The Federation of Old Cornwall Societies

The Dialect of Cornwall

In Conjunction with Brian Stevens

Recorder of Dialect

Dialect

Meaning

Cornish

Comment

FACE:, 

"my face is my worst limb" one is healthier than the face indicates.,

FACKLE, FECKLE:,

inflammation, especially of the foot, 

Cor. fakel

FADDY: 

the Furry Day Dance. from Irish? "Long dance".

FADGE, FADGY: 

to devise, make do, get on. O.E. Cp. fooch.

FAGGOT: i

n wrestling, a bargain not to win, "to sell ones back". Cp. Fr. fagot.

FAINAGUE, FENEAG: 

to entice, to obtain my improper means. Fernaiging: cheating. Cp. reneague.

FAIR MO, FERA MO:

fair at St Ives on the Saturday before Advent. 

Cor. Fer mogh, fera mogh.

FAIRMAIDS:

see Fermades .  

53

C.S.W

FAIRY, VAIRY:

the weasel. O.Fr. vair. Cp. furet.

FAIRY PURSE: 

merrymaids' purse. .

53

C.S.W. p.114

FALKY: 

corn ready for cutting. 

Also barley beaten down by storm and needing a reaping hook (sickle) .

 Cor. falgh

Cor. fats

FALL ABROAD:

 to become stout (personal).

FALLOWS, FELLOWS: 

boards added to the sides of a cart.

FAN, VAN: 

a shovel. VANNING: the art of separation of alluvial metal.

FANG: 

an eye tooth. 

Also a dead branch of a tree. Verb: to get, to take, to take to O.E. "I don't fang to your notions".

FANGINGS: 

earnings, wages.

FANTIGUE, FANTEAGUE: 

fanciful, dainty. "She could'n cook any fantique traade."

FANTOD: 

ridiculous notion. Cp.tantad.

FARDEL: 

a bundle, a burden.

Cor fardel.

FARENUT, VAIR NUT: 

an earthnut. O.E. fearh.

FARTHING:

30 acres, anciently a quarter of a knight's fee of land.

FASHION: 

mental state. "I don't know what fashion I was."

FAST: 

undisturbed staple or clay beneath surface. O.E. faest.

FAUT, FAWT: .

a fault, mistake. 

Cor. fowt

FAUNS: 

a fall in wrestling.

Cor. fauns.

FAVOUR:

to resemble, as children to parents.

FAY:

"Iss fay" It is truly. 

Cor. Us fay.

FEAK: 

to cheat, to feign.

Cor. fukya

FEAP, FEEPER: 

a whistle made of qui!!, straw, reed or of elder or sycamore branchlet. Cp.

 Cor. whyp, whyban.

FEARNOUGHT: 

strong woollen garmet.

53

C.S.W.

FEARED:

 frightened. "more feared than hurt."

FEAT ST:

adj. Feasten. connected with patron saint, usually the Sunday and the Monday.

FEATHERBED:

 a bog, quagmire.

FEE: 

freehold property. Fee simple. "Our house is fee"

FEGARY:

a prank. a feat. also, finery.

FELLON:

 a whitlow, inflammation. M.E. Fellon herb: common chickweed or the mouse-ear chickweed.

FEN:

 fiend, term of abuse.

FEN COCK:

the water-rail.

FENTON

A Spring [water]

20

General

WC

FENTONPYTH

A Surface Well

20

General

WC

FERMADES, FAIRMAIDS: 

pilchards barrelled for export. .

20, 53

WC

FERN: 

bracken, especially after cutting and stacking for bedding of animals.

FERN WEB, FERNICOCK: 

the garden chafer.

FERNADDLING:

stealing.

FERN SUMMER: 

St. Luke's Summer, a fine spell coinciding with fern cutting.

FERNY FIRE:

 like a fern fire: soon hot, soon cold.

FESCUE or Vester:

a pointer for teaching of reading. A feather stripped of its vane.  

FETCH:

to reach, to get to. "fetch home".

FETCHING FIRE: 

being in a hurry.

FETTER LOCK: 

shackle for a horse turned out to grass. FIDDEN: stiffness.

FIDDLERS' GREEN: 

the sailor's paradise of grog, dancing etc.

FIDDLER'S MONEY: 

money saved in small amounts in change.

FIG: 

a raisin.

FIGGY DICKY:

flour, butter and sliced apple.

FIGGY duff: 

dough, suet and raisins baked as a pasty.

FILLAN:

insufficient, as "Junket is no fillan".

