sprungadj.1int.
/sprʌŋ/, U.S. /sprəŋ/ 1. That has arisen, grown, or come into existence. Chiefly with preceding modifying word, as first sprung, high sprung, naturally sprung. Sometimes with up. See also new-sprung adj.
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the world > plants > by growth or development > [adjective] > that has grown
upsprungc1000
sprouted?c1475
sprungc1485
speared1577
sprit1688
shot?1830
in full flush1893
the world > existence and causation > existence > [adjective] > coming into existence > that has come into existence
sprungc1485
upstarted1602
uprisen1621
the world > existence and causation > causation > source or origin > [adjective] > originated or derived
secondary1398
extract1483
sprungc1485
derivatea1513
extraughtc1515
derivative1530
derived1600
deductive1646
originated1647
originate1679
unprimitive1684
excretitious1820
originant1825
derivational1843
originary1886
extracted1903
c1485 ( G. Hay Bk. Knychthede (1993) iv. 28 A man of a new sprongyn lygnye.
1550 N. Lesse tr. St. Augustine Of Vertue of Perseueraunce xxiii. in tr. St. Augustine Predestination of Saints sig. &.viiv Thys predestination, which we nowe do defend..against a sort of newe sprong vp heretiques [L. novos haereticos].
1575 G. Gascoigne Dan Bartholmew (new ed.) in Posies p.lxxi God he knoweth..who pluckt hir first sprong rose.
1632 W. Lithgow Totall Disc. Trav. ix. 415 The high sprung Woods, threatning the clouds.
1765 J. Brown Christian Jrnl. 32 Lord, how oft do thick and high sprung weeds of corruption in my heart and practice, hide, even from myself, every proper appearance of grace.
1805 in Jrnls. Lewis & Clark Exped. (1990) VI. 16 Those Indians were all armed with Pistols or bows and arrows ready Sprung war axes &c.
1895 Daily News 25 Mar. 8/6 The newly sprung-up competition from the United States makers of this..tool.
1920 19th Cent. & After Dec. 1100 A sprung-up field of corn, a couple of new cottages, a landmark removed from a once-familiar landscape and—you are all at sea.
1980 R. Mabey Common Ground ii. i. 62 Wendover Wood is a large plantation (a collection of deliberately planted trees, as distinct from a naturally ‘sprung’ wood).
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c1500 King & Hermit in M. M. Furrow Ten 15th-cent. Comic Poems (1985) 250 The kyng had folowyd hym so long Hys god sted was ne sprong.
1676 London Gaz. No. 1120/4 The Gelding is sprang of the near leg before.
1696 J. Aubrey Miscellanies xiii. 110 To Cure a Beast that is Sprung, that is poysoned.
1902 N. Hillis Quest of Happiness in New-Church Rev. (1907) Oct. 497 The horse is sprung in the front, spavined behind, wind-broken in the middle.
3. Of a mast or other wooden object: cracked, split.
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the world > existence and causation > creation > destruction > breaking or cracking > [adjective] > broken > split, cleft, or cracked
rivena1325
crazeda1400
cracked1503
rifty1547
slived1548
rived1581
crazen1596
sprung1597
rifted1602
sliftered1602
flawed1639
chinky1645
slaven1688
sliven1688
cracky1725
reft1763
1597 J. Payne Royall Exchange 33 Besyde myne acquayntans with your sprung masts, torne sales from the yarde.
1667 J. Dryden Annus Mirabilis 1666 cxliii. 37 Tall Norway Fir, their Masts in Battel spent, And English Oak sprung leaks and planks restore.
1781 Naval Chron. 11 289 The main mast is a sprung mast.
1852 H. Newland Lect. Tractarianism 133 Some mixing mortar,..some strengthening the sprung beams.
1899 E. Phillpotts Human Boy 12 Browne..made that noise in his throat like a sprung bat.
1907 A. Kitson Capt. J. Cook xvi. 393 The main head of her main-mast was so badly sprung as to render the rigging of a jury-mast a matter of no little danger.
1952 Mariner's Mirror Feb. 12 He had parted company with the others in the July storm, his bowsprit being badly sprung in three places.
1987 W. Golding Close Quarters xii. 76 We have no topmasts, a sprung foremast and a ship that has been badly wrung.
2014 S. Davies East sails West v. 145 Not only was the bottom foul, but there were the sprung mast and the ripped sail to repair.
