyes.
2. Of things: Of or pertaining to Ireland or its inhabitants (freq. denoting a particular variety or quality of the thing named, e.g. Irish butter, Irish car, Irish freize, Irish guipure, Irish linen, Irish mile, Irish poplin, Irish tweed, Irish penny, Irish whiskey, etc.).
1398Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xv. lxxxi. [lxxix.] (MS. Bodl.) lf. 157 b/2 Hiressche [1495 yryssh] wolle and skynnes al venemous beestes fleeþ it. 1436Libel Eng. Policy in Pol. Songs (Rolls) II. 186 Irish wollen, lynyn cloth. 1547Boorde Introd. Knowl. iii. (1870) 131, I can make good mantyls, and good Irysh fryce. 1645Boate Irel. Nat. Hist. (1652) 153 The load of an Irish-car, drawn by one Garron. 1741Richardson Pamela IV. xiii. 75 A Piece of Irish or Scotish Linen. 1751[see poplin2 attrib.]. 1780A. Young Tour in Ireland i. 276 The salt for the fish trade [comes] from Rochelle: for butter english and irish. 1785J. Wedgwood Let. 3 Oct. (1965) 285 Irish linens in the British market. 1798C. Mordaunt Let. July in E. Hamilton Mordaunts (1965) x. 243, I hope our conduct may gain us credit for discipline, but am terribly afraid of the cheap Irish whiskey. 1805Times 6 Nov. 1/2 (Advt.), The Public supplied, as usual, with pieces of Irish linen, at the wholesale prices, at the Irish Linen Company's, No. 4, Bloomsbury-square, near Hart-street. 1813Jane Austen Let. 15 Sept. (1932) II. 321 Very pretty English poplins at 4s. 3d.; Irish, ditto at 6s. 1828M. R. Mitford Our Village III. 178 Crockery ware was piled on one side of her door-way, Dutch cheese and Irish butter encumbered the other. 1839Penny Cycl. XIII. 21/1 The Irish round towers are now generally ascribed to an ecclesiastical origin. 1851Illustr. Catal. Gt. Exhib. iii. 516/1 Dowlas is a strong kind of Irish linen, for shirting. Ibid. 561/1 Laces: Royal Irish guipure; Irish appliqué. 1855[see Scotch a. 2 a]. 1861Mrs. Beeton Bk. Househ. Managem. 808 Irish butter sold in London is all salted, but is generally good. 1865F. B. Palliser Hist. Lace xxxv. 416 Irish Brussels is made at Clones,{ddd}Irish guipure at Carrickmacross, in the same Co. 1879M. E. Braddon Vixen III. 319 She wore Irish poplin, and Irish lace, Irish stockings, and Irish linen. 1892–3T. Eaton & Co. Catal. Fall & Winter 33/1 Boys' Overcoats... In Scotch, English and Irish tweeds. 1895Army & Navy Co-op. Soc. Price List 15 Sept. 1094 Irish poplin. Ibid. 1099 Irish lawn... Irish diapers. 1896Illustr. London News 25 Feb. (jacket) 4/3 (Advt.), A three-garment suit for boys... In Scotch and Irish tweeds. 1907Yesterday's Shopping (1969) 12/1 Butter..Irish (finest Creamery)—lb. 1/2. 1909Irish tweed [see Donegal]. 1966Mrs. L. B. Johnson White House Diary 17 Mar. (1970) 373 Irish whiskey for St. Patrick's Day, the first time it's been served in the White House, I'll bet, and not a soul wanted tea! 1968J. Ironside Fashion Alphabet 233 Irish linen, a very fine light-weight linen woven of Irish flax. Ibid., The linen industry in Ireland now, however, produces all weights of linen and linen mixtures..which are collectively and erroneously referred to as ‘Irish’ linen. 1968L. Rosten Joys of Yiddish p. xiii, Yiddish phrasing and overtones are found in, say, the way an Irish whiskey advertises itself. 1970J. Fleming Young Man, I think you're Dying viii. 106 There was an Irish tweed jacket for Joe and a toy leprechaun. 1973P. Geddes Ottawa Allegation viii. 102 In a department store on the Mall she stood and fingered Irish linens.
