hirple

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English

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Etymology

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A word of unknown origin, first recorded in Scots sources from the late fifteenth century; but probably from Old Norse herpast (to suffer from cramp) the middle voice verb. Compare the Icelandic herpa (to contract, to draw together).

Pronunciation

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Verb

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hirple (third-person singular simple present hirples, present participle hirpling, simple past and past participle hirpled)

  1. (intransitive, Scotland, northern UK) To walk with a limp, to drag a limb, to walk lamely; to move with a gait somewhere between walking and crawling.
    • 1922, John Buchan, Huntingtower:
      Get you on that bicycle and hurry on, and I'll hirple after you the best I can.
    • 2015, Kate Atkinson, A God in Ruins, →ISBN, page 136:
      A woman hirpled along the corridor towards them with the aid of a walking frame.
    • 2022, Liam McIlvanney, The Heretic, page 513:
      Around lunchtime he hirpled down the corridor to the Gents.

Synonyms

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Scots

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Etymology

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Probably from Old Norse.

Pronunciation

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Verb

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hirple (third-person singular simple present hirples, present participle hirplin, simple past hirpelt, past participle hirpelt)

  1. to limp, hobble
  2. to cripple or hamper some venture or project

Noun

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hirple (plural hirples)

  1. a limp

Derived terms

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