A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue (up to 1700)
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First published 1937 (DOST Vol. I).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1399-1420, 1475
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Besy(e, v. Also: p.t. besiet, bey(i)sit. [ME. and e.m.E. besy(e, var. of bisy(e Bissy v.] tr. To keep (one) busy. Chiefly refl. a1400 Legends of the Saints xxiv. 125.
He … beyisit hyme how he mocht [etc.] a1400 Ib. xxv. 341.
I beysit me til es Thame … & to ples c1400 Troy-bk. ii. 177.
That I me besye in no-thyng c1420 Ratis Raving 1530.
Thar propre accioune … Wyll besy thaim c1475 Acts of Schir William Wallace vii. 113.
To rede the buk he besyet him
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"Besy v.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 19 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/dost/besye>
