Wordsmith Talk |
About Us | What's New | Search | Site Map | Contact Us | |||
Register Log In Wordsmith Talk Forums (Old) Weekly themes. (have been consolidated into a single forum above) Meta-words spill
Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
O.Henry describes a masked gunman robbing the local J.P. of a new $5 bill, and ordering him to roll it into a "spill"
and stick it into the muzzle of the rifle. I cannot find any definition of spill that fits. I wonder if "spill" was once slang name for a drinking straw.
Something reminded me of the word "spile"
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
Spile \Spile\, n. [Cf. LG. spile, dial. G. speil, speiler, D.
spijl. [root]170.]
1. A small plug or wooden pin, used to stop a vent, as in a
cask.
Spile \Spile\, v. t.
To supply with a spile or a spigot; to make a small vent in,
as a cask.
Maybe O.Henry knew a dialectical variation of "spile"
written "spill". Any comments?
Entire Thread Subject Posted By Posted ![]()
spill
wwh 01/21/2004 10:40 PM ![]()
Re: spill
jheem 01/21/2004 11:00 PM ![]()
Re: spill
wwh 01/22/2004 12:04 AM ![]()
Re: spill
jheem 01/22/2004 2:21 AM ![]()
Re: spill
maverick 01/22/2004 9:30 AM ![]()
Re: bogart
Buffalo Shrdlu 01/22/2004 10:26 AM ![]()
Re: spill
of troy 01/22/2004 2:04 PM ![]()
Re: spill
jheem 01/22/2004 2:24 PM ![]()
Re: spill
maverick 01/22/2004 4:45 PM ![]()
Re: spill
dxb 01/22/2004 5:05 PM ![]()
Re: spill
Faldage 01/22/2004 5:17 PM ![]()
Re: spill
wwh 01/22/2004 6:06 PM ![]()
Re: spill
dxb 01/23/2004 7:22 AM
Moderated by Jackie
Link Copied to Clipboard
Forum Statistics Forums16Topics13,916Posts230,388Members9,211 Most Online7,006
Mar 7th, 2026
Newest Members Boo boo kitty fu, peterreineck, Peripatetic Toad, JerryC, blvd
9,211 Registered Users
Top Posters(30 Days) A C Bowden 17
Top Posters wwh 13,858Faldage 13,803Jackie 11,613wofahulicodoc 11,212tsuwm 10,542LukeJavan8 9,974Buffalo Shrdlu 7,210AnnaStrophic 6,511Wordwind 6,296of troy 5,400
Forum Rules · Mark All Read Contact Us · Forum Help · Wordsmith Talk