sb. and a. Forms: 3 fustane, 4–5 fustain, 4 fustayn, 4–6 fustiane, -yan(e, fusten(e, (5 fustien, fustyn, 6 fustin, fuschain, fustheyn, fushtyayne, fustyam, fusteen, fosten, Sc. fustean), 5–7 fustion, -yon, 4– fustian. [a. OF. fustaigne, -aine, mod.F. futaine fem. = Pr. fustani, Sp. fustan, Pg. fustão, It. fustagno, repr. med.L. (pannus) fustāneus, (tela) fustānea; conjecturally derived from Fostat, the name of a suburb of Cairo where cloth was manufactured.]
A. sb.
1. Formerly, a kind of coarse cloth made of cotton and flax. Now, a thick, twilled, cotton cloth with a short pile or nap, usually dyed of an olive, leaden, or other dark color.
c. 1200. Trin. Coll. Hom., 163. Ðe meshakele of medeme fustane [or perh. fustani].
c. 1386. Chaucer, Prol., 75. Of fustyan he wered a gepoun.
c. 1450. Merlin, 279. His clothinge was blakke fustyan with bendes on the sleues.
1502. Privy Purse Exp. Eliz. of York (1830), 16. ij yerdes of white fustyan for sokkes for the Quene.
1558. Wills & Inv. N. C. (Surtees, 1835), 162. ij blanketts of fustheyn.
1586. Shaks., Tam. Shr., IV. i. 49. Where’s the Cooke … the seruingmen in their new fustian.
1658. A. Fox, trans. Wurtz’ Surg., II. xxix. 149. Commonly I used to it some pieces of fustions, cutting them of two fingers breadth, and somewhat narrower, that a knot could be made with them.
1696. J. F., Merchant’s Ware-ho., 8. Dimetty … which is called Pillus Fustian, is of great use to put Feathers in for Pillows.
1860. All Year Round, No. 44. 418. Fustian and corduroy that was neither sound nor fragrant.
† b. A blanket made of this material. Obs.
1424. E. E. Wills (1882), 56. I wull he haue to þe oone bed a peyre fustyans.
c. 1460. J. Russell, Bk. Nurture, 922. Fustian and shetis clene by sight and sans ye tast.
1494. Househ. Ord. (1790), 121. Then shall the yeoman of the stuffe take a fustian and take the assaye and cast it upon the bedd; then shall esquires of the body lay hands theron … then lay on the other sheete … then lay on the over fustian above.
1500. Inv., in Ann. Reg. (1768), 134. A paire of old Fustians.
† c. Fustian of Naples. Also 6 fustian in naples or aplis, fustyan(e aples or n)apes, fwstinaples, fustianapes, fustniapes, 6–7 fustian anapes or an apes. App. a kind of cotton velvet. Cf. A-NAPES. Obs.
1465. Rolls of Parlt., V. 505. Fustian, bustian, nor fustian of Napuls.
1534. in Eng. Ch. Furniture (Peacock, 1866), 207. A new cusshion of fustian in naples.
1594. Blundevil, Exerc., V. iii. (ed. 7), 533. Fustianapes of Vellures, and of Wool, Bayes, Silke, Parchment lace, Sarcenet and Inkle.
1575, 1611, a. 1627. [see A-NAPES].
2. fig. Inflated, turgid, or inappropriately lofty language; speech or writing composed of high-sounding words and phrases; bombast, rant; in early use also † jargon, made-up language, gibberish. For the development of sense cf. BOMBAST.
c. 1590. Marlowe, Faust., iv. 76. Wag. Let thy left eye be diametarily fixed upon my right heel, with quasi vestigiis nostris insistere. Clown. God forgive me he speaks Dutch fustian.
1599. B. Jonson, Ev. Man out of Hum., III. i. Prithee let’s talk fustian a little, and gull them.
1621. Burton, Anat. Mel., II. iii. II. (1651), 316. If he can … wear his clothes in fashion … talk big fustian.
1651. Cleveland, Poems, 41. With humble service, and such other Fustian.
1681. Dryden, Sp. Friar, Ded. I am much deceiv’d if this be not abominable fustian, that is, thoughts and words ill sorted, and without the least relation to each other.
