| 释义 |
▪ I. spur, n.1|spɜː(r)|
Forms: α. 1–2 spora, 2–6 (9 dial.) spore, 4 spor, 5–6 sporre. β. 1 spura, 2–5, north, and Sc. 6–7 spure (5 north. spvyre), 6 spoore. γ. 6–7 spurre (7 spirre), 5– spur (6–7 spurr).
[Common Teutonic: OE. spora, spura, = OFris. *spora (WFris. spoar, NFris. spöör), OS. spora (MDu. spore, spoor; Du. spoor, WFlem. spoore, sporre), MLG. spore, spare, OHG. sporo (MHG. spore, spor, G. sporen, now sporn), ON. and Icel. spori (Norw. and Da. spore, Sw. sporre). The stem is possibly the same as that of spoor n.1]
I.
1. a. A device for pricking the side of a horse in order to urge it forward, consisting of a small spike or spiked wheel attached to the rider's heel.
αc725Corpus Gloss. (Hessels) C 93 Calcar, spora. a1175Cott. Hom. 243 Þu ahst to habben..swrd and spere, Stede and twei sporen. 1297R. Glouc. (Rolls) 11280 He smot stede wiþ þe spore. 13..K. Alis. 818 (Laud MS.), At þe yssue of þe doren Tholomeus dude on his sporen. 1390Gower Conf. I. 40 Whan the scharpnesse of the spore The horse side smit so sore, It grieveth ofte. 1422tr. Secreta Secret., Priv. Priv. 165 He smote the mule wyth the sporis. 1484Caxton Chivalry 62 The spores ben gyuen to a knyght to sygnefye dylygence and swyftnesse. 1526Skelton Magnyf. 575 Alasse, where is my botes and my spores? a1533Ld. Berners Huon lxxxxi. 292 He strake the good horse with the sporres.
βc1000ælfric On O. & N. Test. (Grein) 18 Iohannes þa heow þæt hors mid þam spuran. c1205Lay. 23772 He..dude on his uoten spuren swiðe gode,..[and] leop on his stede. c1300Havelok 1676 Þe stede, þat he onne sat, Smot Ubbe with spures faste, And forth awey. 1375Barbour Bruce viii. 79 With spurys he strak the steid of pris. 14..Nom. in Wr.-Wülcker 703 Hec calcar, a spure. c1475Cath. Angl. 357/1 Spvyre,..calcar. 1547Acc. Ld. High Treas. Scot. IX. 68 Brydill, spures, gyrthis, stirrep irnis. 1588Lanc. & Cheshire Wills (Chetham Soc.) 149 One pair of spures. c1657Sir W. Mure Ho. of Rowallane Wks. (S.T.S.) II. 243 For yearlie payment of..ane paire of spures.
γc1400Destr. Troy 10942 Two spurres full spedely [they] spent on his helis. c1470Gol. & Gaw. 25 With spurris spedely thai speid Our fellis. 1523Ld. Berners Froiss. I. cxxxiv. 161 He toke his horse with the spurres, and came on the skirmysshe warde. 1560J. Daus tr. Sleidane's Comm. 235 He hearde the spurres strike on the stayres whan the murtherer ranne hastely downe. 1604E. G[rimstone] D'Acosta's Hist. Indies iii. ix. 147 Beasts..stay there, so as there is no spurre can make them goe forward. 1661J. Childrey Brit. Baconica 44 They found nothing, but an old Spur. 1726Dict. Rust. s.v., Obedience to the spurs is a necessary Quality of a good Horse. 1781Cowper Anti-Thelyphth. 191 He spoke indignant, and his spurs applied..to his good palfrey's side. 1815Wellington in Gurw. Desp. (1838) XII. 552 A pair of Spurs taken from Buonaparte. 1863Geo. Eliot Romola xvi, The horse wanted no spur under such a rider.
Prov.1618Hist. Perkin Warbeck in Select. Harl. Misc. (1793) 62 Little needed a spur, saith our proverb, to a forward horse.
b. Used in sing. in generalized sense.
1297R. Glouc. (Rolls) 8169 Hor hors..nolde after wille Siwe noþer spore no bridel. c1300Havelok 2569 For he him dredde swiþe sore, So runci spore, and mikle more. 1390Gower Conf. I. 321 This kniht..With spore made his hors to gon. 1580Blundevil Horsemanship T v, If he be more slowe..in his trotting, or gallopping, harder of spurre than he was woont to be. 1596L. Mascall Govt. Cattle 189 If spurre and wande will not profit. 1611Shakes. Wint. T. i. ii. 96 You may ride's With one soft Kisse a thousand Furlongs, ere With Spur we heat an Acre. a1802Kinmont Willie xvii. in Scott Minstrelsy, He has called him forty Marchmen bauld With spur on heel, and splent on spauld. 1831Youatt Horse 49 The [race-] horse,..without whip or spur, will generally exert his energies to the utmost to beat his opponent. 1859Tennyson Elaine 455 They..Set lance in rest, strike spur, suddenly move.
Prov.c1380Wyclif Sel. Wks. III. 436 It is to hard to kyke aȝen þe spore. [Cf. prick n. 13.] 1579Tomson Calvin's Serm. Tim. 636/1 They..will get nothing by it, for they kicke against the spurre.
c. gilt (or † gilded) spurs, as the distinctive mark of a knight. Now Hist.
13..Coer de L. 5346 Syxty thousand ther wer telde, Off gylte spores in the felde. 1377Langl. P. Pl. B. xviii. 14 Þe kynde of a knyȝte þat cometh to be dubbed, To geten hem gylte spores. 1480Caxton Polychronicon viii. xxvi, He toke sire Umfrayes salade and this brygantyns.., and also his gylt spores. a1548Hall Chron., Edw. IV, 191 He was disgraded of the high ordre of knighthode..by cuttyng of his gylt sporres. 1604Marston & Dekker Malcontent i. iii, As your knight courts your city widow with jingling of his gilt spurs. 1641–54Mennis & Smith Mus. Deliciæ (1817) II. 32 Gilded spurres do jingle at his heeles. 1728Chambers Cycl. s.v., Anciently the Difference between the Knight and Esquire was, that the Knight wore gilt Spurs,..and the 'Squire silver'd ones. 1828Scott F.M. Perth xxxii, Here, strike me this man's gilt spurs from his heels with thy cleaver. 1879Encycl. Brit. IX. 544 The ‘Day of the Spurs’ was a fitting name for a carnage after which four thousand gilt spurs were hung as trophies in Courtrai cathedral.
attrib.1641–54Mennis & Smith Mus. Deliciæ (1817) II. 176 Battas believed..That yonder guilt-spur spruce and velvet youth Was some great personage.
d. With distinguishing terms, denoting various makes or kinds.
a1400Octouian 1447 A peyre sporys of Speyne. 1625–[see Rippon]. 1688Holme Armoury iii. 304/1 A Scotch Spur... This is an old way of making Spurs;..their Spurs were only armed with a sharp point like a Cocks Spur. Ibid. 325/1 Some term it a Gag Spur, others a Prick Spur. 1785Grose in Archaeol. (1787) VIII. 111 The rouelle, or wheel spur (so called from the revolution of the spicula about its axis). 1824Meyrick Antient Armour I. Introd. p. lxv, The [Anglo-Saxon] spur was formed..with a much longer neck, and was called the spear-spur. 1824,1839[see prick n. 21]. a1866Fairholt Costume (1885) II. 377 The rowelled spur first appears..on the brass of Sir John de Creke, 1325.
†e. Used in some game or sport. Obs.—1
c1440Jacob's Well 134 Þe v. inche is harlotrie, makyng iapys a-forn folk, in pleying at þe spore, at þe bene, at þe cat, in ledyng berys & apys.
f. battle (also day or † journey) of (the) spurs: (see quots. 1831 and 1837).