b. With names of animals and plants, usually denoting a species or variety peculiar to Ireland, as Irish greyhound, Irish hare, Irish hobby, Irish rat, Irish setter, Irish sheep, Irish wolf, Irish wolf-dog; Irish broom, Irish heath, Irish ivy, Irish juniper, Irish potato, Irish yew, etc.: see the ns. Also Irish daisy, the dandelion; Irish deer, the extinct giant deer, Megaceros giganteus, whose remains have been found in Ireland and other parts of Europe; Irish elk = Irish deer; Irish moss, the edible seaweed Chondrus crispus, also called carrageen; Irish terrier, a large wire-haired terrier, with a sandy or reddish-coloured coat; Irish wolfhound, a large, rough-coated hound, often grey in colour.
1375–6Durham Acc. Rolls (Surtees) 582 In 2 furur. de irislams, 5s. 1436Libel Eng. Policy in Pol. Songs (Rolls) II. 186 Skynnes of otere, squerel, and Irysh [h]are. 1600Shakes. A.Y.L. v. ii. 119 'Tis like the howling of Irish Wolues against the Moone. 1670Evelyn Diary 16 June, The Irish wolfe-dog..which was a tall greyhound, a stately creature indeede, who beate a cruel mastiff. 1697T. Molyneux in Phil. Trans. R. Soc. XIX. 505 We shall not have the least Reason to question but these vastly large Irish Deer and the American Moose, were certainly one and the same sort of Animal. 1824T. Bewick Hist. Quadrup. (ed. 8) 340 The Irish Greyhound..is the largest of the Dog Kind... It is only to be found in Ireland, where it was formerly of great use in clearing the country from Wolves. It is now extremely rare. 1825S. Hibbert in Edin. Jrnl. Sci. III. 15 The Irish Elk attracts no small share of attention. 1835Hooker Brit. Flora I. 321 It [Ulex strictus] was discovered in the Marquess of Londonderry's Park, county of Down..now well known..under the name of Irish Furze. 1844Rep. Brit. Assoc. Adv. Sci. 237 The most remarkable of the unquestionably extinct species of the Cervine family is that which is commonly called the Irish Elk. Ibid. 238 Mr. Parkinson refers the beams of two antlers found in the till at Walton in Essex, on account of their large size, to the great Irish Deer. 1845Penny Cycl. Suppl. I. 321/1 Many substitutes for Iceland moss have been proposed; one of the best of which is the Carrageen or Irish moss (Fucus crispus). 1857C. Kingsley Two Yrs. Ago II. viii. 269 Round the burleaf⁓bed dances a rough, white Irish terrier. 1880G. A. Graham in H. Dalziel Brit. Dogs iii. 34 The Irish wolfhound, being used for both the capture and despatch of the wolf, it would necessarily have been of greyhound conformation, besides being of enormous power. 1892H. N. Hutchinson Extinct Monsters xvi. 224 The ‘Great Irish Elk’, as it is generally called, deserves special notice. Ibid., The term ‘Elk’ is misleading, for it is not an elk (Alces) at all, but a true Cervus (stag). It should be called ‘the Great Irish Deer’. 1897Encycl. Sport I. 323/1 It is just twenty years since the Irish terrier first obtained recognition in the Kennel Club Stud Book. 1908A. J. Dawson Finn vi. 59 Finn had won two special prizes; one, a medal offered by the Irish Wolfhound Club..and another..for the biggest Irish Wolfhound in the Show. 1933A. S. Romer Vertebr. Paleontol. xviii. 356 Among the more interesting forms was the gigantic ‘Irish elk’, Megaceros, with the largest antlers of any known deer. 1947J. Stevenson-Hamilton Wild Life S. Afr. viii. 68 A plucky Irish terrier diverted the pig's attention by attacking it from behind. 1964G. K. Whitehead Deer Gt. Brit. & Ireland xxx. 435 The giant deer—variously called great fallow deer and, quite erroneously, the Irish elk—was undoubtedly the finest deer that has ever inhabited Great Britain. 1969E. H. Hart Encycl. Dog Breeds 313 The Irish Wolfhound is remarkable in combining power and swiftness with keen sight. Ibid. 521 Origin of the Irish Terrier is a subject likely to provide debate as long as interest in the breed continues.
