Abouda

Around, almost, nearly.

Ackel

To work, of improvised plans, repairs or tools.

Adder

After.

Addernoon

Afternoon.

Aggurdun ‘ill (as wold as)

Aged, very old (Eggardon Hill is a local Iron Age settlement or hill fort)

Ah

Yes, affirmative. “Ooh ah”-”Oh yes.”

Aish

Ash tree.

Aked

Rotten or rotting of wood, worn out.

All manner

All sorts of things, plants, etc.

‘and bar

Wooden stretcher used for carrying nets, fish etc. on beach. Mainly used to put a ready-for-use seine bodily into a boat. DNE 238

‘andy, ‘andy yer

Close, near to this place. DNE 239.

‘ang gallus

Guilty looking.

An’ goo

With energy; for instance, a blacksmith would ‘ammer an’ goo!

Anguish

Inflammation under the skin. DNE 8.

‘ant

Have not.

An’ that

And other things; e.g. “‘Em put on ‘is jacket an’ trousers an’ that.”

An’ went

Was excited, carried on work or operation with gusto; as “‘Em waved ‘is arms an’ ‘ollered an’ went!”

Apern

Part of drift net nearest the boat which was pulled inboard occasionally to see whether net was fishing properly and catching fish.

Apse, on the apse

Unlocked, unlatched, of doors and windows. DNE 240, hapse.

Arg, argy

To argue. DNE 9.

Arms

Wings of a seine net.

Arn

Any. DNE 9.

Article

A rascal, a naughty child. DNE 10.

As ever was

Really, truly.

‘assen thee?

Haven’t you?

Asso to brekfusstime

All over, all the way.

Ast

Ask.

At, at thee?

Are, are you?

At

Doing something, e.g. “Wot be at?”-”What are you doing?”

At

Being somewhere, point of arrival; as “War be at?” meaning “Where are you?”

‘aul up an’ spread

In or before bad weather boats were pulled up the beach as high as necessary and the seine nets spread on the shingle.

Avore

Before.

Away da goo

Carry on, continue, e.g. “I picked up me tools an’ away da goo!”

Baccy weed

Fine, brown leaved seaweed growing on rocks off Burton Cliffs, good for setting prawn nets or pots. DNE 570, tobacco...in names of various plants.

Back along

Formerly, some time ago.

Back end

Autumn, early winter.

Back house

Lean-to shed against a cottage wall. Cp. DNE 13.

Back o’ November (as black as the)

Dark, dismal, murky or dreary

Baid

Bed

Baint

Am not, are not.

Bait

Whitebait.

Ball-cootered

Drunk and incapable.

Ball-kick(er)

Football, footballer.

Bally-rag

Gossip, argue.

Bar

Wheelbarrow. DNE 28.

Barber (The)

Land mist drifting out to sea on frosty nights, when frost settled on one’s beard and clothing. DNE 23.

Barken

Cow barton, an enclosure or shed for dairy cattle. The cow barton that once stood on the site of Cheney’s garage was demolished in the 1920s.

Barney

A row, argument, sometimes fight.

Barr

Enclosure with cart sheds etc. demolished to make Charles Road.

Basin (The)

West Bay Harbour.

Bat vowlin

Catching small birds roosting in ivy walls by use of net on two sticks and lantern. A source of protein in bad times.

Bay back

To restrict the flow of water in stream or river. Cp. DNE 32, bay, sense 2.

Bayed up

The mouth of the river Bride at Freshwater was bayed up when it was blocked by shingle thrown up by the sea. This caused flooding in the village in the old days. Cp. DNE 32, bay, sense 2.

Be

Am, are, e.g. “I be yer, wer be you?” Cp. DNE 34.

Be

By, near, e.g. “The kiddle’s be the vire”-”The kettle’s by the fire.”

Beckon (the)

The signal that a catch of fish had been made, usually a bushel basket hoisted on a pole.

Beckon’s up!

A crew has made a catch.

Bedder

Better.

Beedle

Wooden (usually apple) mallet used for driving stakes, splitting wedges etc. Cp. DNE 38, beetle.

Beer man

Trawler from Beer in Devon or any place west of Lyme Regis.

Beeyans

Beans.

Benders, bents

Stalks of grass standing high in pasture or mown grass.

Biddlehead

Miller’s thumb, a small freshwater fish with a large head.

Billet

A lump of wood. DNE 43.

Bin

Been.

Bine Bar

Bind-barrow, a tumulus east of Burton Hive.

Birds Eye

Common speedwell, a weed.

Bizzom

A crone, an eccentric old woman. Cp. DNE 43, besom [for association of besom with women].

Blackie

The blackbird.

Black pot

Black pudding, a sausage made by stuffing pigs’ intestines with a mixture of blood and suet. The School Bridge was a favourite place for washing the intestines.

Blackthorn Winter

A cold period in Spring when the blackthorn is flowering.

Blare

To cry, weep. DNE 48.

Blight

Could mean any pest or disease except caterpillars but was used mainly to describe depredations of aphids or the potato blight.

Blen, blin

Local name given to all species of pout whiting which used to be caught on lines in large numbers from the shore and from boats at sea.

Blooth

Bloom, flowers.

Blow

Stormy period with strong onshore winds.

Blubber

Jellyfish caught in nets.

Bobby dazzler (a)

A clever, smart or skilled person.

Bond

Knack, skill, the know-how of doing a job or operation

Bond (a)

A tie for a faggot or bundle of thatching spars made by twisting a withy or hazel stick into a loop.

Bendy hook

Bill hook for cutting thin sticks; a sickle.

Booatt

Boat.

Booee

A boy.

Booee chap

Adolescent youth.

Boogy man

Imaginary being used to frighten children into obedience. DNE 57.

Bottom rope

Hauling rope bent on to seine, put into boat first (i.e. at bottom) and carried ashore last on completion of shot.

Bowl dish

Bailer, bowl or large basin with wooden handle for bailing.

