▪ I. rug, n.1 Sc.
(rʌg)
Also 5 ruge.
[f. rug v.1]
1. A pull, a tug.
| c 1425 Wyntoun Cron. iii. ii. 367 Wiþe a ruge þe rapis al He crakkyt in to pecis smalle. 1500–20 Dunbar Poems lxxii. 60 The claith that claif to his clere hyde, Thai raif away with ruggis rude. 1719 Ramsay To Arbuckle 23, I ga'e the muse a rug, Then bate my nails and claw'd my lug. 1826 J. Wilson Noct. Ambr. Wks. 1855 I. 228 The least rug will bring down the squash. 1861 G. H. Kingsley Sp. & Trav. (1900) 253 When one caught the ither by the pow, and gied him a rug. 1894 Blackw. Mag. July 67 An unexpected..‘rug’ by a brace of pounders. |
2. A torn-off portion, a ‘haul’, of something; a catch or acquisition.
| c 1450 Holland Howlat 797 Raike hir a rug of the rost, or scho sall ryiue the. c 1480 Henryson Poems (S.T.S.) III. 151 Recipe, thre ruggis of the reid ruke. |
| 1808 Jamieson s.v., When one purchases any thing under its common price, it is said that he has got a rug of it. 1824 Scott Redgauntlet let. xi, Sir John..voted for the Union, having gotten, it was thought, a rug of the compensations. 1875 W. Alexander Ain Folk iii, They agreed that the farrow cow was a great ‘rug’. |
▪ II. rug, n.2
(rʌg)
Also 6–7 rugge, 7–8 rugg.
[perh. of Scand. origin: cf. Norw. dial. rugga, rogga coarse coverlet (also skinnrugga skin-rug; ruggefeld shaggy cloak), Sw. rugg ruffled or coarse hair, frizz, rugge tuft, etc. These are app. related to ON. rǫgg: see rag n.1]
† 1. a. A rough woollen material, a sort of coarse frieze, in common use in the 16–17th cent. Obs.
| 1558 Lanc. Wills (Chetham Soc.) II. 114 Unto the poore people xij peces of gray rugge. 1592 Chettle Kind Harts Dr. (1841) 45 In a gown of rugge, rent on the left shoulder. 1611 Speed Hist. Gt. Brit. ix. xv. §46. 794 A man bare-headed, and bare-legged, attired in a coat of white rugge. 1622 Peacham Gentl. Exerc. ii. vii. (1634) 126 December must be..clad in Irish rugge, or coorse freeze. 1664 Power Exp. Philos. i. 50 A Sage Leaf looks like a white Rugge, or Shagge, full of knots, tassel'd all with white silver Thrums. 1711 Countrey Man's Let. to Curate 95 He goes Generally in Winter in good thick Rug, and in Summer most part in a Highland Plaid. |
† b. With pl. A kind or make of frieze; also, a frieze cloak or mantle. Obs.
| 1551–2 Act 5 & 6 Edw. VI, c. 6 §1 All Clothes called Manchester Rugges, otherwise named Frices. Ibid. §24 Any of the Clothes, Karseys, Frices, Rugges or Cottons aforesaide. 1599 Hakluyt Voy. II. ii. 87 The townes built of stone, the people rude in conditions, apparelled in diuers coloured rugs. 1610 Holland Camden's Brit., Ireland 63 Which [sheep] they sheare twice a yeere, and make of their course wool rugges or shagge mantles. 1657 R. Ligon Barbadoes (1673) 109 Forty pound I think fit to bestow on Irish Ruggs such as are made at Kilkennie, and Irish stockings. 1680 Morden Geog. Rect. (1685) 39 Several Manufactures as Freezes, Ruggs, Mantles, &c. |
† c. ? One who wears a frieze cloak. Obs.—1
| 1638 Shirley Mart. Soldier ii. iii, I am..Lord over these Larroones, Regent of these Rugs, Viceroy over these Vagabonds. |
2. A large piece of thick woollen stuff (freq. of various colours) used as a coverlet or as a wrap in driving, railway-travelling, etc.
