whitingn.1
/ˈwʌɪtɪŋ/, U.S. /ˈ(h)waɪdɪŋ/ 1. A preparation of finely powdered chalk, used for whitewashing, cleaning plate, and various other purposes.Recorded earliest in the Old English compound hwītingmelu whiting powder (compare meal n.1 2a).
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the world > matter > colour > named colours > white or whiteness > whitener > [noun] > whiting powder or stone
whitingeOE
whitening1638
hearthstone1705
Paris white1838
blanco1895
society > occupation and work > materials > raw material > mineral material > [noun] > chalk > type of
whitingeOE
whitening1638
arcanna1753
eOE Leechbk. (Royal) (1865) iii. xxxix. 332 Hafa clam geworht of mealtes smedman & of hwiting melwe & elehtran.
Promptorium Parvulorum (Harl. 221) 525 Whytynge, or mater to make whyghte of, albatura, candidacium.
1588 R. Parke tr. J. G. de Mendoza Hist. Kingdome of China 89 Euery one of these condemned prisoners hath a bord tied about his necke..: it is made white with a certaine whiting, and written vpon it the occasion wherefore he was condemned to die.
1633–4 Althorp MS in J. N. Simpkinson Washingtons (1860) App. p. lxiii 12 balls of whiteing to scowre the plate.
1690 in A. W. C. Hallen Acct. Bk. Sir J. Foulis (1894) 129 To meg for whyting for teeth, 2 18 0.
1725 R. Bradley Chomel's Dictionaire Œconomique at Painting Good Canvas made smooth, sized over with a little Honey, and when dry'd, whited over with Size and Whiting.
1799 tr. Laboratory (ed. 6) I. iii. 143 Take some whiten,..lay your foils upon it, and..polish your foils.
1844 Civil Engineer & Architect's Jrnl. 7 150/1 Anoint the segments..with thin putty, made with fine whiting and some of the linseed oil.
1880 S. Baring-Gould Mehalah I. viii. 164 You cannot clean a deck with whiting, you must take holystone.
1944 J. B. Parry in R. Greenhalgh Pract. Builder viii. 288/2 The basic pigment is whiting, thoroughly soaked and beaten up stiffly in water.
1989 N. Cave And Ass saw Angel ii. xvi. 157 He mixed up a bucket of whiting, size and water and set about..whitewashing the bloody, tell-tale wall.
2. † a. The action of making or becoming white by bleaching. Obsolete.In quot. ?a1425 with reference to the whitening of hair with age.
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the world > matter > colour > named colours > white or whiteness > whitening > [noun] > bleaching
whiting?a1425
bleaching1552
dealbation1608
overbleaching1921
?a1425 tr. Guy de Chauliac Grande Chirurgie (N.Y. Acad. Med.) f. 123 (MED) Caniciez, i. horynez, is dealbacioun or whityng [L. dealbatio] of herez.
1580 R. Bristow Reply to Fulke viii. 150 They came out of such affliction, & so whited their stoles: and yet this gloser taketh it awaye from the affliction, whereas that whiting was nothing else but that affliction.
1594 H. Plat Diuerse Sorts of Soyle 58 in Jewell House For the speedier whiting of yarne.
1620 in W. Foster Eng. Factories India 1618–21 (1906) 192 The whitster..detaynes them in whitinge and starchinge about three mounthes.
1683 London Gaz. No. 1801/4 A convenient piece of Ground..for whiting of Linnen Cloth.
1813 Beawes's Lex Mercatoria (ed. 6) II. 18 The water is experienced to be of such an extraordinary nature for bleaching, as to induce many people to bring their linen for whiting here.
b. The action or process of whitening something by coating it with whitewash or a similar substance. Also figurative. Now somewhat rare.
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society > occupation and work > industry > decorating and painting > [noun] > painting > painting with whitewash
white-liming1423
whiting1431
whitewashing1650
the world > matter > colour > named colours > white or whiteness > whitening > [noun] > by covering or coating
whiting1431
liming1552
hearthstoning1836
1431 in J. A. Kingdon Arch. Worshipful Company of Grocers (1886) II. 207 (MED) To a Dawber For perlymyng and whytyng off þe halle, iiij li.
tr. Palladius De re Rustica (Duke Humfrey) (1896) i. l. 413 (MED) For whytyng that lyme is conuenyent.
