▪ I. rage, n.
(reɪdʒ)
Also 5 rag, 6 raige, rayge, Sc. raig, rege.
[a. F. raige, rage (11th c.) = Prov. ratje:—*rabje:—rabia late L. form (cf. Sp., Pg. rabia, It. rabbia) of rabies rabies.]
1. a. Madness; insanity; a fit or access of mania. Obs. exc. poet.
| c 1325 Metr. Hom. 141 Snakes and nederes..lep upward til his visage, And gert him almast fal in rage. 1390 Gower Conf. I. 40 Wher that wisdom waxeth wod, And reson torneth into rage. c 1400 Mandeville viii. (1839) 89 He felle in a rage, and oute of his Wytt. 1552 Lyndesay Monarche 5137 Thocht sum de Naturally, throuch aige, Fer mo deis raiffand in one raige. 1590 Shakes. Com. Err. iv. iii. 88 The reason that I gather he is mad, Besides the present instance of his rage [etc.]. 1605 ― Lear iv. vii. 78 Be comforted good Madam, the great rage You see is kill'd in him. 1700 Dryden Pal. & Arc. i. 542 Museful mopings, which presage The loss of reason and conclude in rage. 1819 Shelley Peter Bell 3rd vii. xv, To wakeful frenzy's vigil rages, As opiates, were the same applied. |
† b. Madness, folly, rashness; an instance of this, a foolish act. Obs.
| 13.. K. Alis. 4336 Alisaundre..bad non have the rage Theo water to passe of Estrage. c 1320 Cast. Love 197 Thus is Adam, thorwh rufull rage I-cast out of his eritage. a 1400 R. Brunne's Chron. Wace (Rolls) 11598 Ffor loue men doþ gret outrage [Petyt MS. many rage]. 1412–20 Lydg. Chron. Troy i. vi, It were a rage a man from him to chase Wilfull fortune whan she is beninge. |
† c. Rabies. Obs.
| 1558 Warde tr. Alexis' Secr. (1568) 28 Agaynst the bytyng of a madde dogge, and the rage or madnesse that followeth the man after he is bitten. 1595 Duncan Appendix Etymol., Rabies, rage of a dogge. |
2. Violent anger, furious passion, usually as manifested in looks, words or action; a fit or access of such anger; † angry disposition. a. of persons:
| 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 4415 In is wod rage he wende Vor to awreke is vncle deþ. c 1330 Arth. & Merl. 2422 (Kölbing) Þe king com wiþ his barnage & tounes brent in gret rage. ? a 1366 Chaucer Rom. Rose 156 A-midde saugh I Hate stonde..grinning for dispitious rage. a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. VI 163 b, He could not appeace the furious rage of the common people. 1607 Shakes. Cor. v. iii. 85 Desire not t'allay My Rages and Reuenges, with your colder reasons. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. iv. 652 The Seer, who could not yet his Wrath asswage, Rowl'd his green Eyes, that sparkled with his Rage. 1773 Mrs. Chapone Improv. Mind (1774) II. 19 The sharpest accusation excites pity or contempt, rather than rage. 1810 Scott Lady of L. v. xv, The foe..Foil'd his wild rage with steady skill. 1862 Carlyle Fredk. Gt. x. i. (1872) III. 208 Liable to rages, to utterances of a coarse nature. |
b. of animals:
| 13.. K. Alis. 555 Theo lady gede to theo drake, He lette his rage for hire sake. 1390 Gower Conf. III. 267 Riht as Leon in his rage, Which of no drede set acompte. c 1500 Lancelot 3173 In his ferss curag Of armys, as o lyoune in his rag. 1611 Bible Job xxxix. 24 [The horse] swalloweth the ground with fiercenesse and rage. 1687 Dryden Hind & P. i. 305 The Wolf, the Bear, the Boar..Their rage repressed,..stand aloof, and tremble. 1720 Pope Iliad xvii. 609 So looks the Lion o'er a mangled Boar, All grim with Rage. 1810 Scott Lady of L. vi. xxii, The prison'd eagle dies for rage. |
† 3. a. Vehement, violent or impetuous action (of persons); vigour, rapidity, haste. Obs.
