twitchn.1
/twɪtʃ/, U.S. /twɪtʃ/ 1. † a. In plural. Surgical forceps or tweezers. Also in singular in the same sense. Cf. twitcher n. 2a, quitch n.2 Obsolete. rare.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > equipment > clutching or gripping equipment > [noun] > tongs or pincers
tongsc725
tongsc890
pinsons1356
turkis1390
pincersa1400
twitches?a1425
pinching iron1519
pincette?1533
spinsers1539
pincher1573
twitcher1573
tenailles1597
quitch1600
tenalia1603
forceps1634
vellicle1676
snapdragon1833
?a1425 tr. Guy de Chauliac Grande Chirurgie (N.Y. Acad. Med.:Wallner) i. 10 (MED) Instrumentz of yren: Som bene..for to drawen oute as tonges & picecaroles, i. twichez.
c1475 tr. Henri de Mondeville Surgery (Wellcome) f. 160v (MED) If it is possible, drawe hem [sc. splinters of bone] out wiþ þi naylis; And if þou mai not, drawe hem out with instrumentis maad þerfore, and wiþ sutil twicchis or tongis.
1583 P. Barrough Methode of Phisicke i. xxxvi. 45 Take therfore a twiche of siluer, and therwith lift vp subtellie the vngle from the tunicle.
b. A loop or noose; spec. a small loop of cord attached to a stick, used to restrain a horse during shoeing, veterinary procedures, etc., by twisting the stick to tighten the loop around the animal's upper lip, ear, or nose; (later also) an instrument consisting of two metal branches joined by a hinge, placed on the lip, etc., of a horse for the same purpose.Regarding possible earlier currency of this sense, see note at sense 3a.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > general equipment > [noun] > noose for muzzle
twitcher1688
twitch1783
twister1940
the world > relative properties > wholeness > mutual relation of parts to whole > fastening > binding or tying > a bond, tie, or fastening > [noun] > loop or noose
latchetc1350
noosec1450
strop1481
slip1687
twitch1783
kinch1808
fank1825
slip-cord1847
loop1944
1783 F. Clater Every Man his own Farrier xii. 52 The horse's head must be well confined, and his nose twitched, with a twitch made for the purpose.
1806 B. W. Burke Compend. Anat., Physiol, & Pathol. of Horse 129 The horse is put to the torture by the application of a twitch or two, the one to his upper lip, and the other to his ear.
1831 W. Youatt Horse xviii. 321 Among the minor methods of restraint..are the twitch and the barnacles.
1884 G. Fleming Text-bk. Operative Vet. Surg. I. i. i. 13 This iron twitch has the advantage over the cord, that it does not readily cut the skin of the lip.
1885 York Herald 7 Apr. 4/5 The twitch with which the foxes are captured is a loop of wire, string, or other material.
1910 T. Sheppard in Trans. E. Riding Antiq. Soc. 16 41 Two holes have been pierced..to receive a lashing or twitch which would pass to and from the sides, thus holding them firmly against the stern-board.
1946 Waterloo (Iowa) Sunday Courier 2 June 15/3 He..demonstrated the effectiveness of a metal nose twitch and a metal twitch used on the ear of the horse.
2007 Horse & Rider Oct. 87 If you have to use a twitch, don't leave it on for too long.
2. A sudden sharp feeling of physical or mental pain or discomfort; a twinge, a pang, a pinch. Frequently with of.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > suffering > mental anguish or torment > [noun] > a pang
stitch?c1225
prong1440
twitch?1510
pang1534
pincha1566
aculeusa1612
twinge1622
twang1721
tang1724
twinging1816
brain-ache1836
the world > health and disease > ill health > pain > types of pain > [noun] > sudden pain
stitchc1000
showera1300
shutea1300
gridea1400
gripa1400
shota1400
stounda1400
lancing1470
pang1482
twitch?1510
shooting1528
storm1540
stitching1561
stub1587
twinge1608
gird1614
twang1721
tang1724
shoot1756
darting1758
writhe1789
catch1830
lightning pain1860
twitcher1877
rash1900
?1510 T. More tr. G. F. Pico della Mirandola Lyfe I. Picus sig. c.iv In the very twitches and panges of deth he spake as though he behelde þe heuines opene.
1573 T. Tusser Fiue Hundreth Points Good Husbandry (new ed.) f. 50v Reward not thy shepe (when ye take of his cote) with twitchis & patchis.
1612 T. Taylor Αρχὴν Ἁπάντων: Comm. Epist. Paul to Titus (ii. 11) 441 The smarting twitches of our consciences.
1688 A. Wood Life & Times (1894) III. 282 A twich and paine in the instep.
1717 M. Prior Alma i. 458 Their Heart, descending to their Breeches, Must give their Stomach cruel twitches.
1755 Connoisseur No. 53. 317 She has the gout in her constitution, and whenever she feels a twitch of it, the only thing is sheer Brandy to keep it from her head.
1821 C. Lamb in London Mag. Aug. 156/2 My conscience..beginning to give some twitches.
1867 G. Easton Autobiogr. (ed. 2) xiii. 178 Sensations very similar to a twitch of toothache.
1924 Illustr. London News Christmas 13/2 An unwary movement brought a twitch of pain, and he groaned.
2016 Sunday Times (Nexis) 28 Feb. (Culture section) 20 Tinker..methodically tests the limits of the inmates without a twitch of remorse.
3.
a. A sudden sharp pull or tug; a jerk, a pluck, a snatch. Cf. twitch v.1 1c.Quot. a1627 probably shows this sense (with specific reference to snatching something in order to steal it; cf. twitch v.1 1d), but it could perhaps be interpreted as showing earlier evidence of sense 1b instead.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > impelling or driving > pushing and pulling > [noun] > pulling > a sudden or sharp pull
tita1425
pluck1440
twitching1478
twitch?1523
tuck1648
twang1721
twiga1800
twerk1820
yank1888
?1523 J. Fitzherbert Bk. Husbandry f. ixv The oxe is neuer wo tyll he to the harowe go. And it is by cause it goth by twitches.
1567 A. Golding tr. Ovid Metamorphosis (new ed.) ix. f. 111 Three tymes a twich Gaue Hercules and could not wrinch my leaning brest him fro.
1607 S. Hieron Remedie for Securitie in Wks. (1620) I. 431 A single twine, which is snapt in sunder with a twitch.
a1627 T. Middleton More Dissemblers besides Women iii. i, in 2 New Playes (1657) 34 Oh those dear Gipseys, they..eat sweet stoln Hens, pluckt over Pales or Hedges by a twitch.
1688 R. Holme Acad. Armory (1905) iii. xv. 27/1 The bowes of the boat..would else be torne out with the twitches which the ship vnder saile would giue it.
1744 J. Thomson Spring in Seasons (new ed.) 20 Then fix, with gentle Twitch, the barbed Hook.
1792 H. H. Brackenridge Mod. Chivalry I. iii. i. 62 If I had not given him a twitch by the nose, and bid him ly over, dear honey, he would have ravished her virginity.
1821 J. Clare Village Minstrel I. 154 A twitch at her sleeve!..a bramble had caught at her gown passing by.
1851 D. Jerrold St. Giles & St. James (new ed.) xvi, in Writings I. 169 He felt a twitch at his pocket, and..saw a child..carrying away a silk handkerchief.
1933 D. Runyon in Nash's Pall Mall Mag. Sept. 20 With a twitch at the knees of his stiffly-starched linen trousers, Dr. Meach dropped into a chair.
2012 Irish News (Nexis) 29 Mar. 61 A little twitch on the line now and then might make the flies' feathers pulsate,..making it almost impossible for the fish to refuse.
b. figurative and in figurative contexts.
ΚΠ
1592 T. Nashe Strange Newes sig. Cv Hee hath a twitch at Pierce Pennilesse too, at the parting stile, and tearms him the Deuils Orator by profession, and his Dames Poet by practise.
