A listener in Bayfield, Wisconsin, says her grandmother used to tell her to “go sozzle in the bathtub.” John Russell Bartlett’s 1848 Dictionary of Americanisms defines the verb to sozzle this way: “to loll; to lounge; to go lazily or sluttishly about the house.” This is part of a complete episode.
Transcript of “Sozzle in the Bathtub”
Hello, you have A Way with Words.
Yes, this is Jo Bailey from Bayfield.
Hi, Jo, from Bayfield where?
Wisconsin, Lake Superior.
Oh, Lake Superior, all right.
Hi, Jo, welcome to the show.
Thank you very much.
How can we help you?
I have a grandmother, had a grandmother, who was extremely creative with words. She made up her own. And the reason I called in is because she would tell me when I stayed overnight with her when I was young that I could go and sajle in the tub. And my question was, I don’t even know how to spell it. Is that a real word? And what does it mean? What does sajle mean?
Well, to me, it means just relax in the tub. And, you know, I’ve never, my kids tease me about, “That’s a real word, Mom.” And I said, well, it’s real to me because of my grandma. But I don’t even, S-A-G-G-L-E? I don’t know.
S-A-G-G-L-E. I’ve got a spelling for you. I-S-A-G-L-E. You-S-A-G-L-E. S-O-Z-Z-L-E. Maybe S-O-S-S-L-E. And here’s how I know. This term actually has a history beyond your grandmother.
Really?
Yeah. We have this recorded as far back as 1848 in Bartlett’s Dictionary of Americanisms, where he talks about it meaning to lull or to lounge or get this, to go lazily or sluttishly about the house. And by sluttishly, it has nothing to do with morals. It’s just about in an unkempt or unclean way. But generally, the lull or lounge sense is exactly what you’re talking about.
Oh, my goodness. Isn’t that something?
Well, I’ll win the bet. I’ve heard sozzled meaning to get drunk. You get really sozzled. It’s almost always sozzled. It’s never, almost never is it actually conjugated verb in any other way. It’s always that past form. But there’s, you know, Joe, there’s one more thing with Sozzle to say here. There are some entries in the Oxford English Dictionary that kind of overlap with the lull and lounge meanings. And one of them is to splash or to wash by splashing, which is perfect, right? It’s not very common, though, but it is recorded in the dictionary in the mid-1800s to the late 1800s. And another verb, S-O-S-S, which may be connected, and it’s probably a Scots word, has a meaning that may mean to drench or to soak or to splash but with mud and dirt. So we have some overlaps here. And Martha’s right. This sozzel is definitely connected to be sozzled, to be drunk, which is just an old-fashioned word in itself.
How interesting.
Cool. So lots of history right there in your bathtub.
Well, Joe, thank you so much for calling. Happy sozzling.
Thank you so much. This is interesting. We love your show.
Thank you.
Bye, Joe.
Bye-bye.
Bye-bye.
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