1478 Rolls of Parl.: Edward IV (Electronic ed.) Parl. Jan. 1478 §31. m. 3 Whityng and anelyng of tile, called pleyn tyle.
1540 Dunmow Churchwardens' Accts. (MS) f. 31 For whyghtynge of the porche.
1578 Treasurers' Accts. in J. Webb Town Finances Elizabethan Ipswich (1996) 58 Paid to William Pattyn for casting and whitting of the towne house viround bi the grete xjs.
1605 in J. Harland House & Farm Accts. Shuttleworths (1856) I. 169 A plasterer, viij days and halfe whytting of the dyning chamber roffe..iiijs iijd.
1628 A. Leighton Appeal to Parl. 186 In this case, the whiting, daubing, or palliating will not serve.
1694 tr. R. Morton Phthisiologia iii. vi. 247 His Trade of Whiting, by which he got a convenient Livelyhood.
1869 Cultivator & Country Gentleman 17 June 483/1 Until the entire cleansing and purification of our dwelling by water, the whiting of its ceilings and walls with lime-wash..shall be completed.
1996 T. Tuohy Herculean Ferrara (2002) vii. 211 The whiting of walls was sometimes only a preparation for the application of simple decoration.
3. Printing. The blank space around characters, words, lines, or sections of printed text. Cf. white n. 17a.
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society > communication > printing > preparatory processes > composing > [noun] > spacing
spacing1683
scabbarding1786
whiting1882
1882 Printing Times Feb. 25/2 As to the whiting, and the printing on one side of the paper..these are matters that are not left to the discretion and choice of the printer.
1884 Athenæum 24 May 658/3 The variety of type and the liberal whiting are quite luxurious.
1900 Amer. Printer Apr. 100/2 It is not wise to use more than a three-em space, as whiting destroys the solid coloring of the page.
1954 G. Dowding Finer Points i. 33 This care in setting..adds to the beauty & clarity of the pages by heightening the contrast between the lines & their interlinear whiting.
Compounds
C1. General attributive.
a. In sense 2b.† whiting work n. Obsolete rare
whiting brush n.
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1579 G. Gilpin tr. P. van Marnix van Sant Aldegonde Bee Hiue of Romishe Church f. 333v So stroke ouer with a whiting brushe or pincell.
1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues Escouëtte, a Plaisterers whiting brush.
1763 Beauties of all Mag. Sel. 2 290/1 Abuse took the pen; and Black Ball and Whiting Brush were alternately employed.
2000 C. Malone Adventures Ronnie & Donnie (2004) 41 With a whiting brush he inked out the B and replaced it with a C letter.
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tr. Palladius De re Rustica (Duke Humfrey) (1896) i. l. 407 Eek whyting werk [L. opus..albarium] is thyng of gret delyte.
1894 Jrnl. Soc. Arts 20 Apr. 3/2 Francis and Co., Limited, London—Cement and whiting work done in cement.
b. In sense 2a.† whiting ground n. Obsolete rare† whiting-time n. Obsolete
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1692 Specif. Patent 256 (Patent Office) Erected a bucking house, fitted and prepared a whiteing ground.
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a1616 W. Shakespeare Merry Wives of Windsor (1623) iii. iii. 123 It is whiting time, send him by your two men to Datchet-Meade. View more context for this quotation
1823 E. Moor Suffolk Words at Whitster The time of bleaching is there called whiting-time.
1863 Trans. Essex Archæol. Soc. 2 xx. 180 A lady residing in Kent, who has made Shakspeare her special study, assures me that she remembers when there used to be a periodical ‘whiting-time’..in every country-house.
C2. Objective (in sense 1).
whiting manufacturer n.
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?1789 Wakefield's Merchant & Tradesman's Gen. Directory for Year 1790 49 Brown, Josiah, whiting manufacturer, Nine elms, Battersea.
