or buzz, subs. (common).—A parlour game:—The leader commences, saying ‘one,’ the next on the left hand ‘two,’ the next ‘three,’ and so on to seven, when ‘BUZ’ must be said; every seven and multiple of 7, as 14, 17, 21, 27, 28, etc., must not be mentioned, but ‘BUZ’ instead; whoever breaks the rule pays a fine. (HOTTEN).
1868. L. M. ALCOTT, Little Women, iii. They … were in the midst of a quiet game of ‘BUZZ’ with two or three other young people who had strayed in, when Hannah appeared.
Verb. (old).—1. See quot.
1785. GROSE, A Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue. To BUZZA one, is to challenge him to pour out all the wine in the bottle into his glass, undertaking to drink it, should it prove more than the glass would hold; it is commonly said to one who hesitates to empty a bottle that is nearly out.
1795. Gentleman’s Magazine, 118. Briskly pushed towards me the decanter containing a tolerable bumper, and exclaimed, ‘Sir, I’ll BUZZ you: come, no heel taps!’
1821. W. T. MONCRIEFF, Tom and Jerry, ii., 1. Cribb. … I’ll give you, ‘May the best man win.’ (All drink). May the best man win. Green. May the best man vin. Log. With all my heart; but, zounds! we’ve almost BUZZ’D the bowl. Let’s have another, and d’ye hear, Tom, serve it up in your prize cup; Jerry hasn’t seen it, and we mustn’t omit that.
1846–48. THACKERAY, Vanity Fair, II., 138. ‘Get some more port, Bowls, old boy, whilst I BUZZ this bottle here—what was I saying?’ ‘I think you were speaking of dogs killing rats,’ Pitt remarked mildly, handing his cousin the decanter to BUZZ.
1871. A. FORBES, My Experiences of the War between France and Germany, I., 234. The Hotel which I had seen a few days before, where Von Tümfling’s staff were BUZZING the bottles.
2. To pick pockets: the victim is engaged in conversation by a confederate, while the BUZZER is committing the robbery: see BUZ-NAPPER.
1789. G. PARKER, Life’s Painter, 158. In order to given them an opportunity of working upon the prig, and BUZ, that is, picking of pockets.
1857. SNOWDEN, Magistrates Assistant, 3 ed., 445. To pick pockets—to BUZZ.
1876. C. HINDLEY, ed. The Life and Adventures of a Cheap Jack, 261. In my young days there used to travel about in gangs, like men of business, a lot of people called ‘Nobblers,’ who used to work the ‘thimble and pea rig’ and go ‘BUZZING,’ that is, picking pockets, assisted by some small boys.
3. (American thieves’).—To search for; to look about one.
