Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1968 (SND Vol. VII).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1870-1930
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POSH, n.1 Also poach-. [poʃ] 1. A child's name for porridge. Gen.Sc. Also in dim. forms poachie (Abd., Per. 1903 E.D.D.), poshie (Ork., Abd., Ags., Per., Gsw. 1966). Hence posh(ie)-pat, a porridge-pot, posh-time, time for porridge, a meal-time.Mry. 1870 W. Tester Select Poems 128:
Come awa' tae yer posh, sup as muckle's ye can, For dad will be hame in a jiffey, gude man!Dmf. 1873 A. Anderson Song of Labour 60:
He winna sup his poshie, the buffy, curly loon.Edb. 1876 J. Smith Archie and Bess 64:
He'll get his bonnie, bonnie poshie and milkie out o' his ain wee luggie puggie.Lnk. 1893 J. Crawford Verses 20:
Aye yaup at posh time as the ravens.Ags. 1897 A. Reid Bards Ags. 494:
Come awa' to yer poshie, ye wee toddlin' lammie.Abd.121930:
Roon aboot the poshie-pot One, two, three, Gin ye wint a bonnie lassie Jist tak' me.
2. Fast turns of the rope in skipping (Slk. 1966). See Porridge.
[Phs. simply imit., but thought of as a child's corrupted form of porridge. There may also be some influence from Eng. dial. posh, a soft pulpy mass, slush.]You may wish to vary the format shown below depending on the citation style used.
"Posh n.1". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 8 Feb 2026 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/posh_n1>
