foxn.
/fɒks/, U.S. /fɑks/ I. The animal and related uses.
1.
a. An animal of the genus Vulpes, having an elongated pointed muzzle and long bushy tail. Usually V. vulgaris.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > family Canidae > [noun] > genus Vulpes > vulpes vulpes (fox)
foxc825
toda1200
Reynardc1400
laurence?a1500
lowrie?a1500
tod lowrie?a1500
fleck1567
pug1812
puggy1827
Charley1857
red fox1875
alopecoid1880
redskin1905
c825 Vesp. Psalter lxii[i]. 11 [10] Sien sald in hond sweordes daelas foxa bioð.
?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 217 Nim & kec us..þe ȝeunge foxes.
a1300 Vox & Wolf 208 in W. C. Hazlitt Remains Early Pop. Poetry Eng. (1864) I. 65 Ȝe, quad the vox, al thou most sugge.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 7151 Thre hundreth fox he samun knitt.
1486 Bk. St. Albans F vj b A skulke of ffoxis.
1487 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (St. John's Cambr.) xix. 663 In-till the luge a fox he saw, That fast can on a salmond gnaw.
1597 R. Hooker Of Lawes Eccl. Politie v. lxxix. 248 As if the worlde did..thinke the Foxe a goodly creature.
1674 N. Cox Gentleman's Recreation i. 4 Fox..is called, the first year, a Cub; the second a Fox; and after that, an old Fox.
1718 M. Prior Solomon on Vanity i, in Poems Several Occasions (new ed.) 405 The lonely fox roams far abroad, On secret rapine bent.
1835 A. W. Fonblanque Eng. under Seven Admin. (1837) III. 245 If the esteem of the people were made as much a pursuit as a stinking fox's brush.
1870 J. Yeats Nat. Hist. Commerce 266 The red fox of America.
b. with allusion to its artfulness and cunning.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > family Canidae > [noun] > genus Vulpes > vulpes vulpes (fox) > with allusion to its artfulness and cunning
foxc1200
c1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 195 Þe fox mid his wrenches walt oðer deor and haueð his wille þerof.
a1635 T. Randolph Ode 64 Nor will we spare To hunt the crafty fox.
1735 W. Somervile Chace iii. 23 The wily Fox remain'd A subtle pilf'ring Foe, prowling around In Midnight Shades.
1793 R. Burns Poems (ed. 2) II. 182 Foxes and statesmen, subtile wiles ensure.
c. in various proverbial expressions.
ΚΠ
a1500 (a1460) Towneley Plays (1994) I. ii. 14 Let furth youre geyse; the fox will preche.
a1500 R. Henryson tr. Æsop Fables: Trial of Fox l. 827 in Poems (1981) 35 Ay rinnis the foxe, als lang as he fute hais.
1539 R. Taverner tr. Erasmus Prouerbes sig. D.iijv An olde foxe is not taken in a snare.
?1542 H. Brinkelow Complaynt Roderyck Mors xxiv. sig. H5 As thou maist knowe a foxe by his furred tayle.
1546 J. Heywood Dialogue Prouerbes Eng. Tongue ii. vii. sig. Iivv Whan the foxe preacheth, than beware our geese.
1607 T. Walkington Optick Glasse 38 A Fox is known by his bush.
1662 S. Pepys Diary 26 Dec. (1970) III. 295 We shall endeavour to joyne the Lyon's skin to the Foxes tail.
d. Phrases: †to catch, hunt the fox: to get drunk. to flay the fox: see flay v. 6. to play (the) fox: (a) to act cunningly, (b) to sham. †to smell a fox: to be suspicious.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > ability > skill or skilfulness > cunning > be cunning or act cunningly [verb (intransitive)]
havilonc1400
trantc1400
to draw a snecka1500
craft1530
to play (the) fox1599
politize1623
art1637
to have a sheep's eye1711
the mind > mental capacity > belief > uncertainty, doubt, hesitation > lack of confidence, distrust, suspicion > suspect, distrust [phrase]
to have, take, occasionally bear suspicion13..
to have or hold (a person or thing) suspectc1380
to have (or hold) in suspectc1386
to have supposinga1400
to enter into suspicion with1471
to have in suspicion1471
to have in jealousy1523
to smell a ratc1540
to smell a fox1599
to be or look shy on or at1837
the world > food and drink > drink > thirst > excess in drinking > [verb (intransitive)] > get drunk
drunkenc1000
to wash one's face in an ale clout1550
to shoe the goose, gosling1566
to catch, hunt the fox1599
to swallow a tavern-token1601
to read Geneva print1608
to whip the cat1622
inebriate1626
to hunt a tavern-fox1635
fox1649
mug1653
to fuddle one's cap or nose1663
to lose one's legs1770
gin1789
stone1858
to beer up1884
slop1899
to get, have, tie a bun on1901
shicker1906
souse1921
lush1926
to cop a reeler1937
to tie one on1951
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > conformity with what is known, truth > deceit, deception, trickery > dissimulation, pretence > pretend, dissemble [phrase]
makec1275
to make wise1447
make as though?c1450
to let fare1483
to make a show ofa1500
to set a face1560
to take on (also upon) one(self)?1560
to make (a) miena1657
to make believe1773
to put it on1888
to play (the) fox1894
1599 J. Minsheu Pleasant Dialogues Spanish & Eng. 19 in R. Percyvall & J. Minsheu Spanish Gram. Whosoeuer loues good wine, hunts the foxe once a yeere.
1611 T. Middleton & T. Dekker Roaring Girle sig. B4v Now I do smell a fox strongly.
1647 N. Ward Simple Cobler Aggawam 6 Tiberius plaid the Fox with the Senate of Rome.
1699 B. E. New Dict. Canting Crew (at cited word) He has caught a Fox, he is very Drunk.
1894 S. R. Crockett Raiders 329 I played fox several times, pretending to be in pain.
2. figurative.
a. A man likened for craftiness to a fox.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > ability > skill or skilfulness > cunning > [noun] > cunning person
foxc1000
yepea1250
slies1297
wily-man1393
wilyc1400
sneck-drawer1402
piea1425
wily-piec1450
artificera1500
tod?a1513
Sim Subtlea1529
serpentinea1533
prata1542
wily beguile1550
wily-wat?1550
elfa1556
dog fox1609
saccularian1652
sly-cap1681
sly-boots1699
craftsmaster1717
scunge1824
sleeveen1834
chickaleary1869
sneck-draw1886
rusée1889
slypuss1942
c1000 West Saxon Gospels: Luke (Corpus Cambr.) xiii. 32 Gað & secgað þam foxe, deofol-seocnessa ic utadrife.
1548 Hall's Vnion: Henry VI f. clxiiijv This auncient Fox, and pollitique Capitayne lost not one houre..till [etc.].
1712 J. Arbuthnot Law is Bottomless-pit iv. 9 Don't you see how that old Fox steals away your Customers..?
1851 M. Reid Scalp Hunters III. ix. 117 I could not help reflecting on the strange stratagem by which the old fox [sc. Rube] had saved himself.
b. ? Used as adj.: Fox-like, cunning.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > ability > skill or skilfulness > cunning > [adjective]
warec888
craftyOE
hinderyeapc1000
yepec1000
foxc1175
slya1200
hinderc1200
quaint?c1225
wrenchfulc1225
wiltfula1250
wilyc1330
subtle1340
cautelous138.
sleightful1380
subtile1387
enginousa1393
wilfula1400
wilyc1407
sleighty1412
serpentinec1422
ginnousa1425
wittya1425
semyc1440
artificial?a1475
sleight1495
slapea1500
shrewdc1525
craftly1526
foxy1528
gleering?1533
foxish1535
insidious1545
vafrous1548
wily beguile1550
wilely1556
fine1559
todly1571
practic1585
subdolous1588
captious1590
witryff1598
cautel1606
cunninga1616
versute1616
shiftfula1618
artificious1624
insidiary1625
canny1628
lapwing-like1638
pawky?a1640
tricksome1648
callid1656
versutious1660
artful1663
slim1674
dexterous1701
trickish1705
supple1710
slid1719
vulpinary1721
tricksy1766
trickful1775
sneck-drawing1786
tricky1786
louche1819
sneck-drawn1820
slyish1828
vulpine1830
kokum1839
spidery1843
dodgy1861
ladino1863
carney1881
slinky1951
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 6646 Þatt mann iss fox. & hinnderrȝæp..Þatt..follȝheþþ deofless wille.