1735. Pope, Prol. Sat., 187.
| And he, whose fustian ’s so sublimely bad, | |
| It is not Poetry, but prose run mad. |
a. 1797. H. Walpole, Mem. Geo. III. (1845), I. viii. 111. Glover, the author of ‘Leonidas,’ uttered a speech in most heroic fustian, but not without good argument, to show that all our great advantages had been obtained before we went deeply into the German war.
1822. Hazlitt, Table-t., Ser. II. v. (1869), 123. They flounder about between fustian in expression, and bathos in sentiment.
1884. Fortn. Rev., June, 638. It was all nonsense, and the basest kind of political fustian.
b. occas. Clap-trap.
1880. Beaconsfield, Endymion, xci. Sensible Englishmen … looked upon the whole exhibition as fustian.
3. (See quot.)
1832. Hone, Year Bk., 62. Rum fustian is a ‘night-cap,’ made precisely in the same way [as egg-flip].
4. Comb., as fustian-maker; fustian-clad, -suited adjs. Also fustian-cutting, the action or process of cutting the surface-threads of weft of fustian; so fustian-cutter, one who performs this; † fustian-man, a fustian-maker; fustian-picker, a workman who dresses fustian.
1876. C. M. Davies, Unorth. Lond., 54. *Fustian clad men.
1884. Chesh. Gloss., *Fustian cutter, one who finishes off fustian by cutting it to a sort of velvetty pile.
1855. Mrs. Gaskell, North & S., xvii. ‘Where is your sister?’ ‘Gone *fustian-cutting.’
1704. Lond. Gaz., No. 3987/4. Robert Dunn, of Bolton in Le Moors … *Fustian-maker. Ibid. (1720), No. 5009/8. William Nabbs, late of Hallifax, *Fustianman.
1865. Public Opinion, 21 Jan., 55/1. If the makers of lucifer-matches are not henceforth to be poisoned … nor *fustian-pickers to be rendered deformed by bad conditions of work.
1891. Daily News, 26 Dec., 5/5. A gardener … assisted by one of his *fustian-suited fellows, is staking and pruning a tree.
B. adj.
1. [attrib. use of the sb.] Made of fustian.
1537. Bury Wills (Camden), 128. Item I geve to Wylliam Bolor my fosten doblett. Ibid. (1554), 144. A paier of fustian blankets.
1611. Coryat, Crudities, 465. For my clothes being but a threed-bare fustian case were so meane (my cloake onely excepted) that the Boores could not haue made an ordinary supper with the money for wch they should haue sold them.
1712. Steele, Spect., No. 408, ¶ 3. A lively young fellow in a fustian jacket.
1753. Smollett, Ct. Fathom (1784), 63/2. For all my bit of a fustian frock, that cost me in all but forty shillings, I believe, between you and me, knight, I have more dust in my fob, than all these powdered sparks put together.
1826. Kirby & Sp., Entomol. (1828), IV. 538. The plain fustian jacket used by English sportsmen.
1859. Thackeray, Virgin., xxii. He wore a plain fustian cloak.
fig. 1589. Pappe with an Hatchet (1844), 39. Botching in such frize iestes vppon fustion earnest.
1592. G. Harvey, Pierce’s Super., 158. I was never so splenetique, when I was most dumpish, but I could smile at a frise jest, when the good man would be pleasurable, and laugh at fustion earnest, when the merry man would be surly.
1885. E. W. Lightner, in Harper’s Mag., March, 533/1. To gain some individuality which will remove the impression that it is a fustian counterpart of a genuine and admirable fabric.
b. dial. (See quot., and cf. FUSTIANY.)
1750. W. Ellis, Mod. Husb., III. i. 66. There are four several Sorts [of Marl], viz. The Fustian, the Cowshit, the Black-steel, and the Shale: The Fustian Sort is an Earth composed of a fat Loam and Sand, of a reddish Colour.
2. Of language: Of the nature of fustian; ridiculously lofty in expression; bombastic, high-flown, inflated, pompous. † Also, belonging to cant or made-up jargon.
