Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1965 (SND Vol. VI).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
LEEFU, adj. Also -fow, leif(o)u; leinfou; leethfow.
1. Kind-hearted, sympathetic, considerate, compassionate (Abd. 1825 Jam., leinfou (-heartit), Rxb. Ib., leethfow).Sc. 1721 J. Kelly Proverbs 315:
The Leeful Man is the Beggar's Brother. Spoken when we have lent something that we now want, and must be forc'd to borrow.Edb. 1791 J. Learmont Poems 372:
I ken him weel; he has a leefou heart; I'll ablins get his pardon e'er we part.Slk. 1818 Hogg B. of Bodsbeck vii.:
Puir things [sheep], sin' ye hae been sae leifu', we'll sit down an' rest a while.
2. Hence: enthusiastic, loyal.wm.Sc. 1821 Scots Mag. (April) 352:
Whar's the leefu-hairted Caledonian wha wad be driech in drawing to gar … our mither-tounge shyne?
3. Full of love, lovely. In the 1813 quot. however the word may be intended as a variant of Leal, chaste.Slk. 1813 Hogg Queen's Wake (1819) 187:
A leifu' maiden stood at her knee.Slk. 1825 Hogg Poems (1874) 343:
Then my love took me in his arms, And 'gan to laud my leifou charms.
4. Reluctant, loath. Used adv. in quot.Dmf. 1874 R. Wanlock Rhymes 88:
I am leifu' forced to say Man's love is but a name!
5. Wilful, obstinate (Rxb. 1825 Jam., leefow).
[O.Sc. leiful, a.1628, as in 1721 quot. The various forms above have been put together for convenience but in most cases both meaning and orig. are uncertain, and distinct words may be represented. 1. and 2. may be derivs. from Lief, 3. an extended usage of Leafu, and 4. of laithfu s.v. Laith, while 5. seems due to some misunderstanding. There has also prob. been influence from Leesome, adj.1, Leesome, adj.2 The words are mainly poet., esp. freq. in Hogg, and may well be arbitrary formations and usages. The forms lein-, leeth- are unexplained; lein- might phs. represent the vbl.n. of lee, Luve.]You may wish to vary the format shown below depending on the citation style used.
"Leefu adj.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 2 May 2024 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/leefu>
