▪ I. ell1
(ɛl)
Forms: 1–7 eln, 2–7 elne, 3–6 ellen (3 a nellen for an ellen), (4 ellyn, 6 eline), 6 el, 5–7 elle, 6– ell.
[Com. Teut.: OE. ęln, str. fem. = MDu. elne, elle (Du. el), OHG. elina (MHG. elne, mod.G. elle), ON. ǫln, alin (Sw. aln, Da. alen), Goth. aleina (? scribal error for *alina) cubit:— OTeut. *alinâ, whence med.L. alena, It., OSp., OPg. alna, F. aune. The OTeut. word (a compound of which is elbow n.) meant originally arm or fore-arm, and is cogn. with Gr. ὠλένη, L. ulna, of same meaning.
The diversity of meanings (see below) is common to all words denoting linear measures derived from the length of the arm; cf. cubit and L. ulna. The word ell seems to have been variously taken to represent the distance from the elbow or from the shoulder to the wrist or to the finger-tips, while in some cases a ‘double ell’ has superseded the original measure, and has taken its name.]
1. a. A measure of length varying in different countries. The English ell = 45 in.; the Scotch = 37·2; the Flemish = 27 in. Now only Hist. or with reference to foreign countries, the Eng. measure being obsolete.
In early use often in sing. when preceded by numerals.
| c 1000 Ags. Gosp. Matt. vi. 27 Hwylc eower mæᵹ..ᵹeþencan þæt he ᵹe-eacniᵹe ane elne [950 Lindisf. elne an vel enne; 1160 Hatton enne elne] to hys anlicnesse. c 1000 ælfric Gloss. in Wr.-Wülcker 158 Ulna, eln. c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 586 So wunderlike it wex and get Ðat fiftene elne it ouer-flet. 1297 R. Glouc. (1724) 429 False elnen & mesures he broȝte al clene adoun. a 1300 Cursor M. 1675 A schippe..Seuen score ellen lang and ten. Ibid. 1838 Þe flod ouer raght seuen eln and mare. 1487 Act 3 Hen. VII, c. 7 All merchandises..used to be measured with Eln or Yard. 1502 Arnolde Chron. (1811) 204 Item a Fll ell conteyneth iii q't's of an Eng. yarde, and v. q't's of y⊇ Fll ell makith an Eng. ell. 1520 Test. Ebor. (Surtees) V. 119 A ellen of yolow velvett. 1542 Recorde Gr. Artes (1575) 207, 3 Foote and 9 Ynches make an Elle. 1597 Shakes. Rom. & Jul. ii. iv. 88 O, here's a wit of Cheuerel, that stretches from an ynch narrow to an ell broad! 1609 Skene Reg. Maj. 57 King Davids common elne conteines threttie seven measured inches. 1625–8 N. R. tr. Camden's Hist. Eliz. ii. an. 17 (1635) 180 A monstrous Whale..whose length was..twenty of our Elnes. 1633 Earl of Manchester Al Mondo (1636) 138 Ere long two ells of earth shall serve, whom scarce a world could satisfie. 1753 Hanway Trav. (1762) I. vii. lxxxviii. 408, 102 Ells dantzig make 50 ells english. 1805 Forsyth Beauties Scotl. II. 275 The ell by which their acres have been measured (called the barony ell) contains 42 inches, whereas the common ell made use of in the country is only 38 inches. 1837 Carlyle Fr. Rev. II. i. ix. 58 Tearful women wetting whole ells of cambric in concert. |
b. fig. Contrasted with
inch,
span, etc.;
esp. in proverbial phrase,
give him an inch and he'll take an ell: meaning that undue advantage will be taken of a slight concession.
| 1562 J. Heywood Prov. & Epigr. (1867) 78 Ye liked..better an Ynche of your Wyll, Than an ell of your thrift. 1580 H. Gifford Gilloflowers (1875) 57 Whereas shee tooke an inche of liberty before, tooke an ell afterwardes. 1633 G. Herbert Temple, Ch.-porch ad fin., Lifes poore span Make not an ell by trifling in thy wo. 1643 Myst. Iniq. 40 That gave but a Yard, they took an Ell. 1653 Z. Bogan Mirth Chr. Life 305 Have a care of taking an ell, when you have but an inch allowed you. 1798 Canning Ballynahinch v, in Anti-Jacobin 9 July, Tho' they still took an ell when we gave them an inch. |
c. As a fluid measure.