1813 Examiner 22 Mar. 183/2 M. Price,..whiting-manufacturer.
2004 Yorks. Evening Post (Nexis) 22 Aug. The premises were worked by the putty and whiting manufacturers T Horn.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2015; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
whitingn.2
/ˈwʌɪtɪŋ/, U.S. /ˈ(h)waɪdɪŋ/ I. Senses relating to fishes.
1. A marine food fish resembling a small cod with no barbel, Merlangus merlangus (family Gadidae), found in the north-east Atlantic and Mediterranean. Also (often with distinguishing word): any of various other silvery fishes, esp. of the cod family (now rare except in the established uses in sense 2). rock whiting, summer whiting: see the first element.
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the world > animals > fish > class Osteichthyes or Teleostomi > superorder Paracanthopterygii > order Gadiformes (cod) > [noun] > family Gadidae > merlangus or whiting
merling1289
scalpinc1400
mop1466
whiting1548
tug-whitingc1650
whitey1912
1416 in R. R. Sharpe Cal. Let.-bks. London (1909) I. 168 (MED) [Any sea fish called] whityng.
a1425 in T. Wright & R. P. Wülcker Anglo-Saxon & Old Eng. Vocab. (1884) I. 642/8 Hic clamitus, wytyng.
Promptorium Parvulorum (Harl. 221) 525 Whytynge, fysche, gammarius, merlingus.
1480 Table Prouffytable Lernynge (Caxton) (1964) 11 Merlens... Whityng.
a1500 in T. Wright & R. P. Wülcker Anglo-Saxon & Old Eng. Vocab. (1884) I. 705/23 Hic glaucus, a whytynge.
1548 Hall's Vnion: Henry VIII f. xxiijv He robbed certein poore Fisshermen of Whitynges.
1620 T. Venner Via Recta iv. 76 The Whiting, notwithstanding that it is vnsauourie, and nourisheth very litle, is of some greatly..commended.
1664 in A. Macdonald & J. Dennistoun Misc. Maitland Club (1840) II. 506 For a dishe of dryed quhittines 003 00 00.
1688 R. Holme Acad. Armory ii. 325/2 How several sorts of Fish are named, according to their Age or Growth..A Codd, first a Whiting, then a Codling, then a Codd.
1721 in W. Macfarlane Geogr. Coll. Scotl. (1906) I. 39 The seas abound with..Turbet, Scate, Mackrel, Haddocks, whittings.
1769 T. Pennant Brit. Zool. (new ed.) III. iv. 155 Whitings appear in vast shoals on our seas in the spring.
1843 Penny Cycl. XXVII. 347/1 Whiting..is easily distinguished from the cod, haddock, and bib by the absence of the barbule on the chin.
1895 Westm. Gaz. 23 Nov. 7/2 From five to twelve score of whiting, with a topping of codling, form average baskets.
1937 J. Squire Honeysuckle & Bee 239 Poor-man's cod, whiting, red ribbon-fish, sea-slugs, crabs of all sizes.
1973 C. A. Wilson Food & Drink in Brit. ii. 41 Plaice, whiting, flounders and gudgeon were among the fish for frying.
2010 Dunoon Observer & Argyllshire Standard 30 July 10/1 He would just row out from his house and..catch whiting or haddock or cod.
2.
a. Any of several small salmonid fishes, esp. a gwyniad or other fish of the genus Coregonus (cf. whitefish n. 3) or a sea trout. Cf. whitling n. Now rare.
