Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1960 (SND Vol. V). Includes material from the 1976 supplement.
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1846
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IDLE, adj. Sc. usages in phrs.: (1) idle-employed (Wgt. 1958), (2) idle o' wark (Mry. 1958), at a loss for work, with little to do; (3) to fyte the idle pin, to lounge about wasting time. See Fite, v.(2) Sc. 1846 J. W. Carlyle New Letters (1903) I. 216:
Robertson had called ten days ago, and left a request that I “would send him word to the club when I returned”! I should have been “gey idle o' wark” I think!
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"Idle adj.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 7 Apr 2026 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/idle>
