trot
Preserved but no longer current.
To "run up," to oppose, to bid against at an auction. Private buyers at auctions know from experience how general is the opposition against them from dealers, "knock-outs," and other habitués of sales, who regard the rooms as their own peculiar domain. "We TROTTED him up nicely, didn’t we?" i.e., we made him (the private buyer) pay dearly for what he bought.
Era: ca. 1874 (Victorian)
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 “trot” mean?
To "run up," to oppose, to bid against at an auction. Private buyers at auctions know from experience how general is the opposition against them from dealers, "knock-outs," and other habitués of sales, who regard the rooms as their own peculiar domain. "We TROTTED him up nicely, didn’t we?" i.e., we made him (the private buyer) pay dearly for what he bought.
Is “trot” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.