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the world > animals > fish > unspecified types > [noun]
whalec950
tumbrelc1300
sprout1340
squame1393
codmop1466
whitefish1482
lineshark?a1500
salen1508
glaucus1509
bretcock1522
warcodling1525
razor1530
bassinatc1540
goldeney1542
smy1552
maiden1555
grail1587
whiting1587
needle1589
pintle-fish1591
goldfish1598
puffin fish1598
quap1598
stork1600
black-tail1601
ellops1601
fork-fish1601
sea-grape1601
sea-lizard1601
sea-raven1601
barne1602
plosher1602
whale-mouse1607
bowman1610
catfish1620
hog1620
kettle-fish1630
sharpa1636
carda1641
housewifea1641
roucotea1641
ox-fisha1642
sea-serpent1646
croaker1651
alderling1655
butkin1655
shamefish1655
yard1655
sea-dart1664
sea-pelican1664
Negro1666
sea-parrot1666
sea-blewling1668
sea-stickling1668
skull-fish1668
whale's guide1668
sennet1671
barracuda1678
skate-bread1681
tuck-fish1681
swallowtail1683
piaba1686
pit-fish1686
sand-creeper1686
horned hog1702
soldier1704
sea-crowa1717
bran1720
grunter1726
calcops1727
bennet1731
bonefish1734
Negro fish1735
isinglass-fish1740
orb1740
gollin1747
smelt1776
night-walker1777
water monarch1785
hardhead1792
macaw-fish1792
yellowback1796
sea-raven1797
blueback1812
stumpnose1831
flat1847
butterfish1849
croppie1856
gubbahawn1857
silt1863
silt-snapper1863
mullet-head1866
sailor1883
hogback1893
skipper1898
stocker1904
the world > animals > fish > class Osteichthyes or Teleostomi > order Salmoniformes (salmon or trout) > family Salmonidae (salmon) > [noun] > genus Coregonus (whitefish) > member of
whiting1587
gwyniad1612
powan1633
whitefish1698
tittimeg1705
omul1706
pollack1707
pollan1714
skelly1740
vendace1769
tullibee1789
ferra1807
roundfish1821
herring-salmon1836
shad-salmon1842
mountain herring1877
bluefin1878
grayling1879
shad-waiter1879
houting1880
kilch1881
Menominee1882
gizzard-fish1883
1587 T. Churchyard Worthines of Wales sig. N1 A Poole there is, through which this Cloyd doth passe, Where is a Fish, that some a Whiting call.
1774 Ann. Reg., Misc. Ess. 163 [Bala] lake produces very fine trout, and a fish called whiting, peculiar to itself.
1795 J. Sinclair Statist. Acct. Scotl. XIV. 410 There is abundance of fish,..in Esk,..such as salmon, grilse, sea trout, and whitens.
1861 Act 24 & 25 Victoria c. 109 §4 All migratory fish of the genus salmon, whether known by the names..yellow fin, sprod, herling, whiting..or by any other local name.
1907 D. S. Jordan Fishes 289 Another American species is the Sault whitefish, Lake Whiting, or Musquaw River whitefish (Coregonus labradoricus).
b. U.S. Any of various fishes of the West Atlantic; esp. the southern kingfish, Menticirrhus americanus (family Sciaenidae), and any of several hakes of the genus Merluccius (family Merlucciidae). Also with distinguishing word.Carolina whiting, surf whiting, etc.: see the first element.
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the world > animals > fish > superorder Acanthopterygii (spiny fins) > order Perciformes (perches) > family Sciaenidae (drums) > [noun] > member of genus Menticirrhus
whiting1735
kingfish1815
surf whiting1877
tomcod1881
roundhead1890
the world > animals > fish > class Osteichthyes or Teleostomi > subclass Actinopterygii > order Clupeiformes > [noun] > family Clupeidae and herrings > brevoortia tyrannus (menhaden)
old wife1585
yellowtaila1622
whiting1735
shadine1782
hardhead1792
menhaden1792
mossbunker1792
bony fish1815
pauhagen1833
pogy1840
green-tailed shad1884
schoolie1891
the world > animals > fish > class Osteichthyes or Teleostomi > superorder Paracanthopterygii > order Gadiformes (cod) > [noun] > family Gadidae > merlucius or hake
hake1225
luce of the sea1598
sea-pike1601
Jacka1625
whiting1735
beard1758
stockfish1823
sea-luce1880–4
1735 Philos. Trans. 1733–4 (Royal Soc.) 38 317 Alburnus Americanus, the Carolina-Whiting.
1873 T. Gill Catal. Fishes East Coast N. Amer. 18 Merlucius bilinearis..American hake; silver hake (Maine); whiting (Mass.).