1592. Greene, Upst. Courtier (1871), 37. Then comes he out … with his fustian eloquence.
1598. Florio, Monélle, a roguish or fustian word, a word in pedlers French, signifying wenches.
1610. B. Jonson, Alch., IV. ii. Haue ’hem vp, and shew ’hem Some fustian booke, or the darke glasse.
1623. Cockeram, Premon. The fustian termes, vsed by too many who study rather to bee heard speake, than to vnderstand themselves.
1660. Howell, Lex. Tetragl., Fustian Language; Barragoäin; la lingua furbesca; Ierigonça.
1670. Cotton, Espernon, II. VII. 329. The Queen … writ a Letter to the Duke in a borrowed hand … and in a fustian style.
1748. Anson’s Voy., III. vii. 482. Notwithstanding the fustian eulogiums bestowed upon them by the Catholic Missionaries.
1838–9. Hallam, Hist. Lit., II. V. II. § 73. 229. Pope censures the haste, negligence and fustian language of Chapman.
1884. J. Sharman, Hist. Swearing, ii. 26. The fustian ornament of somewhat spirited talk.
† b. Hence of a writer or speaker. Obs.
[1597: see 3.]
1693. Dryden, Persius, v. 9. Let Fustian Poets with their Stuff be gone.
1756–82. J. Warton, Ess. Pope (ed. 4), II. x. 149, note. So little sensible are we of our own imperfections, that the very last time I saw Dr. Young, he was severely censuring and ridiculing the false pomp of fustian writers, and the nauseousness of bombast.
† c. Fustian fume: a great display of anger. So fustian anger. Obs.
1553. Bale, Vocacyon, 30 b. The Treasurer, beynge in hys fustene fumes, stoughtely demaunded a determinate answere.
1583. Stanyhurst, Æneis, II. (Arb.), 46. With fuming fustian anger.
1626. L. Owen, Spec. Jesuit. (1629), 3. Vpon this the Monke in a Spanish fustian-fume, cryed out.
1682. N. O., Boileau’s Lutrin, IV. 173. The Chanter netled heard in fustian fume Rejoyning Girard thus sawcily presume.
3. Worthless, sorry, pretentious.
1523. Skelton, Garl. Laurel, 1206. This fustian maistres and this giggishe gase.
1597. Shaks., 2 Hen. IV., II. iv. 203. Thrust him downe stayres, I cannot endure such a Fustian Rascall.
1600. Dr. Dodypoll, I. i., in Bullen, O. Pl., III. 103. A fustie Potticarie ever at hand with his fustian drugges, attending your pispot worship.
1632. Lithgow, Trav., III. 108. Now what a selfe Losungeous fellow hath this fustian companion proved.
1861. K. H. Digby, Chapel St. John (1863), 325. The fustian rascal and his poor lack-linen mate.
† b. ‘Made up,’ imaginary. Obs.
1600. B. Jonson, Cynthia’s Rev. (1692), Induction. The scene Gargaphie; which I do vehemently suspect for some fustian country.
† 4. Sc. ? Coarse, plain, homely. Obs. rare–1
1549. Compl. Scot., vi. 43. Thai hed na breyd bot ry caikis and fustean skonnis maid of flour.
Hence Fustianed a., clothed in fustian; Fustianist, one who writes fustian; Fustianize v. intr., to write fustian; Fustiany a. dial. see quot., and cf. FUSTIAN B. 1 b).
1642. Milton, An Apology against Smectymnuus viii. Preferring the gay rankness of Apuleius, Arnobius, or any modern fustianist, before the native Latinisms of Cicero.
1830. O. W. Holmes, Poet’s Lot, 4. To get a ring, or some such thing, And fustianize upon it.
1849. Alb. Smith, Pottleton Leg., vii. 62. The fustianed keeper winked at the gorgeous Roman warrior in a manner strangely at variance with their respective costumes, and then began to play with the paws of the lion.
1883. T. Hardy, Wessex Tales: The Three Strangers, in Longm. Mag., I. 572. In is progress he showed not the mud-accustomed bearing of hobnailed and fustianed peasantry.
1884. Chesh. Gloss., Fustiany, applied to sand with a good deal of earth (the colour of fustian) in it, that prevents its being used for mortar.
