potwalloper

or pot-wal·lop·er

[ pot-wol-uh-per, pot-wol- ]

nounEnglish History.
  1. (in some boroughs before the Reform Bill of 1832) a man who qualified as a householder, and therefore a voter, by virtue of ownership of his own fireplace at which to boil pots.

Origin of potwalloper

1
First recorded in 1715–25; pot1 + wallop (in sense “to boil violently”) + -er1, replacing potwaller literally, “potboiler” (pot1 + the obsolete verb wall “to boil, gush,” from Old English weallan “to boil” (intransitive) or wællan (transitive) + -er1)
  • Also called pot·wal·ler [pot-wol-er]. /ˈpɒtˌwɒl ər/.

Words Nearby potwalloper

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use potwalloper in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for pot-walloper

pot-walloper

potwaller

/ (ˈpɒtˌwɒlə) /


noun
  1. (in some English boroughs) a man entitled to the franchise before 1832 by virtue of possession of his own fireplace

Origin of pot-walloper

1
C18: from pot 1 + wallop to boil furiously, from Old English weallan to boil

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012