| 13.. K. Alis. 980 That othres flowen with gret rage. 13.. Seuyn Sag. (W.) 480 Sche to-cragged hire visage, And gradde, ‘Harow!’ with gret rage. 1390 Gower Conf. III. 219 Til that thei sihe time, and knewe, That thei be fled upon the rage. c 1485 Digby Myst. (1882) iii. 1331 Masengyr, owt of þis town with a rage! |
† b. An act of violence; a fight. Obs. rare.
| c 1330 R. Brunne Chron. Wace (Rolls) 16173 Þys byword was longe y-told, Þys þey seide at ilka rage. ― Chron. (1810) 114 Whan Rauf herd him so seie, he dight him to þat rage. |
4. transf. a. Violence, violent operation or action, ‘fury’ (of things, e.g. wind, the sea, fire, etc.).
| c 1320 Sir Beues (MS. A.) 4580 Þe wind blew hardde wiþ gret rage. 1340 Ayenb. 142 Uor þe rage and uor þe tempeste of euele tongen. c 1400 Rom. Rose 1916 The arwis were so fulle of rage. 1513 Douglas æneis x. xii. 19 The fors..of the hevynnis and byr of seis rage. 1562 Pilkington Expos. Abdyas Pref. 8 The rage of fyre is swaged with water. 1634 Sir T. Herbert Trav. 39 Bodies..exposed to the Sunnes fiery rage. 1770 Armstrong Imitations 85 Every petty brook..mocks the river's rage. 1822 Shelley Calderon ii. 64 In contempt of the elemental rage A man comes forth in safety. |
b. A flood, high tide, sudden rising of the sea.
| 1390 Gower Conf. III. 103 Thilke almyhty hond Withdrouh the water fro the lond, And al the rage was aweie. 1538 Leland Itin. IV. 23 At Ragis of Spring Tydes. 1577 B. Googe Heresb. Husb. (1586) 173 The old Water lying vnder the leuell of the Sea, will not out againe, except a greater rage come in. 1885 A. Brassey The Trades 361 These apparently unaccountable risings of the waves are called by the natives [of the Bahamas] ‘rages’. |
† c. A fierce blast of wind. Obs. rare—1.
| c 1386 Chaucer Knt.'s T. 1127 And ther out came a rage and suche a veze That it made al the gate for to rese. |
† 5. Extravagant, riotous, or wanton behaviour; sport, game; jest, jesting talk. Obs.
| c 1320 Sir Beues (MS. A) 2967 An erneste & a rage [He] euer spekeþ frensche laungage. c 1330 Arth. & Merl. 4618 (Kölbing) Þou schust leten þi folye, Þi rage & þi ribaudye. a 1400 Roberd of Cisyle (Vernon MS.) 190 Þer nas in court grom ne page Þat of þe kyng ne made rage. c 1425 Seven Sag. (P.) 2177 The knave..bygan onnoon hys rage, And cast watyr oppon the kage. |
6. a. A violent feeling, passion, or appetite. Also, violence, severity, height (of a feeling, etc.).
| 1390 Gower Conf. III. 237 Sardanapallus..Was..Falle into thilke fyri rage Of love. 14.. in Tundale's Vis. 96 Whom a sarpent falsly dyd exyle Of fals malice in a soden rage. 1513 Douglas æneis iv. ii. 33 Quhat helpis to vesy templis in luiffis raige? Ibid. viii. iv. 1 Eftir that stanchit was the hungris rage. 1570 Foxe A. & M. 1767/1 If the rage of the payne were tolerable..he should lift vp his handes. 1593 Shakes. Lucr. 424 His rage of lust by gazing qualified. 1691 Lady R. Russell Lett. II. 95 The present rage of your sorrow. 1709 Steele Tatler No. 34 ¶2 It is in vain to give it when the Patient is in the Rage of the Distemper. 1784 Burns Man was made to Mourn ii, Does thirst of wealth thy step constrain Or youthful pleasure's rage. 1833 Tennyson Miller's Dau. 192 You must blame Love. His early rage Had force to make me rhyme in youth. |
b. Violent desire; sexual passion; heat.
