peelern.1
/ˈpiːlə/, U.S. /ˈpilər/ 1.
a. A plunderer; a robber, a thief; = piller n. 1a. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > thief > robber > spoiler or plunderer > [noun]
riflera1350
ravenerc1384
pillerc1385
preyerc1390
raptora1398
peelera1425
despoiler1467
spulyierc1475
pillardc1485
ruggerc1485
pollera1513
booty-fellow1530
spoiler1535
caterpillar1541
kitea1556
ransacker?1576
predator1581
lurdan1589
worm1591
scraper1598
pillager?1611
ravager1611
bird of preya1616
depredator1626
plunderer1639
expilator1658
shark1713
depredationist1828
spoliator1831
rapiner1843
ravisher1851
a1425 (c1333–52) L. Minot Poems (1914) 5 (MED) Now have þai, þe pelers, priked obout, Bot at þe last sir Edward rifild þaire rout.
a1450–1500 ( Libel Eng. Policy (1926) 163 (MED) They [sc. pirates of Brittany] have take notable gode of oures On thys seyde see, these false coloured pelours.
a1513 W. Dunbar Poems (1998) I. 122 Than every pelour and purspyk Sayis, ‘Land war bettir warit on me’.
1545 G. Joye Expos. Daniel (xi.) f. 191v A vyle couetouse extorsioner and pieller of the peple.
1608 E. Topsell Hist. Serpents 67 Apollodorus the Theefe, Pieler and spoyler of the Cassandrines.
b. A plant that impoverishes the soil; = piller n. 1b. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > by nutrition or respiration > [noun] > that takes too much soil
peeler1580
piller1615
gross feeder1845
the world > food and drink > food > fruit and vegetables > fruit or a fruit > apple > [noun] > eating-apple > types of
costardc1390
bitter-sweet1393
Queening?1435
richardine?1435
blaundrellc1440
pear apple1440
tuberc1440
quarrendenc1450
birtle1483
deusan1570
apple-john1572
Richard1572
lording1573
greening1577
queen apple1579
peeler1580
darling1584
doucin1584
golding1589
puffin1589
lady's longing1591
bitter-sweeting1597
pearmain1597
paradise apple1598
garden globe1600
gastlet1600
leather-coat1600
maligar1600
pome-paradise1601
French pippin1629
gillyflower1629
king apple1635
lady apple1651
golden pippin1654
goldling1655
puff1655
cardinal1658
green fillet1662
chestnut1664
cinnamon apple1664
fenouil1664
go-no-further1664
Westbury apple1664
seek-no-farther1670
nonsuch1676
calville1691
passe-pomme1691
fennel apple1699
queen1699
genet1706
fig-apple1707
oaken pin1707
nonpareil1726
costing1731
monstrous reinette1731
Newtown pippin1760
Ribston1782
Rhode Island greening1795
oslin1801
fall pippin1803
monstrous pippin1817
Newtown Spitzenburg1817
Gravenstein1821
Red Astrachan1822
Tolman sweet1822
grange apple1823
orange pippin1823
Baldwin1826
Sturmer Pippin1831
Newtowner1846
Northern Spy1847
Blenheim Orange1860
Cox1860
McIntosh Red1876
Worcester1877
raspberry apple1894
delicious1898
Laxton's Superb1920
Macoun1924
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular food plant or plant product > particular types of fruit > [noun] > apple > eating-apple > types of
costardc1390
bitter-sweet1393
pippin?1435
pomewater?1435
Queening?1435
richardine?1435
blaundrellc1440
pear apple1440
tuberc1440
quarrendenc1450
birtle1483
sweeting1530
pomeroyal1534
renneta1568
deusan1570
apple-john1572
Richard1572
lording1573
russeting1573
greening1577
queen apple1579
peeler1580
reinette1582
darling1584
doucin1584
golding1589
puffin1589
lady's longing1591
bitter-sweeting1597
pearmain1597
