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M OLLY, a miss Molly, an effeminate fellow, a sodomite. I NDORSER, a sodomite to indorse with a cudgel, to drub or beat a man over the back with a stick, to lay cane upon Abel. There is no statute in Scotland against Sodomy the libel of the crime is therefore founded on the divine law, and practice makes its punishment to be burned alive.Ī Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue, (by Grose), London, 1785: The Levitical law adjudged those guilty of this execrable crime to death and the civil law assigns the same punishment to it. SODOMY, the unnatural crime of buggery, thus called from the city of sodom, which was destroyed by fire for the same. The place where it stood is now covered by the waters of the Dead Sea, or the Lake Asphaltites. SODOM, formerly a town of Palestine in Asia, famous in scripture for the wickedness of its inhabitants, and their destruction by fire from heaven on account of that wickedness. Johnson, London, 1763:Įncyclopædia Britannica Or, A Dictionary of Arts, Sciences, &c., Second Edition, Vol. The New Royal and Universal English Dictionary, By J. SODOMY, a Sin of the Flesh against Nature, Buggery. SODOMITE, one who commits the Sin of Sodomy, a Buggerer. Buggery, a heinous Crime, so called because the Inhabitants of Sodom were notoriously guilty of it.Ī New English Dictionary, Containing a Collection of Words in the English Language, Properly Explain'd and Alphabetically Dispos'd, By B. Sodomy, Male-Venery, for which Sodom was destroyed.Ī New English Dictionary: Or, A Compleat Collection Of the Most Proper and Significant Words and Terms of Art, Commonly used in the Language, Third Edition, By. Sodomite, a Person given to Sodomy or Buggery, the Sin of Sodom, the chief of the five Cities in Palestine, which was destroy'd by fire from Heaven the Territory where it stood being swallowed up in the Brimstone Lake, commonly called the Dead Sea.Ĭocker's English Dictionary, by Edward Cocker, 3rd edition, London, 1724: Gomorrhean, (from Gomorrha,) Sodomite, a Buggerer. Ganymede, the Name of a Trojan Boy now it commonly signifies any Boy loved for Carnal Abuse, or hired to be used contrary to Nature, to commit the Sin of Sodomy. Glossographia Anglicana Nova: Or, A Dictionary, Interpreting Such Hard Words of whatever Language, as are at present used in the English Tongue, with their Etymologies, Definition, &c., Second Edition, London, 1719: Masculine Venery, Buggery, first known to have been used among the People of Sodom. A Ganymede, or Ingle that is, a Boy hired to be us'd contrary to Nature, to commit Sodomy with. Sodomite in which City of Sodom, this wickedness was first committed, that we read of. Sodomitical, one gilty of the horrid sin of London, 1704.Ĭatamidiate, a putting to open shame for a notorious offence.Ĭatamite, a boy hired to be used contrary to nature, for Sodomy. There is a good subject here for a major linguistic study.Ĭocker's English Dictionary: Interpreting the most refined and difficult words, by Edward Cocker. It is also interesting to see the less familiar terms given in dictionaries of Hindi, Persian, Spanish and Welsh. "Molly" also appeared in a French/English dictionary in 1767, as well as in several slang (or "cant") dictionaries, along with other slang terms such as "madge". For example, the word "molly" appeared in a Swedish/English dictionary in 1762, where it is simply defined as a sodomite, a buggerer, without effeminate connotations. Incidentally, the word "catamite" is sometimes just a synonym for "sodomite", and was not always restricted to one who submits to sodomy. Indeed, in Cocker's English dictionary of 1704 sodomy is defined simply as "male venery", which is really as abstract as the modern synonym "male homosexuality".
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I think we can safely assume that "buggery" is widely understood as meaning anal intercourse between males, but the word "sodomy" seems to have a rather broader meaning, i.e. NOTE: In the following selection of definitions from dictionaries published during the eighteenth century, the most common words relating to homosexuality are "sodomy" and "buggery", which of course is no surprise.
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Homosexual Terms in 18th-century Dictionaries