c. In special phrases, as Irish American, an American of Irish origin; as adj. (with hyphen), of or pertaining to such a person, or to the Irish community, in the United States; Irish apricot humorous, a potato; Irish articles, articles of belief drawn up by Archbishop Ussher in 1615; Irish-Australian a., of or pertaining to an Australian of Irish origin; (as two words) such a person; Irish blackguard, a kind of snuff (see blackguard 7); Irish bridge, an open stone drain carrying water across a road (see quots.); Irish bull (see bull n.4 2); Irish coffee = Gaelic coffee; Irish confetti slang, stones, bricks, etc., esp. when used as weapons; Irish crochet = Irish lace (a); also attrib., as Irish crochet lace, Irish point; Irish diamond, rock crystal: see diamond 2; Irish Free State, (from 1921) name of the independent democratic State of Southern Ireland (since 1937 called Eire, and since 1949 the Republic of Ireland); † Irish game (see B. 3); Irish green, Connemara marble; Irish Guards [guard n. 8], an infantry regiment of the British Army formed to signalize the bravery of Irish troops in the Boer War of 1899–1902; Irish harp = clairschach; Irish horse slang, salted meat; Irish hurricane Naut. slang, see quots.; Irish Ireland a., designating a movement to arouse the interest of all Irish people in their own country; Irish lace, (a) a type of lace that resembles crochet; (b) see quot. 1957; Irish martingale (see quot. 1958); Irish pennant Naut. slang, see quot. 1962; Irish point, a kind of lace made in Ireland; Irish Society, a society founded in the reign of James I to have jurisdiction over the new Protestant settlement in Ulster; Irish stew: see stew; Irish stitch (see quot. 1753); Irish Sweep (or Sweepstake), a sweepstake organized by Irish hospitals on the results of English horse-races, esp. the Derby and the Grand National Steeplechase; † Irish toyle, a species of beggar (see quot. 1561); Irish work, embroidery done in white thread upon a white ground.
1832New-England Mag. June 490 *Irish-American Literature. 1836T. Power Impressions Amer. I. 185 The accent of the Irish American..differs [little] from that of the settler of a year. 1891Kipling Life's Handicap 197 My Irish American-Jew boy. 1902Irish Rosary Jan. 77/1 The Irish-American Press should urge upon the Irish in America a sense of their duty in this matter. 1957P. Kemp Mine were of Trouble x. 197 The famous Irish-American plastic surgeon, Eastman Sheean. 1971Guardian 27 Oct. 12/6 The Irish-Americans are interested in Ireland. 1972T. P. McMahon Issue of Bishop's Blood (1973) xiii. 188 The nylon-curtain Irish Americans of the Seventies.
1785Grose Dict. Vulgar T., *Irish apricots, potatoes; it is a common joke against the Irish vessels to say they are loaded with fruit and timber, that is, potatoes and broomsticks. 1846Swell's Night Guide 122/2 Irish apricots, potatoes. 1973Times 15 Feb. 14/3 Like the Norfolk Capon (a red herring), the Irish Apricot (a potato)..the Welsh Rabbit is a time-honoured joke.
1877P. Schaff Hist. Creeds of Christendom I. 664 The *Irish Articles are one hundred and four in number. 1967D. T. Kauffman Dict. Relig. Terms 253/2 Irish articles, the Calvinistic statement of faith, adopted in 1615 by the Irish Episcopal Church in the form of 104 articles, which became part of the basis of the Westminster Confession.
1907Westm. Gaz. 17 Sept. 1/3 The..*Irish-Australian baronet. 1957P. Kemp Mine were of Trouble vi. 106 Peter Lawler, a hard-bitten little Irish-Australian.
1837Maj. Richardson Brit. Leg. i. (ed. 2) 34 His dress was a coarse *Irish-blackguard-snuff colored frock coat. a1845Hood Forlorn Sheph. Compl. x, A Box Of Irish Blackguard.