| 1591 Percivall Sp. Dict., Alcatifa, a rug for a bed. 1625 Fletcher & Shirley Nt. Walker v. i, I wished 'em then get him to bed, they did so, And almost smothr'd him with rugges and pillowes. 1667 Pepys Diary 13 July, Mighty hot weather; I lying this night..with only a rugg and a sheet upon me. 1687 B. Randolph Archipelago 101 We were not free from fears least the seas should wash away those ruggs which we had stopped in between the timbers. 1731 Swift Cassinus & Peter Wks. 1751 X. 191 A Rug was o'er his Shoulders thrown; A Rug; for Night-gown he had none. 1778 Eng. Gazetteer (ed. 2) s.v. Wigan, Lancaster, famous for the manufacture of coverlets, rugs, blankets, and other sorts of bedding. 1862 Macm. Mag. June 125 The child can scarcely be too soon accustomed to be laid on its back on a mattress or rug on the floor. 1871 Carlyle in Mrs. Carlyle's Lett. III. 247 We had to wrap our invalid in quite a heap of rugs and shawls. 1875 Knight Dict. Mech. 1999/2 A railway-rug is a coarse shawl for wrapping the legs or for use as a blanket. |
| fig. 1626 Donne Serm. 817 In that Green bed whose covering is but a Yarde and a half of Turf and a Rugge of Grass. |
| phr. 1769 Stratford Jubilee ii. i, If she has the mopus's, I'll have her, as snug as a bug in a rug. 1798 W. Hutton Life (1816) 137 The doctor..said, ‘You are as safe as a bug in a rug’. |
3. a. A mat for the floor, usually of thick or shaggy stuff. Cf. hearth-rug. In phrases: to cut a (or the) rug: to dance (esp. to jazz music); to pull the rug out from under someone: see pull v. 20 j; to sweep (or kick) (something) under the rug: to conceal (something difficult, embarrassing, or unpleasant) in the hope that it will go unnoticed or be forgotten (cf. carpet n. 2 e).
| 1808 Jane Austen Let. 1 Oct. (1952) 212 She does not doubt your making out the Star pattern very well, as you have the Breakfast-room-rug to look at. 1810 Knox & Jebb Corr. II. 5 You shall have a sofa in your bed-chamber.., and a little rug for your hearthstone. 1847 C. Brontë J. Eyre xix, I stood on the rug and warmed my hands. 1902 Buchan Watcher by the Threshold 287 The fire-lit hall, with its rugs and little tables. 1930 Heal's Catal.: Furnit. 9 Knotted Axminster Circular Rug, designed by the late Noel Simmons, 5 ft. in diameter. 1942 Harper's Bazaar July 21/3 Let's dance, wanta cut a rug. 1943 N.Y. Times 9 May ii. 5/4 Why, brother, all the cats cut a mean rug to that music. 1945 T. Williams Glass Menagerie vii. 107 ‘How about cutting the rug a little, Miss Wingfield?’ ‘Oh, I—’ ‘Or is your program filled up? Let me have a look at it. Why, every dance is taken!’ 1961 D. M. Disney Mrs Meeker's Money vii. 77 The whole thing..was so far outside the normal routine..that it practically demanded being swept under the rug. 1973 Times 1 Dec. 20/8 Those who used to look for reds under the beds now fear bugs under the rugs. 1976 National Observer (U.S.) 25 Sept. 12/4, I can see numerous problems that were rather swept under the rug in the article. 1978 M. Puzo Fools Die xvi. 174 Unless the government covers the whole thing up, you know, kicks it under the rug. |
b. U.S. slang. A wig.
| 1940 J. O'Hara Pal Joey 190, I even wear a little rug up front. 1967 W. & M. Morris Dict. Word & Phr. Origins II. 75 Advertisements for men's wigs invariably refer to them as hair pieces, but in the trade a wig may be a doily, a divot or a rug. Ibid., And a rug? Well, that's the works—a wig to conceal over-all baldness. 1978 Telegraph (Brisbane) 18 Feb. 8/2 ‘Now, in fact, I do wear a hairpiece in the film I'm making.’.. The film for which he has donned a ‘rug’ as they are called, is Meteor. |
† 4. ? A shaggy breed of dog (see water-rug).