Braiding

The local cottage industry of net making by hand.

Braiding needle

Wooden shuttle with one end closed round a tongue on which twine for net making was wound.

Brimble

Bramble or blackberry bush.

Broom (to put out the)

A broom hung out of the window supposedly denoted a masculine house needing a woman. May have stemmed from ancient ale-house sign. Cp. DNE 69 (signal of ship for sale).

Budder

Butter.

Buddery dore

Cider apple, good for eating and cooking, once grown in quantity in Burton area.

Budget

Carrier for whetstone worn on belt at the back.

Bull at a geeatt (like a)

Like a bull at a gate; to act on impulse, without thinking.

Bull’s cock

The wild arum; “lords and ladies”.

Bumbye

Bye and bye, later.

Bunt

The fine meshed bag at the centre of a seine net; also known as “hose”.

Burgoo

Scum on the sea, dirty water, floating sewage. DNE 75.

Burry

Berry.

Burton knot

Knot used in braiding meshes, said not to slip.

Burton Reel

The local folk dance.

Burton’s Veast

Annual village fete held in streets in late August; discontinued after World War I.

Bury

An animal’s hole, rabbit warren.

Byett (to)

To beat.

Caddy’s Cross

St. Catherine’s Cross. Road junction and site of chapel between Burton and Shipton Gorge.

Calling the fresh

The boat’s crew catching the first mackerel of the day would send a boy with a string of mackerel to shout news of the catch through the village.

Car (to)

To carry.

Cark

Cork, plug.

Carner Wall

Section of wall at the Post Office and where the men of Burton met and sat to talk. Blacksmith’s Corner at the other end of the flat topped wall was another meeting place.

Carver seed cyek

Caraway seed cake.

Cass?

Can you? “Cass ‘old these rope?” “Can you hold this rope?”

Catch a crab (to)

To miss a stroke when rowing.

Catch a cripple (to)

To have an accident.

Cave

Storage heap covered with straw and earth for root crops in winter.

Cheese

Seed of the mallow.

Cheese

Mixture of apple pomace and straw for making cider.

Cheeul

Child.

Chimley, Factory Chimley

Chimney. The chimney of the flax mill on the end of the factory warehouse stood as high as the church tower; now converted into cottages.

Chimp

Potato shoot, chit.

Chipper

Cheerful.

Chipples

Spring onions, salad onions.

Chirdern

Children.

Chops

Face, chin. Cp. DNE 259, horse chop(s).

Chuck off (to)

To hint, to tease in a nasty way.

Chuck off (to)

To fish from the beach with a hand line.

Chucking off

Hinting maliciously.

Chucking off

Fishing from the shore.

Clarty

Heavy (of soil).

Claves

Blue lias cliffs to east of Burton Beach.

Claves End

Cliff’s End, now usually called Cogden Beach.

Clint

Bend over nails etc. with hammer. DNE 100.

Clitty

Lumpy (of soil). Cp. DNE 100.

Clocks

Dandelion seed heads.

Closet

Lavatory, earth loo; often at far end of garden.

Coddle

Tangle of string, ropes etc. DNE 90, caudle.

Come from Bridport

Anyone leaving a door open was asked if they “came from Bridport?”, the myth being that citizens of that town kept open house, i.e. kept doors open. I have been asked this as far inland as Sherborne.

Connipshun

A fit, seizure.

Cooatt

Coat.

Coold

Cold, a cold.

Coos thee?

Could you?

Cop ‘old

Take, get hold of.

Copse

To cut undergrowth in woodland or weeds (thistles, ragwort, etc.) in pasture.

Crabbied

Upset, ill-tempered.

Crewel

Cowslip.

Crib

To grouse, complain.

Cripse

Brittle. DNE 122, crispy.

Crissmass burry

Holly, holly berry.

Cronick

Dead stems left after gorse was burnt off on the Common of Bindbarrow, gathered by women for firewood. DNE 127, crunnick.

Croopie

To crouch down. Cp. DNE 113, coopy.

Croopie down (a)

A baby girl

Crubb

Ridge of shingle thrown up by the sea on Chesil Beach.

Crunchens, cushens

Boiled sweets. Cp. DNE 444-5, scrunchins, cruncheons.

Cubby hole

Small niche or cupboard, usually barely accessible, in cottage.

Cuddy

The wren.

Cuddy

In the stern of a lerritt a cupboard with a sliding door in which tins of grease, spare corks, weights and twine were kept. DNE 127.

Cuss?

Could you?

Cyek

Cake.

Damsel

Damson. DNE 133.

Dap down

Put down quickly.

Dash bagger

The weed fat hen.

Dead Man’s Hole

Gully or ravine in Common in dense thicket of thorns. Believed to have been a smugglers’ hiding place for contraband; now filled in.

Dewberry

Wild raspberry. DNE 139.

Dickered

Spotted, splashed.

Dig back

To fork over pound after lifting a crop, usually of potatoes.

Dilyer

Dahlia.

Dimmity (time)

Dusk dim light.

Dip net

Net on iron hoop fitted to pole; used for dipping fish from bunt of seine.

DNE 141.

Dirt

The soil, earth.

Dirty

Of sea water, see May Water below.

Diss?

Did you?

Dissen?

Didn’t you?

Dob in

Press in, plant, press down. Cp. DNE 143, dob; 157, dub.

Dooman

Woman, wife. Cp. DNE 359, old woman.

Doorstep

Thick slice of bread.

Doughbake

A fool, idiot.

Dout (to)

To put out fire or flame. DNE 148.

Down along

West of Burton. DNE 148, down, sense 1; 593, upalong.

Down street

That part of Burton below the church and the pound.

Down to, up to

When referring to a specified person or place, the preposition “to” followed “down” or “up”. DNE 148, down, sense 1.

Drain

A path or alley.

Drash

To thresh. Cp. DNE 150.

Drasher

A threshing machine.

