▪ I. rod, n.1
(rɒd)
Also 1–6 rodd-, 4–5 rodd, 5–7 rodde.
[OE. rodd, corresponding in sense to the continental forms cited under rood n., but in form quite distinct. Prob. related to ON. rudda ‘club’, Norw. dial. rudda, rydda ‘a large pliant twig or stick used as a whip’, rodda ‘a stake set upright to hang things on’ (Ross).]
I. 1. a. A straight, slender shoot or wand, growing upon or cut from a tree, bush, etc.
| a 1150 [see sense 2]. a 1250 Owl & Night. 1123 Vor me þe hoþ in one rodde, An þu, mid þine fule codde,..Biwerest manne corn urom dore. c 1400 Mandeville (Roxb.) xi. 41 Hingand apon a spere or apon a rodd. c 1430 Two Cookery-bks. 52 Pryke þe cofyn with a pynne y-stekyd on a roddys ende. 1526 Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 139 The aungell sate downe & knyt roddes & wrought on y⊇ basket. 1572 in Feuillerat Revels Q. Eliz. (1908) 166 For wicker Roddes to make frettes. 1611 Bible Gen. xxx. 37 Iacob tooke him rods of greene poplar, and of the hasel and chestnut tree. 1688 Holme Armoury iii. 107/2 To put two rods through the cross thrids that were crossed at the Warping. 1766 Compl. Farmer s.v. Surveying 7 F 2/1 It is good that he..carry in his hand a bundle of rods, to stick down one at the end of the chain. 1784 Cowper Task vi. 166 So thick a swarm Of flow'rs, like flies clothing her slender rods, That scarce a leaf appears. 1802 James Milit. Dict. s.v., Rods, or sticks, fastened to sky-rockets, to make them rise in a straight line. 1867 J. Ingelow Laurance ii. 130 The hazel rods Were nodding with their catkins. 1885 C. G. W. Lock Workshop Rec. Ser. iv. 276/1 ‘Osiers’,..under the technical name of ‘rods’ and willows, are a merchantable commodity. |
b. fig. An offshoot, a scion; a tribe. (Biblical.)
| 1460 Pol., Rel., & L. Poems (1866) 81 To the all synners do go,..As thou art parfyte rodde of Iesse. 1535 Coverdale Isaiah xi. 1 After this there shal come a rod forth of y⊇ Kynrede of Iesse, and a blossome out of his rote. 1611 Bible Ps. lxxiv. 2 Remember..the rod [marg. Or, tribe] of thine inheritance which thou hast redeemed. 1780 [E. Perronet] Occas. Verses (1785) 22 Extol the stem of Jesse's rod, And crown Him Lord of All. c 1850 Neale Hymns East. Ch. (1866) 73 Rod of the Root of Jesse, Thou, Flower of Mary born. |
c. In
phr. by the rod, descriptive of an old form of taking or surrendering land.
Cf. Cotgrave (1611),
s.v. Verge.
| 1736 Brasenose Coll. Doc. C2 88 Came and surrendered by the rod into the hands of the Lords of the fee, a cottage [etc.]. 1818 Cruise Digest (ed. 2) V. 560 An attorney who makes a surrender ought to pursue the usual form, as by the rod, &c., according to the custom of the manor. |
2. a. An instrument of punishment, either one straight stick, or a bundle of twigs bound together.
to spare the rod, etc.: see
spare v.
| a 1150 Ags. Hom. (ed. Assmann) xv. 119 Ða het se ᵹerefa hi niman..& mid greatum roddum beaton. 1390, c 1450 [see b]. c 1491 Chast. Goddes Chyld. 14 Yf the childe wexe wanton the moder beteth him fyrst with a litell rodde and the strenger he wexeth the gretter rodde she takyth. 1551 T. Wilson Logike (1580) 36 The rodde as an instrument..helpeth forward to bryng the boye to some goodnesse. 1580 in Boys Coll. Hist. Sandwich (1792) 231 Punished..with rodd, shame, restraint of plaie, or otherwyse. 1603 Shakes. Meas. for M. i. iii. 26 As fond Fathers, Hauing bound vp the threatning twigs of birch..: in time the rod [is] More mock'd, then fear'd. 1636 Cowley Poetical Blossoms, Vote iii, I would not be a School-master, though he His Rods no lesse than Fasces deemes to be. 1733 Fielding Intriguing Chambermaid Epil., 'Tis hard to pay them who our faults reveal, As boys are forced to buy the rods they feel. 1780 Cowper Boadicea 2 The British warrior queen, Bleeding from the Roman rods. 1824 W. Irving T. Trav. I. 270 It makes a vast difference in opinion about the utility of the rod, which end happens to fall to one's share. 1865 Kingsley Herew. xxxix, To fast all the year on bread and water; and to be disciplined with rods or otherwise. |
b. fig. A means or instrument of punishment; also, punishment, chastisement. Formerly common in
phr. to make a rod for oneself, one's own back, etc.
to kiss the rod: see
kiss v. 6.
