wurly

English

Pronunciation

(Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈwɜːliː/
(General American) IPA^(key): /ˈwɝli/
Homophone: wurley
Hyphenation: wur‧ly

Etymology 1

Adjective

wurly (comparative wurlier or more wurly, superlative wurliest or most wurly)

(Northern England (Yorkshire), Scotland) Of an object: derisorily small, tiny; of a person: puny, stunted.
- [1825, John Jamieson, “Wurlie”, in Supplement to the Etymological Dictionary of the Scottish Language: Illustrating the Words in Their Different Significations, by Examples from Ancient and Modern Writers; Shewing Their Affinity to Those of Other Languages, and Especially the Northern; Explaining Many Terms, which, though Now Obsolete in England, were Formerly Common to Both Countries; and Elucidating National Rites, Customs, and Institutions, in Their Analogy to Those of Other Nations. [...] In Two Volumes, volume II (K–Z), Edinburgh: Printed at the University Press; for W[illiam] & C[harles] Tait, 78, Prince's Street; London: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, Brown, and Green, OCLC 863495133, page 700, column 2:
  Wurlie, 1. Contemptibly puny, or small in size; as "a wurlie bodie," an ill-grown person, Fife, Loth.]
- 1856, James Ballantine, “The Wee Raggit Laddie”, in [John D. Carrick, Alexander Rodger, and David Robertson], editors, Whistle-binkie or The Piper of the Party: Being a Collection of Songs for the Social Circle, new edition, Glasgow: David Robertson & Co., published 1873, OCLC 894202707, stanza 2, page 158:
  Thy wee roun' pate sae black and curly, / Thy twa bare feet, sae stoure an' burly, / The biting frost, though snell an' surly / An' sair to bide, / Is scouted by thee, thou hardy wurly, / Wi' sturdy pride.
- [1876, C. Clough Robinson, “Wurly”, in A Glossary of Words Pertaining to the Dialect of Mid-Yorkshire; wth Others Peculiar to Lower Nidderdale. To which is Prefixed an Outline Grammar of the Mid-Yorkshire Dialect (Series C (Original Glossaries, and Glossaries with Fresh Additions); V), London: Published for the English Dialect Society by Trübner & Co., 57 & 59, Ludgate Hill, OCLC 458063535, page 158, column 2:
  Wurly [wur·li], adj. A very small portion of anything is of a wurly size; gen. 'What a wurly bit o' bread, and nought on 't!' […], i.e. no butter, or anything on. The r is often strongly trilled in this word.]
- [1905, “WIRL”, in Joseph Wright, editor, The English Dialect Dictionary: Being the Complete Vocabulary of All Dialect Words still in Use, or Known to Have Been in Use during the Last Two Hundred Years: Founded on the Publications of the English Dialect Society and on a Large Amount of Material Never before Printed, volume VI (T–Z, Supplement, Bibliography and Grammar), London: Published by Henry Frowde, Amen Corner, E.C., publisher to the English Dialect Society, Oxford, 116 High Street; New York, N.Y.: G. P. Putnam's Sons, OCLC 81937840, page 515, column 1:
  WIRL, sb. Sc. Yks. […] A small and harsh-featured person; an ill-grown child; a stunted animal. […] Hence (1) Wirly, adj. puny, small; (2) Wirly-bit, sb. a short time; a little way; a small portion. (1) Sc. There's nae a pilchard in my creel, Nor wurlie sprat … They're firm and fat (Jam.).]
(Scotland) gnarled, knotted; wizened, wrinkled.
- [1825, John Jamieson, “Wurlie”, in Supplement to the Etymological Dictionary of the Scottish Language: Illustrating the Words in Their Different Significations, by Examples from Ancient and Modern Writers; Shewing Their Affinity to Those of Other Languages, and Especially the Northern; Explaining Many Terms, which, though Now Obsolete in England, were Formerly Common to Both Countries; and Elucidating National Rites, Customs, and Institutions, in Their Analogy to Those of Other Nations. [...] In Two Volumes, volume II (K–Z), Edinburgh: Printed at the University Press; for W[illiam] & C[harles] Tait, 78, Prince's Street; London: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, Brown, and Green, OCLC 863495133, page 700, column 2:
  Wurlie, […] 2. Rough, knotted; as, "a wurlie rung," a knotted stick, S. It is applied to a stick that is distorted, Lanarks. As this sense, however, is considerably remote from the other, the term may have had a different origin. 3. Wrinkled, applied to a person; as, a wurly body, Lanarks.]

Alternative forms

wirly
wurlie (Scotland)

Etymology 2

Variant of wurley.

Noun

wurly (plural wurlies)

(chiefly South Australia) Alternative spelling of wurley.
- 1862 February 1, “The Burke and Wills Australian Exploring Expedition”, in The Illustrated London News, volume XL, number 1129, London: Printed & published by George C. Leighton, 198 Strand, OCLC 953800630, page 128, column 3:
  Poor [William John] Wills's remains we found lying in the wurly in which he died, and where [John] King, after his return from seeking the natives, had buried him with sand and rushes.
- 1875, Robert Bruce, “The Black Boys’ Ride: A True Story”, in The Dingoes and Other Tales, Adelaide, S.A.: Printed at "Advertiser" and "Chronicle" offices, OCLC 82518914, stanza 10, page 74:
  And so those boys with stealthy pace / Returned the saddles to their place; / Then to their wurly quickly hied, / No doubt delighted with their ride.
- 2012, Maggie Meyer; Joan Small, “Monsters of the Cretaceous”, in Big Foot Adventures Down Under (Spirits Alive Series; 1), [Gordon, N.S.W.]: Xlibris, →ISBN, page 164:
  Before night fell, they made themselves a shelter like a wurly by collecting large Wollemi pine fronds from the forest floor, leaning them against each other to make a peaked hut and joining them together with vines. It would offer some protection while they slept.

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