1877. W. H. Blanch, Blue-coat Boys, p. 96. Chaff me your knife.
Adj. (Christ’s Hospital).—Pleasant; glad. Sometimes chaffy. Cf., subs.,
sense 2.
Intj. (Christ’s Hospital).—An exclamation signifying joy or pleasure.
Chaff-Cutter, subs. (old).—A back-biter or slanderer.
Chaffer, subs. (colloquial).—1. One given to chaffing. [From chaff
(q.v.) + er.]
1851–61. H. Mayhew, London Labour and London Poor, vol. I., p. 357.
She was considered to be the best chaffer on the road; not one of
them could stand against her tongue.
1877. Temple Bar, p. 536. An actor of very moderate abilities, and
so remarkably ill-favoured in person as to be the constant butt of
the chaffers in the pit.
2. (popular).—The mouth, [i.e., the organ of chaff, or ‘ropery.’] For
synonyms, see Potato-trap. Also, the tongue.
1821. W. T. Moncrieff, Tom and Jerry, Act ii., Sc. 3. Bob. Suppose
we haves a drain o’ heavy wet, just by way of cooling our
chaffers—mine’s as dry as a chip.
1822. David Carey, Life in Paris, p. 194. For there you may damp
your chaffer In fifty different ways.
To moisten one’s chaffer, phr. (common).—To drink. [See Chaffer, sense
2.] For synonyms, see Lush.
Chaffing-Crib, subs. (old).—The place where a man receives his
intimates; his ‘den,’ ‘snuggery,’ or ‘diggings.’ [Cf., Chaff. From
chaffing, light talk, + crib, a place of sojourning.] For synonyms, see
Diggings.
1821. Moncrieff, Tom and Jerry. Jerry. Chaffing crib! I’m at fault,
coz, can’t follow. Tom. My prattling parlour—my head quarters, coz,
where I unbend with my pals.