| ? a 1366 Chaucer Rom. Rose 1657 Whan I was with this rage hent That caught hath many a man and shent. 1390 Gower Conf. III. 271 That ilke fyri rage In which that thei the lawe [of Mariage] excede. 1500–20 Dunbar Poems lxxxiv. 8 Quhone the biche is jolie and on rage. 1552 Lyndesay Monarche iii. 4706 [Personis] lyke Rammis in to thair rage. 1602 Shakes. Ham. iii. iii. 89 When he is drunke asleepe: or in his Rage. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. iii. 381 'Tis with this Rage, the Mother Lion stung, Scours o'er the Plain..Demanding Rites of Love. |
† c. Violent sorrow; a fit of this. Obs. rare.
| c 1386 Chaucer Frankl. T. 108 Hir grete sorwe gan aswage; She may nat alwey duren in swich rage. c 1530 Ld. Berners Arth. Lyt. Bryt. (1814) 51 Than Florence stepped forth all in a rage, and piteously cried and sayd. c 1586 Epit. Sidney in Spenser's Wks. (Globe) 571/2 Silence augmenteth grief, writing encreaseth rage. |
† d. Violent pain. Hence humorously suggested as a name for a set of teeth. Obs. rare.
| 1486 Bk. St. Albans F vij, A Rage [= set] of the teethe. 1520 Calisto & Melibæa C i, Mel. I ask the how long in this paynfull rage He hath leyn. Cel. He hath be in this agony this .viii. days. 1561 Hollybush Hom. Apoth. 17 b, As sone as he had taken it, furthwyth had he suche a rage and grepyng wythin hym. |
† e. Extreme hunger. Obs. rare—1.
| a 1533 Ld. Berners Huon cix. 375 We haue no thynge to ete nor drynke, wherfore we shal dye for famyne and rage. |
7. a. A vehement passion for, desire of, a thing. Also const. after, inf., or absol.
| 1593 Shakes. Lucr. 468 This moves in him more rage..To make the breach. 1671 Milton Samson 836 Call it furious rage To satisfie thy lust. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. iv. 299 Such Rage of Honey in their Bosom beats. 1750 H. Walpole Lett. (1846) II. 359 You can't conceive the ridiculous rage there is of going to Newgate. 1758 Johnson in Boswell xii, Warburton..has a rage for saying something, when there's nothing to be said. 1790 Loiterer 2 Jan. 4 This prevailing rage after knowledge. 1820 Shelley Witch Atl. xviii, The earth-consuming rage Of gold and blood. 1882 A. W. Ward Dickens iii. 65 The rage which possesses authors to read their writings aloud. |
b. (all) the rage: said of the object of a widespread and usually temporary enthusiasm.
| 1785 Europ. Mag. VIII. 473 The favourite phrases..The Rage, the Thing, the Twaddle, and the Bore. 1802 Monthly Mag. 1 Oct. 253/1 The rage for the dotting style of engraving..is on the decline. 1811 Byron Let. 15 Dec. (1973) II. 149 Tomorrow, I dine with Rogers & am to hear Colridge, who is a kind of rage at present. 1834 Lytton Last Days of Pompeii I. i. 173 Sylla is said to have transported to Italy the worship of the Egyptian Isis. It soon became ‘the rage’—and was peculiarly in vogue with the Roman ladies. 1836 T. Hook G. Gurney I. 52 At that period it was the rage to parodize tragedies. 1837 Marryat Perc. Keene ii, In a short time my mother became quite the rage. 1861 K. Stone Jrnl. 28 Aug. in Brokenburn (1955) 48 Plaiting palmetto for baskets has been the rage for several days. 1870 Ld. Malmesbury in Athenæum 4 June 734 In 1776, the game of ‘Commerce’..was ‘all the rage’. 1881 [see colloquialism 2]. 1940 Graves & Hodge Long Week-End iii. 38 After the war the new fantastic development of Jazz music and the steps that went with it, became, in the comtemporary phrase, ‘all the rage’. 1951 [see dead a. 30]. |