1923W. L. Strange Indian Engin. xlvi. 205 For lower-class roads..stream crossings may be substituted... The cheapest form is a level crossing... The next higher type is a road dam, or ‘*Irish bridge’, for which two parallel curtain walls are constructed across the stream bed and continued for a short distance as flanks up the approaches; between them is the roadway: the downstream wall should be securely founded. 1969‘M. Innes’ Family Affair xv. 167 You cross the river by an Irish bridge... It's just a bridge, but built under the water instead of over it... It's really a reliable sort of ford.
1950Social & Personal Dec. 57/1, I am..drinking *Irish coffee, which..is a mixture of very, very good Power's whiskey and very, very bad coffee. I am deciding that my next drink will be an Irish coffee without the coffee. 1959D. O'Neill Life has no Price vii. 102 Donal ordered himself an Irish coffee. 1966‘S. Forbes’ Terror touches Me iv. 37 Everyone..had Irish coffee after dinner... He spooned brown sugar into glasses... Over the sugar he poured dollops of Irish whiskey... Next came steaming dark coffee..and..cream..poured slowly over the back of a spoon. 1969Observer (Colour Suppl.) 30 Nov. 10/1, 17/6 each... The Irish Coffee glass.
1935A. J. Pollock Underworld Speaks 62/1 *Irish confetti, bricks. 1939G. Kersh I got References xii. 161, I learned the use of Irish Confetti, or Brickbats, at a tender age. 1966Observer 19 June 40/1 An American friend in Amsterdam, describing last week's riots there, said: ‘There's just a lot of Irish confetti around.’ 1966F. Shaw et al. Lern Yerself Scouse 57 A cargo uv Irish confetti, a cargo of stone chippings.
1881C. C. Harrison Woman's Handiwork iii. 217 A deep fall of large-patterned *Irish crochet lace. 1900Irish crochet point [see point n.1 A. 31]. 1932D. C. Minter Mod. Needlecraft 103/1 A fine linen thread is most suitable for Irish crochet. 1965Daily Express 14 Apr. 8/3 Linen..covers her drawing room walls (held down by strips of Irish crochet). 1969New Yorker 31 May 92/2 The attached vestees are done in oyster bolillo lace, which is rather like heavy Irish crochet.
1796Kirwan Elem. Min. (ed. 2) II. 257 The Marcasite found near Dublin, called *Irish Diamond. 1884F. J. Britten Watch & Clockm. 215 Rock crystal..also known as..‘Irish’ diamond, is also much used by watch jewellers.
1922Act 13 Geo. V c. 2 An Act to make such provisions as are consequential on or incidental to the establishment of the *Irish Free State. 1929Encycl. Brit. XII. 628/1 The Irish Free State, with the status of a British Dominion, came officially into being on January 15, 1922. 1937V. Bartlett This is my Life x. 144 When the Irish Free State was admitted [to the League of Nations]..President Cosgrave made his opening speech in Gaelic. 1959Chambers's Encycl. V. 49/1 The constitution is considered by the dáil to apply to the whole of Ireland..but, ‘pending the reintegration of the national territory’ to have effect only in the area formerly known as the Irish Free State.
1509Barclay Shyp of Folys 14 Thoughe one knowe but the *yresshe game Yet wolde he haue a gentyllmannys name.
1883Encycl. Brit. XV. 529/1 The ‘*Irish green’ of architects is a similar rock from Connemara in western Galway. 1886Irish green [see Connemara].
1902Encycl. Brit. XXXIII. 684/1 The Queen..issued an order..for a new regiment of *Irish Guards to be constituted. 1923Kipling (title) The Irish Guards in the Great War. 1967A. Farrar-Hockley Death of Army v. 179 General Landon had sent him the 2nd Grenadier Guards and the Irish Guards.
1611G. Vadianus in Coryat's Crudities sig. l 2 Torn is an *Irish Harpe, whose heart-strings tune As fancies wrest doth straine or slacke his cord. a1700Evelyn Diary an. 1654 (1955) III. 92 My old acquaintance & most incomparable player on the Irish-Harp, Mr. Clarke. 1797Encycl. Brit. VIII. 326/1 There are among us two sorts of this instrument, viz. the Welch harp..and the Irish harp. 1879Grove Dict. Mus. I. 686/1 The beautiful form of the more modern Irish harp is well known from its representation in the royal coat of arms. 1969Guardian 16 Sept. 11/3 They only need to play Irish harps..to complete the absurd romanticism of Free Belfast. 1973Country Life 29 Mar. 861/3 A finished harp costs at least {pstlg}1,300. Happily..small Irish harps..made almost entirely of wood..can be bought for {pstlg}130. They serve as a sort of apprenticeship for would be serious harp players.