(a)a1548Hall Chron., Hen. VIII, 33 b, The Frenchemen call this battaylle the iourney of Spurres because they ranne awaye so faste on horssebacke. 1643Baker Chron., Hen. VIII, 8 It was called the Battell of Spurres, for that they used more their Spurres in running away, then their Launces in fighting. 1831Mackintosh Hist. Eng. II. iv. 118 [Hen. VIII] defeated the French army in an engagement [near Guinegate] on the 4th of August, 1513, afterwards called the Battle of the Spurs.
(b)1837Penny Cycl. VIII. 113/1 The Flemyngs, in 1302,..encountered a French army near to Courtray, and found on the field, after the battle, about 4000 gilt spurs, which caused it to be called the battle of spurs. 1842Longfellow Belfry of Bruges xv, I beheld the Flemish Weavers..Marching homeward from the bloody battle of the Spurs of Gold. 1879[see 1 c].
g. Her. The representation of a spur.
1688Holme Armoury iii. 304/1 He beareth Gules, a Scotch Spur, Or. Ibid., He beareth Vert, a Spur, Or; Leathered, Argent. a1773[see spurred a. 1 c]. 1882Cussans Her. 122 Spur: This Charge may either be represented in its modern form, with a revolving rowel, or with a single point.
h. transf. One who wears spurs.
1821Scott Kenilw. iii, I can..fling my gold as freely about as any of the jingling spurs and white feathers that are around me.
2. a. In various prepositional or elliptical phrases denoting speed, haste, eagerness, etc.
c1374Chaucer Troylus ii. 1427 Tristith wele that I Wole be her champioun with spore and yerd. 1592Shakes. Rom. & Jul. ii. iv. 73 Swits and spurs, Swits and spurs, or Ile crie a match. 1601― All's Well ii. v. 40 You haue made shift to run into't, bootes and spurres and all. 1604Dekker Honest Wh. Wks. 1873 II. 96 Wee shall ride switch and spurre. 1679V. Alsop Melius Inq. Pref., As if they rod Post, all upon the switch and spur for a presentation to a warm Parsonage. 1708Sewel ii, Spoorslaags ryden,..to ride switch and spur, to gallop with full speed. 1742Pope Dunciad iv. 197 Each fierce Logician..Came whip and spur, and dash'd thro' thin and thick. 1782Cowper Mutual Forbearance 22 What if he did ride whip and spur, 'Twas but a mile. 1900Daily Mail 1 Feb. 4/3 The Government would have turned tail but for the fact that Lord Rosebery, in his famous Epsom speech, rode it ‘with spurs’.
†b. at the spur, at spurs, = next. Obs. rare.
c1450Merlin xviii. 282 Than will we go down this ryver at the spore. 1535State P., Hen. VIII (1834) II. 232 Wher Thomas Fittz Gerolde..was dreuen to flye at sporres, and lost dyvers of his men.
c. on or upon the († spurs or) spur (also † upon spur), at full speed, in or with the utmost haste, in lit. or fig. use.
(a)1525Ld. Berners Froiss. II. viii. 18 Whan we be in the feldes, lette vs ryde on the spurres to Gaunte. 1577–87Holinshed Chron. II. 537 He was rescued by certeine horssemen, which..came on the spurs..to the succour of their fellowes.
(b)1560J. Daus tr. Sleidane's Comm. 428 Ryding upon the spurre, [he] setteth upon them quickely. 1623Bingham Xenophon 23 Lucius..returned and told him, that the enemie fled vpon the Spur. 1655Clarke Papers (Camden) III. 30 The French Ambassadour seemes not to be all together uppon the spur to be gone. 1693Humours Town 3 By this time our Horses must be ready, and we lose time till we are on the Spur. 1710Shaftesbury Charac. (1737) III. 26 He is not presently upon the Spur, or in his full Career. 1775S. J. Pratt Liberal Opin. xlviii. (1783) II. 31 The servant rode away on the spur, to alarm the family at the mansion-house. 1825Scott Betrothed Concl., News are come on the spur from the Garde Doloureuse. 1847Tennyson Princ. i. 150 And there, All wild to found an University For maidens, on the spur she fled.
(c)1606G. W[oodcocke] Hist. Ivstine xi. 49 Alexander.., following vpon spurre, had intelligence that [etc.]. 1643Cromwell in Carlyle Lett. & Sp. (1861) IV. 252 Haste,—ride on spur. Ibid. 253 Haste, haste, on spur.
d. on (or upon) the spur of the moment (or occasion, etc.), without premeditation or deliberation; on a momentary impulse; impromptu, suddenly, instantly. Hence spur-of-the-moment attrib. phr.
(a)1801Ann. Reg. 1799 ii. 27/1 Volunteers, with a party of the Surrey cavalry, attended and prevented the populace in general from taking that step, which, perhaps, the best feelings of human nature had, upon the spur of the moment dictated. 1806A. Duncan Nelson's Funeral 43 The contrivance of Mr. Wyatt, on the spur of the moment. 1831R. Blakey Free Will 152 A speaker who gives us a ready reply upon the spur of the moment. 1891‘J. S. Winter’ Lumley x, There's nothing like acting on the spur of the moment.
(b)1809Malkin Gil Blas ii. iii. ⁋2 He carried me home on the spur of the occasion. [1836Sir H. Taylor Statesman xxxi. 237 Though compliments should arise naturally out of the occasion, they should not appear to be prompted by the spur of it. 1882Hinsdale Garfield & Educ. ii. 312 Do not trust to what lazy men call the spur of the occasion.]
(c)1834H. Martineau Moral ii. 58 The utmost extent that ingenuity can devise on the spur of a great occasion. 1837Carlyle Fr. Rev. ii. iii. vii, The Church..has been consecrated, by supreme decree, on the spur of this time, into a Pantheon.
(d)1948C. Day Lewis Otterbury Incident viii. 94 Toppy is tops at spur-of-the-moment tactics. 1958C. Williams Man in Motion (1959) vii. 77 There's no such thing as a spur-of-the-moment suicide. 1978M. Puzo Fools Die xv. 161 Junkies, alcoholics, amateur pimps, small-scale thieves and spur-of-the-moment rapists.
3. In phrases with verbs:
a. to win (one's or † the) spurs, to gain knighthood by some act of valour; hence, to attain distinction, to achieve one's first honours. Chiefly fig. Also const. against, from, of.
c1425Lydg. Assembly of Gods 980 These xiiii knyghtes made Vyce that day; To wynne theyr spores they seyde they wold asay. 1539Abp. Parker Corr. (1853) 13 The one to labour to win sporis of the other, and to allure the people's minds. 1551T. Wilson Logike (1580) 74 b, Sennacherib that wicked kyng, thought..to winne his spurres against Jerusalem. 1595Enq. Tripe-wife in Grosart Eliz. Eng. (1881) 171 It sufficeth that yee haue wonne the spurres from them all. 1600Holland Livy xxx. xxxii. 762 Resolute that day either to winne the spurres or loose the saddle. 1837Penny Cycl. IX. 291/2 His father nevertheless took him [the Black Prince] along with him to win his spurs..in July, 1346. 1862Thornbury Turner I. 390 The painter..executed his task with a patience..worthy of one who had to win his spurs.
b. to put or set († the) spurs to, to impel or urge on by spurring; = spur v.1 i. Also fig.
(a)1553Brende Q. Curtius B b iij, He put spurres to his horse. 1561Eden Arte Nauig. Pref. ⁋iv b, I may..seme to put the spurres to a runnyng horse, as saith the Prouerbe. 1603Knolles Hist. Turks (1621) 313 He..put spurres to his horse, and fiercely charged the front of Scanderbegs armie. 1770Langhorne Plutarch (1851) II. 739/2 At the same time they put spurs to their horses. 1818Scott Br. Lamm. xxi, I must have spurs put to Lady Ashton's motions. 1857Holland Bay Path xix. 221 A motive force, by which the spurs were put to resolution. 1889‘V. Fane’ Helen Davenant I. 16 He put spurs to his horse as soon as he got outside upon the high road.