8. Poetic or prophetic enthusiasm or inspiration; musical excitement.
| c 1600 Shakes. Sonn. xvii, So should..your true rights be term'd a poet's rage. c 1611 Chapman Iliad i. 66 His prophetic rage Given by Apollo. 1713 Pope Prol. Addison's Cato 44 Assert the stage, Be justly warm'd with your own native rage. 1795 Wolcott (P. Pindar) Lousiad 11, The ragged Warblers pour their tuneful rage. 1811 Scott Don Roderick i. iii, For Homer's rage A theme. 1857–69 Heavysege Saul (1869) 173 Beat out harsh rhythms with augmenting rage. |
9. Martial or high spirit, ardour, fervour, manly enthusiasm or indignation.
| 1591 Shakes. 1 Hen. VI, iv. vi. 13 Leaden Age, Quicken'd with Youthfull Spleene, and Warlike Rage. 1700 Dryden Pal. & Arc. i. 117 The soldiers shout around with generous rage. 1720 Pope Iliad xvii. 305 Merion burning with a Hero's Rage. 1850 Tennyson In Mem. xxvii, I envy not in any moods The captive void of noble rage. |
10. Excitement or violence of an action, operation, etc.; also, the acutest point or heat of this.
| 1593 Shakes. Lucr. 145 All for one we gage; As life for honour in fell battle's rage. 1725 N. Robinson Th. Physick 124 This Fever..assaults with all the Rage and Fury of Burning. 1756 Burke Vind. Nat. Soc. Wks. 1842 I. 7 Great carnage did in those times and countries ever attend the first rage of conquest. 1784 Cowper Task iii. 519 As time subdues The rage of fermentation. 1831 Macaulay Let. to Sister in Trevelyan Life (1876) I. iv. 233 The rage of faction at the present moment exceeds any thing that has been known in our day. |
† 11. An alleged name for a company of maidens.
| 1486 Bk. St. Albans F vj b, A Rage of Maydenys; a Rafull of Knauys. |
12. attrib. and Comb., as rage-infuriate, rage-swelling adjs.; † rage-apples (see raging ppl. a. b).
| 1578 Lyte Dodoens iii. lxxxv. 438 Of Madde Apples, or Rage Apples. 1632 Lithgow Trav. i. 14 The violent force of his rage swelling courtesie. 1806 J. N. White Poems 54 A rage-infuriate train. |
Add: [7.] c. The action or an instance of raging (*rage v. 4 f); a party; a good time. Austral. and N.Z. colloq.
| 1980 N.Z. Listener 6 Dec. 56 The notice-board told me that the last rage of the year would take place that night and later in the evening the sound of the rage filled the campus. 1985 Skyline (Austral.) 15 Nov. 8 (Advt.), Have a rage at our Castaway BBQ where the order of dress is strictly Castaway style! 1986 Courier-Mail (Brisbane) 26 June (Suppl.) 8/1 The Roxy churns out an endless stream of disco, dancing, and drinking, tailor-made for young working people who..are looking for ‘a rage’. |
▸ As the second element in compounds: denoting an outburst of esp. pent-up anger and aggression triggered by a specific incident; esp. denoting unprovoked violence or aggression against someone who is perceived to have behaved in a careless, dangerous, or antagonistic manner, in pavement rage, trolley rage, etc.; see road rage n., roid rage n. at roid n. Compounds.
