maund

Preserved but no longer current.

Meaning · English

To beg; "MAUNDERING on the fly," begging of people in the streets.—Old Cant. MAUNG, to beg, is a term in use amongst the gipsies, and may also be found in the Hindoo vocabulary. MAUND, however, is pure Anglo-Saxon, from MAND, a basket. Compare BEG, which is derived from BAG—a curious parallel.

Era: ca. 1874 (Victorian)

Where it’s used: Origin British & Irish English
Sources & notes

Historical definition reproduced from Hotten’s The Slang Dictionary (1874, public domain; Project Gutenberg #42108, retrieved 2026-07-31). Reflects the attitudes of its era.

Common questions

What does “maund” mean?

To beg; "MAUNDERING on the fly," begging of people in the streets.—Old Cant. MAUNG, to beg, is a term in use amongst the gipsies, and may also be found in the Hindoo vocabulary. MAUND, however, is pure Anglo-Saxon, from MAND, a basket. Compare BEG, which is derived from BAG—a curious parallel.

Is “maund” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.