Drasher

The thresher shark.

Dribbletts bag

Small bag or purse holding petty cash from sale of fish, held for crew until share out.

Drott

Throat.

Drow

Throw.

Dru

Through. Cp. DNE 152, drew.

Drug

Drag. DNE 155.

Drug shoe

Open ended metal shoe placed under rear wheel of cart or waggon to act as a brake through friction with the road. DNE 155

Drush

A thrush, song thrush.

Drush in the drott

Phlegm, sore throat, wheeze.

Duckish

Gloomy, dim lighted. DNE 158.

Duck stooen

Flat stone thrown to skip on surface of river or sea.

Duck stooens

Game played with flat stones, the winner being the one who made them hop the most times. Cp. DNE 434, salt-water cake.

Dumble dore

The bumble bee. DNE 159.

Duncow

A dog fish.

Dung pick

Long handled four pronged fork.

Dung pott

Two wheeled cart used to carry manure. Also used to carry sand and shingle up Old Cliff Road from Burton Beach before modern Beach Road was made. Cp. DNE 160.

Dung spur

To spread farmyard manure on fields using dung pick.

Dunnecan

Earth closet or toilet usually at the end of garden.

Dunnick

The hedge sparrow.

Dussen?

Don’t you?

Elder blooth

The blossom of the elder bush or tree used to make a medicinal tea and various sorts of wine. Cp. DNE 162- 3, elder-blossom, elder-bloom.

Elder burry

The fruit of the elder bush or tree much used for wine making.

Eldrott

Hemlock. Cp. DNE 163, eltrot, embloch. Boys made toys from its hollow stems; it was also fed to tame rabbits in hutches.

Ell out

Pour cider from stone jar into cup.

Ellum

The elm tree or its timber.

Em, er

He, she. This form of speech peculiar to area around Bridport. Cp.

DNE 163, en; 591, un.

Emmett

An ant.

Emmetts’ butt

An ant hill.

Emp, empt

To empty. DNE 163.

En

It, him. DNE 591.

Esp

A cough or croak.

Espititis

Any bronchial illness.

Evett

The eft or newt.

Evetts’ pond

The pond full of efts or newts which was in the field where Hive Close is now.

Factory

The mill below the church, used as a garage. Once employed up to sixty people.

Factory bell

The bell used to call workers to the factory.

Faggot

A crotchety old person. Cp. DNE 167, sense 2.

Fail back

To refold spread seine to accelerate drying.

Fiddley

Fine, painstaking work.

Fish jute

A fish buyer.

Five Eliums

The green outside Girt House where five elm trees stood.

Flat hoe

First hoeing of potatoes after planting.

Flitter

To hurry, scurry, fly.

Flitter wings

Butterfly or moth.

Flobber chops

A glutton, noisy eater. Cp. DNE, 192.

Flower knot

Flower border against cottage wall which was a source of pride for the housewife.

Fly (the)

The flea beetle which attacked the leaves of the Brassica family.

Foot rope

The weighted rope along the bottom of a seine or net. DNE 196, sense 2.

French

A finch.

Frowsty

Rotting, mildewed. Cp. DNE 199, fousty.

Fruzzy

Hairy. Cp. DNE 204, fruz.

Gadgers Hole

Deep ditch at bottom of Kennon supposed to be haunted by a headless horseman. Probably a smugglers’ hide.

Gadger’s Luck

Jingle much spoken at one time:

"Gadger’s Luck has turned at last

Gadger’s Gold has turned to brass"

It means that the Gaugers or Preventative men (Customs and Excise) slipped up and someone got away with smuggling.

Gap (The)

Break in hills at Swyre used as fishing mark. Cp. DNE 211.

Geeatt

Gate.

Gee, gid

Give, gave.

Giddon wi’!

Get on with you! Rubbish!

Gilly flowers

Stocks. Cp. DNE 215, gillflower.

Gipsies

The flowers of fools parsley.

Girt

Big, large.

Girt Gulch

Indentation in the Claves just east of the Hive (Burton Beach). DNE 230, gulch.

Girt Rock

Large flat rock imbedded in shingle under cliffs between Hive and Freshwater.

Girt stick

Piece of timber, large piece of wood. Cp. DNE 533, stick: A timber-tree, the trunk of a tree used for various building purposes.

Glane, glancy

To smirk, smile DNE 216 glean.

Glate

An oily patch of sea usually denoting presence of herring or pilchards.

Glim

Glow, a light. Cp. DNE 217.

Glutch

To swallow. DNE 217.

Glutcher

The throat, Adam’s apple.

Goin da baid vish

The skate or thomback, thought to have aphrodisiacal qualities.

Gold french

Goldfinch. Cp. DNE 220, goldfinch.

Gollop

To gulp, swallow.

Goo

To go.

Gookoo

The cuckoo.

Goord

Rod, pole or perch; land measurement.

Got the bond

To understand how to do a job; to be skilled at something.

Graft

A long-handled spade used for digging out clay.

Granfer griggle

Early purple orchid.

Green (The)

The area between Chesil Beach and pastures at the Hive and beyond Claves End, a harbouring place for boats in winter.

Griddle

Metal grid attached to bars of cottage cooking ranges used for cooking herrings etc.

Griddle cyeks

Unleavened flat pastry cooked on griddle. Sometimes cooked with herrings so that cakes absorbed oil dripping from the fish.

Grizzle

To whine, complain.

Grizzle guts

A whining child, a grouser.

Groaner

A big catch of fish in seine.

Growler

A nasty sea; sea breaking heavily onto beach Cp. DNE 228, piece of floating ice...

Ground

A field. Often with owner’s or tenant’s name in front as “Charley Moore’s ground”. Cp. DNE 227, sense 2.

Grounder

Ground sea. Very dangerous for swimmers at Burton because of strong undertow. Cp. DNE 228.

Gudder

A drain or catchpit.

Guddle

Drink thirstily. DNE 234, guttle.