Attested earliest in roid rage, but in later compounds freq. after road rage.
| 1987 San Diego Union-Tribune (Nexis) 21 July d7 Anabolic steroids..do create psychological effects. You hear references to 'Roid Rage. 1988 St. Petersburg (Florida) Times (Nexis) 2 Apr. 1 b, A fit of ‘road rage’ has landed a man in jail, accused of shooting a woman passenger who's [sic] car had ‘cut him off’ on the highway. 1995 Scotsman (Electronic ed.) 30 July But after road rage and trolley rage, where a shopper attacked someone who complained about queue-jumping, could we soon be seeing ‘cash machine rage’? 1996 Guardian 27 Aug. 14/5 The audible car alarm has become an appalling blight on our urban existence... It is beyond time for legislation banning these obsolete accessories before we have a case of alarm rage. 1997 Sunday Mirror (Electronic ed.) 17 Aug. A schoolboy was throttled by a man in a ‘golf rage’ attack... [He] was attacked when he went to apologise to a family after his golf ball narrowly missed them. 1998 Evening Post (Bristol) (Electronic ed.) 30 July I shudder to think what would happen were Bristol to become a cycle-only zone—cycle rage and accidents would become commonplace. 2001 Leicester Mercury (Electronic ed.) 10 Jan. Ignorance, bad attitude and pavement rage seems to be the in thing. |
▪ II. † rage, a. Obs.
[f. rage n. or v.; cf. outrage a.]
Mad, raging; wanton.
| 13.. Coer de L. 828 Sche gahchyd herself in the vysage, As a wymman that wolde be rage. c 1330 Amis & Amil. 1945 The gode man wende he hadde ben rage. 1426 Lydg. De Guil. Pilgr. 16367 The Rage Floode off worldly Tribulacion kometh. c 1430 ― Reas. & Sens. 6988 Swifter also of passage, More than any Tigre rage. 1573 Tusser Husb. (1878) 214 Cocking Dads make sawsie lads In youth so rage, to beg in age. |
▪ III. rage, v.
(reɪdʒ)
Also 6 Sc. raige, rege.
[ad. F. rager (13th c.), f. rage rage n.]
† 1. intr. To go mad; to be mad; to act madly or foolishly. Obs.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 6986 Þai..lefte þe lagh of hei drihtin..Qua herd euer men sua rage! a 1533 Ld. Berners Huon cxvii. 423 Shortely delyuer vs, for we rage for famyne. 1567 Gude & Godlie B. (S.T.S.) 203 Thay ar with dolour pynde, And lyke to raige out of thair mynde. |
2. To show signs of madness or frenzy; to rave in madness or fury; to act or speak wildly or furiously; to storm; Sc. to scold. Also, to have frenzied or angry feelings, to be full of anger.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 7621 Saul..Als he was won bi-gan to rage. 13.. Coer de L. 2106 The emperour began to rage; He grunte his teeth and fast blewe. 1528 Tindale Obed. Chr. Man Wks. (1573) 120 Then fume we and rage and set vp the bristels and bend owrselues to take vengeaunce. 1631 Gouge God's Arrows i. §71. 119 Some..that are affected therewith, rage and rave. 1667 Milton P.L. xi. 444 Whereat hee inlie rag'd, and as they talk'd, Smote him. 1710 Steele Tatler No. 217 ¶11 If..the Beauteous could but rage a little before a Glass, and see their pretty Countenances grow wild. 1815 Shelley Demon of World 282 They did rage horribly, Breathing..fierce blasphemies. 1868 Tennyson Lucretius 272 She heard him raging, heard him fall. |
b. Const. against, at, upon, † with.
| 1519 W. Horman Vulg. 61 He suffereth men all to rayle and rage vpon hym. 1535 Coverdale 2 Kings xix. 27, I know..that thou ragest agaynst me. 1591 Spenser M. Hubberd 1088 The Tygre, and the Bore,..with the simple Camell raged sore In bitter words. 1596 ― State Irel. Wks. (Globe) 614/1 The lawes themselves they doe specially rage upon. 1642 Rogers Naaman 8 A patient raging at his Physitian. 1855 Tennyson The Letters 26, I raged against the public liar. 1866 Mrs. Carlyle Lett. III. 325 Hayward was raging against the Jamaica business. |
† c. Of poets: To be under inspiration. rare—1.