| 1390 Gower Conf. II. 44 Cupide, which of love is godd, In chastisinge hath mad a rodd To dryve awei hir wantounesse. c 1450 tr. De Imitatione iii. lv. 132 Thy discipline is upon me, & þy rodde she shal teche me... I encline me under þe rodde of þy correccion. 1470–85 Malory Arthur v. ii. 162, I fere me ye haue made a rodde for your self. 1535 Coverdale Lam. iii. 1, I am the man, that thorow the rodd of his wrath haue experience of misery. 1546 Heywood Prov. (1867) 5 Whan haste proueth a rod made for his owne tayle. 1596 Shakes. 1 Hen. IV, iii. ii. 10 Thou do'st..Make me beleeue, that thou art..the Rod of heauen To punish my Mistreadings. c 1611 Chapman Iliad v. 606 And therefore..never strive, but gently take your rod. 1655 Fuller Ch. Hist. v. 234 It hapned that this Lord first felt the smart of this rod which he made for others. 1677 W. Hughes Man of Sin i. ix. 39 Oh how the good man smiles to see what a Rod we have made for our own Back! 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. iv. 654 No vulgar God Pursues thy Crimes, nor with a common Rod. 1734 E. Erskine Serm. Wks. 1871 II. 284 How little fruit is there of rods, whether public or personal. 1771 Junius Lett. lxix. (1788) 368 Shortening the duration of parliaments..is keeping the representative under the rod of the constituent. 1801 I. Milner in Life xiii. (1842) 249, I have long seen it very plain that mild methods will not do for me. Nothing but the rod answers at all. 1860 Motley Netherl. iii. I. 67 It was the policy of both..governments..to make use of him as a rod over the head of Philip. |
c. a rod in pickle,
† lye,
† piss, usually
fig., a punishment in store. (
Cf. pickle n.1 1 b.)
| 1553 Respublica iii. v. 820 Some would in no wyse to owre desyres applye. But we have Roddes in pysse for them. 1593 G. Harvey Pierce's Super. Wks. (Grosart) II. 327, I know One, that experimentally prooued what a rod in lye could do with the curstest boy in a Citty. 1648 J. Dillingham in Ld. Montagu of Beaulieu's P. (Hist. MSS. Comm.) 163 No doubt there are many rods in pickle against many great ones. 1714 Mandeville Fab. Bees (1733) I. 331, I see a thousand rods in piss, and the whole posse of diminutive pedants against me. 1798 Anti-Jacobin 5 Mar. (1852) 77 He keeps for Pitt a rod in pickle. 1848 A. Jameson Sacr. & Leg. Art (1850) 267 He has as certainly a rod in pickle for the idle and unruly. 1886 A. J. C. Hare Story Life (1900) VI. 5 The incarnation of a rod in pickle, but with very fine qualities. |
† d. a rod under or at one's girdle, implying a whipping or the fact of having been whipped.
Obs.| 1579 Lyly Euphues (Arb.) 34 They put gold into the hands of youth, where they should put a rod vnder their gyrdle. 1591 ― Endym. ii. ii, Away peeuish boy, a rodde were better vnder thy girdle than loue in thy mouth. 1598 B. Jonson Ev. Man in Hum. v. i. (Q.1), You signior shall be carried to the market crosse, and be there bound: and so shall you sir, in a large motlie coate, with a rodde at your girdle. |
3. a. A wand or stick carried in the hand, such as a walking-stick, shepherd's or herdsman's stick, enchanter's wand, etc.
| c 1290 S. Eng. Leg. I. 274/123 His rodde he piȝte in þe grounde: and heo bi-gan a-non To leui and blowe and bere fruyt. 1474 Caxton Chess iii. (1883) 76 A man holdynge..a rodde in the lifte hand. Ibid., The rodde is for to dryue and conduyte wyth all the bestes vnto her pasture. 1511 Guylforde's Pilgr. (Camden) 45 Y⊇ relyques y{supt} Titus caryed to Rome, that is to say,..Aarons rodde, Moyses rod. 1526 Tindale Matt. x. 10 Possess nott golde, nor silver.., Nether shues, nor yet a rod [so Cranmer (1539) and Rheims (1582)]. 1611 Bible Ps. xxiii. 4 Thy rod and thy staffe, they comfort me. 1634 Milton Comus 816 Without his rod revers't, And backward mutters of dissevering power, We cannot free the Lady. 1667 ― P.L. xi. 133 Charm'd with Arcadian Pipe, the Pastoral Reed Of Hermes, or his opiate Rod. 1756–7 tr. Keysler's Trav. (1760) II. 192 Here also they pretend to shew the rods of Moses and Aaron, &c. 1781 Cowper Expost. 85 He that rul'd them with a shepherd's rod, In form a man, in dignity a God. 1819 Shelley Œd. Tyr. i. 149, I struck the crust o' the earth With this enchanted rod, and Hell lay bare! 1885 J. Payn Luck of Darrells xxxi, Her later life, with its far more important incidents, had swallowed it up like Aaron's rod. |
b. A stick or switch carried in the hand when riding. See also
riding-rod.
| 1432–50 tr. Higden (Rolls) I. 353 Thei haue a wonde, other a rodde,..to cause the horses to move. 1614 Markham Cheap Husb. i. ii, Carry your rod without offence to his eye in your right hand. 1633 G. Herbert Temple, Charms & Knots 3 A poore mans rod, when thou dost ride, Is both a weapon and a guide. a 1648 Ld. Herbert Autobiogr. (1886) 73 The rule for graceful riding is, that a man hold..his rod over the left ear of his horse. 1753 Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. s.v. |
c. A divining-rod: see divining-, dowsing-rod, and
cf. Mosaical 2.
