Tonnish

In the 16th century gib became 'a term of reproach, especially for an old woman' (e.g., a1529 "She is a tonnish gyb").

She is also fat, "a tonnish gib." Skelton also tells us that at least one of the women associated with the old alewife "seemed to be a witch," consistent with the poet's repeated allusions to acts of witchcraft, blasphemy, and sacrilege among Elinor's female clientele.(40) Elinor herself would also appear to be a witch of sorts, or so we might reasonably infer from Skelton's claim that "the deveil and she be sib." No less vulgar is the hostess Jyl of Breyntford, "a widow of a homly sort" who, like Elinor Rumming, dates from the reign of Henry VIII (1509-1547).(41) Then there is the gargantuan hostess "Mother Bunch," who makes her literary debut in or around 1650.