twangn.1
/twaŋ/, U.S. /twæŋ/ 1. figurative.1663 A. Cowley Cutter of Coleman-St. v. xiii. 69 There should ha' been..a lusty Cudgeling [at the end of the farce] to make it come off smartly with a twang at the tail.
a. A vocal imitation of the resonant sound produced when a tense string is sharply plucked or suddenly released; used as interjection or adverb, e.g. to cry twang, twang goes the bow. Also extended, †twangledom twang (obsolete). Cf. tang n.2 b.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > degree, kind, or quality of sound > resonance or sonority > other resonant sounds > [noun] > of string
twanga1556
twang1565
twingle-twangle1634
tang1669
twing twang1761
twanging1788
plunk1822
plunking1913
plung1952
society > leisure > the arts > music > musical sound > sound of instruments > [noun] > sound of stringed instrument
twanga1556
twingle-twangle1634
fum-fum1656
trangdilloa1704
twing twang1761
twangdillo1762
twanging1831
tum-tum1859
string-tone1928
a1556 N. Udall Ralph Roister Doister (?1566) ii. i. sig. C.iij Then vp to our lute at midnight, twangledome twang, Then twang with our sonets, and twang with our dumps.
1596 T. Nashe Haue with you to Saffron-Walden sig. L2 v He..made Powles Church-yard resound or crie twang againe with foure notable famous Letters.
1600 T. Dekker Shomakers Holiday sig. F Ile fill your bellies with good cheare til they crie twang.
c1720 M. Prior Advice of Venus 4 Twang goes the bow, my Girls, have at your hearts.
a1741 Robin Hood & Ranger ix, in F. J. Child Eng. & Sc. Pop. Ballads (1888) III. v. 153/1 He made his broad weapon cry twang.
1881 W. Besant & J. Rice Chaplain of Fleet II. iv. 80 Twang, twang, twang, went the fiddles.
b. A sound of the above character; also, any sharp ringing sound resembling this. In quot. 1565 figurative.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > degree, kind, or quality of sound > resonance or sonority > other resonant sounds > [noun] > of string
twanga1556
twang1565
twingle-twangle1634
tang1669
twing twang1761
twanging1788
plunk1822
plunking1913
plung1952
1565 T. Stapleton Fortresse of Faith f. 8 To go to the matter alleaged directly without idle twanges.
1567 T. Drant tr. Horace Arte of Poetrie sig. Bv With twang of harp to stir the stones.
1594 T. Nashe Vnfortunate Traveller sig. M4v None of them could make the cord come aloft with a twange halfe like him.
?1611 G. Chapman tr. Homer Iliads iv. 143 The sinew forged string Did giue a mightie twang; and forth, the eager shaft did sing.
1728 A. Pope Dunciad ii. 232 So swells each Windpipe; Ass intones to Ass, Harmonic twang! of leather, horn, and brass.
1779 J. Warner in J. H. Jesse G. Selwyn & his Contemp. (1844) IV. 133 The last twang of the postman's bell.
1805 J. Grahame Sabbath (ed. 2) 78 The buzz..of moss-entangled bee, That soon as loos'd booms with full twang away.
1853 E. K. Kane U.S. Grinnell Exped. (1856) xxiv. 196 The twang of a bow-string.
1858 R. S. Surtees Ask Mamma li A twang of the horn.
c. transferred and figurative. Ringing sound or tone.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > speech > speech-making > [noun] > loud or vociferous oratory > quality of being declamatory
twanga1657
declamatoriness1844
a1657 G. Daniel Poems (1878) I. 89 When to the Twang of meeter, Poesie Shall fall to Sordid Groomes.
a1680 S. Butler Elephant in Moon ii. 181 Transported with the Twang Of his own Elocution.
1714 R. Fiddes Pract. Disc. (ed. 2) II. 345 Great things have been done by the mere twang of two or three good words.
1825 T. Hook Sayings & Doings 2nd Ser. III. 168 His father-in-law..had just pitched his voice to the true poetical twang.
