Dictionary

Horlicks en · NOUN · etymology 1

Pronunciation

• /ˈhɔːlɪks/ non-rhotic
• (Australia) audio

Etymology

The name of the drink, first sold as "Horlick's Infant and Invalids Food", is derived from the surname of its developers, James (1844–1921) and William Horlick (1846–1936); equivalent to Horlick + -'s (possessive marker). The term later became a euphemism for bollocks (“mess; to make a mess of”).

Meanings

1. (UK, countable, uncountable) A hot bedtime drink made with malted milk.
   • Kathy, drinking Horlicks and laughing about the impossibility of custard (she could not cook – she could not even stir), and obsessive about everything, found out for me that Dylan Thomas had invented a fantasy[…] 2016 December 6, Jeanette Winterson, Christmas Days: 12 Stories and 12 Feasts for 12 Days, Grove/Atlantic, Inc., →ISBN:
   • It did seem very odd though, drinking Horlicks in the middle of the day. From then on, first thing in the morning, after all meals, and last thing at night, Ruth made me a big mug of Horlicks. Every day, Horlicks. All day, Horlicks. 2021 March 10, Helen Jones, I Am a Real Person, AuthorHouse, →ISBN:
   • When the theatres turned out, people flocked back for their Horlickses and cocoas. Because of the summer visitors, we were open till one o'clock in the morning. 1990, Barbara Hanrahan, A Chelsea Girl, Ulverscroft Large Print Books, →ISBN:
2. (UK, countable, euphemistic, slang, uncountable) Bollocks, a mess or balls-up.
   • McDonald & Dodds is back, with episode one so deliberately hammy and meta that, technically, it should have been a complete horlicks. In one scene, when they were all hanging on to the balloon ropes, Mr Bean-like, to stop Jason Watkins flying away, it sort of was. 2021 March 1, Carol Midgley, “McDonald & Dodds review – cheerful escapism and filth-free distraction”, in The Times:
3. (UK, countable, euphemistic, slang, uncountable) Bollocks, nonsense, false statements.
   • “I don’t condone any abuses of human rights anywhere. But if we’re not condoning human rights abuses anywhere, I wouldn’t even be able to perform in my kitchen.” Which is total Horlicks, clearly, but did at least bless us with this cheering reply: “Robbie, what are you doing in your kitchen?” 2022 December 23, Archie Bland, “Friday briefing: The Crown discourse, Elon Musk tweets and 15 more things to leave behind in 2022”, in The Guardian:
   • As sleep patterns come unstuck and more and more people complain of not getting enough shuteye, so businesses have spotted an opportunity. […] And beware any consumer product which claims it will transform your slumber: it’s probably a load of Horlicks. 2018 October 8, Hannah Devlin, “Sleep: how much do we really need?”, in The Guardian:

Forms

Synonyms

framis · baragouin · Irish bull · bull feathers · blather · lallation · pie in the sky · squit · moonshine · rubbish · hokum · bullspeak · bunk · folderol · rigmarole · flim-flam · bulldust · crock · eyewash · flizz · poppycock · put-on · jabberwocky · hocus-pocus · tripe · fuckry · blatherskite · batshit · tosh · apple grease · absurdity · hogwash · jabber · nertz · meaninglessness · nonsense · bull · balls · bafflegab · garbage · ruse · batcrap · bilgewater · rot · crock of shit · horse piss · gup · all my eye and Betty Martin · stuff and nonsense · gossip · double Dutch · gobbledygook · hoax · fuckery · stuff · horseshit · skimble-skamble · trash · blah-blah-blah · bosh · muddle · horsefeathers · macaroni · doublespeak · baloney · Bandini · pigswill · blah · horse cock · whiff-whaff · bullcrap · fiddle-faddle · horse hockey · bullshit · bunkum · dribble · footle · guff · foolishness · tommy-rot · bobbins · hash · wass · humbug · Gallophone · bollocks · jimjam · codswallop · rhubarb · Greek · flummery · malarkey · applesauce · jive · mumbo jumbo · manure · drivel · garble · hooey · blah-blah · cobblers · rhubarb rhubarb · banana oil · shit · piffle · claptrap · clamjamfrey · horse puckey · jargon · galimatias · fudge · trittle trattle · junk · crap · bushwah · all my eye · shite · double talk · twaddle · BS · santorum · tush · mess-up · gibberish · prattle · balderdash · word salad · gash · flapdoodle · gibber · jibber-jabber