| 1611 Beaum. & Fl. Maid's Trag. i. ii, Poets, when they rage, Turn gods to men, and make an hour an age. |
† 3. To behave wantonly or riotously; to take one's pleasure; to play. Const. with (a person).
| a 1300 Body & Soul in Map's Poems 347 Body, miht thou nouht lepen to pleyen ant rage. 1303 R. Brunne Handl. Synne 7896 To pley wyþ wommen and to rage. 1390 Gower Conf. I. 101 Sche began to pleie & rage. c 1430 Syr Gener. (Roxb.) 7107 Ye shul haue youre will Of my maden, al youre fill; And rage with hir ye shal. 1508 Dunbar Tua Mariit Wemen 386 Quhen he ane hail ȝear was hanyt, and him behuffit rage. 1597 Shakes. Lover's Compl. 160 When we rage, advice is often seen By blunting us to make our wits more keen. |
b. Const. in (an action, practice, etc.).
| a 1300 Cursor M. 48 A saumpul her be þaem I say Þat rages in þare riot ay. 1567 Gude & Godlie B. (S.T.S.) 151 Man was sa wylde and nyce, And rageing in all vyce. 1599 Shakes. Much Ado iv. i. 62 Those pampred animalls, That rage in sauage sensualitie. 1645 Quarles Sol. Recant. iii. 28 One while we plunge in teares; and by and by, We rage in laughter. |
4. transf. of things (e.g. wind, the sea, etc.): To be violent and boisterous; to move or rush furiously.
| 1535 Coverdale Ps. xlvi. 3 The waters of the see raged. 1590 Shakes. Two Gent. ii. vii. 26 The Current that with gentle murmur glides..being stop'd, impatiently doth rage. 1611 Bible Jer. xlvi. 9 Come vp ye horses, and rage yee charets. 1667 Milton P.L. vi. 211 The madding Wheeles of brazen Chariots rag'd. 1795–1814 Wordsw. Excurs. iv. 536 Rage on, ye elements! let moon and stars Their aspects lend. 1819 Shelley Cenci iv. i. 114, I see a torrent of his own blood raging between us. 1832 Tennyson Sisters 21 The wind is raging in turret and tree. |
b. Of passions, feelings, etc.: To have or reach a high degree of intensity.
| 1583 Stubbes Anat. Abus. i. E iij b, Els it [pride] could neuer so rage as it dooth. 1605 Shakes. Lear i. ii. 178 His displeasure, which at this instant so rageth in him, that..it would scarcely alay. 1671 Milton Samson 963 Thy anger, unappeasable, still rages. 1810 Scott Lady of L. i. xxxv, Wild were the heart whose passion's sway Could rage beneath the sober ray! 1818 Shelley Rev. Islam iii. xxi, Thirst raged within me. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. vi. II. 64 The passion for play raged in him without measure. |
c. Of a disturbed state of things (as a storm, battle, etc.): To have course, to continue or prevail, without check or with fatal effect; to be at the height. to rage out, to break out violently.
| 1667 Milton P.L. i. 277 On the perilous edge Of battel when it rag'd. 1705 Addison Italy 7 Sudden Tempests rage within the Port. 1720 Ozell Vertot's Rom. Rep. I. iii. 159 Discord raged out again with more Fury than ever. 1784 Cowper Task iv. 309 The frost, Raging abroad, and the rough wind. 1871 L. Stephen Playgr. Eur. iv. (1894) 98 The gale..evidently raged above our heads. |
d. Of a disease or pain: To be violent. Also transf.
| 1602 Shakes. Ham. iv. iii. 68 Like the Hecticke in my blood he rages. 1611 Beaum. & Fl. Maid's Trag. ii. i, Some fever rages in thy blood. 1671 Milton Samson 619 My griefs not only pain me As a lingring disease, But..ferment and rage. 1756 C. Lucas Ess. Waters I. 217 All his former complaints rage with more than double fury. 1800, 1840 [see raging ppl. a. 1 b]. |
e. Of a tooth † or sore: To ache violently.
