Un béret nature, campé par une main paysanne, à la va te-faire-fiche, sans arrière-pensée de pittoresque.—Richepin, Le Pavé.
Alènes, f. pl. (thieves’), tools, implements, “jilts.” Properly shoemakers’ awls.
Alentoir, m., for alentour (thieves’), neighbourhood, vicinity.
[A l’esbrouffe] (thieves’), faire un coup —— sur un pantre, to steal a pocket-book from a person who has been seen to enter a bank, or other financial establishment. The thief watches his opportunity in the neighbourhood of such establishments, and when operating keeps his hand concealed under an overcoat which he bears on his arm.
Aligner (freemasons’), to lay the cloth. S’——, in soldiers’ language, to fight a duel with swords. The expression is used also by civilians.
Alinéaliste, m. (literary), writer who is fond of short paragraphs.
Allemand, m. (popular), peigne d’——, the four fingers.
[Aller] (familiar), à Bougival, in literary men’s parlance, is to write a newspaper article of no interest for the general public; —— à la cour des aides is said of a married woman who has one or more lovers; —— au pot, to pick up dominoes from those which remain after the proper number has been distributed to the players; —— au safran, to spend freely one’s capital, an allusion to the colour of gold; —— en Belgique is said of a cashier who bolts with the cash-box, or of a financier who makes off with the money of his clients; —— se faire fiche, to go to the deuce; —— se faire foutre has the same meaning, but refers to a rather more forcible invitation yet; —— se faire lanlaire, to go to the deuce. Allez vous faire fiche, or foutre! go to the deuce, or “you be hanged!” Je lui ai dit d’—— se faire lanlaire, I sent him about his business. Aller son petit bonhomme de chemin, to do anything without any hurry, without heeding interruptions or hindrances. On avait beau lui crier d’arrêter, il allait toujours son petit bonhomme de chemin. (Familiar and popular) Y aller, to begin anything. Allons-y! let us begin! let us open the ball! now for business. Y aller de quelque chose, to contribute; to pay; to furnish. Y —— de son argent, to pay, “to stump up.” Y —— d’une, de deux, to pay for one or two bottles of liquor. Y —— de sa larme, to shed a tear, to show emotion. Y —— gaiment, to do anything willingly, briskly. Allons y gaiment! let us look alive! (Popular) Aller à la chasse avec un fusil de toile, to go a begging, “to cadge.” An allusion to a beggar’s canvas wallet. Compare this with the origin of the word “to beg,” which is derived from “bag;” —— à l’arche, to fetch money; —— à niort, to deny, a play on the words “Niort,” name of a town, and “nier,” to deny; —— à ses affaires, to ease oneself, “to go to Mrs. Jones’;” —— au persil is said of street-walkers who ply their trade. This expression may have its origin in the practice sometimes followed by this class of women of carrying a small basket as if going to the fruiterer’s; —— au trot is said of a prostitute walking the street in grand attire, or “full fig;” —— au vice, to make one’s resort of places where immorality is rife; —— voir défiler les dragons, to go without dinner. The English have the expressions, “to dine out,” used by the lower classes, and “to dine with Duke Humphrey,” by the middle and upper. According to the Slang Dictionary the reason of the latter saying is as follows: “Some visitors were inspecting the abbey where the remains of Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, lie, and one of them was unfortunately shut in, and remained there solus while his companions were feasting at a neighbouring hostelry. He was afterwards said to have dined with Duke Humphrey, and the saying eventually passed into a proverb.” Aller aux pruneaux is said of the victim of a practical joke played in hospitals at the expense of a new patient, who, being sent at the conclusion of a meal to request another patient to furnish him with the customary dessert, gets bolstered for his pains; —— où le roi va à pied, to go to the latrines, or “chapel of ease;” (printers’) —— en galilée, or —— en germanie (a play on the words “Je remanie,” I overrun), to do some overrunning in a piece of composition; (soldiers’) —— à l’astic, to clean one’s equipment; (sporting) —— pour l’argent, to back one’s own horse; (musicians’) —— au carreau, to seek an engagement. An allusion to “la Rue du Petit-Carreau,” a meeting-place for musicians of the lowest class, and musical conductors. (Thieves’) Aller à comberge, to go to confession with a priest; —— à la retape, to waylay in order to murder; —— chez Fualdès, to share the booty, “to nap the regulars.” Fualdès was a rich banker, who was murdered in circumstances of peculiar atrocity.
Allez donc (familiar), et ——, a kind of flourish at the end of a sentence to emphasize an assertion. Allez donc vous laver (popular), be off, go to “pot;” —— vous asseoir, “shut up!”