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.
Quotation dates: 1846, 1925
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SKRANK, adj., n., v. Also scrank. [skrɑŋk]
I. adj. 1. Thin, lean, slender, skinny (Sc. 1825 Jam.).Fif. 1846 W. Tennant Muckomachy 56:
The tither [horse] . . . As skrank as e'er ate gers or claiver.Abd. 1925 Abd. Book-Lover V. 6:
Though my soo may get scrank i' the sty.
†2. Of writing: thin, spidery (Cai. 1904 E.D.D.).
II. n. 1. Thin, sprawling writing, gen. in pl. (Bnff. 1866 Gregor D. Bnff. 162).
2. A lean, scraggy person (Sc. 1880 Jam.). This meaning is somewhat doubtful.
III. v. To write in a thin, spidery, sprawling hand, to scrawl (Bnff. 1866 Gregor D. Bnff. 163).
[Appar. a back-formation with extended meanings of Skrankie, q.v.]You may wish to vary the format shown below depending on the citation style used.
"Skrank adj., n., v.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 19 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/skrank>
