​Negus. (1) The title of a king or ruler (Amharic negūs or n’gūs), in Abyssinia (q.v.); the full title of the emperor is negūs nagasti, “king of kings.” (2) The name of a drink made of wine, most commonly port, mixed with hot water, spiced and sugared. According to Malone (Life of Dryden, Prose Works, i. 484) this drink was invented by a Colonel Francis Negus (d. 1732), who was commissioner for executing the office of master of the horse from 1717 to 1727, when he became master of the buckhounds.