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the world > food and drink > hunting > thing hunted or game > action of game > [adjective] > starting game
sprung1605
unflushed1769
1605 J. Sylvester tr. G. de S. Du Bartas Deuine Weekes & Wks. ii. ii. 451 Our amaz'd first Grand-sires faintly fled, And like sprung Partridge [Fr. estonnez..comme Perdriaux] euery-where did spred.
1648 ‘Mercurio-Mastix Hibernicus’ Muzzle for Cerberus sig. D Once more to retrive my Sprung Woodcock, and to pounce him to some purpose.
1929 Field & Stream June 428/3 I do not infer that shooting these spaniel-sprung grouse is an easy matter.
5.
a. slang. Drunk; intoxicated. Cf. well-sprung adj. 1.
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the world > food and drink > drink > thirst > excess in drinking > [adjective] > drunk
fordrunkenc897
drunkena1050
cup-shottenc1330
drunka1400
inebriate1497
overseenc1500
liquor1509
fou1535
nase?1536
full1554
intoxicate1554
tippled1564
intoxicated1576
pepst1577
overflown1579
whip-cat1582
pottical1586
cup-shota1593
fox-drunk1592
lion-drunk1592
nappy1592
sack-sopped1593
in drink1598
disguiseda1600
drink-drowned1600
daggeda1605
pot-shotten1604
tap-shackled1604
high1607
bumpsy1611
foxed1611
in one's cups1611
liquored1611
love-pot1611
pot-sick1611
whift1611
owl-eyed1613
fapa1616
hota1616
inebriated1615
reeling ripea1616
in one's (or the) pots1618
scratched1622
high-flown?1624
pot-shot1627
temulentive1628
ebrious1629
temulent1629
jug-bitten1630
pot-shaken1630
toxed1635
bene-bowsiea1637
swilled1637
paid1638
soaken1651
temulentious1652
flagonal1653
fuddled1656
cut1673
nazzy1673
concerned1678
whittled1694
suckey1699
well-oiled1701
tippeda1708
tow-row1709
wet1709
swash1711
strut1718
cocked1737
cockeyed1737
jagged1737
moon-eyed1737
rocky1737
soaked1737
soft1737
stewed1737
stiff1737
muckibus1756
groggy1770
muzzeda1788
muzzya1795
slewed1801
lumpy1810
lushy1811
pissed1812
blue1813
lush1819
malty1819
sprung1821
three sheets in the wind1821
obfuscated1822
moppy1823
ripe1823
mixed1825
queer1826
rosined1828
shot in the neck1830
tight1830
rummy1834
inebrious1837
mizzled1840
obflisticated1840
grogged1842
pickled1842
swizzled1843
hit under the wing1844
obfusticatedc1844
ebriate1847
pixilated1848
boozed1850
ploughed1853
squiffy?1855
buffy1858
elephant trunk1859
scammered1859
gassed1863
fly-blown1864
rotten1864
shot1864
ebriose1871
shicker1872
parlatic1877
miraculous1879
under the influence1879
ginned1881
shickered1883
boiled1886
mosy1887
to be loaded for bear(s)1888
squiffeda1890
loaded1890
oversparred1890
sozzled1892
tanked1893
orey-eyed1895
up the (also a) pole1897
woozy1897
toxic1899
polluted1900
lit-up1902
on (also upon) one's ear1903
pie-eyed1903
pifflicated1905
piped1906
spiflicated1906
jingled1908
skimished1908
tin hat1909
canned1910
pipped1911
lit1912
peloothered1914
molo1916
shick1916
zigzag1916
blotto1917
oiled-up1918
stung1919
stunned1919
bottled1922
potted1922
rotto1922
puggled1923
puggle1925
fried1926
crocked1927
fluthered1927
lubricated1927
whiffled1927
liquefied1928
steamed1929
mirackc1930
overshot1931
swacked1932
looped1934
stocious1937
whistled1938
sauced1939
mashed1942
plonked1943
stone1945
juiced1946
buzzed1952
jazzed1955
schnockered1955
honkers1957
skunked1958
bombed1959
zonked1959
bevvied1960
mokus1960
snockered1961
plotzed1962
over the limit1966
the worse for wear1966
wasted1968
wired1970
zoned1971
blasted1972
Brahms and Liszt?1972
funked up1976
trousered1977
motherless1980
tired and emotional1981
ratted1982
rat-arsed1984
wazzed1990
mullered1993
twatted1993
bollocksed1994
lashed1996
1821 Real Life in London I. xiii. 230 A Charley about three parts sprung, and who appeared to have more light in his head than he could shew from his lantern.