(b)1565Cooper Thesaurus s.v. Incito, Settyng spurres to his horse to gallop amonge his ennemies. 1588Kyd Househ. Phil. Wks. (1901) 239 Seeing the ayre wexe blacke,..I began to set spurs to my Horse. 1600J. Pory tr. Leo's Africa ii. 70 Setting spurs to his horse-side, he cast himselfe..downe headlong. 1623Lisle ælfric on O. & N. T. 36 Iohn set spurs to his horse, and made after him. 1818Scott Br. Lamm. xxii, The Captain proceeded..to set spurs to her resolution. 1889Conan Doyle M. Clarke xxx. 313 He set spurs to his horse.
ellipt.1598Shakes. Merry W. iv. v. 70 They..set spurres, and away; like three Germane-diuels. 1652J. Wright tr. Camus Nat. Paradox vii. 139 Hee set Spurs and hasted after his Companions. a1700Evelyn Diary (Chandos) 187 We set spurrs and endeavour'd to ride away. 1811W. R. Spencer Poems 19 My spurs are set; Away, away. 1849James Woodman xviii, Quick, spurs to your horse, and away for Sir William.
†c. slang. (See quot.) Obs.
1770Gentl. Mag. XL. 560 To express the Condition of an Honest Fellow and no Flincher, under the Effects of good Fellowship, he is said to [have]..Got a spur in his head; this is said by brother jockies of each other.
4. a. A stimulus, incentive, or incitement. Also const. of (the particular influence, etc.) and to (a person or persons).
[1526Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 240 b, It is as a prycke or a spurre to set the slouthfull body forwarde in the seruyce of god.] 1551Wilson Logike Ep. A iij, I professe it to be but a spurre, or a whetstone, to sharpe the pens of some other. a1586Sidney Arcadia iii. viii. (1912) 393 With the spurre of Courage, and the bitte of Respect. 1676W. Mountagu in Buccleuch MSS. (Hist. MSS. Comm.) I. 323 It will not be proper..to make him any acknowledgments.., lest it be looked at for a spur, which I assure you his Lordship needs not. 1726G. Shelvocke Voy. round World 28, I had no spur that they would be sensible of, but double allowance of brandy. 1771Junius Lett. lix. (1788) 319 The spur of the press is wanted to give operation to the bounty. 1821Lamb Elia i. Grace before meat, Our appetites, of one or another kind, are excellent spurs to our reason. 1842S. Lover Handy Andy iii, How Andy runs! Fear's a fine spur. 1871Blackie Morals i. 129 Human beings,..acting in masses, under the spur of great political or religious excitement.
b. Const. to or † towards (some quality, course of action, etc.). Also with inf.
1548Udall Erasm. Par. Pref. 12 An encouragyng and spurre towardes ferther industrie. a1593H. Smith Serm. (1637) 585 Praise and honour are spurres to virtue. 1611Shakes. Wint. T. iv. ii. 10 Which is another spurre to my departure. 1663Patrick Parab. Pilgrim x. (1687) 54 The thoughts of this misery would be a sufficient spur to you to quicken the execution of it. 1716Bentley Serm. xi. 382 Implanted in our Nature as a spur to mutual Beneficence. 1779J. Moore View of France (1789) I. xxxi. 273 Emulation, the chief spur to diligence. 1800Wellington in Gurw. Desp. (1837) I. 181 This will give a spur to the negotiation at Hydrabad. 1855Bain Senses & Int. ii. iv. §31 The remembrance..is one source of the spur to preserve the stability of one's footing. 1888Bryce Amer. Commw. II. xlvi. 195 This advantage..is a constant spur to the efforts of national politicians.
c. Similarly with of (= to).
Cf. ‘Þe spore of loue’ as the title of a poem in the Vernon MS. (Minor P. I. 269).
1591Spenser Tears of Muses 454 Due praise, that is the spur of dooing well. 1639Fuller Holy War v. xiii. 252 Had the emulation betwixt those equall Princes onely been such as is the spurre of vertue. 1752Hume Ess. & Treat. (1777) I. 96 Avarice, the spur of industry. 1824Lamb Elia ii. Capt. Jackson, With many more such hospitable sayings, the spurs of appetite.
II.
5. a. Zool. A sharp, hard process or projection on the tarsus of the domestic cock and certain other fowls and birds; a back-claw.
1548Elyot, Calcaria, the spurres of a cocke or an henne. 1577B. Googe Heresbach's Husb. iv. (1586) 158 Their legges strong, wel armed with sharp and deadly spurres. 1601Holland Pliny I. 276 As if they knew, that naturally they had spurs, as weapons, giuen them about their heeles, to try the quarrell. 1624Capt. Smith Virginia ii. 31 Arrowes..headed with..the spurres of a Turkey, or the bill of some bird. 1661Lovell Hist. Anim. & Min., Isagoge b 3 b, Amongst Birds,..some have spurs, but not the crooked clawed. 1725Fam. Dict. s.v. Hen, Those Hens that have Spurs break their Eggs, and generally will not hatch them. 1834M'Murtrie tr. Cuvier 143 Their wings are short... Their thumb, reduced to a spur, cannot reach the ground. 1899W. T. Greene Cage-Birds 38 The Woodlark..differs from it in having a shorter tail and ‘spur’—that is, the nail of the hind toe.
fig.1571R. Edwards Damon & Pithias (1906) 54 Though we are cockerels now, we shall have spurs one day. 1770Langhorne Plutarch (1851) II. 858/1 If you design doing anything..you must do it quickly, before the spurs of this cockerel be grown.
b. Zool., Anat., and Path. A sharp-pointed or spur-like process, formation, or growth on some part of the body.
1681Grew Musæum i. v. iii. 116 On each side his nether [jaw], two great Spikes or Spurs, hard and very sharp. 1722–7Boyer Dict. Royal 1, Les ergots..d'un Chien, a..Dog's Spurs. 1760[see spur-fish in 14 b]. 1785Latham Gen. Synop. Birds III. i. 247 On the bend of the wing [are] two or three spurs half an inch in length. 1828Stark Elem. Nat. Hist. II. 362 Hesperides. Posterior legs with two pairs of spurs. 1850R. G. Cumming Hunter's Life S. Afr. (1902) I. 262 One of his [a buffalo's] hind legs being shot off above the spurs. 1899Allbutt's Syst. Med. VIII. 686 Those [cicatrices] occurring after syphilis are said to be softer, less liable to encroach on the neighbouring skin or to produce spurs.
6. a. A sharp-pointed projection from the prow of a war-vessel.
1604E. Grimstone Siege Ostend 171 One of them tooke him right vpon the sterne with his spurre or pointe. 1877W. H. White Man. Nav. Archit. (1882) 320 Gaining such a depth below water as will enable the spur to pierce an enemy below the armour. 1889Welch Text Bk. Naval Archit. vii. 98 Below water the stem is formed into a spur or ram, with a view to..piercing the thin bottom plating of an enemy's ship.
b. A metal needle or gaff for fastening to the leg of a gamecock for fighting purposes.
1688R. Holme Armoury ii. 252/2 Gablocks are Spurs made of Iron, or Brass, or Silver, and are fixed on the Legs of such Cocks as want their natural Spurs; some call them Gaffs. 1706Phillips (ed. Kersey), Gaff, an artificial Spur for a Cock. 1801Strutt Sports & Past. iii. vii. 250 We frequently meet with paintings, representing cocks fighting; but I do not recollect to have seen in any of them the least indication of artificial spurs. 1841Marryat Poacher iii, Having put on the animal his steel spurs, he..would..throw down his gallant bird.
c. Whaling. One of a number of metal spikes in a boot-sole to prevent slipping.
