creesh - Hamely Tongue

Source: The Hamely Tongue: A Personal Record of Ulster-Scots in County Antrim

Author: James Fenton

Comments: ‘The Hamely Tongue’ has been widely acclaimed as the authoritative record of contemporary (surviving) Ulster-Scots in its heartland of County Antrim where James Fenton faithfully recorded his dictionary items among a network of other native speakers over a 30-year period. This searchable online version of his book takes its text from ‘Part One’ of the fourth edition of 2014 and includes over 3000 word entries. The book preliminaries, supplementary word lists and end matter have been excluded.

creesh ~ v., n. grease. cairt creesh a soft, thick grease used to lubricate the wheels of carts (also a term which, according to one informant, has been saved from redundancy by the invention of the modern soft margarines). creeshed breed fried or dipped bread (see breed) (‘A lake naethin better nor sittin wae the creesh rinnin doon the weeks o mae mooth’: once said by a Dunminning man excessively fond of food fried and soaked in fat - Ba). creeshin a thrashing (E). creesh on drive (a vehicle) at high speed. creesh the loof grease the palm. [OF cresse, creisse (CSD)]

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