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: 1787-1955
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HOO, n.1, v., interj. Also hou(e), hu; hooie (Per.), hooh(i), hui(e), huuy, and reduplic. forms hoo-hoo; hui-hoy. Cf. Hoy. [Sc. hu:, ne.Sc., Per. + ′hui]
I. n. 1. A cry uttered to attract attention (Abd., Per., hooie, Rnf., Rxb. 1957), to frighten birds or cattle (Bnff. 1866 Gregor D. Bnff. 80, hoo, huie; ne.Sc. 1957), to encourage co-ordination of effort, and to imitate the cry of an owl; the sound of loud moaning.Slk. 1807 Hogg Mountain Bard 109:
Hu! tear him, tear him limb from limb!Sc. 1851 Carlyle J. Sterling ii. v. 190:
A dreary pulpit or even conventicle manner; that flattest moaning hoo-hoo of predetermined pathos.Bnff. 1866 Gregor D. Bnff. 80:
Gee a hoo t' yir father t' cum haim till's dainner.Bnff. 1887 G. G. Green Gordonhaven iii.:
With a succession of “hui-hoi”, “hurrah-ooings”, they pushed and shoved in an irregular and indiscriminate manner.wm.Sc. 1920 D. Mackenzie Pride o' Raploch 32:
And wi' ilk' blast a wearie, eerie hoo Swep' roon the lums an' birled rafters through.
2. In dim. form, a chimney-sweep's assistant, from his calling hoo! down the chimneys (Edb. 1957). Cf. 1837 quot. s.v. II. 2.
II. v. 1. To hoot like an owl (Ags. 1957); to howl, gen. of the wind.Dmf. 1810 R. H. Cromek Remains 276:
When the gray Howlet has three times hoo'd.Cld. 1818 Scots Mag. (Oct.) 328:
Doun cam the rain an' souchan' hail, Wil' sang the houan' win.Dmf. 1850 J. W. Carlyle Letters (Froude 1883) II. 114:
That barenecked hooing gawk Stewart.Ags. 1894 J. B. Salmond My Man Sandy (1899) ix.:
He [the wind] garred it rattle . . . then he yawled, an' hooed, an' growled like five hunder cats an' as mony dogs wirryin' them.
2. To shout in order to attract attention from a distance (Cld. 1825 Jam.; Bnff. 1880 Ib.; Ags., Per., hooie, Rnf., Rxb. 1957), to halloo. Ppl.adj. hooin, resounding, ringing.Sc. 1819 J. Rennie St Patrick III. xii.:
That vile rip O'Neil, it has gi'en us sae muckle hunnin' and hooin' through the hale kintra.Lnk. 1827 J. Watt Poems 98:
Foxy frae 'mang the whins steals peulin', Syne sic a hooin', sic a yeulin'.wm.Sc. 1837 Laird of Logan 207:
What needs you sit hoo-hooing there, like a sweep in a lum.Ags. 1896 A. Blair Rantin Robin 43:
They instantly began to “Hoo” at Marget, an' some o' them flang a snawba at her.Abd. 1932 R. L. Cassie Scots Sangs 15:
Hooin, hysin while they're roamin.
3. To scare birds or straying animals away from growing crops (Bnff. 1866 Gregor D. Bnff. 80, hoo, huie; ne.Sc. 1957, hooie); also used in a more gen. sense = to drive away (Gregor; Abd. 1957, hooie).Clc. 1787 Lockhart Burns (1828) 155:
[She] delighted him by giving as her toast after dinner, Hoohi uncos — away strangers!Ags. 1848 Feast Lit. Crumbs (1891) 16:
And wi' the herdie's hooin' cry, Gar a' the echoing woodlands ring.Bnff. 1955 Banffshire Jnl. (15 Feb.):
Whan hameless fowk tak' shelter, In some bit skathie o' a beild, They're hooeyt oot helter skelter.
4. To exclaim hoo! in the dancing of a Highland reel. See Hooch.Mearns 1844 W. Jamie Muse 103:
And noo the hooing it began, The Piper played wi' ilka hand.
III. interj. Of a cry to scare birds: shoo! (Kcb. 1900).
[Imit. Also found in Eng. but more common in Sc., esp. as v.]You may wish to vary the format shown below depending on the citation style used.
"Hoo n.1, v., interj.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 5 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/hoo_n1_v_interj>
