Weasand

Now chiefly dial. Forms: α. 1 wásend, 4 wosen, 7 wozen. β. 4–8 wesand, 5 Sc. vassand, 5 waysande, 5–6 wesande, weysand(e, 6 wessande, wezzand, 7 wezand, weazond, 7–9 weazand, 9 weezand, 6– weasand; 4–6 wesaunt, 5–6 -aunnt, -awnt, -ant, 6 -ante, weasaunte, 6–7 weasant; 6 weasan, 6–7 -en, 7 wezon, -en, weeson, -zon, 7–8 weazon, 7–9 weason; 5 wesing, -yng, 7 wensin. y. (Sc. and north.) 8–9 wyson, wizen, 8 wyzen, (whizzen), 9 wizzen, -on, wezzon. (See also Eng. Dial. Dict.) [OE. wásend masc. (? and fem.) corresp. to OFris. wâsande, -ende, throat, OS. wâsend ruminant stomach, OHG. weisant, -ont, -unt, throat, windpipe, gullet (MHG. weisen, early mod.G. waisen, waise, mod. dial. wäs etc.). The word has the form of a pres. pple. or ppl. agent-noun (for the formation cf. ON. vélindi neut., gullet). The etymology has not been determined; for various conjectures see K. v. Bahder in Grimm s.v. Waisen. A parallel synonymous formation from the same root with different suffix appears in WEEZLE (= G. dial. waisel).

  The forms wosen (14th c.), wozen (17th c.), and the mod. dial. oosen, hoosen, are normal descendants of the OE. wásend; and possibly the Sc. form vassand comes from wásend with shortening of the vowel. The remaining ME. and mod. E. forms (including weasand) are anomalous; etymologists have generally attempted to account for them by the assumption of an OE. parallel form *wǽsend. This is not impossible, but Sweet (Ags. Dict.) appears to be in error in giving wǽsend as an actually recorded variant of wásend.]

  1.  The œsophagus or gullet.

a. 1000.  in Napier, O. E. Glosses, i. 2447. Ingluuie, ʓyfernesse, wasende.

c. 1000.  Sax. Leechd., II. 44. Læcedomas … wið ʓealhswile & þrotan & wasende.

c. 1050.  Gloss., in Wr.-Wülcker, 264/19. Rumen, wasend.

c. 1050.  Voc., Ibid., 421/37. Ingluuiem, in þane wasend.

13[?].  Gaw. & Gr. Knt., 1336. Þay gryped to þe gargulun, & grayþely departed Þe wesaunt fro þe wynt-hole.

1375.  [see THROPPLE].

c. 1400.  Lanfranc’s Cirurg., 148. And betwene þe necke & gula wiþinneforþ þere is ordeyned mary [see MERI¹], that is to seie þe wesant.

14[?].  Nom., in Wr.-Wülcker, 676/24. Hic ysophagus, a wesande.

c. 1440.  Promp. Parv., 523/1. Wesaunnt, of a beestys throte, ysofagus.

c. 1450.  Two Cookery-bks., 80. Pulle him [a snipe] late his necke be hole, save the wesing.

1548–77.  Vicary, Anat., v. (1888), 44. Also in the mouth is ended the vppermoste extremitie of the Wesande, which is called Myre or Isofagus.

1578.  Lyte, Dodoens, II. ccii. 305. It will cause the Horseleaches … to fall of, which happen to cleaue fast in the throote or wesande of any man.

1593.  Nashe, Christs Teares, H 4. Their watry wesands were like to leape out of theyr mouthes for meate.

1601.  Holland, Pliny, XI. xxxvii. I. 339. The other is more inward, called properly the Gullet, or the Wezand, by which we swallow downe both meat and drinke.

1634.  Bp. Hall, Contempl., N. T., IV. Loaves & Fishes, 123. As if the soules of these men lay in their weasand, in their gutt.

1669.  Phil. Trans., IV. 1021. Its Wind-pipe; which … together with the Oesophagus or Weasand … reaches down to the Sternum.

1715.  Ramsay, Christ’s Kirk Gr., III. 83. Now what the Friends wad fain been at,… Was e’en to get their Wysons wat.

1785.  Burns, Scotch Drink, xiv. But monie daily weet their weason Wi’ liquors nice.

1819.  Scott, Ivanhoe, xlii. By Heaven,… better food hath not passed my weasand for three livelong days.

1915.  G. Sinclair, Poems, 58. May their wysons never want A drop o’ dew tae weet them.

  2.  The trachea or windpipe: = ARTERY 1.

1398.  Trevisa, Earth. De P. R., V. xxiii. (Bodl. MS.). And somme of þese fonge the voice as þe lunges with þe receptacles wosen and pipes þereof.

a. 1529.  Skelton, Col. Cloute, 1156. Herke, howe the losell prates, With a wyde wesaunt!

