subs. phr. (old).—a big ranting voice. [BREWER: In the old mysteries all tyrants were made to speak in a rough ranting manner. Thus Bottom the Weaver, after a rant “to show his quality,” exclaims, “That’s ’Ercles’ vein, a tyrant’s vein;” and Hamlet describes a ranting actor as “out-heroding Herod.”]

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  1383.  CHAUCER, The Canterbury Tales, ‘The Miller’s Prologue,’ 3126.

        But in PILATES VOIS he gan to crye,
And swoor by armes and by blood and bones.

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  1530.  PALSGRAVE, Langue Francoyse, 442. A haulte voyx … A PYLATE’S VOYCE.

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  1564.  UDALL, The Apophthegmes of Erasmus, 382. He heard a certain oratour speaking out of measure loude and high, and altogether in PILATES VOICE.

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