1633 G. Herbert Church Porch in Temple xxxvii Think not thy fame at ev'ry twitch will break.
1649 J. Milton Εικονοκλαστης xxvii. 223 His Noose, which when he pleases to draw together with one twitch of his Negative, shall throttle a whole Nation.
1728 E. Young Love of Fame: Universal Passion (ed. 2) ii. 281 Since smallest things can give our sins a twitch, As crossing straws retard a passing witch.
1877–8 H. Taylor Philip Van Artevelde Pt. II (new ed.) i. ii. in Wks. I. 224 The twitch of personal ties Ought not to move you.
2011 Independent 6 May 20/5 An extraordinary twitch on the historical thread and an unignorable nod in the direction of Flanders guns.
4.
a. A short, sudden, jerking or convulsive movement of a muscle or part of the body, esp. one made involuntarily as a result of illness, stress, emotion, etc. Also: a disorder characterized by repeated habitual convulsions of this kind; a tic.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > motion in specific manner > sudden movement > [noun] > spasmodic movement or twitching
twitching1478
twitch1575
sprunting1647
orgasm1671
quetching1676
catching1700
snatching1822
quirk1826
1575 G. Turberville Bk. Faulconrie 252 When they are troubled and grieued with the Filanders, you shall firste discerne it by the pouertie of the hawkes,..and by certayne twytches and startes that they wyll make.
1672 R. Wiseman Treat. Wounds ii. vi. 49 The Shivers of the Bone within hurting the Nervous parts, occasioned those convulsive twitches and pain he was subject to and often felt.
1718 J. Quincy Pharmacopœia Officinalis 173 Any Medicine which so far vellicates the..Stomach and Bowels, as to draw them into convulsive Twitches.
1774 O. Goldsmith Hist. Earth II. 44 It is owing to these alterations that the mother so frequently feels those twitches, which are usually attended with pain.
1804 Med. & Physical Jrnl. 12 112 Considerable pain in the head usually accompanied the convulsive twitches in the face.
1825 W. Scott Talisman iv, in Tales Crusaders IV. 52 Mark me the smallest twitch of the features, or wink of the eye-lid.
1836 Random Recoll. House of Lords xiv. 315 A hasty scratch at the back of his head, accompanied with two or three twitches of his nose.
1897 E. L. Voynich Gadfly (1904) 47/1 That side of his face was affected with a nervous twitch.
1927 J. Elder Thomasina Toddy xxii. 218 Anne recognised them with her most prefectly twitch of the lips.
1968 Brain 91 643 Every heart beat, every twitch of a muscle, every movement and posture is an integral part of the total behaviour which evolves and produces a unity in time.
2002 Oldie June 22/2 Dougie, who suffered from a tic, gave a violent twitch and his scone fell to the floor.
b. In extended use: any quick, sharp, sudden movement (physical or abstract), esp. one characterized by deviation from an established pattern.
ΚΠ
1898 Philadelphia Inquirer 6 Feb. (Sunday Mag.) 6/3 Half an hour's coasting brings you into the main street with an unexpected twitch of the buckboard as the wheels pass over a small rock.
1964 L. Biggle Slight Case of Limbo in Year's Best SF 9 120 Instead of a wretched end in the sordid loneliness of his cramped cabin, this unexpected twitch of destiny offered an embattled death that he could welcome and embrace fully.
1975 D. G. King-Hele in Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) A. 278 104 The features of prime geophysical interest are the minor twitches in the polar motion.
1986 Economist 3 May 20/2 By looking ahead a little and not selling at every twitch of the market,..British fund managers would have a duller life—but a richer one.
2015 N.Y. Times (Nexis) 29 Nov. br14 A tiny twitch caused by an invisible force in the far reaches of the cosmos hurled a comet..toward Earth.
5. Mining. A section in which a vein of ore or coal is greatly narrowed or interrupted by the convergence of the enclosing beds of stone. Cf. twitch v.1 6. Now rare (chiefly historical).
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > minerals > mineral deposits > features of stratum or vein > [noun] > pinching > pinched place
twitch1630
pinch1873
pinch and swell1916
1630–1 in J. H. Rieuwerts Gloss. Derbyshire Lead Mining Terms (1998) 162 A harde twitch or Rocke of Stone—beinge 3 ffadom high over which—[they]convey there water.
1747 W. Hooson Miners Dict. sig. D2v Some Veins that are Caukey, are very subject to it; but more especially in Twitches, and hard Places.
1789 J. Williams Nat. Hist. Mineral Kingdom I. 306 But where the sides come perfectly close, and are run or cemented together, which is often the case, it then requires the care and attention of an observing experienced miner to keep the vein with certainty as he drives through the twitch.
1915 R. G. Carruthers et al. Barytes & Witherite (Mem. Geol. Surv.) iv. 65 In the ‘twitches’ lead-ore is occasionally met with in bunches.
1970 C. J. Hunt Lead Miners Northern Pennines iii. 43 This regular method of approach to a vein..replaced, in the larger mines, the random following of a vein in all its ‘twitches’ and ‘throws’.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > subclass Pterygota > [noun] > division Exopterygota or Hemimetabola > order Dermaptera > member of (earwig)
earwigeOE
beetle-wig1595
earworm1598
twitch-ballock1634
forken-robin1691
twitch-bell1722
twinge1790
twitch1790
1790 F. Grose Provinc. Gloss. (ed. 2) Twinge, or Twitch, an earwig. North.
1804 W. Bingley Animal Biogr. (ed. 2) III. 263 Forficula auricularia. Linn.—Twitch, or Twitch-ball, in some parts of the North of England.
ΘΚΠ
the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > treated or processed textiles > [noun] > lock twisted around finger in spinning
twitch1802
1802 R. Bloomfield Rural Tales 3 She..laid aside her Lucks and Twitches.
8. colloquial (originally British). An expedition to make a sighting of a rare bird; a gathering of birdwatchers in response to a reported sighting. Cf. twitch v.1 7, twitcher n. 5.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > entertainment > pastimes > hobby > spotting trains, watching birds, etc. > [noun] > instance of bird watching
twitch1977
society > leisure > entertainment > pastimes > hobby > spotting trains, watching birds, etc. > [noun] > gathering of bird watchers
twitch1977
society > leisure > entertainment > pastimes > hobby > spotting trains, watching birds, etc. > [noun] > bird watching expedition
twitch1977
1977 New Society 17 Nov. 341/1 You could say that, unwittingly, I'd gone on a short-haul twitch to see this yank at Tring.
1988 New Scientist 3 Dec. 73/1 Only this June the appearance of his rosefinch on Orkney provoked the year's biggest ‘twitch’.
2006 Bird Watching Aug. 98/3 Other top twitches during June included a couple of charter boat trips out to the remote islet of Sula Sgeir.
Phrases
† at (also in) a twitch: in a moment; very quickly, without delay. Obsolete (Scottish in later use).
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > relative time > immediacy > [adverb]
soonc825
ratheeOE
rathelyeOE
rekeneOE
rekenlyOE
thereright971
anonOE
forth ona1000
coflyc1000
ferlyc1000
radlyOE
swiftlyc1000
unyoreOE
yareOE
at the forme (also first) wordOE
nowOE
shortlya1050
rightOE
here-rightlOE
right anonlOE
anonc1175
forthrightc1175
forthwithalc1175
skeetc1175
swithc1175
with and withc1175
anon-rightc1225
anon-rights?c1225
belivec1225
lightly?c1225
quickly?c1225
tidelyc1225
fastlyc1275
hastilyc1275
i-radlichec1275
as soon asc1290
aright1297
bedenea1300
in little wevea1300
withoute(n dwella1300
alrightc1300
as fast (as)c1300
at firstc1300
in placec1300
in the placec1300
mididonec1300
outrightc1300
prestc1300
streck13..
titec1300
without delayc1300
that stounds1303
rada1325
readya1325
apacec1325
albedenec1330
as (also also) titec1330
as blivec1330
as line rightc1330
as straight as linec1330
in anec1330
in presentc1330
newlyc1330
suddenlyc1330
titelyc1330
yernec1330
as soon1340
prestly1340
streckly1340
swithly?1370
evenlya1375
redelya1375
redlya1375
rifelya1375
yeplya1375
at one blastc1380
fresha1382
ripelyc1384
presentc1385
presently1385
without arrestc1385
readilyc1390
in the twinkling of a looka1393
derflya1400
forwhya1400
skeetlya1400
straighta1400
swifta1400
maintenantc1400
out of handc1400
wightc1400
at a startc1405
immediately1420
incontinent1425
there and then1428
onenec1429
forwithc1430
downright?a1439
agatec1440
at a tricec1440
right forth1440
withouten wonec1440
whipc1460
forthwith1461
undelayed1470
incessantly1472
at a momentc1475
right nowc1475
synec1475
incontinently1484
promptly1490
in the nonce?a1500
uncontinent1506
on (upon, in) the instant1509
in short1513
at a clap1519
by and by1526
straightway1526
at a twitch1528
at the first chop1528
maintenantly1528
on a tricea1529
with a tricec1530
at once1531
belively1532
straightwaysa1533
short days1533
undelayedly1534
fro hand1535
indelayedly1535
straight forth1536
betimesc1540
livelyc1540
upononc1540
suddenly1544
at one (or a) dash?1550
at (the) first dash?1550
instantly1552
forth of hand1564
upon the nines1568
on the nail1569
at (also in, with) a thoughtc1572
indilately1572
summarily1578
at one (a) chop1581
amain1587
straightwise1588
extempore1593
presto1598
upon the place1600
directly1604
instant1604
just now1606
with a siserary1607
promiscuously1609
at (in) one (an) instant1611
on (also upon) the momenta1616
at (formerly also on or upon) sight1617
hand to fist1634
fastisha1650
nextly1657
to rights1663
straightaway1663
slap1672
at first bolt1676
point-blank1679
in point1680
offhand1686
instanter1688
sonica1688
flush1701
like a thought1720
in a crack1725
momentary1725
bumbye1727
clacka1734
plumba1734
right away1734
momentarily1739
momentaneously1753
in a snap1768
right off1771
straight an end1778
abruptedly1784
in a whistle1784
slap-bang1785
bang?1795
right off the reel1798
in a whiff1800
in a flash1801
like a shot1809
momently1812
in a brace or couple of shakes1816
in a gird1825
(all) in a rush1829
in (also at, on) short (also quick) order1830
straightly1830
toot sweetc1830
in two twos1838
rectly1843
quick-stick1844
short metre1848
right1849
at the drop of a (occasionally the) hat1854
off the hooks1860
quicksticks1860
straight off1873
bang off1886
away1887
in quick sticks (also in a quick stick)1890
ek dum1895
tout de suite1895
bung1899
one time1899
prompt1910
yesterday1911
in two ups1934
presto changeo1946
now-now1966
presto change1987
1528 Impeachm. Wolsey in F. J. Furnivall Ballads from MSS (1868) I. 357 They wold from þer bodyes þer hedis devyde, or hang them at A twycche.
1570 T. North tr. A. F. Doni Morall Philos. ii. f. 27v Euen with his striuing the axe comming out at a twitch vnwares layd him alongest on the blocke, and one of his legges vnhappily slipt into the clyft.
a1637 B. Jonson Pans Anniv. 120 in Wks. (1640) III A Tooth-drawer is our Foreman, that if there be but a bitter tooth in the company, it may bee called out at a twitch.
1726 A. Ramsay Gentle Shepherd (ed. 2) ii. iii. 27 When Poverty and Eild..should in a Twitch, Gi'e ane the hatefu Name, a wrinkled Witch.
1809 T. Donaldson Poems 111 Gin ye get at him i' a twitch Ye'll burn his tongue.
1817 A. Buchanan Rural Poetry 10 I wad..mak a fortune in a twitch.
a1859 W. Watt Poems & Songs (1860) 245 A risp he raised 'fore Ringan's stane, That spoiled it in a twitch.
Compounds
C1. attributive. Designating a video game requiring fast reactions from the player; relating to such a video game. Frequently in twitch game.
ΚΠ
1981 InfoWorld 13 Apr. 24/2 The simulation requires more skill than a simple ‘twitch game’. (A ‘twitch game’, according to Vern Raburn of Microsoft, is a game in which your success is determined by twitching or moving at the right time.)
1995 Guardian 28 Dec. ii. 15/4 Twitch games—those that demand a fast reaction—are unlikely to be played internationally on Wireplay because of latency problems.
2000 U.S. News & World Rep. 8 May 67/2 The Dreamcast is more twitch gaming—more responsive and less strategic.
2002 Electronic Gaming Monthly Mar. 144/1 Control is razor-sharp and more suited to displaying some nice twitch skills.
C2. English regional (northern). In names for kinds of insect.See note in etymology.† twitch-ballock n. [compare twitch-ball in quot. 1804 at sense 6] Obsolete (a) an earwig (cf. twitch-bell n.); (b) (probably) a cockroach (cf. twitch-clog n.).† twitch-clock n. [compare clock n.3] Obsolete a cockroach.† twitch-clog n. [apparently an alteration of twitch-clock n. after clog n.] Obsolete a cockroach.With the identification as ‘black beetle’, cf. black-beetle n. 2.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > order Coleoptera or beetles and weevils > [noun] > member of (beetle) > black
black-beetle1565
twitch-ballock1634
devil's cow1688
straddle-bob1847
the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > subclass Pterygota > [noun] > division Exopterygota or Hemimetabola > order Dermaptera > member of (earwig)
earwigeOE
beetle-wig1595
earworm1598
twitch-ballock1634
forken-robin1691
twitch-bell1722
twinge1790
twitch1790
the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > subclass Pterygota > [noun] > division Exopterygota or Hemimetabola > order Dictyoptera > member of genus Blatta (cockroach)
blatta1601
cockroach1616
mill moth1658
twitch-ballock1757
drummer1764
mill beetle1771
kakkerlak1813
roach1822
twitch-clock1843
twitch-cloga1876
cocky1931
1634 T. T. de Mayerne et al. Moffett's Insectorum Theatrum (new ed.) i. xxvii. 171 De Forficula, sive Auricularia... Boreales Angli obscæno nomine Twitch-ballock nominant.
1757 ‘T. Bobbin’ View Lancs. Dial. (ed. 6) Gloss. sig. G6v/2 Twitch-ballock, the great black Beetle.
twitch-bell n. [perhaps ultimately showing an alteration of beetle n.2 in the second element] an earwig.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > subclass Pterygota > [noun] > division Exopterygota or Hemimetabola > order Dermaptera > member of (earwig)
earwigeOE
beetle-wig1595
earworm1598
twitch-ballock1634
forken-robin1691
twitch-bell1722
twinge1790
twitch1790
1722 A. M. Thoughts of Project for draining Irish Channel 20 The Sea-Earwick, or Twitch-bell, the Tadpole, the Water-Lop.
1790 F. Grose Provinc. Gloss. (ed. 2) Twitchbell, an earwig. North.
1863 J. P. Robson Songs Bards of Tyne 237 Nee spiders an twitchbells to 'larm ye.
2005 S. Elmes Talking for Brit. viii. 193 David, in his seventies.., ventures the local word for earwig ‘twitchbell’ at the top end of the East Riding.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > subclass Pterygota > [noun] > division Exopterygota or Hemimetabola > order Dictyoptera > member of genus Blatta (cockroach)
blatta1601
cockroach1616
mill moth1658
twitch-ballock1757
drummer1764
mill beetle1771
kakkerlak1813
roach1822
twitch-clock1843
twitch-cloga1876
cocky1931
1843 Liverpool Mercury 7 Apr. 116/4 Had never heard them complain of mice or twich-clocks.
1876 J. Hartley Yorksher Puddin' 187 He led th' way into another raam 'at wor filled with boxes full o' butterflies, an buzzards, an twitchclocks.
