▪ I. frisk, n.
(frɪsk)
[f. frisk v.]
† 1. A brisk and lively movement in horsemanship or dancing; a caracole or curvet; a caper, a jig. to fetch a frisk: see fetch v. 9. Obs.
| 1525 Ld. Berners Froiss. II. lxxviii. [lxxiv.] 234 Eche of them [knyghtes] a good dystaunce fro other made theyr tournes and fryskes fresshly. 1563–87 Foxe A. & M. (1684) III. 145 He leapt, and set a frisk or twain, as men commonly do in dauncing. 1596 Spenser F.Q. iv. x. 46 Then doe the salvage beasts begin to play Their pleasant friskes. 1610 Rowlands Martin Mark-all 36 Diuers..can now for ioy..fetch friskes about the house. 1640 Shirley Arcadia iii. i, The new frisk we danced at Enispe to-day. 1696 Aubrey Misc. (1721) 79 When he had done his Message he gave a Frisk. 1780 Cowper Table T. 237 Give him [the Frenchman] his lass, his fiddle and his frisk. 1842 C. Whitehead Richard Savage (1845) I. vii. 89 He favoured me with a frisk as I left him at his own door. |
2. transf. and fig. A brisk sportive movement; a frolic; also, a freak, whim. † frisk of nature = freak of nature: see freak n. 4.
| 1665 Hooke Microgr. 186 If they do by a frisk get below that superficies, they presently ascend again. a 1677 Barrow Serm. Wks. 1716 III. 79 New objects..excite the spirits into a pleasant frisk of motion. 1752 Johnson in Boswell (1848) 80/1 I'll have a frisk with you. 1801 Foster in Life & Corr. (1846) I. 133 The frisks of a company of summer flies. 1809 Ann. Reg. 754* There is scarcely a nobleman..who is not possessed of one or more of these frisks of nature. 1819 Scott Fam. Lett. 17 Apr. (1894) II. xv. 43, I wish you would all take a frisk down here this summer. 1825 ― Jrnl. 22 Dec., Can't say what made me take a frisk so uncommon of late years, as to write verses of free-will. 1852 Dickens Bleak Ho. xx, When you and I had a frisk down in Lincolnshire. 1889 H. F. Wood Englishman Rue Caïn iv, The married frumps come over for a frisk. |
Add: 3. A rapid search for concealed weapons, stolen goods, etc., esp. one conducted by running the hand hastily over a person's clothing. slang (chiefly U.S.).
| 1789 G. Parker Life's Painter xiv. 134 Putting a lap-feeder in our sack, that you or your blowen had prig'd yourselves, though we should stand the frisk for it. 1812 [see frisk v. 4]. 1914 Jackson & Hellyer Vocab. Criminal Slang 35 Frisk,..a search;..an examination of the contents of one's pockets, of a room, [etc.]. 1926 Flynn's 16 Jan. 638/2 When th' frisk is made you gotta put up a squawk that makes th' gumshoe sick. 1946 E. O'Neill Iceman Cometh i. 73 So I steered him into a side street where it was dark and propped him against a wall and gave him a frisk. 1973 N.Y. Law Jrnl. 24 July 4/5 In Clark, we emphasized that the frisk in Bell had been justified only by the peculiar circumstances in that case. 1982 J. May Many-Coloured Land ii. i. 124 The leather sheath was empty. Had his introductory ‘vacuum cleaning’ been a frisk with a metal detector? |
▪ II. † frisk, a. Obs.
Also 6 friske, fryske, frixe.
[a. OFr. frisque, of uncertain origin; by some viewed as ad. Teut. *frisk-, fresh a.; by others as an altered form of frique: see frike a.]
Full of life and spirit; brisk, lively, frisky.
| 1528 Paynel Salerne Regim. H b, Wyne muste be friske & sprynkelynge. c 1540 Boorde The boke for to Lerne B ij b, The Est wynde is temperat fryske and fragrant. 1580 Sidney Arcadia iii. 401 Thou seest how friske and jolly now he is. 1597–8 Bp. Hall Sat. vi. i. 294 Fayne would she seeme all frixe and frolicke still. 1611 Cotgr. s.v. Asne, Asses discharged of their burthens, vnsadled, and set at libertie, are the friskest creatures aliue. |
b. Of a horse's tail: Constantly in motion; jerky. Cf. flisk, flicky, fliggy, fletch.
| 1694 Lond. Gaz. No. 3017/4 A brown bay Mare with a..frisk Tail. 1705 Ibid. No. 4148/4 A black Gelding..with a long frisk Tail. |
▪ III. frisk, v.
