Waverley - Glossary

Glossary

A’: All.
Aboon: Above.
Accolade: Salutation marking the bestowal of knighthood.
Ae: One.
Aff: Off.
Afore: Before.
Ahint: Behind.
Ain: Own.
Aits: Oats.
Alane: Alone.
Amaist: Almost.
Ambry: Cupboard, a pantry.
An: If.
Ane: One.
Aneuch: Enough.
Array.: Trouble.
Assoilzied.: Acquitted.
Assythment.: Satisfaction.
Auld: Old.
Aweel: Well.
Aye: Always.
Baff: Blow.
Bagganet: Bayonet.
Bailie: City magistrate in Scotland.
Bairn: Child.
Baith: Both.
Ban: Curse.
Banes: Bones.
Bang Up: Get up quickly, bounce.
Barley: A parley, a truce.
Bauld: Bold.
Baulder: Bolder.
Bawbee: A halfpenny.
Bawty: Cunning.
Baxter: A baker.
Bees: In the, stupefied, bewildered.
Beflummed: Cajoled.
Begunk: A trick, a cheat.
Ben: In, inside.
Benempt: Named.
Bent: An open field.
Bhaird: Bard.
Bicker: A wooden dish.
Bide: Endure.
Bieldy: Shelter.
Bigging: Building.
Birlieman: A peace officer.
Blackcock: Black grouse.
Black-Fishing: By torchlight poaching.
Blinked: Glanced.
Blude: Blood.
Blythe: Glad.
Boddle: A copper coin, worth one third of an English penny.
Bodle: Copper coin worth a third of an English penny.
Bogle About the Bush: About the bush, a children’s game.
Bole: Bowl.
Bonnie: Comely, fine,
Boot-Ketch: Bootjack.
Boune: Prepared.
Bra’: Handsome, showy.
Brae: The side of a hill.
Brander: Broil.
Brissel-Cock: A turkey cock.
Breeks: Breechs.
Brent: Smooth, unwrinkled.
Brogues: Highland shoes.
Broken Men: Outlaws.
Broo: Broth.
Brought far ben: Held in special favor.
Browst: Brewing.
Bruckle: Brittle, infirm.
Bruik: Enjoy.
Brulzie: A broil, a fray.
Bullsegg: A gelded bull.
Burd: A term of familiarity.
Burn: Brook.
Busking: Decoration.
Buttock-mail: A fine for fornication.
Bydand: Awaiting.
Ca’: Call.
Cadger: Country carrier.
Cailliachs: Old women on whom devolved the duty of lamenting for the dead, which the Irish call keening.
Callant: A young lad, a fine fellow.
Cannily: Prudently.
Canny: Prudent, skillful, lucky.
Canter: Canting, whining beggar.
Cantrip: A trick.
Carle: Churl, an old man.
Cateran: Highland irregular soldier, a freebooter.
Chiel: A young man.
Clachan: A hamlet.
Clamhewit: Blow, a drubbing.
Clash: Gossip.
Clatter: Tattle, noisy talk.
Claw favour: Curry favour.
Claymore: A broad sword.
Cleik: Cunzie, steal the silver.
Close: A narrow passage.
Clour: A bump, a bruise.
Cob: Beat.
Coble: A small fishing boat.
Cockyleeky: A soup made of a cock, seasoned with leeks.
Coghling and Droghling: Wheezing and blowing.
Cogs: Wooden vessels.
Cogue: A round wooden vessel.
Concussed: Violently shaken, disturbed, forced.
Coronach: A dirge.
Corri: A mountain hollow.
Cove: A cave.
Coup: Fall.
Cow yer Cracks: Cut short your talk, hold your tongues.
Crack: Boast.
Craig: The neck, the throat.
Crame: A booth, a merchant’s shop.
Creagh: An incursion for plunder, termed on the Borders a raid.
Crouse: Bold, Courageous.
Crummie: A cow with crooked horns.
Cuittle: Tickle.
Curragh: A Highland boat.
Cut-lugged: Crop-eared.
Daft: Mad, foolish.
Daur: Dare.
Deaving: Deafening.
Debinded: Bound down.
Decreet: An order of decree.
Deliver: Light, agile.
Deoch an Doruis: The stirrup-cup or parting drink.
Dern: Concealed, secret.
Dingle: Dinnle, tingle, vibrate with sound.
Dinmonts: Wethers in the second year.
Doer: An agent, a manager.
Dog-head: The hammer of a gun.
Doil’d: Crazed, silly.
Doon: Doun, down.
Dorlach: A bundle.
Dovering: Dozing.
Dow: A dove.
Dowf: A little drop, a small quantity of drink.
