Austral English / A dictionary of Australasian words, phrases and usages with those aboriginal-Australian and Maori words which have become incorporated in the language, and the commoner scientific words that have had their origin in Australasia - Edward Ellis Morris

<hw>Nipper</hw>, n. local name in Sydney for Alphaeus socialis, Heller, a species of prawn.

<hw>Nobbler</hw>, n. a glass of spirits; lit. that which nobbles or gets hold of you. Nobble is the frequentative form of nab. No doubt there is an allusion to the bad spirits frequently sold at bush public-houses, but if a teetotaler had invented the word he could not have invented one involving stronger condemnation.

1852. G. F. P., `Gold Pen and Pencil Sketches,' canto xiv.:

"The summit gained, he pulls up at the Valley,
To drain a farewell `nobbler' to his Sally."

1859. Frank Fowler, `Southern Lights and Shadows,' p. 52:

"To pay for liquor for another is to `stand,' or to `shout,' or to `sacrifice.' The measure is called a `nobbler,' or a `break-down.'"

1873. A. Trollope, `Australia and New Zealand,' vol. ii. p. 201:

"A nobbler is the proper colonial phrase for a drink at a public-house."

1876. J. Brenchley, `May Bloom,' p. 80:

"And faster yet the torrents flow
Of nobblers bolted rapidly."