[Several correspondents inform us that they remember seeing the announcement ‘Beer sold by the yard’, on the signboards of country taverns, the reference being to the long narrow glasses about a yard high.]
| 1649 Lovelace Poems 99 For Elles of Beere, Flutes of Canary Thankes freest, freshest, Faire Ellinda. |
† 2. a. A measuring rod;
= ell-wand. Phrase,
to measure with the long ell,
with the short ell: to measure unfairly as buyer or seller respectively.
| 1474 Caxton Chesse 119 In hys right hand an elle for to mesure wyth. 1580 Sidney Arcadia (1622) 62 The night measured by the short ell of sleepe. 1637 R. Monro Exped. ii. 46 Sometimes the Souldiers (the worst sort of them) measured the packes belonging to the Marchants with the long ell. a 1656 Bp. Hall Soliloquies 78 Thus spake a true Idol's Priest that knew no ell, whereby to measure religion, but profit. 1768 Tucker Lt. Nat. (1852) I. 85 The mercer..upon seeing the ladies gown..can cut off her quantity by guess, without..taking his ell to measure it. |
† b. Sc. King's ell: ‘Orion's belt’:
= ell-wand 3.
Obs.| a 1605 Montgomerie Flyting Wks. (1821) 118 Be the hornes, the handstaff and the King's ell. |
† 3. long ell: a particular kind of cloth.
Obs.| 1725 De Foe Voy. round World (1840) 198 Baize, long ells, druggets, broadcloth. 1735 Berkeley Querist §520 Fine cloths in Somersetshire, long ells at Exeter. |
† 4. As a rendering of L.
ulna: The larger bone of the fore-arm.
Obs.| 1615 Crooke Body of Man 903 The other externall branch at the middle of the Ell shooteth out a propagation from his outside. 1634 T. Johnson tr. Parey's Chirurg. vi. xxvi. 147 The Ell, or bone of the cubit..hath..two appendices. |
5. Comb., as
ell-broad,
ell-long,
ell-wide adjs.;
ell coal Sc., a type of coal normally found in seams one ell or more in thickness;
† ell-glass (see 1 c.);
† ell-ridge, an old land-measure;
† ell-yard, an ell-measure. Also
ell-wand.
| 1476 Plumpton Corr. 37 The bredth of it is *elme broade. 1696 J. F. Merchant's Wareho. 20 This being the last sort of Ellbroad Gentish that I shall treat of at present. |
| 1794 J. Naismith Agric. Clydesdale 36 About 16 or 17 fathoms under this, lies the *ell coal, so called, because it was first found of this thickness, but it is frequently from 4 to 6 feet thick. 1845 New Statistical Acct. Sc. V. 813 Seven other workable seams, in the following ascending order, viz. the stone-coal 21/4 feet; ell coal, 21/4. 1931 Econ. Geol. Fife (Geol. Survey) I. 82 The Ell Coal lies 1 to 7 fms. above the Upper Eight Foot... Sometimes it is a single seam of 3 to 4 ft... The Ell is a steam coal. 1931 Times 16 Mar. 19/7 Lanarkshire.—Ell best, 15s. 6d. |
| 1682 Way to make Rum in Harl. Misc. I. 541 The Germans commonly drink whole tankards, and *ell-glasses, at a draught. |
| 1832 Tour German Prince III. ii. 36, I ate a good dinner, and then added to this *ell-long letter. |
| 1756 Extract fr. MS. Let., Peter Guffin (aged 82 in 1756) was unacquainted with such an old measure of land as an *Ell Ridge, but had heard it contained 60 Luggs. |
| 1652 J. Collinges Caveat for Prof. iv. (1653) 25 Your *ell-wide opinion. 1826 Miss Mitford Village Ser. ii. (1863) 425 A pretty quaker..did persuade me that ell-wide muslin would go as far as a yard and a half. |
| c 1340 Gaw. & Gr. Knt. 210 Þe hede of an *eln⁓ȝerde þe large lenkþe hade. c 1450 Myrc 713 False ellen yerdes, wetyngly other than the lawe of the lond. |
▪ II. ell2 U.S. (
ɛl)
= L 2 a. Also
attrib.| 1773 Rec. Early Hist. Boston (1887) XVIII. 198 A Major part of the Selectmen of said Town..[have] Established a New Street..beginning at the North Easterly Corner of the Brick Tenement, (or Ell, so called) belonging to [etc.]. 1875 J. G. Holland Sevenoaks xii. 157 Can't we put on an ell when we want it? 1876 ‘Mark Twain’ Tom Sawyer ix. 81 A single minute later he was..creeping along the roof of the ‘ell’ on all fours. 1888 Pall Mall G. 6 June 6/1, I had occasion to rebuild the ell of a dwelling-house. On removing the old ell..a rat's nest was found when it was joined to the main structure. 1892 W. D. Howells Mercy xix. 367 Matt could see a light in the ell-chamber. 1904 T. Watson Bethany (1920) 9 So it came to pass that two handsome rooms were built in the front of the west end of the old house, forming an ‘ell’ thereto. 1924 H. Croy R.F.D. No. 3 60 Higbee's house..was dirty white in color, with a series of ells and lean-tos fastened to it. |