Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
Hide Quotations Hide Etymology
About this entry:
First published 1956 (SND Vol. IV). Includes material from the 1976 supplement.
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1824-1825, 1922-1925
[0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,1,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,1,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]
‡GLOAN, GLONE, GLOWN, n. [glo:n]
1. "Substance, strength" (Jam.2); energy, "go" (Abd. 1954).Abd. 1824 G. Smith Douglas 59:
Now, shou'd his courage hae nae better glown, . . . He'll tak' the taunt, an tamely sneak awa.Abd. 1825 Jam.:
"It has nae gloan", it has no substance.
2. "Excitement over some coveted possession" (Sc. 1911 S.D.D. Add., glone); "excessive anxiety" (Abd.6 1913). Phr.: to be in a gloan, to be in a state of excited eagerness or eager expectancy.Abd. 1922 Swatches o' Hamespun 62:
'Twis Hallawe'en, an' . . . Tibbockie wis in a gloan tae dyang an' pu' her castick.Abd.7 1925:
When one looks forward to the receipt of some desired or coveted book or article of attire, we say of that person: "he wis in a glone for't", or "for its comin'".
You may wish to vary the format shown below depending on the citation style used.
"Gloan n.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 2 Apr 2026 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/gloan>