Guddle guts

A greedy drinker, a toper.

Guzzle

To drink noisily, to booze.

Guzzle

Booze, usually cider. To be “on the guzzle” was to be “on a drinking spree”.

Gwoyle

Ravine or gully used by smugglers to bide contraband.

Harbour

West Bay, the next community to the west on the coast.

Harbour yeller

West Bay fisherman.

Harp

To nag, keep on about some subject.

Hatch

A solid gate, a sluice gate. Factory Hatches were the entrance gates to the Mill. Back Hatches and Garden Hatch were sluice gates controlling the flow of water to water-wheels and turbines used in local flax spinning industry.

Hay pick

A long-handled, two pronged fork DNE 246.

Hay rake

Wooden rake used at one time for raking mown grass.

Heart Aker

Clay Hill allotment gardens which were west of Beach Road and of heavy clay soil.

Hearth-stooen

Lumps of natural chalk used for whitening the hearth and sides of the front door steps.

Heed

The head.

Heft

To lift.

Heller

A tearaway, imp, rascal.

Heller

A bad thing, trouble.

Het off

Toset off in a hurry.

Het up

Upset, angry..

Hive (The)

Burton Beach.

Holing

Fish, such as bass, rolling so as just to break the surface of the sea.

Holler, holley

To shout, cry out. Cp. DNE 256.

Holler

A dip in the ground.

Hoot owl

The tawny owl.

Hop (Threepenny)

A dance, a barn dance, usually to the music of concertina and tambourine.

Hose

The fine net in the centre of a seine. i.e. the bunt.

Hoss daisy

The ox eye daisy.

Hovel

A shed for cattle. DNE 261.

Hunderd

A hundred; mackerel were sold by the hundred.

Hurrin

The herring.

Hurrin gall

Young herring, often found amongst whitebait and chased by mackerel etc.

Idee

To hide.

Idee ole

A hiding place. DNE 253, hidey-hole.

Idge

A hedge.

Idge carpenter

A hedger.

Ill

The eel

Ill trap

An eel trap made of a sack with slitted sides and fitted with straw and mackerel innards, sunk in the river on the end of a rope. Eels entered through the slits which closed when rope was pulled.

I low zoo I spec

I believe.

Imige

Wicked person, a naughty child.

In tow

Accompanying, partnering in mischief, etc. Cp. DNE 571, toll.

Jacker

A jackdaw.

Jacko’s about

There’s been a frost.

Jack’s Hole

Large crevice in the cliff just west of the Hive.

Jar (the)

A stoneware jar, usually of ten quarts capacity, invariably attended any celebration of hot work, i.e. a good catch of fish, the share out, haymaking and harvest. Contents usually cider. DNE 274

Jenny

The wren.

Jurrymyer

A chamber pot.

Johner

The peeler or swimming crab.

Joner

Jonah, a person attended by ill luck, i.e. a fisherman who caught no fish. Cp. DNE 278 jinker, 280 jone.

Jonnick

True, the truth. DNE 280.

Jook

“The Duke”, William Symes, the village carrier, died 1922, known as a petty tyrant.

Jook’s Bridge

The bridge in the main street over the River Bride near “the Duke’s” cottage which replaced a bridge washed away by floodwater at the turn of the century.

Kick up

To throw a tantrum.

Kiddle

A kettle, sometimes a teapot.

Killick

A large stone picked off the beach and used as an anchor. DNE 285.

Killick rope

The line attached to the killick.

Killick stooen

An oval stone suitable for a killick.

Killick

To anchor.

Kisses

The seeds of the burdock.

Knapp

Small hill or rise in the road. DNE 287.

Kwirk

Grouse or nag incessantly.

Laces

Round pieces of wood or cane around which twine was knotted in net braiding. The diameter of the lace determined the size of the mesh.

DNE 298, last.

Lake

A stream. Cp. DNE 295.

Lanches

Lynchets, ridges in fields denoting ancient cultivations. Examples can be seen on Burton Cliff.

Lardy

Slippery, greasy (of persons).

Launty

An attempt, try. To have a launty was to shoot a net in the hope of catching fish.

Lawrence is about

Someone is red of face after a drinking session.

Ledd’n bide

Leave it (him) alone.

Leff

Left, to leave. DNE 302.

Lert

The Portland lerritt, which was the main seine fishing boat used on Chesil Beach.

Less

Let us.

Liddle

Little, small.

Lie

Direction, east or west, in which boat turned when making a shot at venture or determined by the direction of a shoal when shooting “stray”.

Lie

Place where fish is swimming, when visible, especially in case of trout in river.

Lie to

Wait afloat with line ashore for fish to show.

Linnee

A lean-to shed. DNE 306.

Linnets

Folds in the arms or sweeps of a seine, pulled out when net is coming ashore to drive fish into bunt. DNE 305

Longnose

The gar fish.

Loo (in the)

Sheltered, out of the wind. Cp. DNE 314, looard.

Look zee

Take a look, look.

Lop

A broken surfaced sea. DNE 314.

Lopmint

An allotment garden; the allotments at Clay Hill in particular.

Low

Allow, believe.

Lucky stooen

A stone with a hole right through. Hung on bows of boats and inside cottage doors to avert the evil eye. Cp. DNE 316 lucky-rock.

Lumb

Loom on an oar used with thole pins. DNE 316.

Lummix

An idiot, a silly person.

Mackel

The mackerel.

Mackel bird

The common tern. DNE 318, mackerel-bird.

Mackel drail

Spinner used for catching mackerel with a line before the innovation of feather lines.

Madder

Matter, e.g. “Woss the madder?”-”What’s the matter?”

Madder

The pus from a septic wound.

Maggie

The magpie.

Maid

A girl, a daughter. DNE 319.

Make (of sea)

Become rough. DNE 321, sense 3b.

Marks

Landmarks used to determine position of fishing pounds. DNE 323.

