Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1971 (SND Vol. VIII).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1790, 1843-1949
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SONNET, n. Sc. usages:
1. A song, a ditty (Bnff., Ags., Per. 1971), prob. as reminiscences of Burns.Ayr. 1790 Burns Tam o' Shanter 84:
Whiles crooning o'er some auld Scots sonnet.Per. 1843 R. Nicoll Poems 82:
Mither spinning sat, droning auld sonnets to her wheel.Per. 1898 C. Spence Poems 86:
Will sat souffing sonnets at the gill.
2. A tale, a yarn, a (tall) story, nonsense (Bnff. 1866 Gregor D. Bnff. 174; Abd., Ags. 1971).Ags. a.1930:
My grannie would say sarcastically, "Oh, that's a new sonnet ye've gotten the day."Ags. 1949 Forfar Dispatch (24 March):
Ye've mebbe herd auld fowk on this sonnet.
3. A fuss, a to-do (Ags. 1971).Ags. 1891 Arbroath Guide (18 April) 3:
There'll be a gey sonnet aboot this when Marg'et comes in.Ags. 1896 A. Blair Rantin Robin 9:
There would be sure to be some ither thing to mak a sonnet aboot.
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"Sonnet n.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 6 Feb 2026 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/sonnet>