1820Scoresby Acc. Arctic Regions II. 298 The harpooners, having their feet armed with ‘spurs’,..to prevent them from slipping, descend upon the fish.
d. Any sharp or short projection, point, or spike suggestive of a spur. Freq. specific in technical use.
1872J. Rickards Wood-working 193 The power is needed mainly to cross-cut the fibre with the spores. Ibid., The spores [1873 spurs] require frequent sharping. 1875Knight Dict. Mech. 2293/1 Spur, a prong on the arm of some forms of anchor, to assist in turning the lower arm from the shank. 1881Young Ev. Man his own Mechanic §399. 175 The two spurs, one on each section of the plane. 1888Jacobi Printers' Vocab. 130 Spur, the short pin at the end of the point which pricks the hole in the sheet for registering purposes. 1889Welch Text. Bk. Naval Archit. xiii. 138 The lower pintle..being received into a spur projecting from the lower part of the sternpost. 1912E. M. Thompson Introd. Greek & Latin Palaeography xix. 521 Long strokes [of letters]..are occasionally provided with an ornamental spur near the top of the vertical stems. 1976Visible Language X. 44 Spur, a small projection, usually pointed, from a stroke or terminal.
7. a. A short or stunted branch or shoot, esp. one likely to produce fruit.
c1700Compl. Gardiner in Dict. Rust. (1726) s.v. Pruning, Tho' the Spurs are common and proper to be preserved, yet the Branches growing from them, will never be good for any thing. 1764Museum Rust. IV. 15 Those little spurs which are only an inch or two long. 1796C. Marshall Gardening xii. (1813) 162 The mode of bearing in pear trees is on short spurs, which..form themselves all along the branches. 1842Loudon Suburban Hort. 339 The great object in producing spurs is to obtain blossom-buds. 1858Glenny Everyday-Bk. Gardening 23/1 If they were to cut every inch of new wood back to a short spur, there would be fruit.
transf.1912F. Bond Cathedrals 287 The western bases have a ‘spur’ of leafage, a sign of late date.
b. Bot. A tubular expansion, resembling a cock's spur in form, of some more or less foliaceous part of a flower; a calcar.
1731Miller Gard. Dict. s.v. Delphinium, Many dissimilar Petals.., the uppermost of which is contracted, and ends in a Tail or Spur. 1796Withering Brit. Pl. (ed. 3) II. 8 Bloss[om] gaping, ending in a spur. 1830Lindley Nat. Syst. Bot. 141 Sepals..unequal; the lowermost elongated into a spur. 1855Miss Pratt Flower. Pl. IV. 214 Spur conical, shorter than the limb of the corolla. 1874Lubbock Wild Fl. iii. 53 The honey is in some cases..situated at the end of a long spur.
c. A disease in rye and certain other cereals, in which the blighted ear resembles a cock's spur in form; = ergot 1.
1763Mills Pract. Husb. II. 405 The grains which have the spur are thicker and longer than the sound ones. 1828A. Neale (title), Researches respecting the Natural History..of the Spur, or Ergot of Rye. 1837P. Keith Bot. Lex. 153 The most mysterious of all the maladies attacking the cereal grasses is that of the Ergot or Spur.
III. 8. a. A short strut or stay set diagonally to support an upright timber; a shore, prop, or sustaining pillar; a sloping buttress.
1529Sel. Cases Star Chamber (Selden) II. 41 [They] cut vpp the yates, postes, and spores of the yates. 1594Plat Jewell-ho. iii. 26 Two strong pillers..well propped with spurres. 1652J. Endecott in Manip. Progr. Gosp. among Indians N. Eng. 34 They have also built a foot bridge..with Groundsells and Spurres to vphold it. 1687A. Lovell tr. Thevenot's Trav. ii. 124 A thick Wall, almost two Fathom broad, supported by two spurs of the same thickness. 1712J. James tr. Le Blond's Gardening 211 The..Wall should be supported..with Buttresses, or Spurs of Masonry. 1834Southey Doctor (1862) 376 Murlooz is the name which they give to such spurs or stay-pillars. 1844Civil Eng. & Arch. Jrnl. VII. 19/2 The spur [= prop] is then disengaged, and the wagon resumes its level position ready to be removed. 1851Turner Dom. Archit. II. iii. 91 The term spur is now applied to the carved timber work of the doorways of ancient houses supporting projecting upper stories. 1893H. T. Cozens-Hardy Broad Norf. 25 He..supports his wall with a spore not a shore.
b. Naut. (See quots.)
1769Falconer Dict. Marine (1780) s.v. Deck, The spurs of the beams; being curved pieces of timber serving as half⁓beams to support the decks, where a whole beam cannot be placed on account of the hatch-ways. 1841R. H. Dana Seaman's Man. 125 Spurs, pieces of timber fixed on the bilge-ways, their upper ends being bolted to the vessel's sides above the water. 1867Smyth Sailor's Word-bk. 647 Spurs of the Bitts, the same as standards.
c. techn. (See quots.)
1833Loudon Encycl. Archit. §1075 The spurs (lower stones of the raking part of the gable, called in England the summer stones). 1860White Wrekin p. xxvii, Stilts and spurs—bits of fireclay by means of which earthenware articles are kept separate during firing. 1875Knight Dict. Mech. s.v. Pottery, The stilts or spurs are generally of triangular form, and have sharp projecting points.
9. One of the principal roots of a tree. Cf. spurn n.2 2.
1610Shakes. Temp. v. i. 47 The strong bass'd promontorie Haue I made shake, and by the spurs pluckt vp The Pyne, and Cedar. 1677Plot Oxfordshire 159 The Tree without being 25 foot round above the spurs. 1740Somerville Hobbinolia ii. 89 If chance The cruel Woodman spy the friendly Spur, His only Hold. 1791Cowper Yardley Oak 117 Yet is thy root sincere,..A quarry of stout spurs, and knotted fangs, Which..clasp The stubborn soil. 1800–in dial. glossaries (North Cy., Nhp., Chesh., Warw.).
fig.1611Shakes. Cymb. iv. ii. 58, I do note, That greefe and patience rooted in them both, Mingle their spurres together.
10.
†a. Fortif. An angular outwork or projection from the general face of a curtain or wall, to assist in the defence of this. Obs.
1575Churchyard Chippes (1817) 153 They did lose the Spurre, a place ful strong Which sore anoid the towne. 1598Barret Theor. Warres 125 The parts of a Bulwarke are..the front or Curtine; the Counter front or Spurres. 1604E. G[rimstone] D'Acosta's Hist Indies v. xiii. 364 Fortefied with great and large spurres or platformes. 1669Staynred Fortification 12 In the middle of the Curtain you may make a Spur, or Point of a Bastion. 1687J. Richards Jrnl. Siege of Buda 12 We observ'd the Enemy at work on the East-Port, to which place they had advanc'd a Spurr. 1702Milit. Dict. (1704), Spurs, are Walls that cross a part of the Rampart, and joyn to the Town Wall.
†b. An angular end of the pier of a bridge. Obs.
1736N. Hawksmoor London Bridge 26 That the Becks or Spurs ought to be made in right Angles. 1742Leoni Palladio's Archit. I. 92 The angle of the spurs, that cut the water, is a right angle.
c. An artificial projection from a river-bank serving to deflect the current.
1818Garstin tr. Frisi's Treat. Rivers iii. iii. 130, I have examined different sorts of spurs, and have found but few of them that were not shaken and damaged by the current. 1873Medley Autumn Tour U.S. & Canada ix. 149, I saw a large Spur which had been built to divert the stream under the bridge.
11. a. A range, ridge, mountain, hill, or part of this, projecting for some distance from the main system or mass; an offshoot or offset.
Freq. since 1850.