paradise apple1598
garden globe1600
gastlet1600
leather-coat1600
maligar1600
pomeroy1600
short-start1600
jenneting1601
pome-paradise1601
russet coat1602
John apple1604
honey apple1611
honeymeal1611
musk apple1611
short-shank1611
spice apple1611
French pippin1629
king apple1635
lady apple1651
golden pippin1654
goldling1655
puff1655
cardinal1658
renneting1658
green fillet1662
chestnut1664
cinnamon apple1664
fenouil1664
go-no-further1664
reinetting1664
Westbury apple1664
seek-no-farther1670
nonsuch1676
white-wining1676
russet1686
calville1691
fennel apple1699
queen1699
genet1706
fig-apple1707
oaken pin1707
musk1708
nonpareil1726
costing1731
monstrous reinette1731
Newtown pippin1760
Ribston1782
Rhode Island greening1795
oslin1801
wine apple1802
fall pippin1803
monstrous pippin1817
Newtown Spitzenburg1817
Gravenstein1821
Red Astrachan1822
Tolman sweet1822
grange apple1823
orange pippin1823
Baldwin1826
wine-sap1826
Jonathan1831
Sturmer Pippin1831
rusty-coat1843
Newtowner1846
Northern Spy1847
Cornish gilliflowerc1850
Blenheim Orange1860
Cox1860
nutmeg pippin1860
McIntosh Red1876
Worcester1877
raspberry apple1894
delicious1898
Laxton's Superb1920
Melba apple1928
Melba1933
Mutsu1951
Newtown1953
discovery1964
1580 T. Tusser Fiue Hundred Pointes Good Husbandrie (new ed.) f. 21 Graie wheat is the grosest,..and a peeler of ground.
1669 J. Worlidge Systema Agric. (1697) 40 Oats..are esteemed a peeler of the Ground.
1707 J. Mortimer Whole Art Husbandry 117 Hemp..as 'tis esteemed a peeler of Land, 'tis best to sow it upon Lands that are rank.
1744 W. Ellis Mod. Husbandman Mar. v. 38 All the Oat Tribe are great Peelers or Robbers of the Goodness of the Earth.
1763 J. Wheeler Botanist's & Gardener's New Dict. 100/1 Hemp is a very good thing for destroying weeds, but it is what the farmers call a peeler of land, that is, it robs and exhausts it very quick.
II. Senses relating to decortication (see peel v.1 II.).
2. A person who peels, strips, or pares off the skin or rind of a piece of fruit, the bark of trees, etc.; (also) a device or instrument for peeling.bark-, potato, osier-peeler, etc.: see the first element.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > condition of being external > covering > uncovering > [noun] > stripping or uncovering so as to leave bare > of skin, bark, husk, etc. > one who or that which
piller?c1475
peelera1500
a1500 Acts Parl. Scotl. (1844) I. 342/1 Pelaris of grene wode.
1509 Justiciary Rec. II. 144 Gif thair be ony..pelaris of grene wode.
1648 H. Hexham Groot Woorden-boeck Een scheller, a Peeler, a Rinder or a Shaler.
1755 S. Johnson Dict. Eng. Lang. Peeler, one who strips or flays.
1846 H. Marshall Ceylon 11 Peelers who failed to produce monthly above 30 lbs. of cinnamon, were liable to be flogged.
1881 Pall Mall Gaz. 5 Oct. 14/1 The peelers [of peaches] earn from sixty cents. to two dollars per day.
1883 Cassell's Family Mag. Aug. 528/1 The [coffee] beans again thoroughly dried and the parchment skin removed by a ‘peeler’.
1942 Sun (Baltimore) 31 July 4/2 Over one hundred women from Caroline county work in the canneries every season as ‘skinners’ or ‘pealers’.
1972 Foxfire Bk. k83 One woman claimed that with a peeler, she could core, peel, and slice a bushel of apples in fifty-four minutes.
