knocker-up
(British, historical) A person whose job was to go from house to house in the early morning and wake up workers by tapping on the bedroom window with a long pole or similarly convenient implement.
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(British, historical) A person whose job was to go from house to house in the early morning and wake up workers by tapping on the bedroom window with a long pole or similarly convenient implement.
... And Capper was a very important man. He was the knocker-up in the village of Polkingthorpe Brig — that is to say, he got up early every morning and went round with his pole, tapping on the bedroom windows and waking up the people in …
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🇬🇧About British & Irish slang slang
UK and Irish slang — Cockney, Scouse, Geordie, Yorkshire, Glaswegian, Brummie, Welsh, West Country, plus Irish English. Centuries of regional dialects feeding into modern British and Irish street talk.
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Semantically related
- knocker73%
A person who knocks.
- knock up70%
(British) To awaken (someone) as by knocking at the door; rouse; call; summon; also, to go door-to-door on election day to persuade a candidate's supporters to go to the polling station and vote. See also knocker up.
- knocker66%
A device, usually hinged with a striking plate, used for knocking on a door.
- knocker65%
A critic; one who disparages.
- knocknobbler64%
(British) A person engaged by a church to eject unruly dogs and children from acts of worship.