1748Smollett Rod. Rand. I. xxxiii. 291 Our provision consisted of putrid salt beef, to which the sailors gave the name of *Irish horse. 1886H. Baumann Londinismen 83/2 Irish horse, Pökelfleisch, s. salt horse.
1929F. C. Bowen Sea Slang 72 *Irish hurricane, a flat calm with drizzling rain. 1962John o' London's 14 June 571/2 An Irish hurricane is a flat calm.
1904W. B. Yeats in Daily Chron. 18 Mar. 3/4, I went..to tell the Irish of America of what we call the *Irish Ireland movement.
1854C. M. Yonge Heartsease I. xiv. 336 She was..prettily dressed with some *Irish lace. 1880L. Higgin Handbk. Embroidery v. 51 Tambour work..is now almost confined to the manufacture of what is known as Irish or Limerick lace..made as net..with a tambour or crochet hook. 1881C. C. Harrison Woman's Handiwork i. 94 Irish lace, made of flax-thread with a ground-work of crochet. 1895Army & Navy Co-op. Soc. Price List 1126/1 (heading) Real Lace Sets..Irish..per set 4/6 to 20/0. 1907E. Wharton Fruit of Tree ii. ix. 139 Let me lend you my dress with the Irish lace. a1929L. Troubridge Life amongst Troubridges (1966) iii. 16 We all had new poplin dresses with Irish lace collars. 1957M. B. Picken Fashion Dict. 201/2 Irish lace, variety of laces made in Ireland. Best known are crochet, net embroideries of Limerick, and Carrick-macross cut work or Irish guipure.
1937P. Rodzianko Mod. Horsemanship iii. 94 An ordinary *Irish martingale has two rings that are connected with a leather strap, of about three inches long. This..prevents the reins going over his [the horse's] head as it catches him under the jaws. 1946M. C. Self Horseman's Encycl. 272 Irish martingale. This is a short strap with a ring at each end. The reins of the snaffle bridle run through the rings and the strap slide up to about six inches from the bit. It gives additional control and prevents the snaffle being pulled too far through the animal's mouth. 1958J. Hislop From Start to Finish 172 Irish martingale, two rings joined by a leather strap, about six inches long, through which the reins are passed. It is the type of martingale most used on racecourses and is more usually called ‘rings’, sometimes ‘spectacles’.
1883W. C. Russell Sailors' Lang. 73 *Irish pennants, fag-ends of rope, rope-yarns, etc., flying about. 1910D. W. Bone Brassbounder i. 14 ‘Irish pennants’ fluttering wildly on spar and rigging tell of scamped work of those whose names are not on our ‘Articles’. 1962A. G. Course Dict. Naut. Terms 108 Irish Pennants or Pendants, untidy ends of ropes, rope yarns, etc., flying in the wind. It is said that it was originally the name given to a flag with a torn or frayed fly or end.
1865F. B. Palliser Hist. Lace xxxv. 416 The fabric flourishes, and is known by the name of ‘*Irish’, or ‘Curragh point’. 1882Caulfeild & Saward Dict. Needlework 272/1 Irish Point can be worked entirely as old Brussels needle point.
1613in Hist. Narr. Irish Soc. (1916) 163 After all which done information was given by the Governor and Assistants of the *Irish Society, that all the monies formerly levied towards that charge is altogether issued. 1846T. MacNevin Confiscation of Ulster vii. 214 The Irish Society is a type and symbolical representation of English rule in Ireland from the beginning. 1877Encycl. Brit. VI. 224/2 The separate estates are still held to be under the paramount jurisdiction of the Irish Society.