1873 T. Gill Catal. Fishes East Coast N. Amer. 27 Menticirrus nebulosus..King-fish; whiting.
1888 G. B. Goode Amer. Fishes 81 The Norfolk Hog-fish Pomodasys fulvomaculatus..is the..‘Pork-fish’ and ‘Whiting’ at Key West.
1918 Copeia No. 57. 53 Occurring at this time, also, were unusual numbers of Whiting, Merluccius bilinearis.
1982 R. D. Lawrence Voy. Stella (1991) vii. 147 I found the almost digested remains of..one twenty-three inch whiting (Theragra chalcogrammus), or walleye pollack.
2006 Britannica Conc. Encycl. (rev. ed.) 1038/1 The kingfish, or whiting (Menticirrhus saxatilis), of the Atlantic, is notable among drums in that it lacks an air bladder.
c. Australian. Any of various marine fishes, esp. of the genus Sillago or family Sillaginidae, widespread in the Indo-Pacific. Frequently with distinguishing word.rock whiting, sand whiting, trumpeter whiting, etc.: see the first element.
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the world > animals > fish > class Osteichthyes or Teleostomi > superorder Paracanthopterygii > order Gadiformes (cod) > [noun] > member of family Sillaginidae
ladyfish1712
whiting1792
summer whiting1880
trumpeter whiting1882
the world > animals > fish > class Osteichthyes or Teleostomi > order Salmoniformes (salmon or trout) > family Salmonidae (salmon) > [noun] > genus Salmo > trout (unspecified and miscellaneous)
shoata1000
river trout1589
sheliscada1640
bouge1705
yellowfin1771
gillaroo1773
gizzard-trout1773
whiting1792
orange-fin1834
pug-trout1865
1792 in F. M. Bladen Hist. Rec. New S. Wales (1893) II. 794 The best fish that are caught are..flatheads, salmon, whitings.
1862 G. Cuzent Technologist II. 309 The fishes commonly called ‘Mullet,’ (Dajanus Diemensis ), and ‘Whiting,’ by the colonists (Sillago punctata ).
1882 J. E. Tenison-Woods Fish & Fisheries New S. Wales 65 The ‘whitings’ are not like those of Europe. There are..four Australian species—the common sand whiting (Sillago maculata),..the trumpeter whiting (Sillago bassensis),..Sillago punctata, the whiting of Melbourne..and Sillago ciliata.
1918 ‘J. Scott’ How, when & where to catch Fish 27 Of the large number of different kind of fishes to be caught in New South Wales waters, whiting are undoubtedly the most highly prized as table fish.
1966 T. C. Roughley Fish & Fisheries Austral. (rev. ed.) 91 The rock whiting (Haletta fasciata) belongs to the small and unimportant family Odacidae.
2006 F. B. Prokop et al. Austral. Fish Guide (ed. 3) iv. 156 The stout whiting is a pale yellow on top and white below.
d. blue whiting n. a fish with a blue back and silvery sides and underparts, Micromesistius poutassou (family Gadidae), common in the eastern North Atlantic and the Mediterranean; (also) (in full southern blue whiting) the similar fish M. australis of the Southern Ocean; also called poutassou.
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the world > animals > fish > class Osteichthyes or Teleostomi > superorder Paracanthopterygii > order Gadiformes (cod) > [noun] > family Gadidae > micromesistius poutassou (blue whiting)
poutassou1860
blue whiting1927
1927 Fishery Investig. (Ministry Agric. & Fisheries) Ser. 2 No. 2 41 Observations were made on the food found in the stomachs of big and medium hake...The 'blue whiting' (Gadus Poutassou) occurs most frequently in the stomachs of hake.
1959 A. C. Hardy Open Sea II. xi. 229 The blue whiting..lives over the deep water off the edge of the continental shelf.
1974 Guardian 20 Mar. 11/1 The blue whiting..cod-like in taste and texture, slender in shape, about a foot long.
2002 D. Goleman et al. Business: Ultimate Resource 1584/3 The main fish species caught are blue whiting,..and haddock.
II. Other senses.† 3. As a term of endearment: darling. Cf. whiting's eye n. at Compounds 3. Obsolete.† 4. A large sausage made of oatmeal and suet; = white pudding n. Obsolete. rare.