1991 Wine Spectator 15 May 45/2 Using a paring knife or vegetable peeler, pare the zest from the lemon.
3. † a. A person who undresses; spec. a boxer who strips for a fight. Obsolete. rare.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > fighting sports > boxing > [noun] > boxer
buffeter1483
pugil1646
cuffer1662
boxer1672
pugilistc1740
setter-to1810
miller1812
sparrer1814
pet1825
pugilistic1827
slogger1829
fist-mate1834
peeler1852
pug1858
scrapper1874
slugger1877
slogster1881
basher1882
fisticuffer1888
ring man1899
ringster1902
pucker1919
1852 W. G. Simms As Good as Comedy iv. 56 ‘I know you hain't got the teeth to raise the skin of that varmint.’ ‘Hain't I, then? Just you try it, then,..and see if I ain't a peeler.’ ‘Will you peel?’ ‘Won't I, then?’ ‘Jake, my boy, I've come here to-day to strip the skin off you altogether.’
b. Chiefly North American. A striptease artist; a stripper.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > performance arts > variety, etc. > performers in variety, etc. > [noun] > striptease artist
teaser1929
stripper1930
strip-teaser1930
strippeuse1939
ecdysiast1940
strip-teaseuse1941
peeler1942
stripteuse1942
strip-tease artist1947
exotic1954
split beaver1972
1942 ATS 574 ‘Strip teaser’..peeler.
1955 Variety 9 Mar. 62/4 Chicago, for years a stripper's haven, is now seriously beset by a dearth of peelers.
1962 Herald-Press (St. Joseph, Mich.) 6 Feb. 14/2 A..montage which shows her developing from a shy, hesitant peeler to the strutting, insinuating Gypsy [Rose Lee], confident of each and every movement.
2000 Standard (Ont., Canada) (Nexis) 29 July f3 Shirley is a professional peeler by trade and she was recently fired by a Brantford strip joint claiming she's too old to attract a crowd.
4. A crab or crayfish when it casts its shell. Also more fully peeler crab.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Crustacea > [noun] > subclass Malacostraca > division Thoracostraca > order Decapoda > suborder Brachyura (crab) > crabs at particular stage
soft crab1737
softshell crab1806
megalopa1815
buster1855
megalops1855
shedder-crab1860
peeler1866
shedder1872
prawn-stage1896
fat crab1905
1852 Zoologist 10 3682 It [sc. common shore crab] is occasionally employed as bait, particularly the ‘peelarts’, as those that have just cast their shell are called.]
1866 W. Gregor Dial. Banffshire (Philol. Soc.) Addit. 229 Peeler, the Shore-crab when casting its shell.
1883 Cent. Mag. July 378/2 Large craw-fish, which were about to shed their outer cases, or shells, and which for this reason are called ‘shedders’, or ‘Peelers’.
1911 C. O. Minchin Sea-fishing xvii. 245 When the cold outer shell has cracked and is ready to fall, and the new soft shell beneath is growing to replace it, the crab is called a ‘peeler’, and is then in the best condition for bait.
1934 Sun (Baltimore) 27 July 9/8 Hook-and-line fishermen can scarcely buy the popular peeler crab bait for fishing.
1976 Sc. Daily Express 24 Dec. 12/6 For the smaller fish, rag and lugworm, soft peeler crab and strips of herring or mackerel are usually acceptable.
1995 Chesapeake Bay Mag. Oct. 96/3 We stopped briefly at a little fyke (weir) net system Donnie had set up along the creek to catch peeler crabs, our bait.
5. In full peeler log. The trunk of a tree, esp. a softwood tree, suitable for the manufacture of veneer by the use of a rotary lathe, which peels thin sheets of wood from the log.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > materials > raw material > wood > wood in specific form > [noun] > undressed trunk or log > types of
butt log1779
upper1877
stave bolt1878
sinker1884
teak log1889
peeler1935
1935 Timberman Dec. 3/2 Some studies should be undertaken at once to determine the economic limits of the Douglas fir peelers... The log scarcity has brought forth the Veneer specialist, who makes a business of producing and preparing peeler logs for the plywood trade.
