Middle English Dictionary Entry

dogge n.
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Entry Info

Forms dogge n. Also dog, doge, doke. Pl. dogges, doggen.
Etymology OE docga (only one instance) & cp. doggene-berwe, -ford (place names). In early ME dogge is usually depreciatory or abusive; see sense 1.

Definitions (Senses and Subsenses)

1.
(a) An ordinary dog or cur; curre ~; (b) as a term of abuse or contempt: a worthless or contemptible person; wretch, cur; -- also, said of the Devil.
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2.
(a) A dog used in hunting or bearbaiting; ~ for the boue, a trained hunting dog; (b) a watchdog [cp. bond-dogge, t(e)ie ~]; a herdsman's dog; (c) fig. of a person: watchdog; (d) a male dog.
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3.
Proverbs and sayings: die as a dog; wake an old dog; two dogs over one bone; a dog returns to his vomit; etc.
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4.
A heavy metal clamp or brace of some kind; ~ of iren.
Show 6 Quotations
5.
Cpds. & combs.: (a) dog-bold, ?a watchdog; ?a tool [see OD dogbolt]; ~ drave, q.v.; ~ fenel, the plant Anthemis cotula, mayweed; ~ fighting, a dogfight (as a sport); ~ fish, some kind of fish, ?= dogger-fish, q.v.; also, as a transl. of L canis marinus, ?seal; ~ flie, a stinging insect of some kind, dogfly; ~ fox, a male fox [cp. 2 (d)]; ~ hole, an insignificant or miserable town; ~ mouth, a dog's mouth; ~ ston, some kind of millstone; ~ tail, a dog's tail; ~ tonge, the plant Cynoglossum officinale, hound's-tongue; ~ toth, a cur's tooth; ~ trot, an easy pace, dogtrot; ~ wash, drowning like a dog; (b) ~ fenel, ~ fenel, hog's fennel Peucedanum officinale; also stinking camomile Anthemis cotula; dogges fenkel, the plant Anthemis cotula, mayweed; dogges grece, the fat of a dog; dogges litere, a dog's litter or bedding; dogges leden, dog's language; (c) in surnames & place names [see Smith PNElem. 1.134]; (d) dogge(s sone, dog's son, son of a bitch. [See also band-dogge, bond ~; bocher ~; curre ~, tei(e ~, tie ~.]
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Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Latham glosses canis marinus as "(?) seal," while the DMLBS glosses it as "(?) dogfish".--per MLL

Supplemental Materials (draft)

  • a1484 7Planets (Trin-C R.14.52)687/15 : If he [Saturn] be in an erthly signe, it signifieth the dist[ru]ccioun of hem whiche bien of his seedis, that is to say, penurie of trees and their detrymentis or hurtis of wormes and locustes or dogflies.
    • Note: Additional quot., sense 5.(a).

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 5.(a)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. dog tooth.

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