a1300 Long Life in Old Eng. Misc. 156 Fox and ferlich is his wren[c]h.
c. An attractive woman. U.S. slang.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > attractiveness > [noun] > attractive person > woman
morsela1450
honeypot1618
enchantera1704
peach1710
enchantress1713
sparkler1713
enslaver1728
witch1740
fascinatress1799
honey1843
biscuit1855
fairy1862
baby1863
scorcher1881
cracker1891
peacherino1896
hot tamale1897
mink1899
hotty?1913
babe1915
a bit of skirt1916
cookie1917
tomato1918
snuggle-pup1922
nifty1923
brahma1925
package1931
ginch1934
blonde bombshell1942
beast1946
smasher1948
a bit of crackling1949
nymphet1955
nymphette1961
fox1963
beaver1968
superbabe1970
brick house1977
nubile1977
yummy mummy1993
1963 R. I. McDavid in R. I. McDavid & D. W. Maurer Mencken's Amer. Lang. (new ed.) xi. 745 A cat in hot pursuit of a chick or fox is said to have his nose wide open.
1963 L. Hairston in Freedomways Winter 53 Daddy, she was a real fox!
1967 H. Wentworth & S. B. Flexner Dict. Amer. Slang (new ed.) (Suppl.) 684 Fox, an energetic, attractive, desirable girl, esp. one having a happy and alert personality. Orig. Negro use. Pop. into white use during 1963 by heavyweight boxer Cassius Clay.
1970 R. H. Greenan Nightmare in Colour (1971) lviii. 181 A fox is a girl. A fox is a chick, you see?
3. The fur of the fox.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > materials > raw material > skin or hide > skin with hair attached or fur > [noun] > of fox
tod1482
fox1501
fox-skin1598
fox-case1610
pointed fox1902
1501 in S. Tymms Wills & Inventories Bury St. Edmunds (1850) 88 My tawney gown furryd wt ffoxe.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Measure for Measure (1623) iii. i. 278 A fur'd gowne to keepe him warme; and furd with Foxe and Lamb-skins too. View more context for this quotation
1882 S. W. Beck Draper's Dict. Fox..Of this fur there are several varieties.
4. One of the northern constellations (Vulpecula).
ΘΚΠ
the world > the universe > constellation > Northern constellations > [noun] > Vulpecula
Vulpecula1866
fox1868
1868 W. Lockyer & J. N. Lockyer tr. A. Guillemin Heavens (ed. 3) 398 Situated between the constellations of the Swan and the Fox.
5.
a. Some animal or fish likened to a fox, esp. the gemmeous dragonet ( Callionymus lyra), called also fox-fish. flying fox, sea fox: see those words.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > fish > superorder Acanthopterygii (spiny fins) > order Perciformes (perches) > [noun] > suborder Callionymoidei (dragonets) > callionymus lyra (gemmeous dragonet)
illeck1602
fox1611
goldeneyc1680
yellow gurnard1705
gemmeous dragonet1765
1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues Spase, ..the sea-fox, or fox dog-fish.
1646 Sir T. Browne Pseudodoxia Epidemica iii. xxiv. 169 Some are called the Fox, the Dog, the Sparrow, or Frog-fish. View more context for this quotation
1769 T. Pennant Brit. Zool. (new ed.) III. iv. 302 These fish [sc. carp] are extremely cunning, and on that account are by some styled the river fox.
1836 W. Yarrell Hist. Brit. Fishes I. 302 Fox..The common Skulpin.
b. Short for fox-moth n. at Compounds 2b.
II. Senses of obscure development.† 6. A kind of sword. Obsolete.It has been conjectured that this use arose from the figure of a wolf, on certain sword-blades, being mistaken for a fox.† 14. ? = foxglove n. 1. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > military equipment > weapon > sharp weapon > side arms > sword > [noun] > other types of sword
heading sword1513
tonsword?1578
dancing rapier1594
fox1599
back-sword1611
acinaces1653
sahaguna1668
walking sword1677
diego1709
wakizashi1727
kleywang1783
pedang1817
sundang1852
tachi1948
1599 H. Porter Pleasant Hist. Two Angrie Women of Abington sig. F3 I had a sword..a right fox Ifaith.
1633 J. Ford Loves Sacrifice v. sig. K3 'Tis a tough fox, wil not faile his master.
1821 W. Scott Kenilworth I. iv. 92 Put up your fox, and let us be jogging.
7. Brewing. (See quot. 1750) Cf. fox v. 5.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > drink > manufacture of alcoholic drink > brewing > [noun] > turning sour
blinking1727
foxing1742
fox1750
1750 W. Ellis Country Housewife's Family Compan. 377 That poisonous Damage, called in great Brewhouses the Fox, which gives the Drink a sickish nasty Taste.
8. Nautical. (See quots. 1769, 1815)
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > equipment of vessel > ropes or chains other than rigging or cable > [noun] > rope collective or as material > specific types of rope
ratline1358
marline1417
sinnet1611
caburn1626
knittle1627
housing1642
lashing1669
houseline1712
fox1769
sennit1769
hamber-line1793
seizing1804
grass line1828
stropping1850
lanyard1862
small stuff1867
1769 W. Falconer Universal Dict. Marine Fox a sort of strand, formed by twisting several rope-yarns together, and used as a seizing, or to weave a mat or paunch.
1815 W. Burney Falconer's New Universal Dict. Marine (rev. ed.) at Fox Spanish fox, a single rope-yarn untwisted and then twisted up the contrary way, and rubbed smooth. It is used for small seizings.
1834 F. Marryat Peter Simple I. vii. 86 Mr. Jenkins desired the other men to get half a dozen foxes and make a spread eagle of me.
c1860 H. Stuart Novices or Young Seaman's Catech. (rev. ed.) 27.
9. A drain carried under another watercourse by means of a tunnel. Cf. fox v. 3.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > cultivation or tillage > preparation of land or soil > ditching or drainage > [noun] > other types of drainage
gutteringc1420
strand1565
sewaging1610
thorough-draining1669
cuniculus1670
French drain1738
riggot?1746
bush-draining1748
surface drain1765
land-drain1767
pipe-draining1776
surface draining1777
fox1784
surface drainage1796
mole drain1804
soughing1808
acequia1811
well-draining1818
tile-draining1830
wedge-draining?1830
plug-draining1833
land-drainage1841
land-draining1841
mole-draining1842
trough gutter1856
mole-ditching1860
mole drainage1860
tile-drainagea1865
well point1867
karez1875
storm sewer1887
moling1943
tiling1943
storm drain1960
1784 M. Weighton Drainage Award 13 The Fox made under the canal.
10. See quot. 1874. Also foxtail n.
ΚΠ
1874 E. H. Knight Pract. Dict. Mech. I. 912/1 Fox-bolt, a description of bolt which is made tight by a fox or wedge driven into a split in the end.
11. plural. A variety of ironstone. dialect.
ΚΠ
1793–1813 A. Young Gen. View Agric. Sussex 13 (E.D.S.)
12. slang. An artificial sore.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > ill health > injury > [noun] > sore
sorec1000
cweise?c1225
sorancec1440
shoyn1527
uncome1542
sorance1592
rawness1607
button farcy1673
fleck1695
raw1825
cold sore1842
bed-sore1861
fox1862
pressure sore1889
Queensland sore1892
salt sore1908
salt-burn1917
pressure point1929
1862 H. Mayhew & J. Binny Criminal Prisons of London 305 Daring youths..were constantly in the habit of making ‘foxes’ (artificial sores).
13. In U.S. Colleges: A freshman. Cf. German fuchs.
ΘΚΠ
society > education > learning > learner > college or university student > [noun] > first-year student
puny1548
freshman1583
puisne1592
freshwomana1627
bejan1642
nib1655
jib1827
greeny1834
fox1839
freshie1845
rat1850
buttery Benjie1854
pennal1854
yellow-beak1865
fresher1875
yellow-neb1879
yearling1908
frosh1915
1839 H. W. Longfellow Hyperion I. ii. iv. 123 A procession of newcomers, or Nasty Foxes, as they are called in the college dialect.
