spunk-water

English

Etymology

Regional variant of stump-water. Popularised by Mark Twain in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.

Noun

spunk-water (uncountable)

1. Alternative form of stump-water (“stagnant water from a hollow in a rotting tree stump”)
   • 1876, Mark Twain, The adventures of Tom Sawyer, Chapter VI:

     "Say — what is dead cats good for, Huck?"
     "Good for? Cure warts with."
     "No! Is that so? I know something that's better."
     "I bet you don't. What is it?"
     "Why, spunk-water."
     "Spunk-water! I wouldn't give a dern for spunk-water."
     "You wouldn't, wouldn't you? D'you ever try it?" ...
     "Aha! Talk about trying to cure warts with spunk-water such a blame-fool way as that! Why, that ain't a-going to do any good. You got to go all by yourself, to the middle of the woods, where you know there's a spunk-water stump, and just as it's midnight you back up against the stump and jam your hand in and say..."