Marr, marr marnin

Tomorrow, tomorrow morning. Cp. DNE 593, valentine.

Mayflowers

The garlands of flowers carried by children on Garland Day, May 12th. The day ended in a procession to the beach where a religious service was held to bless the harvest of the sea.

Mayflower Song

The traditional song sung by children round the houses on Garland Day morning:

"Beautiful May, so fair so bright

Starting forth from wintery night

As to the heavens the lovely stars

So to the earth these flowerlets are

Beautiful May, flowery May,

Queen of the Seasons, Beautiful May"

May water

Dirty water on the sea in the spring of the year. Water devoid of plankton, therefore no fish. Believed to be caused by changes in water temperature. DNE 142, dirty.

Mazed

Bewildered, flummoxed. DNE 326.

Messengers

Small clouds appearing in a cloudless sky, presaging wind and/or rain.

Mind

To remember, to look after, tend. DNE 329.

Minny

The minnow

Minny pond

A pool in the river where minnows were always abundant.

Mischee Mischief.

Mischee Mischief.

Mischee booees

Mischievous, naughty boys.

Mixen

Midden, compost heap. Cp. DNE 160, dung mixen.

Mock

A dry or rotten stump of a tree or bush, usually in a hedge.

Monge

To chew. DNE 338.

Monge Lunch.

Monge Lunch.

Monkey’s birthday

Rain and sunshine at the same time.

Mores

Roots of plants, trees, etc. DNE 333, more.

Mossel

Small piece of, morsel, a little of.

Mote

Another very local name for a hedge sparrow. Cp. DNE 334.

Mote

A hollow straw used for drinking.

Mumbly stooen

A crumbling stone, quarried locally, a soft oolite full of fossils and liable to crumble after a time when exposed to the weather.

Mump

Grunt or grumble.

Na gutted

Thin, lanky, hungry. Cp. DNE 350, nog-head, sense 3.

Na gutted quarter

The North West, so called because it was thought that crops would not grow in the cold nor fish be present in the sea, therefore villagers would go hungry.

Nammett

Mid-morning meal, lunch. Cp. DNE 354, nunch; nunny-bag.

Nar

No. DNE 341, ne’er.

Narn

None, nothing. DNE 340.

Nary

Neither.

Natch

A notch. DNE 353, notch.

Natch er no natch

A game of pitch and toss played by impoverished fishermen using a penknife with a mark on one side in lieu of coinage, settling up when in funds.

Needle

A braiding needle or shuttle used in making nets. DNE 288, knitting.

Nestle-tripe

The smallest piglet ofa litter, a small child or person. Cp. DNE 355, nuzzle-tripe.

Niddles

Stinging nettles.

Night owl

Person addicted to staying up late; a nocturnal prowler.

Nish, nesh

Tender, soft (mostly of food), DNE 349.

Nitch

A bundle or faggot. DNE 287, knitch. Nobbin Daft, silly.

Nosey weather

Very cold and windy period.

Nosset

A sweetmeat, a luxury or delicacy.

Not no

None.

Nuddick

A large lump of wood. Cp. DNE 352, small, bare, rounded hill.

Nussle up

To nestle, get close to.

Okkerd

Awkward, clumsy.

On da goo

To carry on, to continue.

Qo ah

Oh yes (often used in a sarcastic or derogatory way).

Qod

Wood.

Ood

Would.

Ooman

Woman, wife. Cp. DNE 359, old woman.

Qos, oot

Will you, would you.

Oot thee?

Who are you?

Op vrog

A frog.

Ope seine

A seine put in the sea with one arm ashore and the other not, making a trap for shoaling fish.

Over right

Across from, near, opposite. DNE 365, overright.

Ow at? Ow be?

How are you?

Owner

The person owning a seine fishing boat; not always an active fisherman.

Palm

A fingerless hand cover made of leather or thick rubber to protect the palm of the hand. DNE 366.

Palmer

The caterpillar or larva feeding on food crops, usually that of the cabbage white butterfly. DNE 367.

Pank

To pant or gasp. DNE 368.

Panshards

Broken crockery or glass. DNE 368.

Panshard Night

It was a custom on Halloween to throw broken crockery into doorways and under windows then run

away chanting:

"It’s Panshard Night tonight!

It’s Panshard Night tonight!

Adam and Eve and Pinch-me-tight

It’s Panshard Night tonight"

Parish Pump

The green near the Library and Village Hall where the village pump stood till mains water was brought in

1912 after a severe outbreak of scarlet fever.

Parley of birds

Numbers of noisy sea birds congregating at sea when shoals of fish are present.

Peck

A small spot. DNE 373.

Picket

High point of the cliff.

Pigs’ tiddies

Small potatoes which were gathered and cooked for pigs. DNE 558, tatie, tiddy.

Plim

To swell (of wood). DNE 383.

Plusher

Green rod laid to thicken a hedge.

Ply

To bend. DNE 384.

Polly wash-dish

The pied wagtail.

Portland stroke

When oarsmen are not rowing together; this would be a sarcastic comment.

Prior cork

A small buoy attached to the centre of a seine to show where the bunt is when fishing. Cp. DNE 393.

Promp

A clothes prop made of wood.

Proper

The correct way, right, real.

Prong

A hay fork. DNE 392.

Pummy

Apple pomace used for cider making. DNE 395.

Pummy, smashed to

Broken into small pieces. DNE 395.

Pummy stooen

White stone, used for washing stone floors, etc.

Pups

Septic sores from salt water. DNE 397.

Purdy

Pretty.

Purdy work

A performance, a funny event, sometimes skullduggery.

Quarr

A stone quarry. Cp. DNE 398.

Quarters (of seine)

The fine meshed net on each side of the bunt.

Quatt

To squat, to sit, to stay in one place. DNE 398.

Quatt

Place where a rabbit or hare sits more or less hidden in an open field.

Queer man

Local code name for an illegal catch, e.g. salmon, game.

