Forms: 1 colmase, 5–6 colmose, 6 cold-, 7 col-, 7– colemouse. [ME. colmose:—OE. colmáse (corr. to MDu. koolmêze, Du. koolmees, MHG. kolemeise, G. kohlmeise), f. col COAL (in reference to its dark color) + máse (OHG. meisa:—WGer. maisa), a name including several species of little birds, chiefly of the genus Parus: see MOSE. After the latter became obs. as a separate word, it was corrupted to mouse; cf. TITMOUSE. Still very commonly spelt colemouse.] A bird, Parus ater; also called Coal (or Cole) Titmouse.
c. 1000. Ælfric, Voc., in Wr.-Wülcker, 133. Bardioriolus, colmase.
a. 1050. Voc., ibid. 260. Parula, colmase.
c. 1532. Dewes, Introd. Fr., in Palsgr., 912. The coldmouse, la messange.
1542. Boorde, Dyetary, xv. (1870), 270. Tytmoses, colmoses and wrens.
1609. C. Butler, Fem. Mon., vii. (1623), Q j. The great Titmouse (which of his colly head and breast some call a Colemouse) is a very harmefull Bird.
1774. G. White, Selborne, xli. 106. The blue titmouse, or nun, the cole-mouse, the great black-headed titmouse, the marsh titmouse.
1829. [J. L. Knapp], Jrnl. Naturalist, 168. That little dark species the ‘coal,’ or ‘colemouse.’
1862. Johns, Brit. Birds, Index, Cole Tit or Cole Mouse.
1874. Yarrell, Brit. Birds (ed. 4), I. 489. Coal Titmouse or Coal-Mouse.
¶ In earlier times the same name was sometimes used to translate L. alcedo, from error as to the latter. (Cf. HALCYON, MEW.)
c. 1440. Promp. Parv., 88. Colmose, byrde, alcedo.
c. 1450. Voc., in Wr.-Wülcker, 562. Alcedo, a colmose [a wodewale].
1483. Cath. Angl., 72. A collemase, alcedo.