5. U.S. (See quot.) ? Obs.
| 1792 J. Belknap Hist. New-Hampsh. III. 129 There is a natural tough sward commonly called a rug, which must either rot or be burned before any cultivation can be made. |
6. attrib. and Comb. a. In sense 1, as rug-cloak, rug-doublet, etc.; rug-like adj. See also rug-gown.
| 1592 Nashe P. Pennilesse A iv b, Dame Niggardize his wife, in a sedge rugge kirtle. 1611 Speed Theat. Gt. Brit. (1614) 138/2 Over their side garments the shagge rugge mantles. 1634–5 Brereton Trav. (Chetham) 156 Much more comely than the rug short cloaks used by the women. 1686 Lond. Gaz. No. 2152/4 An Apprentice,..in a gray Coat, and white rug Doublet. 1725 De Foe Voy. round World (1840) 276 Colchester baize, a coarse rug-like manufacture. 1786 Mrs. Delany Life & Corr. (1861) III. 339, I who only go out..when the sun shines, in a rugg great coat and boot-stockings. 1796 Plain Sense (ed. 2) III. 190 A rug-cloak..covered her warmly over at night. 1800 Coleridge Let. to Wedgewood Jan., I am sitting by a fire in a rug greatcoat. |
b. In senses 2 and 3. rug-chest, rug-fringe, rug-hook, rug-hooking, rug-making, rug-peddler, rug-wool, rug-work, rug-yarn; rug brick, a rough-surfaced brick; rug-cutter U.S. slang, an enthusiastic or expert dancer; also transf.; so rug-cutting, dancing; rug-ranking Canad., the system of determining the salary of a secretary in federal employment by the status of the person for whom she works; so rug-rank v.; rug-rat U.S. slang, a child.
| [1952 Bricklaying (Structural Clay Products Inst.) I. ii. 28 Types and Colors of Brick... The Matt faces and Rug faces can almost be placed in the same family. The degree of smoothness or roughness is almost unlimited.] 1961 Webster, *Rug brick. 1968 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 3 Feb. 43/1 (Advt.), 3 bedroom rug brick home. |
| 1972 Times 19 Sept. 9/5 (Advt.), Partners desk; *rug chests. 1976 Leicester Trader 24 Nov. 19/2 (Advt.), Rug chests... {pstlg}25. |
| 1938 N.Y. Amsterdam News 2 Apr. 17/1 The thousands of..*rugcutters..that are being hatched daily..are a peril. 1941 W. C. Handy Father of Blues (1957) i. 6 Country gals and their..suitors got as much enjoyment..as jitterbugs or rug-cutters get nowadays from a swing band. 1942 Z. N. Hurston in Amer. Mercury July 96/1 Rug-cutter, originally a person frequenting house-rent parties, cutting up the rugs of the host with his feet; a person too cheap or poor to patronize regular dance halls; now means a good dancer. 1959 N. Mailer Advts. for Myself (1961) 107 He seemed full of strength and merriment. He would clap two geishas to him, and call across..to another soldier. ‘Hey, Brown,’ he would shout, ‘ain't this a rug-cutter?’ |
| 1940 Amer. Speech XV. 205/1 *Rug-cutting, violent, eccentric dancing. 1942 Chatelaine Apr. 54/2 The rug-cutting addicts discovered an older form of swing. 1947 S. Lewis Kingsblood Royal 21 As I say: we don't know where Belfreda goes or what she does—rug-cutting or witchcraft or maybe she belongs to some coloured left-wing political gang. 1981 ‘S. Caudwell’ Thus was Adonis Murdered ix. 114 He raised again the matter of the rug-cutting expedition... The only places..where there might be dancing..looked to me formidably expensive. |
| 1897 Sears, Roebuck Catal. 298/3 Wool *Rug Fringe, with gimp heading 3 inches deep. 1922 Joyce Ulysses 691 The upturned rugfringe. |
| 1966 Olney Amsden & Sons Ltd. Price List 35 Latchet *Rug Hooks... 16/- Dozen. 1967 House & Garden June 19/1 Hooked rugs... You need open-mesh canvas and a rug hooking tool which is a metal hook fitted into a wooden handle. It has a hinged metal shank at the hook end which will open and close automatically to prevent the hook getting caught in the canvas. |
