blue plumb
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
A bullet.--Surfeited with a blue plumb; wounded with a bullet. A sortment of George R--'s blue plumbs; a volley of ball, shot from soldiers' firelocks.
Era: ca. 1811 (Georgian)
Where it’s used:
Origin
British & Irish English
Sources & notes
Historical definition reproduced from Grose’s Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue (1811 edition, public domain; Project Gutenberg #5402, retrieved 2026-07-31). Reflects the attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “blue plumb” mean?
A bullet.--Surfeited with a blue plumb; wounded with a bullet. A sortment of George R--'s blue plumbs; a volley of ball, shot from soldiers' firelocks.
Is “blue plumb” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.