Duinhé-Wassel: Dunniewassal, a Highland gentleman, usually the cadet of a family of rank.
Eanaruich: The regalia presented by Rob Roy to the Laird of Tullibody.
Effeir: What is becoming.
Eneugh: Eneuch, enough.
Ergastulo: In a penitentiary.
Etter-cap: A spider, an ill-natured person.
Evite: Avoid, escape.
Ewest: Ewast, contiguous.
Exeemed: Exempt.
Factory: Stewardship.
Fallow: A fellow.
Fauld: Fold.
Feal and Divot: Turf and thatch.
Feared: Afraid.
Feck: A quantity.
Feifteen: The Jacobite rebellion of 1715.
Fendy: Good at making a shift.
Fire-raising: Setting an incendiary fire.
Flemit: Frightened,
Fleyt: Frightened, shy.
Frae: From.
Fu: Full.
Fule: Fool.
Gad: A goad, a rod.
Gaberlunzie: A kind of professional beggar.
Gane: Gone.
Gang: Go.
Gar: Make.
Gate: Gait, way.
Gaun: Going.
Gay: Gey, very.
Gear: Goods, property.
Ghaist: A ghost.
Gillie: A servant, an attendant.
Gillie-wet-foot: A barefooted Highland lad.
Gimmer: A ewe from one to two years old.
Gin: If.
Gîte: Crazy, a noodle,
Gled: A kite.
Gleg: Quick, clever.
Glisk: A glimpse.
Graning: Groaning.
Grat: Wept.
Gree: Agree.
Greybeard: A stone bottle or jug.
Grice: Gryce, gris, a pig.
Gripple: Rapacious, niggardly.
Gowd: Gold.
Gude: Guid, good.
Gulpin: A simpleton.
Ha’: Hall.
Hag: A portion of copse marked off for cutting.
Haggis: A pudding peculiar to Scotland, containing oatmeal, suet, minced sheep’s liver, heart, etc., seasoned with onions, pepper, and salt, the whole mixture boiled in a sheep’s stomach.
Hail: Whole.
Hallan: A partition, a screen.
Hame: Home.
Hantle: A great deal.
Heck: A hay rack; at heck and manger, in plenty.
Herships: Plunder.
Het: Hot.
Hirsts: Knolls.
Hog: A young sheep before its first shearing.
Horning: Charge of, a summons to pay a debt, on pain of being pronounced a rebel, to the sound of a horn.
Horse-couper: Horse-cowper, a horse-dealer.
Howe: A hollow.
Houlerying and poulerying: Hustling and pulling.
Hurley-house: A broken-down manor house.
Ilk: Same; of that ilk, of the same name or place.
Ilka: Each, every.
In the bees: Stupefied.
Ingle: A fire burning upon the hearth.
Intromit: Meddle with.
Keepit: Kept.
Kemple: A Scotch measure of straw or hay.
Ken: Know.
Kittle: Tickle, ticklish.
Kippage: Disorder, confusion.
Kirk: Church.
Kyloe: A small Highland cow.
Laird: Squire, lord of the manor.
Land-louper: A wanderer, a vagabond.
Lang-leggit: Long-legged.
Lawing: A tavern reckoning.
Lee land: Pasture land.
Leddy: A lady.
Lie: A word used in old Scottish legal documents to call attention to the following word or phrase.
Lift: Capture, carry off by theft.
Lightly: Make light of, disparage.
Limmer: A jade.
Loch: A lake.
Loon: An idle fellow, a lout, a rogue.
Luckie: An elderly woman.
Lug: An ear, a handle.
Lunzie: The loins, the waist.
Mae: Mair, more.
Mains: The chief farm of an estate.
Mair: More.
Maist: Most, almost.
Mart: Beef salted down for winter.
Malt abune the meal: The drink above the food, half-seas over.
Mask: Mash, infuse.
Maun: Must.
Meal-ark: A meal chest.
Merk: 13⅓ pence in English money.
Mickle: Much, great.
Misguggled: Mangled, rumpled.
Mony: Many.
Morn: The morn, tomorrow.
Morning: A morning dram.
Mousted: Powdered.
Muckle: Much, great.
Munt: Mount.
Muir: Moor.
Mutchkin: A measure equal to about three quarters of an imperial pint.
Na: Nae, no, not.
Naigs: Horses.
Nail: The sixteenth part of a yard.
Nainsell: Own self.
Nathless: Nevertheless.
Neb: Nose, tip.
Ne’er be in me: Devil be in me.
Nice: Simple.
Nolt: Black cattle.
Ony: Any.
Old to do: Great doings.
Orra: Odd, unemployed.
Orra time: Occasionally.
Ower: Over.
Paitrick: A partridge.
Panged: Crammed.