1889 Public Health 2 139/1 One of the tenants said to me..: ‘Yes, anybody can see they are jerry-built, and they swarm with twitch-clocks and bugs’.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > subclass Pterygota > [noun] > division Exopterygota or Hemimetabola > order Dictyoptera > member of genus Blatta (cockroach)
blatta1601
cockroach1616
mill moth1658
twitch-ballock1757
drummer1764
mill beetle1771
kakkerlak1813
roach1822
twitch-clock1843
twitch-cloga1876
cocky1931
a1876 E. Leigh Gloss. Words Dial. Cheshire (1877) 216 Twitch Clog, Black beetle, so called from its omnivorous appetite not sparing leather.
1885 R. Holland Gloss. Words County of Chester (1886) 372 Twitch clog, a black beetle.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2019; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
twitchn.2
/twɪtʃ/, U.S. /twɪtʃ/ Chiefly English regional.
Any of various creeping grasses or other low-growing plants which spread rapidly, esp. by means of shallow roots, and which often occur as persistent weeds of arable land; spec. common couch grass, Elymus repens. Formerly also: (in singular or plural) †the tenacious roots of such plants (obsolete). Cf. couch n.2Earliest in twitch grass n. at Compounds 3.onion twitch, running twitch: see the first element.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > plants perceived as weeds or harmful plants > weed > grasses perceived as weeds > [noun] > couch-grass
quitcheOE
quicka1400
quicken?c1425
couch-grass1578
twitch1588
twitch grass1588
dog grass1597
sea dog's grass1597
quick grass1617
couch1637
wheat-grass1668
scutch1686
quickenings1762
quicken grass1771
spear-grass1784
squitch1785
witchgrass1790
felt1794
dog-wheat1796
creeping wheat1819
quack1822
switch-grass1840
couch-wheat1884
1588–9 in A. Palmer Tudor Churchwardens' Accts. (1985) 24 Paide..for gatheringe of turfe or twiche grasse of one half acre vid.
1595 T. Lodge Fig for Momus iii. 48 If thou espie within thy curious knot, Some tangling twitch, that doth thy flowers rot.
1620 G. Markham Farwell to Husbandry viii. 57 The sand that bringeth forth nothing but wilde Twitch, Bryars, Thorn-bush, and such like vndergrowth of yong misliking wood.
1784 W. Marshall Minutes in Rural Econ. Midland Counties (1790) II. 43 Extirpating the roots of twitch and other root weeds.
1821 J. Clare Village Minstrel I. 202 The big clod..a hiding-place, Breaking off the scorching sun Where the matted twitches run.
1825 G. Sinclair Hortus Gramineus Woburnensis (ed. 2) 222 The Trifolium medium is inadmissable [in alternate husbandry] on account of its creeping roots constituting what in arable lands is termed twitch.
1884 F. J. Lloyd Sci. Agric. 256 Of the weeds..none is more common or more troublesome than twitch, or couch grass.
1924 Weekly Times (Melbourne) 17 May 31/1 Onion-rooted twitch; botanical name Avena bulbosa.
1973 N.Z. Jrnl. Agric. Mar. 89/2 Most of the grasses grown at Borabu have to be planted from cuttings which, like twitch, grow from both root and stem.
2007 E. Cooke Garden Handbk. 59/1 Perennial weeds... Examples will include couch grass (twitch), ground elder, nettles, bindweed, creeping thistle, docks and dandelions.
Compounds
C1. General attributive, as twitch plant, twitch root, etc.
ΚΠ
1798 R. Parkinson Experienced Farmer II. xli. 16 Therefore twitch-roots, rushes, and every noxious weed had liberty to grow, when the seeds were sown; but the land, being fresh, had very little couch-grass.
1837 C. H. Hillyard Pract. Farming & Grazing (ed. 2) 68 The greater part of it [sc. rye-grass] sold is grown on very badly cultivated farms, and therefore very often full of twitch seed.
1872 J. J. Mechi Profitable Farming 2nd Ser. 373 It is painfully interesting to see how, just now, the twitch plants are pushing forth their strong, white, devouring snouts.
1924 Weekly Times (Melbourne) 17 May 31/2 Now we have the land twice skimmed lying open to the sun, which is drying the ‘twitch’ sod through.
2014 R. C. Lamont tr. C. Delbo Auschwitz & After (ed. 2) i. 77 We were resigned to return to the twitch roots, the muddy clods of earth.
C2. Designating implements used to clear land of twitch, as †twitch drag, twitch harrow, twitch rake. Now rare (chiefly historical in later use).
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > tools and implements > harrowing equipment > [noun] > harrow > types of harrow
drag1388
ox-harrow1465
drag-harrow1744
bush-harrow1770
twitch harrow1771
brake1786
crab-harrow1796
twitch drag1799
tormentor1808
flag-harrow1845
chain-harrow1870
pitch-pole1929
the world > food and drink > farming > tools and implements > [noun] > rake > other types of rake
muckrake1366
wording hook1605
swath-rake1652
dew-rake1659
pick1777
twitch rake1798
tooth-rakec1830
pea-rake1867
buck-rake1893
sea-rake1902
1771 G. Culley Jrnl. 25 July in M. Culley & G. Culley Trav. Jrnls. & Lett. (2002) 79 Mr Sale has sent the twitch harrow to an ingenious workman to be altered.
1798 R. Parkinson Experienced Farmer II. lxvi. 84 Where women and children are not to be had to rake up the weeds.., a twitch-rake will be useful.
1799 A. Young Gen. View Agric. County Lincoln 69 A twitch drag..for tearing out twitch.
1852 J. A. Clarke Fen Sketches xi. 190 Scufflers and twitch-drags began to traverse the fields, tearing the soil with their grinning iron teeth.
1874 Country 27 Aug. 187/3 As there may be weeds still in the ground which the horse-rake cannot reach, a twitch-rake will be effective.
1924 Weekly Times (Melbourne) 17 May 31/2 After the cultivator the Drummond patent twitch harrow is very effective.
1956 Gwerin June 36 Thatching rakes, offal rakes and twitch rakes were special kinds.
C3.
twitch fire n. now rare a fire for burning twitch or other weeds.
ΚΠ
1857 Notts. Guardian 31 Dec. 6/3 The cultivator, harrow, and roller everywhere at work, and the twitch-fires as numerous and bright as at Midsummer.
1971 ‘A. Burgess’ MF viii. 93 The man..was smoking a cigar rank as a twitch fire.
twitch grass n. common couch grass, Elymus repens; (also) any of various other rapidly spreading grasses, such as slender foxtail grass, Alopecurus myosuroides, and Bermuda grass, Cynodon dactylon.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > plants perceived as weeds or harmful plants > weed > grasses perceived as weeds > [noun] > couch-grass
quitcheOE
quicka1400
quicken?c1425
couch-grass1578
twitch1588
twitch grass1588
dog grass1597
sea dog's grass1597
quick grass1617
couch1637
wheat-grass1668
scutch1686
quickenings1762
quicken grass1771
spear-grass1784
squitch1785
witchgrass1790
felt1794
dog-wheat1796
creeping wheat1819
quack1822
switch-grass1840
couch-wheat1884
1588–9 in A. Palmer Tudor Churchwardens' Accts. (1985) 24 Paide..for gatheringe of turfe or twiche grasse of one half acre vid.
1611 R. Fenton Treat. Vsurie ii. viii. 68 It [sc. vsurie] is like twichgrasse, if the least thred of a roote be left, it groweth and spreadeth without measure.
1792 Trans. Soc. Arts 10 109 I sowed twitch-grass and rye-grass.
1884 St. James's Gaz. 19 Sept. 6/1 In some wonderful way, twitch-grass sows itself on fields that were apparently clean.
1973 N.Z. Jrnl. Agric. Mar. 89/2 The twitch grasses such as coastal bermuda can be grazed heavily.
2000 Saga Mag. Feb. 108/1 His horticultural career ‘started in the Nottingham Parks Department forking twitch grass (what they call couch grass in Scotland) out of iris beds.’
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2019; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
twitchv.1
/twɪtʃ/, U.S. /twɪtʃ/α. Middle English twight, Middle English twighte, Middle English twiȝt, Middle English twiȝte, Middle English twyght, Middle English twyghte, Middle English twyȝt, Middle English twyȝte.
β. late Middle English– twitched, 1500s twicht, 1500s–1600s twitcht.
3. Past participle.α. Middle English tviȝt, Middle English twighte, Middle English twiȝt, Middle English twiȝte, Middle English twiht, Middle English twite, Middle English twyght, Middle English twyȝt, Middle English twyt, Middle English ytwyght, Middle English 1600s twight.
β. late Middle English twychyde, 1500s– twitched, 1500s–1600s (1800s Scottish) twitcht, 1600s twiched.
N.E.D. (1916) also records a form late Middle English twyte (past tense or past participle). 1. † e. transitive. To pluck (the string of a musical instrument); to play (a note, etc.) in this way. Also with up. Obsolete.
a. intransitive. To pull or jerk something sharply or forcibly; to give a sudden sharp pull or tug at something. Also figurative.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > impelling or driving > pushing and pulling > push and pull [verb (intransitive)] > pull > sharply
twitchc1300
pluck?a1430
twanga1678
yank1822
pull1826
c1300 St. Lucy (Harl.) l. 131 in C. D'Evelyn & A. J. Mill S.-Eng. Legendary (1956) 570 Hi gonne to drawe & tuicche & euere lai þis maide stille, hi nemiȝte hire enes icche.
1575 G. Turberville Bk. Faulconrie 210 When she sitteth alwayes..twitching at hir feathers with hir beake.
1658 E. Ashmole Way to Bliss i. ii. 10 For the common and viler Sort, which either for lack of good Nature, or want of good Manners, use to wrangle about Words, or twitch at Things, I care not.
1769 J. Foot Appeal to Public (ed. 2) 16 During the time he was insensible he twitched at the sheets and pulled one of them out, and would have flung it away.
1824 W. Irving Tales of Traveller I. 63 It seemed as if a legion of imps were twitching at him.
1846 W. S. Landor Imaginary Conversat. in Wks. I. 455/1 Try to barter one with the other, amicably; and not to twitch and carp.
1871 B. Taylor tr. J. W. von Goethe Faust II. iii. 277 The garment let not go! Already twitch The Demons at its skirts.
1913 E. Wharton Custom of Country i. ii Fidgeting, twitching at her draperies,..when people were noticing her.
2008 Iowa Rev. 38 91 It was a shame that young Kahu and he, Gregor, twitched at one another's nerves.
b. transitive. With adverb or preposition, as away, from, up, etc.: to cause (something) to move in the specified direction by pulling or jerking sharply or forcibly. Also figurative.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > impelling or driving > pushing and pulling > push and pull [verb (transitive)] > pull > suddenly or sharply
twickeOE
plitchOE
to-twitchc1175
twitchc1330
tricec1386
tita1400
pluckc1400
ramp1567
snatch1590
pook1633
squitch1680
twig1755
shrug1807
yank1848
c1330 (?a1300) Sir Tristrem (1886) l. 1952 Þe bord he fond of tviȝt.
c1380 Sir Ferumbras (1879) l. 1596 Hure swerdes out þay twyȝte.
a1413 (c1385) G. Chaucer Troilus & Criseyde (Pierpont Morgan) (1882) iv. l. 1185 He [read His] swerd a-noon out of his shethe he twyghte.
1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 764/2 I twytche, I pull a thynge sodaynely or hastely, je happe... He twitched it out of my handes or I was ware.
1549 M. Coverdale et al. tr. Erasmus Paraphr. Newe Test. II. James v. f. xxxviiiv Those riches wherin now you most folishly put your confidence, being twitched awaye.
1658 W. Gurnall Christian in Armour: 2nd Pt. 302 Their fellows that were twitcht up by their gills from them even now with the anglers hook.
1675 J. Bunyan Light in Darkness 80 He is mocked, spit upon, his Beard is twitched from his Cheeks.
1785 W. Cowper Task iv. 448 Twitched from the perch, He gives the princely bird..to his voracious bag.
1834 F. Marryat Peter Simple II. ii. 23 One of the strings..catching the lock of the musket carried by one of the sentries..and twitching it out of his hand.
1865 A. C. Swinburne Atalanta in Calydon 2010 The King twitched his reins in and leapt down.
1934 T. S. Eliot Rock i. 28 As he names them they twitch off their caps and kneel.
1956 K. Vonnegut This Son of Mine in Sat. Evening Post 18 Aug. 76/2 His last shred of faith in any dreams of his own had been twitched away.
2003 R. MacFarlane Mountains of Mind (2004) ii. 51 We walked up to the hill lochs.., carrying little rods and minuscule black flies, and twitched trout from their water.
c. transitive. To give a sudden sharp pull at (a person or thing); to snatch at (a person) by a part of the body or clothing.
ΚΠ
c1405 (c1395) G. Chaucer Friar's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 263 That was wel twight [c1425 Petworth twite, c1430 Cambr. Gg.4.27 twyȝt] myn owene lyard boy.
1587 Sir P. Sidney & A. Golding tr. P. de Mornay Trewnesse Christian Relig. xxii. 389 Notwithstanding that our Lawe in euery lyne..doe reproue vs for it, and after a sort twich vs euery howre by the Cote, to pull vs from it.
1658 T. Bromhall Treat. Specters i. 44 This foul spirit often twitched and pulled them by the hair.
1704 J. Swift Tale of Tub xi. 200 Providence either forgot, or did not think it convenient to twitch me by the Elbow.
1791 W. Cowper tr. Homer Iliad in Iliad & Odyssey I. iii. 458 She..twitch'd her fragrant robe.
1801 M. Edgeworth Forester in Moral Tales I. 131 Their master twitched the rope, that was fastened round their necks.
1849 J. Forbes Physician's Holiday (1850) ix. 90 The driver hardly twitched the reins or used the whip from first to last.
1889 F. E. Gretton Memory's Harkback 88 The rector went and twitched him by the sleeve.
1935 Classical Philol. 30 220 At the moment when..he is actually drawing his sword, suddenly he feels his hair twitched from behind.
2014 K. Brauning How we Fall viii. 97 I twitched the leash and Heidi trotted beside me into the pasture.
d. transitive. To steal (something) by snatching. Also with up. Now historical and rare.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > steal [verb (transitive)]
pick?c1300
takec1300
fetch1377
bribec1405
usurpc1412
rapc1415
to rap and rendc1415
embezzle1495
lifta1529
pilfer1532
suffurate1542
convey?1545
mill1567
prig1567
strike1567
lag1573
shave1585
knave1601
twitch1607
cly1610
asport1621
pinch1632
snapa1639
nap1665
panyar1681
to carry off1684
to pick up1687
thievea1695
to gipsy away1696
bone1699
make1699
win1699
magg1762
snatch1766
to make off with1768
snavel1795
feck1809
shake1811
nail1819
geach1821
pull1821
to run off1821
smug1825
nick1826
abduct1831
swag1846
nobble1855
reef1859
snig1862
find1865
to pull off1865
cop1879
jump1879
slock1888
swipe1889
snag1895
rip1904
snitch1904
pole1906
glom1907
boost1912
hot-stuff1914
score1914
clifty1918
to knock off1919
snoop1924
heist1930
hoist1931
rabbit1943
to rip off1967
to have off1974
1607 T. Dekker & G. Wilkins Iests to make you Merie sig. F4 He..gaue him a little Iustle: and withall, twicht 3 l. out of his pocket.