1652Heylyn Cosmogr. i. 37 The Alpes, and the Apennine, of which the residue in a manner are but spurs and branches. 1791W. Bartram Observ. Trav. Pennsylv., etc. 338 The upper end of this spacious green plain is divided by a promontory or spur of the ridges before me, which projects into it. 1796Morse Amer. Geog. I. 183 From these several ridges proceed innumerable nameless branches or spurs. 1837W. Irving Capt. Bonneville I. 96 A low and very rocky ridge, one of the most southern spurs of the Wind river mountains. 1863Kinglake Crimea (1877) III. i. 198 A spur or rising ground at the base of the hills. 1874H. R. Reynolds John Bapt. i. v. 48 The glittering palaces and flourishing cities in the Spurs of Lebanon.
b. An outshoot or projecting piece of ground, land, etc.
1851Mayne Reid Scalp Hunters xxxii. 244 A spur of willows running out from the timber indicated the presence of water. 1852Grote Greece ii. lxx. (1862) VI. 264 A spur of high and precipitous ground.
c. A branch of a lode, railway, etc.
1833Darwin Jrnl. 29 Jan. in Voy. Beagle, One side of the creek was formed by a spur of mica-slate. 1878F. S. Williams Midl. Railw. 588 As we leave Newark we see the spur of line that runs down to the Great Northern Railway. 1881Raymond Mining Gloss., Spur, a branch leaving a vein, but not returning to it.
IV.
12. attrib. a. In sense 1, as spur-buckle, spur-haste, spur-mark, etc.
1688Holme Armoury iii. 304/2 The Second is termed a *Spur Buckle.
1911E. Pound Canzoni 43 The silken trains go rustling, The *spur-clinks sound between.
a1649Drummond of Hawthornden Hist. Jas. II, Wks. (1711) 23 These with *spur-haste advanced the celebration of it.
1875G. J. Whyte-Melville Riding Recoll. iv, You may look in vain for a *spur-mark on their horses sides.
1688C. Trenchfield Cap Grey Hairs 52 'Tis no wise part of a man, succumbere difficultatibus,..but..like true *Spur-Nags,..strain hardest against the Hill.
1688Holme Armoury iii. 304/2 A Buckle, with a *Spur Neck and Rowel fixed thereunto.
1842‘Nimrod’ Horse & Hound 331 The back-ribs..should also be deep, as in a strong-bodied horse, of which we say, when so formed, that he has a good ‘*spur place’.
1688Holme Armoury iii. 325/1 A *Spur shank, with a Nail or sharp point.
1862Catal. Internat. Exhib., Brit. II. No. 6151, Spurs and *spur sockets.
1814Scott Ld. of Isles vi. xxxiii, The *spur stroke fail'd to rouse the horse.
b. In senses 6 d, 8–11, as spur-brace, spur-buttress, spur-cog, spur-dike, spur-fork, spur-piece, etc.
1776G. Semple Building in Water 50 On those set-offs stretch your Plates, and on them rest your *Spur-braces.
1859Turner Dom. Archit. III. ii. vii. 373 They are furnished with a variety, adapted to the shape, of the *spur-buttress.
1815J. Smith Panorama Sci. & Art II. 230 A horizontal wheel..with *spur-cogs.
1892Trans. Amer. Soc. Civ. Eng. XXVI. 697 Where the velocity of the current is dangerous, we have sometimes used *spur-dikes.
1747Hooson Miner's Dict., *Spur-fork, a small sort of Fork, of Use only to keep some other Timber in its Place,..and sometimes used to hold Doorsteds in Drifts or at Sump⁓heads asunder.
1833Loudon Encycl. Archit. §889 Into grooves chiseled out of the *spur pieces..spiked to the sill and posts.
1825J. Nicholson Operative Mechanic 73 The rollers..may..be formed into *spur pinions to fit the teeth.
Ibid. 159 A *spur-rail, for strengthening the frame-work of the mill.
1871Kingsley At Last xi, Around its great *spur-roots lay what had been its trunk and head.
1846A. Young Naut. Dict. 281 *Spur-shores,..a name for shores placed in a horizontal position, or set up diagonally.
1889Daily News 9 Oct. 6 The cost of the main thoroughfare..; the cost of the *spur street.
1871Routledge's Ev. Boy's Ann. Sept. 535 Spaces between the links, into which the *spur-teeth fit.
1884Boston (Mass.) Jrnl. 13 Sept., A *spur track from the Eastern Railroad freight yard.
1692Lond. Gaz. No. 2774/3 They attack'd a kind of *Spur-work with Pallisadoes.
13. Comb., with ppl. adjs. and vbl. ns., as spur-finned, spur-heeled, spur-shaped, spur-tailed; spur-clad, spur-driven; spur-bearing, spur-jingling, spur-making, etc.
1842Loudon Suburban Hort. 614 Shortening such wood on *spur-bearing trees. 1871Darwin Desc. Man ii. xv. (1890) 450 The female progenitors of the existing spur-bearing species.
1847Webster, *Spur-clad, wearing spurs.
1837Carlyle Fr. Rev. ii. v. iii, The tired nag, *spur-driven, does take the River Sorgue.
1804Shaw Gen. Zool. V. i. 110 *Spur-finned Pike, Esox Chirocentrus... Native of the Indian seas.
1803Ibid. IV. ii. 563 *Spur-gilled Holocentrus, Holocentrus Calcarifer... Native of Japan.
1829H. Hawthorn Visit Babylon 111 A tall,..*spur-heeled ‘dead-weight’ man.
1894Du Maurier Trilby iii. 42 The brutal sword-clanking, *spur-jingling aristocrats.
a1613Overbury A Wife, etc. (1638) 173 The trade of *spurre-making had decay'd long since.
1837P. Keith Bot. Lex. 271 A *spur-shaped process issuing immediately from the corolla.
1894–5Lydekker Roy. Nat. Hist. III. 245 *Spur-tailed Wallabies..having the extreme tip of the tail furnished with a horny spur or nail.
1896Ibid. V. 286 The *spur-toed frogs (Xenopus).
14. a. Special Combs.: spur blight, a fungus disease of raspberries and loganberries causing discoloured patches on the stems and the death of buds at the nodes, and weakening the laterals; spur-bow, the solid spur-like prolongation of the lower part of the bow in certain warships; spur box, a special form of horseman's boot-heel, to which the rims of the spur are affixed; spur centre, a lathe-centre provided with spurs; † spur-fire Pyrotechnics (see quots.); spur gear, gearing Mech., gearing consisting of spur-wheels; spur line, a railway branch-line; spur mark, one of the marks left on the base of a glazed pot by the spurs (sense 8 c) on which it has rested during firing (see also quot. 1933); † spur money, a fine imposed by the choristers of certain privileged chapels on anyone entering with spurs on; = spur silver; spur-nut Mech., a small spur-wheel; spur pruning = spurring vbl. n.1 2; spur road (see quots. 1883, 1891); now applied to a connecting road that branches off from a motorway or main highway; spur-shell (see quots.); † spur silver Sc. = spur money; spur-stone, a stone fixed in the ground to support a post or to keep vehicles away from the footway, etc.; † spur trochus, a species of shell (cf. spur-shell); † spur-vein, a blood-vein in a horse's side where the spur usually strikes; spur-way dial. (see quot.); spur-whang Sc. and dial. = spur-leather 1.
1915Bull. Colorado Agric. Exper. Station No. 206 (title) *Spur blight of the red raspberry caused by Sphaerella rubina. 1941Sun (Baltimore) 18 Feb. 6/4 Anthracnose, spur blight on red raspberries and cane blight can be controlled by promptly removing and burning all old fruiting canes after harvest and spraying the new canes one to four times in the growing season. 1979Scopes & Ledieu Pest & Disease Control Handbk. vi. 55 Some of the fungicides for spur blight will also control cane spot.
1877W. H. White Man. Nav. Archit. 232 Under-water projections, like the *spur-bows of ironclad rams, may also produce some limitation of pitching and 'scending.
