The Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue: A Dictionary of Buckish Slang, University Wit, and Pickpocket Eloquence

Do you know your abbess from your elbowshaker? Originally printed as a guide to street slang for men of quality, this reference guide will enrich your vocabulary with vulgar witticisms fashionable more than 200 years ago.

The avowed purpose of this dictionary was to give men "of fashion" an insight into the inappropriate language of the street. Read in modern times it is by turn uproariously funny and deeply confusing and yet certain truths have remained—the need fo…