FIND ONESELF: 

to know onself. "I shouldn't find myself dressed up like that."

FINGER: 

depth of hole for blasting. "Three more fingers to bore".

FIRE:

as fire: vexed, jealous, drunk, mad. "Like fire flames" very red.  

FIRE HOOK: 

an iron piece with hooked end used to set a turf or a furze fire.

FIRK: 

to tease roughly by hand. O.E.

FIRE TAIL:

the redstart.

FIRE PIN:

section of log used as fuel. St. Neot.

FIRST ALONG:

at first, in the beginning. "First along when I knew him..."

FISH JOUSTER: 

see Jowster.

FISLAK:

a fidgety child. Cor. fyslak.

FIT:

 to prepare meat for cooking, prepare a meal. "When shall I fit the dinner?"

FITCH, FICHET, FITCHER: 

the polecat O.Fr. "Wild as a fitchet"

20

Common

WC

FITCHERED:

mining; a drill stuck or blocked.

FITTY:

 becoming, proper, correct. "He gave a fitty answer" "Walk fitty maid, thee's like a crab going to Scilly."  

FIVE FINGER:

the starfish. .

Cor. pympbys

FIVE POINTED STAR:

a sign cut on the dressel to keep out witchcraft.  

FLAIR:

 a stench. .

Cor. fler

FLAM:

nonsense, pretext.

FLAM NEW: r.

Cor. noweth flam, as W Et B

FLANG:

a two pointed pick.  

FLAP:

flash of lightning; also a squall. FLASH.

Flarricking

Flirting

17,

Common

M.C.,

1984

FLASKET:

 two handled wicker basket; clothes or linen basket. O.Fr. flasquet.

FLASHER:

a bird; the red-backed shrike.

FLAT HANDED:

a wrestling term.

FLAW: 

a gust of wind. Also colic in cattle.

FLAYGERRY: 

a frolic, a spree. .

Cor.? fleghyk gwary

FLEA RIB:

the spare rib.

FLEECHY: 

of dough, failure of barm, apt to run in baking. Fleechy dough: made of wheat that has germinated, "running to atal on the shiver" in baking. Cp. W. fflwch.

FLEET:

to gutter as a candle. Also, the slope of a roof. 

53

See C.S.W.  

FLEA:

an instrument for bleeding cattle.  

FLERK:

 a turn of bad weather.

FLERY-GO-LURGY:

fever of laziness? St. Just.

FLESH:

 meat but not pork.

FLOOKAN, FLEUKAN: 

a clay filled vein or soft ground interrupting a lode in mining. 

Cor. fluken.

FLIBBERS:

small threadlike fragments caused by fraying. FLICKETS: flushes, blushes, Cp. FLOSHES.

FLIG, FLIGGISH: 

contemptuous term for a child.

FLIES, FLIERS: 

the hands of a clock.

FLINK: 

a slight blow. To wave about such as a handkerchief. Also irritating behaviour; "She's in one of her flinks again." FLIP: a slap. Also, a little door in a fringle.  

FLIP JACK: 

a rude fireplace.

FLOP JACK: 

old fashioned mine.

FLISK.

a tooth comb, a horse comb.

FLOODS OF DAVA:

ages ago. 

See O.C.I., 4, p.28.

FLOOR:

of a meadow. "a good floor of grass"

FLOOR: 

of tin: stratum of ore as it lies in alluvial deposit, as in stream works, also horizontal formations of ore. Cp. Bunney. (Botallack).

FLOOPER: 

under petticoat.

FLORA IN DISTRESS: ?  

a woman with dishevelled hair. From an old play

FLORAN: 

fine meal tin stuff, flour tin. Cp. Welsh. 

Cor. floren.

FLOSH: 

to flush, wash. "flosh the courtlage" (yard)

FLOSH STAMPS: 

Stamps that wash the tin stuff over an adjustable ledge instead of through a grate or grating.

FLOUGE:

to deluge with water.  

FLOTE ORE: 

seaweed. O.E. float ware.

FLOWERY MILK: 

see WHITPOT

FLUE: 

a light dressing of dung over a field. O.E. to spread out.

FLY BY NIGHT, FLYING MARE: 

a restless person.

FLUTE AN ARROW: 

term of affection addressed to a child. 

Cor. flogh tenderra or flogh an wharra 

O.C. VII 480.

FLUSHET:

 a freshnet or flush; a dam in a stream (flood-let)

FOAL, FAULD: 

afterbirth of a calf.