Quiddle, squiddle

Young cuttlefish or squid caught in the seine.

Quizzle

To pry, to question.

Rafty

Angry, upset. Cp. DNE 402.

Ravel

A thread of wood hanging from a garment. DNE 407.

Raw bait

Whitebait or other fish in early stages of growth.

Razzer off

Slice or cut in slices.

Reckon

To add up, to work out sums.

Redd, rudd

Dark patch of whitebait massed in sea near shore.

Reeve string

The string holding the bunt together which would be cut to let go unwanted fish. DNE 409.

Rhubarb weed

Winter heliotrope which grows in damp; clayey places locally.

Rick pound

A walled-in enclosure where hay ricks were built so as to be out of reach of cattle and sheep. Cp. DNE 389- 90, pound.

Roadster

A tramp or vagrant.

Rocks Nose

Point of rock ledge in the sea west of the Hive and nearest to it.

Roddle

To rattle.

Roman Walls

Dry stone walls found on high ground in vicinity. Built wth courses at an angle of forty five degrees to the horizontal. One local authority said that they may have been built by Celts.

Rompse

To skylark, to play around. DNE 417.

Rompse

A game.

Rough (to be)

To be ill. DNE 420.

Round hoe

To earth up potatoes or other crops.

Roush ashore

To pull a line or a net with a dash. DNE 422, rouse.

Rozzum

An amusing story, a joke.

Rudge

A ridge.

Rudge (winter)

The highest high water mark on the beach above which boats were pulled in winter and bad weather.

Rudge Lane

The lane along the ridge from St. Catherine’s Cross to Bennet Hill.

Ruggle’

To roll. DNE 423, ruckle.

Run

The flow of water to the beach after a wave breaks. Cp. DNE 423.

Saeen

A seine net. DNE 460.

Saeen booee

A seine boy who was responsible for the ropes and laying timbers.

Salmon peel

Variety of trout, sea trout. DNE 429.

Salted in

Of fish packed in brine. Cp. DNE 432, salt v., sense 2.

Scadders

Fish scales adhering to clothes or boat indicating that a catch had been made.

School river

Waterway flowing past the school.

School Bridge

Bridge over the waterway outside the school.

Scolerd

A clever or educated person.

Screech owl

The little owl.

Screws (the)

Rheumatism, lumbago, sciatica or similar pain.

Scroff vish

Fish, sometimes choice, sold by auction to members of the crew, the money being placed in the dribblets bag. DNE 444, scruff.

Scrunch

To eat noisily, grind, crush. DNE 444.

Sea houses

Sheds which stood on the green at the Hive. Used for storing nets etc. Demolished in 1940 to give field of fire for coast defences.

Seine stooens

Round, flat stones with a hole drilled through which were tied to foot rope for weights.

Sharker

A species of loach found in River Bride.

She

A woman (especially a wife referred to by her husband). DNE 467.

Sheep run

A low gateway in a dry stone wall for moving sheep from one field to another. Closed with loose stones when not in use. Cp. DNE 424, run n., sense 2.

Shek

To shake or tremble.

Shek o’ vish

Odd fish or so breaking surface of the sea. Might indicate shoal below.

Sher

A share, to share. Fishing was done on a share basis. When using a lerritt and a seine six shares were

allocated to the owner, one share each to members of the crew. Boys got half a share until they could pull an oar. When using a square stern boat the owner got three shares, the crew one each. DNE 466.

Shered out

Ineligible for a share. If absent when a catch was made a crew member got nothing.

Shillet

Shale, flat stones found in local clay subsoil.

Shimmy

Chemise.

Shimmy shek

To tremble with shock, to shake with fright or excitement.

Shimmy shirt

A vest, undershirt.

Shinny up

To climb, to scale. Cp. DNE 471.

Shomble

To shamble, plod heavily.

Shomp

To tramp, to trudge.

Shoot

To put out seine net to catch fish. DNE 474.

Shore line

Wooden weighted line attached to the top rope of a seine thrown from the boat to the shore at the start of a shot. Cp. DNE 475, shorefast.

Shot (to have a)

To shoot or put out the seine for catching fish. DNE 474.

Shove off

To launch a boat.

Shrammed

Very cold, frozen to the marrow. Cp. DNE 441, scrammed.

Sidling ground

A slope or sloping ground. DNE 480, sideling.

Skewer

A wave rolling along the shore, usually in an east wind, making it difficult to launch or land a boat.

Skimmished

Drunk, inebriated.

Skitter

Scatter, to run in all directions. Cp. DNE 488.

Skiver

A skewer or pointed stick used for fixing bait in lobster pots. DNE 489.

Skowsher

The horse mackerel.

Slack

A period between tides when there is little movement of the sea. DNE 490.

Slatch

To dilute with water, to wash down.

Slings

Large meshed net of strong cordage put round the bunt when a heavy catch has been made to support the seine and prevent it from breaking. Cp.

DNE 493, sling.

Sloo

The sloe, fruit of blackthorn.

Slummick

A slattern, slut, untidy person.

Slummicky

Untidy, slatternly. DNE 496, slommocky.

Smacko over the Bill (blowing)

Said of an east wind or south-easterly wind which caused skewers.

Smarm

To spread, to smudge.

Smart, smeart

Active, robust, healthy (of men), not necessarily smart of dress. DNE 498.

Smert

To sting (of wounds) to be painful. DNE 499.

Smop up

To clear one’s plate etc. To wipe plate clean with a piece of bread, to drink up the last of a liquid. Cp. DNE 333, mop, smop.

Smooch round

To lurk, to prowl furtively. DNE 500, smouch.

Snag

A smail type of sloe, the berry of the whitethorn.

Snakes burry

Seed pods and berries of the stinking iris.

Snaky wind

A cold, biting wind.

Snarbuckle

A tangle, a snarled up line. DNE 500.

Sooky

A whining, nagging woman. DNE 505.

Spadger

The house sparrow.

