▪ I. glutton, n. and a.
(ˈglʌt(ə)n)
Forms: 3 glutun, glotun, 3–4 glotoun, (4 glotoune, -owne, -en), 4–6 gloton, (5 glotone, gluton), 5–6 glotton, (6 glutten, Sc. glowton, glouttoun), 6– glutton.
[a. OF. glutun, gluton (mod.F. glouton = Sp. gloton, Pg. glotão, It. ghiottone):—L. glūtōn-em, gluttōn-em, n. related to glūtīre to gulp down, swallow. The L. nom. glūto is represented by shorter forms in some of the Romanic languages, as OF. gloz, gluz, glous, etc. (later glout masc., gloute fem.), Prov. glotz, It. ghiotto; cf. glut n.1]
A. n.
1. a. One who eats to excess, or who takes pleasure in immoderate eating; a gormandizer.
| a 1225 Ancr. R. 214 Þe ȝiure glutun is þes feondes manciple. a 1300 K. Horn 1122 Hue..fulde him of the broune A bolle of a galoun, Hue wende he were a glotoun. 1387 Trevisa Higden II. 171 In berynge þey beeþ menstralles and heraudes, in talkynge grete spekeres, in etynge and in drynkynge glotouns. c 1450 Mirour Saluacioun 658 The Gloton knawes erthlinesse and vnknawes hevenly thing. 1526 Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 233 The couetous person..hath his meditacion on his goodes, the gloton on his inordynat appetytes, and so of other. c 1586 C'tess Pembroke Ps. lxxviii. xiii, Gods wrathfull rage upon these gluttons sent, Of all their troupes the principallest slew. 1725 Pope Odyss. xi. 149 There foul adulterers to thy bride resort, And lordly gluttons riot in thy court. 1774 Goldsm. Retal. 18 At a dinner so various, at such a repast Who'd not be a glutton, and stick to the last? 1821 Syd. Smith Wks. (1867) I. 329 But you will never separate the wealthy glutton from his pheasant. 1880 Mrs. Forrester Roy & V. I. 38 Fancy her wanting to marry a lovely girl to a disgusting old glutton like the Baron. |
| fig. 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. VI, 137 Suche a strong percer is money, and suche a gredie glotton is avarice. |
| Prov. c 1530 R. Hilles Common-Pl. Bk. (1858) 140 Non sygheth so sore as the gloton that may no more. |
† b. the (rich) glutton, the rich man of the parable (Luke xvi. 19), who ‘fared sumptuously every day’.
= L. dives epulo, in the Vulgate heading of the chapter.
| [c 1380 Wyclif Serm. Sel. Wks. I. 1 Þere was a riche man þat disuside his richesse in pride and in glotonye.] 1413 Pilgr. Sowle (Caxton 1483) iii. ix. 56 The riche gloton lacketh water to kele with his tonge. 1568 Lauder Prettie Mirrour 101 The Gluttoun, quha fed delicius..That petiit nocht the pure Lazarus. a 1592 H. Smith Serm. (1622) 351 That fiery lake, where the Glutton begges but a drop of water to coole the tip of his tongue. 1722 De Foe Relig. Courtsh. i. ii. (1840) 66 Would you change your condition with me that am the rich glutton? |
c. applied to animals. (Cf. 4, 5.)
| 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xviii. i. (1495) 738 Some bestes ben grete glotons and grete deuourers of meete. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. iv. 166 Sweet Gardens, full of Saffron Flow'rs, invite The wand'ring Gluttons, and retard their Flight. c 1750 Shenstone Elegies xv. 67 From their own streams their choicer fare they drew; To lure the scaly glutton to the shore. |
2. fig. a. One who is inordinately fond of some specified object or pursuit, esp. a glutton of books, after L. helluo librorum. Also const. for.
| a 1704 T. Brown Sat. Fr. King Wks. 1730 I. 60 Since 'tis no sin of books to be a glutton, I truck'd St. Austin for a leg of mutton. 1706 Granville Brit. Enchanters i. i. 4 Foes alike to Good, Gluttons in Murder, wanton to destroy. 1768–74 Tucker Lt. Nat. (1852) II. 484 We talk of a thirst of knowledge, a glutton of books. 1860 Marsh Eng. Lang. xxi. 464 The elder Pliny..the most voracious literary glutton of ancient times. 1895 Kipling Day's Work (1898) 197 He's honest, and a glutton for work. 1971 C. Egleton Last Post for Partisan iii. 29 This bug may not look up to much but the Volks is a glutton for punishment. 1971 E. Lemarchand Death on Doomsday ix. 131 Glutton for work, aren't you? |
b. Sporting slang. (See quots.)
| 1809 European Mag. LV. 22 The term glutton whether at a fight or a feast is now indiscriminately applied to every man of true bottom. 1819 Moore Tom Crib (ed. 3) p. xvi, A ‘glutton’..the classical phrase at Moulsey-Hurst, for one who..takes a deal of punishment before he is satisfied. |
† 3. As a general term of reproach or contempt: A vile wretch; ‘a knaue, rascall, filthie fellow’ (Cotgr.). (The earliest sense recorded in OF.) Obs.