1862Catal. Internat. Exhib., Brit. II. No. 5007, The old *Spur Box, in which the boot heels are unsightly and the spur inconveniently near the ground.
1881Young Ev. Man his own Mechanic §592. 274 The following pieces are supplied with the lathe:..two plain centres, one *spur-centre for wood.
1765R. Jones Fireworks ii. 27 When any of these *spur-fires are fired singly, they are called artificial flower pots. Ibid. 29 Called the spur-fire,..because the sparks it yields have a great resemblance to the rowel of a spur.
1823Buchanan Millwork 28 By *spur geers is understood wheels acting together, and in the same plane, with their axes parallel. 1867–72Burgh Mod. Marine Engin. 294 Spur gear motion for working slide valves.
1844H. Stephens Bk. Farm III. 794 The motion of the main rollers..is communicated to the seed-distributor by means of *spur-geering.
1924Kipling Debits & Credits (1926) 166 'E 'ad us all screened in over in a cuttin' on a little *spur-line. 1977H. Fast Immigrants 8 This great railroad..has begun the construction of a spur line to connect its main line with the City of San Francisco.
1895R. Mills Catal. Blue & White Orient. Porc. 52 ‘*Spur marks’ are little projections of the paste, apparently to prevent the bottom of the vessel touching the oven. They are peculiar to Japanese porcelain. 1933Burlington Mag. Oct. 160/2 On the bottom of the interior of the bowl will be found five spur marks where the pontil was broken off. 1972Trans. Oriental Ceramic Soc. XXXVIII. 23 A ring of spur marks usually is to be seen on the base of proto-Yüeh pieces.
1566in N. & Q. 1st Ser. I. 494/1 Every quorister sholde bringe with him to Churche a Testament..rather than spend their tyme in talk and hunting after *spur money. 1864C. Knight Passages Work. Life I. 77 Thus have I seen a stranger civilian stalk into the choir of St. George's Chapel. The spur was instantly detected; and when the bewildered man was surrounded by a bevy of white surplices..there was no help for him but to pay the spur-money.
1803Imison's Sci. & Art I. 94 In common *spur-nuts, divide the pitch-line..into twice as many equal parts as you intend teeth. 1825J. Nicholson Operative Mechanic 131 The four spur-nuts..at the end of the spindle..roll round the spur-wheel.
1842Loudon Suburban Hort. 541 *Spur Pruning, sixth year.
1883Gresley Gloss. Coal-m. 233 *Spur road, a branch way leading from a main level. 1891Hartland Gloss 73 Spur road, a bridle path. Now obsolete in this sense, although the word remains in the name of a bye-road. 1958Times 19 Mar. 10/3 The spur road to London Airport will be served by a flyover junction. 1963Listener 31 Jan. 198/2 Heavy trucks rumble along the spur roads from the Alaska Highway to mining camps deep in the frozen interior. 1977Jrnl. R. Soc. Arts CXXV. 359/1 These needs could be met by a six-lane spur road connecting with adjacent motorways.
1713Petiver Aquat. Anim. Amboinæ Tab. xi, Calcar minor,..Small *Spur-shell. Cassis verrucosa,..Great Spur-shell. 1752Hill Hist. Anim. 129 The Spur-shell, with short spines. The gold-yellow Spur-shell, with a silvery white umbo. 1883Cassell's Nat. Hist. V. 214 Genus Imperator. The shell is like a Trochus;..seen from above, it resembles the rowel of a spur, hence the name Spur-shell.
1500Acc. Ld. High Treas. Scot. II. 97 Item, to the barnis in the Queir of Strivelin, of *spur silver, be the Kingis command, vs. 1545Ibid. VIII. 411 Item, to the barnis of the quere in spur sylver, vs.
1848Gentl. Mag. I. 248 An obelisk,..part of it..having been above ground as a *spur-stone. 1880Daily News 27 July 3/3 Accidents to the vehicles..owing to the ‘spur stones’ that are fixed to..the refuges..at dangerous crossings. 1882Jefferies Bevis I. x. 172 A small sarsen or boulder..put there as a spur-stone to force the careless carters to drive straight.
1753Chambers' Cycl. Suppl. s.v. Cochlea, 11. The *spur trochus, with spines disposed in a regular circle. 12. The less aculeated spur trochus.
1607Topsell Four-f. Beasts 351 Let him blood in his *spur vains, and his breast vaines. 1735Burdon Pocket Farrier 38 Take..Blood from the Spur Vein on each Side.
1691Ray S. & E. Co. Words (ed. 2) 114 A *Spurre-way, a Horse-way through a Man's Ground, which one may ride in by right of Custom. 1787–in dial. glossaries (Norfolk, Essex, E. Anglia).
1684in Cloud of Witnesses (1871) 393, I had not the worth of a *spur whang of any man's. 1820Scott Monast. xxxvi, There are strapping lads enough would have rid us of him for the lucre of his spur-whang.
b. In the specific names of birds, fishes, or flowers, as spur-dog, a small spiny shark, Squalus acanthias, found in the Atlantic and the Mediterranean (see also quot. 1862); spur-fish, -fowl, etc. (see quots.).
1862Couch Brit. Fishes I. 49 *Spur Dog. Bone Dog... Pre-eminently this fish is called The Dogfish. 1921[see nurse-hound s.v. nurse n.2 b]. 1959A. C. Hardy Open Sea II. ix. 179 The spur-dog can easily be distinguished by the prominent spine immediately in front of each of its dorsal fins. 1976Evening Post (Nottingham) 13 Dec. 7/2 Other trophies for the best specimen fish went to..Eric Rawson for an 8½ lb. spur dog, [etc.].
1760Edwards Glean. Nat. Hist. ii. 153 The larger Fish I call the *Spur-fish, from the two odd pectinated sharp-pointed spurs on its upper and under sides. 1804Shaw Gen. Zool. V. i. 194 Rondeletian Carp, Cyprinus Rondeletii... Spur-Fish.
1845Penny Cycl. Suppl. I. 35/1 Guinea-fowls, *spur-fowls, quails, and bustards are very numerous [in Adal]. 1865Intellect. Obs. No. 39. 224 Galloperdix Lunulosa,..generally called the Spur-fowl. 1895Lydekker Roy. Nat. Hist. IV. 416 The Indian spur-fowl are more pheasant-like.
1866Treas. Bot. 550/1 Sea *spur grass, Glyceria distans.
1803Shaw Gen. Zool. IV. ii. 595 *Spur Mackrel. Scomber Calcar... Native of the African seas.
1866Treas. Bot. 219 The shrubby Capsicum, or *Spur Pepper (Capsicum frutescens), is a native of the East Indies.
1910Encycl. Brit. (ed. 11) XII. 203/2 Birds [of the Gold Coast]..include..swallows, vultures and the *spur plover (the last-named rare).
1864Grisebach Flora Brit. W. Ind. 787/2 *Spur-tree, Petitia domingensis.
1855Miss Pratt Flowering Pl. III. 161 *Spur Valerian. Corolla 5-cleft, spurred at the base. 1863Hogg & Johnson Wild Fl. Gt. Brit. ii. Pl. 140 Centranthus Ruber, Red Spur-Valerian. Syn. Red Valerian.
1749W. Ellis Shepherd's Guide 144 At Sidbury, Devonshire, ‘they have a weed called *Spurwood or Spearwort, that they say runs up like a pike’.
1640Franking *spurwort [see spurrey 1 b]. 1688Holme Armoury ii. 98/2 Francking Spurry, or Spurwort, [has]..small narrow leaves. 1796Withering Brit. Pl. (ed. 3) II. 185 Sherardia arvensis... Little Field Madder. Little Spur-wort.
▪ II. † spur, n.2 Obs.
[f. spur v.1 5.]
A sharper's method of marking playing-cards.
