Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
Hide Quotations Hide Etymology
About this entry:
First published 1960 (SND Vol. V).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1751, 1826-1835, 1902-1945
[0,0,0,0,0,1,0,0,0,0,0,0,1,1,0,0,0,0,0,0,1,1,1,1,1,0,0,0,0,0]
IDIOTICAL, adj., n. [idi′otɪkl]
I. adj. Idiotic, foolish, senseless, stupid (ne. and em.Sc. 1958). Now obs. in Eng.Sc. 1751 Smollett Pereg. Pickle IV. 74:
The idiotical hag that writes, or causes to be writ, this same letter, has ruined her family.Sc. 1835 H. Miller Scenes & Leg. 427:
Persons of an idiotical cast of mind.Fif.10 1945:
I never heard onything sae idiotical as that!
II. n. Nonsense, a foolish thing, trash. Gen. found in pl.Ayr. 1826 Galt Lairds i.:
No to summer and winter on idioticals . . . the Laird told me, that he would na be at hame to a living soul.Per. 1902 E.D.D.:
Newspapers are characterized as idioticals.
You may wish to vary the format shown below depending on the citation style used.
"Idiotical adj., n.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 13 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/idiotical>