1541.  R. Copland, Guydon’s Quest. Chirurg., F ij b. The wesaunt … is a cartylagynous grystled partycle created and fourmed for to be instrument of y^e voyce.

1547.  Boorde, Brev. Health, 80. Trachea arteria.… In Englyshe it is named the wesande, or the throte bol.

1609.  J. Davies (Heref.), Hum. Heaven on Earth, I. cxx. His wozen whez’d when his breath it did fill.

1646.  Sir T. Browne, Pseud. Ep., IV. viii. 198. The weazon, rough artery, or winde-pipe.

1672.  Wiseman, Wounds, I. viii. 68. The Aspera Arteria or Weazond.

1697.  Dryden, Æneis, IX. 592. Th’ unerring Steel descended while he spoke; Pierc’d his wide Mouth, and thro’ his Weazon broke.

1798.  Mrs. Inchbald, Lovers’ Vows, III. ii. They … held so strongly by his throat, They almost stopt his whizzen.

  ¶ b.  Erroneously used for ARTERY 2.

1398.  Trevisa, Earth. De P. R., III. xii. (1495), 55. Of the herte spryngyth the wosen, as the veynes sprynge out of the lyuer. Ibid., III. xii. (Tollemache MS.). The vertu þat hat vitalis, þe vertu of lyf, haþ meuynge by þe wosen and smale weyis [L. per arterias].

  3.  The throat generally.

c. 1450.  Mankind, 803, in Macro Plays, 30. A-lasse, my wesant! ȝe wer sumwhat to nere [the rope].

1550.  Latimer, Last Serm. bef. Edw. VI. (1562), 121. Should I haue named hym? nay they should as sone haue this wesaunt of mine.

1570.  Foxe, A. & M. (ed. 2), II. 1405/1. But God of his mercye so directed his wicked purpose, that the backe of his knife was towarde hys wesand.

1610.  Shaks., Temp., III. ii. 99. There thou maist braine him,… Or cut his wezand with thy knife.

1630.  J. Taylor (Water P.), Epigr., xxxviii. Wks. II. 266/1. See’st thou a villaine hang vp by the weason?

1668.  Dryden, Even. Love, V. i. Give me a Razor there, that I may scrape his weeson, that the bristles may not hinder me when I come to cut it.

1684.  J. S., Profit & Pleas. United, 162. A perfect Greyhound … a long Neck … with a loos hanging wezand.

1720.  Ramsay, Rise & Fall of Stocks, 77. The Miser … Syne shores to grip him by the Wyson.

1724.  Swift, Verses upright Judge, Misc. 1735, V. 147. The Church I hate, and have good Reason: For there my Grandsire cut his Weazon.

1819.  Scott, Leg. Montrose, xiii. Clap your hand thus on the weasand of this high and mighty prince, under his ruff.

1833.  M. Scott, Tom Cringle, xviii. He … drew his knife across the Leopard’s weasand.

1837.  Carlyle, Fr. Rev., I. VII. ii. They are parted and no weasands slit.

1841.  Borrow, Zincali, II. 47. I’d straight unsheath my dudgeon knife And cut his weasand through.

  4.  Comb., as weasand muscle; weasand-stopping adj.; weasand-pipe = senses 1–3 above.

c. 1720.  W. Gibson, Farrier’s Guide, I. v. (1722), 60. The … Bronchium, or the *Weasand Muscles.

1544.  Phaër, Regim. Lyfe (1560), S viij b. Somtyme it lyeth … upon the *wesaunt pype, and than … it stoppeth the breath & strangleth the pacient anone.

1596.  Spenser, F. Q., IV. iii. 12. His weasand pipe it through his gorget cleft.

1620.  I. C., Two Merry Milk-maids, IV. i. L 1 b. Ray. Cut my throate! Fre. I, your Weason pipe, your Gullet.

a. 1656.  R. Cox, Actæon & Diana, 31. He will come armed with nothing but a Razor, with which if he does slit your wezand-pipe, it will not be amiss to take it patiently.

1872.  O. W. Holmes, Poet Breakf.-t., viii. 267. Poor, yelling, scalping Indians,… *weasand-stopping Thugs.