Posted by SusanK on 6/27/2005, 11:45 am, in reply to "Definition from c.1811..." Though, I found a web page that has the text of a proceeding at the Old Bailey, 1795, in which the word is spelled with an "o." In a search of the site, overwhelmingly the word is spelled with "u." But, there are three cases, all after 1795, in which the transcripts use the "o" spelling. Perhaps there was a general shift after that date. Ah, words, they are such fun. Link: simple grand larceny, 01 Jul 1795
207.200.116.6
This is one of those cases where time brings many changes. O'Brien spelled it "sponging" through the series, but I would assume that Capt. Grose et al, compiling the dictionary had a better handle on the spelling of the day. Certainly there are many examples of the latter spelling in period works.
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