rark up

v. phr. to disturb, annoy, or provoke (someone), especially verbally; to chastise or harangue; to stimulate, motivate, or excite (someone). Occasionally non-phrasal: rark. Also as noun, rark-up or rark, a chastisement, goading, or disturbance. Subjects: English, New Zealand, Slang

Editorial Note: The Macquarie Dictionary has a similar term arc up, defined as “colloquial to react angrily: to arc up at a critical comment.” Thanks to John Yesberg for the tip.

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Citations: 1996 Marc Hinton Sunday Star-Times (Auckland, New Zealand) (Dec. 22) “Shaw rethink has him back in contention”: Occasionally, too, he gives his team-mates the message if they’re not performing. Shaw takes his “rark-ups” with a grain of salt and then gets on with the job, as he has done since 1990. 1997 Neil Reid Evening Post (Australia) (Jan. 13) “Basin Bash To Hype Home Crowd”: Canterbury fan Hamish Kilworth said a group of 10 “hardcore” fans would control the area. All South Islanders were welcome to join the festivities. “It will be a big day out and the one-eyed Canterbury fans will be here in force. We will be rarking it up. We’ll be throwing a few decent comments over the white picket fence in true Basin Reserve embankment form.” 1997 Evening Standard (Palmerston North, New Zealand) (Apr. 23) “Mori’s Brother Keeps Him On His Toes” p. 20: Kent Mori may be Palmerston North Jets’ most experienced player but he admits he sometimes needs a “bit of a rark up.” And who best to keep the shooting guard in line than brother and teammate Simon. 1997 Melissa Moxon New Zealand Herald (Aug. 13) “Site Hunt Cheers School—Telecom New Zealand”: The managing director of Koala Auto Services, Steve Taylor, said yesterday that he did not mind whether the Telecom aerial went on his roof. “Customers have been very supportive of our position, but we don’t want a split in the community. This is a great little town but this has really rarked it up.” 1997 [Quentin Grady] @ New Zealand Usenet: alt.psychology.nlp (Dec. 20) “Nothing Exists”: I might jolly the management up on this. They are very responsive to customer requests. A gentle rarking should do it. 1998 [Bill Taylor] @ New Zealand Usenet: rec.sport.rugby.union (Feb. 9) “This Innes Bui’ness!”: There’s just one thing that stops me from giving slimy John a total rark-up over this incident…results! 1998 [Joe Blow] Usenet: nz.general (Dec. 15) “Funny dog story”: They were supposed to come galloping out of a wood shed (on a long rope) and bark viciously at the approaching gang of people. I was in the woodshed rarking them up, but they run out half-barking, decide there wasn’t any danger, so come back into the shed wagging tails. 1999 Allan Williams Usenet: rec.autos.makers.vw.aircooled (July 15) “Re: Birth Cert!”: Well…I’m all rarked up to get her done up now…but it will be YEARS away yet…I will need lots of MONEY&. 1999 [Greg] @ New Zealand Usenet: microsoft.public.word.pagelayout (Aug. 5) “Freakin Page Borders”: Ive been havin this problem for a while now, and its starting to rark me off now. Everytime i put a full page border in a word document the bottom line never prints. 1999 Dr. Who @ New Zealand Usenet: aus.sport.rugby-league (Sept. 5) “Boofhead Club—For Matty O”: Originally for condoning the use of foul language and making fun of people’s families. Since then I have had a lot of time for A Goose, he is a good sport who takes a rark on the chin. 2001 [debiddo] @ New Zealand Usenet: alt.animals.whales (Dec. 9) “Re: Today’s laughing stock”: Interesting that you don’t give these anti whaling supporters a good rark up. They aren’t helping your side whatsoever. 2002 Mr. Scebe Usenet: rec.sport.rugby.union (Mar. 31) “Thanks for the Easter eggs Australia”: The Brumbies had no answer to the CC forward surges, the Waratahs shied away when the big hits went in, and the Reds just had no answers. This does not bode well, as Mitchell is noted for rarking up the forward intensity. 2005 [Myftrefs Voleftrangler Sr.] Usenet: nz.general (Dec. 17) “Re: Who still believes we should have sent infantry to Iraq”: Didn’t you think, right at the beginning, when Bush was still working hard rarking up potential allies, “this doesn’t add up, this has the smell of hypocrisy and self-interest”? 2006 [Fotu] That Girl In Samoa (Apia, Savaii, Samoa) (Apr. 4) “Samoa Elections: A personal account”: They blatantly oppose the government, raise even the slightest issue and generally create a right royal rark up whenever they can. 2006 Jane Clifton Stuff.co.nz (New Zealand) (Aug. 2) “All at sea on a wave of vulgarity”: National was pretty rarked up by the time the helicopter issue came up. It had already found four ways to stymie the debate it has been seeking on Ms Wilson’s refusal to put Mr Field’s conduct before the privileges committee.

Posted 3 Aug 06 | Permalink | Tell a Friend