A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue (up to 1700)
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First published 1951 (DOST Vol. II).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1500-1599
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Distell, v. [Variant of Distill v.] intr. and tr. To fall (or let fall) in drops. c1500-c1512 Dunb. ix. 15.
With teiris of sorrow frome my ene distilling [: excelling, smelling, rebelling] 15.. Clariodus iii. 229.
Thir lovers … kissit utheris with tearis distelling c1552 Lynd. Mon. 215.
With … bitter teris distellyng frome myne eine c1552 Ib. 3839.
Quhen he Ierusalem beheld, The teris from his eine disteld c1590 J. Stewart 36/225.
Thair teirs distels bot onlie to distengȝie Our chastetie a1585 Polwart Flyt. 544 (T).
Provok my pen profundlie to distell Sum dour dispyt 1585 James VI Ess. 14.
The showris, Whose balmie dropps so softlie dois distell
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"Distell v.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 18 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/dost/distell>