Parritch: Oatmeal porridge.
Peculium: Private property.
Peel-house: A fortified tower.
Pendicle: A small piece of ground.
Pingle: A fuss, trouble.
Pinners: A headdress for women.
Plack: A copper coin worth one third of a penny.
Plaidy: An outer covering for the body.
Plenish: Furnish.
Ploy: Sport, entertainment.
Pottingar: An apothecary.
Pownie: A pony.
Powtering: Poking, stirring.
Pretty men: Stout, warlike fellows.
Quean: A young woman.
Redd: Part, separate.
Reifs: Robberies.
Reises: Twigs, branches.
Reivers: Robbers.
Resiling: Retracting, withdrawing.
Riggs: Ridges, ploughed ground.
Rinthereout: A roving person, a vagabond.
Rokelay: A short cloak.
Row: Roll.
Rowed: Rolled.
Rowt: Cried out, bellowed,
Roynish: Scurvy, coarse.
Rudas: Coarse, hag-like.
Sae: So.
Sain: Mark with the sign of the cross, bless.
Sair: Sore, very.
Sall: Shall.
Saumon: Salmon.
Sark: A shirt.
Saut: Salt.
Say: A sample.
Scarted: Scratched, scribbled over.
Schellum: A rascal.
Scouping: Scowping, skipping, leaping, running.
Scroll: Engross, copy.
Seannachie: A Highland antiquary.
Shanks: Legs.
Shearing: Reaping, harvest.
Sheers: Shears.
Shilpit: Weak, sickly.
Shoon: Shoes.
Shouther: The shoulder.
Sic: Siccan, such.
Siccan: Sic, such.
Sidier dhu: Black soldiers, independent companies raised to keep peace in the Highlands; named from the tartans they wore.
Sidier roy: Red soldiers, King George’s men.
Sikes: Small brooks.
Siller: Silver, money.
Silly: Weak.
Simmer: Summer.
Sliver: Slice, slit.
Skig: The least quantity of anything.
Sma’: Small.
Smoky: Suspicious.
Sneck: Cut.
Snood: A fillet worn by young women.
Sopite: To quiet a brawl.
Sorners: Sornars, sojourners, sturdy beggars, especially those unwelcome visitors who exact lodgings and victuals by force.
Sorted: Arranged, adjusted.
Sowens: The seeds of oatmeal soured.
Speir: Ask, investigate.
Spence: The place where provisions are kept.
Sporran-mollach: A Highland purse of goatskin.
Sprack: Animated, lively.
Sprechery: Movables of an unimportant sort.
Spring: A cheerful tune.
Spuilzie: Spoil.
Spong: Pick one’s pocket.
Saint Johnstone’s tippet: A rope or halter for hanging.
Stieve: Stiff, firm.
Stirk: A young steer or heifer.
Stoor: Rough, harsh.
Stot: A bullock.
Stoup: A jug, a pitcher.
Stouthreef: Robbery.
Strae: Straw.
Strath: A valley through which a river runs.
Streeks: Stretches, lies.
Syboes: Onions.
Syne: Before, now, ago.
Ta: The.
Taiglit: Harassed, encumbered, loitered.
Tappit Hen: A pewter pot that holds three English quarts.
Tauld: Told.
Teil: The devil.
Teinds: Tithes.
Telt: Told.
Thae: Those.
Thir: These.
Thole: Bear, suffer.
Thraw: Twist, wrench.
Threepit: Maintained obstinately.
Throstle: The thrush.
Till: To.
Tirrivies: Hasty fits of passion,
Tocherless: Without dowry.
Toun: A town, a hamlet, a farm.
Toy: An old-fashioned cap for women.
Trews: Trousers.
Trindling: Rolling.
Trow: Believe, suppose.
Tuilzie: A quarrel.
Tume: Toom, empty.
Turnspit doggie: A kind of dog, long-bodied and short-legged, formerly used in turning a treadmill.
Twa: Two.
Tyke: A dog, a snarling fellow.
Unco: Strange, very.
Unkenn’d: Unknown.
Unsonsy: Unlucky.
Usquebaugh: Whiskey.
Vivers: Victuals.
Wa’: Wall.
Wad: Would.
Wadset: A deed conveying property to a creditor.
Wain: A wagon; to remove.
Walise: A portmanteau, saddlebags.
Wan: Won.
Wanchancy: Unlucky.
Ware: Spend.
Weel: Well.
Weising: Inclining, directing.
Wha: Who.
Whar: Where.
What for: Why.
While syne: A while ago.
Whiles: Sometimes.
Whilk: Which.
Whin: A few.
Whingeing: Whining.
Winna: Will not.
Wiske: Whisk, brandish.
Yate: Gate.