blubber
verbEtymology
The verb is derived from Late Middle English bloberen, bluberen (“to bubble, seethe”); and the noun from Late Middle English blober, bluber (“bubble; bubbling water; foaming waves; fish or whale oil; entrails, intestines; (medicine) pustule”), both probably onomatopoeic, representing the movement or sound of a bubbling liquid, or the movement of lips forming bubbles (compare bleb and blob, thought to be similarly imitative). As both the verb and noun are attested in the 14th century, it is difficult to tell which one developed first; the Oxford English Dictionary suggests that the noun may be derived from the verb. Verb etymology 1, verb sense 1.2 (“to cause (one’s face) to disfigure or swell through crying”) is influenced by blubber (adjective).
Definitions
Often followed by out
Often followed by out: to cry out (words) while sobbing.
- Here Bliſil ſighed bitterly; upon vvhich VVeſtern, vvhoſe Eyes vvere full of Tears at the praiſe of Sophia, blubbered out, 'Don't be Chicken-hearted, for ſhat ha her, d—n me, ſhat ha her, if ſhe vvas tvventy Times as good.'
To wet (one's eyes or face) by crying
To wet (one's eyes or face) by crying; to beweep; also, to cause (one's face) to disfigure or swell through crying.
- Her ſvvollen eyes vvere much diſfigured, / And her faire face vvith teares vvas fovvly blubbered.
- Dear Cloe, how blubber'd is that pretty Face? / Thy Cheek all on Fire, and Thy Hair all uncurl'd: […]
Often followed by forth
Often followed by forth: to let (one's tears) flow freely.
- Looke on this tree, vvhich blubbereth Amber gum / vvhich ſeemes to ſpeak to thee, though it be dumb, / VVhich being ſenceles blocks, as thou do'ſt ſee, / VVeepe at my vvoes, that thou might'ſt pitty mee: […]
- Behold her novv in humble guiſe, / Upon her knees vvith dovvncaſt eyes / Before the Prieſt: ſhe thus begins, / And ſobbing, blubbers forth her ſins; […]
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To cry or weep freely and noisily
To cry or weep freely and noisily; to sob.
- What weepe? fye for ſhame, and blubber? for manhods ſake, / Neuer lette your foe ſo muche pleaſure of you take.
- VVhere are you, vvife? my Celia? vvhat, blubbering? / Come, drye thoſe teares, I thinke, thou thought'ſt mee in earneſt?
To bubble or bubble up
To bubble or bubble up; also, to make a bubbling sound like water boiling.
A fatty layer of adipose tissue found immediately beneath the epidermis of whales and…
A fatty layer of adipose tissue found immediately beneath the epidermis of whales and other cetaceans (infraorder Cetacea).
- Though their [the hyena whale or pilot whale's] blubber is very thin, some of these whales will yield you upwards of thirty gallons of oil.
- There was a most Monstrous Whale: / He had no Skin, he had no Tail. / When he tried to Spout, that Great Big Lubber, / The best he could do was Jiggle his Blubber.
- The first barrels of crude fetched $18 (around $450 at today's prices). It was used to make kerosene, the main fuel for artificial lighting after overfishing led to a shortage of whale blubber.
An act of crying or weeping freely and noisily.
- Fassmann gives dolorous clippings from the Leyden Gazette, all in a blubber of tears, according to the then fashion, but full of impertinent curiosity withal.
A bubble.
One who blubs (“cries or weeps freely and noisily”)
One who blubs (“cries or weeps freely and noisily”); a blubberer.
- It was really emotional. I am a blubber at the best of times. I had only been there for 18 months and found it upsetting so it was really hard for the people that had been there for 18 years.
Especially of lips
Especially of lips: protruding, swollen.
- And what like is the Nubian slave, who comes ambassador on such an errand from the Soldan? […] with black skin, a head curled like a ram's, a flat nose, and blubber lips—ha, worthy Sir Henry?
The neighborhood
Vish — recursive loop
No curated loop yet for blubber. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.
sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA