What does Ponyboy mean when he says the Socs were "reeling pickled" on page 54?
Meaning: "Reeling" refers to the dizzy, staggering quality of a person's walk when they are drunk. "Pickled" is a slang term for drunkenness which is derived from the idea of being soaked in a liquid - in this case, alcohol.
Etymology of Reeling: Middle English, from the sensation of whirling.
Etymology of Pickled: Trade with the Low Countries across the North Sea was important to England in the later Middle Ages, and it is perhaps because of this trade that we have the word 'pickle'. Middle English pikel the ancestor of the word is first recorded around 1400 with the meaning "a spicy sauce or gravy served with meat or fowl." This is a different sense fromthe one the word brings to mind now, but it is related somewhat in sense to its possible Middle Dutch source pekel, a solution such as spiced brine for preserving and flavouring food.
Sentence: After Pat's party, everyone went home reeling pickled from the beer ordered by Pat's Mum.
Liang Wei Onn Kevin (14) Class 1-4
Meaning: "Reeling" refers to the dizzy, staggering quality of a person's walk when they are drunk. "Pickled" is a slang term for drunkenness which is derived from the idea of being soaked in a liquid - in this case, alcohol.
Etymology of Reeling: Middle English, from the sensation of whirling.
Etymology of Pickled: Trade with the Low Countries across the North Sea was important to England in the later Middle Ages, and it is perhaps because of this trade that we have the word 'pickle'. Middle English pikel the ancestor of the word is first recorded around 1400 with the meaning "a spicy sauce or gravy served with meat or fowl." This is a different sense fromthe one the word brings to mind now, but it is related somewhat in sense to its possible Middle Dutch source pekel, a solution such as spiced brine for preserving and flavouring food.
Sentence: After Pat's party, everyone went home reeling pickled from the beer ordered by Pat's Mum.
Liang Wei Onn Kevin (14) Class 1-4
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