| 1617 Moryson Itin. i. 12 When they goe over silver, they say the Rod bends or breakes, if it be straightly held. 1641 Thorndike Govt. Churches i. i. §1 Those that seek for mines have..a rod which they hold even-balanced over the place where they hope for a vein. 1778 Pryce Min. Cornub. 114 The corpuscles, it was said, that rise from the Minerals, entering the rod, determine it to bow down. 1836 R. Furness Astrologer i, To cut the wondrous rod, and thence define The place and bearing of the hidden mine. 1865 Kingsley Herew. xxv, There might be iron-ore in the wolds; and if you could find it by the rod, we might get it up and smelt it. |
| transf. 1649 G. Daniel Trinarch., Hen. V, clv, Soe great a faith have Princes, when the Sword (Their Rod of Prophecie) leads on. |
4. a. A wand or staff (of wood, ivory, or metal) carried as a symbol of office, authority, or dignity. (See also
Black Rod.)
| c 1440 Sir Gowther 314 There come the steward with a rod in his honde, To do him thens thus he wold fonde. c 1450 Brut 545 Sir Thomas Percy,..stuard of the Kynges howsold, come into the hall amonges the pepill, and there he brak the rodde of his office. a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. VIII, 215 The erle of Arrondel whiche bare the rod of Yvery with the Dove both together. 1557 N.T. (Genev.) Mark xiv. 65 The sergeantes smote him with their rods of office. 1613 Shakes. Hen. VIII, iv. i. 89 Holy Oyle,..The Rod, and Bird of Peace, and all such Emblemes. 1641 Baker Chron. (1653) 211 Receiving at the Kings hands the Rod and the Cap, as investitures of that Dutchy. 1677 F. Sandford Geneal. Hist. Eng. 75 Delivering Him the Scepter to hold in His Right Hand, and the Rod Royal in his Left Hand. 1728 Chambers Cycl. s.v. Vergers, Inferior Officers, who go before the Bishop, Dean, &c., with a Verge, or Rod tip'd with Silver. 1777 Brand Observ. Pop. Antiq. xxv. 261 The Staff or Rod of Authority in the Civil and in the Military..are both derived from hence. 1822 Scott Nigel ix, Maxwell, still keeping his rod across the door, said,..‘My lord, this gentleman is not known’. |
b. As a symbol of power or tyrannical sway.
| 1526 Tindale Rev. ii. 27 He shall rule them with a rodde of yeron. 1667 Milton P.L. v. 884 That Golden Scepter..Is now an Iron Rod to bruise and breake Thy disobedience. 1748 Gray Alliance 58 Proud of the yoke, and pliant to the rod. 1750 ― Elegy 47 Hands that the rod of empire might have sway'd. 1786 Burns Address to Edinburgh 14 Here Justice..High wields her balance and her rod. 1813 Shelley Q. Mab v. 127 The iron rod of Penury still compels Her wretched slave to bow the knee to wealth. Ibid. ix. 187 Tamely crouching to the tyrant's rod. 1879 Froude Cæsar xxvi. 437 They would fall only under the rod of less scrupulous conquerors. |
5. a. An angling-rod; a fishing-rod.
| a 1450 Fysshynge w. Angle (1883) 6 Ye muste furst lurne to mak..your rod, your lynys..& your hokes. Ibid. 7 How ȝe schall make your Rodde craftely. 1523–98 [see angle-rod; angling 3]. 1630 Drayton Muses' Elys. Nymphal vi, The lusty Samon..wresting at my Rod doth make my Boat turne round. 1653 Walton Angler 120 This kind of fishing with a dead rod, and laying night-hooks, are like putting money to use. 1711 Gay Rural Sports i. 134 Let the fisherman..Encrease his tackle, and his rod retye. 1753 Scots Mag. Mar. 134/1 He got a rod, and went a-fishing. 1856 ‘Stonehenge’ Brit. Rural Sports 252/2 The short rod is then to be held over the stream, and the bait gently dropped into the water. |
b. transf. An angler.
| 1867 F. Francis Angling xii. (1880) 441 One of the keenest and best rods on the river. 1894 Outing XXIV. 257/2 He lands more big fish and throws back more small ones than any other rod in his district. 1935 B. Perry And gladly Teach viii. 181 After showing me how often he had been ‘high rod’ on his stretch of the river, he would ‘O.K.’ all of my estimates with a smile. 1975 Oxf. Univ. Gaz. 16 Jan. 428/1 (Advt.), Prospective rods may apply for descriptive booklet. |
c. Used in association with
gun n. to designate the twin pursuits of fishing and shooting.
| 1840 J. Wilson (title) The rod and the gun, being two treatises on angling and shooting. c 1860 in A. Adburgham Shops & Shopping (1964) vii. 74 Their [sc. the fabrics'] close imitation of the colour of the natural objects surrounding the Sportsman have rendered them an absolute necessity for the pursuits of the rod or gun. 1912 E. D. Cuming (title) With rod and gun. 1966 Times 28 Feb. (Canada Suppl.) p. ii, Canada is a..catch-your-limit rod-and-gun of a country. |
d. transf. The right to fish a length of river.