(frɪsk)
Also 6–7 friske, frysk(e, 7 frisque.
[f. prec. adj.]
1. intr. Of living beings: To move briskly and sportively; to dance, frolic, gambol, jig. Also with about, away, in and out, off, and to frisk it.
| 1519 Interl. 4 Elem. (1848) 49 And I can fryske it freshly. 1583 Stanyhurst æneis i. (Arb.) 34 Nymphs a thowsand do frisk with Princelye Diana. 1601 R. Johnson Kingd. & Commw. (1603) 64 Sholes of fish frisking and playing hard under the wals of the citie. 1611 Shakes. Wint. T. i. ii. 67 We were as twyn'd Lambs, that did frisk i' th' Sun. 1664 Power Exp. Philos. i. 2 He [the Flea]..will frisk and curvet so nimbly. 1679 E. Brown Let. to Blythe in 2nd Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. App. 114/2 The gallants are frisquing and making merry in Hyde Park. c 1704 Prior Simile 14 Those merry blades, That frisk it under Pindus' shades. 1730 Fielding Temple Beau i. i, For your heart is like a coffee-house, where the beaus frisk in and out, one after another. 1764 Goldsm. Trav. 253 The gay grandsire, skilled in gestic lore, Has frisked beneath the burden of threescore. 1785 Burns To Jas. Smith xv, Cold-pausing caution's lessons scorning, We frisk away. 1821 T. W. Croker Diary 8 June, To-day he has frisked off to Windsor. 1891 Smiles J. Murray II. xxv. 177 He..rejoiced at seeing the children frisking about in the happiness of youth. |
| transf. and fig. 1626 Bacon Sylva §9 It will make the Water friske and sprinkle up in a fine Dew. a 1716 South Serm. (1717) V. 492 The Proclamation of a Prince never frisks it in Tropes. 1779 A. Hamilton Wks. (1886) VII. 586 Did I mean to show my wit?.. Did I only intend to frisk? 1823 Lamb Elia, Oxford in Vacation, The enfranchised quill..frisks and curvets..over the flowery carpet-ground of a midnight dissertation. |
2. trans. a. To move (up, out, about, etc.) in a sportive or lively manner. b. to frisk away: to squander on freaks or caprices.
| ? 16.. A Cap, etc. (N.), To frisk away much of thy time and estate. 1665 Hooke Microgr. 187 It would by frisking out of its tail..sink itself below the surface. a 1693 Urquhart Rabelais iii. xvii. 140 A pair of Yarn Windles, which she..veered, and frisked about. 1862 R. H. Patterson Ess. Hist. & Art 109 The tail is frisked up into the air in the liveliest manner possible. |
† 3. To render sprightly, enliven. Obs.
| 1802 Fenton Wks. 63, I look'd for sparkling lines, and something gay To frisk my fancy with. |
4. slang. a. To search (a person or place); esp. to run the hand rapidly over (a person or his clothing), in a search for a concealed weapon, stolen goods, etc. b. To hoax.
| 1789 G. Parker Life's Painter xv. 179 They frisk him, that is, search him. 1812 J. H. Vaux Flash Dict., Frisk, to search; to frisk a cly is to empty a pocket of its contents; to stand frisk is to stand search. 1825 C. M. Westmacott Eng. Spy I. 150 Has Tom been frisking you already with some of his jokes? 1920 I. Ostrander How Many Cards? 65 When you frisk this man Hill at Headquarters, if you find a pair of gloves on him keep them aside till I get there. 1929 C. E. Merriam Chicago 289 To take the police away from the task of frisking hip pockets and inspecting refrigerators. 1930 E. V. Knox in Punch 26 Feb. 236 His arm was twisted during the course of the interview, and his person was frisked on the chance of finding a gun. 1937 ‘N. Blake’ There's Trouble Brewing iii. 52 ‘Frisk him, Sergeant.’..The cleaner had to submit to a thorough examination of his pockets and person. 1940 R. Stout Over my Dead Body xiii. 173 The place has been frisked by someone in a hurry. 1955 Times 25 June 6/4 At a local exhibition several similar discs were handed to members of the public to hide in their clothing before being ‘frisked’ with a geiger counter. 1959 ‘A. Gilbert’ Death takes Wife xv. 198 Put down money for a joint you didn't frisk in advance. 1970 New Statesman 23 Oct. 520/2 Showing his teeth in a vicious snarl as they frisk him and open his jacket to feel under his arm. |