Definitions
from The Century Dictionary.
- An obsolete variant of
hearse . - noun An obsolete spelling of
hearse in various senses. - noun A framework, composed of bars or rods, and used for any purpose; a grating.
- noun In fortification, specifically— A portcullis.
- noun A frame armed with spikes, used for chevauxde-frise, and laid in the way or in breaches, with the points up, to prevent or obstruct the advance of an enemy.
- noun In heraldry, a charge resembling a harrow, and blazoned herse or harrow indifferently.
- noun A genus of sphingid moths.
- noun A genus of birds.
- noun A genus of crustaceans.
- noun A genus of mollusks.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- transitive verb Same as
hearse , v. t. - noun (Fort.) A kind of gate or portcullis, having iron bars, like a harrow, studded with iron spikes. It is hung above gateways so that it may be quickly lowered, to impede the advance of an enemy.
- noun See
Hearse , a carriage for the dead. - noun obsolete A funeral ceremonial.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- verb Alternative form of
hearse .
Etymologies
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Examples
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The name herse was then applied to the draped catafalque or platform upon which the candles stood and the coffin rested, not as now the word hearse to a carriage for the conveyance of the dead.
Customs and Fashions in Old New England Alice Morse Earle 1881
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I never did hold with a woman killin 'herse'f with hard work.
Judith of the Cumberlands Alice MacGowan
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Dere didn ''pear ter be nuffin' pertickler de matter wid her, -- she had des grieve 'herse'f ter def fer her Sandy.
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I 'uz up there, while after that, turn' down her bed; an 'she injoyin' herse'f readin 'book.
Gentle Julia Booth Tarkington 1907
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Page 102 comes agin, jes 'as she were joyin' herse'f, jes 'es she were takin' a little plesyure, here dey comes a knockin 'uv it all in de haid, en spillin' de fat in de fire.
Old times in Dixie land : a southern matron's memories, 1901
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Not that the preacher wouldn't be good to her, but because she'd be a settin 'herse'f up as a mark fur all the other women in the neighborhood.
The Starbucks Opie Percival Read 1895
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Dere didn ''pear ter be nuffin' pertickler de matter wid her, -- she had des grieve 'herse'f ter def fer her Sandy.
Po' Sandy 1888
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The Lance saveys; he knows Sunbright; likewise he knows what her plantin 'herse'f in his way an' her droopin 'attitoode explains.
Wolfville Nights Alfred Henry Lewis 1885
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An 'wan leetle cheer for Belzemire dat 's kipin' herse'f alive
The Voyageur and Other Poems William Henry Drummond 1880
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When he caught the measles from Sairy Baxter's baby Lizzie sot up day 'nd night till he wuz well, holdin' his hands 'nd singin' songs to him, 'nd cryin' herse'f almost to death because she dassent give him cold water to drink when he called f'r it.
A Little Book of Profitable Tales Eugene Field 1872
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