Here - Norm's Book Club

VERY. 153 VEBY.
Late Physic. II. iij. 122 The room was crammed to the very
door, 1874 Green Short Hist. vX. § 5 (1882) 140 The very
retainers oi the royal household turned robbers. 1891 'J. S.
Winter ' LumUy xv, It's absurd on the very face of it.
Kb) 1535 CovERDALE Hob, vX. 2 In thy very wrath thou
thinkest vpon mercy. 1563 Homilies ii. Rogation Week'v^.
p 2 To striae for our very nghtes and dueties, with the breche
of loue & charitie, . . is vttcrly forbydden. 1595 Locrine i. i.
63 A greater care torments my verie bones. 1600 in Morris
Troubles Cath. Fore/. (1872) I. iv. 194 Oftentimes their very
beds they lie upon.. are sold before their faces. i6ao T.
Granger Div. Logike 100 Yet in their verie mutuall relation
there is also force of arguing to explicate a sentence.
1681 Drvden Ahs. ^ A chit. To Rdr., The Chyrurgeon's work
of an Ense resdutlendumy which I wish not to my very
Enemies, 1703 ir. Bositiatt's Guinea 27 You may imagine
what Case we were in when one of them began to hack our
very doors with an Ax. 1768 Goldsm, Good-n. Man i. i, His
very mirth is an antidote to all gaiety. 1807 Crahrb Par.
Reg. \. 725 His very soul was not his own. 1831 Carlvle
Sari. Res. i. i, That we do not. .see what is passing under
our very eyes. 1836 J. H. Newman Par. Serin. (1837) III.
vi. 86 The plain and solemn sense which they bear on their
very front 1880 McCarthy Own Times III. xlvii, 433 His
very defects were a main cause of his popularity.
(cj 1548 Udall, etc. Krasm, Par. John 118 b, So nowe
they sawe certainly at very hande the thing to be true. 1561
T. HoBV tr. Castigliotte's Courtyer ir. (1577) Kiij, There
needeth no art, bicause very nature hir selfe createth and
shapeth men apt to expresse pleasantly. 1571 Digges
Pantom. i, xvii, E iij b, And yet m conueying of waters any
great distance, very experience wil bewray an error. 1609
KiBLE (Douay) Numb. xiv. comiii.y It is so absolutely
necessaric in everie communitie to have one Superior of al,
that verie mutiners themselves do ever choose such a one.
1617 MoRvsoN Ilin. I. 233 They keepe the Roman Lent, but
more strictly, abstaining from Fish, and very Oyle (which
they use for butier). 1649 Karl Monm. tr. Senault's Use
Passions (1671) 81 The noise of Trumpets puts them in good
humor, and. .very hurts do animate their courage, 1657
Cromwell in Burton's Diary (1828) II. 329 Their greatest
persecution hath been of the people of God,., as I think very
experiences will sulKiciently demonstrate. 1851 )\.¥.BL9:Occas.
Papers ^ Rev. (1877) 240 By the way in which things are
managed all Apostolic authority is denied in the Church,
and very unbelievers may settle what we are to believe.
((/) 1616 in J. Russell Haigs ( 1881) vii. 158 For fear that
his very being my brother left- .some impression of the truth
of his accusations. 1665 Boylk Occas. Re/l. v. x. (1675} 335
Those Beams, which derive a new Glcwy from their very
being broken.
b. Kmphasizing sbs. which denote extremity of
tl^ree or extent.
c 1391 Chauckr Asiroi. i\. 1 1 Ley thi reule vp that same
day, ^ thanne wol the verray point of thy rewle sitten in the
bordore, vp-on the degree of thy sonne. 1530 Palsgr. 806/1
At the very dawnyng of the daye. Ibiil. 820/1 In the very
myddes..ora thyng. 1560 Bible (Geneva) Jolm vm. 4
The Scribes, .said, .. .Master, this woman was taken in aduU
terie, in the verie act. 1565 Allbn De/. Pitrgat. (1886) 3
That matter which..! perceived of all other causes in the
world, most to touch the very core of heresy. 1590 Swin*
BUKNK Testamentsdx He that is at the very pointeof death.
