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Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)

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First published 1971 (SND Vol. VIII).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.

SKEET, v.1, n.1 Also skit (Jak.). Sc. forms and usages of Eng. skate (on ice). [skit]

I. v. 1. tr. and intr. To (make to) skim over the surface of water, to play with stones at ducks and drakes (I.Sc., Cai. 1970), in rowing: to catch a crab (Sh. 1908 Jak. (1928)). Hence skeeter, a skim-stone (Arg., Lnk. 1970).Sh. 1886 J. Burgess Sketches 93:
Dey wir pullin' wi awfil warps, plumpin' an' skeetin' an' kerryin' on.
Cai. 1922 J. Horne Poems 33:
'E roadside wallie sleeps calm an' cool, An' 'e clockies skeet on its face.

2. To skate (on ice), hence skeeter, a skater, a water-beetle (Cai. 1970); to slither, slide.Ags. 1896 A. Blair Rantin Robin 43:
I had gotten frae aneath the ither skeeters by this time.
Mry. 1961 Elgin Courant (6 Dec.):
[To] order sand — just stoorie muck, To help us a' frae skeetin'!

3. To hurry, hasten, dart about (Sh. 1970). Freq. skeetle, to scurry (Id.).Sh. 1877 G. Stewart Fireside Tales 89:
Skeet howe hame, guid folk.
Sh. 1963 New Shetlander No. 67. 8:
Yun lipper covered-in motor-cycle wi da peerie wheels at Willy's boy skeetles aboot apo.
Sh. 1968 New Shetlander No. 87. 7:
Terrified hens an cats at skeetled oot fae among da segs an lang girse.

II. n. An ice-skate (Ags. 1970).Ags. 1892 Arbroath Guide (27 Feb.) 3:
Jamie an' me got oor skeets strapped on.

[The variant forms ske(a)te, skeet(e), are found in 17–18th-c. Eng., but the phonology is difficult to explain. Cf. Sketch. Phs. there has been some influence from O.N. skjóta, to shoot. See Skeet, v.2, to which in fact some of the above usages may really belong.]

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"Skeet v.1, n.1". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 29 Mar 2024 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/skeet_v1_n1>

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