1857 O. W. Wight Quinland I. i. x. 134 You are sprung and cut in the eye; come, rouse yourself.
1900 G. Ade More Fables 196 His Business Partner had been seen slightly Sprung at a Picnic.
1922 J. Joyce Ulysses ii. xv. [Circe] 560 Bloom. (Quickly.) O, the very man! (He whispers.) Simon Dedalus' son. A bit sprung. Get those policemen to move those loafers back.
2009 B. L. Satterwhite Playaz & Wolves xxxvi. 358 ‘I think I'm a little sprung myself.’ Ron sipped his drink, keeping his eyes on Martin.
b. U.S. slang. Usually with on. Besotted or infatuated with; sexually attracted to.
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1990 J. Ellroy L.A. Confidential xv. 104 Dot got the little twist sprung.
1994 A. Heckerling Clueless (film script, first shooting draft) (O.E.D. Archive) Green Revised Pages 63 Elton. I knew it, I knew it. Cher. (pushing him away) You knew what? Elton. That you were totally sprung on me.
2004 M. Sanz Her Prince rode White Horse xxxviii. 398 I was so sprung on you, I halfway thought we might have stood a chance.
2010 A. L. Yarborough Separation 212 The boy is on fire for you. Hell, anybody with half an eye can see he's sprung.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > inclination > [adjective] > placed at an angle > bevelling or bevelled
bevel1609
canted1649
bevelling1678
bevelled1758
chamfered?1790
splayed1823
sprung1825
splaying1874
snaped1875
1825 ‘J. Nicholson’ Operative Mechanic 601 The bevel..is termed the spring of the plank, and the edge thus bevelled is called the sprung edge.
7. Of verse, a line of poetry, etc.: written in sprung rhythm (sprung rhythm n. 1).The term was coined by Gerard Manley Hopkins (1844–89).
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1877 G. M. Hopkins Lett. to R. Bridges (1955) 45 The choruses in Samson Agonistes are intermediate between counterpointed and sprung rhythm. In reality they are sprung.
1935 W. B. Yeats Let. 16 Dec. (1954) 844 I think of writing for the first time in sprung verse (four stresses) with a certain amount of rhyme.
1981 Victorian Poetry Summer 103 Hopkins wrote very few four-beat sprung poems.
1997 T. Payne A–Z Great Writers 360/1 In Hopkins he saw the possibilities of sprung lines.
8. U.S. regional (chiefly southern and south Midland). Of a part of the body: sprained, strained.
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the world > health and disease > ill health > a disease > diseases of tissue > disorders affecting muscles > [adjective] > sprain or strain
wrenched1556
sprained1606
strained1611
raxed1824
ricked1839
paratonic1857
wrangled1876
sprung1912
pulled1913
1912 Spirit of West 7 Feb. (advt.) Reducine applied to a freshly sprung tendon, sprained ankle, bruised or broken knee, will subdue the severe pain.
1934 Gastonia (N. Carolina) Gaz. 8 Jan. 4/7 Green had the missfortune to fall out of bed in his sleep night befoar last and suffered a sprung wrist and a laccerated collar bone.
1974 Alice (Texas) Echo-News 13 Jan. 1/4 That injury was only a forerunner to the sprang ankles and wrists, slight concussion, ‘busted lips’, and knees that have been pulled out of socket.
2006 T. S. Jones Valley of Soul 296 Halld here tells me I've got a sprung knee, three busted fingers, and a concussion.
9. Of an alibi: introduced unexpectedly at the conclusion of court proceedings, giving the prosecution no chance to rebut it. Now historical.
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the mind > mental capacity > expectation > surprise, unexpectedness > [adjective] > causing unpleasant surprise
shocking1703
shattering1948
sprung1966
society > law > administration of justice > court proceedings or procedure > evidence > [adjective] > types of evidence
corroborative1655
probative1678
nickinga1734
justifiable1755
onerative1827
corroboratory1883
sprung1966
1966 Listener 1 Sept. 301/1 The sprung alibi in which the defence suddenly at the last minute..produces an alibi which has not been heard of before.
1973 K. Smith & D. J. Keenan Eng. Law (ed. 4) ii. 22 The abuse of ‘sprung’ or late alibis had been..widespread.
2002 D. Lipsey in K. Jefferys Labour Forces ii. vi. 107 The ‘sprung alibi’..was banned.
10. Australian. Of a person: to be caught engaged in an illicit or compromising activity. Also occasionally int.
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1990 Hobart Mercury (Nexis) 25 Oct. If they catch up with you, if you're sprung, you're out.