1605 Camden Rem. x It cannot be impertinent, at the verie
enterance, to say somewhat of Britaine. , i6ofy Hollani>
Amm. Atarcell. 116 From the very brims of Tigris banke,
as farre as to Euphrates, there was no greene thing left.
1771 LucKOMBE Hist. Printing 401 He.. then draws the
lower part of that noose close up to the very corner of it.
1851 Gallenga ftniy 359 The Milan government, we are informed,
was a bankrupt from the very outset. 187a Rout-
Udge^s Ev. Boy's Ann. 347/1 Reduce this movement to the
very minimum. 1878 Bkowning Ea Saisiaz 18 Quiet slow
sure money.making proves the matter's very root,
f* c. Qualifying pronouns in order to give emphasis.
Sometimes emphasizing identity (cf. sense
10 b). Obs,
IS4S \Z\iMJL ErasfH, Afio^k^vZi. I wyseven veray I myself
am y« manne. 1548 — Erasm. Par. Luke \. 17 And verai
he snal be the expectacion of all nacions. 1561 T. Hoby tr.
Castiglione's Courtyer \. (1577) E v. For very such make the
ereatnesse and gorgeousnesse of an Oration. i6a4 Quarles
je. C137S Cursor M. 22973 (Fairf,), Bot mani man |>at
wele can rede vnderstandis no;t al verray quat ^e vale of
losaphat is to say. £'1384 Chaucer //. P'ame 11, 571 It..
hath so very hys lykenes That spack the word, c 1440 Bone
Florence 1928 The abbas, and odur nonnes by, Tolde hyt
full openlye. That hyt was so verraye. c 1485 Drgby Myst.
(1882) II. 357 The compyler here-of shuld translat veray so
holy a story.
+ b. Qualifying an adj. or pa, pple. Obs»
Not always clearly distinguishable from next,
1387 Tbkvisa ///^e fey. 14*3 Jas. I Kingis
Q. clxix, 01 verray sely wrech, I se wele by thy dedely
coloure pale. Thou art to feble of thy-self to streche Vpon
my quhele. £^1450 in Aungier Syon C1840) 335 None schal
be ouer skypped in any wyse for any suche chaunge, withe
oute a very resonable cause, c 1489 Caxton Somies 0/
Aymon \\\\. 191 Two thousand knyghtes. ., all yonge men
of pryme berde, whiche were very frenshe. 1529 More
Dyaloge \\\. Wks. 244/1 Both those tonges ti.e. Greek and
Latin] wer as verye vulgare as ours, c 1593 in Spalding
Club Misc. I. s Your Maiestie and the consell hes to Judg
gif thay be lauchful, and uerray qualifiit.
2. In a high degree or measure ; to a great ex-
tent ; exceedingly, extremely, greatly.
Sometimes emphasized in speaking, and italicized in
printing, to give additional force. (Cf 4.)
a. Qualifying positive adjs. (and ppl. adjs.)
used predicatively, attributively, or absolutely.
a. C1470 Henry IVallace l 86 Erie Patrik than till Berweik
couth persew ; Ressawide he was and trastyt werray
trew. 1542 Udall Erasm. Apoph. 328 In the latine it hath
a veray good grace. IS54~S '" Feuillerat Rervls Q. Mary
(1914) 173 Of verey fayer quaint & strange atiier. i^oDaus
tr. Sleidane's Comm. 255 Machlin (a veraye fayreTowne..
in Brabant), a 1578 Lindesav (Pitscottie) Chron. Scot.
(S.T.S.) I. 4 To pray me think it is verray necessarie.
6. a 1500-34 Cav. Corp. Christi PI. n. 513 Those fowlys
the ar full far fro me And werie yvill for me to fynde. 1530
Palsgr. 327/2 Very good /ort bon. Ibid. 828/1 Very farre,
^
very bye, very lowe, etc. a 1578 Lindesay (Pitscottie)
Chron, Scot. (S.T.S.) II. 317 The said pest come in the
towne of kirkcaldie that thair deit verrie mony. 1588
Knaresborough Wills (Surtees) I. 169 My father.. ys a
verye old man. 1600 J. PoRY tr. Leo's Africa 56 This isle
is very scarce of oile and of corne. Ibid. iv. 224 Batha,
whereof now there remaine but very few ruines. 1661 Pr.
