striker
(ˈstraɪkə(r))
[f. strike v. + -er1.]
I. Designating a person.
† 1. a. One who ‘strikes’ or roams as a vagrant. Cf. G. landstreicher vagrant. Obs.
| 1393 Langl. P. Pl. C. x. 159 Lolleres lyuyng in sleuthe and ouer-londe strykers. c 1410 Lanterne of Liȝt 54 Strong staff-beggers & strikars ouere þe lond. |
b. A footpad. Obs.
| 1596 Shakes. 1 Hen. IV, ii. i. 82, I am ioyned with no Foot-land-Rakers, no Long-staffe six-penny strikers. 1611 Second Maiden's Tragedy 960 (Malone Soc.) One that robbes the mynde twenty tymes worse then any hywaie striker. |
2. A person (or animal) that strikes (in various senses of the vb.). a. gen.
| 1581 Sidney Apol. Poetrie (Arb.) 50 Musick,..the most diuine striker of the sences. 1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. I. 123 Quhen Nout [cattle] fechtis togither ane be strukne to deid, na man knaweng the stryker, the beist that is hommil amang thame Judge giltie of the slachtir. c 1616 in Sprott Scott. Liturgies Jas. VI (1901) 18 That so blessing the hand of Thee the Striker, Thou that humblest, may in Thy own appointed time raise again. 1686 R. Blome Gentl. Recr. ii. 278/2 It is a Maxim [in Cock-fighting], That he that is a close sitter, is ever a narrow striker. 1742 Jarvis 2nd Pt. Quix. ii. x. II. 146 Don Quixote, seeing Sancho so evil intreated, made at the striker with his launce. 1810 Bentham Packing (1821) 199 ‘Two Juries’ were struck: and ‘in striking them, the official striker’ was, ‘to a certain extent’..influenced by this principle. 1876 Emerson Lett. & Soc. Aims vii. 178 Against which no blow can be struck but it recoils on the striker. 1890 Henty Lee in Virginia 30 Before the whip could again fall..Vincent..wrested it from the hands of the striker. |
b. One addicted to striking; one who is ready to resort to blows. nonce-use.
| 1582 N. T. (Rhem.) Tit. i. 7 A Bishop must be..not giuen to wine, no striker [so 1611 and 1881; Wycl. smiter, other versions fighter; Vulg. percussorem, Gr. πλήκτην]. |
† c. Sc. One who coins (money). Obs.
| 1449 Sc. Acts Jas. II (1814) II. 37/1 All falss strikaris of gold & siluer & of falss grotis & pennys. 1451 Ibid. 40/2 Al þe yrnis of þe kingis strikaris bathe of gold & siluer. 1678 Sir G. Mackenzie Crim. Laws Scot. ii. xii. §ii. (1699) 207 They should apprehend..the strikers of false Coyn. |
† d. In indecent sense. Hence, a fornicator.
| 1593 Passionate Morrice in Tell-trothes N.Y. Gift, etc. (1876) 80 He cannot see a wench out-start the bounds of modestie, but straight he hollowes the sight of a striker, thinking it vnpossible that if shee want maidenly behauiour, shee can haue womanly honestie. 1596 Nashe Saffron-Walden T 1, In some Countreys no woman is so honorable as she that hath to doo with most men, and can giue the lustiest striker oddes by 25. times in one night. 1635 H. Glapthorne Lady Mother iv. i. in Bullen Old Pl. II. 169 These are immodest devills that make modest ladyes become strickers. 1665 Nedham Med. Medicinæ 64 Which should be sad News to all the Strikers of both Sexes. |
e. A horse given to kicking. rare—1.
| 1693 Ling. Rom. Dict., Eng.-Lat., A striker or striking horse, calcitro. 1970 J. H. Gray Boy from Winnipeg 69, I also first got to know horses that were strikers. |
f. Coursing. A dog trained to ‘strike’ the hare.
| 1861 H. Kingsley Ravenshoe xiii, Ruin is the quickest striker we have ever bred. |
3. In certain industries. a. A maker or moulder of bricks or tiles.
| 1585 Tyle-stricker [see tile n.1 6]. 1610 in Engl. Hist. Rev. (1898) XIII. 524 A Brick Striker. 1703 Art's Improv. I. 4 A Molder or Striker of Bricks with his Attendants, can strike about 9000 of Bricks in a Day. |
b. One who ‘strikes’ fish with a spear or harpoon (also † striker-out). Also U.S. (see quot. 1891).