| 1932 G. Cornwallis-West Edwardians go Fishing v. 60 A friend of mine was invited to fish..on one of the upper reaches of the Test owned by Colonel Sneyd, who had kept a rod himself but had let two other rods to men who had little if any knowledge of the art of dry fly fishing. 1958 Angling Times 28 Feb. 11/3 The Board offers 14 rods to let during the 1958 season for its fishery on the River Piddle. 1970 Daily Tel. 9 Nov. 8/6 Fishing fees range from {pstlg}250 to {pstlg}400 a rod annually. |
II. 6. a. A stick used for measuring with. Also
measuring rod.
| 1495 Trevisa's Barth. De P.R. xvii. clxxv. 716 He that meetyth, kepyth and departyth feldes..and meedys vsyth a rodde. 1502, 1599 [see gad n.1 6]. 1648 Hexham, Een Roede,..a Rod of ten foot long, to measure grounds or fields. 1656 [see measuring vbl. n. 4]. 1705 Arbuthnot Coins, etc. viii. (1727) 58 Decempeda was a sort of measuring Rod for taking the dimensions of Buildings. 1728 Chambers Cycl., Ezechiel's Reed, or Rod, a Scripture Measure [etc.]. 1823 P. Nicholson Pract. Build. 386 The Rod is from five to ten feet in length, and is used for measuring lengths, heights and breadths. 1844 H. Stephens Bk. Farm I. 509 The rod, divided into feet and inches, is put down to ascertain the depth of the drain. |
b. A small piece of wood, bone, etc., marked with figures and used in calculating.
| 1619 T. Bretnor A Prognost. To Mathem., There is..an excellent treatise of Rabdologia, or Arithmeticall Rods, invented and published by the learned Lord of Merchiston. 1667 [see rhabdology]. 1678 Phillips s.v. Nepiers Bones or Rods, Which Rods being rightly..disposed one with another, represent the true product of any two sums. 1825 [see rhabdological]. |
7. a. A measure of length, equal to 5½ yards or 16½ feet; a
perch or
pole.
| c 1450 Lovelich Merlin 1940 Whanne this werk was thus begonne, & the heythe of fowre roddis vpe was j-ronne aboven the erthe. c 1450 Godstow Reg. 375 The which acre holdeth in lengthe xxxij. roddis and iiij. fote of the kyngis standard. 1474 Cov. Leet Book II. 397 Out of the seid yard growith a Rodde to mesure lond by, the wich Rod conteyneth in lengthe v yardes & halfe. 1570–6 Lambarde Peramb. Kent (1826) 352 This auncient bridge..conteined in length, about twenty and sixe roddes. 1657 S. Purchas Pol. Flying-Ins. 90 Those that were seeking for her abroad (although some rods distant) are instantly sensible of their felicity. 1678 Moxon Math. Dict. App. 166 Eight Furlongs, viz. 320 Rods, make a Mile. 1706 [see pole n.1 3]. 1769 E. Bancroft Guiana 362 Extending a thousand or fifteen hundred rods in front of the River. 1865 E. Burritt Walk to Land's End (1868) 191 Then at every rod you have a sea-view of peculiar interest. 1884 Law Times Rep. LI. 230/2 That A.B. do back and cope a hundred rods of their wall..on penalty, by the rod, sixteen shillings. |
| Comb. 1778 W. H. Marshall Minutes Agric. 25 Oct. 1775, To harrow-in the wheat on the rod-wide beds of Barnfield. |
b. A measure of area: A square perch or pole;
† also, a
rood.
| c 1477 Caxton Jason 81 Thou shalte yoke hem and make hem to tourne foure rodd of londe. 1542 Recorde Gr. Artes (1575) 208, 1 Perche in bredth, and 40 in length, doe make a Rod of lande, whiche some call a roode. 1571 Digges Pantom. ii. xvi. O ij, Now bycause I would cut off from that figure one acre, and an acre conteineth 160 rods: I multiply 160 in 50. 1660 Sharrock Vegetables 19 A rod or pole of ground, which is the square of sixteen feet and a half. 1725 Fam. Dict. s.v. Surveying, Which you multiply by 40, because there are 40 Perches in a Rod. 1766 Compl. Farmer s.v. Surveying 7 F 1/1 Example. 19 rods the diagonal. 5 rods the perpendicular. 95 square rods the content. 1846 J. Baxter Libr. Pract. Agric. (ed. 4) I. 188 Half an acre, or eighty rods, of land.., is sufficient to keep a cow during a year. 1868 Rep. U.S. Commissioner Agric. (1869) 405 Five and a half square rods of ground, which had not been manured. |
c. A measure of brickwork: (see
quots.).
| 1663 Gerbier Counsel 56 Bricklayers do work at twenty seaven shillings the Rod. Ibid. 63 A Rod 16½ Foot square, 1½ Bricks. 1667 Primatt City & C. Build. 53 The Bricklayer..doth for the most part agree by the Rod, which is sixteen Foot and a half square every way, and two hundred seventy two foot in all. 1825 J. Nicholson Operat. Mech. 550 A rod of standard brick-work, making the necessary allowance for mortar and waste, will require 4500 bricks. 1842 Gwilt Encycl. Arch. §2300 Consequently 272 feet is universally taken as the superficial standard content of a rod. Ibid., A cubic rod of brickwork would be..306 feet cube. |
† d. (See
quot.)
