Aim

Source : Wright, Joseph English Dialect Dictionary

AIM, sb. Lan. Chs. Stf. Der. War. [ēm.] An idea,
conjecture; a like aim, a shrewd guess.
Lan. I don't know, but I have a like aim (H.M.). Chs.1 Do
you know who did it? ─ Now, bur aw've getten a loike aim.
s.Chs.1 I shall have a better like aim, if yo'n tell me yur price.
Stf.2 Used by old people in the Audley district. Bles dhi,
wensh. oiv nū loik aim. Der.2 Aim, attempt. nw.Der.1 Aim, idea,
comprehension of any matter. War. (J.R.W.)
[But fearing lest my jealous aim might err, And so unworthily
disgrace the man, SHAKS. Two Gent. III. i. 28.
See Aim, v. 2.]
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AIM, v. Cum. Wm. Yks. Lan. Der. War. Wor. Hrf.
Glo. Dor. Som. Dev. see below. [yam, iəm, eəm, ēm.]
1. To plan, intend, purpose; to attempt, endeavour.
Cum. I nobbet aim't t'll ha' kiss't her, Gilpin Pop. Poetry (1875)
64 Cum.1 He aims to be a gentleman. Cum. & Wm. ‘Now
mistress,’ said a hospitable farmer to his wife when a friend called,
‘if you aim us owt, give us't suin’ [if you intend to give us a glass,
do it at once] (M.P.). Wm. Aaiming to hev a good conscience,
Hutton Bran New Wark (1785) l. 24. Yks.1 Ah dizzint seea hoo
thoo yams tu keep a wife when thoo's gitten her, Macquoid
D. Barugh (1877) xxii. n.Yks.1 Ah's seear he aimed o' coming.
w.Yks. Ah hedn't aimed hevin' ony (J.R.); w.Yks.5 Whear's
tuh āam going to morn? Lan.1 Hoo'd ha made a rare wife
for onybody 'at had ony sense ─ hoo would that! Awd aimt
her dooin weel, and hoo met [might] ha done weel too,
Waugh Owd Blanket (1866) iii. Der.2 Aim, to attempt. War.2
I aim to do my best for him. I aim and scheme, but nothing
goes well. Wor. Aim to, to intend to (H.K.). w.Wor.1 'Er aimed to
pick it up, but 'twere too 'eavy fur 'er to 'eft it. Hrf.2 You bain't
haimin to muv. I did aim to come. Glo.1 I aimed to come to
Gloucester last wick. Dor. Aiming to arrive about the breakfast
hour, Hardy Tess (1891) 204, ed. 1895. w.Som.1 Núv·ur muyn
dhur-z u dee·ur, ee daed-n aim t aa·t ee [never mind, there's a
dear, he did not intend to hit you]. Ee du aim tu bee mae·ustur,
doa·un ur? [he intends to be master, does he not?] Be sure
nobody widn never aim vor to break in and car away your flowers
[‘carry away’ is a common euphemism for steal]. Dev.3 He aimed
to kill his missus, and then he cut his own droat.
2. To suppose, conjecture; to anticipate, forecast, expect.
Yks. Ah aims there's shops in Steersley, Macquoid D. Barugh
(1877) bk. I. i. n.Yks.1 What o'clock is it, aim you? I never
aimed he wad ha' ganned yon gate; n.Yks.2 I aim'd varry badle
[I acted on mistaken views]. w.Yks.5 Whears tuh aim o' going
tul... when tuh dies if thah cheats a body an' leuks 'em it't faace
i' this waay?
3. To aim for, to have designs upon; of a road, &c. to aim
to, to run in the direction of.
e.Yks. Ah'll yam fo' sum rich farmer sun, Spec. Dial. (1887) 10.
ne.Yks.1 Yon rooad yams ti Whidby.
4. To prepare to throw, to throw.
w.Yks. He's aimed a stoan at mi heead (S.K.C.). War.2 Don't
you aim at me. Glo.1 Aim, to throw stones.
[1. The ground which we aim to husband must be fat,
Walker (1680); That never aim'd so high to love your
daughter, SHAKS. Per. II. v. 47. 2. Heli therfor eymyde
hir dronken, Wyclif (1382) 1 Sam. i. 13 (gesside, 1388);
Ah, Nell, forbear! thou aimest all awry, SHAKS. 2 Hen. VI,
II. iv. 58. OFr. aemer, aesmer, to esteem, consider; Rom.
adestimare; Lat. ad + aestimare.]
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AIM, adj. Yks. Chs. Stf. Der. War. Wor. Shr. Hrf. Ess.
Also written eam, eem Chs.1; eme Shr.1 Shr.2 [ēm.]
1. Of numbers: even.
w.Yks.3 Odd or aim, odd or even.
2. Straight, direct, near, close, of distance, &c. esp. in 2. an
aimer gate, a more direct road; so, a nearer way. Fig.
nearly akin, related.
w.Yks. Eym-anent, directly opposite, Grose (1790) MS. add.
(P.) Chs. This is the heamest road. Come heamer (E.F.); Chs.1
You mun go dain th' aimer gate. He lived aimer this way afore
he took yon farm; Chs.2 Eamby, close by, at hand; Chs.3 Are
yow going to Knutsford by the road? ─ No, au knows an aimer gate.
s.Chs.1 They liven eeam by the chapel. Stf.1 Aimer, Aymer; Stf.2
That bĭg sojer theer wūr aimer to th' target nor ony on 'em. Put
thĭ steps a bĭt aimertowart. Der. & Stf. Aimest road (J.K.). Der.2,
nw.Der.1 Eighmer. War.3 w.Wor.1 The emest waay is across
the crafts. Shr. It is quite eem here, not a mile away (E.P.);
Aimer is a well-known word here (W.W.S.); They bin too eme
to marry won another (G.F.J.); Shr.1 Cross them filds, it's the
emest rŏäd; Shr.2 This road is full as eme as the tother. Hrf.2
Eimer, Eemer, also Eemest. Ess. Emer, Trans. Archaeol. Soc.
(1863) II. 184.
3. Fig. mean, stingy, ‘near.’
Stf.2 That oud Jew's aaful ēm, yer canna get saat fŭr yer
porridge out on him.
[1. Possibly we have aim in the sense of ‘even’ in COTGR.:
Jouez vostre jeu, play an aim cast (at bowles). ME. emne,
em- (in compounds), as in emcristen, i.e. even-Christian,
fellow-Christian; OE. efn (emn) even, cp. ON. jamn.]
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AIM, v. Pem. To try, endeavour.
s.Pem. ‘He not a year old yet, but he is aiming to walk.’‘ Jem,
he don't aim to learn’ (M.S.C.).

Source : Century Dictionary