Verb (American).—1. To consider with attention.
1859. Matsell, Vocabulum, s.v. Gunned. The copper gunned me as if
he was fly to my mug.
2. (American).—To strive hard; to make a violent effort: e.g., to gun a
stock = to use every means to produce a ‘break’; when supplies are
heavy and holders would be unable to resist.
In the Gun, phr. (old).—Drunk. For synonyms, see Drinks and Screwed.
1690. B. E., Dict. Cant. Crew, s.v.
1785. Grose, Vulg. Tongue. Gun, s.v., he’s in the gun, he is drunk,
perhaps from an allusion to a vessel called a gun, used for ale in
the universities.
Son of a Gun. See Son.
Sure as a Gun, phr. (common).—Quite certain; inevitable.
1633. Jonson, Tale of a Tub, ii., 1. ’Tis right; he has spoke as
true as a gun, believe it.
1690. B. E., Dict. Cant. Crew.
1694. Congreve, Double Dealer, v., 20. All turned topsy-turvy, as
sure as a gun.
1720. Gay, New Song of New Similes. Sure as a gun she’ll drop a
tear.
1749. Fielding, Tom Jones, bk. xviii., ch. ix. As sure as a gun I
have hit o’ the very right o’t.
1759. Sterne, Tristram Shandy, vol. vi., ch. xxvi. Think ye not
that, in striking these in,—he might, peradventure, strike
something out? as sure as a gun.
1825. Egan, Life of an Actor, iv. By gum! he roared out, sir, as
sure as a gun.
d. 1842. Father Prout, Reliques, I. 19. ‘Vert-Vert, the Parrot.’
Scared at the sound,—‘Sure as a gun, The bird’s a demon!’ cried the
nun.
1849. Thackeray, Pendennis, ch. lviii. In every party of the
nobility his name’s down as sure as a gun.
1891. N. Gould, Double Event, p. 141. Nobbed, sure as a gun!
1892. Manville Fenn, New Mistress, xxxv. They were both down there
about that school-money Betsey, as sure as a gun.
Gundiguts, subs. (common).—A fat man; a forty guts (q.v.).
1690. B. E., Dict. Cant. Crew, s.v.
1785. Grose, Vulg. Tongue, s.v.
Gunner’s Daughter. To Kiss (or Marry) the Gunner’s Daughter, verb. phr.
(nautical). To be flogged. [Gunner’s daughter = the gun to which boys
were lashed for punishment.]
1785. Grose, Vulg. Tongue, s.v.
1833. Marryat, Peter Simple, ch. xxxii. I don’t know what officers
are made of now-a-days. I’ll marry some of you young gentlemen to
the gunner’s daughter before long. Quarter-deck’s no better than a
bear-garden.
Gunpowder, subs. (old).—An old woman.
1690. B. E., Dict. Cant. Crew, s.v.
1785. Grose, Vulg. Tongue, s.v.
Gunter.—See Cocker.
Gup, subs. (Anglo-Indian).—Gossip; scandal.
1868. Florence Marryat, Gup, xix. With regard to my title ... Gup
is the Hindustani for ‘Gossip.’ Voilâ tout!
1883. Hawley Smart, Hard Lines, ch. xxix. Our Eastern empire is
much addicted to what they term gup, whereby they mean gossip,
scandal, or by whatever other equivalent the taking away of one’s
neighbours’ characters may be designated.
To be a gup, verb. phr. (American).—To be easy to take or steal.
Gurtsey, subs. (American Cadet).—A fat man; a podge (q.v.). For
synonyms, see Forty-guts.
Gush, subs. (colloquial).—The expression of affected or extravagant
sentiment.
1883. Saturday Review, 3 Feb., p. 148, c. 2. Mr. Picton’s style is
pleasant and easy, as long as he allows himself to be natural, and
does not fall into gush.
1886. Church Times, 17 Sep. Not mere gush or oratorical flip-flap.
Verb (colloquial).—To overflow with extravagant or affected sentiment.
1883. Miss Braddon, Golden Calf, ch. vii. ‘Yes, and you saw much of
each other, and you became heart-friends,’ gushed Miss Wolf,
beaming benevolently at Brian.
Gusher, subs. (colloquial).—A practitioner of gush (q.v.). Also
Gushington.
1864. E. Yates, Broken to Harness, ch. vi., p. 66 (1873). The
enthusiastic gusher who flings his or herself upon our necks, and
insists upon sharing our sorrow.
1882. Miss Braddon, Mount Royal, ch. viii. ‘But, surely there is
nothing improper in the play, dear Lady Cumberbridge,’ exclaimed
the eldest gusher, too long in society to shrink from sifting any
question of that kind.
Gushing, adj. (colloquial).—Extravagant; affected or irrational in
expression; demonstratively affectionate. Also Gushingly.
1864. ‘The Campaigner’ (No. XVI.), in Fraser’s Mag., p. 627. Donald
did not belong to what, in the slang of translated Cockneys, is
called the Gushing School.
1864. Punch’s Almanack, ‘Our Growling Bard.’ Some, I admit, are
Milingtary Dears, As gushing ladies say, and some are Muffs.
1872. Sunday Times, 18 Aug. This however, was no surprise to the
plaintiff, it having been understood from the first that the
parties being past the gushing age the letters between them should
be of a business character.
1880. Ouida, Moths, ch. viii. Your heroics count for nothing. All
girls of sixteen are gushing and silly.
1883. Hargrave Jennings, quoted in Saturday Review, 28 Apr., p.
536, c. 1. Women are not the gushingly credulous creatures that man
in his constant condescension and in his appreciation of himself
would deem.
1884. F. Anstey, Giant’s Robe, ch. xx. ‘It’s not precisely
gushing,’ he said to himself, ‘but she couldn’t very well say more
just yet.’
Gusset, subs. (common).—Generic for the female sex. Thus, Brother (or
Knight, or Squire) of the Gusset = a pimp; Gussetting = wenching;
Gusseteer = a wencher; etc.
Gusset of the Arse, subs. phr. (common).—The inside edge of the
buttocks.
d. 1796. Burns, Merry Muses, pp. 99–100. An’ he grippit her fast by
the gusset of her arse.
Gut, subs. (vulgar).—The vice or habit of gluttony; the belly [as
opposed to the Groin (q.v.).]