1674Cotton Compl. Gamester (1680) 95 In dealing these Rooks have a trick they call the Spurr, and that is, as good Cards come into their hand..they give them a gentle touch with their nail. 1711Puckle Club 23 The bent, the slick, the breef, the spur. [Note] Marking Putt-cards on the edge with the nail as they come to hand.
▪ III. † spur, n.3 dial. Obs.
Also 7 spurre.
[Of obscure origin.]
The common tern, Sterna hirundo (or fluviatilis).
a1672Willughby Ornith. (1676) 269 In insula Caldey meridionali Cambriæ littori adjacente Spurres eas vocant, communi cum Argentinensibus nomine; et insulam ubi simul nidificant Spurre-Island. [Hence in Ray and later writers.]
▪ IV. spur, n.4 techn.
[Of obscure origin.]
A set of folded sheets of paper.
1885Encycl. Brit. XVIII. 225/1 After this the [hand⁓made] paper is hung in a drying loft on cow-hair ropes in spurs of three to five sheets thick until dry.
▪ V. spur, v.1|spɜː(r)|
Forms: α. 3 spurie, 4–5 spure(n), 6–7 spurre, 6– spur (9 spurr), 8 spir. β. 4–6 spore, 5–6 sporre.
[ME. spure, spore, f. spur n.1 Cf. MDu. and Du. sporen, MHG. sporn, sporen (obs. G. sporen, spören, G. spornen), NFris. spöre, Sw. sporra.]
I. trans.
1. a. To prick (a horse, etc.) with the spur, in order to urge to a faster pace; to urge on by the use of spurs.
αc1205Lay. 26480 Þe eorles gunnen riden & spureden heore steden. c1250Gen. & Ex. 3970 Balaam it spureð and smit ðor-on; And god vndede ðis asses muð. c1470Henry Wallace x. 417 For to fle he tuke no taryage; Spuryt the hors, quhilk ran in a gud randoun Till his awn folk. 1500–20Dunbar Poems xxvii. 67 Thay spurrit thair hors on adir syd. 1530Palsgr. 731/1, I dare not spurre my hors, he is so wylde. 1612Two Noble K. iii. i, When I spur My horse, I chide him not. 1679Dryden Troil. & Cress. ii. iii, Heaven made them horses, And thou..rid'st and spurr'st them. 1740Somerville Hobbinolia ii. 218 He spur'd his sober Steed, grizled with Age. 1770Langhorne Plutarch (1851) I. 408/1 He could scarcely make his horse go, though he spurred him continually. 1850‘H. Hieover’ Pract. Horsemanship 193 The horse being whipped, spurred, and rated at while galloping, of course supposes he is doing something wrong.
absol.1607Markham Cavel. ii. (1617) 133 To bring your horse to a quicknesse vpon the spurre, is to spurre seldom, but when you spurre, to spurre most surely. 1823Scott Quentin D. x, I am sure I spurred till his sides were furrowed.
βc1330R. Brunne Chron. Wace (Rolls) 12719 He sporede his hors, forþ faste gan schake. c1440Generydes 217 He sporyd his hors and theder toke the way. c1475Partenay 4214 Gaffray that tyme..his coursere spored. a1532Ld. Berners Huon lviii. 198 He spored blanchardyn & cam agynst Gerames. Ibid. lxxxxi. 292 He sporred his horse that anone he ouer toke Huon.
b. With advs., as away, forth, on, up; or preps., as against, at, into, through, etc.
c1450Merlin xviii. 282 And whan thei saugh the cristin come thei sporred theire horse ouer the brigge at a brunt. c1530Ld. Berners Arth. Lyt. Bryt. (1814) 82 He sporred forth hys horse, and ranne into the thyckest of the prease. 1588Shakes. L.L.L. iv. i. 1 Was that the King that spurd his horse so hard, Against the steepe vprising of the hill? 1664H. More Myst. Iniq. 474 They gore and spurre up the Ass to goe that way. 1687A. Lovell tr. Thevenot's Trav. iii. 45 When the Rider spurs on his Horse to a full speed. 1770Langhorne Plutarch (1851) I. 117/1 They spurred their horses to the encounter. 1788Gibbon Decl. & Fall li. V. 357 He spurred his horse into the waves. 1812Byron Ch. Har. ii. lvii, Some high-capp'd Tartar spurr'd his steed away. 1848Lytton Harold i. iii, Edward spurred his steed up to the boor. 1894Baring-Gould Des. S. France II. 253 He spurred his horse to the side of the river.
c. fig. or in fig. context.
1500–20Dunbar Poems xxi. 13 Quhen trewth gois on his fute abowt, And lak of spending dois him spur. 1575Gascoigne Glasse of Govt. Wks. 1910 II. 26 Let shame of sinne, thy Childrens bridle be, And spurre them foorth, with bounty wysely used. 1602Marston Antonio's Rev. i. v, Does thy hart With punching anguish spur thy galled ribs? 1846Prescott Ferd. & Isab. ii. vi. II. 371 This same impulse..spurs guilty ambition along his bloody track. 1864Tennyson Aylmer's F. 290 Him, glaring, by his own stale devil spurr'd, And, like a beast hard-ridden, breathing hard.
d. To make (one's way) by spurring.
1842S. Lover Handy Andy xxxvii, The rider..still spurred and plashed his headlong way through the heavy road.
2. fig.
a. To drive on or hasten; to incite, impel, or stimulate; to urge or prompt. Freq. const. to (do something, or some course of action). Also occas., with an action or activity as object.
a1225Juliana 59 Heo as þe deouel spurede ham to donne, duden hit unsparliche. c1230Hali Meid. 13 Þe ilke sari wrecches..beoð þe deuelles eaueres, þat rit ham & spureð ham to don al þat he wile. a1548Hall Chron., Hen. VI, 99 b, The Duke,..somwhat spurred and quyckened with these noueltyes, retired backe. 1587Golding De Mornay xx. (1592) 319 A desire of honor whereby we be spurred to do well. 1588Shakes. L.L.L. ii. i. 119 Ber. You must not be so quicke. Rosa. 'Tis long of you yt spur me with such questions. 1633G. Herbert Temple, Storm ii, A throbbing conscience spurred by remorse Hath a strange force. 1663Patrick Parab. Pilgrim xxvii. (1687) 304 If these Joys do not spur you to Obedience,..they are not of such value as you imagine. 1733Cheyne Eng. Malady ii. ix. (1734) 209 Any thing that will stimulate, rouze, and spur the dead and languishing Solids. 1769E. Bancroft Guiana 371 They are spurred to industry by the whip of correction. 1803Visct. Strangford Poems of Camoens, Lusiad vi. xl. (1810) 111 Some tale of joy, To spur the time that now so stilly stands. 1850Dobell Roman iv, I spur my soul all day With thought of tyrants, woes and chains. 1874Green Short Hist. i. §5. 48 The mention of Nero spurs him to an outbreak on the abuses of power. 1951Newsweek 27 Sept. 74/3 Much of this expansion has been spurred by the government. 1976National Observer (U.S.) 17 Apr. 7/2 Mae Craig,..Liz Carpenter, and I spurred a move for the survivors of the Spruce Goose week end to entertain our millionaire host with an appreciation party.
absol.1576Gascoigne Philomene cciii, The flesh may spurre to euerlasting fire. 1611B. Jonson Catiline iii. iii, When need spurres, despaire will be call'd wisdome. 1738Warburton Div. Legat. i. iv. I. 60 Self-interest..spurring to Action, by Hopes and Fears.
b. With on.