2.
a. The modification of vocal sound by its passage through the nose; nasal intonation, as formerly attributed to the Puritans; now esp. as characterizing the pronunciation of an individual, a country, or locality. More fully nasal twang, twang of the nose.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > linguistics > study of speech sound > speech sound > speech sound by manner > [noun] > sonant > nasal > nasalization
twang1663
nasalization1855
1663 S. Butler Hudibras: First Pt. i. iii. 250 To find in lines of beard and face, The Physiognomy of Grace; And by the sound and twang of Nose, If all be sound within disclose.
1666 R. South Serm. preached at Lambeth-Chappel 21 To make..incoherent Stuff, seasoned with Twang and Tautology, pass for high Rhetorick and moving Preaching.
1704 J. Swift Disc. Mech. Operat. Spirit ii, in Tale of Tub 311 By this Method, the Twang of the Nose, becomes perfectly to resemble the Snuffle of a Bag-pipe.
1839 S. Smith Mem. & Lett. (1855) II. ccccxv She..has the true Kentucky twang through the nose, converting that promontory into an organ of speech.
1902 R. Bagot Donna Diana ii. 13 A wealthy American widow, the owner of a pronounced twang.
b. A distinctive manner of pronunciation or intonation differing from that usual, or regarded as the standard, in a country; esp. one associated with a particular district or locality.In some of the earlier instances the figurative notion of ‘a smack’ is perhaps intended: cf. twang n.2 2.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > speech > manner of speaking > accent > [noun]
accent1596
tang1669
tonea1680
twang1699
cadence1726
blas1906
yack1957
1699 R. Bentley Diss. Epist. Phalaris (new ed.) 313 Phalaris..must needs, for that reason, have a twang of their Dialect.
1705 W. Elstob in T. Hearne Remarks & Coll. (1885) I. 109 I'll make you Master of ye Gallick Twang.
1706 Phillips's New World of Words (new ed.) Twang,..an ill sound in one's Pronunciation.
1707 G. Farquhar Beaux Stratagem iii. 28 You talk very good English, but you have a mighty Twang of the Foreigner.
1725 D. Cotes tr. L. E. Du Pin New Eccl. Hist. 17th Cent. I. ii. iii. 35 His Italian has a twang of the Country in which he liv'd.
1736 F. Drake Eboracum i. vii. 242 The broad open accent, and twang, of the more northern [people].
1781 F. Burney Jrnl. Aug. in Early Jrnls. & Lett. (2003) IV. 444 The Hibernian twang of his pronunciation.
1822 W. Scott Fortunes of Nigel I. ii. 52 His voice had a twang in it.
1852 W. M. Thackeray Henry Esmond III. v. 139 A grating voice that had an Irish twang.
1852 W. M. Thackeray Henry Esmond III. viii. 188 This family..spoke French with the twang which the Flemings use.
1855 A. Bain Senses & Intellect ii. ii. 473 By ‘accent’ I understand that indescribable accompaniment with the voice, termed also ‘twang’ or ‘brogue’..which constitutes the indelible distinction between English, Irish, Scotch, Americans, French, &c.
1863 M. E. Braddon Aurora Floyd III. v. 73 They talked with that honest northern twang.
1883 Good Words 24 12 You must not be too near them, or you will hear the Cockney twang.
3. transferred. A ringing or resounding blow. Cf. twank v. rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > impact > striking > striking in specific manner > [noun] > striking so as to produce sound > striking with a resounding blow > a resounding blow
clap?14..
twang1712
whang1770
1712 R. Steele Spectator No. 504. ⁋1 These can slap you on the back unawares,..ask you how you do with a twang on your shoulders.
1843 E. Bulwer-Lytton Last of Barons I. i. i. 16 The leathern gauntlet that protected the arm from the painful twang of the string.
