1762. Foote, Liar, II., i. If it had come to an oath, I don’t think
he would have bounced.
1863. H. Kingsley, Austin Elliot, ch. x. ‘It’s them gals, Mr.
Austin, got a shilling of mine among un somewhere, and wants to
bounce me out of it.’
On the bounce, phr. (common).—In a state of spasmodic movement; general
liveliness.
1889. Sporting Times, June 29. Funny to a degree was it to watch
some of the select and chosen of Lord Coventry, Major Clements, and
those that rule the interior of the Invited Enclosure at Ascot.
Several well known defaulters would be observed going to and fro
‘on the bounce,’ including one young gentleman who once signed his
surname uninitialled to a cheque which was cashed by a confiding
tradesman, who took the said endorsement for that of his baronial
parent.
To get the grand bounce, phr. (American).—This is equivalent, in
political parlance, to dismissal, especially in reference to government
appointments.
Bounceable, adj. (common).—Prone to bouncing or boasting; ‘uppish’;
‘bumptious.’ [From bounce (q.v.) + able.]
1830. S. Warren, Diary of a Late Physician, ch. xvi. As soon as we
had exhibited sundry doses of Irish cordial to our friend Tip—under
the effects of which he became quite bouncible, and ranted about
the feat he was to take a prominent part in.
1849. Dickens, David Copperfield, ch. iv. I heard that Mr. Sharp’s
wig didn’t fit him; and that he needn’t be so bounceable—somebody
else said ‘bumptious’—about it.
Bouncer, subs. (common).—1. A bully; hector; blusterer; one who talks
swaggeringly. [From the verb bounce, senses 1 and 2, + er.]
1748. T. Dyche, Dictionary (4 ed.). Bouncer (s.), a bully or
hectoring bravado.
1851–61. H. Mayhew, Lon. Lab. and Lon. Poor, IV., 24. Those who
cheat the Public ... Bouncers and Besters defrauding, by laying
wagers, swaggering, or using threats.
2. (thieves’.)—A thief who steals goods from shop counters while
bargaining with the tradesman. The exact French equivalent is
dégringoleur, and the practice itself is termed dégringoler à la carre.
3. (common.)—A lie; a liar. For synonyms, see Whopper. [This usage in
many instances completely overlaps sense 4.]
1762. Foote, Liar, II., i. He will tell ye more lies in an hour,
than all the circulating libraries put together will publish in a
year ... he was always distinguished by the facetious appellation
of the bouncer.
1833. Marryat, Peter Simple, ch. xxxi. ‘He’s ... such a
bouncer!!... I mean that he’s the greatest liar that ever walked a
deck.’
1872. M. E. Braddon, Dead Sea Fruit, ch. xxii. ‘In that case, I
should say wait, and put your trust in Time—Time, the father of
Truth, as Mary Stuart called him when she wanted to go in for a
bouncer,—and oh, what an incredible number of royal bouncers were
carried to and fro in the despatches of that period!’
4. (common.)—Anything large of its kind; a ‘whopper’; a ‘thumper’; a
‘corker.’
1596. Nashe, Saffron Walden, in wks. III., 140. My Book will grow
such a bouncer, that those which buy it must bee faine to hire a
porter to carry it after them in a basket.