Obs.—1| 1630 in Binnell Descr. Thames (1758) 81 No Fisherman..shall lay any more or greater Quantity [of lampern-leaps] than only one Rod of forty Fathom, containing seven Dozen of Leaps. |
III. 8. † a. The shaft of a spear.
Obs. rare.
| c 1400 Destr. Troy 1234 The king share thrugh his shild with þe sharpe ende, And the rod all to roofe right to his honde. Ibid. 11094 The roddis all to Roofe right to þaire hond. |
b. dial. The shafts of a cart or waggon.
| 1695 Kennett Par. Antiq. Gloss. s.v. Pullanus, In a team, the horse which goes in the rods is commonly call'd the Fillar. 1736 Pegge Kenticisms (E.D.S.), Rods, of a cart or waggon; in Derb. the sills. 1855 J. C. Morton Cycl. Agric. II. 725 Rods (Sussex), cart and waggon shafts. |
| attrib. 1736 Ainsworth, A rode, or roddle horse (filler), equus carro proxime subjectus. 1887 Kentish Gloss., Rod⁓horse, a horse in the shafts or rods. |
9. a. A straight slender bar of metal; a connecting part or shaft which is slender in proportion to its length.
spec. = control rod s.v. control n. 5; also (in full
fuel rod), a long, slender piece of fuel for a nuclear reactor. See also connecting-rod,
guiding-,
lightning-,
piston-rod.
| 1728 Chambers Cycl. s.v. Pendulum Clock, The Iron Rod or Wiar which bears the Bob at Bottom. 1750 Franklin Opinions & Conject. Wks. 1887 II. 183 Would not these pointed rods probably draw the electrical fire silently out of a cloud? a 1774 Goldsm. Surv. Exp. Philos. (1776) I. 155 As the rod of the pendulum, like all other bodies, contracts with cold. 1815 J. Smith Panorama Sci. & Art I. 4 A rod of good steel, in its hardest state.., may be broken almost as easily as a rod of glass. 1858 Lardner Hand-bk. Nat. Phil. 30 This plunger hangs from a rod..which passes through the cover of the cylinder. 1883 Encycl. Brit. XVI. 458/2 The rod in the shaft, known as the main rod or spear rod, is usually made of strong balks of timber butted together. 1956 Ann. Rev. Nucl. Sci. VI. 329 The fuel loading consists of roughly five tons of natural UO2 or uranium metal as round rods clad with Zircaloy. Ibid. 334 Two automatic regulating rods ordinarily hold the power level within 3 per cent of the desired value. 1959 C. Hodder-Williams Chain Reaction ix. 113 Did he leave it so late that the ‘X holes’ had warped out of alignment and the rods wouldn't drop? 1964 Jrnl. Brit. Nucl. Energy Soc. III. 298/1 By utilizing a high energy, high strain rate deformation process, the fuel rod is not only completely encapsulated but..the can wall is pressurized into the anti-rachetting grooves. 1975 J. R. Lamarsh Introd. Nucl. Engin. vii. 262 The ordinary movement of the rods in most power reactors is controlled..by an on-line computer. 1979 K. Follett Triple iv. 77 The reactor has three thousand fuel channels, each channel containing eight fuel rods. |
b. In scientific use: An animal or vegetable structure having an elongated slender form.
| 1864 Lubbock in Nat. Hist. Rev. IV. 269 In the younger females..the eggs did not descend in the uterus as far as the ‘rod’. 1878 Bell tr. Gegenbaur's Comp. Anat. 264 The rods..become united, and form a special structure, the ‘rhabdom’. 1884 Bower & Scott De Bary's Phaner. 85 Examples of the aggregated rods are found on the white Eucalypti. |
c. Something resembling a rod in shape.
| c 1860 Faraday Forces Nat. iii. 50 A continuous rod of fluid mercury. 1905 Athenæum 22 Apr. 487/2 In the cry of the wind, in the grey rods of rain, and in all the shifting shows of the universe. |
d. One of the elongated light-sensitive cells in the retina responsible primarily for vision in poor light.
Cf. cone n.1 10.
| 1866 Huxley Physiol. ix. 223 This is the layer of rods and cones, and occupies about a quarter of the whole thickness [of the retina]. 1905 A. Flint Handbk. Physiol. xxvi. 658 The rods are regular cylinders, their length corresponding to the thickness of the layer, terminating above in truncated extremities, and below in points which probably are continuous with the filaments of connection with the nerve-cells. 1937 Carlson & Johnson Machinery of Body xi. 447 At the point where the optic nerve enters the retina there are no rods and cones. 1958 Brocklehurst & Ward Gen. School Biol. xiv. 185 Rods are more numerous near the periphery of the retina, and cones..near its centre. |
e. slang. The penis; the erect member.
| 1902 in Farmer & Henley Slang s.v. Penis. 1934 E. Pound Eleven New Cantos xxxix. 46 His rod hath made god in my belly. 1960 A. West Trend is Up x. 454 ‘I want you to love me and cherish me all the days of my life.’ ‘You want the rod, you silly bitch, you fouled-up boarding-house bitch,’ he said, ‘that's what you want.’ 1975 B. Meggs Matter of Paradise vi. iii. 142 He was seventeen..rod cocked and aimed at every passing female object. |
f. slang (chiefly
U.S.). A gun; a pistol or revolver.