1948 Q. Jrnl. Forestry 42 33 Poplar plywood could be manufactured if more peeler logs were grown.
1973 Nature West Coast 62 Wood [of grand fir] is used for pulp, lumber and peelers (core stock for plywood).
2003 Mercury (Austral.) (Nexis) 22 July 11 Mr Gordon said the peeler logs were exported as part of veneer peeling trials to establish markets for Tasmanian eucalypt in China and Korea.
III. Other senses.† 6. U.S. colloquial.
a. An exceptional or noteworthy example of something; esp. a very violent storm. Obsolete.
ΚΠ
1823 J. F. Cooper Pioneers I. xv. 212 It's a peeler without, I can tell you, good woman.
1834 C. A. Davis Lett. J. Downing, Major 147 Says he, ‘Major, that's a sharp piece you are firin with there.’ ‘It's a peeler,’ says I.
1843 A. S. Stephens High Life in N.Y. I. 214 Sam's fust book was a peeler, and a credit to the family.
1861 Entertaining Things I. 197 The gale..was a steady hard blow, what sailors call a peeler.
1880 J. Fiske Let. 24 July (1940) 437 We made a plan to send you a huge letter—such as I call ‘one of my old peelers’—and give you a more or less detailed account of all the goings-on since the May-day.
b. A person of extraordinary or unusual qualities; a lively and energetic person; a person with exceptional aptitude or enthusiasm for an activity. Obsolete.
ΚΠ
1833 S. Smith Life & Writings Major Jack Downing ii. 40 He's a real peeler for speaking, and sometimes he pours out his voice so as to make me jump right up on my feet.
1833 S. Smith Life & Writings Major Jack Downing lxv. 218 Them are Pennsylvany chaps are real pealers for electing folks when they take hold.
1844 ‘J. Slick’ High Life N.Y. I. 82 I was talking with a rare peeler of a gal.
1881 W. M. Thayer From Log Cabin to White House xiii. 207 He's a peeler for work, too; ain't afraid to dirty hisself.
1883 I. Flagg Versicles 47 On terra firm I'm just a roarin' peeler!
7. U.S. slang. A cowboy.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > keeping of cattle > [noun] > keeper of cattle > tender of cattle
cowman1593
cowboy1623
cow-man1677
cowgirl1753
stockman1806
cowboy1825
cowboy1849
fogger1858
cow-woman1870
cattleman1878
cow-girl1884
tackman1885
cow-hand1886
peeler1894
rawhider1908
stock-boy1937
1894 O. Wister Out West: Jrnls. & Lett. (1958) 198 Peeler, cowpuncher.
1914 ‘B. M. Bower’ Flying U Ranch 7 This is Mr. Mig-u-ell Rapponi, boys—a peeler straight from the Golden Gate.
1937 Dial. Notes 6 618 Used in its strictest sense, the peeler refers to the cowpuncher who rides into the herd and ‘cuts’ out the horse desired.
1992 C. McCarthy All Pretty Horses (1993) ii. 103 Was your old daddy a certified peeler?
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2005; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
peelern.2
/ˈpiːlə/, U.S. /ˈpilər/ English regional (Kent).
A crowbar; a round iron bar used for making holes in the ground for hop-poles or wattles.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > tools and implements > [noun] > implement for making holes in the ground
pitch1589
pitcher1712
peeler1796
post auger1819
pitching-bar1879
soil sampler1902
soil auger1927
1796 J. Boys Gen. View Agric. Kent (new ed.) 50 A large iron peeler to make holes in the land for the [hop] poles, costs 6s. or 7s.
1807 R. W. Dickson Pract. Agric. (new ed.) I. 45 Hop-peeler.—The peeler is made use of for forming holes for the hop-poles.