| 1567 Turberv. Epit. etc. 616 That..doth cause my ranckling sore to rage. 1604 [see raging ppl. a. 1 c]. 1710 Swift Tatler No. 238 ¶3 Old Aches throb, your hollow Tooth will rage. 1806 [see raging ppl. a. 1 c]. |
5. To be widely prevalent, or to spread widely, in a violent or virulent form.
| 1563 Winȝet Four Scoir Thre Quest. Wks. 1888 I. 57 Manifest rebellioun raigeing at this præsent aganis Godis plane word. 1737 Pope Hor. Ep. ii. i. 254 Triumphant Malice rag'd thro' private life. 1774 Goldsm. Nat. Hist. (1776) VII. 160 These dangers..in other parts of the world..still rage with all their ancient malignity. 1784 Cowper Task iii. 682 Vicious custom, raging uncontrolled Abroad, and desolating public life. |
b. esp. of epidemical diseases.
| 1584 Cogan Haven Health ccxliii. (1636) 320 The same kinde of agew raged in a manner over all England. 1667 Wood Life (O.H.S.) II. 124 The small pox rageth much about the kingdom. 1732 Berkeley Alciphr. iii. §16 Where an epidemical distemper rages. 1816 J. Wilson City of Plague iii. i. 168 The Plague That rages round us. 1893 T. F. Tout Edw. I, iii. 49 Sickness..raged throughout the camp. |
6. To act with fury, ardour, or vehemence; to move furiously over (a place) or about.
| 1593 Shakes. 3 Hen. VI, ii. iii. 26 Why stand we..heere, Wayling our losses, while the Foe doth Rage. 1665 Manley Grotius' Low C. Warres 68 Those Northern Nations raged over all these parts of the World. 1884 Symonds Shaks. Predec. iii. 110 The Devil leapt from the cart to rage about among the people. |
† b. To exercise one's rage on, upon. Obs.
| c 1540 tr. Pol. Verg. Eng. Hist. (Camden No. 36) 143 Yet these rude raskalls..raged on the dead carkas. 1603 Knolles Hist. Turks (1621) 867 With the same [cruelty] he also raged upon the meaner sort of the citizens. |
† 7. With various constructions: To be violently bent upon, to be furiously eager to (with inf.), to be impatient for. Obs. rare.
| 1509 Hawes Past. Pleas. xlii. (Percy Soc.) 206 Insaciately upon covetyse to rage. 1611 Beaum. & Fl. Maid's Trag. i. i, My Lord, the Maskers rage for you. 1671 Milton Samson 1275 Violent men..raging to pursue The righteous. |
† 8. trans. (in pa. pple.) To enrage. Obs. rare.
| 1593 Shakes. Rich. II, ii. i. 70 Young hot Colts, being rag'd do rage the more. |
9. refl. To bring into a certain state by raging.
| 1831 Carlyle Sart. Res. ii. ix, The hot Harmattan wind had raged itself out. 1839 Bailey Festus xvi. (1852) 199 The strong passions..Soon rage themselves to rest. |
Add: [4.] f. Of a person: to revel, to have a good time, to ‘party’. Cf. *rager n. c. Austral. and N.Z. colloq.
| 1979 Sunday Sun (Brisbane) 18 Nov. 67/3 Rage, have a good time, go out on the town. 1982 Sydney Morning Herald 18 Sept. 1/2 Teenagers still rage at weekends, check out spunks of both sexes and try to avoid hassles with the olds. 1985 Courier-Mail (Brisbane) 4 Nov. 31 (Advt.), Quick. Get ready to rage. 1986 Sun (Sydney) 9 Dec. 26/2 ‘Over Christmas, I'll probably be drinking too much and raging too much,’ said the..breakfast Bimbo. 1987 TV Week (Melbourne) 28 Mar. 4/1 ‘I still go out and rage occasionally,’ says the former sidekick to Greg Evans.., ‘but I can't do it like I used to, not five nights a week.’ |
▪ IV. rage
obs. f. rag n.1