| 1903 H. Hapgood Autobiogr. of Thief xii. 289 The dago dropped the smoke-wagon and the bartender threatened to put him in prison for pulling a rod on respectable people. 1926 J. Black You can't Win xi. 145, I think I shall put a small ‘rod’ in my coat pocket hereafter. 1929 D. Runyon in Hearst's Internat. Oct. 201/1 Dave the Dude takes personal charge of Wild William and removes a rod from his pants pocket. 1934 A. Merritt Burn Witch Burn! v. 65 ‘Pass your rods, Paul.’ Without a word the chauffeur dipped into his pockets and handed him a pair of automatics. 1942 Wodehouse Money in Bank (1946) xxv. 224 If I've got to stick up an eat-'em-alive baby like her with nothing but a finger in my pocket, I want an extra cut... Either I have a rod, or it's seventy-five–twenty-five. 1953 K. Tennant Joyful Condemned iv. 34 What's wrong with you, waving that rod about like a bloody half-wit. 1965 [see Betsy]. 1978 J. Carroll Mortal Friends ii. iv. 179, I ain't getting my ass blown off because you're stupid. You won't get near Zorelli with a rod anyways. |
g. N. Amer. slang. The draw-rod of a railway carriage or truck.
Cf. ride v. 18 d.
| 1904 Outing July 486/2 Thousands of miles in the United States and Canada he has wandered on rods and blind baggages. 1924 J. Tully Beggars of Life 56, I beat it through De Kalb last night on the rods of a mannerfest meat train. 1931 ‘D. Stiff’ Milk & Honey Route 192 We beat it on the run... Some rode the rods on passengers, While some blew out on freights. 1959 Punch 17 June 799/2 One does not picture train-robbers lurking at the top of the bank, nor even hoboes riding the rods. |
h. slang (chiefly
U.S.).
= hot rod.
| 1945 [see hot rod]. 1948 Hot Rod Mag. July 4/3 With Carson upholstery And all the fine gear Of a more beautiful rod You never will hear. 1957 J. Kerouac On Road i. xii. 79 A burly blond kid in a souped-up rod. 1972 J. Gores Dead Skip vii. 45 A two-bit Mission District auto and accessory dealer who specialized in old cars for conversion to dune buggies, drag cars, rods, and the like. 1978 Hot Car June 91/1 With just a beach buggy to his credit at that stage, Brian saw some US rods in Chicago and planned to build himself a C Cab on his return to this country. |
IV. 10. attrib., in sense ‘having the form of a rod’:
a. Of metal, etc., as
rod-bolt,
rod-iron,
rod-lead.
| 1690 Act 2 Will. & Mary c. 4, Every Hundred Weight of Iron slit or hammered into Rods, commonly known by the Name of Rod Iron. 1805 R. W. Dickson Pract. Agric. I. Pl. 48 The rod screw for the auger, four feet. 1833 Loudon Encycl. Archit. §84 To have Norfolk thumb latches..and eight-inch rod bolts. 1868 Joynson Metals 58 Hammered and rolled into the various sections known in commerce as bar, rod iron, and the like. 1876 Voyle & Stevenson Milit. Dict. 220/2 Rod Lead... In this form it is used in the manufacture of compressed bullets. 1897 Outing XXX. 371/1, I..unfolded my patent rod-lock, and left my wheel supported by this device. |
b. Of organic structures, as
rod-body,
rod-cell.
| 1877 Q. Jrnl. Microsc. Sci. XVII. 276 Numerous rod-bodies were observed to be shot out of a fresh section just as in Geoplana, but the rod-cells were not isolated successfully. 1888 Rolleston & Jackson Anim. Life 332 In the Turbellaria very similar structures are met with in the rhabdocysts or rod-cells. |
11. attrib. and
Comb. a. General, as
rod divination,
rod-grower,
rod-merchant;
rod-shaped adj.| 1777 Brand Pop. Antiq. 96 note, Our vulgar Notion of the Hazel's Tendency to a Vein of Lead Ore..seems to be a Vestige of this Rod Divination. 1851 Census Gt. Brit. (1854), Rod grower, dealer 12. 1858 Simmonds Dict. Trade, Rod-merchant, a dealer in osiers or birch and alder rods for basket-making, etc. 1876 Nature 30 Nov. 108/1 Very minute rod-shaped spicules. |
b. In sense 5, as
rod-bearer,
rod-bender,
rod-holder;
rod-case,
rod-hand,
rod licence,
rod-ring,
rod-stand;
rod-fishing,
rod-season;
rod-caught adj.| 1852 C. M. Yonge Two Guardians i. 2 His numerous equipments, consisting of a long rod-case, a fishing-basket and landing-net. 1864 Atkinson Stanton Grange 13 The glancing trout made the rod-bearers' fingers itch to try their art. 1879 Cassell's Techn. Educ. II. 356 They..thus decrease the rental of waters either from net or rodholders. 1883 Century Mag. July 376/1 The Professor climbed up..with the rod⁓cases. Ibid. 382/1 By a simple turning over of the rod⁓hand while drawing firmly on the line. 1885 J. W. Martin Float Fishing & Spinning (ed. 2) 181/2 Rod-rings. 1885 Globe 2 Sept. (Cassell), Rod-fishing is permissible until the end of October. 1898 Westm. Gaz. 5 May 4/2 The spring rod season for salmon is nearly over. 1901 Scotsman 4 Mar. 10/1 He landed his record rod-caught fish—a salmon of sixty-seven pounds. 1902 Chambers's Jrnl. July 425/1 Any trout-rod, even after a brief life spent in such a manner, might have accepted its pensioner peg on the rod-stand. 