gape seed

See also: gapeseed

English

Etymology

From gape +‎ seed.

Noun

gape seed (countable and uncountable, plural gape seeds)

1. (obsolete) Something to be gaped at; a strange sight.
   • 1603, Michel de Montaigne, translated by John Florio, Essays, III.9:

     justice hath also knowledge and animadversion over such as gather stubble (as the common saying is) or looke about for gape-seed.

Usage notes

• Typically used in phrases such as to buy, sow etc. gape seed, describing people who merely stand and stare instead of transacting business.

References

• John Camden Hotten (1873) The Slang Dictionary

Anagrams

• pedagese