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the mind > emotion > love > terms of endearment > [noun]
darlingc888
belamy?c1225
culver?c1225
dearc1230
sweetheartc1290
heartc1300
sweetc1330
honeya1375
dovec1386
jewelc1400
birdc1405
cinnamonc1405
honeycombc1405
lovec1405
wantonc1450
mulling?a1475
daisyc1485
crowdy-mowdy?a1513
honeysop?a1513
powsowdie?a1513
suckler?a1513
foolc1525
buttinga1529
whitinga1529
beautiful1534
turtle-dove1535
soula1538
heartikin1540
bully?1548
turtle1548
lamba1556
nyletc1557
sweet-lovea1560
coz1563
ding-ding1564
pugs1566
golpol1568
sparling1570
lover1573
pug1580
bulkin1582
mopsy1582
chuck1589
bonny1594
chick1594
sweetikin1596
ladybird1597
angel1598
muss1598
pinkany1599
sweetkin1599
duck1600
joy1600
sparrowc1600
sucket1605
nutting1606
chuckaby1607
tickling1607
bagpudding1608
heartling1608
chucking1609
dainty1611
flittermouse1612
honeysuckle1613
fubs1614
bawcocka1616
pretty1616
old thinga1625
bun1627
duckling1630
bulchin1633
bulch?c1640
sweetling1648
friscoa1652
ding-dongs1662
buntinga1668
cocky1680
dearie1681
chucky1683
lovey1684
machree1689
nykin1693
pinkaninny1696
nug1699
hinny1724
puss1753
pet1767
dovey1769
sweetie1778
lovey-dovey1781
lovely1791
ducky1819
toy1822
acushla1825
alanna1825
treat1825
amigo1830
honey child1832
macushla1834
cabbage1840
honey-bunch1874
angel pie1878
m'dear1887
bach1889
honey baby1895
prawn1895
hon1896
so-and-so1897
cariad1899
pumpkin1900
honey-bun1902
pussums1912
snookums1919
treasure1920
wogger1922
amico1929
sugar1930
baby cake1949
angel cake1951
lamb-chop1962
petal1974
bae2006
a1529 J. Skelton Tunnyng of Elynour Rummyng in Certayne Bks. (?1545) 223 He callyth me his whytyng.
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the world > food and drink > food > dishes and prepared food > puddings > [noun] > suet puddings
whiting1674
suet pudding1694
roly-poly1835
queen pudding1839
queen's pudding1852
suety Isaac1890
the world > food and drink > food > dishes and prepared food > sausage > [noun] > types of sausage
franchemyle1381
herbelade?c1390
haggisc1400
black puddinga1450
blood puddingc1450
bloodinga1500
liveringa1500
haggis pudding1545
white pudding1578
swine's pudding1579
hog's pudding1583
Bolognian sausage1596
bloodling1598
andouille1605
andouillet1611
cervelat1613
mortadella1613
polony1654
blacking1674
hacking1674
whiting1674
Oxford sausagec1700
saucisson1772
German sausage1773
saveloy1784
blood sausage1799
white hawse1819
liver sausage1820
black pot1825
chipolata1830
Bologna sausage1833
butifarra1836
mettwurst1836
Cambridge sausage1840
boudin1845
chorizo1846
German1847
liverwurst1852
salami1852
station-Jack1853
leberwurst1855
wurst1855
blutwurst1856
bag of mystery1864
Vienna sausage1865
summer sausage1874
wienerwurst1875
mealy pudding1880
whitepot1880
wiener1880
erbswurst1885
pepperoni1888
mystery bag1889
red-hot1890
weenie1891
hot dog1892
frankfurter1894
sav?1894
Coney Island1895
coney1902
garlic sausage1905
boloney1907
kishke1907
drisheen1910
bratwurst1911
banger1919
cocktail sausage1927
boerewors1930
soy sausage1933
thuringer1933
frank1936
fish sausage1937
knackwurst1939
foot-long1941
starver1941
soya sausage1943
soysage1943
soya link1944
brat1949
Vienna1952
kielbasa1953
Coney dog1954
tube steak1963
Weisswurst1963
Cumberland sausage1966
merguez1966
tripe sausage1966
schinkenwurst1967
boerie1981
'nduja1996
1674 N. Fairfax Treat. Bulk & Selvedge 159 As the Darbyshire huswife [sorts out] her puddings when she makes whitings and blackings, and liverings and hackings.