4. transferred. A sharp pluck or twitch; a tweak; also, the effect of this: a twinge, a sharp pang. Now dialect.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > suffering > mental anguish or torment > [noun] > a pang
stitch?c1225
prong1440
twitch?1510
pang1534
pincha1566
aculeusa1612
twinge1622
twang1721
tang1724
twinging1816
brain-ache1836
the world > health and disease > ill health > pain > types of pain > [noun] > sudden pain
stitchc1000
showera1300
shutea1300
gridea1400
gripa1400
shota1400
stounda1400
lancing1470
pang1482
twitch?1510
shooting1528
storm1540
stitching1561
stub1587
twinge1608
gird1614
twang1721
tang1724
shoot1756
darting1758
writhe1789
catch1830
lightning pain1860
twitcher1877
rash1900
the world > movement > impelling or driving > pushing and pulling > [noun] > pulling > a sudden or sharp pull
tita1425
pluck1440
twitching1478
twitch?1523
tuck1648
twang1721
twiga1800
twerk1820
yank1888
1721 Coll. Polit. Lett. London Jrnl. 1720 29 A Kick in the Breech, or a Twang by the Nose.
1723 A. Ramsay Fair Assembly xvi 'T wad gi'e your hearts a twang!
1728 A. Ramsay To G. Drummond ix Few twangs of guilt they feel.
a1796 R. Burns Poems & Songs (1968) II. 791 Your envenom'd stang, That shoots my tortur'd gums alang, An' thro' my lugs gies mony a bang...Tearing my nerves wi' bitter twang.
1825 J. T. Brockett Gloss. North Country Words Twang, a quick pull, a tweak—also pain.
1852 C. Tomlinson Cycl. Useful Arts (1854) II. 4/1 He then..gives repeated and sudden twangs to the string [in bowing furs for hats].
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1916; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
twangn.2
1.
a. A penetrating or persisting taste, flavour, or odour, usually disagreeable: = tang n.1 5.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > taste and flavour > [noun]
smacka1000
savour?c1225
relesec1330
tastea1382
sentimentc1400
smatchc1400
taragec1407
tangc1440
weffec1440
tallage14..
sapor1477
verdurea1513
verdour1526
relish1530
verder1532
gustc1540
waft1542
smacker1549
talent1550
tack1602
tache1607
tincture1610
twang1611
foretaster1632
flavour1693
gusto1713
goût1751
saporosity1794
gustativeness1827
savouring1840
sipidity1880
palate1973
1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues Deboire, an after taste, ill smacke, or twang, which an vnsauorie thing leaues behind in the mouth.
1670 W. Simpson Hydrol. Ess. 69 The brackishness and sulphureous twang of the lee of kelp.
1768 A. Tucker Light of Nature (1834) I. 468 Though the liquor was not at all impaired thereby..it might get some twang of the vessel.
1809 Med. & Physical Jrnl. 21 476 Its smell is alliaceous, mixed with another twang..still less grateful.
1859 F. E. Paget Curate of Cumberworth 242 I particularly dislike a twang of onion.
1891 T. Hardy Tess of the D'Urbervilles II. xxii. 13 A customer..complained that the butter had a twang.
b. a tongue with a twang: see tang n.1 5c.
ΚΠ
1823 Dryden & Davenant's Shakespeare's Tempest ii. 21 She had a tongue with a twang [earlier eds. tang].
2. figurative. A trace or suggestion of some specified origin, quality, or the like; a ‘smack’, touch, tinge; a taint; = tang n.1 6.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > quantity > smallness of quantity, amount, or degree > [noun] > a small quantity or amount > a slight touch or trace
specec1330
taste1390
lisounc1400
savourc1400
smatcha1500
smell?a1505
spice1531
smack1539
shadow1586
surmise1586
relish1590
tang1593
touch1597
stain1609
tincture1612
dasha1616
soula1616
twanga1640
whiff1644
haut-goût1650
casta1661
stricturea1672
tinge1736
tinct1752
vestige1756
smattering1764
soupçon1766
smutch1776
shade1791
suspicion1809
lineament1811
trait1815
tint1817
trace1827
skiff1839
spicing1844
smudgea1871
ghost1887
a1640 P. Massinger Guardian v. iv. 84 in 3 New Playes (1655) This is neither begging, borrowing, nor robbery, Yet it hath a twang of all of them.