| 1974 Aiken (S. Carolina) Standard 22 Apr. 2-a/6 *Rug Hooking, 9:30 a.m.–2:30 p.m., Recreation Center, North Augusta. |
| 1822 M. Edgeworth in Life & Letters (1894) II. 70 We went through the female wards.., and saw the women at various works,—knitting, *rug-making, &c. 1976 N. Roberts Face of France iii. 39 Shops with displays of equipment for tapestry work and rug-making. |
| 1916 J. London Let. 12 Oct. (1966) 473 ‘Uncle Charley’..then proceeded to shake you down in proper money-lender,..*rug-peddler fashion. |
| 1977 Kingston (Ontario) Whig-Standard 9 Feb. 7/2 Her abilities caught the eye of some of the rising lights of her time, and the story has it that she ‘*rug-ranked’ her way up out of the secretarial classifications. |
| 1973 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 21 July 1/1 *Rug-ranking..refers to the Government's method of establishing the pay-level of secretaries in the same way the quality of the manager's rug is determined. It goes with the title on the door. Ibid., While Mr. Drury says ‘there isn't much possibility’ of replacing the rug-ranking system with a point-rating system, he expresses sympathy for the problems faced by the secretaries. |
| 1968–70 Current Slang (Univ. S. Dakota) III–IV. 104 *Rug rat, a small child. 1976 Daily Tel. (Colour Suppl.) 16 July 10/1 He is without children; he has rug-rats instead. |
| 1891 Anthony's Phot. Bulletin IV. 159 The only unattached part being the *rug strap for camera. |
| 1926 S. T. Warner Lolly Willowes ii. 114 She bought an extensive parcel..of variously coloured *rug-wools. 1967 E. Short Embroidery & Fabric Collage iii. 83 A soft Persian rug wool is the easiest to sew with. |
| 1823 E. Weeton Let. 21 Nov. (1969) II. 243 She is fond of *rug work, and has done a great deal in a superior and beautiful manner. 1843 Penny Cycl. XXVII. 180/1 Another kind of weaving..is that which relates to rug-work and tapestry. 1895 Montgomery Ward Catal. 124/3 Colored Rug Yarn... ingrain carpet yarn, assorted colors, 4 skeins to pound. |
| 1932 D. C. Minter Mod. Needlecraft 224/2 The thinner qualities of *rug yarn—such as Persian, Straight, Shetland and various Thrums yarns. |
▸ slang. The pubic hair, esp. of a woman; the female external genitals. Cf. carpet n. Additions
Freq. in the context of cunnilingus, esp. in compounds; cf. rug muncher n.
| 1966 J. Trimble 5,000 Adult Sex Words 178 Rug, the Pubes, particularly of the female. 1998Dr. Laura shaves her Rug in alt. radio.talk.dr-laura (Usenet newsgroup) 13 June Why does dr. laura [sic] shave her rug? A friend saw her in a health club and she's as bald as a baby. 2001 Max Power Dec. 43/2 A woman jumps on the bed, but just picks up the cuddly toy. Rug-munching tart. 2003 Seattle Weekly (Nexis) 19 Nov. Men go on about how much they love munching the rug because they think it's what you want to hear. |
▪ III. rug, n.3 dial. rare.
[Of Scand. origin: cf. Swed. dial. rugg in the same sense (Rietz). Prob. related to rag mist, rime, common in northern Eng. dialects.]
Drizzling rain.
| c 1400 Destr. Troy 9652 Thurgh the rug, & the rayn, þat raiked aboue, All wery for wete. 1622 Drayton Poly-Olbion ii. xxvi. 124 Thicke Vapours, that like Rugs still hang the troubled ayre. 1866 T. Edmondston Gloss. Shetl. & Orkney, Rug, small rain. 1969 G. M. Brown Orkney Tapestry 29 The old Orkneymen had a range of words for every kind and intensity of rain—a driv, a rug, a murr..a hellyiefer. |
▪ IV. † rug, n.4 Obs. rare.