1918 Kipling in Story-Teller Dec. 221/2 ‘Did you? Good!’ he replied heartily over the rod-case on his shoulders. 1956 People 13 May 12/6 He reckons that morning and evening are the best times for rod-benders, using bread flake and paste, on a 16- or 18-hook, for roach. 1969 Sears, Roebuck & Co. Catal. Spring–Summer 713/1 Ted Williams Rod Case... Foam-lined compartments at both ends for reels, accessories. 1972 Shooting Times & Country Mag. 1 July 12/1 Take care to ensure that the line can still run through the rod rings. 1976 Eastern Daily Press (Norwich) 19 Nov. 21/4 The proposed new charges..will be in addition to, and completely separate from, the rod licence charge. 1976 S. Wales Echo 26 Nov., Steve..thought he had hooked a good cod when he struck into a real rod-bender at The Leys. |
c. In sense 9 d, as
rod cell,
rod pigment,
rod vision;
rod-free adj.| 1940 Chambers's Techn. Dict. 728/2 Rod-cell. 1970 Ambrose & Easty Cell Biol. i. 26 In the complex light-sensitive rod cells of the vertebrate retina the membrane and fibre structure of cilia have been modified to receive light and convert it into an electrochemical stimulus. |
| 1915 J. H. Parsons Introd. Study of Colour Vision iii. 204 Beyond the rod-free central area the cones diminish continuously in number. 1921 E. B. Titchener Text-bk. Psychol. xxii. 89 Animals whose eyes lack this rod-pigment—fowls, pigeons—are strictly diurnal in their habits. Ibid., Whether the visual purple is essentially concerned in rod-vision. 1921 R. S. Woodworth Psychol. (1922) x. 226 Dim-light vision, or twilight vision as it is sometimes called, is rod vision and not cone vision. |
12. Special combs., as
rod-bat (see
quot. 1842);
rod-chisel (see
quot.);
rod-fall (see
quot. 1887);
rod-ham, a piece of meadow-land on which osiers grow;
rod-machine (see
quot.);
rod-mill, a workshop where iron is rolled into rods;
rod-planer (see
quot.);
rod puppet, a puppet operated and supported by rods;
rod-rider U.S., one who rides the rods (see sense 9 g above); hence
rod-riding ppl. a.;
rod-roller, a workman engaged in rolling iron into rods;
rod-rope, the rope by which boring-rods are worked;
† rod-woman, a seller of twigs.
| 1842 C. W. Johnson Farmer's Encycl. s.v. Plough 981/1 The ploughman next changes the position of the coulter to the opposite side, by what is called the ‘*rod bat’, that is, a wood-set stick with a crook in it. 1855 J. C. Morton Cycl. Agric. s.v. Plough, The..sheath, coulter, road bat [sic]. |
| 1875 Knight Dict. Mech. 1961/1 *Rod-chisel, a chisel on the end of a withe or rod, used by the smith in cutting hot metal. |
| 1664 MS. Agreement, Maldon, Essex Bdl. 97 fol. 3 Parcell of land called Withers, with ye *rodfall and other appurtenances. 1887 Kentish Gloss., Rodfall,..a belt of wood about a rod..deep, not belonging to the same owner as the bulk of the wood, and felled at a different time. |
| 1883 H. W. Taunt Thames (ed. 5) 44 From here a quarter of a mile of crooked stream, bordered with *rodhams, brings us to Shillingford Bridge. |
| 1884 Knight Dict. Mech. Suppl. 762/2 *Rod Machine, a machine for making round sticks, such as dowels, pins, stretchers, broom-handles, etc. |
| 1885 Census Instruct. Index, *Rod Mill Roller. 1901 Westm. Gaz. 10 Dec. 10/2 A man having charge of a rod mill. |
| 1875 Knight Dict. Mech. 1961/2 *Rod-planer, a special machine-tool for planing locomotive connecting-rods, guide-bars, and similar work. |
| 1930 Puppetry i. 64 Stick or *Rod Puppets. 1949 P. McPharlin Puppet Theatre in Amer. xx. 347 Rod-puppets have stirred up interest for their novelty and adaptability. 1960 Guardian 19 Oct. 9/5 The Chinese theatre, with its impressive traditional rod puppets. 1976 Jrnl. R. Soc. Arts Apr. 254/1 A larger form of glove puppet can be produced by placing the figure on a rod; this is called a rod puppet. |
| 1952 L. Hughes Laughing to keep from Crying 60 The *rod-riders got off nowhere near the station. 1967 B. J. Banfill Pioneer Nurse iv. 43 Many readers may not have heard about the Rod Riders, who formed a part of history in opening the west. During the ‘Awful Thirties’, this name was given to wandering embittered men. Ibid. 44 Rod Riders..planned to steal rides on trains. |
| 1953 W. Burroughs Junkie x. 95 This type cop could just as well be an oldtime *rod-riding thug. |
| 1901 Westm. Gaz. 10 Dec. 10/2 Upon the basis on which *rod rollers are paid to-day. |
| 1839 Ure Dict. Arts 966 Substituting for the wheel and axle, a number of ropes attached to the *rod-rope. |
| 1602 Middleton Blurt, Master-Constable ii. ii, My mistress cries like the *rod-woman,—quick, quick, quick, buy any rosemary and bays? |
Add:
[III.] [6.] c. Carpentry. A narrow length of wood on which the dimensions of a joinery assembly are marked,
usu. in horizontal and vertical section, as an aid to construction.