| c 1300 Havelok 2104 None but wicke men, Glotuns, reu[e]res, or wicke theues. c 1380 Sir Ferumb. 164 ‘A, glotoun’, saide þe Emperer, ‘entempre þou beter þy tonge’. 1432–50 tr. Higden (Rolls) VII. 327 Sease, gloton [L. nebulo], y am kynge of Ynglonde. c 1489 Caxton Sonnes of Aymon iii. 83 ‘Go forth, glotton, goddis curse haue thou' sayd Aymon to his sone Reynawde. 1523 Ld. Berners Froiss. I. ccclxxxiii. 626 Watte Tyler, Jacke Strawe, and Johan Ball..founde the archebysshoppe of Caunterbury..these glottons [F. ces gloutons] toke hym and strake of his heed. |
4. A voracious animal, Gulo luscus or arcticus, belonging to the Mustelidæ or weasels and martens, but much larger than other members of that family. It is a native of the northern parts of Europe, Asia, and America; the American variety is commonly called wolverene or carcajou.
| 1674 tr. Scheffer's Lapland 134 The Gluttons..have a round head, strong and sharp teeth, like a Wolfs..some compare it to the Otter, but it is far greedier than he, for thence it gets its name. 1774 Goldsm. Nat. Hist. (1776) III. 395 The Glutton..for several reasons, seems to belong to this tribe [the weasels], and this only. 1834 M{supc}Murtrie Cuvier's Anim. Kingd. 61 Linnæus..placed the Gluttons among the bears, but they approximate much nearer to the weasels in their teeth as well as in their habits. 1865 Lubbock Preh. Times ix. (1869) 295 The glutton or wolverine..has been found in three of the English bone-caves. |
5. A species of the genus Volvox of Infusoria. ? Obs.
| 1769 Ellis in Phil. Trans. LIX. 150 Fig. 6. is the volvox vorax, or the glutton. |
6. Comb., as glutton-like adj. and adv.
| 1592 Shakes. Ven. & Ad. xci, Gluttonlike she feeds, yet neuer filleth. 1599 T. M[oufet] Silkwormes 43 And glutton⁓like to vomit vp their meate. 1697 Congreve Mourning Bride i. i. 3 Some unsuspected hoard of darling Grief, Which they unseen, may wail and weep and mourn, And Glutton⁓like alone devour. |
B. adj. = gluttonous; also (see A 3) † villainous. (Cf. F. glouton adj.)
| 1387–8 T. Usk Test. Love iii. ix. (Skeat) 65 Right as I was sorowed thorow the gloton cloud of manifolde sickly sorow. a 1547 Surrey Ps. lxxiii. 26 in Park Nugæ Antiq. (1804) II. 365 Whose glutten chekes slouth feads so fatt, as scant their eyes be sene. 1682 Dryden Religio Laici 33 In Pleasure some their glutton souls would steep. 1712 Congreve Ovid's Art Love iii. Wks. 1730 III. 324 No Glutton Nymph, however Fair, can wound, Tho' more than Helen she in Charms abound. 1725 Pope Odyss. xix. 645 The geese (a glutton race) by thee deplor'd, Portend the Suitors fated to my sword. 1805 in Spirit Publ. Jrnls. (1806) IX. 244 His glutton stomach would have gorged the world. 1856 J. H. Newman Callista xv. 136 The small patches of ground belonging to the poor peasants..are the prey of these glutton invaders [sc. locusts]. |
▪ II. † ˈglutton, v. Obs.
[f. the n.; cf. OF. gloutonner.]
intr. To feed voraciously or excessively.
| c 1600 Shakes. Sonn. lxxv, Thus do I pine and surfet day by day, Or gluttoning on all, or all away. 1602 Marston Antonio's Rev. i. iii. Wks. 1856 I. 82 Sing one of Signior Renaldo's ayres, To rouse the slumbring bride from gluttoning, In surfet of superfluous sleepe. 1747 tr. Mem. Nutrebian Court II. 23 Fierce dogs were sitting, to gorge and glutton on their bowels. 1781 W. Blane Ess. Hunting (1788) 83 Hares never..glutton on their food, like the wise Heads that hunt them. |
Hence † ˈgluttoned ppl. a., surfeited, gorged; † ˈgluttoning vbl. n. (also gluttoning-in). Also † ˈgluttoner, a glutton.
| 1482 Monk of Evesham (Arb.) 82 Y leue oute and pas by..lyers and forswerers glotyners..and a thousand mo of this wyse. 1607 Topsell Four-f. Beasts 435 It resembleth a Wolfe..in voracity and gluttoning in of flesh. 1641 Marmion Antiquary H ii b, Come, honest cook, let me see how thy imagination has wrought, as well as thy fingers..for gluttoning delights to be ingenious. a 1658 Lovelace Lucasta Posth. (1659) 81 Then after all your fooling, fat, and wine, Glutton'd at last, [you] return at home to pine. 1721 Strype Eccl. Mem. III. i. 324 They were not deprived for gluttoning, nor swearing, nor dicing. |
▪ III. glutton
obs. form of gluten.