Dictionaries of the Scots Language
Dictionars o the Scots Leid

A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue (up to 1700)

Hide Quotations Hide Etymology

Abbreviations Cite this entry

About this entry:
First published 2001 (DOST Vol. X).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.

Suth(e, Suith, Sooth(e, adj. Also: suthte, swth, suythe, sith. [ME and e.m.E. soð (c1175), soth (c1290), sooth (Chaucer), OE soð.]

1. Real, genuine.predic. a1400 Leg. S. xxi 280.
A God, … Quhethyre it be suth that we se here? 1501 Doug. Pal. Hon. 1951.
The sicht Of ȝone Goddes grim … visage … Ouirset my wit … ‘Bot was that suith?’ … ‘Ȝa, ȝa!' Than said the nimphe … and leuchattrib. a1400 Leg. S. l 392.
Quhy suld thu, … A madine thole … this lang Manteyng a-gane our godis wrang … & has na suth resone to schaw 1456 Hay I 210/20.
The pape and the emperour … na man may deny na this is suthe autoritee c1460 Regim. Princ. 78 (Maitl.).
Thus may thow se be suthe experience [Marchm. suth be experience] … thai gar the trow thow may nocht mak dispens c1515 Asl. MS I 192/29.
It is suth and just law that a bastard may nocht succeid the werray air beand on lyf

2. True, in accordance with the truth, not false or fictitious. a. predic. Also with qualifying adverb. b. attrib.Many examples in a may belong in Suth(e n. 1.a. (1) 1375 Barb. v 609.
The king persauit be thair effeir, That all wes suth men till hym tald a1400 Leg. S. vii 347.
Bot quhethir that this be suth or nay, I[n] lele treutht, I dare nocht say a1400 Leg. S. xv 25.
Bot suthe it is, Mark, & Lucas, & … Barnabas … dyscipilis thre ware tha c1420 Wynt. vi 2321.
All this I dar noucht swth awowe, As wryttyn is in thir bukys nowe 1456 Hay I 180/28, etc.
Nevertheles the contrair is suthe 1456 Hay I 188/9, etc.
It is suthe and certane that we knaw perfitely wele [etc.] a1500 Henr. Thre Deid Pollis 10 (Bann.).
For suth it is, that every man mortall Mon suffer deid a1540 Misc. Bann. C. III 40.
Thare is mekle thing said of this Arthur quhilk is not suth and bot fenȝeit a1568 Scott i 193.
Giffe sawis be suth to schaw thy celsitude(b) a1400 Leg. S. xvi 603.
Al is suthte, nocht is to lane, that thou sad of the Magdelane(c) ?1438 Alex. i 2175.
‘It may be sene That thow hes at the bargane bene!’ ‘It is suith!’ said Tholomere a1570-86 J. Maitland in Maitl. F. 285/12.
Suythe a1605 Montg. Sonn. xxxiii 8.
Quhilk double sentence wes baith suith and sair(d) ?a1500 Steel Roy Robert (1700) 23.
All is sooth and na lieing(e) a1500 Quare Jel. 563.
Sith(2) c1400 Troy-bk. ii 1681.
It … is richt suth withoutin dreid That of fule haist cummis no speid c1475 Wall. viii 173.
Rycht suth it is that anys we mon de c1475 Wall. ix 804.
Our suth it is, it can nocht now be don a1500 Bk. Chess 801.
Ouir suith it is … The ettercope vobbis ar thir lawis lyk c1550 Rolland Ct. Venus i 564.
And quhair ȝe say, my sawis ar friuolous; Thay ar richt suith and ar of sentence fowb. 1375 Barb. i 9.
And suth thyngis that ar likand Tyll mannys heryng, ar plesand a1400 Leg. S. l 204.
But suthtwitnes suld nocht be tane Bot in the mowthis of twa or thre ?1438 Alex. i 3247.
It is suith exemplair thay say, That wourthy hartis it makis ay ?1438 Alex. ii 5649.
Now taik we lesyng or suith saw All in to ioy eurerilk thraw 1456 Hay I 126/17.
Bot, as othir tymes, we have said the contrair is the suth opynioun a1500 Henr. Thre Deid Pollis 7 (Maitl.).
Quhone thow luikis on this suythe exemplair Off thi sellfe 1597 James VI Dæmonol. (STS) 52/6.
But what say ye to their fore-telling the death of sundrie persones … That is, a soothdreame (as they say) since they see it walking a1598 Ferg. Prov. MS No. 1175.
Suith [1641 soothe] bourd is no bourd a1598 Ferg. Prov. MS No. 1270.
Thair ar many sooth words spoken in bourding 1621-40 Melville Commonpl. Bk. 40.
He that speiks all that he heires and sies Quhidder it be suith sawes or lies … He sall haue few freinds

c. transf. Of musical sound. c1460 Regim. Princ. 4 (Marchm.).
The sang is sueyt quhen that the sound is suth

3. Only in Montg.: Truthful, that can be relied on to know and speak the truth, passing into wise. a1605 Montg. Ch. & Slae 371 (Wr.).
For I have oft heard sooth men say, And we may see't ourselves a1605 Montg. Misc. P. xxxii 7.
Ȝit I must say, as sooth men oft hes said: Love maks the choyce, bot Fortun maks the cha[nce]