FOACER: 

a lump of plain pudding or of broth to dampen appetite. "Will'ee have a foacer, me sin?" Also a large basin.

FOGO, FUGGOE, OGO, VUG:

 a cave in a cliff. In place names VUGGA, Vugh an flounder. 

Cor. fugo, fug, fougo, ogo. ancientunderground cave.

FOLYER:

the boat that carries the tuck. 

C.S.W. p.78.

FOOCH: E.D.D. 

variants, fulch, fudge, fadge. To make do, a makeshift 

2/ to row a boat stern first.

3/ in game of marbles to throw with the arm instead of fingers, jerking the hand forward.

4/ to pretend to be working. See also 

O.C.I. 3, p.39 and C.S.W.

FOLLEN VOLLAN:

a foam flake. W. molwyn. Also a sheet of paper. "as weak as a vollan" 

Cor. folen.

FORENDALL:

blind alley, pudding-bag lane, cul de sac 

Cor. furth hens-dall

O.C. V p.339. 

FOOTCH: 

to make an effort even if inefficient. Cp. Fadge. 

O.C.I., 3.

FOORTH AND BACK: 

shuffling, vacillating, to and fro.

FORTHY, FOORTHY:

 pert, precocious, forward, bold.

FOOTLINE, OF A NET. 

C.S.W.

FOOTY:

mincing, affected manner.

FOR: during.

 "Once for the day."

FORCE PUT:

to be under compulsion.

FORE DOOR: 

the front door.

FOREIGN LARD: 

imported lard, not home-grown.

FORE HEAP, FORE HIP:

 a throw in Wrestling.  

FORK: 

Mining. To pump dry "going into fork" when the air begins to be pumped.

FORKLE:

 iron hook to hold a boat lantern. 

C.S.W. p.79 Cor forkel.  

FORTY COCKS: 

of a crumpled hat "knocked into 40 cocks."

FORREL: 

a book cover. M.E. A binding without boards.

FOUR LEGGED CRIPPLE: 

a newt or a lizard.

FOSSICK: 

to extract news from a person, to ferret out.

FOWST, FOWSLED: 

soiled, untidy.

FOXES OF THE SEA: 

mullet.

FOXY:

uncertain weather. 

Also colour of china clay caused by Iron Oxide.  

C.S.W.

FRADGE, FRADJAN: 

dirty, evil smelling.

FRAIL: 

a handbag of sacking or Hessian. Also a straw basket.

FRANGO:

 a kind of shark.  

C.S.W.

FRAPE:

to wrap tightly. 

See C.S.W. p.79.

FRAT:

noisy argument. "for all your frat ..."

FRAYGUS: .

an untidy person. St. Ives

FREATH:

 to weave.

FREATH OUT

to unravel. To mend a gap in E hedge. M. E. frith. Cp. Cor. frudha.

FREE TRADERS: 

smugglers.

FRENCH FURZE:  

the common furze. . ----

See O.C. III p.455, 50

FRENCH WHEAT: 

buckwheat.

FRENCH NUTS:.

 walnuts

FRIDAY IN TIDE, F. IN LIDO: 

a miners' holiday, the first Friday in March. ?Perran.

FRIGHTENED: 

"I shouldn't be frightened if..." I should not be astonished.

FRINGLE: 

a fire-ingle. A raised hearth having a draught hole beneath, set either side the Slab in the kitchen for fuel other than coal for heating a large quantity of water.

FRIVOLOUS: 

liable to break.

FROCK: 

a man's blouse.

FORAY:

a little pleasure outing. North Hill.

FROZE: 

a row, disturbance. Cp. W. ffrawd.

FROASE: 

a tide-race, current. Cp. W. ffrawd. 

Cor. fros & fraus, fraws. 

C.S.W.

FUDGE:

see Footch.

FUGGAN: see HOGGAN. 

Miners' dinner-cake. Dough baked with meat in the middle. .

Cor. whyogen

FUNK: 

stink, especially copper fumes from calciner. O.Fr. funkier.

FUN: 

a rope. a fillet (headdress) Cor. ton, funen. Also a rush used to make sheep spans. Cp. VINNY, VIDNY.

FUNNY BUT WHISHT: 

comical if it were not also sad.

FURZE KITE, FUZZ KITE:  

the ring-tailed kite? or rough-legged buzzard.

FURZE CUFF:

a leather cylinder with a stick across the bottom as hand-hold to protect the furze-cutter's left forearm.

FUSY, VUSY, VAZY: 

(adjective) good. Mousehole? from 

Cor. a vas or fusyk.