| 1697 W. Dampier Voy. I. 39 We..kept our Moskito-men, or strikers out, who brought aboard some half-grown Tortoise. 1764 C. Biddle Autob. (1883) 16 We touched at the Mosquito Shore, and hired one of the Indians they call a striker, that is, a man to supply the crew with fish, turtle [etc.]. 1827 O. W. Roberts Voy. Centr. Amer. 47 The natives are excellent hunters and strikers of fish. 1891 Century Dict., Striker, In the menhaden-fishery (a) The man who manages the striker-boat. (b) A green hand who works at low wages while learning the business, but is one of the crew of a vessel. |
c. Mining. (See quot.)
| 1824 J. Mander Derbysh. Miner's Gloss. 70 Striker, the man who lands the Kibble or Corf of Ore, &c. at the Shaft-top. |
d. In metal-working, the assistant operator who wields the heavy sledge-hammer.
| 1831 J. Holland Manuf. Metal I. 140 By two hammer⁓men, a maker and a striker, they [the bars for rolled spades] are drawn out on the anvil. 1886 Pall Mall Gaz. 15 July 6/2 A blacksmith uses what influence he possesses over his striker, a bricklayer uses his over his labourer. 1887 Hall Caine Deemster xxx. 195 The smith was hooping a cart⁓wheel, and his striker set down his sledge and tied up his leather apron to look on and listen. |
e. One who ‘strikes’ corn, etc. off a measure.
| 1867 Simmonds Dict. Trade Suppl., Striker,..the man whose business it is to strike off the superfluous quantity from the top of a measure. |
f. Tanning. One who smooths and stretches skins either by hand or by means of a machine. Also striker-out.
| 1921 Dict. Occup. Terms (1927) §338 Striker, striker-out, (i) lays wet hide or skin on a slate or marble slab or table, and rubs it with a hard ‘slicker’ tool, of stone or steel, to stretch it, drive out excess of moisture, smooth it, and to close grain; (ii) sets rollers of a machine..in motion..and passes skin or hide between revolving rollers. 1972 Classification of Occupations (Dept. Employment) III. 24/2 Finishing machine operator... Other titles include..Striker. |
4. In various games: The player who is to ‘strike’; occas. the player who has made a stroke. In Assoc. Football and Hockey, a forward whose main function is to seek to score goals. In Rugby Football = hooker1 6. Also striker-out in Real Tennis, etc. the one who plays the ball when first served.
| 1699 E. S―cy Country Gentl. Vade M. 55 (Tennis) Squire A. is a good Striker-out, but Squire B. is a better Back⁓hand. 1744 J. Love Cricket (1770) 5 Stiff Spectators quite inactive stand, Speechless, attending to the Striker's Hand. 1773 in Waghorn's Cricket Scores (1899) 95 Simmons standing so near the strikers, greatly intimidated the Hampshire gentlemen. 1816 [see play v. 17 f]. 1862 Sunday Mercury (N.Y.) 13 July 6/2 The Excelsiors led off, Young being their first striker, and he sent the ball flying to left field. 1866 ‘Capt. Crawley’ Billiard Bk. iii. 18 In making your stroke, an instantaneous glance will be sufficient—a glance that rises from the Striker's-ball to the Object-ball. 1874 Chadwick Base Ball Man. 52 The striker at the bat is called the batsman or ‘striker’ until he has hit a fair ball. 1884 J. Marshall's Tennis Cuts 14 The Server may not take a bisque after a fault; but the Striker⁓out may do so. 1891 W. G. Grace Cricket viii. 235 It is the striker's duty to call [for a run] if the ball is hit in front of the wicket. 1963 J. Greaves Soccer vii. 73 If John White or another Spurs' player is bringing the ball up..I move into a position ready to race through and be first to the ball when he pushes it forward. It is the ball goal-strikers dream of. Ibid. 74 Remember, the striker never takes it for granted..he goes after the ball on every occasion. 1973 Daily Mail 24 July 27/1 John White, Bristol's 30-year-old reserve hooker,..replaces ex-Coventry striker John Gray. 1974 M. Weir Women's Hockey for Seventies 96 Before the ball is hit the right striker is sprinting out to the right wing and the right wing is cutting into the space she has made. Ibid. 8 It is confusing for a defence to have to cater for elusive strikers. 1974 Encycl. Brit. Macropædia 257/2 The striker does not have to run after he has hit the ball. 1980 Daily Tel. 20 Mar. 34/3 Wales, without Chester striker Ian Rush, could not break down the Irish defence. |
