dimber cove

dimber cove (plural dimber coves)

1. (obsolete, Britain, thieves' cant) A gentleman.
   • 1837, Disraeli, Benjamin, Venetia:

     'Tis a dimber cove,' whispered one of the younger men to a companion.

   • 1901, Hume, Fergus, The Millionaire Mystery:

     Is it Mr. Gramp you want, m'dimber-cove?

   • 1918, Farnol, Jeffery, Our Admirable Betty:

     "Come now, Benno my dimber cove," cried Jerry at last, "what's the game? What ha' ye brought me here for? Tip us the office!"

2. (obsolete, Britain, thieves' cant) A handsome man.
   • 2012, Ross, Kate, A Broken Vessel:

     I seen his son once—Mr. Charles Avondale. Cor, he's a dimber cove! Hair like gold, and eyes as'd put blue violets to shame. He ever come here?

   • 2013, McCann, Maria, Ace, King, Knave:

     'Dimber cove, though, ain't he?'¶ 'Except his hair,' the other girl said. 'I don't care for this newfangled fashion, neither wig nor powder.'¶ 'But a fine colour,' Betsy-Ann said, thinking it would be a pity to powder such hair: like dulling a raven's wing.

• (gentleman):
• (handsome man): See Thesaurus:beautiful man

• dimber mort

• [Francis Grose] (1788), “Dimber cove”, in A Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue, 2nd corrected and enlarged edition, London: Printed for S. Hooper, […], OCLC 3138643.
• “dimber cove” in Albert Barrère and Charles G[odfrey] Leland, compilers and editors, A Dictionary of Slang, Jargon & Cant, volume I (A–K), Edinburgh: The Ballantyne Press, 1889–1890, page 310.
• Farmer, John Stephen (1891) Slang and Its Analogues‎, volume 2, page 287