from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Hessian \Hes"sian\, a.
Of or relating to Hesse, in Germany, or to the Hessians.
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{Hessian boots}, or {Hessians}, boot of a kind worn in
England, in the early part of the nineteenth century,
tasseled in front. --Thackeray.
{Hessian cloth}, or {Hessians}, a coarse hempen cloth for
sacking.
{Hessian crucible}. See under {Crucible}.
{Hessian fly} (Zool.), a small dipterous fly or midge
({Cecidomyia destructor}). Its larv[ae] live between the
base of the lower leaves and the stalk of wheat, and are
very destructive to young wheat; -- so called from the
erroneous idea that it was brought into America by the
Hessian troops, during the Revolution.
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from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Hessian \Hes"sian\, n.
1. A native or inhabitant of Hesse.
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2. A mercenary or venal person. [U. S.]
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Note: This use is a relic of the patriot hatred of the
Hessian mercenaries who served with the British troops
in the Revolutionary War.
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3. pl. See {Hessian boots} and cloth, under {Hessian}, a.
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