5. A workman who is ‘on strike’.
| 1850 Athenæum 7 Dec. 1282/3 A vast change must have come over the factory population ere a man possessing mill-property could dream of letting it out to strikers. 1865 in Docum. Hist. Amer. Industr. Soc. (1910) IX. 101 These two congresses might adopt the same rule respecting strikers, runaway apprentices, and trades' unions. |
6. U.S. a. Pol. slang. One who seeks to effect a strike. Cf. strike n. 13 and v. 75 e.
| 1883 Nation (N.Y.) 6 Sept. 200/1 If he can elect such a ticket..he will take the field after election as a ‘striker’, and will offer his electoral votes to whichever candidate will give the highest ‘terms’. 1884 American VIII. 99 Bracketing together the political ‘strikers and heelers’ with the commercial respectables. |
b. Mil. An officer's batman or servant.
| 1867 Custer in Mrs. Custer Tenting on Plains (1888) 529 (Thornton) The Dutchman and Englishmen and the rest of the strikers. Note, Striker was the name of a soldier servant. 1898 Harper's Mag. Apr. 700/2 My ‘striker’ had just left me, with instructions to have my horse fed. 1929 B. Davis Truth about Geronimo 107 Geronimo's son demanded the post of striker (servant) to me. 1948 Time 14 June 9/3 He takes the same attitude toward Congress as he would to a striker who fails to put the proper polish on his boots. |
c. A hired ruffian.
| 1836 Spirit of Times 9 July 162/2 An awkward looking striker of old Thompson's holding her by the cheek of the bridle. 1853 ‘P. Paxton’ Stray Yankee in Texas 335 To a few he [sc. John Murel] confided the extent of his design, and to each of these gave the authority to enlist all the minor villains of their acquaintance. The latter were termed Strikers and used but as tools. 1859 Bartlett Dict. Amer. (ed. 2) 457 Striker, a bruiser; a ruffian. a 1872 Country Merchant 317 (Schele de Vere) He was one of the most accomplished strikers, or barkers, as they are called, in the employ of the hells. 1873 J. H. Beadle Undevel. West xi. 184, I had published a severe criticism of this Judge Smith. His ‘strikers’ now had me at Court as defendant. 1883 ‘Mark Twain’ Life Mississippi xxix. 315 [Murel's gang of robbers] was composed of two classes: the Heads or Council..[and] the active agents..termed strikers. |
d. An engineer's apprentice on a steamboat. Also in extended use: see quots. 1944, etc.
Cf. also quot. 1891 at sense 3 b.
| 1872 [see mud-clerk s.v. mud n.1 5]. 1875 ‘Mark Twain’ in Atlantic Monthly XXXV. 70/2 He turned up as apprentice engineer or ‘striker’ on a steamboat. 1944 K. D. McCracken Baby Flat-Top 53 In the Navy a striker is a seaman or fireman who is working particularly hard in order to convince his superiors that he ought to become a petty officer of some kind. 1955 C. S. Forester Good Shepherd 104 An electrician's mate and his striker stood behind him. 1963 Amer. Speech XXXVIII. 45 Striker, a [truck] driver's helper. 1970 National Fisherman Aug. 21-a/1 Emery Brown as rigman or ‘striker’ [on a shrimp boat]..testified in person during this trial. |
II. A thing that strikes or is used for striking.
7. gen.
| 1644 Digby Nat. Bodies xii. (1645) 124 The missives..must be so heavy that the aire may not break their course; and yet so light, that they may be within the command of the stroke which giveth them motion; the striker must be dense, and in its best velocity. 1901 T. J. Alldridge Sherbro xxvi. 289 To these again are attached little rings, and as the hands work the strikers, these jingling irons make a pleasant tinkling sound. 1911 E. Beveridge N. Uist x. 325 Although the writer was able to obtain an ornamented steel ‘striker’—for use with a flint..—the tinder-box seems quite unknown. |
† 8. A farrier's instrument (see quot.). Obs. (Cf. strike v. 33 d.)