1655 tr. C. Sorel Comical Hist. Francion ii. 33 To wander about the streets..purposely to try if they could handsomely twich a Cloak.
a1726 J. Vanbrugh Journey to London (1728) iv. i. 44 (stage direct.) Twitches the Purse from him.
1849 J. W. Carlyle Let. to Dr. Carlyle Dec. in New Lett. & Mem. (1903) II. 10 Mercifully it was near home that he [sc. a small dog] was twitched up [by a dog-stealer].
2001 N. Gaiman Amer. Gods (2002) iv. 109 She had twitched purses and filched silks with her clever fingers.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > music > performing music > playing instruments > playing stringed instrument > play stringed instrument [verb (transitive)] > pluck
harp1629
twitch1669
plunk1808
pick1848
pluck1873
tirl1882
1669 W. Mercer Welcom in Poem to Ld. Roberts sig. Dv They the stringe shall twitch, The sound whereof sure shall ascend on high.
1715 S. Croxall Vision 15 His fellow Bard..twitch'd the sounding Chords in solemn State.
1791 A. Wilson Poems (ed. 2) 23 Come twitch up the strings to great John Barleycorn.
1821 J. Clare Village Minstrel I. 47 Such strength had they to twitch the thrumming string.
f. transitive. Chiefly North American. To haul (a log) along the ground by means of ropes or chains.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > transport > transport or conveyance by drawing along > draw along or haul [verb (transitive)] > haul timber
twitch1773
snig1790
tush1841
1773 M. Patten Diary 29 Mar. (1903) 299 My bror Samuell and I and our boys and oxen went and Twitched in what logs we had at Major Goffes saw Mill.
1838 T. C. Haliburton Clockmaker 2nd Ser. xiii. 121 He is a giant,..and can twitch a mill-log as easy as a yoke of oxen can.
1870 E. Kellogg Boy Farmers of Elm Island xxi. 271 Twitching logs into the mill-pond.
1911 Morning Bull. (Rockhampton, Queensland) 15 Mar. 6/7 That chain might be used by any inexperienced man for twitching timber going down on the trolly.
1976 New Yorker 3 May 52/2 The skidder..replaced the horse not long ago as the means of ‘twitching’ a tree..from the cutter to the truck.
2001 Portland (Maine) Press Herald (Nexis) 11 Sept. 7 b She and her brother cut down a tree, twitched it out of the woods with a team of oxen and set it up as the school's flagpole.
g. transitive. To open (a curtain) slightly or briefly, in order to watch others' activities furtively from one's window. Also (and in earliest use) intransitive: (of a curtain) to be opened in this way. Cf. curtain-twitcher n. at curtain n.1 Additions. Now chiefly British.
ΚΠ
1894 W. C. Dawe Confessions of Currency Girl II. i. 14 Polly, no doubt, would not add to my triumph by showing her curiosity, but I saw the parlour curtains twitching, and guessed who was behind them.
1943 D. Charques Returning Heart i. x. 93 A few curtains were twitched to one side as they went on down the narrow streets; one or two women with shopping baskets stared.
1974 Guardian 17 Dec. 7/2 Suburban neighbours twitched their net curtains nervously.
1992 I. Rankin Good Hanging 2 A curtain twitched in one of the ground-floor windows and Rebus caught a glimpse of an elderly lady.
2006 Sunday Mail (Glasgow) (Nexis) 3 Sept. 19 Who hasn't had a snoop round a neighbour's home or twitched the curtains when a delivery van turns up?
2. † a. transitive. To pinch or pull at (a person, part of the body, etc.) with, or as if with, pincers or a similar instrument; to tear at, to rend; to nip. Obsolete except in figurative uses (see sense 2b).† c. intransitive. To suffer a sudden, sharp pain; to twinge. Obsolete. rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > ill health > pain > types of pain > affect with type of pain [verb (transitive)] > pinch
twitchc1410
strain1426
wringa1529
pinch1548
bepinch1612
nipskin1620
c1410 (c1395) G. Chaucer Squire's Tale (Cambr. Dd.4.24) (1902) l. 418 There sat a faucon..That..cried and shright And with hire beek hire seluen she so twight [c1405 Hengwrt prighte, c1410 Harl. 7334 pight, c1440 Egerton 2726 to twighte, a1500 Harl. 7333 smyt] That there nas tygre ne so cruel beste..That nolde han wept.
a1475 J. Shirley Death James (BL Add. 5467) in Miscellanea Scotica (1818) II. 22 A paire sharpe tangis, with the which he twitched and all to tare thare skynne and flessh.
1587 A. Fleming et al. Holinshed's Chron. (new ed.) III. 612/1 To twitch a quareller with such pinsars as wherewith afore he had nipt an other.
1740 H. Bracken Farriery Improv'd (ed. 2) II. vi. 174 Such Purges as vellicate and twitch the Nerves.
1864 C. Dickens Our Mutual Friend (1865) I. i. xiii. 125 I am tickled and twitched all over.
1880 L. H. Kerr tr. G. Nieritz Exiles of Salzburg 217 He pinches and twitches me till I could scream out.
b. transitive. figurative and in figurative contexts. To cause mental pain or discomfort to (a person); to prick (the conscience).In quot. a1413 in †to be twitched with: to be caught or torn between two conflicting impulses (obsolete).
ΚΠ
a1413 (c1385) G. Chaucer Troilus & Criseyde (Pierpont Morgan) (1882) iv. l. 572 Thus am I with desir and reson twyght.
a1450 (c1412) T. Hoccleve De Regimine Principum (Harl. 4866) (1897) l. 5058 A wight..who þat is with greuous þoughtes twight.
1526 W. Tyndale Prol. Epist. Rom. sig. bvv He well fealeth and vnderstondeth whos conscience ys truely twitched of the lawe.
a1652 R. Brome Eng. Moor v. i. 72 in Five New Playes (1659) Had..both been kil'd indeed, as you in jest, Where had been then your witty subtilty..? Ha! have I twight ye there?
a1680 S. Charnock Several Disc. Existence of God (1682) 10 Something in him twitching him upon the pursuit of uncomely actions.
1769 H. Brooke Fool of Quality IV. xvii. 229 His heart twitched him with a kind of compunction.
1815 M. E. Budden Right & Wrong i. 19 I have done all I ought to have done, and my heart no longer keeps twitching me, as it did just now.
1851 D. Jerrold St. Giles & St. James (new ed.) iv, in Writings I. 31 [He] was twitched by a momentary surprise, but directly recovered himself.
1917 O. Micheaux Homesteader iv. xi. 466 It twitched his conscience, but N. J. McCarthy had a practice..of crucifying conscience.
1971 J. Hoyles Waning of Renaissance xiv. 186 It reflects..the ardent wish of Watts and others no longer to have their souls twitched by a capricious and arbitrary God.
2007 West Briton (Nexis) 29 Mar. 10 The anniversary which has twitched the English conscience for a week or two, the 200 years since the official abolition of slavery.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > ill health > pain > pain in specific parts > suffer pain in specific parts [verb (intransitive)] > in teeth
rage1710
twitch1827
1827 T. Hood True Story in Whims & Oddities 2nd Ser. 52 Why then they [sc. teeth] only twitch'd the quicker.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > punishment > capital punishment > hanging > hang [verb (transitive)]
hangc1000
anhangOE
forhangc1300
to loll up1377
gallowa1400
twitchc1450
titc1480
truss1536
beswinga1566
trine1567
to turn over1570
to turn off1581
to turn (a person) on the toe1594
to stretch1595
derrick1600
underhang1603
halter1616
staba1661
noose1664
alexander1666
nub1673
ketch1681
tuck1699
gibbet1726
string1728
scrag1756
to hang up1771
crap1773
patibulate1811
strap1815
swing1816
croak1823
yardarm1829
to work off1841
suspercollatea1863
dangle1887
c1450 (c1405) Mum & Sothsegger (BL Add. 41666) (1936) l. 420 (MED) Þaire lesingz haue lad þaym to lolle by þe necke; At Tibourne for traison y-twyght vp þay were.
c1475 Mankind (1969) l. 615 I was twychyde by þe neke; þe game was begunne. A grace was, þe halter brast asonder.
