billycock
(ˈbɪlɪkɒk)
[App. the same as bully-cocked, used 1721, prob. meaning ‘cocked after the fashion of the bullies’ or hectoring blades of the period: see bully and cocked.]
A colloquial term for a round low-crowned felt hat worn by men, and sometimes also by young women. Also attrib.
| 1721 Amherst Terr. Fil. No. 46. 246 He [the Oxford ‘smart’] is easily distinguish'd by a stiff silk gown..a flaxen tie-wig..a broad bully-cocked hat, or a square cap of above twice the usual size. 1862 Life among Colliers 35, I was told to take off my bonnet, and tie a billy-cock (wide-awake) tight down. Mod. Newspaper. She..is masculine from the crown of her billycock hat, to the point of her laced-up double-soled boots. |