1702 Eng. Theophrastus 331 The Fondness or Indifference that Philosophers express'd for Life, was but a particular Twang of the Love of them~selves.
1826 W. Scott Jrnl. 2 May (1939) 164 Yesterday had a twang of frost in it.
1855 N. Hawthorne Jrnl. 2 Aug. in Eng. Notebks. (1997) I. iii. 283 This position of tutor to a young Englishman..has an ugly twang of upper servitude.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > digestive or excretive organs > digestive organs > mouth > types or spec. teeth > [noun] > canine
seizera1425
eyetooth1530
dog-tooth1552
griper1600
canine tooth1607
holder1672
twang1677
peg tooth1681
wick1726
fanger1763
canine1835
cuspid1878
pin tooth1886
stomach-tooth1890
1677 R. Plot Nat. Hist. Oxford-shire 276 Rapine with her fiery eyes, grinning teeth, sharp twangs, her hand imbrewed in blood.
1682 London Gaz. No. 1782/4 Lost.., two Land Spaniels, a Dog and Bitch,..the ends of the two upper Twangs of the Dog cut off.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1916; most recently modified version published online June 2021).
† twangn.3
Obsolete.
huddle and twang, a term of contempt for a person. Cf. cum-twang n., huddle n. 3. Differently, and perhaps improperly, applied in quot. 1591.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > goodness and badness > inferiority or baseness > inferior person > [noun] > held in contempt
thingOE
cat?c1225
geggea1300
fox-whelpc1320
creaturea1325
whelp1338
scoutc1380
turnbroach14..
foumart1508
shit1508
get?a1513
strummel?a1513
scofting?1518
pismirea1535
clinchpoop1555
rag1566
huddle and twang1578
whipster1590
slop1599
shullocka1603
tailor1607
turnspit1607
fitchewa1616
bulchin1617
trundle-taila1626
tick1631
louse1633
fart1669
insect1684
mully-grub-gurgeon1746
grub-worm1752
rass1790
foutre1794
blister1806
snot1809
skin1825
scurf1851
scut1873
Siwash1882
stiff1882
bleeder1887
blighter1896
sugar1916
vuilgoed1924
klunk1942
fart sack1943
fart-arse1946
jerkwad1980
society > society and the community > social class > the common people > low rank or condition > low or vulgar person > [noun]
gadlinga1300
geggea1300
churlc1300
filec1300
jot1362
scoutc1380
beggara1400
carla1400
turnbroach14..
villainc1400
gnoffc1405
fellowc1425
cavelc1430
haskardc1487
hastardc1489
foumart1508
strummel?a1513
knapper1513
hogshead?1518
jockeya1529
dreng1535
sneakbill1546
Jack1548
rag1566
scald1575
huddle and twang1578
sneaksby1580
companion1581
lowling1581
besognier1584
patchcock1596
grill1597
sneaksbill1602
scum1607
turnspit1607
cocoloch1610
compeer1612
dust-worm1621
besonioa1625
world-worma1625
besognea1652
gippo1651
Jacky1653
mechanic1699
fustya1732
grub-worm1752
raff1778
person1782
rough scuff1816
spalpeen1817
bum1825
sculpin1834
soap-lock1840
tinka1843
'Arry1874
scruff1896
scruffo1959
1578 J. Lyly Euphues f. 38v Though Curio bee olde huddle and twange, ipse, hee, yet Euphues had rather shrinke in the weeting, then wast in the wearing.
1591 J. Florio Second Frutes 41 Who lets his wife goe to euerie feaste..Shall haue..of his best wife a twang with a huddle.