5. Canadian regional (Newfoundland). A tree that has been stripped of its bark, esp. such a tree when left standing.
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1774 G. Cartwright Jrnl. Resid. Coast Labrador 12 Oct. (1792) II. 29 Having filled up the boat with whitings, pryor-poles and killick-rods, at high water we sailed home.
1792 G. Cartwright Jrnl. Resid. Coast Labrador II. Gloss. p. x Whitings, trees which have been barked, and left standing.
1836 E. Wix Six Months of Newfoundland Missionary's Jrnl. 60 Even the sight of a ‘whiting’ in the woods, that is, of a tree stripped of its bark for the uses of the fishery..seem to remind the lone traveller of the link which binds him to the rest of his species.
1986 J. Feltham Islands of Bonavista Bay 70 The trees from which the bark was removed were called ‘whitings’, and within a year or two would become quite dry and make excellent firewood.
Phrases
In various proverbial phrases.With quot. 1721 cf. white adj. 8.
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the mind > attention and judgement > esteem > approval or sanction > commendation or praise > flattery or flattering > [noun]
fickling?c1225
flattering?c1225
oluhningc1225
glozec1290
glozing1297
losengery1303
blandishingc1305
blandingc1315
flatteryc1320
glotheringc1325
soothinga1400
honey word?1406
faginga1425
flatrisec1440
smekingc1440
blandishc1475
blandiment?1510
glavering1545
coggingc1555
good1563
milksop1577
court holy water1583
glavery1583
blandishment1591
lipsalve1591
court holy bread1592
flatter1593
colloguing1596
sooth1597
daub?1602
blandation1605
lullaby1611
court-water1616
butter1618
blandiloquy1623
oil1645
court-element1649
courtshipment1649
courtship1655
blandiloquence1656
court-creama1657
daubing1656
fleecha1700
Spanish money1699
cajole1719
whiting1721
palaver1733
butter boat1747
flummery1749
treacle1771
Spanish coin1785
blancmange1790
blarney1796
soft corn1814
whillywha1816
carney1818
buttering up1819
soft soap1821
flam1825
slaver1825
soft solder1836
soothing syrup1839
soft-soaping1840
plámás1853
sawder1854
soap1854
salve1859
taffy1878
plámásing1897
flannel1927
smarm1937
flannelling1945
sweet talk1945
schmear1950
smarming1950
a1500 in R. L. Greene Early Eng. Carols (1935) 269 (MED) Whan whytynges do walke forestes to chase hertys..Than put women in trust and confydens.
1546 J. Heywood Dialogue Prouerbes Eng. Tongue ii. vii. sig. I.iii There lepte a whityng (quoth she) and lept in streite.
1570 Mariage Witte & Sci. iv. i. sig. Civ But he that takes not such time while he maye, Shal leape at a whyting when time is a waye.
1670 J. Ray Coll. Eng. Prov. 199 To let leap a whiting. i.e. To let slip an opportunity.
1721 J. Kelly Compl. Coll. Scotish Prov. 158 He gave me Whitings, but Bones. That is, he gave me fair Words. The Scots call Flatteries Whitings, and Flatterers white People.
1808 J. Jamieson Etymol. Dict. Sc. Lang. at Quhyte A proverbial phrase, still used to denote flattery: ‘He kens how to butter a whiting.’
Compounds
C1. General attributive (in sense 1), as whiting ground, whiting season, etc.whiting mop: see mop n.2
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing for type of fish > [noun] > for white fish > place where whiting caught
whiting ground1891
1577 J. Dee Gen. Mem. Arte Nauig. 48 For, the most parte of those, which they send, are Vnreasonable or Vnlawfull Smelts, or Whiting-Mops.