Some kind of strong liquor.
| 1653 J. Taylor (Water P.) Cert. Trav. Uncert. Journey 16 Of all the drinks potable Rug is most puisant, potent, notable. Rug was the Capitall Commander there. |
▪ V. rug
obs. f. ridge n.; see also Rugbeian.
▪ VI. † rug, a. Obs.
[Gaming slang, of unknown origin.]
Safe, secure: a. In gambling.
| a 1700 B. E. Dict. Cant. Crew s.v., It's all Rug, the Game is secured. 1709 Steele Tatler No. 39 ¶36 If one has it all Rug, as the Gamesters say, when they have a Trick to make the Game secure. 1714 T. Lucas Mem. Gamesters (ed. 2) 104 His great Dexterity of making all Rugg at Dice, as the Cant is for securing a Die between two Fingers. |
b. transf. In general use.
| 1705 Rowe Biter i. i, Fear nothing, Sir; Rug's the Word, all's safe. 1721 Cibber Refusal i, And does this Contract secure the Lady's Fortune to you too?..O! Pox! I knew that was all Rug before. 1735 Pope Donne Sat. iv. 134 Who got his Pension rug, Or quicken'd a Reversion by a drug? 1797 Brydges Hom. Trav. II. 251 We'll here lie snug, Let him but pass, we have him rug. |
c. With adverbial force.
| 1714 Wentworth Papers (1883) 394 The changes at Court does not go so rug as some people expected. |
▪ VII. rug
obs. form of rough a.
▪ VIII. rug, v.1 Sc. and north. dial.
(rʌg)
Also 4–8 rugge, 5–6 ruge (5 ruk); 4–5 rogg(e.
[prob. of Scand. origin: cf. Icel., Fær., and Norw. rugga, obs. Da. rugge, to rock (a cradle), to swing backwards and forwards, to sway. The original sense was prob. ‘to pull’.]
1. a. trans. To pull forcibly, violently, or roughly; to tear, tug.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 15825 For[þ] þai his maister drogh, And rugged him vn-rekenli bath ouer hill and [h]ogh. Ibid. 21920 Ded sal rug us til his rape. c 1340 Hampole Pr. Consc. 1230 Lyons, libardes and wolwes kene, Þat wald worow men bylyve, And rogg þam in sonder and ryve. a 1400 in Minor Poems Vernon MS. II. 501 Wiþ his teeþ he gon hit togge, And so radli he gon hit Rogge, Þat al þe Rolle gon race. c 1440 Alph. Tales 446 Oft tymys sho was enforcid to be drawen oute, bod it was in vayn bod if þai wuld hafe rugid hur in sonder. c 1450 Holland Howlat 822 In come twa flyrand fulis,..Ruschit baith to the bard, and ruggit his hair. 1500–20 Dunbar Poems lxxii. 106 Than rudelie come Rememberance Ay rugging me, withoutin rest. 1570 Satir. Poems Reform. xxii. 51 God nor ye gleddis ȝe get, Or Rauinnis the rug with bludie beik in bittis. 1572 Ibid. xxxii. 67 We commounis all,..now, allace! ar rugit, reuin, and rent. 17.. Ramsay To Starrat 21 Rug frae its roots the craig of Edinburgh castle. 1795 Macneill Scotland's Skaith lvi, Jean..Flyt's, and storms, and rug's Will's hair. 1835 Hogg in Fraser's Mag. XI. 358 The Hunter he rugged his old grey hair. 1871 W. Alexander Johnny Gibb (1873) 20 I'se rug yer lugs t'ye gin ye dinna gae this minit. 1930 Kipling Limits & Renewals (1932) 234 Old dry bites—when they get good hold and rugg you. That showed he must have dealt with the Beasts. |
b. Const. down, † forth, off, out (of), up.
