A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue (up to 1700)
Hide Quotations Hide Etymology
About this entry:
First published 1983 (DOST Vol. V).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1375, 1475-1623
[1,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]
Ourhy(e, v. [North. ME. aure-hie (c 1420); cf. Overhy(e v.] 1. To overtake, catch. 1375 Barb. vi. 598.
[They] followit hym so spedely, That thai him weill soyn can our-hy 1375 Ib. iii. 737. c1475 Acts of Schir William Wallace iv. 81.
Be est Cathcart he our-hyede thaim agayne c1475 Ib. v. 943. 1540 Selkirk B. Ct. (ed.) 223.
James Saltoun chassit Thome Nycholl ky … and quhen he ourtuk thaim he straik thaim realy, and quhen he coucht nocht ourhy thaim he [etc.] 1591-2 Rob Stene 11.
We ar bot deid gif thay ourhy ws 1591-2 Ib. 14.
Thay war ourhyit
2. To overcome, defeat. Cf. Overhale v. 2. a1500 Peblis to Play 146.
He gaif ane schout, his wyff come out, Scantlie scho micht our hy him 1581-1623 James VI Poems II. 123/35.
Thus crakkit ye … As Dares did quhenas he did ourhye Eneas court, nor could not find a man That matche him durst
You may wish to vary the format shown below depending on the citation style used.
"Ourhy v.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 15 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/dost/ourhye>
