▪ I. ˈtousle, n.
(see next)
Also † touzle.
[f. next.]
1. A struggle, a tussle; a rough romping with a woman. Sc.
| 1788 R. Galloway Poems 214 For tho' I be baith blyth and canty, I ne'er get a touzle at a'. 1814 J. Boswell Justiciary Op. (1816) 11 A chield had taen a glass, and had A towzle wi' a gauger. 1830 Galt Lawrie T. vii. vi, Ye're no' a pin the worse of all the bit touzle. |
2. A tousled mass or mop (of hair).
| 1880 Daily Tel. 26 Nov., The eyes peeping out from under the overshadowing touzle, like young birds through a hedge. 1887 F. Warden Scheherazade ii, The thick tousle of hair..was entirely innocent of curling tongs. |
3. attrib. and Comb., as tousle-haired, tousle-headed adjs.; touslehead.
| 1880 Cornh. Mag. Feb. 136 A couple of bare-armed touzle-headed viragoes. 1898 Westm. Gaz. 8 Dec. 2/1 Cattle of all kinds... Touzle-haired, tawny Highlanders with great sweeping horns, polled Galloways with coats like black astrachan. 1900 M. Hewlett Life & Death Richard Yea-and-Nay ii. xi. 364 The townsmen of Gratz, hoarse-voiced touzle⁓heads mostly, divined her to be an anchoress. 1981 Sunday Express Mag. 7 June 12/1 The breathlessness of a touslehead at a school concert. |
▪ II. tousle, touzle, v.
(ˈtaʊz(ə)l, Sc. ˈtuz(ə)l)
Forms: 5, 8 tousel, (5 Sc. towsill, 7 -ell, 9 towsel), 6– tousle; 7– touzle, (8–9 towzle, 9 -zel, Sc. and north. toozle).
[Iterative of touse v.: see -le 3. Cf. LG. tûseln (Brem. Wbch.); Oberd. zusseln, züsseln (Doornkaat-Koolman).]
1. trans. To pull about roughly; to handle (esp. a woman) rudely or indelicately; to disorder, dishevel (the hair, clothes, etc.); = touse v. 1, 1 c, 2.
| a 1440 Sir Degrev. 1492 Fayre schetus of sylk..Quyltus poyned of that ylk Touseled they ware. c 1475 Rauf Coilȝear 432 For to towsill me or tit me, thocht foull be my clais, Or I be dantit on sic wyse, my lyfe salbe lorne. a 1585 Montgomerie Flyting 362 Tousled and tuggled with towne tykes. 1642 H. More Song of Soul ii. i. i. xiv, His rugg'd flowing mane, Which the fierce winds do tosse and tousell sore. 1725 Ramsay Gentle Sheph. iv. i, I have towzled his harigalds a wee! 1764 Foote Mayor of G. i. i, Come, Jane, give me my wig; you slut, how you have touzled the curls. 1839–40 W. Irving Wolfert's R. xiii. (1855) 181 [He] kissed and tousled the young vrouws. 1884 Harper's Mag. Aug. 464/1 Romping with the dogs, tousling a big St. Bernard. |
b. With about, out, up.
| 1816 Scott Antiq. ix, After they had touzled out mony a leather poke-full o' papers. 1822 W. Irving Braceb. Hall xxxviii, Mrs. Hannah..being tossed and tousled about by the crowd. 1883 Mem. S. Miller Pref. 20 [She] requested us..if she should be drowsy to be sure and ‘touzle’ her up. |
c. fig. = touse v. 3.
| 1826 J. Wilson Noct. Ambr. Wks. 1855 I. 260 Hoo your een sparkle as you touzle the clergy. 1900 Hare Story my Life VI. xxv. 188 Religion worried and touzled by a thousand million vagaries of personality. |
2. intr. To toss oneself about; also, to rout, rummage (cf. touse v. 5).
| 1852 Mrs. Stowe Uncle Tom's C. xxxvii, Tom Loker we left groaning and touzling in a..clean Quaker bed. 1880 Baring-Gould Mehalah xxiv, Do you think she is to come here toozling about among the wittles in her best gown? |
Hence ˈtousling, ˈtouzling vbl. n.
| 1749 Fielding Tom Jones xviii. xii, Damn me, if he shan't ha the tousling her. 1771 E. Long Trial Dog ‘Porter’ in Hone Every-day Bk. (1827) II. 202 Tearings, woundings, pullings,..touzleings,..maliciously inflicted. 1865 E. Burritt Walk Land's End 284 What tugging and touzling, and pinching and pulling at the tail he [a dog] will take. |