Yosemite Sam’s Lexicon

avast:  (Nautical) term used as a command to stop or cease

barnacle:  A marine shellfish that attaches itself to rocks, ship bottoms, etc

bedraggled dragon:  An unkempt dragon

bilge:  The rounded part of a ship’s bottom

bilge rat:  (see above)

bobtail wildcat:  A wildcat with a short or docked tail

bow-legged varmint:  A varmint with bowlegs

buccaneer:  A pirate or freebooter (freebooter:  One who plunders, especially a pirate or buccaneer)

bush-whackin’:  Attacked or fired upon from hiding ambush

carpet-bagger:  (fur-bearin’)  One of the Northern adventurers who sought to gain advantages in the South from the unsettled conditions that prevailed there after the Civil War; any opportunistic or exploitive outsider

Chilikoot Sam:  (Chilkoot Pass/Trail)  A mountain pass from SE Alaska to the Yukon valley

Chiney:  Slang > China

claimjumper:  One who seizes another’s mining claim

double-crosser:  One who engages in a betrayal; a treacherous act

epicure:  A connoisseur; one who cultivates refined tastes, especially in reference to food and drink

Edward Everett Horton:  An American character actor in film, theater, television, radio and voice work for animated cartoons

flat-footed varmint:  A varmint with flat feet

flea-bitten varmint:  Bitten by fleas; also, covered with fleas

four bits:  Slang > 50 cents

fur-bearin’ critter:  Any furry critter or animal

galoot:  An awkward or uncouth fellow

hammerhead halibut:  A halibut with a laterally expanded head

hankerin’:  A yearning, craving

hapus corpeas:  (habeas-corpus)  A writ commanding a person who detains another to produce the detained person before a court

hasenpfefer:  A highly seasoned dish made of marinated rabbit, braised and simmered

Hessian:  A soldier from Hesse hired by the British to fight in the American Revolution, mercenary

hombre:  Slang > Man; fellow

horny-toad:  Slang > horned-toad:  A harmless, flat-bodied, spiny lizard with a short tail and toad-like appearance 

idgit:  Slang > An idiot

keel-haul:  To haul (a man) under water from one side of a ship to the other, or from stem to stern as a torture or punishment

land-lubber:  An awkward or inexperienced person on board a ship

lily-livered:  Cowardly; fainthearted

long eared galoot:  A long eared awkward or uncouth fellow

lop-eared pole cat:  A skunk with drooping or pendulous ears

mouth piece:  Slang > A lawyer, especially a criminal lawyer

muley headed maverick:  Hornless maverick

namby pamby:  A person who engages in acts of cowardace, shyness, or stupidity … wimpy

Oooooooooooooooooo!  Righteous indignation

ornery:  Disposed to be contrary or stubborn, hard to manage

Pecos:  (River)  The principal tributary of the Rio Grande, flowing 926 miles from New Mexico to Western Texas

piana:  Slang > piano

riff raff:  (Sam)  A person regarded as disreputable, rabble

Rio Grande:  (River)  A river flowing 1,800 miles, generally SE from the Rocky Mountains to the Gulf of Mexico and forming the boundary between Texas and Mexico

Schmatterhorn: > (Matterhorn)  A mountain in the Alps on the Swiss-Italian border: 14,701 ft.

scupper(s):  A hole or gutter along the side of a ship’s deck, to let water run off

sea goin’:  (Sam)  Designed or fit for going to sea, seafaring

shovel-nosed mackerel:  A mackerel with a shovel-like or broad flattened snout

six-shooter:  A revolver that may be fired six times without reloading

skin-box:  Slang > banjo

slap leather:  To pull out your gun in a gun fight, preferably a six-shooter

smithereenies:  Slang > smithereens:  Fragments produced as by an explosion

swab:  Slang > An awkward fellow; lout

varmint:  Any obnoxious or pestiferous person or animal

woodland creature:  A creature that occupies land covered with woods or trees

yupped:  Informal yes, yep

17 thoughts on “Yosemite Sam’s Lexicon

      • Wow, I can’t believe how hard this character is to find. The character I am thinking of is short just like Yosemite Sam, has brown/blond hair, wears chaps and a cowboy hat, he has a thick moustache which hides any expression he may have, and he never says anything at all. Seemingly his only reason for existing seems to be to deliver things to Yosemite.

        Iill keep looking and when/if I find him, I’ll post here again to share the info.

        Thanks

        Jack

    • You’re thinking of Maverick, but the “main kick” wasn’t Yosemite Sam, he just sounded like him.

  1. Just returned from a week in Yosemite National Park where I searched for Yosemite Sam but never saw even a reference. I was disappointed. Yosemite Sam is the Man!

  2. I like this website. I struggle to fully understand Yosemite Sam’s quotes but as being not a native speaker I can’t do that so far. thanks to this website now I can catch every darn words coming out of this funny red mustache hombre mouth:) thanks a lot..

  3. I need help. I saw a Yosemite Sam/Bugs Bunny cartoon where Sam was shooting a cannon at Bugs and he said ,”Hold still, ya flea ridden varmint” but I can’t seem to identify that cartoon…does anyone know it?

  4. I was looking for a reference to build out some Yosemite Sam slang. This site is perfect.
    Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo I’m a gonna blow that thar varmint to smithereenies!!!

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