gazoon

English

Etymology

From French garçon. Doublet of garçon.

Noun

gazoon (plural gazoons)

  1. (Northern Ireland) A young farm boy.
    • 1938 (reprinted 1970), John Ellberg, Tales of a Rambler, page 217:
      "[...] devil don't it subtract a bit before the thing goes skylarkin' as it will before—500–550—say this is no place for a gazoon that wants to see Father O'Houlihan before he kicks the bucket," and Pat strode off with the subtleness that bespoke youth and fine trim.
  2. (nonce word) A close body of men.
    • 1819, “The Queen's Wake”, in Dumlanrig, the Sixteenth Bard's Song, 6th edition, James Hogg, page 277:
      A close gazoon the horsemen made,
      Douglas and Morison the head,
      And through the ranks impetuous bore,
      By dint of lance and broad claymore, […]

References
  • O.E.D. unabridged volume 4
This article is issued from Wiktionary. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.