1600 A. Munday et al. First Pt. True Hist. Sir I. Old-castle sig. B3 If euer woolfe were cloathed in sheepes coate, Then I am he, olde huddle and twang, yfaith.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1916; most recently modified version published online March 2021).
† twangn.4
/twaŋ/, U.S. /twæŋ/ Australian slang. Obsolete.
Opium.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > use of drugs and poison > an intoxicating drug > [noun] > a) narcotic drug(s) > opium
poppyOE
opiec1385
opiuma1398
afion1542
meconium1601
mud1852
yen she1882
smoke1884
dope1886
hop1887
twang1898
weed1918
gow1922
yen1926
tar1935
gee1936
1898 Bulletin (Sydney) 1 Oct. 14/3 A few more W.Q. [sc. West Queensland] slang words... Opium ‘twang’, a Chinaman a ‘canary’ [etc.].
1910 S. E. O'Brien & A. G. Stephens Material for Dict. Austral. Slang 1900–10 (typescript) Twang, opium.
1945 T. Ronan Strangers on Ophir (1966) 68 The honest Chinese limits himself to his one pipe of ‘Twang’ per night.
1966 S. J. Baker Austral. Lang. (ed. 2) 157 Opium was once known as twang in bush slang (the later use of treacle was noted earlier).
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1986; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
twangv.1
I. Of sound.† 5. Of a speaker:† b. intransitive. To speak. Obsolete. rare.
1. intransitive. To give forth a ringing note, as a tense string or a stringed instrument when plucked; to clang. Said also of the sound produced. Also figurative. †to go off twanging, to be a great success. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > degree, kind, or quality of sound > resonance or sonority > other resonant sounds > [verb (intransitive)] > of string
twang1567
harp1657
plunk1894
1567 [implied in: T. Drant tr. Horace Arte of Poetrie sig. Avijv With the twanginge instrumente The singers voyce did matche. (at twanging adj. a)].
1570 P. Levens Manipulus Vocabulorum sig. Biv/1 To Twangue, resonare.
1607 R. Turner Nosce Te sig. F3 Now noses twang, guts grone.
1626 G. Sandys tr. Ovid Metamorphosis vi. 114 This said, the bow-string twangs.
1629 P. Massinger Roman Actor ii. i. sig. E3 Had he died As I resolue to doe,..It [sc. a play] had gone off twanging.
1700 J. Dryden tr. Homer 1st Bk. Ilias in Fables 192 His Bow twang'd, and his Arrows rattl'd as they flew.
1726 W. Starrat Pastoral in Praise A. Ramsay (single sheet) What tuneless Heart-strings wadna twang, Whan Burchet or Tartana fills thy Sang?
1812 H. Smith & J. Smith Rejected Addr. 117 Winds the french horn, and twangs the tinkling harp.
1840 R. H. Dana Two Years before Mast xviii. 50 We found the violin and guitar screaming and twanging away under the piazza.
1862 Mrs. H. Wood Mrs. Halliburton's Troubles II. v. 51 [She] burst in at the door, with a jerk that made its inside bell twang and tinkle.
2. † b. to twang one's nose, to blow the nose loudly (see also 6). Obsolete.
a. transitive. To cause to make a ringing note, as by plucking or twitching a tense string or strings of a bow or of a musical instrument; hence, to play on (an instrument). Also figurative.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > music > performing music > playing instruments > playing stringed instrument > play stringed instrument [verb (transitive)]
warble1578
twang1579
sweep1638
1579–80 T. North tr. Plutarch Lives (1595) 949 The Scythians, when they are disposed to drink drunk together, do diuerse times twang the strings of their bowes.
