▪ I. † sault, n.1 Obs.
Forms: 3–6 saut, 4 saght, sauȝt, 4–5 sauht, sawt, 4–6 saute, sawte, 4–6 salt, 6 sault.
[Early ME. saut, aphetic form of assaut assault n., with later insertion of l as in that word.]
= assault n., in various senses.
| 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 11870 Wiþ a lance he broȝte a kniȝt atte verste saut þer doune. 1338 R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 125 Þe Gyour of his oste at þat saut [sc. on Lincoln] was slayn. a 1340 Hampole Ps. xii. 4 The deuel..makes his saute in vs, and bost bifor god, to gare vs be dampned if he may ouere com vs in any temptacioun. c 1350 Will. Palerne 2651 Þe king bi-seget þe cite selcouþli harde, & mani a sad sauȝt his sone þer-to made. 1375 Barbour Bruce xvii. 356 [At the siege of Berwick] Thai trumpit till ane sawt [v.r. salt] in hy. c 1380 Wyclif Epist. Domin. iv. Sel. Wks. II. 365 Þat ȝe may stonde aȝens þe fendis sautis. 1452 J. Paston in P. Lett. I. 232 Charlis Nowell with odir hath in this cuntre mad many riot and sautes. c 1477 Caxton Jason 11 Tho fewe that yet lyue dare not now yssue out more for to make ony saulte or scarmusche ayenst their ennemyes. 1510 Sel. Cases Crt. Star Chamber (Selden) 206 Thomas Withiford..and dyuerse moo made a Sawte on Thomas powes and wold haue take hym With stroung hande owte of his schoppe. c 1520 Skelton Magnif. 2329 Remedy pryncypall Agaynst all sautes [v.r. fautes] of your goostly foo. 1523 Earl of Surrey Let. to Wolsey in Ellis Orig. Lett. Ser. i. I. 215, I being at the sault of th' abbay, whiche contynued unto twoo houres within nyght. 1556 J. Heywood Spider & F. lxv. 74 Sir captaine our mind is, To giue saute to the copweb. a 1600 Flodden F. iii. (1664) 22 Though with hard saults they him assaild. |
▪ II. † sault, n.2 Obs.
Forms: 4 saut, 5 sawte, 6 saute, 7–8 salt, sault.
[a. F. saut:—L. saltus (u stem), f. salīre to leap; for the form cf. prec.]
1. A leap, jump; spec. of horses (see 1728–52).
| a 1350 John Bapt. 105 in Horstm. Altengl. Leg. (1881) 125 Scho daunced and tumbild diuers saut Ful faire and wele, with-outen faut. c 1400 Brut iv. 11 Þerfore þ⊇ place is called ȝit in-to þis day ‘þe sawte of Gogmagog’. 1607 Markham Caval. i. (1617) 14 They are many of them naturally giuen to bound, & to performe saults aboue ground. 1616 B. Jonson Devil an Ass ii. vi, [Love] could make More wanton salts from this braue promontory. 1623 Markham Cheap Husb. i. ii. (ed. 3) 15 The loftinesse of a horses salts and leapes. 1653 Urquhart Rabelais i. xxiii, He rode..a light fleet horse, unto whom he gave a hundred carieres, made him go the high saults, bounding in the aire. 1688 R. Holme Armoury iii. xix. (Roxb.) 183/2 Ground salts, is to take vp his fore leggs from the ground both togather, and bringing his hinder feet in their place. 1728–52 Chambers Cycl., Salts, or Saults, in the menage, denote the leaps, or high airs and vaults of an horse... A step and a salt is an high air, wherein the horse rising, makes a curvet between two salts, or caprioles... Two steps and a salt is a motion composed of two curvets; ending with a capriole. |
2. a sault out: a sally.
| 1560 J. Daus Sleidane's Comm. 323 b, To the ende the Townes men shoulde make no salt out [L. eruptionem]. |
3. to go to sault = ‘to go assault’: see assaut adv. and salt n.2
| 1567 Painter Pal. Pleas. II. 185 And yet you see this great..Duchesse..run after the male, like a female Wolfe or Lionesse (when they goe to sault). |
▪ III. ‖ sault, n.3 N. Amer.
(səʊ, commonly suː)
[Colonial Fr. sault, 17th c. spelling of saut: see sault n.2]
A waterfall or rapid.
| 1600 Hakluyt's Voy. III. 234 The Captaine prepared two boats to goe vp the great River to discouer the passage of the three Saults or falles of the River [Canada]. 1809 A. Henry Trav. 16 Lachine..is at the head of the Sault de Saint-Louis, which is the highest of the saults, falls, or leaps, in this part of the Saint-Lawrence. 1860 Bartlett Dict. Amer. (ed. 3), Sault, pronounced soo. (Old French.) The rapids of the St. Lawrence and those connecting the Upper Lakes retain the French name; as, the Sault St. Mary, etc. |
▪ IV. † sault, v.1 Obs.
Forms: 4–5 saute, sawte, 5 sawlte, 6 saut, sawt, saulte, salt, 6, 9 sault.
[ME. saute, aphetic form of assaute assault v.]
trans. = assault v. in various senses.
| 1387 Trevisa Higden (Rolls) VIII. 552 And thenne the kynge sente therle marchal vnto Louers, whiche they sawted. 1448 J. Metham Wks. (E.E.T.S.) 55/1474 Offte this serpent gan saute the bugyl blak The qwyche vpon hys helmet stod. c 1489 Caxton Sonnes of Aymon xvi. 384 Yf ye sawte Reynawde, we four that ben here shall helpe hym agaynste you. 1556 J. Heywood Spider & F. lxxiv. 11 To sawt this castell a fresh, they haue purueyde. 1560 T. Phaer æneid ix. E e ij b, A towre..whom all the Italians totall strength incessaunt stil did saulte. |
| absol. c 1471 in Pol. Poems (Rolls) II. 278 At Algate thay sawtid in an ill seasoun. 1489 Caxton Faytes of Armes i. ix. B iv, To teche hem bettre in all thynges to fighte & to sawte, they were oftymes put in arraye of batailles. c 1500 Melusine xxxvi. 291 And there they rested them by the space of viii dayes, without sawtyng ne scarmysshing. |
Hence † ˈsaulting vbl. n.
| c 1489 Caxton Sonnes of Aymon vi. 149 Reynawde made..all y⊇ castell to be closed rounde about wyth double walles,..that it fered no sawtynge of no side of it. 1490 ― Eneydos lxii. 161 Anoone as Eneas herde turnus speke he..lefte the sawtyng of the walles and of the toures. |
▪ V. † sault, v.2 Obs. rare.
Forms: 4 saute, 5 sawlte.
[a. F. sauter:—L. saltāre, freq. of salīre to leap.]
intr. To leap, dance.
| 1377 Langl. P. Pl. B. xiii. 233, I can..noyther sailly ne saute ne synge with þe Gyterne. 1422 tr. Secreta Secret., Priv. Priv. 152 Thay hym yaue pryuely a lytill toode in a drynke, and by crafte thay makyd hit grow in his bely, and his bely sawlte hit wax grete. |
▪ VI. sault
obs. f. salt n.1 and v.1