full nelson

English

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full nelson

Wikipedia

A wrestler applying a full nelson (sense 1) from above

A wrestler applying a full nelson (sense 1)

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

full nelson (plural full nelsons)

2. (wrestling) A hold in which the wrestler applying the hold puts their arms under the armpits of their opponent and applies pressure to the back of their opponent's head or neck. [from late 19th c.]

   Synonyms: double nelson, double shoulder lock

   • 1912 October, Edgar Rice Burroughs, “Tarzan of the Apes”, in The All-Story, New York, N.Y.: Frank A. Munsey Co., →OCLC; republished as Tarzan of the Apes, New York, N.Y.: A[lbert] L[evi] Burt Company, June 1914, →OCLC:

     With the quickness of a striking rattler he launched himself full upon Sabor’s back, his strong young arms seeking and gaining a full-Nelson upon the beast, as he had learned it that other day during his bloody, wrestling victory over Terkoz.

   • 2017 July 18, Daniel Dylan Wray, quoting Martin Rev, “‘It was like going into the trenches’: how Suicide rioted against plastic punk”, in The Guardian‎, →ISSN:

     Bouncers had kids in full nelson headlocks as we were rushed out the side door because we were told it was too dangerous. The place was a mess; it was a total riot.

   • 2021 October 26, Helen Pidd, “‘Got to be accessible’: the Derbyshire MP set on holding surgeries”, in The Guardian‎, →ISSN:

     He constantly (and inconsequentially) reports online abuse too, like the person who said he should be “put in a full nelson and thrown in a river” for his mythical sewage vote

3. (sex) A sex position where one partner penetrates the other from behind while holding up the recipient's legs.

Related terms

• half nelson

Further reading

• “full nelson”, in Collins English Dictionary.