Dictionaries of the Scots Language
Dictionars o the Scots Leid

Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)

Hide Quotations Hide Etymology

Abbreviations Cite this entry

About this entry:
First published 1971 (SND Vol. VIII). Includes material from the 2005 supplement.
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.

SAFTIE, n. Also -y, sauftie, and, with variant dim. ending in sense 3. saftick. [′sɑfte, -ɪk]

1. = Eng. dial. and colloq. softie, a weak-minded, timid or effeminate person, a simpleton, noodle (Bnff. 1866 Gregor D. Bnff. 147; Per., Fif., Lth., Ayr. 1915–26 Wilson). Gen.Sc.; in †Gsw. slang: a policeman.Gsw. 1889 J. Houston Autobiography 167:
A bobby, a peeler, a blue-bottle, a Robert, a pig, a sauftie.Lnk. 1895 W. Stewart Lilts 76:
Dod, I've often heard o' safties, Leery-loonies, donnert dafties.Ayr. 1901 G. Douglas Green Shutters xxi.:
He's saftie and daftie baith.Rnf. 1923 G. Blake Mince Collop Close 136:
Ye big, mean saftie.Sc. 1955 J. Beith The Corbies 14:
Charlie smiled vaguely at them over the counter . . . for Charlie was a “saftie”.

2. A soft biscuit (see Saft, I. 4. (2)) (Sh., Cai., ne.Sc., Ags., Fif. 1969).Bnff. 1952 Bnff. Advertiser (30 Oct.):
In I gied for a saftie An' tossed it doon a crumb.Ags. 1959 C. Gibson Folk-lore Tayside 33:
Morning rolls varied — there were safties, butteries, flouries, baps and so on.

3. Also in forms saftick, softie. An edible crab that has cast its shell (Bnff. 1866 Gregor D. Bnff. 230, saftick, -ie, 1907 Trans. Bnff. Field Club 11; ne.Sc. (saftick), Ags., Fif., (saftie) 1969), gen. used for bait. Such a crab when no longer soft to the touch is called a hard saftie (Bnff. 1930 Fishery Board Gl.). See also Safter.Bnff. 1950 N. Paterson Behold Thy Daughter i. iii.:
Me and Emily and Jessie were gettin' safticks on the rocks.Abd. 1963 People's Journal (1 June) 12:
Gaitherin' safties and pullars for bait.Fif. 1985 Christopher Rush A Twelvemonth and a Day 105:
Crabs that had just lost their shells we called bubbles; after that they were softies until they grew their suits again, and we spared them, as they brought no fish to the hook. Bnff. 1987:
Saftik: any soft shelled crab. Abd. 1991 George Bruce in Tom Hubbard The New Makars 20:
We socht for safticks for bait, green backs
noo slippit oot their hard shalls that floatit
in the shallow pools whaur the flukes bided
on the sand, that like the sand that nae ee
kent ane frae tither.

4. Soft carpet or cloth slippers (ne.Sc., Ags., Ayr. 1969).ne.Sc. 1953 Mearns Leader (16 Oct.):
The collie pickit up Molie's “safty”.Abd. 1995 Flora Garry Collected Poems 43:
Wifies in safties, snibbin back-doors,
Hard him an mummelt: 'Peer sowff!' Abd. 1998 Sheena Blackhall The Bonsai Grower 62:
Fin Faither tuik aff his sheen at nicht, he'd set them side bi side like a young coortin couple, neist the stickbox far he keepit his safties. Syne he'd scraun the Evenin Express, ... Sc. 1999 Aberdeen Evening Express 26 Feb 11:
Obviously Betty's night off, I thought I might catch sight of her in her safties in front of the telly tucking into a home-delivered tikka masala. Nae luck. Sc. 2003 Aberdeen Evening Express 23 May 22:
His chosen mode of corporal punishment was an old saftie administered to the trousered bum.