1861 G. Dowker in Geologist 4 213 After much labour with a large peeler on the boring-irons, a small hole was made which still resisted the passage of the augur.
1887 W. D. Parish & W. F. Shaw Dict. Kentish Dial. 115 Peeler n., a round iron bar, used for making the holes into which hop-poles or wattles are placed.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2005; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
peelern.3
/ˈpiːlə/, U.S. /ˈpilər/, Irish English /ˈpiːlər/ colloquial (originally British and Irish English). Now chiefly archaic and historical.
Originally: a member of the Irish constabulary. Later: (more gen.) a police officer; spec. a member of the original London Metropolitan force.
ΘΚΠ
society > law > law enforcement > police force or the police > [noun] > policeman
truncheon officer1708
runner1735
horny1753
nibbing-cull1775
nabbing-cull1780
police officer1784
police constable1787
policeman1788
scout1789
nabman1792
nabber1795
pig1811
Bow-street officer1812
nab1813
peeler1816
split1819
grunter1823
robin redbreast1824
bulky1828
raw (or unboiled) lobster1829
Johnny Darm1830
polis1833
crusher1835
constable1839
police1839
agent1841
johndarm1843
blue boy1844
bobby1844
bluebottle1845
copper1846
blue1848
polisman1850
blue coat1851
Johnny1851
PC1851
spot1851
Jack1854
truncheonist1854
fly1857
greycoat1857
cop1859
Cossack1859
slop1859
scuffer1860
nailerc1863
worm1864
Robert1870
reeler1879
minion of the law1882
ginger pop1887
rozzer1888
nark1890
bull1893
grasshopper1893
truncheon-bearer1896
John1898
finger1899
flatty1899
mug1903
John Dunn1904
John Hop1905
gendarme1906
Johnny Hop1908
pavement pounder1908
buttons1911
flat-foot1913
pounder1919
Hop1923
bogy1925
shamus1925
heat1928
fuzz1929
law1929
narker1932
roach1932
jonnop1938
grass1939
roller1940
Babylon1943
walloper1945
cozzer1950
Old Bill1958
cowboy1959
monaych1961
cozzpot1962
policeperson1965
woolly1965
Fed1966
wolly1970
plod1971
roz1971
Smokey Bear1974
bear1975
beast1978
woodentop1981
Five-O1983
dibble1990
Bow-street runner-
1816 Parl. Deb. 1st Ser. 34 854 He was assured, that no good whatever was done by what, in compliment to the right hon. gentleman, were called ‘the peelers’.
1818 R. Peel Let. to Gregory 14 Apr. We must not make the Peelers unpopular, by maintaining them against the declared and unequivocal sense of the county in which they act.
1829 Blackwood's Edinb. Mag. 25 569 The ‘Peelers’ (by which significant term the whole constabulary force appointed under Mr. Goulburn's bill, as well as those by Mr. Peel's act, are known in the vernacular).
1850 C. Kingsley Alton Locke II. xiv. 206 He's gone for a peeler and a search warrant to break open the door.
1871 L. H. Bagg Four Years at Yale 515 There is a sort of traditional hostility between the students and the ‘peelers’—as the city police are always called.
1917 S. O'Kelly Waysiders 22 It is not for the Peelers to put the honest man on one side and the thief on the other.
1929 Bookman Nov. 264/1 ‘What is it, Fra Diavolo?’ he asked... ‘A peeler, fellow, a sleuth-hound.’
1954 N. Coward London at Night in B. Day N. Coward: Compl. Lyrics (1998) 289/2 Certainly ‘Peelers’ If only they're viewed sentimentally Have a reassuring charm Quite unlike the French Gendarme.
1968 J. Lock Lady Policeman ix. 78 The close-fitting jackets have the effect of making portly peelers look portlier.
1993 Guardian 24 Feb. ii. 10/3 The film was too far-fetched—though I have seen people hand-braking in front of the Peelers [sc. the Royal Ulster Constabulary].
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2005; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1a1425
n.21796
n.31816