View synonyms for mossback

mossback

[ maws-bak, mos- ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

Informal.
1. a person holding very antiquated notions; reactionary.
2. a person living in the backwoods; rustic.
an old turtle.
Angling. a large and old fish, as a bass.
a wild bull or cow.

mossback

/ ˈmɒsˌbæk /

An Americanism dating back to 1870–75; moss + back ¹

"I know that sort of crazy old mossback," muttered Welton as he turned down the mountain.

Two or three miles away was a little clearing where a mossback lived.

Again the mossback appeared in the doorway, shivering a little in his night-shirt.

But the asset side of our "mossback's" yearly balance sheet always made the liability side ashamed of itself.

The mossback, who according to popular belief hid himself in the woods until moss grew on his back, might or might not be a tory.

April 19, 2024tortuous

[tawr-choo-uhs ]

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