| 1890 Cent. Dict. s.v. Rod, Setting-out rod, a rod or gage [sic] used in making window frames, doors, etc. 1898 B. & H. P. Fletcher Carpentry & Joinery xxv. 275 Commence by drawing a floor line AB on the rod. 1907 P. N. Hasluck Cassell's Carpentry & Joinery 289/1 A rod stands in the same relation to a craftsman as a scaled drawing does to a designer. 1950 M. T. Telling Carpentry & Joinery i. 38 A joiner's working drawing usually consists of a horizontal and vertical section of the job set out on a board 9 in. or so in width, and from this drawing or rod the timber is marked directly. 1979 A. B. Emary Woodworking viii. 38 Figure 8.2 illustrates how to make a rod for the door and shows that two drawings are required, a full-size vertical section and a full-size horizontal section through the work. |
▪ II. † rod, n.2 Sc. Obs. Also 6
roid,
rode.
[Of obscure origin; perh. due to a wrong analysis of an early *fóttrod: see trod. Fute rode occurs in Kennedy's
Passion of Christ 11, and is probably still represented by
Sc. fit-rŏd. The quality and quantity of
o in
Sc. are so variable, that it is now impossible to say whether
rŏd,
rōd represents this word or the
Eng. road.
Cf. however the
dim. form
roddin(g.]
A path, a way or road.
| 1375 Barbour Bruce vi. 237 A litill rod he fan Vp toward the crag strikand. Ibid. x. 379 Thai..on range in ane rod can ga On handis and feit. 1513 Douglas æneis vi. vii. 43 The hiddillis held thai and the roddis darn. 1567 Gude & Godlie B. (S.T.S.) 197 Preistis, wirschip God, And put away ȝour Imagerie,..To hell the way and rod. 1581 Burne in Cath. Tract. (S.T.S.) 160 Ane edder in the hie vay, and serpent in the rod. 1600 Reg. Privy Counc. Scot. VI. 125 Making of roidis, gaittis and passageis throw the landis, and taking of..wair furth thairof. |
▪ III. rod obs. form of
road,
rood,
rud ns.▪ IV. † rod erroneous variant of
rad a., afraid.
| 1535 Stewart Cron. Scot. II. 210 Germanus bad thame tha sould nocht be rod, Bot haif gude hoip and put thair help in God. |
▪ V. rod, v. (
rɒd)
[f. rod n.1] † 1. trans. To furnish with rods or laths.
Obs.—0| 1591 Percivall Sp. Dict., Ripiar pared, to lath, to rod a wall. |
2. U.S. To fit with lightning-conductors.
| a 1890 Sci. Amer. LVIII. 358 (Cent.), Several other houses in the town were rodded in the same way. 1891 Boston (Mass.) Jrnl. 11 Feb. 2/3 An old man down the country refused to have me rod his dwelling. |
3. intr. To cut and peel osiers.
dial.| 1886 S.W. Linc. Gloss. 121 They kep' the childer away rodding. |
4. trans. To push a rod through (a drain or pipe) in order to clear it. Hence
ˈroddable a., capable of being rodded.
| 1924 E. G. Blake Plumbing I. xvii. 149 A manhole should be provided at each alteration of the direction of the drain, and at intervals of not more than from 80 yds. to 100 yds. in all straight runs. This will enable any obstruction to be cleared by rodding the drain. 1949 Escritt & Rich Work of Sanitary Engineer (ed. 2) xxii. 275 The disconnecting trap..is provided with a rodding arm which permits the outgoing line of pipe to be rodded. Ibid. xxiv. 283 The outlet should..be arranged so that it is easily roddable. 1971 B. Linden Home Owner's Maintenance Guide ii. 28 The drain pipes will probably have to be rodded to clear the blockage. |
5. intr. Const.
up. To arm oneself with a gun or guns.
Cf. rod n.1 9
f. U.S. slang.| 1929 [implied in rodded ppl. a. 4]. 1935 N. Ersine Underworld & Prison Slang 63 Rod up and we'll blow. 1950 Harper's Mag. Feb. 75/2 They do not rod up, or arm themselves. |
6. trans. To ‘soup
up’ or convert (a car) into a hot rod.
Cf. rod n.1 9 h.
U.S. slang.| 1972 J. Gores Dead Skip v. 32 A young man with an old car (hence, probably rodding it up, hence, probably, a car-lover). |
▪ VI. rod, v. (to rub): see
rud v.
2▪ VII. rod obs. or
dial. pa. tense or
pa. pple. of
ride v.