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Origin and history of bruiser

bruiser(n.)

"a pugilist," 1744, agent noun from bruise (v.).

also from 1744

Entries linking to bruiser

bruise(v.)

Old English brysan "to crush, pound, injure by a blow which discolors the skin," from Proto-Germanic *brusjan, from PIE root *bhreu- "to smash, cut, break up" (source also of Old Irish bronnaim "I wrong, I hurt;" Breton brezel "war," Vulgar Latin *brisare "to break"). It merged by 17c. with Anglo-French bruiser "to break, smash," from Old French bruisier "to break, shatter," perhaps from Gaulish *brus-, from the same PIE root. Of fruits from early 14c. The intransitive sense of "become bruised" is by 1912. Related: Bruised; bruising.

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    bull
    "male of a bovine animal," c. 1200, bule, from Old Norse boli "bull, male of the domestic bovine," perhaps also from an Old English *bula, both from Proto-Germanic *bullon- (source also of Middle Dutch bulle, Dutch bul, German Bulle), perhaps from a Germanic verbal stem meaning "
    poindexter
    I find Johannes cum pugno in 1184, and we can imagine that such a name may have been conferred on a medieval bruiser....
    bouncer
    That is, he was a hybrid combining the qualities of a brakeman and a bruiser, and was frequently called into requisition...
    Samson
    masc. proper name, Jewish strong-man (Judges xiii-xvi), from Late Latin Samson, Sampson, from Greek Sampsōn, from Hebrew Shimshon, probably from shemesh "sun." As a generic name for a man of great strength, attested from 1565. Samsonite, proprietary name for a make of luggage (wi
    man
    "a featherless plantigrade biped mammal of the genus Homo" [Century Dictionary], Old English man, mann "human being, person (male or female); brave man, hero;" also "servant, vassal, adult male considered as under the control of another person," from Proto-Germanic *mann- (source
    cracker-jack
    also crackerjack, "something excellent," 1893, U.S. colloquialism, apparently a fanciful construction; the earliest use is in reference to racing horses. Compare cracker (n.1). The caramel-coated popcorn-and-peanuts confection was said to have been introduced at the World's Colum
    spruce
    "type of evergreen tree, spruce-fir," 1660s, from spruse (adj.) "made of spruce wood" (early 15c.), originally that imported from Prussia. It is literally "from Prussia," from Middle English Spruce, Sprws (late 14c.), unexplained alterations of Pruce "Prussia," which is from an O
    follow
    Middle English folwen, from Old English folgian, fylgian, fylgan "to accompany (especially as a disciple), move in the same direction as; follow after, pursue, move behind in the same direction," also "obey (a rule or law), conform to, act in accordance with; apply oneself to (a
    Abyssinia
    old name for Ethiopia, 1630s, from Modern Latin Abyssinia, from Arabic Habasah, the name for the region, said to be from Amharic hbsh "mixed" or Arabic habash "mixture," in reference to the different races dwelling there. In 1920s-30s popular as a slang pun for the parting saluta
    experience
    late 14c., "observation as the source of knowledge; actual observation; an event which has affected one," from Old French esperience "experiment, proof, experience" (13c.), from Latin experientia "a trial, proof, experiment; knowledge gained by repeated trials," from experientem

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