Spell

A rest from work [cp. Straight back below]. DNE 509.

Spit and tramboline

Wooden device of a pole and crosspiece with a socket, fitted together in a “T” shape for drying the bunt of a seine net when not in use. Perhaps derived from “tramplehead”.

Spraddle

To spread, spread over, to ride astride. DNE 513.

Sprayed

Having a rash, raw. DNE 513.

Spuddle about

To muddle, fuss, work aimlessly. Cp. DNE 518.

Spur

To spread (of manure etc.).

Squaile

To throw missiles, e.g. men squailed with pebbles the open end of an ope seine to keep fish inside the net.

Square stern

A dinghy.

Squat

To squash. DNE 521.

Stall

Cover to protect finger or thumb. DNE 527.

Stanchion

A wooden support for a seat in a boat. DNE 528.

Stap

A rabbit’s nest, usually found in an open field, lined with fur and dried grass. Visited by the doe at night.

Start rope

A painter, a rope for hauling a boat up the beach, attached to the bow or stern.

Stick

Firewood, kindling. DNE 533.

Stickers

Pea or bean sticks.

Stick jaw

Toffee, treacle toffee.

Stiffle

To choke, strangle, to suffocate. DNE 534.

Stooen

A stone.

Stooen drush

A song thrush (which breaks snails on stones).

Stooen rush pound

Fields or gardens where natural stone is plentiful in the soil. “Ground what do pow stooens”, the old folk used to say. Small children were employed to pick up stones at a penny (old money) per day.

Stool

A cover for a thumb [cp. stall above].

Straight back

A rest, a spell from work.

Straw mote

A drinking straw. Cp. DNE 334.

Stray

When mackerel broke the surface of the sea in pursuit of bait they were said to stray. The cry of “Mackel stray!” could almost depopulate the village of men at one time.

Stray shot

When mackerel were “straying” the net was usually shot as an “ope seine”, often without using top or bottom ropes.

Stud

To think about, study. DNE 543.

Swift, swifter

The swift or swifter was a wooden device on which skeins of twine or string were put to facilitate the tight filling of needles or winding into balls for net braiding.

Tack

To hurry on foot.

Tack

One’s gear, clothes, personal belongings. DNE 553.

Tack it over

To cast seine net from a boat.

Tacker

A small child.

Tacker grass

A form of sedge grass powing in matted clumps on heavy soil. Widespread on Burton Common. Difficult to cut or remove by hand.

Taffety

Finnicky, choosy, as to food etc. DNE 553.

Taffle

Tangled mix-up of rope etc.

Taffle

To create a tangle.

Taightly

Lying awkwardly, unbalanced, unsteady.

Tally

To set off in a hurry.

Tally

Label attached to parcels of twine sent out by a net-making firm to a braider giving details of nets to be made.

Tally vish

One fish was put aside after each hundred had been counted as a check on the number of hundreds caught. DNE 556.

Tallywack

A rascal, rogue. DNE 557.

Teem seine

A small seine net used with a square stern for teeming, i.e. fishing close to the shore. Sometimes weighted with lengths of chain to catch bottom feeding plaice, sole, etc.

Thee

You, still in common wage amongst old natives of Burton.

Thees

You do, e.g. “Thees know” is “you know” or “you do know”.

Theet

You are, e.g. “Theet vrom Burton?”

These yer

This,

Thik

Thik there

That, that one.

Third wall

A drystone wall running down to the green at the back of Chesil Beach between West Bexington and Cogden farms; the unofficial limit for Burton fishermen, there being rivalry between fishermen of neighbouring parishes along Chesil Beach.

Thole pins

Metal pins attached to the sides of boats over which the looms of oars fitted enabling fishermen to haul pots, long lines, etc. without shipping oars.

DNE 571.

Thornback

The skate or ray. DNE 562.

Tidden

It is not, sometimes “there are not”.

Tidderfer la

Finery, gaudy dress.

Tiddly

Tiddy

The potato.

Tiddy balls

The fruit of the potato, round seedcases produced on the haulm. Thought locally to be a sign of a good crop.

Tiddy drill

The trench in which potatoes are planted, also the troughs between lines of earthed up potatoes. The crop was said to “cover drill” when the lines of adjoining rows met.

Timmen Bridge

The Timber Bridge, replaced by a concrete bridge in 1937.

Toilet.

An attic, a loft.

Tooad

A toad, also used when pitying a person who was referred to as “a pore wole tooad”.

Towering

Seabirds soaring and circling over the sea denoting the presence of fish.

Track

One’s state of health, orderliness. DNE 576.

Traipse

To tramp or travel.

Trees

Pieces of wood for sliding boats on beach.

Trig

To wedge, to support anything with wedges. Cp. DNE 583, trigger.

Trigger

A small stone or stone flake used to wedge the face stones of a drystone wall so that they do not move.

Triggers

Wooden devices for holding a boat on even keel when ashore. CP.

DNE 583.

Trimble

To tremble, to shudder.

Troh

Trough, dip between waves.

Trott

A long line with many hooks anchored and buoyed.

Trousers down to boots

Dressed up in best clothes.

Trousers down to boots tidderfer la

Overdressed.

Truddle on

To trudge, to plod onward.

Truggle

To roll anything, e.g. children’s iron hoops, barrels, etc. Cp. DNE 585, truckle.

Tump

Hillock, bump on level of the soil etc.

Tunnegar

A funnel.

Turble

Terrible.

Turble pore

Sickly, very ill. DNE 560, terrible.

Turd bird

The skua, so called because it eats fish that it forces other seabirds to disgorge. Cp. DNE 160, dung bird.

Turmot

Turnip.

Turmot hoe

Hoe for singling etc. usually forged locally with two tines and detachable blade, sometimes used by same family for generations.

Twinnick

A twig or wand.

Twite

To nag, to bring up the past, to taunt. DNE 591.

