kilt
An Irishism for badly beaten, but by no means equivalent with killed.
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Expressions you’ll hear in Britain and Ireland — distinctly British usage first, then widespread staples.
kimbo
Or A-KIMBO, holding the arms in a bent position from the body, and resting the hands upon the hips, in a bullying attitude. Said to be from A SCHIMBO, bandy-legged, crooked, Italian; but more probably from KIMBAW, the old cant for beating or bullying. See Grose. Celtic, CAM, crooked.
kimmer
A gossip, an acquaintance, same as CUMMER.—Scotch.
kinchin
A little child. Kinchin coes; orphan beggar boys, educated in thieving. Kinchin morts; young girls under the like circumstances and training. Kinchin morts, or coes in slates; beggars' children carried at their mother's backs in sheets. Kinchin cove; a little man. CANT.
kinchin
A child.—Old Cant. From the German diminutive, KINDCHEN, a baby.
kinchin cove
A man who robs children; a little man.—Ancient Cant.
kincob
Uniform, fine clothes, richly embroidered dresses. Really, cloth of gold or silver.—Anglo-Indian.
king john's men
He is one of king John's men, eight score to the hundred: a saying of a little undersized man.
king of the gypsies
The captain, chief, or ringleader of the gang of misrule: in the cant language called also the upright man.
king's bad bargain
One of the king's bad bargains; a malingeror, or soldier who shirks his duty.
king's wood lion
An Ass. Kingswood is famous for the great number of asses kept by the colliers who inhabit that place.
kingdom come
He is gone to kingdom come, he is dead.
king’s pictures
(now, of course, QUEEN’S PICTURES), money.
kip
The skin of a large calf, in the language of the Excise-office.
kiss mine a-se
An offer, as Fielding observes, very frequently made, but never, as he could learn, literally accepted. A kiss mine a-se fellow; a sycophant.
kiss-curl
A small curl twisted on the temple. See BOWCATCHER.
kiss-me-quick
The name given to the very small bonnets which have of late years become fashionable.
kisser
The mouth.—Pugilistic term.
kissing crust
That part where the loaves have touched the oven.
kissing-crust
The soft crust which marks where one loaf has been broken from another.
kit
A dancing-master, so called from his kit or cittern, a small fiddle, which dancing-masters always carry about with them, to play to their scholars. The kit is likewise the whole of a soldier's necessaries, the contents of his knapsack: and is used also to express the whole of different commodities: as, Here, take the whole kit; i.e. take all.
kit
A person’s baggage. Also, a collection of anything, "the whole KIT of ’em," the entire lot. Anglo-Saxon, KYTH.—North.
kit-cat club
A society of gentlemen, eminent for wit and learning, who in the reign of queen Anne and George I. met at a house kept by one Christopher Cat. The portraits of most of the members of this society were painted by Sir Godfrey Kneller, of one size; thence still called the kit-cat size.
kitchen physic
Food, good meat roasted or boiled. A little kitchen physic will set him up; he has more need of a cook than a doctor.
kitmegur
An under-butler, a footman.—Anglo-Indian.
kitna
How much?—Anglo-Indian.
kittle pitchering
A jocular method of hobbling or bothering a troublesome teller of long stories: this is done by contradicting some very immaterial circumstance at the beginning of the narration, the objections to which being settled, others are immediately started to some new particular of like consequence; thus impeding, or rather not suffering him to enter into, the main story. Kittle pitchering is often practised in confederacy, one relieving the other, by which the design is rendered less obvious.
kittys
Effects, furniture; stock in trade. To seize one's kittys; to take his sticks.
knack shop
A toy-shop, a nick-nack-atory.
knacker
An old horse; a horse-slaughterer. Originally Gloucestershire, but now general.
knap
I.q., NAP, to break.—Old English, but nearly obsolete. See Ps. xlvi. 9 (Prayer-book version), "He breaketh the bow, and KNAPPETH the spear in sunder;" probably sibilated into "snap."
knappers poll
A sheep's head. CANT.
knapping-jigger
A turnpike gate; "to dub at the KNAPPING-JIGGER," to pay money at the turnpike.
knark
A hard-hearted or savage person. The word is now usually spelt NARK, and is applied to the lowest class of informers.
knave in grain
A knave of the first rate: a phrase borrowed from the dyehouse, where certain colours are said to be in grain, to denote their superiority, as being dyed with cochineal, called grain. Knave in grain is likewise a pun applied to a cornfactor or miller.
knife
"to KNIFE a person," to stab; an un-English custom, but a very common expression.
knife it
"cut it," cease, stop, don’t proceed.
knife-board
The seat running along the roof of an omnibus.
knight
A common and ironical prefix to a man’s calling—thus, "KNIGHT of the whip," a coachman; "KNIGHT of the thimble," a tailor.
knight of the post
A person who testifies in court for payment
knight of the rainbow
A footman: from the variety of colours in the liveries and trimming of gentlemen of that cloth.
knobstick
A non-society workman. One who takes work under price.
knock
To knock a woman; to have carnal knowledge of her. To knock off; to conclude: phrase borrowed from the blacksmith. To knock under; to submit.
knock about the bub
To hand or pass about the drink. BUB is a very old cant term for drink.
knock me down
Strong ale or beer, stingo.
knock off
To halt one's work or other activity.
knock out
to defeat or overwhelm someone
knock-down
Or KNOCK-ME-DOWN, strong ale.
knock-it-down
To show, in the "free and easy" style, approval of a song or toast, by hammering with pot or glass on the table.
knock-’em-downs
The game of skittles.
knocked-up
Tired, jaded, used up, done for. In the United States, amongst females, the phrase is equivalent to being enceinte, so that Englishmen often unconsciously commit themselves when amongst our Yankee cousins.
knocker
"up to the KNOCKER," means finely or showily dressed, in the height of fashion; proficient, equal to the task.
knocker-face
An ugly face, i.e., like an old-fashioned door-knocker.
knocking-in
Coming into college after time. A habit of KNOCKING-IN late generally leads to some unpleasantness.—Oxford University.
knocking-out
All visitors, on leaving a college after time, have to state in whose rooms they have been, that his gate-bill may be scored up for them. When a rackety party takes place, the visitors, or "out college men," are generally supplied with a list of the names of the quietest men in college, so that the whereabouts of the party may not be betrayed.—Oxford University.
knot
A crew, gang, or fraternity. He has tied a knot with his tongue, that he cannot untie with his teeth: i.e. he is married.
knowing
Sharp, shrewd, artful; "a KNOWING codger," or "a KNOWING blade," one who can take you in, or cheat you, in any transaction you may have with him. It implies also deep cunning and foresight, and generally signifies dishonesty.
knowing ones
Sportsmen on the turf, who from experience and an acquaintance with the jockies, are supposed to be in the secret, that is, to know the true merits or powers of each horse; notwithstanding which it often happens that the knowing ones are taken in.
knowledge-box
The head.—Pugilistic.
knuckle
To fight with fists, to pommel.