| 1688 Holme Armoury III. 324/2 A Blooding stick or Striker..is a heavy piece of Wood, wherewith the Fleme is smitten or driven into the Horse Neck Vein, when he is Blooded. |
9. a. = strickle n. 1 a. b. = strickle n. 1 b.
| a. 1714 Budgell tr. Theophrastus xi. 38 He has a Measure of a particular make for the use of his Domesticks, which he piles up very high, and is so dextrous at the management of it that with one sweep of the Striker he brushes off half their Dinner. 1828 Carr Craven Gloss. |
| b. 1693 Moxon Mech. Exerc. 248 A Striker..is only a piece of Lath..with which they strike, or cut off the Morter at the britches of the Tiles. 1764 Croker, etc. Dict. Arts s.v. Bricks, The striker, or tool with which the moulder strikes off the superfluous earth in making bricks. 1842 Gwilt Encycl. Archit. § 1908 The striker, a piece of lath about 10 inches long, for separating and taking away the superfluous mortar at the feet of the tiles. |
10. A clock or watch that strikes. (Chiefly with qualifying adj.)
| 1778 Barrington in Archæologia V. 426 Some of the watches used at this time seem to have been strikers. 1864 G. M. Musgrave Ten Days Fr. Parsonage I. viii. 229 A large cased eight-day clock, the loudest striker I ever heard. 1869 Mrs. H. Wood Roland Yorke Prol. i, The clock of the old grey church struck twelve. A loud striker at all times, it sounded strangely so in the stillness of the night. |
11. A harpoon. (Simmonds Dict. Trade 1858.)
12. A steam-hammer designed as a substitute for the blacksmith's ‘striker’ (see 3 d).
| 1869 C. Knight Mechanician 91 Striker is a name given..to substitutes and superseders of hammermen, such as air-hammers and steam-hammers, whether vertical or horizontal. 1875 Knight Dict. Mech. |
13. The piece of mechanism in a gun, fuse, etc. which explodes the charge.
| 1824 P. Hawker Instr. Young Sporstm. (ed. 3) 74 The cock, or striker, should cover the nipple with a deep concave head. 1856 ‘Stonehenge’ Brit. Sports i. i. viii. 70/2 The striker explodes this tube, just as the flint set fire to the powder in the pan of the old flint-gun. 1882 J. H. Walsh Sportsman's Gun & Rifle I. 263 Strikers. This necessary part of the hammerless gun is either of one piece with the tumbler,..or jointed to it,..or entirely detached. |
14. That part of a bell, clock, etc. which strikes.
| 1872 Ellacombe Ch. Bells Devon Suppl. i. 196 The clapper or striker [of a bell]. 1897 Westm. Gaz. 29 Apr. 10/2 The striker [of the clock] was prevented from working. |
15. The automatic regulator of the striking of the pens of a ruling machine.
| 1875 Knight Dict. Mech. 2001/2 s.v. Ruling-machine. 1888 Jacobi Printers' Voc., Striker, the apparatus attached to a machine for ‘striking on’, or putting it in motion. 1909 Daily Chron. 26 June 8/5 Machine Ruler wanted for double striker. |
16. A hardened mould upon which a softened steel block is struck to receive a concave impression.
| 1843 Holtzapffel Turning I. 232 A solid mould, core or striker, exactly a copy of the work to be produced, is made. 1875 Knight Dict. Mech. |
17. A preparation for ‘striking’ or fixing a dye; a mordant.
| 1884 Health Exhib. Catal. 38 The colour is then made fast with what is known as a ‘striker’, a chemical preparation suited to the colour. |
III. 18. attrib. and Comb., as striker hand, striker-machine (sense 15); striker-boat U.S., in menhaden fishing = drive-boat; hence striker boatsman; striker-plate = striking plate (see striking vbl. n. 3).
| 1884 Knight Dict. Mech. Suppl., Striker Plate. 1891 Striker boat [see sense 3 b]. 1898 Daily Chron. 24 Sept. 10/6 Machine Ruler..wanted..; must be used to striker machines. 1902 Ibid. 28 Oct. 10/7 Machine Ruler.—Good striker hand. 1950 Richmond (Va.) Times-Dispatch 23 July (Mag. Section) 5/1 When a bunch [of fish] is spotted, a striker boat, manned by a striker boatsman, is sent out to indicate the direction in which the fish are moving. |