1599 T. Nashe Lenten Stuffe 29 Colchester oystermen, or whiting-mungers and sprot-catchers.
1759 W. Verral Compl. Syst. Cookery 149 In the whiting season you may have plenty of livers at any fishmonger's shop.
1891 Daily News 31 Oct. 6/5 About two hundred fishing boats were lying at anchor off the edge of the whiting grounds.
2008 R. Hunt Fishing Guide Melbourne i. 11/2 The last couple of whiting seasons have been promising.
C2. In names of fishes.† whiting perch n. Obsolete rare the southern kingfish, Menticirrhus americanus (cf. sense 2b).† whiting salmon n. Obsolete rare a sea trout; cf. whitling n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > fish > superorder Acanthopterygii (spiny fins) > order Perciformes (perches) > family Percidae (perches) > [noun] > unspecified and miscellaneous types
perch1381
coracine1625
black-tail1735
grey bass1747
salmon1798
whiting perch1803
brasse1847
1803 G. Shaw Gen. Zool. IV. 548 Whiting Perch. Perca Alburnus.
whiting-pollack n. now rare the pollack, Pollachius pollachius.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > fish > class Osteichthyes or Teleostomi > superorder Paracanthopterygii > order Gadiformes (cod) > [noun] > family Gadidae > pollachius or true pollack
pollack1427
podley1525
whiting-pollack1673
green fish1806
greenling1880
1673 J. Ray Coll. Eng. Words 100 Of long Fishes. Such as have three fins upon the Ridge of their Backs which I call properly the Cod-kind..The Whiting-Pollack [etc.].
1862 D. T. Ansted & R. G. Latham Channel Islands ii. ix. 211 Next..in abundance are the whiting pollack..and the gar-fish or green bone.
1970 E. J. March Inshore Craft of Great Brit. II. v. 201 Whiting-pollack and the rauning-pollack were found in abundance [off Cornwall].
whiting pout n. the pouting or bib, Trisopterus luscus (family Gadidae), which has chin barbels and a silvery underside, found off the European coasts of the north-east Atlantic.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > fish > class Osteichthyes or Teleostomi > superorder Paracanthopterygii > order Gadiformes (cod) > [noun] > family Gadidae > genus Gadus > gadus luscus (pout)
poutOE
pouting1591
bib1674
whiting pout1686
bull-pout1823
pouter1860
stink-alive1863
miller's thumb1880
1686 F. Willughby & J. Ray De Hist. Piscium Appendix 22 Asellus mollis latus. A Whiting Poute Londinensibus.
1835 L. Jenyns Man. Brit. Vertebr. Animals 443 (note) His Editor, appears to have received from Martin Lister,..a short account of the Whiting Pout of the London market.
1964 New Scientist 2 Jan. 42/3 Cod, whiting and whiting pout gained on their background at speeds equivalent to a current of less than one fish-length per second.
2012 G. J. Flick & L. S. Douglas in L. A. Granata et al. Seafood Industry (ed. 2) iii. 35/2 Trisopterus luscus, whiting pout, an alternate name for bib.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > fish > class Osteichthyes or Teleostomi > order Salmoniformes (salmon or trout) > family Salmonidae (salmon) > [noun] > genus Salmo > miscellaneous members of
herling1684
whiting salmon1804
1804 G. Shaw Gen. Zool. V. 54 Whiting Salmon. Salmo Phinoc... This species, says Mr. Pennant, migrates out of sea into the river Esk in Cumberland from July to September.
C3. Compounds with whiting's.† whiting's eye n. Obsolete rare an amorous or lustful look.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > love > flirtation or coquetry > [noun] > amorous looks or demeanour > flirtatious look(s)
amorets1590
belgard1590
oeillade1592
sheep's eyes1604
belamour1610
oglea1668
whiting's eye1673
the glad eye1911
glad1927
1673 W. Wycherley Gentleman Dancing-master iv. i. 72 I saw her..give him the languishing Eye,..the Whitings Eye, of old called the Sheeps Eye.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2015; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
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