Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1956 (SND Vol. IV).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1868-1890
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GOO, v.2, n.3 Also †gou, gow. [gu:]
I. v. 1. Of an infant: to coo (Sc. 1808 Jam.; ne. and em.Sc., Rxb. 1954). Also reduplicative goo-goo (Slg.3, Edb.1 1954).Abd. 1868 W. Shelley Wayside Flowers 65:
She hings roun' his neck, and goo-goos in his face, And fain wad she coax him to stay.Sc. 1874 W. Allan Hame-spun Lilts 441:
Twa lips like Cupid's bow, That lauch an' goo, but canna speak.Sc. 1890 Whistle-Binkie II. 107:
Bendin' noo, to grip her feet, Gooin' wi' delight. . . Is oor wee, wee wean.
2. To retch, make the sound of retching.Ayr. 1880 W. Aitken Rhymes & Readings 12:
For the door he then made, wildly gapin' and gooin', And the soun's that we heard was like somebody spewin'.Ags. 1890 Mod. Sc. Poets XIII. 262:
Wi' the constant cuckoo sang My very heart was like to goo.
II. n. ‡1. A cooing sound (Sc. 1818 Sawers, gou). Phr.¶to play goo, to coo.Rnf. 1870 J. Nicholson Idylls 19:
An' they canna play "goo!" wi' their wee rosy mou'. Hum! a doll wi' a wean to compare!
2. The sound of retching, nausea; fig. distaste, disgust, in phrs. to get (tak) a (the) goo (Dmf. 1954); also in extended usage: "to run off without paying one's debts, to make what is called a moonlight flitting" (Ags. 1808 Jam., tak the gow). Cf. also Gull.
[Imit. in origin, like Eng. coo.]You may wish to vary the format shown below depending on the citation style used.
"Goo v.2, n.3". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 3 Apr 2026 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/goo_v2_n3>