1634J. Taylor Needles Excellency (ed. 10) sig. A2 Fisher stitch, *Irish-stitch, and Queen stitch. 1738C. Fiennes Journeys (1947) 364 A ‘seatee of Irish stitch’... ‘8 Irish stitch coushons.’ 1753Hogarth Anal. Beauty xii. 164 Retiring shades..gradate or go off by degrees... There is a sort of needle-work, called Irish-stitch, done in these shades only, which pleases still, though it has long been out of fashion. 1932D. C. Minter Mod. Needlecraft 10/1 Intergradating one stitch and colour with another, as is possible with Irish stitch.
1931F. Lenwood Why all this Fuss about ‘Sweeps’? 10 How unsocial it all is may be seen from the excitement over the *Irish Sweep and the Derby of 1931. 1933W. S. Maugham Sheppey i. 12 Did you have a ticket for the Irish Sweep? 1937G. Greene Coll. Ess. (1969) iv. 425 The great muted chromium shadows wait..the novelist's Irish sweep: money for no thought, for the banal situation and the inhuman romance. 1963‘G. Bagby’ Murder's Little Helper (1964) vi. 52 When you people come around, it's never been to tell one of my roomers that he's won the Irish Sweepstakes. 1965N. Gulbenkian Pantaraxia viii. 152 Although I was not a gambler, I did buy a ticket in the first Irish Sweep... One afternoon..the..commissionaire came in..and he said..‘You've drawn a horse in the Irish Sweep.’ 1974A. Ross Bradford Business 48 A wad of Irish Sweepstake tickets.
1561J. Awdelay Frat. Vacab. (1869) 5 An *Irishe toyle is he that carieth his ware in hys wallet, as laces, pins, poyntes, and such like.
3. The distinguishing epithet of the language of the Celtic inhabitants of Ireland. Hence applied to words, idioms, etc. belonging to that language, and to anything composed or written in it.
1547Boorde Introd. Knowl. iv. (1870) 137 In Scotlande they haue two sondry speches. In..the part ioynyng to Ierland, that speche is muche lyke the Iryshe speche. 1596Spenser State Irel. Wks. (Globe) 623/2, I knowe not whether the woordes be English or Irish. 1672Petty Pol. Anat. xiii. in Tracts (1769) 371 The Irish language..hath but few words. 1763in Rep. on Ossian (1805) App. 18 The Irish manuscripts in the duke of Chandos's library. 1884Rhys Celt. Brit. vii. (ed. 2) 242 The term..is hardly ever to be met with in Irish literature. Ibid. App. 283 The Irish word was caill, a wood.
b. Applied to the Scottish Gaelic (cf. B. 2 b).
In early examples a graphic variant of er(i)sch, Erse.
1552Lyndesay Monarche i. 628 Had Sanct Ierome bene borne in tyll Argyle, In to Yrische toung his bukis had done compyle. 1596Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. I. 86 The rest of the scottis..vse thair alde Irishe toung. a1639Spottiswood Hist. Ch. Scotl. (1655) 9 We oft finde the Scots called Irishes, like as we yet term commonly our Highlandmen, in regard they speak the Irish language. c1730Burt Lett. N. Scotl. (1818) I. 158 The Irish tongue was..lately universal even in many parts of the Lowlands.
4. Irish in character or nature; having what are considered Irish characteristics. spec. Used of seemingly contradictory statements. (See also Irish hurricane s.v. sense A. 2 c.)
In quot. 1589 with allusion to B. 3.
