▪ I. poultice, n.
(ˈpəʊltɪs)
Forms: α. pl. 6 pultes, 7 poults; β. sing. 6 pultes, 6–7 -esse, 6–8 (9 dial.) pultis, pultas, 7 pultass(e, -ise, -iss, -us, 7–8 (9 dial.) pultess, -ice, 8 pultoss; γ. 6 poultesse, 7 poultes, -ess, -us, poltis, powltice, 7–8 poultis, -ise, 8 -iss, poltice, 7– poultice.
[Ultimately from L. puls, pult-em thick pap, pottage, pulse (= Gr. πόλτος), whence It. polta pap († pulta, Florio); F. pulte a poultice, in Cotgr., is unsupported. The earliest form pultes was app. the L. pl. pultes (in med.L. = pap), soon popularly taken as a sing., perh. from its collective sense. Other forms simulate Fr. suffixes -asse, -esse, -ice.
The form in pult- continued in general use till after 1750, and is still dialectal. It is difficult to account for the spelling poult-, which is found before 1600; the mod. pronunciation is indicated in 1645 by poltis.]
1. a. A soft mass of some substance (as bread, meal, bran, linseed, various herbs, etc.), usually made with boiling water, and spread upon muslin, linen, or other material, applied to the skin to supply moisture or warmth, as an emollient for a sore or inflamed part, or as a counter-irritant (e.g. a mustard-poultice); a cataplasm.
| α 1542–3 Act 34 & 35 Hen. VIII, c. 8 To practyse use and mynistre in and to any outwarde sore,..any herbe or herbes oyntementes bathes pultes and emplasters. 1639 T. de la Grey Compl. Horsem. 104 The poults of mallowes, &c. must be every night applyed. |
| β 1544 T. Phaer Regim. Lyfe (1545) 64 b, Ye must laye vppon the payne a pultes made of herbes, and floures. 1562 W. Bullein Bulwark, Bk. Simples 23 b, Good to be put into glisters..and in pultases. 1563 T. Gale Antid. ii. 72 A Cataplasme or Pultis. 1610 Markham Masterp. ii. cxiii. 408 Couer the soare place..with this Pultus. 1626 Bacon Sylva §60 The Pultass relaxeth the Pores. 1633 Johnson Gerarde's Herbal i. xx. 28 Very good to be put into pultesses. 1657 W. Coles Adam in Eden cxix, It is used in Pultisses. 1684 tr. Bonet's Merc. Compit. i. 8 Apply a hot Pultess to the Throat. 1712 Arbuthnot John Bull iii. x, Some were for emollient Pultas's. 1719 Accomplisht Lady's Delight (ed. 10) 46 Pultosses of Bran-meal. 1756 Watson in Phil. Trans. XLIX. 905 Which adheres to the bottom of the vessel like pultice. 1756 C. Lucas Ess. Waters II. 65 Salt..discusses boils, in form of a pultis with raisins, hog's lard, or honey. 1828 Craven Gloss. (ed. 2), Pultis, a poultice. |
| γ 1592 Shakes. Rom. & Jul. ii. v. 65 (Qo. 1597) Is this the poultesse for mine aking boanes? 1611 Cotgr., Pulte, a poultice. 1612 Woodall Surg. Mate Wks. (1653) 365 The hearb Crowes-foot, made into a Cataplasme or Poultis. 1643 Steer tr. Exp. Chyrurg. x. 44 With a little Vinegar and Honey make a Powltice. 1645 R. Symonds Diary Civ. War (Camden) 275 Make a poltis; lay it on with red flocks. 1658 A. Fox Würtz' Surg. i. viii. 33 There is no need of such a Poultess. 1747 Wesley Prim. Physic (1762) 38 A white bread Poultis. 1875 H. C. Wood Therap. (1879) 205 A hop poultice is sometimes made by simply moistening with hot water the hops contained in a gauze bag. |
| fig. 1576 Gascoigne Steele Gl. (Arb.) 77 That Poetrie presume not for to preache, And bite mens faults with Satyres corosiues, Yet pamper vp hir owne with pultesses. 1856 Emerson Eng. Traits, Ability Wks. (Bohn) II. 35 When they have pounded each other to a poultice, they will shake hands and be friends for the remainder of their lives. 1902 St. James' Gaz. 19 July 8/2 His pleasing manner is the poultice to the bump which his fist has raised. |
b. attrib. and
Comb.:
poultice-boot,
poultice-jacket (see
quots.);
poultice-neckerchief, a name for the many-folded neckcloth worn
c 1800;
† poultice-root (see
quot.);
poultice-shoe = poultice-boot;
poultice-wise adv., in the way of a poultice.
| 1875 Knight Dict. Mech., *Poultice-boot, a large boot used for applying poultices to horses' legs. |
| 1896 Allbutt's Syst. Med. I. 434 ‘*Poultice’ or ‘Pneumonia jackets’ are garments made of a strip of thin flannel or flannelette... They are lined with a layer of cotton wool..and can easily be placed over the poultice. |
| 1800 Monthly Mag. X. 242 The dress of our present beaux, their *poultice neck⁓handkerchiefs, pantaloons, overalls. |
| 1788 M. Cutler in Life, Jrnls. & Corr. (1888) I. 409 Several vegetables... Aspen, Black-poplar, *Poultice-root, etc. |
| 1888 G. Fleming in Encycl. Brit. XXIV. 202/1 For applying poultices to the feet [of a horse], a *poultice-shoe..may be used with advantage. |
| 1614 Markham Cheap Husb. ii. xxxi. (1668) 81 *Pultis-wise lay it to the offended member. 1756 C. Lucas Ess. Waters II. 65 It is applied to strains with meal and honey, pultiswise. |
2. Austral. slang. a. A mortgage.
| 1932 K. S. Prichard Dark Horse of Darran in Kiss on Lips 184 Mick Mallane..sayin' if the bank wanted his farm, poultice or no poultice, it'd have to go out and take it from him, and he'd be waitin' for 'm with his gun loaded. 1934 T. Wood Cobbers xi. 134 Men talked about their blister, or their poultice, which means a mortgage, with complacency. 1958 Coast to Coast 1957–1958 137 When the farm was free of its ‘poultice’, her father had promised to hand over to Sam. |
b. A (large) sum of money; a bribe.
| 1951 E. Lambert Twenty Thousand Thieves iii. xii. 235 It's only two days to pay day and I've got a poultice in that pay-book of mine. 1957 ‘N. Culotta’ They're a Weird Mob (1958) v. 73 ‘Reckon 'e pulled 'im?’ ‘That's wot I reckon.’.. ‘Yer can't prove ut.’ ‘Somebody slung in a poultice, I bet.’ ‘They're all crooked.’ 1979 Sun-Herald 24 June 143 A bloke who made a poultice in recent weeks when he sold Rupert a quarter of a million Channel Ten shares. |
▪ II. ˈpoultice, v. [f. prec. n.] trans. To apply a poultice to; to treat with a poultice. Hence
ˈpoulticed ppl. a.,
ˈpoulticing vbl. n.| 1730 Burdon Pocket Farrier (1735) 20 The same Medicine and Poulticing will cure it. 1750 Phil. Trans. XLVI. 441 Pultised according to the Direction of our old Female Practitioners. 1809 Med. Jrnl. XXI. 39 The inflammation of the wounded part had become violent, and I ordered it to be poulticed. 1875 H. C. Wood Therap. (1879) 586 Brought about by continuous poulticing. 1888 Century Mag. XXXVI. 904 His poulticed ear and picturesque scars. |