1847 Yale Literary Mag. 12 116 ‘Halloo there, Herdman, fox!’ yelled another lusty tippler.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > foxglove and allied flowers > foxglove
foxglovec1000
London button1552
wine-pot herb1552
finger1562
finger flower1562
lady's glove1575
foxter1623
fox-finger1657
fox1684
bloody finger1789
witch bell1808
fairy fingers1811
fairy thimble1813
dead men's bells1818
witches' thimbles1820
fairy bells1821
fairy glove1841
flap-dock1846
cow-flop1847
pop-glove1847
lady's thimble1853
Scotch mercury1853
poppy1856
fairy petticoats1864
finger root1870
fairy weed1871
pop-dock1878
witches' bells1884
1684 tr. T. Bonet Guide Pract. Physician xiv. 473 Bathes wherein proper Herbs, especially Foxes, have been boiled.
Compounds
C1.
a. Simple attributive.
(a)
fox bitch n.
ΚΠ
1620 F. Beaumont & J. Fletcher Phylaster iv. 40 When my foxe bith bewty growes prowd, I'le borrow him.
fox-burrow n.
ΚΠ
1551 T. Wilson Rule of Reason sig. Ivv The hontesman..wil sone espie when he seeth a hole, whether it be a foxe borough, or not.
fox-cover n.
ΚΠ
1831 T. P. Thompson Exercises (1842) I. 371 Who..turns his farm into a fox-cover.
fox-craft n.
ΚΠ
1654 R. Vilvain tr. Enchiridium Epigr. iv. xcii. 87 Two fals Scotsh Earls of Fox-craft fraud composed.
fox-cub n.
ΚΠ
1857 T. Hughes Tom Brown's School Days i. iii. 66 To watch the fox-cubs playing in the green rides.
fox-earth n.
ΚΠ
1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 222/2 Foxe erthe, taisniere.
1824 M. R. Mitford Our Village I. 71 Amongst broken ridges and fox-earths.
fox-head adj. Used attributively.
ΚΠ
1849 R. S. Surtees Soapey Sponge's Sporting Tour xvii, in New Monthly Mag. July 328 A large gold fox-head pin.
(b) Used for taking the fox.
fox-gin n.
ΚΠ
1669 J. Worlidge Systema Agriculturæ (1681) 216 Small Iron-gins like Fox-gins.
fox-trap n.
ΚΠ
1607 B. Jonson Volpone v. v. sig. M3v Let his sport pay for 't, this is call'd the Foxe-trap . View more context for this quotation
1856 E. K. Kane Arctic Explor. I. v. 53 Places of deposit for meat, and rocks arranged as foxtraps.
(c) (Sense 6.)
fox-blade n.
ΚΠ
c1640 Capt. Underwit i, in A. H. Bullen Coll. Old Eng. Plays (1883) II. 321 And old fox blade made at Hounsloe heath.
fox-broadsword n.
ΚΠ
1826 W. Scott Woodstock I. i. 19 A good fox broad-sword.
b. Objective.
(a)
fox-follower n.
ΚΠ
1782 W. Cowper Conversation in Poems 233 Though the fox he follows may be tamed, A mere fox-follower never is reclaimed.
fox-stealer n.
ΚΠ
1850 R. S. Surtees Soapey Sponge's Sporting Tour liii, in New Monthly Mag. Sept. 109 The poachers and fox-stealers of the village.
fox-worship n.
ΘΚΠ
society > faith > sect > non-Christian religions > other non-Christian sects > fox-worship > [noun]
fox-worship1880
1880 I. L. Bird Unbeaten Tracks Japan I. 71 Fox-worship being one of the most universal superstitions in Japan.
(b)
fox poisoning n.
ΚΠ
1890 Daily News 7 July 3/8 Attempts at fox-poisoning.
c. Parasynthetic.
fox-nosed adj.
ΚΠ
1889 Cent. Dict. (at cited word) The lemurs called fox-nosed monkeys.
fox-visaged adj.
ΚΠ
1892 J. Murdoch From Austral. & Japan v. 155 The wares the fox-visaged, bullet-headed gyu kept on crying.
d. Similative, as fox-red adj.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > colour > named colours > red or redness > [adjective] > brownish-red
rustya1398
hepaticc1420
horseflesh1530
rubiginousa1538
iron1587
bricky1615
ferrugineous1633
sand-reda1639
brickish1648
ferruginous1656
lateritious1656
brick-coloured1675
blood bay1684
testaceous1688
rust-coloureda1691
brick-red1740
brick-dust-like1765
maroon1771
rufous1782
brick-dusty1817
rusted1818
worm red1831
brownish-red1832
brown-red1835
foxy1850
rust1854
henna-coloured1865
chestnut-red1882
terra-cotta1882
copper-red1883
fox-red1910
oxblood1918
tony1921
henna-brown1931
henna-red2002
1910 J. Galsworthy Inn of Tranquility (1912) 53 The wet fox-red drifts under the beech-trees.
1926 D. H. Lawrence David x. 70 Thou hast spied out every hair in his beard. Is he not fox-red?
1956 G. Durrell My Family & Other Animals vii. 87 A tall, square Venetian mansion, with..green shutters and a fox-red roof.
C2.
a. † fox-case n. Obsolete the skin of a fox.† fox-court n. Obsolete a place or yard in which foxes may be kept.† fox-drunk adj. Obsolete (see quot.).† fox-hen n. Obsolete ? a payment of a hen for the maintenance of fox-hunting.† fox-lungs n. Obsolete some medicinal preparation.† fox-stones n. Obsolete plural (a) the testicles of a fox; (b) an old name for Orchis mascula.† fox-whelp n. Obsolete (a) a cub of the fox (used also as a term of contempt); (b) apparently a kind of cider (cf. quot. 1664.
fox-beagle n. a beagle used for fox-hunting.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > family Canidae > hound > [noun] > beagle
beagle?c1475
beagle-hound1552
fox-beagle1676
beagle-dog1706
basket-beagle1823
rabbit beagle1824
1676 London Gaz. No. 1108/4 A black Fox Beagle Bitch.
fox-bench n. ‘indurated sand’ ( Chesh. Gloss.).
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > structure of the earth > constituent materials > rock > sedimentary rock > [noun] > sandstone > others
firestone1399
hassock1461
red stone1602
penistone1688
bluestone1709
gingerbread1714
brownstone1780
molasse1794
Old Red Sandstone1805
chip sand1808
fox-bench1816
New Red Sandstone1818
grey band1824
arkose1839
cankstone1845
St. Bees Sandstone1865
pietra serena1873
Ham Hill stone1889
1816 M. Keating Trav. (1817) II. 155 Geology brings to mind here all the connexion of ideas of fox-bench, with the denudation of forests, coal-beds, iron.
fox-bolt n. (see quot.).
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > equipment > building and constructing equipment > fastenings > [noun] > bolt > types of
round bolt1582
ringbolt1599
pikebolt1622
rag bolt1625
set-bolt1627
clinch-bolta1642
eyebolt1649
clinch1659
screw-bolt1690
king bolt1740
wrain-bolt1750
wraining-bolt1769
toggle-bolt1794
strap-bolt1795
wring-bolt1815
through-bolt1821
truss-bolt1825
slip-stopper1831
stud bolt1838
anchor bolt1839
king rod1843
joint bolt1844
spade-bolt1850
shackle-bolt1852
roof bolt1853
set-stud1855
coach bolt1869
truss-rod1873
fox-bolt1874
garnish-bolt1874
fang-bolt1876
stud1878
U bolta1884
rock bolt1887
hook bolt1899
tower bolt1911
explosive bolt1948
1874Fox-bolt [see sense 10].
fox-brush n. the tail of a fox used similatively.
