Hogshead
, a large cask = 1/2-pipe or butt, is a curious instance of the misuse of h. The word is from the Danish Oxe-hud (ox-hide), the larger skins in contradistinction to the smaller goat skins. An oxe-hud contained 240 Danish quarts.
· ·
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Entry taken from
Dictionary of Phrase and Fable,
edited by the Rev. E. Cobham Brewer, LL.D. and revised in 1895.