pinch-gut
English
Etymology
pinch + gut
Noun
pinch-gut (plural pinch-guts)
- (obsolete) A miser; especially someone parsimonious with food.
- 1690, Crowne, John, “Lady Pinch-guts Houſe”, in The English Frier, act 2, scene 1, page 9:
- Por. We are my Lady Pinch-guts men, Sir.
Co. Her Men? No, he Mice. We live upon crums,[sic] and a good Cat would run away with us all.
[…]
L. W. I wonder at it; my Lords humour is very oppoſite to hers, he loves Grandeur.
Co. So does ſhe, Sir, but hates to pat for't. She will ha' Servants for a ſhew, and they ſhall ha' Liveries for a ſhew, when company comes: But when company's gone, we are ſtripp'd and ſtarv'd; a damn'd Papiſtical Heathen.
- [1883, Russell, William Clark, Sailors' Language, page 103:
- Pinch-gut—A mean purser.]
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Synonyms
- pinch-back, pinch-belly, pinch-commons, pinch-crust, pinchfist, pinchpenny, pinch-plum; See also Thesaurus:miser
Derived terms
- pinch-gut money, pinch-gut pay (“allowance paid if provisions run short”), pinch-gut ship (“ship that feed sailors poorly”), pinch-gut vengeance (“bad beer”), pinch-gutted (“very hungry”)