2001 A. Daddo Sprung! (Electronic ed.) ‘SPRUNG!’ she yelled in a state of obvious glee.
2016 Courier Mail (Austral.) (Nexis) 12 Nov. (Sports section) 86 John McCoy was caught red-handed. Well and truly sprung.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2017; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
sprungadj.2
/sprʌŋ/, U.S. /sprəŋ/ 1. Incorporating or fitted with a spring or springs. Frequently with preceding modifying adverb. Cf. spring v.2 2a.Recorded earliest in sprung-over at Compounds 1.
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the world > matter > constitution of matter > softness > pliableness > [adjective] > elastic > springy > provided with spring(s)
springed1788
sprung1869
oversprung1923
1869 Eng. Mechanic 22 Jan. 404/2 Even in ‘sprung-over’ watches the stud is made of steel, and often so narrow at the end that the pin cannot hold in firm.
1900 Engin. Mag. Jan. 528 Even in the most comfortably sprung automobile.
1948 R. Binnie & J. Boxall Housecraft (ed. 4) xvii. 197 Interior Sprung Beds..may occasionally be turned from side to side, or from end to end.
1982 N.Y. Times (Nexis) 22 June a26/1 It is inconceivable that Baby Boy Windsor..won't ride in a well-sprung pram pushed by a well-trained nanny.
2004 Prima Nov. 72/1 A sprung divan base and sprung mattress offer the ultimate in comfort.
2. Of a floor, esp. a dance floor: designed to provide a shock-absorbing, resilient surface. Cf. spring floor n. at spring n.1 Compounds 5e.
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society > leisure > dancing > place for dancing > [adjective] > type of floor
sprung1916
unsprung1928
the world > matter > constitution of matter > softness > pliableness > [adjective] > elastic > springy > constructed to be springy
sprung1916
1916 Times 26 Feb. 14/2 (advt.) Fine drawing room with polished sprung floor.
1966 J. B. Priestley Salt is Leaving xv. 202 Lights all colours. Sprung floor. Five-piece band.
1972 G. Hale Floors ix. 91 Spring floors, floors intended for dancing should have a degree of resilience and for this reason ballroom floors..are often fully sprung.
1994 Independent (Nexis) 25 Apr. 19 Then into the sports hall. Bright and new with a sprung floor marked out for basketball.
2015 J. Farrer & A. D. Field Shanghai Nightscapes i. 1 It was equipped with the latest state-of-the-art features, including a sprung dance floor.
Compounds
C1. Watchmaking. With adverbs, in †sprung-above (obsolete rare), sprung-over: designating a watch in which the balance spring is positioned above the balance. Also in sprung-under (now rare): designating a watch in which the balance spring is positioned below the balance.
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1869 Eng. Mechanic 22 Jan. 404/2 Even in ‘sprung-over’ watches the stud is made of steel, and often so narrow at the end that the pin cannot hold in firm.
1877 Horological Jrnl. Apr. 103/2 Make a piece of brass wire into the form of the stud of a sprung under watch.
1884 F. J. Britten Watch & Clockmakers' Handbk. (new ed.) 246 Sprung Over [or] Sprung Above, a watch in which the balance spring is attached to the staff above the balance.
1944 Jewelers' Circular-Keystone May 146/3 Sprung-over, arrangement in designing watches in which the hair-spring lies above the balance arms; differentiated from sprung-under watches with hairsprings located under the balance arms.
2000 National Assoc. Watch & Clock Collectors Bull. Feb. 88/2 The movement has a cut expansion balance, Breguet hairspring, and plain sprung-over regulator.
C2.
sprung edge adj. (of the base of a bed, seat, etc.) incorporating a layer of springs.
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1913 Register (Adelaide) 4 Jan. 10/4 Sprung edge large Easy Chair, beautifully upholstered in all-wool tapestry.
1976 Evening Standard 29 Dec. 6 (advt.) Pocketed spring mattress. Sprung-edge base.
2001 Times 16 Nov. 12/1 (advt.) Ultra Posturepedic sprung edge divan set.
sprung edged adj. (of the base of a bed, seat, etc.) incorporating a layer of springs.Sprung edge is the more usual term.
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1976 Star (Sheffield) 29 Oct. 3/3 (advt.) 3 piece 10 cushioned traditional suite in high quality Dralon, incorporating sprung-edged seating.
1988 Irish Times 30 July 22/2 Sprung edged Victorian Couch was £325, now £265.
2012 Sheffield Tel. (Nexis) 25 July A divan base can be sprung edged, firm edged, or have a solid top.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2017; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.1int.c1485
adj.21869