ΚΠ
1891 Daily News 1 June 2/5 Some large tails of fox brush orchids.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > materials > raw material > skin or hide > skin with hair attached or fur > [noun] > of fox
tod1482
fox1501
fox-skin1598
fox-case1610
pointed fox1902
1610 J. Guillim Display of Heraldrie iii. xxiii. 171 Where the Lions skin is too scant, it must bee peeced out with a Fox case.
a1625 J. Fletcher Womans Prize ii. ii, in F. Beaumont & J. Fletcher Comedies & Trag. (1647) sig. Nnnnn4v/1 Y'on old Foxcase.
fox-chase n. (a) = fox-hunt n.: (b) a game in imitation of this, also attributive.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > hunting specific animals > [noun] > fox
fox-hunting1674
fox-chasea1704
fox-hunt1816
tod-touzing1824
society > leisure > entertainment > pastimes > game > children's game > hiding or chasing game > [noun] > hare and hounds
hunt the foxa1600
hunt the hare1762
fox and hounds1821
hare and hounds1839
fox-chase1856
paperchase1856
paper hunt1871
a1704 T. Brown Declam. Praise Poverty (rev. ed.) in Wks. (1730) I. 98 A kind of Fox-chace pleasure.
1734 A. Pope Epist. to Visct. Cobham 7 Mad at a fox-chase, wise at a debate.
1856 E. K. Kane Arctic Explor. I. xiii. 145 A ‘fox-chase’ round the decks.
fox-colour n. a reddish-yellow colour.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > colour > named colours > yellow or yellowness > [adjective] > reddish yellow > pale
fallowOE
favel1490
faucha1522
fallow-coloured1567
fulvid1598
fulve1657
fulvous1664
flavid1762
fox-coloured1796
fulvescent1817
1796 W. Withering Arrangem. Brit. Plants (ed. 3) IV. 193 Gills white, in pairs: pileus fox colour, convex.
fox-coloured adj.
ΚΠ
a1642 H. Best Farming & Memorandum Bks. (1984) 88 Foxe coloured lambs.
1808 T. Ashe Trav. Amer. xvii. 159 Between ninety and an hundred American birds have been described..as follows: fox coloured thrush.
1845 S. Judd Margaret ii. i. 216 A thin stream of water emerging from a long line of fox-coloured cotton thistle.
1867 Amer. Naturalist 1 54 Ornithological Calendar for March 20th to 31st... Fox-colored Sparrows arrive.
1879 O. N. Rood Mod. Chromatics iv. 45 A fox-coloured yellow.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > keeping or breeding other animals > [noun] > place for keeping other animals
froggery1737
toadery1763
fox-court1781
nopalery1783
beavery1877
mousery1920
wormery1952
1781 P. Beckford Thoughts on Hunting xxiii. 301 If you breed up cubs, you will find a fox-court necessary.
fox-dog n. a fox-hound.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > family Canidae > hound > [noun] > fox-hound
fox-dog1708
fox-hounda1763
squeaker1828
1708 P. A. Motteux Wks. F. Rabelais (1737) iv. xliv. 178 Some of your Badger's or Fox-Dogs.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > drink > thirst > excess in drinking > [adjective] > drunk
fordrunkenc897
drunkena1050
cup-shottenc1330
drunka1400
inebriate1497
overseenc1500
liquor1509
fou1535
nase?1536
full1554
intoxicate1554
tippled1564
intoxicated1576
pepst1577
overflown1579
whip-cat1582
pottical1586
cup-shota1593
fox-drunk1592
lion-drunk1592
nappy1592
sack-sopped1593
in drink1598
disguiseda1600
drink-drowned1600
daggeda1605
pot-shotten1604
tap-shackled1604
high1607
bumpsy1611
foxed1611
in one's cups1611
liquored1611
love-pot1611
pot-sick1611
whift1611
owl-eyed1613
fapa1616
hota1616
inebriated1615
reeling ripea1616
in one's (or the) pots1618
scratched1622
high-flown?1624
pot-shot1627
temulentive1628
ebrious1629
temulent1629
jug-bitten1630
pot-shaken1630
toxed1635
bene-bowsiea1637
swilled1637
paid1638
soaken1651
temulentious1652
flagonal1653
fuddled1656
cut1673
nazzy1673
concerned1678
whittled1694
suckey1699
well-oiled1701
tippeda1708
tow-row1709
wet1709
swash1711
strut1718
cocked1737
cockeyed1737
jagged1737
moon-eyed1737
rocky1737
soaked1737
soft1737
stewed1737
stiff1737
muckibus1756
groggy1770
muzzeda1788
muzzya1795
slewed1801
lumpy1810
lushy1811
pissed1812
blue1813
lush1819
malty1819
sprung1821
three sheets in the wind1821
obfuscated1822
moppy1823
ripe1823
mixed1825
queer1826
rosined1828
shot in the neck1830
tight1830
rummy1834
inebrious1837
mizzled1840
obflisticated1840
grogged1842
pickled1842
swizzled1843
hit under the wing1844
obfusticatedc1844
ebriate1847
pixilated1848
boozed1850
ploughed1853
squiffy?1855
buffy1858
elephant trunk1859
scammered1859
gassed1863
fly-blown1864
rotten1864
shot1864
ebriose1871
shicker1872
parlatic1877
miraculous1879
under the influence1879
ginned1881
shickered1883
boiled1886
mosy1887
to be loaded for bear(s)1888
squiffeda1890
loaded1890
oversparred1890
sozzled1892
tanked1893
orey-eyed1895
up the (also a) pole1897
woozy1897
toxic1899
polluted1900
lit-up1902
on (also upon) one's ear1903
pie-eyed1903
pifflicated1905
piped1906
spiflicated1906
jingled1908
skimished1908
tin hat1909
canned1910
pipped1911
lit1912
peloothered1914
molo1916
shick1916
zigzag1916
blotto1917
oiled-up1918
stung1919
stunned1919
bottled1922
potted1922
rotto1922
puggled1923
puggle1925
fried1926
crocked1927
fluthered1927
lubricated1927
whiffled1927
liquefied1928
steamed1929
mirackc1930
overshot1931
swacked1932
looped1934
stocious1937
whistled1938
sauced1939
mashed1942
plonked1943
stone1945
juiced1946
buzzed1952
jazzed1955
schnockered1955
honkers1957
skunked1958
bombed1959
zonked1959
bevvied1960
mokus1960
snockered1961
plotzed1962
over the limit1966
the worse for wear1966
wasted1968
wired1970
zoned1971
blasted1972
Brahms and Liszt?1972
funked up1976
trousered1977
motherless1980
tired and emotional1981
ratted1982
rat-arsed1984
wazzed1990
mullered1993
twatted1993
bollocksed1994
lashed1996
1592 T. Nashe Pierce Penilesse (Brit. Libr. copy) sig. G4 The eighth [kind of drunkenness] is Fox drunke, when he is craftie drunke.
fox-evil n. ‘a disease in which the hair falls off’ (1842 Johnson Farmer's Encycl.), alopecia (see also Compounds 2e).
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > ill health > a disease > disorders of visible parts > disorders of hair > [noun] > loss of hair
alopeciaa1398
alopecya1400
red scall1578
foxes evil1607
fox-evil1659
area1661
madarosis1684
pelade1753
defluvium1817
trichorrhœa1860
hypotrichosis1896
pseudopelade1909
androgenic alopecia1970
androgenetic alopecia1977
1659 G. Torriano Florio's Vocabolario Italiano & Inglese Alopecia, the falling or shedding of a mans hair through foul diseases, called the Fox-evil.
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > fees and taxes > impost, due, or tax > dues or tolls for upkeep or maintenance > [noun]
bridge-boteOE
bridge silverc1254
parkbotea1315
fosse-silver?a1325
pontagea1325
murage1424
pavagec1450
bridge money1482
fox-hen1528
jail money1600
water-corn1600
beaconage1607
castle-bote1628
burgh-bote1647
barbicanage1691
highway rate1697
fossage1757
mint duties1782
1528 R. Weston in H. A. Lee-Dillon Calais & Pale (1892) 93 He hath of every householde..a henne by name of the ‘fox henne’, for the which he ys lykewyse bounde to hunt the foxe.
fox-hound n. a superior variety of hound trained and used for fox-hunting.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > family Canidae > hound > [noun] > fox-hound
fox-dog1708
fox-hounda1763
squeaker1828
a1763 W. Shenstone Oeconomy i, in Wks. Verse & Prose (1764) I. 288 Who lavishes his wealth On racer, fox-hound, hawk or spaniel.
fox-key n. (see quot.).