wikipedia: William Horlick · wikipedia: Sir James Horlick, 1st Baronet

Horlicks en · VERB · etymology 1

Pronunciation

• /ˈhɔːlɪks/ non-rhotic
• (Australia) audio

Etymology

The name of the drink, first sold as "Horlick's Infant and Invalids Food", is derived from the surname of its developers, James (1844–1921) and William Horlick (1846–1936); equivalent to Horlick + -'s (possessive marker). The term later became a euphemism for bollocks (“mess; to make a mess of”).

Meanings

1. (UK, euphemistic, slang) To make a mess of (something); to bollocks.
   • Assuming the Citroen engineers haven’t really Horlicksed things up, which I suspect they haven’t, electric should be the neatest of fits for the comfy, untaxing C4. 2022 March 14, Sam Philip, “Citroen C4 PureTech 130 – long-term review”, in Top Gear:
   • I have seen a priest massacred in charge of a Mass, experienced schoolmasters carbonated in charge of a class and felt hairdressers Horlicksed in charge of hair clippers. / On a more lasting level, it is possible for surprisingly long periods of time to be drunk in charge of a relationship. 1993 September 25, Stuart Wolfendale, “Column Eight”, in South China Morning Post:
   • Not the groundsman's fault Australia horlicksed it all up in the space of a couple of hours on Friday. 2009 August 23, Ben Dirs, “Strauss's England worthy winners”, in BBC Sport, archived from the original on 09 Jan 2021:
   • One does wonder how the history books will treat Gordon if, as it now looks, he won't even still be PM by the time the next election comes along. / Indeed, if he hadn’t horlicksed the economy with nuclear abandon would they have even mentioned him at all? 2009 April 15, alland...@live.co.uk, “SKY News - Dead Man Walking”, in uk.media.tv.misc (Usenet):
   • Mr O'Brien has admitted that he was tempted to pay £100,000 to Mr Lowry, out of his own personal generosity, because he had heard pub talk that Mr Lowry's Streamline Enterprises was "Horlicksed"[—]that's a word the Irish Independent has to use as an "intermediary" because the real word is too rude. 2001 June 28, Senan Molony, “Inquiry a training ground for linguistic acrobatics”, in Irish Independent:

Forms

wikipedia: William Horlick · wikipedia: Sir James Horlick, 1st Baronet

Horlicks en · PROPN · etymology 2

Pronunciation

• /ˈhɔːlɪks/ non-rhotic
• (Australia) audio

Etymology

Variant of Horlick.

Meanings

1. A surname.
   • And this will go on and on in that way until they are invited to Buckingham Palace to dine with the queen, who they are absolutely sure is the center, and will drop this bit of information when they meet the Horlickses at a reception,[…] 2018 January 9, David Plante, American Stranger: A Novel, Open Road Media, →ISBN:
   • ... causing Mr Horlicks to think, in several worried thought bubbles, that She's not the girl I married. She then goes on to take tea in a café with a wise woman friend. Both Mrs Horlicks and her wise friend are always depicted[…] 2017 March 21, Barbara Trapido, Frankie & Stankie, Bloomsbury Publishing USA, →ISBN:
   • The Crown Prince went to the Horlickses. I have hardly seen him and am quietly, tactfully freezing him off. Sent off long letter to the Regent, my child, and to Peter. I feel somehow that the New Year will benefit me and bring[…] 2021 September 9, Chips Channon, Henry ‘Chips’ Channon: The Diaries (Volume 2): 1938-43, Random House, →ISBN:
   • “But how can this be, for Mr. Horlicks suffered from such a painful back condition that he could hardly walk?” she informed Hodgekiss. “Not anymore!” said Hodgekiss with a twinkle in his eye. 2012 April 11, Tricia Bennett, Polly Brown: A Modern-Day Oliver With a Twist, Charisma Media, →ISBN:

Forms

Horlicks en · PROPN · etymology 3

Pronunciation

• /ˈhɔːlɪks/ non-rhotic
• (Australia) audio

Meanings

1. (form-of, plural) plural of Horlick
   form of Horlick