Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1941 (SND Vol. II).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1835-1840
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CHACK, Chak, n.4 A cart-rut (Lth. 1825 Jam.2; Rxb. 1923 Watson W.-B., chack).s.Sc. 1835–1840 J. M. Wilson Tales of the Borders (1857) II. 161:
Ye couldna hae gane a dozen o' yards on the road without meetin wi' as mony chaks, ilk deep aneugh to tak the cart up till the ax-tree.
Hence chackie, (1) of roads: full of ruts, rough (Lth. 1825 Jam.2); (2) “applied to ground that has much gravel in it” (s.Sc. Ib.).
[Phs. from Chack, n.2, q.v. Jam. suggests it may come from same root as Eng. check, from the idea of the rut checking the motion of the carriage or plough.]You may wish to vary the format shown below depending on the citation style used.
"Chack n.4". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 14 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/chack_n4>