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > equipment > machine > parts of machines > other parts > [noun] > devices for securing or uniting parts
key1434
chevel-bolt1480
strop1573
gimbals1577
gimmals1598
gimmera1603
strap1620
bridle1667
key band1735
screw-joint1810
locking plate1812
safety pin1822
king bolt1839
square coupling1845
holding-down bolt1846
ball joint1849
pinholder1854
knuckle-joint1860
bayonet-joint1870
elbow1874
fox-key1874
split-pin1875
cotter-pin1881
elbow-joint1881
banjo-frame1888
holding-down pin1892
holding-down ring1899
feather1908
banjo union1922
1874 E. H. Knight Pract. Dict. Mech. I. 912/1 Fox-key (Machinery), a splitcotter with a thin wedge of steel driven into the end to prevent its working back.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > healing > medicines or physic > other miscellaneous medicines > [noun]
pesse1464
adarces1566
marmaritin1584
apostles' salt1605
methium?1608
panther1656
lenociny1657
aroph1658
fox-lungs1660
Dutch drops1843
penicillamine1943
1660 Act 12 Chas. II c. 4 Rates Inwards, [In List of Drugs] Fox lungs the pound iiis.
fox-mould n. a name given to green sand when coloured by an oxide of iron.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > structure of the earth > constituent materials > rock > sedimentary rock > [noun] > sandstone > greensand
greensand1700
fox-mould1808
carstone1815
malm rock1833
potash greensand1869
1808 C. Vancouver Gen. View Agric. Devon i. 42 A moist peaty earth on a reddish brown clay, highly retentive of water, and commonly called fox mould.
fox-skin n. the skin of a fox, also attributive.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > materials > raw material > skin or hide > skin with hair attached or fur > [noun] > of fox
tod1482
fox1501
fox-skin1598
fox-case1610
pointed fox1902
1598 R. Hakluyt tr. Vincent of Beauvais in Princ. Navigations (new ed.) I. 71 Who gaue vnto eche of vs a gowne made of Foxe-skinnes.
1856 E. K. Kane Arctic Explor. II. App. xi. 311 Dressing in fox~skin clothing.
fox-sleep n. a pretended sleep.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > sleeping and waking > sleep > [noun] > an instance or period of > pretended
fox-sleep1596
1596 T. Lodge Margarite of Amer. sig. Ev Entring Arsadachus chamber, [they] found him in his foxe sleepe.
1623 H. Hexham Tongue-combat Ep. Ded. 3 That stupide Lethargie or reserued Foxe-sleepe of Policie, wherein they lye bed-rid.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > family Canidae > [noun] > genus Vulpes > vulpes vulpes (fox) > miscellaneous parts of
fox-stones1597
mask1828
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > orchids > early purple orchids
standengussa1400
standelworta1500
gandergoose?1550
adder's grass1551
ragwort1552
cuckoo orchis1578
fool's ballocks1578
Palma Christi1578
standergrass1578
fool's stones1597
fox-stones1597
goat's stones1597
goat stones1597
testicles1597
dead man's finger1604
long purples1604
dead man's thumb1652
man orchis1670
monkey orchisa1678
meadow orchis1753
military orchis1784
male orchis1785
ram's horn1832
lady orchis1846
dead man's hand1853
scorpion plant1866
phalaenopsid1880
walking orchid1910
soldier orchid1934
1597 J. Gerard Herball i. 161 There be diuers kindes of Foxestones.
1604 J. Marston Malcontent ii. ii. sig. C4 Gelly of Cock-sparrowes, Hee-Monkeis marrow, or powder of Foxe-stones.
fox-terrier n. one of a breed of short-haired terriers, used for unearthing foxes, but kept chiefly as pets.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > family Canidae > terrier > [noun] > fox-terrier
fox-terrier1823
wire hair1884
wire1892
foxie1906
1823 Ld. Byron Don Juan: Canto VII xxiv. 77 Unless they are game as Bull-dogs and Fox-terriers.
fox-walk n. = foxtrot n. 1.
ΚΠ
1879 A. W. Tourgée Fool's Errand xxxvi. 248 Pressing on now in the swinging fox-walk, which he took whenever the character of the road, or the mood of his rider demanded.
fox-wedge n. (see quot.).
ΚΠ
1888 G. C. Greenwell Gloss. Terms Coal Trade Northumberland & Durham (ed. 3) 40 Fox-wedge, a long wedge driven between two other wedges with their thick ends placed in the opposite direction.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > goodness and badness > inferiority or baseness > inferior person > [noun] > held in contempt
thingOE
cat?c1225
geggea1300
fox-whelpc1320
creaturea1325
whelp1338
scoutc1380
turnbroach14..
foumart1508
shit1508
get?a1513
strummel?a1513
scofting?1518
pismirea1535
clinchpoop1555
rag1566
huddle and twang1578
whipster1590
slop1599
shullocka1603
tailor1607
turnspit1607
fitchewa1616
bulchin1617
trundle-taila1626
tick1631
louse1633
fart1669
insect1684
mully-grub-gurgeon1746
grub-worm1752
rass1790
foutre1794
blister1806
snot1809
skin1825
scurf1851
scut1873
Siwash1882
stiff1882
bleeder1887
blighter1896
sugar1916
vuilgoed1924
klunk1942
fart sack1943
fart-arse1946
jerkwad1980
the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > family Canidae > [noun] > genus Vulpes > vulpes vulpes (fox) > young
fox-whelpc1320
cub1530
the world > food and drink > drink > other drinks > [noun]
Galianesc1386
tawnyc1430
Stygian liquor1638
cool-drink1667
pearl julep1680
ambrosia1685
content1699
amazake1727
carrot juice1772
arrowroot1822
fox-whelp1837
Badminton1845
bug juice1889
mahewu1936
Clamato1951
Arnold Palmer1991
Butterbeer1999
boba2000
c1320 Sir Beues 1733 Aȝilt þe, a seide, þow fox welp.
c1374 G. Chaucer tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. iv. pr. iii. 78 Yif he..reioyseth him to rauisshe by wyles, thou shalt seyn him lyke to the fox whelpes.
1664 J. Evelyn Pomona iv. 14 in Sylva For the kinds then of Cider-Apples in being..Some commend the Fox-Whelp.]
1837 R. Southey Doctor IV. 382 Fox-whelp, a beverage as much better than Champagne, as it is honester, wholesomer and cheaper.
fox-wood n. (see quot.; cf. fox-fire n.).
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > materials > raw material > wood > [noun] > decayed wood
spoil1567
drix1623
punk1678
punk wood1791
fox-wood1889
1889 Cent. Dict. Fox-wood..decayed wood, especially such as emits a phosphorescent light [U.S.].
b. esp. in names of animals, etc. having a real or fancied resemblance to the fox.† fox-ape n. Obsolete ? the opossum.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Implacenta > subclass Marsupialia (marsupials) > [noun] > family Didelphidae (opossum)
ape-fox1594
fox-ape1594
opossum1610
possum1613
cerigo1708
pedimane1835
marsupial rat1863
1594 T. Blundeville Exercises v. f. 266v Gesner calleth this beast an Ape-foxe, or a Foxe-ape.
fox-bat n. = flying fox n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > order Chiroptera or bat > [noun] > suborder Megachiroptera (fruit bat) > genus Pteropus > flying fox
flying fox1759
kalong1824
fox-bat1834
Pteropus1890
1834 H. Caunter Oriental Ann. xiv. 187 The fox-bat bustled from his covert among the tombs.
fox-fish n. see 5.
fox-lynx n. a variety of lynx.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > family Felidae (feline) > [noun] > genus Lynx (lynx)
lynx1340
ouncec1400
wild cat14..
loss1481
lusard1530
lucern1532
luce1564
hind-wolf1601
luceret1637
fox-lynx1862
1862 H. Marryat One Year in Sweden II. 439 The Räflo, or fox-lynx, of a soft reddish-white fur.
fox-moth n. a greyish-brown European bombycid moth ( Lasiocampa rubi).
fox-shark n. the sea-fox ( Alopias vulpes).
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > fish > subclass Elasmobranchii > order Pleurotremata > [noun] > member of family Alopiidae (sea-ape)
sea-fox1605
thresher1605
sea-ape1607
sea ape1607
sea dog-fish1611
thrasher1638
thrasher fish1658
long-tailed shark1776
thresher fish1817
fox-shark1828
swingle-tail1839
1828 J. Stark Elements Nat. Hist. I. 385 The Fox Shark.
fox-snake n. a large harmless snake of the United States ( Elaphe vulpina).
