Written in Black and Wight: W
Created | Updated Jan 21, 2018
For the first time this year, we bring you the quiz round dedicated to the Isle of Wight's dialect1.
W
It's been a while but was it worth the wait? Or has it got worse?
The Wicked Wicker Man's Quick Fire Round
Not every word in the Isle of Wight's dialect was about hitting things, but it is fair to say a reasonable proportion were. Can You match the correct words from the meanings listed below?
| Word | Definition |
|---|---|
| Wag | Tease and fret. |
| Waithe | Slap |
| Warm | Wrestle |
| Whack | Walk or move |
| Wherret | Command for horse to stop |
| Whipcrop | To beat |
| Whistersniff | Heavy blow |
| Whop | Will you? |
| Whup | Thump |
| Wollup | Share or portion |
| Woot | Tree (Viburnum lantana) |
| Wrossel | To thrash |
| Wurret | Worst of it |
| Wusted | Week, exhausted |
Main Round
There are three possible answers listed for each word below, but only one is correct. Can You guess which is right?
Warn't
- A small fight.
- To be certain.
- A walnut.
Water-geal
- A storm with both heavy rain and strong wind.
- Double rainbow.
- Weak, heavily-watered ale.
Watshed
- Feet wet through, having water inside your shoes.
- To spy on someone.
- Doctor What's blue shed that can travel through time and space.
Well-britched
- Prosperous, having lots of money.
- Childbirth.
- Having a leaking well or waterpipe.
Wether-gage
- Implement used to castrate rams.
- Sophisticated string used for meteorological forecasting; when it is wet it is raining, when dry it isn't and when moving a lot, it is windy.
- Get the better of someone.
Whicker
- A horse's neigh
- Giant statue of a man used to burn alive nosy mainlanders.
- Candlestickmaker's assistant
Whipswhile
- Goad for hitting pigs.
- Often.
- Workplace collection, such as when someone retires.
Windy
- Flatulence.
- Deceitful.
- Someone who has drunk too much wine.
Windvall
- Extreme flatulence.
- A windbreak.
- Good luck.
Winter Kecksies
- Thermal underwear
- Slipping on ice.
- Blackthorn bush.
Withybed
- Bedridden.
- Daydream.
- Willow plantation.
Wobblejaad
- Rickety.
- Someone with a loose tooth (usually a child)
- Someone who spills food or drink down them when trying to consume it.
Wold England
- English sheep farms and local wool.
- The mainland.
- The countryside, also your place of birth.
Wopse
- A wasp.
- Exclamation of a mistake.
- Small woodland and/or woodland of small trees.
Wordle
- A poem.
- The world.
- Small fence or hurdle.
Wropped
- All wrapped up.
- Hung on the gallows.
- Creased
Wuzbud
- Illigitimate child.
- A bee or wasp that has inconveniently landed on your food or drink.
- Flower no longer in bloom.
Click on the picture for the answers!
H - I - J - K - L -
M
N - O - P - Q - R - S - T
U - V - W
1Preserved in publications including A Glossary of Isle of Wight Words by Major Henry Smith and Charles Roach Smith (1876), A Dictionary of Isle of Wight Dialect by WH Long (1886), Isle of Wight Dialect by Jack Lavers MBE (1988), The Encyclopedia of Isle of Wight Words, Placenames, Legends, Books and Authors by Edward Turner (1900) and The English Dialect Dictionary ed. Joseph Wright (1906). Other works include the novels of Mary Gleed Tuttiett (1846-1923), poem A Dream of the Isle of Wight by Mrs Mary Moncrieff (1863) and Legends and Lays of the Isle of Wight by Percy Goddard Stone (1911).