Uncle’s bus

The ancient Ford bus with sit-around seats run by the late William (Uncle) Smith, the village carrier.

Union

The workhouse. Old villagers had a dread of being put in the workhouse which stemmed from memories of tales told of the terrible times for agricultural workers in the early nineteenth century.

Up along

Aged, getting old. Cp. DNE 592.

Up-righter

A baby boy.

Up there (of wind)

Offshore or northerly wind.

Up to

Doing, e.g. “Wot be up to?” meaning “What are you doing?”

Up top o’

On the top of, above.

Us

Often meant “me”.

Veast

A feast. This usually meant Burton Veast celebrated in late August.

Veller

A man, a fellow, preceded by a placename meant a citizen of that place, e.g. “A West Bay yeller”.

Venture shot

To shoot at a venture, i.e. to fish with a seine when no fish had been seen. Cp. DNE 474, shoot.

Vessel

A ship, a ship calling at West Bay.

Villers

The two red brick villas on the cliff.

Villers

Stones used to fill the interstices inside a drystone wall. Cp. DNE 174, filler.

Vind

To find.

Vir tree

A fir tree, used for any conifer including cypresses. DNE 594, var.

Virk

A fork in a tree or bush, the lower part of the human body. DNE 198, fork.

Vly

The flea beetle.

Voller, volley

To follow. DNE 195, follow, folly.

Vore

Before.

Vox mould

Fox mould-a kind of green sand.

Vresh (The)

The first mackerel of the day caught off the beach in a net.

Vrozzled

Frozen.

Vur

Far.

Vurr

A furrow.

Vurrel

The ferrule used on tool stems.

Vurriner

A stranger, a newcomer to the village.

Vust ‘ole

The dip in the bed of the sea where waves break onto the shore. This can be quite a drop and is dangerous to non-swimmers, especially children.

Waarm

Warm, hot.

Wad o’ vish

A big catch of fish. DNE 597.

Waggens

Heavy boots, hobnailed boots. Cp. DNE 597, waddens.

Want

A mole.

Want ‘eaves

The heaps of soil thrown out by tunnelling moles.

Want’s run

The mole’s tunnel beneath the surface of the ground.

Warped up

Drunk, inebriated.

Wellum

The rings on the surface of the water made by a fish breaking surface or an underwater spring etc. DNE 613, willem.

Wer, wer be?

Where, “Where are you?”

Wer to

Where? (of place).

West Bay gardens

The gardens at the Freshwater end of Southover allotments. At one time used by West Bay men (then in Burton Parish) and reputed to have been used to grow cabbage plants which were taken to Newfoundland wrapped in wet sacking for replanting to provide fresh greens for the crews of the fishing boats.

Whistle pipe

The flageolet or penny whistle. DNE 609.

Whum

Home.

Willer

Willow.

Winder

A window.

Windley

Spindly, thin, weak looking. DNE 613.

Wing

To throw.

Wink up

To wind (of engines, motors, etc.).

Winnick

To utter a sharp cry, to neigh.

Wip Wop

The local name for The Bridport News, a local newspaper.

Wire into

To work hard at a task.

Withy

The osier. Withy beds or plantations of osiers were made to provide materials for lobster pots and were carefully tended. DNE 617.

Withy wind

The convulvulus or bindweed.

Woak

The oak tree, oak wood.

Wodder

Water, the sea.

Woddery all

An empty net, nothing caught. DNE 601, water haul.

Wold, wole; would

Old, ancient.

Wold yolk

The ancient or former inhabitants of Burton.

Womble

To stroll, to meander, to totter.

Woos? woot’?

Will you?

Wopse

Wasp. DNE 619.

Worm

Could mean not only the earthworm, but slugs, millipedes, etc. attacking root vegetables, especially potatoes.

Worm eat

Eaten by worms, usually potatoes eaten by slugs etc.

Woss got?

What have you got?

Woss meeyan?

What do you mean?

Woss on?

What is happening?

Wot be at? Wot be on?

What are you doing?

Wrack

Driftwood on the beach.

Wrack an’ ruin, all to wrack

Derelict.

Wracker

Collector of driftwood from the beach. Formerly a wrecker, looter of shipwrecks.

Wrackin

Collecting driftwood and other jetsam. This was and still is a useful and cheap way of getting timber for use in building etc.

Wrackin

Luring ships to founder on the beach and then looting them. Burton men were engaged in this trade, together with smuggling. Lanterns were reputedly placed on the hills to decoy ships ashore. DNE 620.

Worrit

To worry.

Yaffle up

To pick up, to bundle up for carrying. DNE 621.

Yaller

Yellow.

Yalier drott

The common toadflax.

Yard o’ pump wodder

A thin lanky person.

Yarking

The bindings of twine joining the two lines at the top and bottom of a seine net to fix the corks and weights. DNE 622.

Yarks

Bindings of string, cord or leather straps around the trouser legs below the knees to prevent flapping and collecting mud etc.

Yer

To hear, to listen.

Yer

Here.

Yer(s)

Ears.

Yer be

Here you are.

Yer ‘oles

Ears, earholes.

Yer right

Here, in this place.

Yer wigs

Earwigs.

Yessday

Yesterday.

Yoick up

To lift, to lever.

Yong

Young.

Yop

Talk, to talk, gossip, to gossip. Cp. DNE 623.

Yowe

Ewe, sheep.

Yowe leaze

A sheep pasture.

Zawny

Silly, mentally deficient. Cp. DNE 460, seeny-sawney.

Zim

Seem, appear to be.

Zoo

So.

Zoo’t thee

So are you.

Zower

Sour, acid tasting.

Zower-dog

The common sorrel.

Zun dogs

Shafts of light in the sky, believed to foretell bad weather. Cp. DNE 546, sun hound.

Zyder

Cider, the drink of fishermen and farm workers. Once made at the main farms of the village and at Cowper’s Lodge which stood on the north slope of North Hill amongst the Budderydore trees.