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > reptiles > order Squamata (lizards and snakes) > suborder Ophidia (snakes) > types of snake > [noun] > family Colubridae > member of genus Elaphe (rat-snake)
chicken snake1698
Aesculapian1763
house snake1807
rat snake1818
pilot snake1854
fox-snake1857
1857 Trans. Illinois State Agric. Soc. 1856–7 2 658 They are also found in the stomachs of the milk-snake,..and of the large fox-snake (Scotophis vulpinus).
1958 R. Conant Field Guide Reptiles & Amphibians U.S. 157 Fox snake... Ground color varies from yellowish to light brown, and the dark spots and blotches from chocolate to black.
fox-sparrow n. a North American sparrow ( Passerella iliaca).
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > birds > order Passeriformes (singing) > seed eaters > family Ploceidae > [noun] > subfamily Ploceinae (weaver) > other or unspecified types of
mountain spink1611
ring sparrow1678
oxbird1738
fody1792
mountain finch1800
fox-sparrow1869
grasshopper sparrow1883
quelea1930
1869 J. Burroughs in Galaxy Mag. Aug. The fox-sparrow..comes to us in the fall.
fox-squirrel n. a North American squirrel ( Sciurus cinereus, S. niger, etc.).
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > order Rodentia or rodent > [noun] > family Sciuridae (squirrel) > genus sciurus (tree squirrel)
fox-squirrel1688
tree squirrel1822
Burmese squirrel1887
1688 J. Clayton Virginia 5, in Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 18 123 The first is the great Fox Squirrel, much larger than the English, and gray.
1791 W. Bartram Trav. N. & S. Carolina 283 The great black fox squirrel.
1844 Gosse in Zoologist 2 707 Some towering oaks, on which several fox squirrels (Sciurus capistratus) were frisking.
c. In plant-names. Also foxglove n., foxtail n.
fox-bane n. a species of monkshood ( Aconitum Vulparia).
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > plants perceived as weeds or harmful plants > poisonous or harmful plants > [noun] > aconite or wolf's bane
monk's cowl1548
wolf's-bane1548
flint-wort1567
libardine1567
aconite1569
wolf's-wort1575
napellus1576
monkshood1578
napelo1580
helmet-flower1597
scorpion1601
napell1605
wolfwort1611
monk's-head1682
panther's bane1712
blue rocketa1825
bikh1830
friar's cap1830
fox-bane1840
Turk's cap1854
Adam and Eve1879
face-in-hood1886
1840 J. Paxton Pocket Bot. Dict. Foxbane.
fox-berry n. = bearberry n.
fox-chop n. (see quot.).
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > plants and herbs > according to family > Mesembriaccae (fig-marigold and allies) > [noun]
fig-marigold1731
ficoid1736
ficoides1753
Mesembryanthemum1824
fir-marigold1834
ficoidal1846
noon-flower1856
fox-chop1866
mesem1928
vygie1931
1866 J. Lindley & T. Moore Treasury Bot. Fox~chop, Mesembryanthemum vulpinum.
fox-finger n. (also fox-fingers) = foxglove n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > foxglove and allied flowers > foxglove
foxglovec1000
London button1552
wine-pot herb1552
finger1562
finger flower1562
lady's glove1575
foxter1623
fox-finger1657
fox1684
bloody finger1789
witch bell1808
fairy fingers1811
fairy thimble1813
dead men's bells1818
witches' thimbles1820
fairy bells1821
fairy glove1841
flap-dock1846
cow-flop1847
pop-glove1847
lady's thimble1853
Scotch mercury1853
poppy1856
fairy petticoats1864
finger root1870
fairy weed1871
pop-dock1878
witches' bells1884
1657 W. Coles Adam in Eden lxvii. 126 Some call it Fox-finger.
fox-geranium n.
fox-grape n. a name for several North American species of wild grapes.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular food plant or plant product > particular types of fruit > [noun] > edible berries > grape > type of
labruscaa1398
muscadel1517
muscadine1598
olive grape1601
grapeletc1620
burlace1629
frontignaca1642
fox-grape1648
verjuice grape1648
muscat1655
morillon1691
muscatel1691
grapeling1694
chasselas1699
muscadella1707
frontignan1756
Morocco1763
Pineau1763
Malaga1769
wild grape1770
Nebbiolo1788
Macabeo1794
Malbec1833
Hamburg grape1838
muscadel1852
Concord grape1858
garnacha1860
sultana grape1861
Canaiolo1862
dyer1865
Sémillon1875
Bual1882
lady's finger1892
Grignolino1894
Tokay grape1896
Durif1897
Morocco grape1908
Viognier1908
gros Colmar1927
Montepulciano1927
Shiraz1927
Verdicchio1940
Cinsault1945
Müller-Thurgau1951
Mavrud1959
Pinotage1964
Mavron1965
Syrah1969
Parellada1979
1648 B. Plantagenet New Albion iv. 24 There are four sorts of Grapes,..the second the great foxe and thick Grape, after five moneths reaped being boyled and salted, and well fined, it is a strong red Xeres.
1653 R. Austen Treat. Fruit-trees 58 The Fox Grape is a faire large Fruit.
1683 W. Penn Wks. (1782) IV. 302 The great red grape (now ripe) called by ignorance, ‘The fox-grape’, (because of the relish it hath with unskilful palates).
1705 R. Beverly Virginia (1722) 116 A second Kind..grow upon small Vines and in small Bunches; but are..of a rank Taste when ripe, resembling the smell of a Fox, from whence they are called Fox-Grapes.
1815 D. Drake Nat. & Statist. View Cincinnati ii. 83 The..fox grape and mountain-chestnut oak are still scarcer [than flowering locust].
1886 S. W. Mitchell Roland Blake (1895) xxvi. 297 About them on the stunted cedars the fox grapes hung thick.
fox-grass n. (a) herb Robert ( Geranium Robertianum); (b) U.S. a salt-marsh grass of New England.
ΚΠ
1838 H. Colman 1st Rep. Agric. Mass. (Mass. Agric. Surv.) 18 The next grass is the Red grass or Fox grass, a very fine reedy grass, abundant and excellent.
d. in the names of various games in which one of the players acts as a fox.† fox in the hole n. (also fox to the hole or fox in thy hole) Obsolete (see quots.).
fox and geese n. a game played on a board with pegs, draughtsmen, or the like.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > entertainment > pastimes > game > board game > games similar to draughts > [noun] > fox and geese
fox and geese1633
merels1902
1633 S. Marmion Fine Compan. ii. v Let him sit in the shop..and play at fox and geese with the foreman.
1856 E. B. Browning Aurora Leigh ix. 374 Though you've played At ‘fox and goose’ about him with your soul.
fox and hounds n. a boys' game, in which the ‘hounds’ chase the ‘fox’.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > entertainment > pastimes > game > children's game > hiding or chasing game > [noun] > hare and hounds
hunt the foxa1600
hunt the hare1762
fox and hounds1821
hare and hounds1839
fox-chase1856
paperchase1856
paper hunt1871
1821 J. Clare Village Minstrel II. 37 Noise of blind-man's buff, and fox-and-hounds.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > entertainment > pastimes > game > children's game > other children's games > [noun] > others
buckle-pit1532
marrowbone1533
put-pin?1577
primus secundus1584
fox in the hole1585
haltering of Hick's mare1585
muss1591
pushpin1598
Jack-in-the-box1600
a penny in the forehead1602
buckerels1649
bumdockdousse1653
peck-point1653
toro1660
wheelbarrow1740
thread-needle1751
thrush-a-thrush1766
runaway ring?1790
Gregory1801
pick-point1801
fighting cocks1807
runaway knock1813
tit-tat-toe1818
French and English1820
honeypots1821
roly-poly1821
tickle-tail1821
pottle1822
King of Cantland1825
tip-top-castle1834
tile1837
statue1839
chip stone1843
hen and chickens1843
king of the castle1843
King Caesar1849
rap-jacket1870
old witch1881
tick-tack-toe1884
twos and threes1896
last across (the road)1904
step1909
king of the hill1928
Pooh-sticks1928
trick or treat1928
stare-you-out1932
king of the mountain1933
dab cricket1938
Urkey1938
trick-or-treating1941
seven-up1950
squashed tomato1959
slot-racing1965
Pog1993
knights-
1585 J. Higgins tr. Junius Nomenclator 298 A kinde of playe wherein boyes lift up one leg and hop on the other; it is called fox in thy hole.
