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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.

Bodily, Bodely, a. Also: bodili(e, boddily, bodielie, boidilie; bodyly, -lie; bodelye, -lie; bothele, -yle. [ME. bodili (a 1300), -ily, bodely, etc.]

1. Bodily athe (or faith), a corporal oath.Common in documents of the 15th cent.(a) 1391 Lennox Mun. 44.
[They have] sworn thare bodily athis apone the haly evangellis 1405 Maxwell Mem. I. 146.
The forsaidis partis … gaif bodily athe to hald ferme and stabil [etc.] 1438 Montgomery Mem. 30.
Aythyr has geffyn othyr thair bodyly ath apon the mes buk 1460 Lindores Abbey 159.
The said Wylȝeam … swoyr the gret bodily atht 1462 Charter (Reg. H.) No. 371.
At all thir condicyonnys sal be trevly kepyt I haf gevyn my bodyly ath 1478 Lennox Mun. 116.
The sayd lordis hafe gefyn bodyly fayth befor me notar persoune 1639 in Inverness Courier (1884) 25 Oct. 3/4.
The said A. B. has givine his great and bodielie aith(b) 1385 Red Bk. Menteith II. 261.
I made bodely fayth it ryhtwysle to deme 1415 Reg. Great S. 39/2.
Bath the partis has giffin thar bodely athe on the haly evangelis 1446 Reg. Episc. Aberd. I. 244.
The quhilk assyse, the grete bodely ath sworn on the haly Ewangelis, passit furth c1475 Wall. iv. 190.
The bodelye ayth thai maid him with gud will Before the erle c1515 Asl. MS. I. 240/7.
All the lordis … gaf bodely aithis to kepe that respit & assouerance 1514 Aberd. B. Rec. I. 90.
The samyn personis to be suorn the gret bodelie aitht, that thai sall [etc.](c) 1545 Montgomery Mem. 139.
I … hes geffin mye bothele aitht herapon, … and myne airis … sall geif thair bothyle aithtis

2. Bodily, corporal; corporeal.(a) 1432 Charter (Reg. H.) No. 285 (heritabill sesyng and boddily possession). 1456 Hay II. 114/20 (bodily hele). 1490 Irland Mir. I. 19/24 (spirituall thingis … bodily thingis). c1575 Balfour Pract. 349 (bodilie seiknes). 1611 Dunblane Test. III. 118 b (hir bodylie claythis). 1628 Stirling Ant. IV. 185 (the fairye folk quhom he had sein in boidilie schapes).(b) 1520 Edinb. Chart. 205 (bodelie harme). 1562-3 Winȝet I. 5/15 (bodely lustis). 1605 Stewart Memor. 114 (thair bodely herm and slawchter).