1652 E. Benlowes Theophila iii. i. 37 Muse, twang the pow'rful Harp, & brush each String.
1788 R. Cumberland tr. Aristophanes Clouds viii He would not sit twanging the lute, not he.
1854 W. M. Thackeray Newcomes I. xxxi. 305 Musicians came and twanged guitars to her.
1864 C. Engel Music Most Anc. Nations 45 The strings are of lamb's gut, and are twanged with two small plectra.
1910 J. MacIntosh Poets of Ayrshire 139 Hoar Winter twangs his trump in vain.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > cleanness and dirtiness > cleaning > cleaning or cleanliness of the person > clean the person [verb (intransitive)] > clean the nose
snitea1100
to twang one's nose1748
handkerchief1753
1748 S. Richardson Clarissa V. l. 343 The mother twang'd her damn'd nose.
1810 S. Green Reformist I. 202 Percival felt for his handkerchief, twanged his nose.
3. † b. In the phrases the worst that, as good as, ever twanged. Obsolete.
a. intransitive. To produce a ringing note by or as by plucking a string or stringed instrument; hence (in depreciative sense) to play on a stringed instrument. to twang (all) upon one string, to twang the same string: cf. harp v. 2.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > music > performing music > playing instruments > playing stringed instrument > play stringed instrument [verb (intransitive)] > strum
twangle1558
thrum1592
twang1594
thrumble1685
strum1785
tum-tum1866
rum-strum1872
1594 J. Lyly Mother Bombie iii. iv. (song) Then I wish'd for a noyse Of crack-halter Boyes, On Those hempen strings to be twanging.
1624 J. Gee New Shreds Old Snare 18 The plots of their Comedies twang all vpon one string.
a1669 H. Foulis Hist. Romish Treasons (1671) ii. iv. 103 Both twang upon the same string.
1840 R. H. Dana Two Years before Mast xxvii. 92 The musicians were still there,..scraping and twanging away.
1885 Christian World 15 Jan. 38/5 They took to twanging away on what seemed an inferior kind of guitar.
ΚΠ
1542 N. Udall tr. Erasmus Apophthegmes f. 110v A minstrel..ye wurste that euer twanged.
1579 S. Gosson Schoole of Abuse f. 6v His skill is showne too make his Scholer as good as euer twangde.
1678 J. Ray Coll. Eng. Prov. (ed. 2) 285 As good as ever twang'd.
1681 W. Robertson Phraseologia generalis (1693) 486 The worst that ever twang'd; He has all the ill qualities that you can name.
4. transitive. To play (a melody or the like) on a stringed instrument; to sound forth on a twanging instrument. Also said of the instrument or its strings.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > music > performing music > playing instruments > playing stringed instrument > play stringed instrument [verb (transitive)] > play (music) on
twang1542
sweep1816
1542 N. Udall tr. Erasmus Apophthegmes f. 207 Paris with his harpe did nothyng but twang fonde fansies of daliaunce and lasciuiousnesse.
1577 R. Stanyhurst Treat. Descr. Irelande viii. f. 28/2, in R. Holinshed Chron. I When the harper twangeth or singeth a song, all the company must be whist, or else he chafeth like a cutpurse, by reason his harmony is not had in better price.
1582 R. Stanyhurst tr. Virgil First Foure Bookes Æneis i. 21 Curled Iöppas Twangd on his harp golden, what he whillon learned of Atlas.
1809 W. Irving Hist. N.Y. I. iv. iii. 216 His sturdy trumpeter strutted up and down..twanging his trumpet in the face of the whole world.
