come-all-ye

American  

[kuhm-awl-yee] / ˈkʌmˌɔlˌji /

Also come-all-you

noun

1. a street ballad, especially in England.

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come-all-ye British  

/ -jiː, kəˈmɔːljə /

noun

1. a street ballad or folk song

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Etymology

Origin of come-all-ye

First recorded in 1885–90; after the invitation that often forms the opening line of such ballads

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

come-all-ye

The Open East festival is a come-all-ye event to help get things under way.

From The Guardian ● Jul. 27, 2013

The penny poet changed from the high grace notes of "The Red-Haired Man's Wife" to the surge of a come-all-ye.

From The Wind Bloweth by Brian Oswald Donn-Byrne

"I was lookin' for him to bust out in grand-opry, or something else that's a heap more stylish than his old come-all-ye."

From The Long Shadow by B. M. Bower

Oh, Ward, for heaven's sake don't be singing that come-all-ye at the top of your voice, like that.

From The Ranch at the Wolverine by B. M. Bower

There was a man in our mess—a Wicklow man be th' name iv Dwyer—that had th' best come-all-ye I iver heerd.

From Mr. Dooley: In the Hearts of His Countrymen by Finley Peter Dunne