birdlime
UK /ˈbɜːdlaɪm/ · US /ˈbɝdlaɪm/ noun, verb
Forms birdlimes birdliming birdlimed
- noun A sticky substance, of varying compositions, smeared on branches to catch birds.
- noun (rhyming slang) Time; a jail term, the serving of a prison sentence.
- verb (transitive) To add birdlime to.
Synonyms
Etymology
Partial calque of German Vogelleim. By surface analysis, bird + lime.
Webster’s 1913
- noun An extremely adhesive viscid substance, usually made of the middle bark of the holly, by boiling, fermenting, and cleansing it. When a twig is smeared with this substance it will hold small birds which may light upon it. Hence: Anything which insnares.
- verb o smear with birdlime; to catch with birdlime; to insnare.
Etymology [Bird + lime viscous substance.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “birdlime”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details