1842 W. M. Thackeray Confessions of G. Fitz-Boodle: Ottilia ii She twanged off a rattling piece of Liszt.
1851 H. D. Wolff Madrilenia (1853) 111 Three guitar players, hired for the occasion, twanged a variety of airs.
1872 W. Black Strange Adventures Phaeton xiv The cords of the guitar twanged out a few notes.
a. transitive. To utter with a sharp ringing tone; = tang v.2 2. Obsolete. rare.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > speech > manner of speaking > say in a particular manner [verb (transitive)] > utter in a ringing tone
tanga1616
twanga1616
a1616 W. Shakespeare Twelfth Night (1623) iii. iv. 177 A terrible oath, with a swaggering accent sharpely twang'd off. View more context for this quotation
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > speech > speak [verb (intransitive)]
matheleOE
speakc888
spellc888
yedc888
i-quethec900
reirdOE
meldOE
meleOE
quidOE
i-meleOE
wordOE
to open one's mouth (also lips)OE
mootOE
spellc1175
carpa1240
spilec1275
bespeakc1314
adda1382
mella1400
moutha1400
utter?a1400
lalec1400
nurnc1400
parlec1400
talkc1400
to say forthc1405
rekea1450
to say on1487
nevena1500
quinch1511
quetch1530
queckc1540
walk1550
cant1567
twang1602
articulate1615
tella1616
betalk1622
sermocinate1623
to give tongue1737
jaw1748
to break stillness1768
outspeaka1788
to give mouth1854
larum1877
to make noises1909
verbal1974
1602 B. Jonson Poetaster i. ii. sig. B The tongue of the Oracle neuer twangd truer. View more context for this quotation
1602 B. Jonson Poetaster v. iii. sig. M Thou twangst right, little Horace.
6.
a. intransitive. To speak with a nasal intonation or twang. Also transitive with nose (cf. 2b). rare.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > speech > manner of speaking > speak in a particular manner [verb (intransitive)] > speak nasally
to speak through (also in) the (or one's) nose1598
twang1615
snafflea1635
snuffle1634
snoach1844
nasillate1859
snifter1880
1615 [implied in: R. Brathwait Strappado 204 Brad-ford..Stile it I might Banberry of the North..Famous for twanging, Ale, Zeale, Cakes and Cheese. (at twanging n.)].
1826 W. Scott Woodstock I. v. 130 With yonder puritanic, round-headed soldiers..I..twanged my nose, and turned up my eyes.
1844 N. P. Willis Lady Jane i. 238 Nasal Smith and Jones Will twang as usual in ‘the better sphere’.
b. transitive. To utter or pronounce with a nasal or other twang.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > speech > manner of speaking > say in a particular manner [verb (transitive)] > nasally
snaffle1616
snuffle1641
nosea1643
twang1748
snifter1880
1748 S. Richardson Clarissa IV. xxi. 99 She..twang'd out a high-ho..and was silent.
1754 J. Shebbeare Marriage Act I. iii. 21 The Master of the Family..twangs the Dictates of the Gospel through his Nose all Sunday.
1836 T. Hook Gilbert Gurney I. 155 Hearing Miss Crab..twang out the following.
1853 W. M. Thackeray Eng. Humourists ii. 66 The Cicerone twangs his moral.
1864 Daily Tel. 29 July A purer Whitechapel accent..than that with which a damsel with a dulcimer twanged out a nasal-guttural lyric.
1893 E. Saltus Madam Sapphira 191 ‘Now Becky,’ twanged the ponderous person, ‘what is your name?’
II. Of the action (without special reference to the sound).† 9. intransitive. To pluck, twitch at. Obsolete. rare.
7.
a. transitive. To pull or pluck (the string of a bow), so as to shoot.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > military equipment > operation and use of weapons > action of propelling missile > use of bow and arrow > shoot (arrow) [verb (transitive)] > draw (bow)
drawc1275
twang1600
updraw1600
span1878
1600 E. Fairfax tr. T. Tasso Godfrey of Bulloigne vii. ciii. 137 But from his quiuer huge a shaft he hent, And set it in his mightie bowe new bent, Twanged the string, out flew the quarell long, And..hit the knight.
1715 A. Pope tr. Homer Iliad I. i. 67 He twang'd his deadly Bow, And hissing fly the feather'd Fates below.
1890 C. Martyn Wendell Phillips 236 Those [wits] twanged their bow-strings and sped their arrows of ridicule at so plain a target.
1891 E. Field Bk. Western Verse 25 He twanged his bow.
b. Used with reference to the bow (see bow n.1 13) employed in hat-making; also with the material as object.