1589Pappe w. Hatchet B iij, We would show them an Irish tricke, that when they thinke to winne the game with one man [etc.]. 1725Swift Wood the Ironmonger Wks. 1755 IV. i. 66 They laugh'd at such an irish blunder, To take the noise of brass for thunder. 1820H. Brougham Let. 5 Feb. in H. Maxwell Creevey Papers (1903) I. 297 Your advice has been followed by anticipation (to speak Irish). 1838Geo. Eliot Let. 18 Aug. (1954) I. 6 Isaac and I went alone (that seems rather Irish), and staid only a week. 1843F. A. Kemble Let. 25 Aug. in Rec. Later Life (1882) III. 36 We are going out of town,..to-morrow at half-past six in the morning, and it is now past midnight, and I have every mortal and immortal thing to pack, with my own single pair of hands, which is Irish, Lord bless us! 1857Mrs. Gaskell Let. 7 Dec. (1966) 491 The lecture was not (to me) so very interesting, being a sort of recapitulation of what he was going to say (if that's not Irish). 1891Spectator 3 Jan. 5/1 If we fail in anything, people say, How Irish! 1892C. H. Fretwell Anc. Mariner 94, I had what sailors call ‘an Irish rise’, becoming second officer after being for a time commanding officer. 1897M. Kingsley W. Africa 171 There is also no doubt that the Fan mile is a bit Irish, a matter of nine or so of those of ordinary mortals. 1903H. C. Rowland Sea Scamps 4, I was promptly addressed as ‘lieutenant’, which struck me as being rather an Irish promotion, having once previously served as major. 1926J. S. Huxley Essays Pop. Sci. 121 To be Irish, the longer it lives, the sooner it ought to die. 1937A. Upfield Mr. Jelly's Business (1938) iii. 28 He doesn't seem to mind me courting his daughter, but he doesn't give me a chance to do any courting. That's Irish, but it's a fact. 1970R. Hill Clubbable Woman vi. 192 ‘Marcus wouldn't dare to tell a lie like that unless it was true!’ ‘Irish,’ said Pascoe.
5. Comb., as Irish-born, Irish-bred, Irish-grown.
1850S. G. Osborne Gleanings 250 Irish-grown flax.
B. n. (Elliptical uses of the adj.).
1. a. as pl. The inhabitants of Ireland, or their immediate descendants in other countries, esp. those of Celtic race. wild Irish, the less civilized Irish; formerly, those not subject to English rule, also called † mere Irish (puri Hibernici). black Irish, Irish of Mediterranean appearance.
c1205Lay. 12855 Scottes..Galewaȝes & Irreisce [c 1275 Yrisse]. Ibid. 18069 Þa Irisce weoren nakede. 1399Langl. Rich. Redeles Prol. 10 Whyle he werrid be west on þe wilde yrisshe. [14..Eulogium Historiarum (Rolls) III. Contn. Eulog. 371 Makamor et quidam alii principales purorum Hibernicorum capti fuerunt.] 1547Boorde Introd. Knowl. iv. (1870) 136 The other parte of Scotlande is..lyke the lande of the wylde Ireshe. 1596Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. I. 73 The Irishe men and our Scottis Irishe acknawledge the same for thair first and mother toung. 1610[see Irishry 1]. 1612Davies Why Ireland, etc. (1787) 192 The mere Irish, whom they reputed as aliens or enemies of the crown. 1672Petty Pol. Anat. xiii. in Tracts (1769) 375 English in Ireland, growing poor and discontented, degenerate into Irish. 1724Swift Drapier's Lett. Wks. 1755 V. ii. 76 They look upon us as a sort of savage Irish. 1866Bright Sp. Irel. 17 Feb. (1868) 179/2 If the Irish in America..settled there with so strong a hostility to us, they have had their reasons. 1888Kipling Soldiers Three (1890) 82 Those are the Black Oirish an' 'tis they that bring dishgrace upon the name av Oireland. 1953K. Tennant Joyful Condemned v. 46 His fleshy hooked nose..suggested Jewish blood, but he claimed he was black Irish. 1961J. B. Priestley Saturn over Water xiv. 201 He was a black Irish type, with centuries of rebelliousness behind him. 1962Guardian 18 July 5/5 That haunted ‘Black Irish’ face [of Eugene O'Neill]. 1970K. Giles Death in Church vii. 177 Have you ever seen the black Irish?
†b. In sing. (with pl. Irishes). An Irishman. (Chiefly Sc.) Obs.
[1596Spenser State Irel. Wks. (Globe) 618/2 When the cause shall fall betwixt an Englishman and an Irish.] 1613Wither Abuses ii. iv. in Juvenilia (1633) 220 If but by his Lords hand an Irish sweare, To violate that oath he stands in feare. a1639Spottiswood Hist. Ch. Scot. (1655) 8 He was taken prisoner by some Irishes. [See also A. 3 b.] 1719Wodrow Corr. (1843) II. 426 It vexeth us to hear that the wild Irishes are coming down. 1828Stonehouse Crusade Fidelis p. viii, To preach a sermon for the distressed Irishes.
