live over the brush en · VERB
Etymology
Possibly ultimately derived from broomstick wedding, with broomstick meaning ersatz or sham. Often said to be derived from early British or Romani wedding practices, in which a couple could become married outside the Church by leaping a broom or brush, but no evidence exists for such a ceremony.
Meanings
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(Northern-England, idiomatic) To cohabit without being married.
I was saying to my Albert, I wouldn't be surprised if him and that so-called wife of his was living over the brush.
2013, Gilda O'Neill, Just Around the Corner, →ISBN:I know what people think about the North. They think it's all muck and living over the brush with women like Elsie Tanner.
1982, Peter Tinniswood, The Home Front, page 10:After the birth of their son, Stanley, the couple moved to Bradford and "lived over the brush" in West Bowling in a back-to-back terraced house.
1991, Punch, volume 300, page 134:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| lived over the brush | Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| lived over the brush | Tense=Past | lexicographic | |
| lives over the brush | Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres | lexicographic | |
| living over the brush | Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic |