A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue (up to 1700)
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First published 1983 (DOST Vol. V).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1581-1623
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Phlegm(e, n. (e.m.E. phleugme (1565–73), phlegme (a 1592), and fleume etc., mucus, phlegmatic ‘humour’, pl. a collection or mass of phlegm, or of any mucous secretion, mod. F. flegme, L. phlegma clammy humour of the body.) —1581-1623 James VI Poems I. 161/891 (see Phlegmon n.). 1604-9 Grahame Anat. Hum. 31.
When some women … hath … their knotty phlegme and spetting on the walls and floore
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"Phlegm n.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 14 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/dost/phlegme>