1648 R. Herrick Hesperides sig. Lv The Wassell-boule, That tost up, after Fox-i'th'Hole.
1783 Ainsworth's Thes. Linguæ Latinæ (new ed.) vi Discoliasmus, Children's play, called Fox to thy hole.
e. with genitive fox's.† foxes evil n. Obsolete = fox-evil n. at Compounds 2a.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > ill health > a disease > disorders of visible parts > disorders of hair > [noun] > loss of hair
alopeciaa1398
alopecya1400
red scall1578
foxes evil1607
fox-evil1659
area1661
madarosis1684
pelade1753
defluvium1817
trichorrhœa1860
hypotrichosis1896
pseudopelade1909
androgenic alopecia1970
androgenetic alopecia1977
1607 E. Topsell Hist. Foure-footed Beastes 487 Troubled with the Foxes euill.
1671 H. M. tr. Erasmus Colloquies 134 The foxes evil (falling off of the hair) had made him almost quite bald.
fox's cough n. (see quot.).
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > ill health > a disease > disorders of internal organs > respiratory spasms > [noun] > coughing > type of cough
fox's cough1611
churchyard cough1693
hacking1770
barking1813
graveyard cough1873
hoicking1926
smoker's cough1927
1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues Toux de regnard, the Foxes cough; a rooted, or old-growne cough, which waits on a man to his graue.
fox's foot n. a kind of grass ( Dactylis glomerata Latin); in early use, perhaps Sparganium simplex.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > plants and herbs > a grass or grasses > reedy or aquatic grasses > [noun] > reed or the reed plant
reedeOE
spirea1425
pole-reed1578
pool reed1587
reed-grass1597
marsh-reed1797
flag-reed1833
Phragmites1840
toi-toi1843
fox's foot1853
spire reed1863
trumpet reed1866
bango1899
kamish1902
Norfolk reed1952
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular food plant or plant product > particular fodder plants > [noun] > grasses used for hay or pasture > cock's foot
cocksfoot1597
orchard grass1764
fox's foot1853
small seed1950
c1000 Sax. Leechd. I. 150 Genim þysse wyrte wyrttruman þe man..foxesfot nemneð.
1853 G. Johnston Terra Lindisfarnensis I. 216 Dactylis glomerata, Fox's-foot, which the clustered panicle somewhat resembles.
fox's tail n. (see foxtail n.).
Draft additions September 2004
With capital initial. Plural unchanged, -es. [after French Renard in this sense (see Reynard n. and discussion at that entry)]
a. A member of the Meskwaki people (see Meskwaki n.). Now historical.Previously also known as Renard, Reynard (see Reynard n.) and Outagami (see Outagami n.).Meskwaki is now the preferred term.
ΚΠ
1755 L. Evans Geogr. Ess. 17 I think the Wiandóts the same as the Foxes or Outagamis.
1760 T. Jefferys Nat. & Civil Hist. French Dominions N. & S. Amer. I. 48 A small river..discharges itself into the bottom of the bay, and is known by the name of..the River of Foxes, on account of the neighbourhood of the Outagamis, commonly called Renards, or Foxes.
1766 J. Goldthwait List Nations of Indians in Coll. Mass. Hist. Soc. (1809) 1st Ser. X. 122 Enclosed..is a pair of Indian Moccasons, made by a squaw of the Fox tribe.
1815 Amer. State Papers (1834) Class II II. 4 The said Fox tribe or nation do hereby assent to, recognise, re-establish, and confirm the treaty of St. Louis.
1881 Encycl. Brit. XII. 832/1 The Sacs and Foxes, now one tribe, located in Indian Territory, were originally separate.
1931 Mississippi Valley Hist. Rev. 18 13 When they attempted to retreat from Detroit a rash commandant followed and gave battle in which a large number of the Foxes were killed.
1978 C. Callender in Handbk. N. Amer. Indians XV. 636/1 Throughout their precontact history the Fox have been a single clearly defined tribe, but the United States government has blurred their identity by bracketing them with the Sauk.
1999 Current Anthropol. 40 172/2 The Mesquakis (or Fox, as earlier anthropologists called them), an Algonquian-speaking Woodlands tribe of approximately 5,000, lived in Wisconsin until the 1740s.
b. The Algonquian language of the Fox; Meskwaki.
ΚΠ
1845 R. G. Latham in Proc. Philol. Soc. 2 xxviii. 33/1 English leg... Sack and Fox nenanah.
1921 T. Michelson Owl Sacred Pack of Fox Indians 18 This sound does not occur in ordinary spoken Fox.
1937 R. H. Lowie Hist. Ethnol. Theory ix. 133 Foremost among his earlier students was the part-Fox William Jones, who transcribed a superb series of Fox and Ojibwa texts.
1979 I. Goddard in L. Campbell & M. Mithun Langs. Native Amer. 101 Outside of Eastern Algonquian a comparable category to the Eastern Algonquian absentative is found only in the demonstrative pronoun systems of Fox and Blackfoot.
1992 Word 43 152 Amy Dahlstrom gives a detailed description of the use of independent pronouns in Fox.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1897; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
foxv.
/fɒks/, U.S. /fɑks/ 1. † a. transitive. To play the fox for; to compass by crafty mean. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > ability > skill or skilfulness > cunning > treat cunningly [verb (transitive)] > achieve or effect by cunning
fox1596
finesse1751
manoeuvre1815
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > conformity with what is known, truth > deceit, deception, trickery > cheating, fraud > treat fraudulently, cheat [verb (transitive)] > obtain fraudulently
wilea1400
lurch1530
fox1596
shirk1635
rook1647
trick1662
pigeon1675
sharp1699
cheat1712
fob1792
snakea1861
wangle1888
slip1890
finagle1926
skuldug1936
swizz1961
1596 W. Warner Albions Eng. (rev. ed.) ix. liii. 241 Insociable, Maleparte, foxing their priuate good.
b. intransitive. To play the fox, dissemble, sham. Now dialect and slang.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > conformity with what is known, truth > deceit, deception, trickery > dissimulation, pretence > pretend, dissemble [verb (intransitive)]
letc1000
faitc1330
counterfeitc1374
dissimulec1374
feignc1400
showc1405
supposea1450
fare1483
simule?a1500
dissemble1523
pretend1526
frame1545
cloakc1572
jouk1573
pretent1582
disguisea1586
devise1600
semble1603
coin1607
insimulate1623
fox1646
sham1787
dissimulate1796
gammon1819
to let on1822
simulate1823
possum1832
simulacrize1845
to put on an act1929
to put on (also up) a show1937
prat1967
1646 R. Baillie Let. Feb. (1841) II. 351 The other pettie princes are foxeing alreadie for fear.
1884 R. Holland Gloss. Words County of Chester (1886) Fox, to sham.
1886 D. C. Murray First Person Sing. xxix He had played the fox for so many years, that now to his mind everybody was dodging and foxing.
2. † b. transferred. To stupefy (fish). Obsolete.† d. intransitive. To get drunk. Obsolete.
a. transitive. To intoxicate, befuddle. Also (? nonce-use), to redden (one's nose) with drinking.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > drink > thirst > excess in drinking > [verb (transitive)] > make drunk
fordrenchc1000
indrunkena1300
mazec1390
distemper1491
whittle1530
swill1548
inebriate1555
disguise1560
intoxicatea1566
tipple1566
overtake1577
betipple1581
seethe1599
fuddlec1600
fox1611
wound1613
cupa1616
fuzzle1621
to gild overa1625
sousea1625
tip1637
tosticate1650
drunkify1664
muddle1668
tipsy1673
sop1682
fuzz1685
confound1705
mellowa1761
prime1788
lush1821
soak1826
touch1833
rosin1877
befuddle1887
slew1888
lush1927
wipe1972
1611 Tarlton's Jests (1866) 214 Before they parted they foxt Tarlton at the Castle in Pater Noster Row.
1652 W. Blith Eng. Improver Improved xliii. 258 It [Cider] serves as well..for men to fox their noses.
1660 S. Pepys Diary 26 Oct. (1970) I. 274 The last of whom I did almost fox with Marget ale.
a1734 R. North Examen (1740) ii. iv. §41 251 Mr. Atkins was..at Greenwich, and there, at an Entertainment of some Ladies, soundly foxed, the Attorney General threw up.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > type or method of fishing > [verb (transitive)] > stupefy fish
fox1650
fuddle1825
1650 H. More Observ. in Enthusiasmus Triumphatus (1656) 86 For ought you know, it may be onely a charm to fox fishes.
1787 T. Best Conc. Treat. Angling (ed. 2) 67 Take heart-wort, and lime, mingle them together, and throw them into a standing water, and it will fox them [fishes].
