[Ads-l] highwaters

[Wilson Gray]

"High-water, creek-crossing britches," in my lost youth.

On Sun, Nov 19, 2017 at 2:36 AM, Barretts Mail <mail.barretts at gmail.com>
wrote:

> Nice follow-up. I forgot to check HDAS.
>
> Urban Dictionary (https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=flood%
> 20pants <https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=flood%20pants>)
> has flood pants. Wiktionary has “flood pants” as a synonym of highwaters,
> but no entry for it. The Oxford Living Dictionaries don’t have “flood
> pants”. BB
>
> > On 18 Nov 2017, at 19:39, ADSGarson O'Toole <adsgarsonotoole at GMAIL.COM>
> wrote:
> >
> > Green’s Dictionary of Slang has a pertinent entry.
> > https://greensdictofslang.com/entry/gucfzhy
> >
> > [Begin excerpt]
> > highwater adj.
> > [mid-19C+] (US) too short, usu. of trousers, occas. of other clothing
> > or hair; thus highwaters n., trousers that are too short.
> > [End excerpt]
> >
> > JL's Historical Dictionary of American Slang has an entry with the
> > following initial citations.
> >
> > [Begin excerpt; check for typos]
> > [1856 "M. Twain," in DARE: Then some soldiers with bob-tailed tin
> > coats on (high water coats we used to call 'em in Keokuk) come in,
> > them some gals (with high water dresses on).]
> >
> > 1902 in DARE: High-water-pants boys, who take their college education
> > and make some follow's business hum with it.
> > [End excerpt]
> >
> > I've heard the following related expression
> >
> > [Begin Urban dictionary excerpt]
> > flood pants
> > Pants that fall around the ankle. Often called high-waters/ high
> > waters as well. This refers to the fact that you can wear them when
> > there is a flood, or "high waters."
> > Wow, those flood pants are so cute, but your ankles must get cold
> > during the winter...
> > by Maderaverde April 29, 2005
> > [End Urban dictionary excerpt]
> >
> > Green’s Dictionary of Slang has a pertinent entry. (I cannot see the
> citations.)
> > https://greensdictofslang.com/entry/ltvacui
> >
> > [Begin excerpt]
> > flood-pants n.
> > [such trousers are ideal for walking through a flood – the legs are
> > too short to get wet]
> > [20C+] (orig. W.I.) trousers that are too short and narrow.
> > [End excerpt]
> >
> > Garson
> >
> >
> > On Sat, Nov 18, 2017 at 9:28 PM, Barretts Mail <mail.barretts at gmail.com>
> wrote:
> >> Wiktionary (https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/highwaters <
> https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/highwaters>, informal) has this word but
> it’s not in the English Oxford Living Dictionaries.
> >>
> >> Ken Cannon uses the word at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bh1fQbLQx6w
> <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bh1fQbLQx6w>, about 2:19 in.
> >>
> >> I was surprised to learn this is still in use.
> >>
> >> Benjamin Barrett
> >> Formerly of Seattle, WA
> >> ------------------------------------------------------------
> >> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> >
> > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>



-- 
-Wilson
-----
All say, "How hard it is that we have to die!"---a strange complaint to
come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
-Mark Twain

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