1611 R. Badley in T. Coryate Crudities sig. k2 The Ducall Gallowes.., Which twich him vp, when he offends their law.
1627 R. Sanderson Ten Serm. 264 To twitch vp a poore sheepestealer.
1839 Ladies' Cabinet July 18 Well, whether he was twitched up by the neck or not..I think we've his match cruising about the coast now.
4. † c. intransitive. More generally: to move, to stir. Obsolete. rare.† d. intransitive. To go with a sudden swift motion; to dart, to shoot. Obsolete. rare.
a. transitive. Originally: (esp. of a horse) to lift up (a leg, etc.) sharply or with a jerk. Later: to cause (a part of the body, etc.) to make a short, sudden, jerking or quivering movement, typically involuntarily; to cause (a muscle, etc.) to convulse or move spasmodically.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > motion in specific manner > sudden movement > cause to move suddenly [verb (transitive)] > cause to move spasmodically > twitch
twitch?1523
?1523 J. Fitzherbert Bk. Husbandry f. xxxv The strynge halt..maketh hym to twytche vp his legge sodaynly, and maketh hym to hault.
1566 T. Blundeville True Arte Paring & Shooyng xxviii. sig. Mm.ijv in Fower Offices Horsemanshippe A man that hath some griefe in the sole of his foote, which will rather twitch vp his leg, than offend the sore place, by settyng it to the ground.
1655 Markham's Perfect Horseman 98 The latter makes him roule and twitch up his hinder feet so suddenly, that by custome it brings him to a string-halt.
1697 Surey Demoniack 33 Dost not thou twirle like a Calf that has the turn, and twitch up thy Houghs just like a spring hault tit?
1746 Exmoor Scolding (ed. 3) 10 Zey ort to tha, why tha wut twitch up thy Teal, and drow up thy Noaze, [etc.].
1792 W. J. Temple Char. Doctor Johnson 5 His most general manner is to sit silent, rocking his body backwards and forwards, twitching his hands and legs, and rolling his eyes.
1863 ‘G. Eliot’ Romola I. xviii. 310 A white rabbit..was twitching its nose with much content on a box full of bran.
1897 W. C. Hazlitt Four Generations Lit. Family I. iii. i. 239 As a young man [he] had a way of twitching his ears.
1902 J. Conrad Heart of Darkness ii, in Youth 128 He died without uttering a sound, without moving a limb, without twitching a muscle.
1980 M. Thelwell Harder they Come (1996) iii. 86 ‘Pappy-Show!’ old sister Anderson exclaimed loudly, twitching her shoulders to demonstrate that she was not impressed by the finery.
2000 M. Barrowcliffe Girlfriend 44 viii. 221 I taunt my dad for twitching his lip when the underdog bites back in cowboy films.
b. intransitive. Of a person, animal, part of the body, etc.: to make a short, sudden, convulsive or spasmodic movement; to jerk, to jump, to start. Formerly also: †to proceed in a jerky or irregular manner (obsolete rare).
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > literature > poetry > versification > metre > be metrical [verb (intransitive)] > proceed in jerking manner
twitch?a1525
the world > movement > motion in specific manner > sudden movement > make sudden movement [verb (intransitive)] > make spasmodic movement > twitch
jerk1606
twitch1832
fidge1883
?a1525 (?a1475) Play Sacrament l. 514 in N. Davis Non-Cycle Plays & Fragm. (1970) 74 Now set on, felouse,..And pluke hys armes awey... Wat yfe he twycche, felovse, aryght!
1592 T. Nashe Strange Newes G iij The Hexamiter verse..goes twitching and hopping in our language like a man running vpon quagmiers vp the hill in one Syllable and downe the dale in another.
1647 Newes out of West 17 C'he thought, that c'had, had a Morice-dancer in's noddle, his joynts did so twitch,..c'he was ene wishing for a nosegay, bels, and a blue handkercher.
1745 S. Mason Nature Intermitting Fever & Ague Consider’d 97 Her Mouth drawn on one Side, her Eyes twitching, and she in most violent Agitations.
1832 H. Martineau Weal & Woe vii His bony fingers sometimes twitching, sometimes drooping with an appearance of utter helplessness.
1840 W. Irving Ralph Ringwood in Knickerbocker Mag. Sept. 265 I tried to keep my countenance,..but it would not do. My muscles began to twitch.
1848 W. M. Thackeray Vanity Fair lviii. 526 If the Major had twitched before, he started now.
1930 ‘Sapper’ Finger of Fate 31 The faintest suspicion of a smile would twitch round his lips.
1971 C. Bukowski Post Office (2000) iv. xvi. 158 Chambers had fallen on the floor in a fit one night, frothing and twitching.
2000 T. Beatty Tuff xv. 198 The crowd's cheers caused Winston's left eyelid to twitch with nervousness.
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the world > movement > move [verb (intransitive)]
stira1000
icchec1175
wag?c1225
movea1325
routa1325
to-wawea1375
removea1400
sway?a1400
trotc1430
ayrec1440
quinch1511
walk1533
twitch1542
shift1595
jee1727
to get around1849
1542 T. Becon New Pollecye of Warre sig. L.j God wyll so watche the borders..of our Realmes that no Tyraunte shoulde..once be able to twytche agaynst vs.
1674 N. Fairfax Treat. Bulk & Selvedge 127 Springs [of motion], some shaping or plastick, some bigning or growing, others barely stirring or twitching.
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the world > movement > rate of motion > swiftness > swift movement in specific manner > move swiftly in specific manner [verb (intransitive)] > move swiftly and suddenly
windc897
shootc1000
smite?c1225
flatc1300
lash13..
girda1400
shock?a1400
spara1400
spritc1400
whipc1440
skrim1487
glance1489
spang1513
whip1540
squirt1570
flirt1582
fly1590
sprunt1601
flame1633
darta1640
strike1639
jump1720
skite1721
scoot1758
jink1789
arrow1827
twitch1836
skive1854
sprint1899
skyhoot1901
catapult1928
slingshot1969
book1977
1836 C. F. Partington Brit. Cycl. Nat. Hist. II. 139/2 It [sc. the shag] floats with wonderful buoyancy in the air, twitches down to the water with the rapidity of lightning.
e. intransitive. colloquial. Of a motor vehicle, trailer, etc.: to judder slightly or veer momentarily sideways, esp. when travelling at high speed. Also with out.
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society > travel > transport > transport or conveyance in a vehicle > transport or convey in a vehicle [verb (intransitive)] > of a motor car, vehicle, etc.
tour1908
twitch1958
waffle1969
1958 Daily Mail 4 Sept. 4/2 The back end twitched slightly, but no correction on the steering was needed.
1979 Motorcycling Man. (Motorcycling Monthly) 10/1 (caption) This successfully overcomes the tendency to twitch which has been a fault with many earlier shaft-drive bikes.
1983 N.Y. Times 23 Oct. v. 10/4 In heavy cornering, the tail does tend to twitch out a bit.
2016 Mid Devon Gaz. (Nexis) 28 Apr. 2 As I came off the bend I felt the trailer twitch and thought something had fallen over.
5. † c. transitive. To castrate (an animal) by means of a cord looped over the testicles and drawn tight. Obsolete.
a. transitive. To draw (something) tight by means of a cord, rope, etc.; to tie or fasten tightly or firmly; (also) to tighten (a cord, etc.). Also figurative.Originally not regionally restricted; later chiefly Scottish and English regional (northern), and from the early 20th cent. chiefly Australian and New Zealand.