1582Stanyhurst æneis ii. (Arb.) 53 Too shock in coombats..Mee my wyl on spurreth. 1624Capt. Smith Virginia iii. x. 83 With shame to spurre on the rest to amendment. 1663Patrick Parab. Pilgrim xxiv. (1687) 259 And yet they spur on their hours, and would have them flye away faster than they do. 1672Marvell Reh. Transp. i. 67 Two Friends who..spurr'd him on perpetually with commendation. 1711Swift Jrnl. to Stella 16 Nov., To spur on the French to be easy and sincere. a1720Sewel Hist. Quakers Pref., I was the more spurr'd on thereby to set down in due Order..what I knew of the Matter. 1812Cary Dante, Parad. iv. 14 Ire, that spurr'd him on to deeds unjust. 1854Poultry Chron. 139/1 Spurred on with the certainty of a prize. 1874Symonds Sk. Italy & Greece (1898) I. xii. 231 He is..spurred on by yearnings after an unsearchable delight.
c. With up.
1645Quarles Sol. Recant. xii. xi, The wise mans words are like to Goads, that doe Stir up the drowzy, and spur up the slow. 1656Earl of Monmouth tr. Boccalini's Advts. fr. Parnass. ii. vi. (1674) 145 Riches made proud, and spurr'd him up to commit faults. 1710Swift Jrnl. Stella 9 Dec., Why did not you..first spur up his recommendation to the height. 1732Law Serious C. (ed. 2) xviii. 331 A youth that has been spurr'd up to all his industry by ambition. 1852Mrs. Stowe Uncle Tom's C. ix, Spurring up the Legislature..to pass more stringent resolutions against escaping fugitives. 1871Burr Ad Fidem xv. 305 A strong faith, spurred up by approaching death.
3. To provide with a spur or spurs; to furnish with gaffs.
13..K. Alis. 6650 (Laud MS.), His spere takeþ Perdicas; His helys sporeþ Emudus. 1694Motteux Rabelais v. xxvii. (1737) 119 They..began to boot and spur one another. 17..Young Hunting in Child Ball. II. 144/2 She has booted an spird Young Hunting As he had been gan to ride. 1832Marryat N. Forster xlv. (Rtldg.) 246 The proper way in which they [cocks] should be spurred... Two pairs of spurs were..made.
4. Of a bird: To strike or wound with the spur. Also transf.
1631T. Drue Dutches of Suffolk iv, Why the Cocke ale has spurd thee already. 1805[see lark-spurred a.] 1863Cowden Clarke Shaks. Char. vi. 145 That man's wife..would so peck and spur him, that he was a totally different man when in her company.
†5. Card-sharping. (See quot.) Obs.—1
1674Cotton Compl. Gamester (1680) 95 They always fix half a score Packs of Cards..by slicking them or spurring them, that is, giving them such marks that they shall certainly know every Card in the Pack.
II. intr.
6. a. To ride quickly by urging on one's horse with the spur. Also with it.
1593Shakes. Rich. II, ii. i. 36 He tyres betimes, that spurs too fast betimes. 1596Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. II. 137 [He] than spurit with speid to Scotland, with lettres of commendatioun. 1697Dryden Virg. Georg. iii. 49 The Parthians..spurring from the Fight, confess their Fear. ― æneid xi. 923 Spurring at speed, to their own walls they drew. 1816Byron Siege Cor. xxii, Mount ye, spur ye, skirr the plain. 1849Macaulay Hist. Eng. ix. II. 436 Not a day passed on which he was not seen spurring from his villa to the Hague. 1891Cornhill Mag. Oct. 416 His troop would spur it over the drawbridge with clatter of hoofs.
b. With advs., as after, away, forward(s, on, up.
1590Spenser F.Q. iii. i. 18 But all spurd after fast, as they mote fly. 1642Fuller Holy & Prof. State iv. i. 241 He doth not alwayes spurre up close to the Kings side. 1697Dryden æneid v. 872 Ascanius took th' alarm,..And, spurring on, his equals soon o'erpass'd. 1795Southey Joan of Arc iii. 81 Saying thus, he spurr'd away. 1829Scott Anne of G. xxxv, Two or three Stradiots then spurred on to examine this defile. 1883E. Pennell-Elmhirst Cream of Leicestersh. 135 [He] spurred forward to check the solitary hounds.
fig.a1659Bp. Browning Serm. (1674) I. xxx. 386 Obstinacy spurs on in spight of all perswasions. 1673Marvell Reh. Transp. ii. 82 The Gentleman thought it necessary to spur up again the next year with another new book.
c. transf. To hasten; to proceed hurriedly.
1513Douglas æneid ii. xi. 31 A fair brycht sterne..Markand the way quhidder at we suld spur. Ibid. vii. iv. 19 He..fast gan spur..To mark the fundment of his new citie. 1666Extr. St. Papers rel. Friends Ser. iii. (1912) 256, I shall be able to do more, goeing my owne way then by spurring to Fast. 1677W. Mountagu in Buccleuch MSS. (Hist. MSS. Comm.) I. 324 The reason I had to spur on was, that..I found Sir John Robinson there.
7. a. To strike out with the foot; to kick.
1590Nashe Martin Marprelate Wks. (Grosart) I. 232 What is this,..but to fall groueling to the earth.., and beeing downe,..to kicke and spurre. a1835Hogg Tales (1866) 150/2 After gluthering and spurring a wee while, they cam to again. 1870Emerson Soc. & Sol., Domestic Life, All day, between his three or four sleeps, he [an infant] sputters and spurs.
b. Of cocks, etc.: To fight with the spur; to strike at. Also transf.
a1722Lisle Husb. (1757) 346 If a sheep should come so near to a lark's nest as to tread on it, the lark will fly out, and spur at the sheep. 1838T. Mitchell Clouds of Aristophanes 172 Two fighting-cocks..spurring at each other. 1887McNeill Blawearie 179 Examining the..paws of the dog to see if he might be expected to spurr well.
c. Sc. (See quot.)
1825Jamieson Suppl., To Spur, v.n., to scrape, as a hen or cock on a dunghill.
III. trans.
8. To support or prop up (a post, etc.) by means of a strut or spur; to strengthen with spurs.
1733Tull Horse-Hoeing Husb. xxiii. 361 (Dubl.), These Standards ought to be braced (or spurr'd) before and behind. 1750W. Ellis Mod. Husb. VI. i. 126 By spurring up a gate or stile-post before they are quite damaged, he may save a landlord a considerable charge. 1828–in dial. glossaries (Yks., Chesh., Sussex, Hamps.).
9. To prune in (a side-shoot, etc.) so as to form a spur close to the stem. Chiefly with in or back.
1840Florist's Jrnl. (1846) I. 104 Instead of being spurred⁓in closely,..the shoots of the selected trees should be left somewhat longer. 1846Baxter Libr. Pract. Agric. I. 184 Good lateral shoots may be spurred as before directed. 1849Beck's Florist 54 Spur them back in a way best calculated to form a bushy head.
10. To affect with the disease spur or ergot.
1896Lina Echenstein Woman under Monasticism 286 Bread containing rye spurred or diseased with ergot. 1897Allbutt's Syst. Med. II. 796 Wagner reported one-fifth of a bulk of rye to be spurred.
▪ VI. spur, v.2 north. dial.
Also 5 spirr, spyrr.
[Special senses of spir, spur speer v.1 Cf. ask v. 20.]
1. trans.
†a. To publish (the banns of marriage) in church. Obs.—1
c1400York Manual (Surtees) p. xvi, Yet I spyrr y⊇ beynis off y⊇ forsayde N. and N.
b. In pa. pple. Of persons: To be proclaimed in church as having a purpose of marriage.
c1400York Manual (Surtees) p. xvi, N. and N...hase bene spirred thre solemne dayes in y⊇ kirke. 1705Thoresby Diary (1830) I. 460 There were also two-and-twenty couples spurred (to use the local word) in order to marry this day. 1828–in dial. glossaries, etc. (Yks., Lan., Der., Lincs.). 1852N. & Q. 1st Ser. VI. 329/2 ‘To be spurred up’ is to have had the banns published for three Sundays.
2. (See quot.) Obs.—0
1674Ray N. Co. Words 44 To sparre..or spurre, to..cry at the Market.
▪ VII. spur
obs. variant of speer v.1 |