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 13 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/posh_n1>