2. The Irish language: see A. 3.
13..S.E. Leg. (MS. Bodl. 779) in Archiv Stud. neu. Spr. LXXXII 375/309 ‘Certis’, quaþ þe bysschop [Aidan] an yrischs, ‘Ic wepe for þis king’. 1547Boorde Introd. Knowl. iii. (1870) 133 If there be any man the which wyll lerne some Irysh, Englysh and Irysh dothe folow here togyther. 1672Petty Pol. Anat. xiii. in Tracts (1769) 371 In Ireland the Fingallians speak neither English, Irish, nor Welch. 1772Johnson in Boswell 22 Mar., If the Highlanders understood Irish, why translate the New Testament into Erse? 1884Rhys Celt. Brit. vii. (ed. 2) 242 The term Scotti was made in Irish into Scuit.
†b. Scottish Gaelic; Erse. Obs.
In its written form, Scottish Gaelic was not clearly distinguished from Irish until c 1750.
1508Kennedie Flyting w. Dunbar 345 Thow lufis nane Irische..Bot it suld be all trew Scottis mennis lede. Ibid. 350 Thy forefader maid Irisch and Irisch men thin. c1645Howell Lett. (1650) I. ii. lvi. 377 The antient langage of Scotland is Irish, which the mountaineers..retain to this day. 1702in Boyle's Wks. (1772) I. p. cxcii, About one half of the ministers in the Highlands..preach only in Irish.
c. English as spoken by natives of Ireland, affected in varying degrees by the sounds and vocabulary of the Celtic language, and partly retaining older features of English pronunciation.
1834Westm. Rev. XXI. 348 The Irish of the peasants (which is nothing but English Hibernicised).
†3. An old game resembling backgammon.
Fully described in Cotton's Compleat Gamester (1680) 109.
1590Tarlton News Purgat. 74 Her husband that loved Irish well, thoughte it no ill trick to beare a man too many. 1601Sir W. Cornwallis Ess. ii. xlix. (1631) 314 Like an after-game at Irish, that is wonne and lost divers times in an instant. 1664G. Etherege Love in Tub v. ii, Here's a turn with all my heart like an after-game at Irish.
4. Often elliptically (the n. being contextually known), e.g. for Irish linen, snuff, whisky, etc.
1784Cowper Let. 21 Mar. in Corr. (1904) II. 181 Your mother wishes you to buy for her ten yards and a half of yard-wide Irish, from two shillings to two shillings and sixpence per yard. 1799Jane Austen Lett. (1884) I. 203 Mrs. Davies frightened him into buying a piece of Irish when we were in Basingstoke. 1806–7J. Beresford Miseries Hum. Life (1826) ii. xxix, Venturing upon a pinch of high dried Irish in the open air. 1834E. E. Perkins Lady's Shopping Manual 63 The regard to time and other circumstances which has been recommended in choosing Irishes, should be observed in the purchase of all linens. 1889J. K. Jerome Three Men in Boat ii. 29 Harris..proposed that we should go out and have a smile, saying that he had found a place..where you could really get a drop of Irish worth drinking. 1893H. Crackanthorpe Wreckage 125 Two bitters and a small Scotch..and a large Irish. 1914[see Apollinaris]. 1972P. Ruell Red Christmas vi. 58 Irish. I drink Irish. Not this muck.
5. Temper; passion. orig. U.S. and dial.
1834D. Crockett Narr. Life iv. 30 Her Irish was up too high to do any thing with her. 1860Bartlett Dict. Amer. (ed. 3) 217 My friends say that my Irish is getting up, meaning, I am getting angry. 1877F. Ross et al. Gloss. Words Holderness 80/1 Iry; Irish, E. and N., passion; anger; rage; fury. 1933Partridge Words, Words, Words! i. 9 Both Irish and the colloquial Paddy are used for anger. 1949R. Harvey Curtain Time vii. 73 But George's Irish was up. 1972Evening Telegram (St. John's, Newfoundland) 23 June 1/4 ‘I got my Irish up,’ he said, ‘and here's a man that's going to fight back.’ |