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the world > relative properties > wholeness > mutual relation of parts to whole > fastening > binding or tying > bind or tie [verb (transitive)] > bind with cord, string, or tie
tiec1000
halchc1400
lacec1405
cable?1507
twitch1612
lash1624
wup1808
snub1888
zip-tie1985
1612 J. Smith Map of Virginia 28 They haue a great deepe platter of wood. They couer the mouth thereof with a skin, at each corner they tie a walnut,..with a small rope they twitch them togither till it be so tought and stiffe, that they may beat vpon it as vpon a drumme.
1615 G. Sandys Relation of Journey 63 They twitch the offender about the waist with a towell,..pricking him in the body, until they have drawn him within the compass of a span.
a1642 H. Best Farming & Memorandum Bks. (1984) 68 Twitch your other coarde a little below the mouth of the newe hive.
1729 W. Law Serious Call xix. 354 Her stays, which her mother had order'd to be twitch'd so strait [etc.].
1761 L. Sterne Life Tristram Shandy III. viii. 22 They had taken the two strings and tied them close..with half a dozen hard knots, each of which, Obadiah..had twitched and drawn together with all the strength of his body.
1809 T. Donaldson Poems 191 The Shoon indeed did leuk fu' weel,..Ye'd twitcht them weel thegither.
1846 J. Ruskin Mod. Painters II. 5 At this time, when the iron roads are tearing up the surface of Europe,..when their great sagene is drawing and twitching the ancient frame and strength of England together.
1877 F. Ross et al. Gloss. Words Holderness (at cited word) Twitch thi shavs (sheaves) tighther.
1904 Timaru (N.Z.) Herald 5 Aug. 4/2 The ropes were made fast round the base of the chimney stack, twitched tight with sticks, and then further tightened by wetting with a hose.
1952 Weekly Times (Melbourne) 16 Apr. 16/3 Sides of the neat stack have been kept straight by poles twitched together around it.
2005 Home Mag. (Queensland) (Nexis) 19 Feb. 26 Small holes are drilled along the seams and then..they are ‘stitched’ together with short lengths of copper wire twitched tight on the inside of the boat with pliers.
b. transitive. To place a twitch (twitch n.1 1b) around (a horse's lips, ear, nose, etc.) as a means of restraint; to restrain or subdue (a horse) in this way.
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1783 F. Clater Every Man his own Farrier xii. 52 The horse's head must be well confined, and his nose twitched, with a twitch made for the purpose.
1812 W. Maiden Acct. Case of Recovery 13 I immediately twitched the horse by the ear and nose, and put him back.
1873 Indianapolis Jrnl. 16 Apr. 7/2 I would have been all right if the —— fool hadn't twitched the horse.
1908 Amer. Vet. Rev. Oct. 42 The horse was twitched and cocained in five places, from the base of the ear downward to the frontal bone.
1952 Recorded Interview (Brit. Libr. Sound Archive) (Survey Eng. Dial.: C908) (MS transcript) Track 67 [Kent] They twitched him in the mouth, the ears, and everywhere else.
2011 Western Daily Press (Nexis) 16 Dec. 29 In an emergency..you may need to twitch the horse while he is sewn up.
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the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > keeping or management of horses > [verb (transitive)] > breed horses > castrate
to twist a horse1728
harrow1753
twitch1798
1798 R. Parkinson Experienced Farmer II. lx. 124 Lambs ought to be castrated..in fine weather; but, if twitched, the weather would not be of so much consequence.
1831 W. Youatt Horse xii. 227 To the practice of some farmers, of twitching their colts at an early period, sometimes even so early as a month, we have stronger objection.
1877 E. Peacock Gloss. Words Manley & Corringham, Lincs. Twitch, v...(2) To castrate by means of a cord.
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the world > the earth > minerals > mineral deposits > features of stratum or vein > [verb (intransitive)] > contract
twitch1704
pinch1867
the world > the earth > minerals > mineral deposits > features of stratum or vein > [verb (transitive)] > cause to contract
twitch1789
1704 W. Waller Honour'd Sirs 18 This Vein runs all in Bellies of Ore of all Sizes..and lies in the same Manner one upon another as B, C, D and E Twitch forward.
1709 T. Robinson Ess. Nat. Hist. Westmorland & Cumberland xiv. 80 When the Vein opens wide in some place, and again closeth, or as the Miners speak, Twitcheth at both Ends, this is called a Belly of Ore, or Pipe-Ore.
1747 W. Hooson Miners Dict. at Tharf The Vein keeping a reasonable Compass..cannot be said to be Twitched.
1789 J. Williams Nat. Hist. Mineral Kingdom I. 255 The coal..grew thinner towards the ends of the belly or concavity of the vein, and it soon dwindled away to nothing, and twitched out entirely.
1815 R. Bakewell Introd. Geol. (ed. 2) xii. 281 The pipe vein is a variety of the flat vein having the sides closed or twitched in, so as to form a tube or cavity of irregular shape.
1892 Mining Jrnl. 15 Oct. 1168/1 The vein at the 155 north has been twitched for several days, but is now opening out again, and contains some very nice ore stuff.
1915 R. G. Carruthers et al. Barytes & Witherite (Mem. Geol. Surv.) iv. 65 The vein [of barytes] averages 3 feet in thickness, but in places it ‘twitches’.
7. colloquial (originally British).
a. intransitive. To attempt to make sightings of rare birds, esp. obsessively or by travelling great distances. Cf. twitcher n. 5.
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society > leisure > entertainment > pastimes > hobby > spotting trains, watching birds, etc. > train-spot, bird-watch [verb (intransitive)]
birdwatch1938
bird1952
loco-spot1961
trainspot1968
twitch1977
society > leisure > entertainment > pastimes > hobby > spotting trains, watching birds, etc. > spot trains, watch birds, etc. [verb (transitive)]
spot1913
grice1971
twitch1977
1977 New Society 17 Nov. 341/2 Those now in their thirties have been twitching for maybe 20 years.
1986 Financial Times 12 Apr. p. xii/1 Birdwatchers twitch busily among the sedges, the occasional one lucky enough to glimpse the shy avocet.
2009 Carlow (Ireland) People (Nexis) 16 June I did twitch once when I went to Belmullet to see a snowy owl but it had left by the time I got there.
b. transitive. To make a sighting of (a rare bird), esp. by travelling a great distance.
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1977 New Society 17 Nov. 341/1 (headline) To twitch a dowitcher.
1988 Nat. World Autumn 9/3 A little bunting was ‘twitched’ on a tip..by some 250 people!
2009 Birdwatch Winter 6/3 We can hope that in 20 years, birders won't feel compelled to charter flights to ‘twitch’ the lone, singing Canada Warbler.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2019; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
† twitchv.2
Agriculture. Obsolete.
transitive. To clear (land) of twitch or couch grass. Also intransitive.
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the world > food and drink > farming > cultivation or tillage > reclamation > [verb (intransitive)] > weed
weedOE
twitch1795
the world > food and drink > farming > cultivation or tillage > reclamation > reclaim [verb (transitive)] > clear land > weed land
louka1000
weeda1325
cleanc1450
spud1652
swinglea1825
couch1846
twitch1886
1795 Gentleman's Mag. Aug. 695/1 At Beighton, Derbyshire,..a respectable farmer was killed by lightning, as he was twitching in his land.
1883 Morning Post 20 Nov. 2/2 All the experimental fields have been thoroughly twitched.
1886 R. E. G. Cole Gloss. Words S.-W. Lincs. (at cited word) I must twitch and do my land for wheat.
1904 Independent Rev. 2 613 The farmer, every four or five years, fallows his land, ploughs and cross-ploughs it, ‘twitches’ it with rakes, [etc.].
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2019).
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n.21588
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