Rupert in iiM Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. App. V. 8 Tell
him that [I] am very glad to heere of his recouvry. 1676-7
Marvell Corr. Wks. (Grosart) II. 530 A Bill for exporting
Coals free, or at a verj'easy custome. 1709 Steele Tatler
No. 44 P 6, I have, I fear, huddled up my Discourse, having
been very busy. 1774 Goldsm. Aa/. Hist. (1776) V. 56
They lay very large eggs, .some of them being above five
inches in diameter. 1799 E. Du Bols Piece Family Biog.
III. 175 You say this to relieve me, and 'tis very kind of
you. 1803 Med. Jrnl. X. 304 An intermittent tendency
was also i'tf?> observable in some instances, 1838 T. Thomson
Ghent. Org. Bodies 580 A soft mass,.. very soluble in
alcohol. 1856 Ld. Granville in Life (1905) 1. 211 Very
few of our Embassy were invited \x.o the party]. x88o
Disraeli Endym, Ixvii, Cards of invitation to banquets and
balls and concerts, and 'very earlies',
b. Qualifying another adverb.
1448 Paston Lett. !. 76 Vere hartely your, Molyns.
1530 Palsgr, 814/1 Very erly in the mornyng, au plus
fuatytt. Ibid. 843/2 Very gladly, moult voulentiers. Very
hardly, a Paynes. . .Very seldome, peu sonutnt. 1x553
Udall Royster D. iv. vi. (Arb.) 70 But very well I wist he
here did all in scorne. a 1578 Lindesav (Pitscottie) Chron.
Scot. (S.T.S.) I. 22 The gouernour hard thir vordis verrey
plesandlie. 1630 B, Jonson New Inn Dram. Pers., Sir
Glorious Tipto.. talks gloriously of any thing, but very
seldom is in the right. 1664 Jeb. Taylor Dissuas. Popery
ii. §8. 118 For if it were {.necessary], very extremely few
would do their duty. 1691 tr. Emilianne^s Frauds Rom.
Monks (ed. 3) 130 The next day we set out very betimes in
the Morning towards Mount Alverne. 1711 Addison Sped.
No. 58 p 4 Several Pieces which have lived very near_ as
long as the Iliad it self. 1795 Gentl. Mag. 543/1 Nonjuring
clergymen and their families partook very largely of his
benevolence. 1818 Cruise Digest (ed. 2) ifl. 510 Courts of
equity would do very ill by not adopting that rule. 1835
Uhe Philos. Maiiuf. 158 Ihe spindles should revolve very
quickly in the spinning frame. 1867 Drake Chr. Schools
II. iii. 129 The school at Sempringham very soon became
famous,
c. Qualifying past pples, used predicatively or
attributively : ^ Very much. (See Much adv.
I c.) Also exceptionally with Hke vb.
The correctness of this usage, which has been prevalent
from the middle of the 17th cent., depends on the extent to
which the participle has acquired a purely adjectival sense.
1641 in Nicolas Priv. Mem. Dighy (1827) Introd. p. lix,
At which the good Knight seemed very discontented. 1664
Extr.St. P. rel. Friends in. (1912) 215 Faber, a Jerman,..
being a very suspected person, reather of crafty principalis.
1701 Addison Dial. Medals ii. (1726) 35 Many very valued
pieces of French, Italian, and English appear in the same
dress [i, e. dialogue]. 1781 R. Cumberland /4«crf. Painters
(1787) 11.90, I was a very interested and anxious spectator.
1791 W. Roberts Looker-on No. 14 (1794) I- ^79 Betty.,
looked very pleased at several passages. 1804 Syd. Smith
Mor. Philos. (1850) 54 A very over-rated man. x84a Geo.
Eliot Li/e in Leit.^ Jrnls. (1885) L 112, lam becoming
very hurried. 1874 Dasent Half a Life III. 60, I should
so very like to know who this Mr. Ball and his daughter
arc. /*/'