1805 Sporting Mag. 26 178 Two gentlemen..were foxing fish in the river Calder.
c. figurative. To delude. Cf. outfox v.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > conformity with what is known, truth > deceit, deception, trickery > deception by illusion, delusion > deceive, delude [verb (transitive)]
bedidderc1000
bipechec1000
swikeOE
fodea1375
flatter1377
to make believea1393
illude1447
miscarrya1450
to fode forth (also occasionally forward, off, on, out)1479
delude1493
sophisticate1597
sile1608
prestigiate1647
will-o'-the-wisp1660
bilk1672
foxa1716
fickle1736
moonshine1824
a1716 R. South 12 Serm. (1717) VI. 31 Fox them a little more with Religion.
a1734 R. North Examen (1740) i. ii. §115 93 When the Faction had..once foxed the People with an ill Opinion of the Government.
1835 A. B. Longstreet Georgia Scenes 63 Has he foxed you?
1906 E. Phillpotts Portreeve i. xv Don't fox yourself to think that. That's mad.
1906 E. Phillpotts Portreeve ii. xviii Love makes a man cunning... I foxed you fifty times.
1942 Times 1 June 4/3 ‘We had the guns absolutely foxed,’ a pilot said.
1963 Times 25 Feb. 13/5 I like to imagine some householder in the next century trying to piece together our lives and interests. Will she be foxed by literature addressed to Mr. H.-T. (my husband)?
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > drink > thirst > excess in drinking > [verb (intransitive)] > get drunk
drunkenc1000
to wash one's face in an ale clout1550
to shoe the goose, gosling1566
to catch, hunt the fox1599
to swallow a tavern-token1601
to read Geneva print1608
to whip the cat1622
inebriate1626
to hunt a tavern-fox1635
fox1649
mug1653
to fuddle one's cap or nose1663
to lose one's legs1770
gin1789
stone1858
to beer up1884
slop1899
to get, have, tie a bun on1901
shicker1906
souse1921
lush1926
to cop a reeler1937
to tie one on1951
1649 J. Jephson To Richard Lovelace in R. Lovelace Lucasta sig. a4v The humble tenant that does bring A chicke or egges..Is tane into the buttry, and does fox Equall with him that gave a stalled oxe.
e. To disguise or make confused. U.S.
ΚΠ
1876 J. Miller Unwritten Hist. xv. 210 Klamat kept an eye constantly on his rifle when not foxing the trail and eyeing the pursuers.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > ill health > injury > injure [verb (transitive)] > wound > wound with sharp weapon
woundc760
stickOE
snese?c1225
stokea1300
steekc1300
bearc1330
stangc1340
chop1362
broach1377
foinc1380
strikec1390
borea1400
dag?a1400
gorea1400
gridea1400
staira1400
through-girdc1405
thrustc1410
runc1425
to run throughc1425
traversec1425
spitc1430
through-seeka1500
stitch1527
falchiona1529
stab1530
to stab (a person) in1530
stob?1530
rutc1540
rove?c1550
push1551
foxa1566
stoga1572
poniard1593
dirk1599
bestab1600
poach1602
stiletto1613
stocka1640
inrun1653
stoccado1677
dagger1694
whip1699
bayonetc1700
tomahawk1711
stug1722
chiv1725
kittle1786
sabre1790
halberd1825
jab1825
skewer1837
sword1863
poke1866
spear1869
whinger1892
pig-stick1902
shiv1926
society > armed hostility > military equipment > operation and use of weapons > cut of sharp weapon > cut or thrust with sword > strike with sword [verb (transitive)] > strike with specific type of sword
foxa1566
sabre1790
rapier1851
whinger1892
a1566 R. Edwards Damon & Pithias (1571) sig. Fj J. By the Masse I wyll boxe you. W. By cocke I wyll foxe you.
4. transitive. To discolour (the leaves of a book). See foxed adj.
5. intransitive. Of beer: To turn sour in fermenting; also transitive (causatively).
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > drink > manufacture of alcoholic drink > brewing > [verb (intransitive)] > turn sour
fox1744
1744 W. Ellis Mod. Husbandman Mar. xiii. 130 She..took out the Wort..laying it thin enough to be out of Danger of Foxing.
1830 M. Donovan Domest. Econ. I. vi. 213 In this way the fermentation may fearlessly be conducted during the warmest weather without risk of foxing.
6. transitive. To repair (boots or shoes) by renewing the upper leather; also to ornament (the upper of a shoe) with a strip of leather.
ΘΚΠ
the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > tailoring or making clothes > making footwear > make footwear [verb (transitive)] > repair or renovate > in specific way
forefoot1465
welt1483
spetch1582
speck1681
tap1746
heel-tap1763
fox1796
resole1821
refoot1827
tap-piece1903
1796 Grose's Classical Dict. Vulgar Tongue (ed. 3) Foxing a Boot, mending the foot by capping it.
1889 J. S. Farmer Americanisms Fox, a shoemaker's term, to repair boots.
7. intransitive. To hunt the fox. U.S.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > hunting specific animals > hunt specific animal [verb (intransitive)] > hunt fox
fox-hunt1768
fox1877
1877 [implied in: C. Hallock Sportsman's Gazetteer 17 With us of the North, foxing is by some followed during..winter. (at foxing n. 1)].
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > keeping or management of horses > [verb (transitive)] > clip ears
fox1806
1806 in Spirit of Public Jrnls. (1807) 10 109 He..appears..What the jockies call a roarer. His owners are anxious to have his ears foxed; but we think he is more in need of cropping and docking.
Compounds
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > entertainment > pastimes > game > card game > other card games > [noun] > others
laugh and lie down1522
mack1548
decoyc1555
pinionc1557
to beat the knave out of doors1570
imperial1577
prima vista1587
loadum1591
flush1598
prime1598
thirty-perforce1599
gresco1605
hole1621
my sow's pigged1621
slam1621
fox-mine-host1622
whipperginnie1622
crimpa1637
hundred1636
pinache1641
sequence1653
lady's hole1658
quebas1668
art of memory1674
costly colours1674
penneech1674
plain dealing1674
wit and reason1680
comet1685
lansquenet1687
incertain1689
macham1689
uptails1694
quinze1714
hoc1730
commerce1732
matrimonya1743
tredrille1764
Tom come tickle me1769
tresette1785
snitch'ems1798
tontine1798
blind hazard1816
all fives1838
short cards1845
blind hookey1852
sixty-six1857
skin the lamb1864
brisque1870
handicap1870
manille1874
forty-five1875
slobberhannes1877
fifteen1884
Black Maria1885
slapjack1887
seven-and-a-half1895
pit1904
Russian Bank1915
red dog1919
fan-tan1923
Pelmanism1923
Slippery Sam1923
go fish1933
Russian Banker1937
racing demon1938
pit-a-pat1947
scopa1965
society > leisure > entertainment > pastimes > game > games of chance > dice-playing > [noun] > other dice games
rafflec1405
passagec1425
treygobet1426
mumchance1528
trey-trip1564
lots?1577
novum?1577
fox-mine-host1622
in and in1630
merry main1664
snake1688
pass-dice1753
chicken hazard1781
Shaking in the Shallow1795
sequin hazard1825
chuck-a-luck1836
Newmarket1837
chicken1849
poker dice1870
under and over1890
sweat1894
crown and anchor1902
Murrumbidgee1917
beetle1936
liar dice1946
Yahtzee1957
1622 J. Mabbe tr. M. Alemán Rogue i. iii. ii. 194 They may afterwards play at Foxe mine Host, or some other Drinking Game at Cards or Dice for their recreation.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1897; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.c825
v.a1566