| c 1375 Sc. Leg. Saints xxvi. (Nicholas) 689 He hynt þe prioure be þe hare, & rukyt hyme of his bed in hy. c 1450 Mirour Saluacioun (Roxb.) 83 The whilk festnyng his fete thai ruggid out semblably. 1456 Sir G. Haye Law Arms (S.T.S.) 162 The evill herbis may nocht be gudely ruggit up be the rutis, bot.. gude herbis that ar nere thaim..be ruggit up with thame. c 1508 Dunbar Poems xxxiii. 83 The pyot furth his pennis did rug. c 1560 A. Scott Poems (S.T.S.) i. 125 Ruging and raifand vp kirk rentis lyke ruikis. 1637–50 Row Hist. Kirk (Wodrow Soc.) 12 In taking away bells, and rugging doun..ornaments. 1738 Scotch Presbyterian Eloquence 43 The Devil rugg their Hearts out of their Sides. a 1774 Fergusson Plainstanes & Cawsey Poems (1845) 46 Owre me the muckle horses gallop, Eneugh to rug my very saul up. 1825 J. Wilson Noct. Ambr. Wks. 1855 I. 9 Can an idea..rug out a handfu' o' hair out of the head o' him? |
2. a. intr. To pull, tear, or tug (at something). Also, to struggle.
In mod. dial. use freq. combined with rive.
| c 1350 St. Andrew 225 in Horstm. Altengl. Leg. (1881) 7 Þai rugget at him with ful grete bir. ? c 1400 Tourn. Tottenham 199 in Hazl. E.P.P. III. 91 Thus thai tuggut and thei ruggut til hit was ny nyȝt. c 1425 Wyntoun Cron. iii. ii. 472 Abowt twa pillaris..He kest his armys hastely, And ruggit at þaim doggitly. 1530 Lyndesay Test. Papyngo 1148 The Rauin began rudely to ruge and ryue. a 1585 Montgomerie Flyting 288 The Weird Sisters..Saw reavens rugand at that ratton. 1722 Ramsay Three Bonnets iii. 29 Jouk three times rugged at his [brother's] shoulder. 1724 ― Tea T. Misc. (1871) II. 129 Hunger rugg'd at Watty's breast. 1812 W. Tennant Anster F. iv, Each..A good Crail's capon holds, at which he rugs and gnaws. 1832 Chambers's Edin. Jrnl. I. 225/1 The gilly,..who comes into the town,..rugging and riving for a place in some writer's office. 1872 C. Gibbon For the King xvii, You'll wring my arm out o' the socket if you keep rugging at it that way. 1901 R. Anderson Hist. of Kilsyth xiii. 111 That night the razor was bad. It rugged and he had to stop. 1951 R. Rendall Orkney Variants 24 Their lowan e'en are taakan tent O'chiels like Mansie o' the Bu Whose days upon the land are spent Ruggan wi' Taurus and the Pleugh. |
† b. rug and reave, to practise robbery. Obs.
| 1508 Kennedie Flyting w. Dunbar 404 It cumis of kynde to the to be a traytoure, To ryde on nycht, to rug, to reue, and stele. 1513 Douglas æneis ix. x. 53 Best likis ws all tyme to rug and reyf, To drive away the spreith, and tharon leyf. 1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. I. 323 Thay began to rug and reiue, stryk and stick ilk vther. |
▪ IX. † rug, v.2 Obs.
[Of obscure origin.]
intr. To fish with a rug-net. Hence † ˈrugging vbl. n.
| 1630 in Binnell Thames (1758) 65 No Fisherman or other shall be suffered to rug for Flounders..between London Bridge..and Westminster. Ibid. 79 That no Peter-man do rug from London Bridge to Blackwall. 1758 Binnell ibid., Rules to be observed in Rugging. |
▪ X. rug, v.3
[f. rug n.2]
trans. To cover with a rug. Freq. with up.
| 1818 M. Edgeworth Let. 15 Oct. (1971) 126 He hopes to have the rooms carpetted and rugged by tuesday. 1936 F. Clune Roaming round Darling iii. 26 Many sharp turns and wattle-trees. The latter, droopy after being out all night, should be rugged up this weather. 1961 C. H. D. Todd Popular Whippet iii. 39 Kennels of greyhounds usually have the inmates ‘rugged up’ at night. 1968 E. R. Buckler Ox Bells & Fireflies vi. 93 You rugged the oxen and took the double-bitted ax from its leather fastener. 1975 D. Francis High Stakes i. 18 He was a great horse..he would soon be rugged up nice and quiet in a stable. |