Berry

Source : English Dialect Dictionary

BERRY, sb.1 Irel. Nhb. Dur. Cum. Yks. Chs. Lin.
Wil. [bə·ri.]
1. The gooseberry, fruit of Ribes grossularia.
N.I.1, Dur.1 Cum. Tha hed barns an bits o' flesh presarved i'
bottles as fwok dus berries, Borrowdale Lett. (1787) 5, ed. 1866;
Whoke mun be eh danger eh pricklan ther fingers, if they try teh poo
enny berries eh t'dark, Sargisson Joe Scoap (1881) 34; In the
report of a show of fruit and flowers, prizes were offered for berries
(M.P.); Cum.1, n.Yks.1 ne.Yks.1 There's a vast o' berries this
year. w.Yks. A very genus (of fruit) is offered to him under the
shape of berry tart, Hamilton Nugae Lit. (1841) 312; Leeds Merc.
Suppl. (Sept. 19, 1891); Go pull som' berries an' I'll mak' the' a
berry-pie (W.F.); Hlfx. Wds.; Ah want a penn'orth o' eätin'
berries (F.P.T.); w.Yks.1 w.Yks.2 w.Yks.3 w.Yks.4 w.Yks.5, Chs.1 Chs.2 Chs.3 n.Lin.1 I've sell'd a many
berries e' my time. sw.Lin.1 I've gathered a good few berries for
market.
2. Comp. (1) Berry-bush, a gooseberry bush; (2) Berry-cake,
(3) Berry-pie, gooseberry pie; (4) Berry-sluffs, the skins of gooseberries;
(5) Berry-tree, see Berry-bush.
(1) Nhb. The berry bushes, the rhubarb, and the cabbages in
the garden, Tynedale Studies (1896) iv. Cum. A lease in which among
other covenants the tenant is restricted from injuring or destroying
orchards, fruit-trees, berry-bushes, &c. (M.P.) Yks. A few berry
bushes, a black currant tree or two, Gaskell Sylvia (1863) I. i;
There was a blight upo' th' berry-bushes, Howitt Hope On (1840)
ix. sw.Lin.1 The berry-bushes are well ragg'd to year. (2) Cum.
(M.P.); (J.Ar.) (3) Cum. (M.P.); (J.Ar.) n.Yks.2 ‘We'll soon
find out if he's Yorkshire,’ said the Londoner; ‘ask him if he likes
berry-pie.’ w.Yks.2, Chs.1, n.Lin.1 (4) n.Yks.2 w.Yks. Leeds Merc.
Suppl. (Sept. 19, 1891). (5) Yks. Shakkin' like a berry-tree wi' a
barn at it, Yks. Comet (1844) pt. i. 3. ne.Yks.1 w.Yks. How are the
berry-trees coming on? (F.P.T.); They gate a berry-tree, Yks.
Wkly. Post (Feb. 1, 1896). n.Lin.1
3. The grain of wheat.
Wil. Reports Agric. (1793-1813); Wheat is a ‘good berry’ when
the ear is plump and well filled, Davis Agric. (1813) s.Wil. This
is found to improve the grain, provincially the ‘berry,’ Marshall
Review (1817) V. 218. Wil.1 There's a very good berry to-year.
[The longer corn continues in the ground... the berry [is] more
plump, full, and weighty, Ray (1691) 15; Such ground as bears
sour grass... will not bear a plump berry, but a thin coarse sort,
Lisle Husbandry (1757).]
---
BERRY, sb.2 and v.1 Hrf. Brks. Hmp. I.W. Som.
Also written berrey I.W.1 [bə·ri.]
1. sb. A rabbit warren, a group of rabbit holes. See
Bury.
Brks.1, Hmp. (W.M.E.F.), I.W.1
2. v. Of animals: to burrow, to dig a hole in the ground.
Hrf. The 'oonts used to berry in the ground (Coll. L.L.B.).
w.Som.1 Of a badger: Tidn a bit o' good to dig arter-n; he can
berry vaster-n you can. A dog is said to berry, when he marks
and digs at a rabbit-hole.
[Berry, Cunnyberry, Latibulum cunicutorum, Skinner
(1671); Tute, a hole, or berry made by a coney, COTGR.]
---
BERRY, sb.3 Sc. In phr. to be no the berry, to be of
bad character, untrustworthy.
Bnff.1 Abd. The ‘Twinkling Star’ is very handy, true, But,
Peter Pink, their whiskey's nae the berrie, Ogg Willie Waly (1873)
21. Per., Fif. In rare use (J.M.).
---
BERRY, v.2 Obsol. Sc. Nhb. Cum. Yks.
1. To beat, to cudgel.
Rxb. To berry a bairn (Jam.). Gall. Ye'll hae to get berried
and scartit, whammelt and riven, till ye learn as I hae learned,
Crockett Raiders (1894) ii; Still so used (W.G.). Cum. (M.P.)
2. To thresh corn. See Barry.
Dmf. (Jam.) Gall. I'll berry your crap by the light o' the moon,
Nicholson Hist. Tales (1843) 82. n.Cy. Grose (1790) (K.);
N.Cy.1 N.Cy.2 Nhb. Morton Cyclo. Agric. (1863) Nhb.1 He's been
berryin' aa the day. Cum. Obs. (M.P.); (H.W.); Cum.3 n.Yks.
He[Hobb]'ll coom nae mair, nowther to berry nor stamp. Obs. forty
years ago, Atkinson Moorl. Parish (1891) 56; (I.W.); n.Yks.1
The word is extinct here as to daily use, and only preserved in a
couplet connected with the ‘Hob’ traditions.
Hence (1) Berrier, sb. a thresher; (2) Berrying, vbl. sb.
the act of threshing; (3) Berrying-skin, sb. a dried horse's
skin used for threshing upon, to prevent the grains sticking
to the floor; (4) Berry(ing-stead, sb. a flat threshing-floor.
(1) n.Cy. (K.); Grose (1790) N.Cy.2 Cum. Linton Lake Cy.
(1864) 297. (2) Cum. A teeran haund At berry'an bigg or shearan,
Lonsdale Upshot (1811); Cum.3 (3) Cum. Down wid a buryin
skin onta t'leath floor, Dickinson Farm Life (1869) 6; Cum.1
(4) n.Cy. (K.); Kennett Par. Antiq. (1695) N.Cy.2
[Berry, to thresh, Coles (1677). The same word as
Barry, v.]
---
BERRY, sb.1 Sc. Lakel. Lan. Sur. Hmp. 1. The
gooseberry. Sc. (A.W.) 2. Comp. (1) Berry-bread,
(2) Berry-cake, a cake enclosing layers of gooseberries; (3)
Berry-shag, a slice of bread on which currant or gooseberry
jam has been spread; (4) Berry-tree, a gooseberry bush.
(1, 2) Lakel.2 (3) Lakel. Penrith Obs. (Nov. 9, 1897). (4) s.Lan.
Walkden Diary (ed. 1866) 11.
3. The grain of corn.
Abd. Alexander Notes and Sketches (1887) xviii. Sur. (T.S.C.),
Hmp. (H.R.)

Source : English Century Dictionary