ginger-hackled

English

Etymology

Originally used to describe a certain colour or colours in gamecocks. See hackle.

Adjective

ginger-hackled (not comparable)

1. (slang, obsolete) Having reddish or flaxen hair.
   • 1865, William Harrison Ainsworth, Jack Sheppard: A Romance, page 113:

     Speak lower. Somebody may be on the watch — perhaps that old ginger-hackled Jew.

   • 2014, Jo Ann Brown, A Bride for the Baron, page 39:

     “Lord Meriweather!” came a shout from the hallway. A ginger-hackled footman careened to a stop by the open door.

References

• Francis Grose (1785) “red haired”, in A Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue
• John Camden Hotten (1873) “having flaxen, light yellow hair”, in The Slang Dictionary