ΘΚΠ
the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > tailoring or making clothes > making headgear > make headgear [verb (transitive)] > make hats > carry out specific processes
block1622
plait1723
shear1728
ruff1842
plank1875
shave1875
velure1880
twang1882
half-block1884
1882 E. A. Floyer Unexplored Baluchistan 326 A boy ‘twanging’ wool with a bow, and reducing it to a coarse fluff.
1886 R. Holland Gloss. Words County of Chester at Bow To ‘twang the bow’ was formerly considered a very skilful branch of hat manufacturing.
8.
a. transitive. To discharge (an arrow) with a twang of the bow-string; to let fly (an arrow). In quot. 1751 absol. Also figurative.
ΚΠ
1751 T. Smollett Peregrine Pickle IV. xcv. 30 She..twanged off with the appellations of b—— and w——.
1807 Salmagundi 18 Apr. 146 To be shot by the first lady's eye that can twang an arrow.
1847 Ld. Tennyson Princess ii. 43 A thousand baby loves Fly twanging headless arrows at the hearts.
1850 E. B. Browning tr. Æschylus Prometheus Bound (rev. ed.) in Poems (new ed.) I. 172 Where Scythia's shepherd peoples dwell aloft..And twang the rapid arrow past the bow.
1862 W. M. Thackeray Adventures of Philip I. xi. 193 This..may not have been the precise long bow which George Firmin..pulled; but..he twanged a famous lie out.
1863 Reader 31 Oct. 502 An athletic man..has twanged an arrow from his box against some object.
b. intransitive. Of an arrow: To leave the bow-string with a twang.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > degree, kind, or quality of sound > resonance or sonority > other resonant sounds > [verb (intransitive)] > of arrow
twang1796
society > armed hostility > military equipment > operation and use of weapons > action of propelling missile > use of bow and arrow > shoot arrows [verb (intransitive)] > of arrow: leave bow-string with twang
twang1796
1796 S. T. Coleridge Poems Var. Subj. 75 When twang'd an arrow from Love's mystic string.
1831 G. P. R. James Philip Augustus I. v The missile twanged away from the string.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > impelling or driving > pushing and pulling > push and pull [verb (intransitive)] > pull > sharply
twitchc1300
pluck?a1430
twanga1678
yank1822
pull1826
a1678 A. Marvell Appleton House 648 At my lines the fishes twang.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1916; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
twangv.2
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > suffering > mental anguish or torment > cause of mental anguish or torment > cause anguish to or torment [verb (transitive)] > afflict with pangs > furnish with a point
twang1679
1679 J. Dryden & N. Lee Oedipus v. 73 While her Thundring Voice she menac'd high, And every Accent twang'd with smarting sorrow.
2. To cause (a sharp object) to pierce through something; to thrust through. rare.
ΚΠ
1821 J. Clare Village Minstrel I. 155 How deep was the sorrow.., Like a bramble-thorn twang'd through her heart!
3. intransitive. To have a twang or ‘smack’ of something specified; to savour of. rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > relationship > similarity > be similar [verb (intransitive)] > have a touch, tinge, or suggestion of
soundc1340
smatchc1380
soundc1380
savourc1454
smell1526
taste1559
relish1577
smacka1616
reflect1617
seasona1625
tincture1787
twang1821
1821 W. Scott Kenilworth I. iv. 76 Your speech twangs too much of the old stamp.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1916; most recently modified version published online September 2021).
<
n.1a1556
n.21611
n.31578
n.41898v.11542v.21679- cattle-maiming
- cattle-market
- cattle-minder
- cattle-pad
- cattle-park
- cattle-path
- cattle-pen
- cattle-piece
- cattle-pit
- cattle-plague
- cattle-post
- cattle-proof
- cattle-pump
- cattle-puncher
- cattle-punching
- cattle-racket
- cattle-raiding
- cattle-raik
- cattle-raiser
- cattle-raising
- cattle-range
- cattle-rearing
- cattle-road
- cattle-run
- cattle-rustler